Comprehensive Game Reviews

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From AAA titles to indie games, we cover it all. Our comprehensive reviews provide detailed insights to help you find your next favorite game.

Megabonk - Quick ReviewA 3D Vampire Survivors-style roguelike full of interesting movement and memey humor.

IGN PC ReviewsOct 6

Review: Sonic Racing CrossWorlds Is as Enjoyable as All-Stars Racing Transformed For a series known for speed, it’s amazing that we aren’t always guaranteed that the Sonic the Hedgehog racing games are great. (I mean, consider what happened with entries like Sonic Riders: Zero Gravity !) Sega’s been doing better in recent years, with Sonic & All-Stars Racing kart racing line being very solid and even Team Sonic Racing having its moments. With Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds , we get another solid kart racer that feels like it prioritizes offering a wide range of characters and carts. As a kart racer, Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds features the sorts of single and multiplayer modes folks might expect from this type of game. The Grand Prix is best compared to the same one found in Mario Kart entries, with each of the seven Cups consisting of four races, and people able to play alone or in local co-op. Also like Mario Kart, selecting the speed is setting the difficulty. A Rival will appear during these, tasking you with “besting” them. Time Trials are also available, to set records on specific runs. You can also head to the Race Park to complete specific Double Team and Triple Team challenges that help with unlocking stuff. As for multiplayer traditional races, there is the ranked World Match and a more casual online Friend Match. Cross-platform racing is present here, which is appreciated. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3V4aYlM1U4M Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds starts with a strong impression. While the first run walls you off from selections, Sega made the decision to ensure everything is just there for you right away. Considering a major focus is being able to choose the character, customize the cart, and choose a loadout of boosts, it’s very welcome. Seeing 23 folks right away is handy. Also, while the Season Pass does mean there are about 20 more characters and additional carts, emotes, and tracks, and extras, I appreciate that many of those are crossover ones. So if you don’t care about Mega Man, Minecraft, Spongebob, or Pac-Man and are here for the Sonic and Sega/Atlus series characters, it’s no big loss. Once you select who you want to be, selecting what you want to drive comes up. While characters fall into categories like Acceleration, Boost, Handling, Power, and Speed, the vehicle you select also influences your performance. While these also fall into categories, you can also adjust front parts, rear parts, and tires to further influence things. Paint, decals, different horns, and aura can also be added. (Some of these do need to be acquired via tickets, which you can earn.) So this is both about altering what it is like when you race and visual preferences. There’s also the Gadget Plate. You can use this to apply certain buffs or bonuses as you race, with additional slots unlocking as you play. You can equip panels that do things like help with charging, keeps you from dropping items, lets you hold more items, get boost support, and other perks. It can help you compensate for things you feel you do better or worse as you race, or let you lean into your strengths, in a way that doesn’t feel like you’re making things too easy for yourself. However, the downside is that the playing field doesn’t feel as level if someone has six Gadget Plate slots open and someone locally comes up and needs to make do with two. It’s a fun concept, but I worry it can make things a little more uneven when you aren’t against AI. Images via Sega Once you’re in a race, there are certain elements that set Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds apart from other kart racers. At its core, it involves traditional car-like vehicles going around courses and using drift mechanics and collected items to hamper enemies and help yourself. This is changed up a bit by Travel Ring portals appearing on courses that briefly take you to other locations from the Sonic the Hedgehog series. (Or, if you get DLC, other games.) It changes things up in a way that’s typically fun and visually impressive! However, the current leader decides whether you go to a predetermined place or random one, and I wish there was more of an opportunity for others to weigh in or more variety there. Another downside is that I sort of feel like the opportunities that take us into the sky or through the water don’t feel as consistently fun as ones on solid land. These excursions aren’t like the airborne segments in Mario Kart that happen for a few seconds. You can be going for a few minutes and it involves a whole different type of skillset and sense of nuance to do well on water or in the air. If they were shorter, I’d think they add to the idea of exploring other levels. But it would really throw me off, even after hours of playing, to suddenly need to adapt to flying through the air or on top of waves. The Rivals system is the other unique feature in Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds, and I find someone’s mileage may vary when experiencing it. This is a situation in which rubber-banding can hit you hard and you can be exceptionally skilled, but still lose due to that virtual opponent getting “lucky.” At least if you can manage to beat the rival, you’re also pretty much guaranteed to get first place. The nature of it meant that even if I didn’t, I was still far ahead of the other NPC racers in Grand Prix. Images via Sega Finally, I will say that, while I enjoyed Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds , those playing on handheld gaming PCs might need to fiddle with the settings to get it looking and running well. I played on a Lenovo Legion Go and, while it definitely runs fine, the nature of the system and game meant it didn’t look as good as it would on a more powerful desktop or laptop. But like Sega said, it is Steam Deck verified and does work well! It just might need a bit of finessing to look as good as possible on your system. Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds is a solid kart racer that I feel I enjoyed as much as recent Sonic & All-Stars Racing games. There’s a great selection of characters and tons of vehicle customization options, which are great. The nature of the Rivals and Travel Rings systems also makes it feel different than similar titles such as Mario Kart World. I do worry the Gadget Plate unlocking element might make it a little unfair when playing co-op locally, and some of the water and air racing might not feel as fantastic as the standard racing. It’s still quite impressive and leaves a great impression. Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds is available on the Switch, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X, and PC, and it will also eventually appear on the Switch 2. The post Review: Sonic Racing CrossWorlds Is as Enjoyable as All-Stars Racing Transformed appeared first on Siliconera .

