Reviews

If you don't play many bullet hell, fast-paced twin-stick action games, Furi will likely test your sanity. You start your game as a stranger, imprisoned in a highly advanced ten island prison complex which floats in orbit above a planet's surface. A man wearing a rabbit disguise frees you, gives you a sword and gun, and leaves you with one idea in your mind "The Jailer is the key. Kill him, and you will be free.".

This game is a sci-fi version of Afro Samurai, where you have to battle each islands Guardian to progress, similar to games like Shadow of the Colossus, you fight only with these Guardians. That makes every boss feel like the last boss fight in any other game. These fights are stylish, fast-paced, intense rounds of endurance. I almost gave up, at one Guardian, called The Burst, it was so hard, and if you lose, you have to start that fight sequence from the beginning,  hearing the same dialog over and over again. I mastered that fight, but one sequence and after another beating I deleted the game, infuriated. But the game was so good that after the dust settled and anger faded away, I installed it again and beat the boss after the first try. The feeling you get when beating hard enemy was only matched by souls games experience. So don't forget, "The Jailer is the key. Kill him, and you will be free.".

TL;DR
A great run-and-gun puzzle platformer with witty humor, though a trivial plot. The early Bioware game:)

A review through nostalgic glasses but I think I can do it justice.

MDK 2 is a run-and-gun shooter with platformer and puzzle elements. The story is very trivial with aliens coming down to Earth to mine it for resources and destroy it. The player's goal is to destroy aliens and their nefarious plots.

While the story is straightforward as it can possibly be, the gameplay is not so much so when you deep dive into it. You're still running and gunning but with the roster of 3 characters that have levels, puzzles and platformer sections designed especially for them, you get enough distinction to be entertained through the game.
When I was a wee kid that didn't understand any English, my favorite of 3 main characters was the dog, Max, as he was just mowing down aliens with a gun in each paw (he has 6 limbs, 4 of them can hold guns, yep). Kurt went closely second since he had an unlimited ammo in his machine gun but there were sniper elements in his gameplay, and oh boy I sucked at aiming. And the least favorite for me back in the day was the Doctor who only had an atomic toaster as a weapon, but he was able to combine trivial things into powerful things that would destroy everyone. Or also Hulk out! Well, now I understand how to play the Doc and it's heaps of fun.
And dividing the gameplay between 3 characters brings it more replayability (but you can only choose between them for the ending which affects it in a slight way).
The aforementioned level design is top-notch as its tailored to the character you're playing with: alien ships and stations for Kurt and Max, with eccentric space research station for Doc. You rarely stop to admire it but you always know where to go and what to do without feeling lost (some spaces can be quite huge for the game of that year).
Music gets you going with a bit of rock and beat with undertone alien sounds to keep you pumped up while the sound design makes you feel those heaps of bullets you're spending on enemies and their satisfying death screams.
Humor is peppered throughout the whole story making it manageable to consume. Because if the game took itself seriously, many would feel a bit of dissapointment. But since it can poke fun at itself and the ridiculous plot with its witty dialogue you forgive the pathos.

It's been redone with HD graphics for PC but you can still buy the original for Switch or on GOG. Both versions are pretty good: but there might be some compatibility issues. 

All in all, it's a solid game that can still hold its own even today when you just want to spend 3-4 hours having a not-so-mindless fun!

When it comes to feeling unease and just plain creepy, there is nothing better than Japanese Ghost stories. Movies like Ju-On and Ringu series (or their American adaptations: The Grudge and The Ring series) are probably two of the most famous films in this category and while they never really produce any jump-scares or focuses heavily on blood and gore, they provide a tense, uneasy feeling throughout the film.

The Yomawari series from NIS nails this feeling, as they're a disturbing and twisted take on an Urban Ghost story that will is guaranteed to make players feel uneasy about the entire situation they find themselves in. Now compiled into one game on the Nintendo Switch, players will be able to enjoy both titles - Yomawari: Night Alone and Yomawari: Midnight Shadows - on their TV or portable.

 Night Alone sees you in control of a young girl who while walking her dog, experiences a near-miss with a transport, only to find her dog is now missing. Upon returning home, her elder sister offers to look for the dog in the dark streets. After a few hours, the young girl decides to search for her sister and her dog only to find creatures in the shadows scattered all over the town. Midnight Shadows gives us a more emotional story by putting the fate of two best friends - Yui and Haru - on the line. As the two friends are separated after watching a fireworks display, they attempt to find each other in the dark city.

