News by Matt S. As the release date gets closer, Koei Tecmo continues to share more details about the next in its Atelier series, Atelier Ryza: Ever Darkness & the Secret Hideout. This time around, a new trailer showcases the game’s combat system. Now I don’t play Atelier for the…
Read MoreVideo by Matt S. PLEASE NOTE: BECAUSE THIS IS AN IN-DEPTH LOOK INTO THE GAME’S THEMES, THERE ARE SPOILERS! I know this is an old game, but as it is a new release, it’s possible that there are people out there that will use this release to play FFVIII for…
Read MoreReview by Matt S. If Final Fantasy VIII isn’t my favourite in the whole series, it’s not far behind. This game, which looked like it was in danger of being actually lost for a while after Square Enix apparently lost the base code, weaves a masterful tale of five of…
Read MoreNews by Matt S. A couple of new gameplay videos of the upcoming remake of Trials of Mana have surfaced at Gamescom. A lot of us were worried about how this one would go (because that Secret of Mana remake was just a brutal kick in the nuts for how…
Read MoreReview by Matt S. Tokyo RPG Factory has, over the span of three titles, developed a distinct voice in its approach to the JRPG. I’m not talking about the team’s commitment to retro-styled gameplay systems and aesthetics, though there’s certainly an element of that. No. The distinctive thread that links…
Read MoreReview by Matt S. It’s important that we draw a distinction between “melancholia” and “sadness”, “misery”, and other such synonyms. The dictionary definition has the terms at roughly parallel, but in literature and other art forms, they’re really very different things. My favourite quote in defining melancholia comes from an…
Read MoreReview by Matt S. After PQube games pulled the initial effort to localise Omega Labyrinth, we all thought this series was done for in the west. Having run afoul of Sony due to its rather outrageous fan service, the game and its “censorship” certainly drew opinions and debate. Thankfully all…
Read MoreNews by Matt S. Grandia and its sequel are beloved JRPGs within the fan base that have never quite got the attention that they deserve among the broader community. Perhaps the Grandia HD Collection will help, when it lands on August 16 on Nintendo Switch. There will also be a…
Read MoreVideo by Matt S. (Mild content warning with regards to a depiction of a suicide) Crystar, out soon, comes to us from FuRyu in Japan, and Spike Chunsoft in the west. It’s an action JRPG with a particular trick – it’s all about crying as a gameplay mechanic. If that…
Read MoreNews by Matt S. NISA has shared the release date for the next re-release of its headline Disgaea series. This time it’s a remaster of Disgaea 4, is called Disgaea 4 Complete+, and lands on PlayStation 4 and Nintendo Switch on October 29. We reviewed this one back on PlayStation…
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