Pokémon Pokopia is a huge new direction for Pokémon, much bigger than might be expected for a spin-off. It retains the heart of Pokémon with literally hundreds of different monsters to chat with, and it's always a lot of fun to see who's showing up next. The different areas are nicely designed, frequently with interesting secret areas, although it can feel overwhelming arriving at a new island and seeing just how much there is to do to bring it back from the edge of ruin. There's a long way to go to discover how the world got broken and then fixing it, but as the days roll by and the islands come back to life, the hope that maybe a Ditto and its trainer might eventually be reunited grows with the health and comfort of the reappearing Pokémon.
Just like both of its predecessors, Monster Hunter Stories 3: Twisted Reflection is a fantastic turn-based RPG with monster-raising elements. With satisfying challenges and depth to its mechanics, it’s an impressive new entry to its franchise, rewarding fans with an epic experience.
Fatal Frame 2: Crimson Butterly is a horror classic that’s unfortunately weighed down by questionable design changes. While it’s just as tense and atmospheric as ever, very much helped by the terrific audio and visual design, the focus on combat creates an experience less about the horror and more about ghostly engagements. Some of the changes are welcome, such as the quality-of-life improvements when selecting film on the fly and filters for the Camera Obscura, but the aggravated wraith addition causes more of a headache than it does exciting encounters. In the end, Fatal Frame 2: Crimson Butterfly Remake makes a lot of improvements to the formula and overall exploration of the world, but focuses too heavily on the combat.
Tales of Berseria was the last mainline game before the franchise was reborn anew with Arise, and you can certainly feel its age. It retains a lot of the bad habits from the games of the 2010s, such as inconsistent visual quality and linear dungeon designs. It doesn’t help that while a handful of quality-of-life improvements have been made, they aren’t enough to justify a full repurchase. Thankfully, what carries the JRPG is the rest of the experience. The combat is fast-paced, fluid and highly engaging. The story is darker and more mature with a likable cast of characters. And of course, the soundtrack from famed composer Motoi Sakuraba helps immerse the player into the world. Tales of Berseria is one of the best Tales games out there, so it’s a shame that Bandai Namco has done little in adapting it for the next generation.
If you’re specifically looking for a non-traditional, colorful tennis game to play with your friends, then Mario Tennis Fever will fill the void. Unfortunately, the latest Switch 2 entry into the subseries does little memorable and enticing outside of this. It has solid gameplay mechanics, with a variety of characters and rackets to choose from, but there’s not much of note outside of this. It doesn’t help that the Adventure mode is a glorified tutorial. In the end, all Mario Tennis Fever amounts to is a short distraction with friends with minimal enjoyment outside of that.
Pokémon FireRed and LeafGreen are major classics in the franchise that still hold up well enough to be worth exploring for fans of RPGs and the series itself. On the other hand, as a new release of an old game, it's one of the most barebones releases possible and there's no good reason for it to not have at least something extra to justify it as a commemorative edition.
Pokémon FireRed and LeafGreen are major classics in the franchise that still hold up well enough to be worth exploring for fans of RPGs and the series itself. On the other hand, as a new release of an old game, it's one of the most barebones releases possible and there's no good reason for it to not have at least something extra to justify it as a commemorative edition.
Esoteric Ebb is a fantastic RPG with a gripping narrative and plenty of options to explore. There’s so much to do and so many threads to explore that it can be a little overwhelming at first, especially with the lack of a simpler list of potential tasks or other guidance. For those that insist on it, what you get is a full-course meal into a mesmerizing fantasy world.
It's not too often that a game comes out at a low price that makes you feel willing to pay more if they had just added certain things. This is the case for iRacing Arcade. Was this a game simply because there was extra room in their budget or was iRacing just testing the waters? If there is a sequel, they know what to add after this. The racing, the aesthetic, and the Career Mode are the draw in iRacing Arcade. At just $25, any racing fan needs to pick it up. Players will need a group of friends to lobby up, though, as there isn't matchmaking for online racing and not much else going on outside the Career Mode. This also does get grindy and repetitive. These cars could be made into toys, as the reflections really showcase the detail in these caricatures of automobiles. The racing is fun at the right difficulty level, and is completely worth the price of admission.
Resident Evil Requiem is a game for new and old fans alike. It contains the identity of both the recent entries in the franchise and some of the remakes, meshing both horror and action that works most of the time.