Reviews Articles and News - SiliconeraOct 6

Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 Multiplayer Review in Progress - Beta ImpressionsIt's Call of Duty multiplayer, and so far it's fast and fun.

IGN PC ReviewsOct 3

Consume Me Review - A Delightful Diet Diary Reviewed on: PC Platform: PC Publisher: Hexecutable Developer: Jenny Jiao Hsia, AP Thomson, Jie En Lee, Violet W-P, Ken "coda" Snyder Eating disorders are an incredibly sensitive topic, so I was wary when I learned about Consume Me, a game that turns a teenage girl's insecurities into minigames and resource management. After completing the story, however, I'm so glad it exists. Consume Me is a touching, hilarious, occasionally visceral experience told from a perspective video games don't touch on as often as they should. Its meta commentary on the dangers of using game systems to measure complicated, real-life issues is poignant and unique. Its ending is disappointing, but it's rare to play a game that feels so personal to its creators, and it makes Consume Me something special. The game opens with an interesting content warning, not just pointing out the story's potentially troubling subject matter, but clarifying that Jenny's dieting behavior – the primary gameplay mechanic – is not something to be replicated. I have never played something like this: It's a game about how gamifying real life isn't always a good idea. Jenny, based on the game's creator with the same name, is a high schooler about to start her senior year. After a comment from her mother about Jenny's weight, Jenny decides to start dieting, meticulously tracking her food intake and exercise habits. At the same time, she's got to manage other aspects of her life: chores, money, and homework, to name a few. Each activity is represented as a microgame, similar to something you'd find in WarioWare, where you perform simple, sometimes challenging actions in an expressive art style. For the most part, they're charming and fun, and even the ones I was less fond of are over quickly. Consume Me comes across as a narrative-first experience, but I genuinely looked forward to booting it back up and managing my toxic behaviors. The game you'll play the most often has you build Jenny's lunch plate. Foods are represented as Tetris-like pieces you have to fit onto a grid, filling in the hunger squares while attempting to avoid the empty ones. Each food also costs a different number of bites (the game's abstract version of calories), so you have to balance the act of fitting pieces in the grid with avoiding unhealthy foods to keep your bite count low. Go over the limit, and you'll have to exercise later, wasting precious time you could use for other activities. Mismanage your puzzle pieces, and you'll fail to fill all the necessary squares, causing Jenny’s hunger meter to take a hit. Despite the upsetting goal, I enjoy this puzzle, and didn't mind playing it every in-game day. As you get later in the story, it's incredibly easy to see how someone like Jenny can fall into harmful spirals of behavior. If I eat a light lunch – an alternate meal option I unlock that costs fewer bites – my energy level takes a hit, but if I drink an energy drink, I replenish it. However, it turns out that over-reliance on caffeine causes Jenny to develop headaches over the day, and I can't get rid of them unless I do something that raises her mood. The easiest way to do this is by eating a bag of chips, which puts me over my bite goal, bringing me back to the problem I was trying to avoid in the first place. All I wanted to do was eat a little bit less, but it started an unavoidable chain of events that only makes Jenny's problems worse. It's a genius trap that I didn't realize I'd fallen for until it was too late, much like real life. It's a form of artistic expression and education that can only be communicated through a video game. The art and animation oozes with personality, its pixels giving off a hand-drawn aesthetic to characters' hyper-expressive faces. The player moves Jenny through cutscenes with swipes of the mouse or joystick, but you never really know what you're about to make her do, and it's a fun surprise to watch how she nervously picks up a dollar off the sidewalk or refuses to get out of bed. The subject matter might imply a dour visual tone, but Consume Me is anything but. It helps to offset the very real stress I have trying to balance Jenny's life while also representing the ways that eating disorders can appear invisible to the outside world. Moment-to-moment dialogue writing is also sharp, and Jenny is a memorable, endearing protagonist who's easy to root for. I had no problem seeing things from her perspective, and while I started as an outside observer, I quickly found myself invested enough to get nervous about finishing my homework and earnestly hoping a boy would like me back. Despite loving the game's characters and early hours, its last chapter falls flat for a few reasons. First, religion is introduced as a comfort for Jenny late in the game (complete with a musical prayer sequence). Conceptually, I have no problem with this, but it comes out of nowhere and feels out of place. It's not mentioned much beforehand, and it becomes irrelevant by the story's conclusion. Jenny can pray once a day to remove mental blocks that keep her from studying, but it also slightly fills her mood, energy, and hunger bars. Improving her mood makes perfect sense, but it's the latter meters that feel at odds with Consume Me's themes. Jenny's biggest flaw is convincing herself that with enough mental effort, she can force her body to achieve unhealthy levels of productivity, whether that's staying up late or starving herself, and it's inconsistent that praying would exist as a consequence-free energy booster or replacement for eating. When Consume Me's story does ultimately end in the disaster its content warning foreshadows, religion doesn't seem to be a solution, and despite saving Jenny in a later chapter, it's swept aside unceremoniously. It's hard to end biographical narratives, especially when the subject is still alive, because real-world events that make the compelling premise to a story rarely resolve cleanly. Still, the story's primary sources of drama sort of slip away, with Jenny ultimately outgrowing them rather than confronting them. It doesn't help that we play as Jenny on her spiral to rock bottom, but we're stuck watching a slightly interactive montage as she lifts herself out of it. The whole game leads up to her inevitable crash, where she learns how destructive her behaviors are; however, once it finally happens, the game is essentially over. It's like Mario learns his princess is in another castle, but instead of leading to a boss fight with Bowser, we just watch him beat Bowser in the end credits. The story is still there, but as a player, I'm forced to end on a loss. Gamifying your food habits is, indeed, an awful idea, and Consume Me lays it out in a manner I found deeply compelling and entertaining. Even if you ignore the content warning, its message is clear from its opening moments. If its ending hadn't stumbled, it might've been one of my all-time favorites, but there's still a lot to love here despite that underwhelming conclusion. Consume Me is teeming with creativity and personality, and for that, it's earned a special place in my heart. Score: 8.25 About Game Informer's review system