 Both Yomawari games share some similarities, mainly that they both involve young children somewhere around 8-12 years old searching for someone/something at night full of creepy ghosts/spirits, and both dealing with a loss, something that really sets the story apart from other run-of-the-mill horror titles.

 There is no fair way to say that one game has a better story over the other, as they both deliver an emotional punch out of the gates and keeps it rolling until the very end. I've also never had a game that made me audibly gasp, sad and pissed off during a tutorial scene, setting the mood for what would come almost perfectly.

 Gameplay takes inspiration from run-and-hide horror titles like Amnesia and Outlast but takes place in a top-down perspective. Players have no defence against the spirits and ghosts, and can only run when encountering the creatures. You can't run forever though, as running requires stamina which when drained can slow you to a stop, leaving you open to being captured. Players also are given the ability to hide in a bush or behind objects, as well as distract them by throwing objects.

 While most games give you a point of view for when you're hiding, Yomawari has a much more effective strategy to making hiding one of the most stressful things you can do in the game by darkening the screen and using your heartbeat as sort of echolocation for how close the enemy is to you. It's a subtle mechanic that is extremely effective in this type of horror game.

Both Night Alone and Midnight Shadows have the same type of gameplay, but I do find that Midnight Shadows refines the controls and make it work better. Plus with the ability to take control of both Yui and Haru, as wells as the multiple endings based on items found during exploration really drives the game more than Night Alone.

There is something deceptively creepy about Yomawari's cute graphics. As most of the obviously human characters have an adorable almost chibi likeness, and the environments looking like a modern-day Japanese town, the darkness surrounding the town is unsettling and almost feeling unnatural. Monster designs are also very creative, based on Japanese Urban Legends and delivering a very macabre look, whether it's just a simple shadow creature to a giant face with spider-legs, or a bunch of hands with a number of eyeballs staring out at you.

These things are the things nightmares are made of. Yomawari: The Long Night Collection is a great collection for any horror fan as both games give you plenty of content, a great amount of replay value and plenty of genuine scares that will make you want to put the console down but a story that is so good that you won't want to.

Review based on the Nintendo Switch version of the game provided by NIS America - visit our site for the original review
https://gameitall.com/yomawari-the-long-night-collection-review/

The life of a shinobi in training is a difficult one and there is seldom any time for relaxation. So how to you keep your Ninja skills fresh but have a relaxing summer vacation with your friends. By having a LiveStreamed water-gun tournament!

This is essentially the plot behind the latest Senran Kagura title, Peach Beach Splash, an event hosted by a mysterious benefactor that sends the busty ninjas of the series to a water park for a Water Gun Tournament with the magical rule that the winners get to have whatever they desire.

Now if you haven’t played a Senran Kagura game, these titles usually involve a school of ninjas kicking plenty of ass and then having a one-on-one showdown with other ninjas from other schools, this usually ends in cloth ripping action that leaves one or more fighters too embarrassed to keep going. It’s ridiculous, but the gameplay is solid and can be a lot of fun if you can get around the perverseness of the titles.

Peach Beach Splash (henceforth called PBS because I’m too lazy to write it all out each time) doesn’t hide the perverted nature of the game, constantly reminding you that you’re playing a game with female characters having especially large chest area and wearing beach attire that might be a little too tight for some.

This is actually one of the features that makes PBS great, the game isn’t afraid of making fun of itself and still delivers a game that is a surprisingly deep shooter that is a blast to play. Most matches involves 5 on 5 battles in which players can choose one of their favourite Senran Kagura girls and select a water gun of their choice, from fine-aimed weapons like the Water Pistol and a Water Sniper, to rapid fire blasters like the twin pistols, gatling gun and assault rifle, to powerful weapons like the hose and bazooka.

Then we’re thrown into a fast pace watergun war where your objective is to get your opponent as wet as possible. Matches are usually quick bouts between the two rival team, or a horde of cannon fodder enemies that can quickly surround you if you’re not careful enough.

Since this is a game with Ninjas, you can expect everything to be fast. While the characters themselves are quite quick, they are helped by a water pack that can help them slide, double jump or hover at the cost of some of the water in their tanks. This forces players to think about the use of their weapons and abilities as refilling water can leave them open for attacks.

