Ullianov

As of today, I've never played a turn-based strategy RPG like Rondo of Sword. The game is very crude, lacking in some important ways (hidden stats and abilities, little to no information about skills...), the plot isn't that good and most of the characters turns into empty shells as the story advances, but it is unique in a well estabilished genre. Thoughtful strategies (the Route Maneuver System is a blast take time to learn about it beforehand), hard missions, great depth in character's build and party planning: there are as much things to dilike as things to like, but overall, I find it worthwhile.

Crimson Shroud ia presented as a table-top RPG: the characters and the enemies are represented by static figurines, the exploration is accomplished by selecting which room to go in a featureless map (as if it was drawn on paper), the story is delivered via text and resembles a novel, and there are some gameplay mechanics with dice involved. I find the story and the storytelling particularly compelling, with two narratives and a convoluted plot that is kinda mature for the genre. The long turn-based battles have great depth (also excelent soundtracks), but the dice rolling is, in fact, a very secondary aspect of it: you'll spend much more time micro managing your stats, magics and skills (which is done via your equipaments), which I think is for the best. The game's other elements probably do better in actual table-top games, but since the game is kinda short, it never really became a hindrance. I'd recommend it only to RPG fans, as there are certainly rewarding moments.

An action RPG with a charming cast of characters, each playing differently from one another, a good action-oriented gameplay (which slows down occasionally) and a goofy plot that never takes itself too seriously. The game progresses through missions (which lack variety) that seldom are hard to complete; little to no grinding required (still some micro management on equipments and status though). The coop and vs mode increases the longevity of the game. The perfect example of "good but not great" game for me.

I was hoping for a metroidvania experience (albeit in a short form), but I was displeased by the RPG-esque aspects (dialogs, fetch quests), even in a greater extent than when I was playing Cave Story (still wanted more Cave and less Story in that; maybe I should just stop buying Nicalis' stuff). But if you loved Cave Story and don't mind playing an underwater platformer, you should be fine.