Game Informer ReviewsOct 3

Review: Super Mario Galaxy + Super Mario Galaxy 2? Still Good When it comes to game remasters, we reached a point at which making the game accessible on new platforms sort of feels like it isn’t enough anymore. Not when we have Square Enix out here giving us Classic and Enchanced versions of Final Fantasy Tactics in one release and with Xenoblade Chronicles X: Definitive Edition Nintendo and Monolith added quality of life changes, new characters, and post-game content. Super Mario Galaxy + Super Mario Galaxy 2 swooping in with improved visuals, extra Storybook segments, and Assist Mode on the Switch and Switch 2 is nice and very appreciated. These are still fantastic platformers. I love playing through them again! I just wish there was a bit more to Nintendo’s updates of them both. While Super Mario Galaxy 2 is a sequel to Super Mario Galaxy , it’s also something of a retelling. As such, the general concept and story shares many of the same beats. The Star Festival happens every 100 years in the Mushroom Kingdom and, in both games, Princess Peach invited Mario to the celebration. As Star Bits rain down, Bowser appears to ruin everything and perform his usual kidnapping. While the circumstances of how Mario heads out into the galaxy to travel and work alongside Lumas to regain the Grand Stars and assist both Rosalina and Peach, the general end goal and result is the same. While there’s a little extra embellishment in some ways in Super Mario Galaxy 2, admittedly I have a soft spot for the first story. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rmwOnsJoj8M&t=1s As part of the story embellishment for this remaster, Nintendo added additional Storybook Chapters. It is a nice touch, and I appreciate it. Especially since these games mark Rosalina’s debut in the series. I won’t get into spoilers, but I felt the newly added segments fit in well! It’s a nice reward. But then, maybe part of why I appreciated it is because it is one of the really new elements there. Both Super Mario Galaxy + Super Mario Galaxy 2 are platformers that play around with perspective. Instead of a straightforward 2D, 2.5, or even 3D levels in a straightforward space ahead of us, we need to take into account what happens when we’re walking sideways along surfaces, upside down, or moving within gravitational fields of additional planets or elements that could sway our movement. So a pipe will take us to the other side of a planet. There could be a black hole in the center of a landmass that we’ll fall into if we mistime a jump. When going between surfaces, we might need to be launched by transformed Lumas or arrange our jumps so Mario will flip to land on the other space. In practice, it’s absolutely brilliant. Both games play around with perspective in innovative ways. They also feature returning power-ups, like the Fire Flower, alongside new transformation such as the flying Bee Mario option or Boo Mario for getting through certain areas. The sequel adds to this with power ups like Cloud Flower and Rock Mushroom, as well as adding Yoshi as a possible mount and giving him special abilities. Images via Nintendo What’s great about the remaster is yes, Super Mario Galaxy + Super Mario Galaxy 2 both generally look good on the Switch! They’re responsive and generally character models and environments look pretty great. The thing is, some textures for some areas seem less detailed as a result. Ground and wall textures might seem a little more bland compared to the original Wii releases. It might be me, but it almost seemed more noticeable in the original game than in the sequel. Since many levels and situations involve a lot of frantic movements and thoughtful jumping, it might not be noticeable unless you really stop and look. Another oddity I noticed between Super Mario Galaxy and the sequel is that the motion controls felt more obnoxious in the first game on the Switch than in the second. When playing, gyroscopic functions kick in that shift the camera view and can be used for collecting Star Bits, and I found it felt less comfortable in handheld mode since I needed to constantly be resetting the positioning with the trigger. I couldn’t turn the feature off and just use touch screen collection for Star Bits instead. (Which is a shame, as that worked much better.) You can use standard controls for moves like Mario’s spins, launching with stars, or turning invisible as a Boo, which helps. And the touchscreen controls for Star Bit collection and firing is fantastic. Images via Nintendo The last major addition is Assist Mode. This is an optional feature designed to offer people extra health and a hand in case they fall off a planet. The former doubles the amount Mario has to six. It’s not a huge jump, but I feel like it’d be a good cushion for people as they get accustomed to the shifts in perspective present here. The latter is also the kind of assist that feels geared toward getting used to the way the games work. These don’t make the game easier. They don’t handhold players. I feel like they’re a respectful take on guiding people through their first steps with both games and appreciate the option for those getting acclimated. The Super Mario Galaxy + Super Mario Galaxy 2 remaster duo give Switch owners a chance to experience two really great games in the series. Both are still wonderful platforms that do some really fun and fantastic things when it comes to level design and playing around with gravity. However, I will say they are a bit disappointing when compared to both other companies’ recent remasters and Nintendo’s own endeavors. Plus, I do think the visual improvements and handling of the motion controls/touchscreen components are better in the second game than the first. I definitely say they are worth picking up if you never experienced either game before. Super Mario Galaxy + Super Mario Galaxy 2 are available for the Switch and playable on the Switch 2. The post Review: Super Mario Galaxy + Super Mario Galaxy 2? Still Good appeared first on Siliconera .