To accommodate the fast pace action, the game gives you two different ways of aiming, an automatic targeting system which you point your girl in the direction of your opponent lock on and start blasting, or a manual “spray’n’pray” mode. Given the speed and the frequent dodging, I recommend using the Automatic targeting, which surprising doesn’t take away from the fun of the battles.

Aside from waterguns, players can also do a melee attack to stun opponents and open them up for attacks. Players can also use trading cards earned by completing matches or spending in-game cash, which can help bring in special abilities to the battle. Duplicated cards can be sold for XP towards weapons, abilities and to the characters themselves.

Matches end when all players are down, however players generally have the ability to pick their allies back up. There is a perverse way of stopping of course, by walking up to a downed opponent and using a ducky watergun, spray water on the downed opponents chest, butt or face until their swimware falls off. There is no nudity in this as it is censored in a bright light, but it does serve as an embarrassing end to an opponents battle and at the same time gives you extra points.

Most of PBS content contains a story mode for all the Shinobi Academies participating in the event, which gives them a good 10 missions of play each, plus several different challenge modes and a great online mode. For those who like to play dress up, players can purchase customizable items and swimsuits, then dress up their favourite Ninja.

For those who like using the PS4 share feature, the Shower Room contains a diorama section allowing you to set up a scene with the characters and take fun screenshots.

If you can get past some of the more perverted features and jokes in the game, Senran Kagura is just a fun, light-hearted shooter that is just an absolute blast to play. I highly recommend to give it a try.

When NIS released the first Witch and The Hundred Knight, I’ll admit that I had some difficulties getting into the game, but it wasn’t for the game’s lack of charm. The game focused on a magical familiar called The Hundred Knight (rather than being 100 creatures, he was the Knight of a Hundred Tactics – according to the in-game witch tomb) and his Witch Master as they fought against other witches for more power. The Witch and Hundred Knight 2 keeps a lot of this charm but is easier to get into and to learn its mechanics, it also features an original story that doesn’t need the original to fall back thanks to a new cast of energetic characters.

Witch and the Hundred Knight 2 follows 2 sisters, Amalie and Milm. One day Milm goes missing from their village, only to return with a scar on her forehead, this is a symptom of Witch Disease, in which any child infected with it would die and become a powerful witch when the scar opens to reveal a third eye. Amalie and Milm leave their village in fear and in search for a cure.

The game jumps a head in time to the day that Milm undergoes surgery to remove the third eye, only to awaken as the powerful witch Chelka mid-surgery. Summoning life into Milm’s favourite doll – The Hundred Knight – they escape. Amalie – now part of the Witch Hunting organization called Weiss Ritter or WR for short, must now hunt her former sister.

Of course there is more than meets the eye when it comes to JRPGs, and Witch and The Hundred Knight 2’s story has plenty of twists to keep you engaged. However it’s the cast of characters that makes Witch and the Hundred Knight 2 stand out, either from their cool design like the members of the WR’s witch killing generals, to the entertaining foul-mouthed Chelka who sadistic experiments end up with (sometimes) comical effects, lets not forget that the game also features a Giant Drag-Queen Raven Butler.

Still it’s the Hundred Knight himself that brings the charm to the game much like the original. The Hundred Knight doesn’t speak, instead makes cute little cooing noises when questioning, affirming and going against something. He takes everything completely literal and acts as a punching bag and loyal minion for Chelka that its hard not to fall in love with the adorable character.

Much like the original, Witch and the Hundred Knight 2 is a Dungeon Crawling Action JRPG where players retake control of the Hundred Knight as he sets out to his master’s bidding. Hundred Knight can use 5 different type of weapons (Sword, Spear, Hammers, Staffs, Lances) which can be used in a variety of combos by simply equipping the weapon to an attack slot. The various enemies that the player will have to face all have different weaknesses and vulnerabilities, some weak to cut attacks, other by blunt force and others by magic, players will have to align their combos correctly so that they’d be able to easily defeat their opponents.

To make this easier, players are also given access to Facets. These are stat-changing helmets that affect special abilities and strengthen specific weapons. Players are able to carry 3 into battle with them to help deal with different scenarios and can be switch at ease by pressing the trigger buttons. Players are also able to make use of their home base which can help to level up your weapons via Alchemy, by sacrificing other weapons or material that you pick up along the way, I cannot stress the importance of this mechanic as it saved my skin in multiple boss battles.

