Matt S. is the Editor-in-Chief and Publisher of DDNet. He's been writing about games for over 20 years, including a book, but is perhaps best-known for being the high priest of the Church of Hatsune Miku.
To start this review with something very personal: My father passed away last week. It’s been difficult, to put it mildly. The reason I bring it up is that Dad absolutely loved Ten-Pin Bowling. Had his own ball, ball bag (I had no idea they made bowling ball bags), shoes, the works. He competed in social leagues all over the…
Having not played the original Code Vein, I have no idea whether Code Vein II is effective in building on it, or whether the two games are related at all. What I do know is that Code Vein II is an excellent soulslike. One that starts quite slowly, but has…
It’s incredible that Final Fantasy VII Remake Intergarde plays so well on…
Lached Up Games serves a very specific niche with its quirky and…
With Final Fantasy XVI still very fresh in mind, the podcast crew sat down to talk about it. There is a lot to talk about with regard to this game, but perhaps the most interesting theme it has running through it is how well it handles war as a subject.…
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Loop8: Summer Of Gods is too easy to overlook. I know, I put it to a side myself while I was playing much larger and high-profile games (such as Final Fantasy XVI). I do feel like I did this game a disservice, however, as it is different and has the…
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If you’re a fan of JRPGs then brace yourself because July is going to be one very intense month. There are plenty of other games releasing, of course, but the JRPG calendar is particularly packed and, for people that perhaps found Final Fantasy XVI a little untraditional for their tastes,…
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Something old and something new for discussion in this month’s podcast! We kick things off as we always do with a look at all the games releasing in July. If you’re a fan of Japanese games – and JRPGs in particular – steel yourself because the month is going to…
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Nobunaga’s Ambition is more niche than the top strategy games out there that jump to mind immediately when you think about the genre. Civilization and Total War rule the roost, of course. However, there are also the likes of Crusader Kings and Age of Wonders, which have rapidly become major…
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With 16 titles across 40 years, there are very few properties that have had the kind of longevity that Koei Tecmo’s Nobunaga’s Ambition has enjoyed. While it might not be the world’s most popular and accessible strategy series – that goes to either Civilization or Total War – the commitment…
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Final Fantasy XVI is a spectacular blockbuster that is also so much more than a simple “AAA-game”. Where most blockbusters aim to manipulate the player’s emotions but have little ambition beyond that, Final Fantasy XVI dares to challenge players with a narrative of depth and poignancy. It is the rarest…
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Once, many years ago, I read an argument that the enduring popularity of Harvest Moon/Story of Seasons in its homeland in Japan has to do with a very real desire for a “sea change” or “tree change” among Japanese urban populations. If this is true (and I believe there is…
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Bleak Sword DX is the latest Apple Arcade game to make its way over to consoles. This Devolver Digital-published title was always an admirable and interesting effort to take the core tension and taut action of the Souls “genre” and make it work on mobile devices. It did work and…
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Hello Kitty faces serious competition nowadays. Once the darling of Japan’s deep and beloved mascot culture, Kitty is under serious threat of being replaced by her direct rival, Rilakkuma. It’s almost poetic. Hello Kitty is the creation of the mascot company, Sanrio, Rilakkuma is the creation of the mascot company,…
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