Reviews Articles and News - SiliconeraOct 3

Review: Trails in the Sky 1st Chapter Is an Essential JRPG We’ve seen so many remakes in the last 10 years that fatigue definitely settled in. Especially since, in many cases, these mark returns of games that are still relatively easily to access on current platforms are are recent enough that it isn’t necessary. The JRPG The Legend of Heroes: Trails in the Sky first showed up in 2004 on PCs as a sprite-based game, only making a worldwide debut for the first time via its PSP port in 2011. With all of the ensuing rereleases on platforms like the PS3 and Vita, it only showed up again everywhere in 2014 on PCs. Simply put, 2025 ended up being the perfect time for a revival via Trails in the Sky 1st Chapter, a remake that is so robust, well-executed, and heartfelt that it should be used as an example to other developers when it comes to determining if, when, and what should be done when renewing a game . When Estelle was 11, her renowned Bracer (mercenary) father came home with a young, mysterious boy the same age named Joshua. Why? How? He happened upon him on a mission. Now that both of them are grown, they’re about to become Junior Bracers and follow in his footsteps. However, not long after graduating the exam and being welcomed into the organization and work toward a promotion by taking on missions and visiting guilds around the country, they get involved in assignments that hint at a greater mystery and an opportunity to help stop political upheaval. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hhYGLR2WdSI It’s honestly the start of an incredible story, and one filled with lots of characters growing as individuals and showcasing their fantastic personalities. There’s a perfect balance of genres here! Trails in the Sky 1st Chapter isn’t just a coming of age story for Estelle and Joshua, a “friendship is magic” adventure as they join up with allies, or an overly heavy drama where political intrigue and subterfuge constantly bombards you with surprises and thrills. As for the localization, it feels more subdued in a good and realistic way. There is still a ton of personality infused in it and Estelle’s attitude comes through. I would say the original English adaptation from XSEED sometimes felt punched up in a way to allow for more exaggerated comedic moments. Here, things still are compelling, captivating, poignant, and of course funny, but without relying on extremes. The Japanese voice acting is fantastic and there are some really great English performances here from folks like Johnny Yong Bosch (Joshua), Michelle Ruff (Schera), and Matthew Mercer (Olivier). The localization also features these fantastic notes in the in-game Bracer Notebook with descriptions and commentary in Estelle’s voice, adding extra personality and fun to a feature that many might ignore. Falcom also maintained the same ambiance and tone of the original Trails in the Sky with the 1st Chapter remake, and I’m so glad about that. What I always loved about this installment is how much sense it made in terms of pacing. At the outset, Estelle and Joshua are complete newcomers. Yes, they’ve been training for years and live with a renowned hero and famous Bracer. But so much about this is about their own development. Falcom took the time to establish not only both of them, but characters like Olivier and Kloe here. That remains unchanged. I guess this first installment in this trilogy almost reminded me of the Studio Ghibli approach to storytelling, which is that the creators aren’t afraid of there sometimes being a slower moment in the name of showing who people are as characters or offering a little extra development for characters and their world. That’s maintained here without feeling like the storytelling suffers. Are there some side quests that do feel a little rudimentary and like they aren’t starting to build up relationships we’ll also see reflected in the sequel? Of course. It’s a reality in any JRPG like Trails in the Sky 1st Chapter . But the ones that do appear don’t detract from the experience. Images via Nihon Falcom But what really makes this Trails in the Sky 1st Chapter remake special is how Falcom handled the artistic direction and gameplay design depicted throughout the JRPG. It feels both entirely new and fresh while still in some ways identical and paying tribute to the original game. It is immediately, at a glance, a gorgeous game. I played the Switch 2 version, and it seemed to be hitting 60fps without too much of an issue. Loading times were minimal and only took a few seconds in most situations. I did notice performance seemed a bit better when docked, but it runs well in handheld mode. As for the combat system, I adore the approach. The original Trails in the Sky relied upon a strategic type of turn-based, JRPG system not unlike other entries in this series, but Falcom offers both active and turn-based options in 1st Chapter . When in the field, it is possible to attack and swap characters and use different types of assaults to take down enemies with Quick Battles. However, it’s also possible to use these initial hits to gain the initiative in turn-based fights called Command Battles. When shifting to that, you actually arrange positioning of characters on the field, determine AOE effects of possible Orbal Arts and Crafts skills. Both of these are satisfying in different ways, and I loved the opportunity to quickly shift from one to the other in encounters. The Command Battles feel especially well-suited for major fights against bosses. But when I’m just exploring an area, I loved using the Quick Battle option to swiftly smack down so I could keep looking for items or points of interest. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=h3gEriNRSFQ The Tactical Orbments system also ensures the Command Battle system feels meaningful even when there’s the Quick Battle option. We can create Quartz with collected Sepith to offer stat boosts and increase the range of Orbal Arts we can perform in a fight. While there are some limitations for character builds due to the nature of their Orbments and what can be placed in certain slots, it allows for some diversity and personalization that allows you to ensure each person could be useful even if you think you’d normally never work with someone like that. Also, due to the general pacing when it comes to Main and Sub Quests, it doesn’t feel like it takes too long to unlock slots and create new Quartz so we can further diversify. But most important is the way in which Trails in the Sky 1st Chapter builds things up, and how this JRPG remake feels like the cohesive first part of an expertly told two-part story. I love the Cold Steel games. Truly. But it’s a little exhausting when some The Legend of Heroes entries end up being three or four game epics. The first two parts of this trilogy completely tell a fantastic story that pulls everything together perfectly, with the third acting as a supplement. This version still feels like it’s doing a fantastic job of establishing a region, a world, and characters who we later know from games like Cold Steel and Daybreak . Screenshot by Siliconera I love Trails in the Sky 1st Chapter, feel like it is one of the best Falcom JRPGs, and am certain it will be counted among the most ambitious remakes ever made. The combat systems are excellent. The recreation of the world is fantastic. The script and new localization is great. The story is an absolutely fantastic one filled with incredible moments and well-rounded characters who truly develop as individuals as time goes on. It is a wonderful story and perfect starting point for The Legend of heroes . The Legend of Heroes: Trails in the Sky 1st Chapter is available on the Switch, Switch 2, PS5, and PC. The post Review: Trails in the Sky 1st Chapter Is an Essential JRPG appeared first on Siliconera .

