People often forget that Game Freak is more than Pokémon. Certainly, that’s where the big money is, but as a developer, the team have come up with some excellent smaller ideas too. Pocket Jockey on the Nintendo 3DS was one of the finest download-only games on that platform. Thank goodness,…
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I never had the opportunity to play Risen on its original release, many years ago. It was banned in Australia. It’s still banned, but thankfully modern consoles are region-free and I’ve been able to grab a copy from elsewhere. This stream covers the first hour or so of the Nintendo…
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I’ve been excited for a return to Forgotten Valley since Story of Seasons: A Wonderful Life was announced; I remember playing the original, though barely. At that point in time (2003) it was still branded as Harvest Moon. Of the Harvest Moon/Story of Seasons titles, it stands out for one…
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What can I say about GoldenEye 007? It’s more than a cult classic – a cult obsession maybe? Either way, since it was released in 1997 it’s been a beloved game for literally millions of people. Back in September, it was announced that the game would be coming to Nintendo…
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I once found it quite hard to get into racing. I have friends who are big fans, and who can talk endlessly about the microscopic detail that goes into every car, but as an outsider, I admit it’s easy to miss the complexity for the simple – cars go fast.…
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I lingered round them, under that benign sky: watched the moths fluttering among the heath and harebells, listened to the soft wind breathing through the grass, and wondered how any one could ever imagine unquiet slumbers for the sleepers in that quiet earth. When you think of England’s iconic moors,…
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Most people with a casual interest in Japanese culture are aware of kabuki theatre on some level. Even if they’ve never witnessed a performance, the mannerisms and make-up of kabuki theatre are one of Japan’s great artistic exports. Noh is to kabuki what opera is to Andrew Lloyd Webber musicals,…
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I don’t really understand why Idea Factory continues to experiment with action combat systems. Action combat systems are far more resource intensive to get right, and for a company producing JRPGs on a very small budget, it seems counterintuitive. Recent Neptunia titles, including Neptunia Virtual Stars and Cyberdimension Neptunia, have…
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SteamWorld has, over the past decade, built up to become a highly eclectic series. It started with a humble DSiWare tower defence, which was quickly forgotten, but had a breakout hit with the first SteamWorld Dig, which was something of a Mr. Driller iteration. Since then there has been a…
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Life is Strange 2 is a bit of an anomaly in the Life is Strange series (including the spin-off) – it is the only one that features a male protagonist. I remember way back in 2018 (it seems like a decade ago) when the game was announced, I was hesitant…
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