Don’t be fooled by the cute anthropomorphic cats and dogs or the soft, colourful art style: Fuga: Melodies of Steel is a dark, confronting game. Telling a story about the human cost of war through the eyes of some of a group of children as they fight for survival and …
When I played the original release of Project Zero: Maiden of Black Water on Wii U, I really didn’t like it. It was a game that, on paper, sounded exactly like my kind of thing, but all I found was squandered potential. In reviewing it (for another site that’s no …
There’s a lot going on in Life is Strange: True Colors. On one level, it’s a murder investigation with a supernatural twist thanks to a young woman’s ability to read the minds and memories of people during moments of intense emotion. On another, it’s a small-town slice of life, focused …
As a throwback to the shmups of the early 90s, there’s a certain appeal in Crisis Wing. Its colourful yet moody pixel art and looming, detailed enemy ships call to mind Toaplan classics like Truxton, and it’s got the challenge to match. But it’s also a game that feels a …
The Caligula Effect is one of the most criminally underrated games of recent memory. A deeply intelligent JRPG that turns the familiar “save the world” premise completely on its head, that takes a more nuanced and thought-provoking approach to moral philosophy than just about any other game ever made, that …
I wish I’d been as into shmups in 1997 as I am today, because playing G-Darius when it was brand new must have been absolutely mind-blowing. Even as I play it for the first time in 2021, in the form of a fairly rudimentary HD remaster on a little handheld …
You could be forgiven for never having heard of Xuan Yuan Sword, given that, until now, it’s had almost no international presence—a couple of poorly-translated multilingual Steam releases and Asia-region versions with English language support being the full extent. But this is a series with a long and storied history …
Mary Skelter Finale brings Compile Heart’s provocative trilogy to a close as it adds a unique, multi-party twist on the classic dungeon crawl. At a time when pop culture is particularly interested in reinterpretations of classic fairy tale characters, few works stand out like Mary Skelter. Its decidedly fetishistic tone …
At first glance, Patron is something very familiar: a strategy-focused city builder in a medieval setting, calling to mind The Settlers, Anno, Banished, Stronghold, and countless others. It certainly wears its inspirations on its sleeve, but it also makes an ambitious effort to carve its own path, hinging those bets …
There are few developers who are as consistent as Otomate when it comes to thoughtfully pushing the boundaries of the stories videogames can tell. The framework of an otome game is perfect for exploring the depths of the human soul at its best and worst, and Otomate has long made …