Reviews Articles and News - SiliconeraOct 2

Hotel Barcelona Review – Check Out Any Time You’d Like Reviewed on: PC Platform: PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, PC Publisher: CULT Games Developer: White Owls Rating: Mature I repeatedly asked myself one question while playing Hotel Barcelona: Why? Why is the demonic spirit of a serial killer possessing a timid US Marshal? Why is the promising-looking combat so bland? Why is the storytelling so half-baked? Why does the game look as though it emerged from a time capsule from the mid-2000s? I don’t have the answers to most of these questions, but I know one thing: This collaboration between White Owls, the studio led by Deadly Premonition mastermind Swery, and Suda51 of Grasshopper fame, is a bad time. It also encapsulates the main critique of both creators’ works: an abundance of surreal humor and style, but severely lacking in polished substance. Hotel Barcelona is a 2D action roguelike that sees players fighting across the grounds of the eponymous cursed hotel. As Justine, you’re a government agent looking to avenge your father’s murder by taking down a powerful witch with the supernatural assistance of Dr. Carnival, a murderous spirit inhabiting Justine’s body. This intriguing setup, and the dynamic between the shy Justine and ruthless Carnival, can lead to mildly amusing moments, but the payoff is neither interesting nor entirely coherent. Unfortunately, the action isn’t much better.   The game’s roguelike runs consist of time-limited romps through four stages of a level, which is assigned a random weather effect and time of day. You have upwards of two or three minutes to explore a stage before exiting one of several doors to the next area, granting bonuses like increased attack speed or health regeneration. I like that runs are mercifully short, because the mediocre combat lacks the punch or finesse to make Justine’s revenge quest satisfying. Slicing foes apart with various weapons like knives, axes, or buzzsaws, or gunning them down with pistols, shotguns, and other ranged options, feels just south of “fine” even after unlocking combos and other upgrades from a skill tree. To its credit, Hotel Barcelona has a few novel ideas. Weather comes into play by affecting how long it takes to build up Dr. Carnival's special attack, a meter filled by coating Justine in the blood of the foes she slays. Rainy weather rinses the blood off her body, making it tougher to build toward unleashing this screen-filling attack to add a decent challenge. One interesting concept is playing alongside the “ghosts” of your previous runs through a stage, who can attack any enemies caught in their predetermined path. These can be helpful, but are more unreliable than anything. You can also be invaded and killed by other players (and do the same to them) Dark Souls-style, but this happens so infrequently (possibly due to a low player count) that it’s virtually a non-factor. When someone did arrive and took my life, I cursed them for extending my time in Hotel Barcelona’s world. The bland assortment of enemies similarly lacks punch, and some unleash infuriatingly cheap attacks that can stun-lock Justine to an early grave. Boss battles, such as ones against a deranged butcher or an alien social media influencer, commit the same sins, and I never looked forward to facing them time and again to farm upgrade resources. While the combat is unremarkable at worst, other gameplay diversions, such as a platforming sequence across a crumbling arena or a QTE-driven surfing segment, are outright terrible due to poor controls and a dated presentation. Despite Hotel Barcelona seemingly taking the Hades route of advancing the story and unlocking new character conversations between runs, non-critical threads go nowhere, even though some present interesting personalities. I hoped to learn more about Barcelona’s strange patrons, such as an ear-obsessed bartender, a friendly monster living in Justine’s closet, and an unsettlingly chipper receptionist, so I was disappointed that their character development gets cut off at the knees as the game approaches its climax. Justine’s quest to collect the hearts of three bosses to face the witch is shockingly short, padded by an unnecessary and tedious story mission to recollect these hearts by replaying the same (albeit shorter) stages. This culminates in an insultingly abrupt ending that sheds practically no light on the witch’s motives, the larger backstories of the hotel patrons, and Dr. Carnival’s true nature, which is only briefly teased. Perhaps these threads become more fleshed out after reaching the two unlockable, seemingly optional worlds, but the secret method of reaching them appears annoyingly vague. And believe me, I tried. I even replayed the final section to reach the game’s one big decision, then made the opposite choice I had before, only to find there is no choice. You’re forced into making the same decision no matter what, offering another example of how Hotel Barcelona shoots its promising narrative ideas in the foot at every turn. Whatever remaining secrets may lie beneath, I have no interest in seeing them. I know the charm of Swery games (and, to a lesser extent, Suda51 titles) is how utterly bizarre they are, but any chuckles Hotel Barcelona’s quirky sense of humor may elicit were drowned under a sea of head-scratching and outright bad design and storytelling decisions. No matter how many secrets it may have or surreal moments it assaults players with, it’s all wrapped around a dull, limited, and flawed core gameplay experience. You don’t have to go home, but you shouldn’t stay here. Score: 5 About Game Informer's review system

Game Informer ReviewsOct 2

Fire Emblem Shadows Review - Emergency MeetingThe release of a new Fire Emblem game is usually a big deal, so I was more than a little intrigued--but mostly confused--when I happened to glance at the Nintendo Today app calendar on September 24 and it said "Fire Emblem Shadows Available." There had just been a Nintendo Direct on September 12 , after all, where Nintendo announced the next mainline entry in the series for Switch 2, Fire Emblem: Fortune's Weave . There was no mention of Fire Emblem Shadows. And after playing it, I can see why Nintendo wouldn't showcase it on that big stage I assumed it was referring to Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon, the 2009 remake of the first game in the series, and went on with my day. It was only later that evening I learned that Fire Emblem Shadows was actually a brand-new mobile entry in the series: one where players manage "real-time strategy and social deduction at the same time." The idea of a new game in the long-running tactics series arriving out of the blue had me eager to install it and see what it was about. I had a decent time with Fire Emblem Heroes, Nintendo's previous attempt at translating Fire Emblem to the world of free-to-play mobile games (and one that would go on to become Nintendo's first mobile game to hit $1 billion in revenue ). As such, I was curious to see how Shadows, which is also free to play, would differ. Unfortunately, the monkey paw soon curled, and I found myself dumbfounded by all the ways Fire Emblem Shadows is Fire Emblem in name only. Continue Reading at GameSpot

