Devereux

You know those 'down-time' moments you have in your JRPGs where your party members split up and you can talk to them for bonding scenes? Well that's basically what all of Sakura Wars is... with a small amount of hack and slash combat on the side. You spend the large majority of the game engaging in light hearted Anime-esque skits and conversations with the almost exclusively female cast. You'll be peeping on them in the bath, looking up their skirts and getting up close and personal with all of them as the Captain of their Combat Revue. This is what the core gameplay is made up of so if you're looking to tap into your inner perv, you're golden! However if you're looking for a deep JRPG with a focus on combat or exploration, you'll want to keep moving. It is unclear whether it was intentional for the gameplay balance to be so far on the dating sim side and so lacking on the action role playing side, but this is what we have. To break up your ogling and peeping, there are short hack & slash combat sections. There isn't much to say about the combat other than it is extremely simplistic and easy with no character customisation, EXP or skills to gain or advanced mechanics to learn. It's clear the main chunk of development was put into the visuals and music because the game looks and sounds incredible. The level of polish on the character models & environments is extremely high, the textures on clothes and surfaces are gorgeous. From the shiny marble floors of the theatre cafe to the intricate stitching on Sakura's kimono, everything in the game is a treat to look at. The soundtrack is equally as delectable, with distinct themes for each character and unique, catchy music for each area of the game. The pacing of the story is very slow for the first two thirds and then bulldozes through to the end, it almost feels like the game was cut down to be a lot shorter than it was intended to be. Certain plot twists happen and then are not relevant at all and a lot of foreshadowing never amounts to anything. It's a shame because it feels like this was intended to be a much denser game than what the end product has ended up being. SEGA unfortunately dropped the ball with Sakura Wars. What we have is an extremely good looking, great sounding interactive Anime show. If you're looking for a next-gen dating simulator then you will be very happy but for anyone rightly expecting a JRPG with complex combat or expansive exploration, you will be disappointed.

A shining example of how a sequel can improve on the original in every possible way. With its silky smooth controls, charming visuals and music, endless secrets & discoveries and rewarding, skill-based gameplay, Spelunky 2 is a true delight. Probably the best rogue-like platformer ever made.

A shining example of how a sequel can improve on the original in every possible way. With its silky smooth controls, charming visuals and music, endless secrets & discoveries and rewarding, skill-based gameplay, Spelunky 2 is a true delight. Probably the best rogue-like platformer ever made.

Nexomon: Extinction is an unexpected welcome alternative to more mainstream 'Monster Catching' games with a focus on challenging combat, rich dialogue and an engaging plot! The general gameplay formula is what you would expect from a game of this nature; traverse through various regions of the world while collecting monsters and battling other 'Tamers'. Where this game succeeds at being a fresh experience is by giving the player the freedom to go pretty much anywhere they want at any time. There are story missions to follow but if you want to completely ignore these and travel to the furthest corners of the map, you can! This impressive open-world game design is achieved through progressive level scaling. In every area of the game, all wild Nexomon and tamers grow stronger alongside you as you progress through the story missions. While the level scaling provides a nice challenge when traversing through dungeons and re-visiting earlier areas, the downside of this is that it undermines the effort you put into levelling up your Nexomon. You are able to simply catch high-level Nexomon that are stronger than the ones you have been putting effort into developing. This issue is further highlighted by individual Nexomon not having unique stats or values. If two monsters of the same name are the same level, they will have exactly the same stats. This makes your precious party members feel very expendable. Visually the game is delightfully colourful and stylised. Environments are detailed and varied, characters have full screen, expressionate character portraits and monster designs are impressively varied given that there are almost 400 of them! However it is very apparent that the game was developed in a game engine originally designed for smart phones. Even on a console as powerful as the Switch, there can be a lot of stuttering and frame-rate issues when a lot of NPCs are in the same area and even when simply scrolling through the 'Nexodex' in the menu. The soundtrack does its job with story themes that are emotional and catchy battle music that doesn't get repetitive. Every town and field area has its own theme giving every area a distinct feel which is appreciated. Nothing groundbreaking but a sincere effort. Combat is also... fine. Typical turn based 1v1 battles with a focus on exploiting elemental weaknesses. What the combat system lacks in depth, it makes up for in challenge. Your average 'Tamer' that you pass en-route won't have one or two weak Nexomon, they will have full teams that are fully evolved and ready to put you through your paces. Bosses will wipe the floor with any players who aren't being mindful of their team's elemental synergy. Where the game does hit strong however is with the story. There is more development and depth that you would typically expect from a game of this nature. With a large, colourful cast of characters and great dialogue, there is a lot of motivation to battle your way through the story missions. As you proceed through the main story, you also unlock abilities that give you access to previously closed off areas of the game. This gives you a 'Zelda'-esque feeling of being smart for remembering a chest you could see before but couldn't access. Nexomon: Extinction has made an impressive splash onto consoles. For what is a sequel to a game originally released on smart phones, it provides an RPG experience that is earnestly well rounded. It is an extremely fun game with a generous amount of content that looks and sounds great. For the price it is available for, it is a must-buy for any fans of 'Monster Catching' games.

