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.
Metaphor: ReFantazio might not take place in a school in modern Japan. You might not be playing as a group of school kids somehow saving the day while the adults seem oblivious to it all. It may technically be the first new game from a new studio. But, to be clear, this is a Persona game through and through, and…
It’s the spooky time of year again, and of course all the developers and publishers have been rushing out their horror games. There’s some good ones, too, and this month we chat a bit about what makes a good horror game in our view. We also talk about all the…
Today is a very exciting day for me, personally! I am thrilled…
The value of “pro” controllers is a little lost on me, as…
Shogi is an excellent, if under-appreciated game in the west. Real Time Battle Shogi makes Shogi an action e-sports thing, and while it might sound beyond strange on paper, in action this thing is remarkably compelling… even if it’s difficult to get a game going online. Even if you can’t…
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I have a sneaking suspicion that Monark will be one of my favourite games of 2022. It is, of course, very early to be calling that, but the talent behind it is sublime: you’ve got the deep-thinking creator Hayashi Fuyuki, who turned a silly concept (“power-up by crying”) into a…
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This happens every year. As the Christmas season arrives, and I finally knock out all the major game release reviews that I need to, I look forward to things easing back a bit and that I can spend a bit of time doing other things (this year in partar I…
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As part of the celebration of 20 years of Xbox, Microsoft has today announced that some 70+ new Xbox and Xbox 360 games have been added to its backwards compatibility list, allowing you to continue playing those games on the newer generation devices. This list has some real hits in…
Read More“Frivolity” and “humour” are not usually things that you associate with Otomate’s otome visual novels. Whether it’s classics like Hakuouki and Amnesia, or more modern games like Piofiore: Fated Memories and Olympia Soiree, with Otomate, you expect some pretty powerful romances with some very dark edges (especially if you wind…
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Project Zero is the most Japanese of horror properties. Capcom’s Resident Evil series is developed by Japanese artists and is great fun but closely intertwined with western B-grade horror traditions. Konami’s Silent Hill is (for the most part) intelligent and artful, but it was heavily inspired by western psychological horror…
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I’m a big fan of itch.io for the freedom and open platform that it allows for developers to be creative, experimental, and directly canvas the audience for feedback for games that are not yet ready for primetime on Steam and its ilk. In addition, itch.io allows you to be transgressive,…
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Mel Kishida wants his career to be defined by his work on the Blue Reflection series. If you remove this particular series, he’s still an enormously accomplished artist, but Blue Reflection in particular is something that he is deeply and personally involved with. Related reading: My preview of the upcoming…
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Xuan-Yuan Sword VII is exactly why I am glad that Taiwanese game development is becoming as robust as it is, and the involvement of EastAsiaSoft in this global release is an incredibly positive development. I first played Xuan-Yuan Sword VII when it was released in English in Hong Kong –…
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I’ve thought long and hard about what the first sign that society is genuinely irredeemable might be. The event horizon. The point of no return. And I think this is it: The point where we cede control of the education and knowledge transfer from parents, educators, museums and the arts…
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