GameSpot - Game ReviewsOct 1

Digimon Story: Time Stranger review Going into Digimon Story: Time Stranger, I wasn't sure what to expect. I had been a casual Digimon enjoyer in my youth, but skipped over titles like the recent Digimon Survivors and even Digimon World titles, as they just felt lost to me. Going into this game, I was cautious about what I was getting myself into. So, color me surprised when, after hours of gameplay and completing the story, I found myself having a lot of fun with this game, its premise, and mechanics, even if things can get a bit overwhelming at times. Let's dive in! Image via Bandai Namco Before I deep dive into this, I want to specify that there will be no story spoilers of any kind in the review. I'll simply touch on the story now, saying that, as the title suggests, you are sent on an adventure through time into the past to unravel the game's mysterious narrative. However, that is all I'll be touching on there, as I know many people are excited to dive into this adventure and wouldn't want to spoil it for anyone. Now let's get into the meat of things. It's a Digimon game, so you can expect to find and tame hundreds of Digimon, Digivolve them into countless lines, and field some of your old favorites alongside the new. I was stunned by the level of variety of Digimon in this game. They look visually stunning (unlike their human counterparts at times), all have unique battle animations, and really showcase a lot of personality that stood out to me from start to finish. Image via Bandai Namco And of course, you will be in for a lot of battles with your chosen party members. There is a deep level of customization that is unique to this game, with the main combat revolving around turn-based gameplay, akin to what you'd expect from an old-school Final Fantasy game. And while there are many similarities, the game takes these battles one step further. There are seven attributes you need to learn, and, like Pokémon, knowing each one's strengths and weaknesses is pivotal to understanding both. They can be a bit grindy and repetitive at times, but luckily, after you level up your Digimon enough, battles with lower-level foes can be skipped entirely while still getting the rewards. You also aren't locked to just your main team. You can set up a team of backup Digimon to replace fallen allies, keeping you in a battle longer. You can also use this feature to chain different combos to help make it through any encounter. There is even an auto-battle option if you want to get through a struggle quickly without inputting all the attack options over and over again. It's a pretty great battle system, and the game builds itself around it pretty well with extra skills you can activate to assist your Digimon, known as Cross Arts, and even an option to increase Combat Speed if you don't want to watch the animations over and over again. It's pretty easy to be underleveled in later stages, though, so make sure to take on every battle you can to give yourself a fighting chance against the bosses! Down but not out Image via Bandai Namco Outside of battles, there are a lot more things for you to spend your time on. Whether it's spending time collecting the hundreds of Digimon, or learning all their Digivolution methods by having your Digimon meet certain conditions. There is a lot to explore. However, it also becomes the game's primary issue. Despite the game being designed as the perfect entry point to the series for RPG enthusiasts, I found many of the mechanics and options available to me to be overwhelming. It really does feel like you are navigating through multiple menus, items, stats, and more to create the perfect party and check the correct box to achieve the Digivolution you are after. Perhaps it's just me, but I felt overwhelmed early on and ended up skipping a few things that could have been potentially useful, as the explanations are not always clear. Image via Bandai Namco From trying to figure out how to find items, developing attachment skills, understanding the personality system, learning how the Digifarm works, and ensuring I have x, y, and z. It isn't easy even at a base level. And we haven't even got into the various skill trees you need to play around with and choose certain advantages in the long term. I'm not saying it's a bad thing; having a lot of options and having the freedom to really tailor your experience and discover everything on offer can be pretty fulfilling. However, for me, it felt a bit bloated. Especially as all this stuff was introduced very early on, one after another, so I was having to learn a lot of different mechanics at once instead of being slowly brought into them one at a time. It's a personal pet peeve, though, and I'm sure many people might see it differently. This is our last Digivolution! Image via Bandai Namco Digimon Story: Time Stranger is probably one of the best Digimon games ever to grace modern-day audiences and feels like it was made for the hardcore fan of the series that have played through every previous entry. It has a stunning amount of Digimon to find and train, and feels like a labor of love. In doing so, however, it somewhat alienates the core non-Digimon fan and the casual player, as many of the mechanics and story elements are challenging for those unfamiliar with the series. Even storied veterans might struggle to balance everything on offer here. But for those who devote their time to mastering everything. There is no doubt in my heart that you are in for a great big adventure in the Digital World. The post Digimon Story: Time Stranger review appeared first on Destructoid .