The music for The Witch and The Hundred Knight 2 is your typical fantasy fan fare and does well to set the tone, the audio is never really over bearing and the voice acting is spot on for the characters and hardly seems out-of-place, which feels great to say about a JRPG which have the tendency to be hit or miss. However with most of the game’s “cutscenes” being a visual novel presentation, some of the scenes involving combat or even more comedic motions feels lost to flashes on screens with “take this!” “oh yeah! Take This!” text.

The Witch and The Hundred Knight 2 is a very newcomer friendly title without much throw back to the original, it also takes steps to explain the mechanics better and delivers a great story in the process. If you’re looking for a charming hack’n’slash JRPG, The Witch and the Hundred Knight 2 is one of the best released this year so far. We highly recommend checking this one out even if, like me, you had difficulties with the original.

There is only a handful of developers that catch my attention like Vanillaware. They have been a company that has prided themselves on cool hand-drawn graphics that are nothing less than amazing, with games like Grimgrimoire, Odin’s Sphere and Muramasa: The Demon Blade really highlighting some amazing art on every level.

The 2013 beat’em up from the studio, Dragon’s Crown, kept that feeling as well. The game looked amazing on both PS3 and Vita when it was first released, and with the release of the PS4 version – Dragon’s Crown Pro, players can look forward to crisper character designs in 4K resolution, however those looking for an update to the game in Odin’s Sphere Leifthrasir, you’re going to be a bit disappointed. Considering that we’ve never done a review for the original Dragon’s Crown, lets start here.

Dragon’s Crown tells the story of a fearless adventurer (you) and your helpful rogue, who are in search of a mystical item called the Dragon’s Crown. This item gives its wearer the ability to control all dragons and become a unstoppable force to be reckoned with. However there are plenty in need of help from an adventurer like yourself, from taking on invading orc armies, harpies, wyverns and more, with every quest bringing you one step closer to your goal.

It’s easy to tell that Dragon’s Crown was inspired by Capcom’s Dungeon & Dragons arcade series, in which players choose a role from one of various classes and begin an epic quest. Dragon’s Crown is no different, as players can choose to play between 6 classes, the all-rounded Fighter – who uses a sword and shield for attack and defense, The Amazon – a two-handed attack focused character, the Dwarf – The game’s grappler character, The Elf – Speed and range, Wizard – Offensive Spellcaster, and Sorceress – Defensive Spellcaster.

Each class has different abilities and attacks, making it worth players to try out each class before deciding on who they’ll be using to complete the game with. My personal favourites included the Fighter, the Elf and the Sorceress however I found myself using the later of the 3 only when I was playing with a group of people as her use in single-player wasn’t as effective.

While the entire game can be enjoyed single-player, Dragon’s Crown works best as a co-operative brawler for up to 4 players, which can be preformed in one of three different ways. The first (and honestly best) way to do this is Couch Co-op, where players can pick up their controllers and join you in-game from the start, the other is using computer controlled characters which can be found and resurrected via bones found in levels. The final way is online co-op, however this is oddly not available from the start of the game, instead players must clear several levels before the stables that are available for Online Play to be built.

One of the great things about Dragon’s Crown Pro for returning players is the ability to pick up where you left off and to still enjoy the game with those who are playing the PS3 and Vita versions thanks to cross-save and cross-play capabilities. I was able to test this out with my save file from my Vita version of the game which I still regularly played, in which my most recent saved character was available to download and continue from where I left off, in terms of the online play, after re-unlocking the stables with my new profile, I was able to find a match fairly easily with a friend who was playing the PS3 edition.

Although I believe it’s because of this that we do not receive any new updates for the game itself as the game itself is the last updated version of the PS3/Vita game, with graphics smoothed out for 4K capabilities. With the ability to play with the older generation, we’re sort of held back from receiving major gameplay updates like we saw in Odin’s Sphere, which improved upon the PS2 classic.

Still, Dragon’s Crown Pro gives an “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it” mentality and its something that can be respected as the game is just plain fun and beautiful to look at with its storybook style graphics, amazing boss battles, branching maps and plenty of quests to beat, loot to collect, and baddies to beat.

Dragon’s Crown Pro may throw off returning players who are coming back expecting something new, but the ability to play with friends who are still on the old systems and enjoying the game’s beauty in 4K is still something to behold. Fans of Vanillaware or beat’em ups in general should not pass up this second chance to enjoy this solid Beat’em Up RPG.