Digitally Downloaded – Page 642 – Your specialist source of news and reviews for games, anime, manga, film and literature

Catching up with Tabata Hajime on Final Fantasy XV’s ongoing development

January 9, 2018

Final Fantasy/Final Fantasy XV/Hajime Tabata/Interview/Interviews/JRPG/Square Enix

Interview by Matt S. Late last year Final Fantasy XV had its first anniversary. It’s been a big year for the game, as Square Enix decided to adopt a model where the base game was really just a “hub”, and there would be a lot of additional games and experiences…

Review: Stikbold! A Dodgeball Adventure Deluxe (Nintendo Switch)

January 8, 2018

dodgeball/Indie/party game/Reviews/sports game/Stikbold/Stikbold! A Dodgeball Adventure Deluxe/Switch Review

Review by Matt S. Stikbold! A Dodgeball Adventure Deluxe is the kind of game that you play for a while, enjoy it while it lasts, and then, a few weeks later, forget that you’ve ever played it. It’s a game that commits no crime against game development, but neither does…

Video: The Roguelike – How we should be defining this classic genre

January 8, 2018

Roguelike/Video/Video review

Video by Matt S. I’m a massive, massive fan of the roguelike. I’ve been playing games like this as long as I’ve been playing games at all. For example, I have fond memories of losing hour after hour in my childhood to Nethack, because it was a (legally) free game…

Review: The Coma – Recut (Nintendo Switch)

January 8, 2018

Horror/Indie/Korea/Nintendo Switch/Reviews/South Korea/stalker horror/Switch Review/The Coma/The Coma - Recut

Review by Matt S. South Korea’s high performance culture has some unfortunate side effects; the expectations placed on its people leads to exceptionally high levels of pressure and stress on individuals, and when things go wrong, they go really, really wrong. Nowhere is this more evident than in the nation’s…

The catch-up coffee: Monday, January 8, 2018

January 7, 2018

Birthdays The Beginning/catch-up coffee/Code:Realise/Happy Birthdays/News/The Vanishing of Ethan Carter/Total War: Thrones of Britannia

News by Lindsay M. and Matt S. Welcome to Digitally Downloaded’s regular catch-up news feature. With each issue we will bring you the best news that you may have missed. Grab the biggest mug you’ve got, fill it with your favourite brew, and catch up with us (and our favourite…

Final Fantasy VI and Kefka – the most nuanced and interesting villain in classical JRPGs

January 5, 2018

Final Fantasy/Final Fantasy VI/Foucault/Game Theory/Kefka/Machiavelli/Retro/Retro Reflections/villains

Game theory by Matt S. While I wasn’t overly enamoured with the SNES Mini when it launched last year, the device did have Final Fantasy VI on it (or Final Fantasy III, as it was originally known in the west), and that is inarguably one of the best Final Fantasy…

Review: Plague Road (Nintendo Switch)

January 5, 2018

Indie/Plague Road/Reviews/Roguelike/Switch Review/tactics/tactics game

Review by Matt S. Plague Road frustrates me, because it is so good, and yet there should be so much more to it. It’s plays beautifully, looks superb, is a lot of fun, and offers just the right balance of challenge. It’s good enough that after playing it a great…

Review: WWE 2K18 (Nintendo Switch)

January 4, 2018

2K/3D fighting game/Fighting game/fighting games/Nintendo Switch/Reviews/Sports/Switch Review/wrestling/wrestling game

Review by Brad L. WWE2K18 cover star Seth Rollins has a new catchphrase in WWE: “burn it down”. This could not be a more apt saying for WWE2K18 on the Switch. It should be acknowledged that pro-wrestling, just like video games and anime, is a form of art, and when…

Review: Tactical Mind (Nintendo Switch)

January 4, 2018

board game/digital board game/Nintendo Switch/Reviews/Strategy/Switch Review/Tactical Mind/tactics/tactics game

Review by Matt S. Tactical Mind is an inexpensive, basic, and highly abstract strategy board game. With its Tron-like neon aesthetic, it’s certainly stylish enough, but as a massive (massive) Tron fan I can say that that’s the least interesting thing about the game. I came for the aesthetic, but…

review-gorogoa-nintendo-switch

January 4, 2018

Art Game/Indie/Nintendo Switch/Puzzle Game/Reviews/Switch Review

Review by Harvard L. Gorogoa is one of the most beautiful puzzle games ever made, and it’s an experience which would enrich the lives of anyone who played it. It’s part picture book, part adventure game, reminiscent of Loveshack’s Framed and Nyamyam’s Tengami, and yet predating both those games. Developed…

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