Reviews Archive – DestructoidOct 1

Review: Digimon Story: Time Stranger Is a Solid Entry in the Series The Digimon Story: Cyber Sleuth JRPG and follow-up game Hacker’s Memory ended up being two of the best titles based on the series in recent years and, fortunately, Bandai Namco is continuing that trend with Digimon Story: Time Stranger . It’s really compelling and does some fun things by allowing us to explore both the human and Digimon worlds, solve a mystery that sends us back in time, and tap into a “collect ‘em all” element by giving us tons of characters to collect. I feel like it’s a strong follow-up to its predecessors. Digimon Story: Time Stranger kicks off in the present, with our ADAMAS member avatar (either Dan or Kanan) investigating a major anomaly in Shinjuku. Part of the city has been walled off for years, and strange lifeforms have been cited as the cause of anomalies throughout the city. Our job is to investigate and protect civilians, which is difficult since there’s for some reason an anime also based on people who wear outfits like ours? Upon heading in to provide aid to someone who somehow was authorized to contact our Digivice, we find a young woman who claims to know us. She insists we need to get to the top of the government building to aid someone else. When we get there, a massive explosion kicks off and we find ourselves eight years in the past. Our contact in the present (the person we didn’t select as our character) said the whole world is heading toward destruction as the result of that event. Coincidentally, we officially “meet” that strange girl in the past after rescuing her! We end up staying with Inori and her father, meeting Aegiomon, and getting involved with a conflict between worlds to protect everyone and everything. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bFEu9XOLmg0 If you played Digimon Story: Cyber Sleuth and its sequel, then Digimon Story: Time Stranger should feel relatively familiar as the game follows a similar sort of pattern. We begin by exploring Tokyo in the human world, encountering hostile Digimon in certain set areas or encounters, then eventually also gain access to the Digital World. There are quite a few areas to explore and, when you hit certain exit points, there are fast travel options to certain spots. (I preferred running and exploring, as there are a lot of incidental items you can pick up along the way for the DigiFarm or battles.) I will say that I think Iliad is the more visually interesting of the two. Human NPCs are rather nondescript and uninteresting and the human world, though generally accurate, felt a bit bland compared to the more vibrant and unusual Digital World. Though, that could also be because it was fun to see Digimon around and the effort put into ensuring those areas feel different, and the DigiRide mount system is fun. Combat involves turn-based battles, and there’s also a means of gaining initiative that feels really satisfying. When exploring, you can “investigate” to search for breakable walls, materials, or chests or send out a Digimon to attack. (There are even times when you’ll need ones with certain elemental capabilities to trigger a situation.) The “attack” option can also be used on a Digimon seen in the field in a “dungeon” style situation. If the opponent is weak enough, you automatically get the experience for your characters and Convert data that builds toward acquiring it yourself. If it isn’t enough to defeat it, you’ll enter the turn-based fight, but will find the enemies’ HP affected or fewer there because of your initial assault. It’s great! (Also, said experience earned applies to the three characters in the front of your party, the three in reserve, and ones that happen to be in your general on-hand storage.) Images via Bandai Namco During fights, UI is clear, the pacing is pretty good, and there are a lot of attacking options. Each character has innate Special Skills they just know. You can equip Attachment Skills, regardless of their innate type, to bolster a build. It’s also possible to assign two pieces of equipment to each character. You can have them attack, use a