News by Matt S. The Utawarerumono series are some of the best tactics JRPG/Visual Novel hybrids out there. They’re also very cultural, with a strong basis in Japan’s native Ainu culture providing the basis of the aesthetics that you’ll see through each of the games (read about that in an…
Read MoreVideo by Matt S. We have hit the end of 2019, and just before I take a break through to the New Year (I imagine I’ll spend most of it sleeping), I wanted to do one more video, to take a look back at the year that was. Many people…
Read MoreReview by Matt S. As a publisher, FuRyu has never been adverse to taking on projects that tackle some astoundingly complex, nuanced topics. The Caligula Effect was a deconstruction on supernormal stimulants and the potential for virtual existence. Lost Dimension took the prisoner’s dilemma questions of Danganronpa and ramped it…
Read MoreVideo by Matt S. Heroland is Furyu’s latest title, and comes to us in the west thanks to a truly amazing localisation by XSeed. It is a truly impressive little social satire, as well as being outright funny and charming. In this video I take a look at some of…
Read MoreReview by Matt S. What a game. What an absolutely delightful shot of retro goodness right through the arteries and into the heart. No waiting for the stomach acid to dissolve this drug into the system, no sirree. Star Ocean: First Departure R is direct into the veins. Related reading:…
Read MoreVideo by Matt S. I’m a big fan of Star Ocean – have been since the third game was released on PlayStation 2. However I had never actually played the original, so with Square Enix releasing the remake of it on PlayStation 4 and other consoles, I jumped at the…
Read MoreReview by Matt S. Setting out to make Dark Zelda: Breath of the Souls, and then throwing a dash of Princess Mononoke in there, is certainly a brave and bold move. Portugese-based developer, Amplify Creations, is probably better known within the industry than it is within the gaming community, as…
Read MoreReview by Matt S. Just yesterday I wrote a review for Black Future ’88, a game that I criticised for being far too beholden to the indie trend of making everything into a “roguelike.” Well, Black Future ’88 looks like a masterpiece of innovation when compared to Labyrinth of the…
Read MoreNews by Matt S. NISA’s upcoming Langrisser I & II is one of our most anticipated games of 2020. Promising plenty of in-depth tactical action, with a brand new coat of paint, it will hopefully be a renewed start for what by rights should be the competition to Fire Emblem.…
Read MoreInterview by Matt S. For many years now, the SaGa series has sat quietly behind Square Enix’s giant JRPG properties – Final Fantasy, Dragon Quest, Mana, and even Star Ocean. And yet while those properties seem to get all the attention, SaGa has been kicking along in the background, slowly…
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