Nexomon: Extinction is an unexpected welcome alternative to more mainstream 'Monster Catching' games with a focus on challenging combat, rich dialogue and an engaging plot! The general gameplay formula is what you would expect from a game of this nature; traverse through various regions of the world while collecting monsters and battling other 'Tamers'. Where this game succeeds at being a fresh experience is by giving the player the freedom to go pretty much anywhere they want at any time. There are story missions to follow but if you want to completely ignore these and travel to the furthest corners of the map, you can! This impressive open-world game design is achieved through progressive level scaling. In every area of the game, all wild Nexomon and tamers grow stronger alongside you as you progress through the story missions. While the level scaling provides a nice challenge when traversing through dungeons and re-visiting earlier areas, the downside of this is that it undermines the effort you put into levelling up your Nexomon. You are able to simply catch high-level Nexomon that are stronger than the ones you have been putting effort into developing. This issue is further highlighted by individual Nexomon not having unique stats or values. If two monsters of the same name are the same level, they will have exactly the same stats. This makes your precious party members feel very expendable. Visually the game is delightfully colourful and stylised. Environments are detailed and varied, characters have full screen, expressionate character portraits and monster designs are impressively varied given that there are almost 400 of them! However it is very apparent that the game was developed in a game engine originally designed for smart phones. Even on a console as powerful as the PS4, there can be a lot of stuttering and frame-rate issues when a lot of NPCs are in the same area and even when simply scrolling through the 'Nexodex' in the menu. The soundtrack does its job with story themes that are emotional and catchy battle music that doesn't get repetitive. Every town and field area has its own theme giving every area a distinct feel which is appreciated. Nothing groundbreaking but a sincere effort. Combat is also... fine. Typical turn based 1v1 battles with a focus on exploiting elemental weaknesses. What the combat system lacks in depth, it makes up for in challenge. Your average 'Tamer' that you pass en-route won't have one or two weak Nexomon, they will have full teams that are fully evolved and ready to put you through your paces. Bosses will wipe the floor with any players who aren't being mindful of their team's elemental synergy. Where the game does hit strong however is with the story. There is more development and depth that you would typically expect from a game of this nature. With a large, colourful cast of characters and great dialogue, there is a lot of motivation to battle your way through the story missions. As you proceed through the main story, you also unlock abilities that give you access to previously closed off areas of the game. This gives you a 'Zelda'-esque feeling of being smart for remembering a chest you could see before but couldn't access. Nexomon: Extinction has made an impressive splash onto consoles. For what is a sequel to a game originally released on smart phones, it provides an RPG experience that is earnestly well rounded. It is an extremely fun game with a generous amount of content that looks and sounds great. For the price it is available for, it is a must-buy for any fans of 'Monster Catching' games.

A remake handled in the best way! With options to switch between remastered and classic versions of the music and visuals at any time, being able to enjoy the new music and artwork while having the function to have a peak at what the game was more similar to back in the 90s is very much appreciated. It's easy to recommend this game to anyone who likes strategy games, particularly Japanese ones with Anime art styles like Fire Emblem. The defining characteristic of the game is the many alternate story routes. The branching paths in the plot provide tons of replay value and give opportunities for characters to be developed in a variety of ways. Absolutely loved every second of both games. Adored the classic 90s Anime artwork, catchy & emotional music, over the top dramatic plot lines and memorable characters. If Langrisser III-V get the remake treatment as well, they will be a must-buy for me.

A remake handled in the best way! With options to switch between remastered and classic versions of the music and visuals at any time, being able to enjoy the new music and artwork while having the function to have a peak at what the game was more similar to back in the 90s is very much appreciated. It's easy to recommend this game to anyone who likes strategy games, particularly Japanese ones with Anime art styles like Fire Emblem. The defining characteristic of the game is the many alternate story routes. The branching paths in the plot provide tons of replay value and give opportunities for characters to be developed in a variety of ways. Absolutely loved every second of both games. Adored the classic 90s Anime artwork, catchy & emotional music, over the top dramatic plot lines and memorable characters. If Langrisser III-V get the remake treatment as well, they will be a must-buy for me.