Let's say it first : "Lorelei and LL" is brilliant in its aesthetic, and in the feeling of mystery it carries. I get it. The atmosphere is unique - and will not suit everyone, but will be amazing to some others. Some of the puzzles are one of the most brilliant ever seen - especially the ones that revolves around "gaming itself." and the most global ones. Yet, i don't get how people can give it a nearly perfect score. The control scheme is utterly annoying and frustrating.. Moreover, while some puzzles are brilliants, some others are just tedious. And last but not least, most of them are only about converting digits into symbols. It's the same old translating process over and over, again and again. It's sometimes well executed, it has some meta meaning, ok. But it's nowhere close to be a GOTY containder. So all in all, ok, play it, it's lovely, it has brilliant moments, and sometimes it's very rewarding. But be also prepared to encounter teeth-gritting stuff. If you are used to "escape rooms" games and logic puzzles, you'll see a lot of stuff you already know. And repetitive ****. That does not make it a bad game, again it's GREAT, but it is certainly not "a masterpiece close to perfection". Only a good and haunting game, which is already more than we can ask for.
P3R isa phenomenal game... if you are in for the Persona-like style. The issues will be the same as every other Persona games, and same for the qualities : funny battle and progression systems, awesome writing (despite the awkward macho moments), deep and dark themes (be ready for disturbing images and thoughts, especially on the topic of death & suicide) , top-notch aesthetics.
The gripes will always be the same : if you can't fully dive into the gameplay loop, you may find it repetitive and boring once you have understood what it's about. Also, like any Persona game, this is a time management game where the game stops you in your perfect schedule because scenario - which is good dramatically, but can irritate some players.
Overall, it was fun, i felt sad to leave all those wonderful characters behind me at the end, and aesthetically, it was a pure blast (do you know many games in which you LOVE to go in the menus ?)
Prince of Persia The Lost Crown is more than just a nice surprise. This game captures the essence of challenging platforiming and metroidvania-like. Every space, every room, every corridor, seems crafted by people knowing what they are doing, and why they are doing it. The platforming is fun, the combat is dynamic, and the story isn't too much of a hassle. The game is challenging, but offers a truckload of options to tune the difficulties (both platform and combat) down or up, and the game itself as a lot of nice little options well-inspired everywhere. Technically, it's a boon, targetting 60 fps and reaching it "almost all the time" - minor slowdowns everynow and then, but the updates tend to vastly fix them. While visually not striking, the backgrounds are sometimes really stunning and the action is very readable, and the animations and poses are energizing. And the music gives a lovely eastern authentic feel. There is honestly little you can blame the game for, and this game deserves praise not only for its own qualities, but also for how it shines amongst other repetitive, bland, and dull AAA games. The industry needs more of this.
Foretales is an interesting mix of narrative and card-game. While not much of a challenge, it's a refreshing way of enjoying the good old feel from mulitple-choices adventure books of the 80's.
The experience is smooth, the drawings are in a lovely classic Disney style, with delicious expressions, the narrator's, voice is funnily grandiloquent, and the music is really sweet.
As a cherry on top, there is a replay value with multiple branches scenarios.
Definetly a lovely ride for people looking for a nice adventure game, not too hard, but charming, and impressive for a small, young studio. Can't wait to see the formula refined and pushed forward.
Of course, if you don't like puzzle games with minimalistic style, this is NOT for you. Otherwise... Brilliant. The most brilliant puzzle game i have played for decades. Patrick's Parabox constantly challenges you AND blows your mind, and it seems to never stop as the level goes on and on. The puzzles are well-paced, never too hard or too long to resolve, making it less frustrating than a Baba is You for instance - yet they are amazingly satisfying when you finally solve them. And from a gameplay standpoint, this is pure videogame. Nothing else than a VIDEO game can give you these perspective, recursive, loop de loop tricks. Try the demo : it gives enough insight to realize if you like this game or not. But i honestly don't see what's what possibly wrong with the whole design.