skill, or guard, and it is also possible to have your agent change to a different reserve Digimon of the three on hand or use an item for that round. After using a Digimon for a while, it’s also possible for an attack to multi-hit. You select actions on each character’s turn. It’s also possible to use a Cross Art to support your allies or attack if you spent Anomaly Points on Agent Skills, with even the initial Cross Art: Field ability that boosts stats for two turns being pretty great. I will say I appreciated being able to speed up animations once I hit around the ten hour mark, as battles started featuring full parties and lots of attack animations. The Convert and Digivolution systems also really make Digimon Story: Time Strange feel compelling and encourage battling without making the grind feel too all-consuming. Requirements to reach new evolutions are quite clear, and they’re typically reasonable given we can reach many by leveling up, others by saving and using items to bolster stats, and use the DigiFarm to influence builds. There’s a handy history on a character’s profile page, so you can see evolutions and devolutions. I will say the wait to reach Agent Rank 3 to finally Digivolve my starter felt like it took forever considering how many others I got to level up before that point, but the requirements feel like they make sense, are reasonable, and keep you from ending up being OP too early. (Unless you use the early unlock Special Agumon and Gabumon.) I do wish the requirements for Digivolving would be visible in DigiFarm, since I used that for filling gaps in my collection, and I think that could get tedious for completionists. Images via Bandai Namco The funny thing is that I feel like the odd quirks in Digimon Story: Time Stranger are the things that get to be the biggest issues. There’s a notification system that can alert you to sidequests or opportunities to automatically renew training at the DigiFarm. That’s handy! Except I found those notifications go by far too quickly for me to catch and press the shortcut to immediately respond without going into the menu. And even if I did go into the menu, the UI isn’t great about letting you know which ones are new and need addressing. The game also isn’t great at letting you know when the three active Digimon in your party around you are able to talk so you can influence their personality! Sometimes, if I moved too suddenly in a dungeon style space where they would appear, I’d see a conversation icon pop up, but if I turned to face them, the prompt wouldn’t show. I’d really need to find a clear, open, safe space and sometimes inch around folks to trigger the option. The story pacing can feel a bit off at times, especially during the first five hours, so it takes a bit of time to “pick up” even though everything going on can be pretty interesting! Speaking of pacing, it’s also a bit annoying when for “story reasons” our avatar is prevented from running at their typical gait and forced to walk. (Though this doesn’t happen all that often.) It also bothered me that our character is a silent protagonist. Dan and Kanan both have voice actors when you don’t choose one of them and they act as a supporting cast member. But once you select your avatar, you’ll see their mouth move after selecting dialogue options. They’re clearly saying the line you chose. However, Bandai Namco didn’t choose to actually have them be voiced. So there will be these awkward gaps in conversations where we’ll “watch” them respond and everyone else will talk, but they never speak. I get not voicing everything, but some critical story moment audio clips would have been nice. Also annoying is that the Jogmon card game in Digimon Story: Time Stranger isn’t fun! I was so excited when a kid wanted me to pass along a deck to Aegiomon. Digimon Card Game is great, if you’ve never had a chance to try it, and I hoped that maybe this meant a “lite” version of it would be included. Nope! What’s here is really bland and involves fake Digivices and cards representing characters with different power levels and types assigned to them. You drop one on your device on your turn and hope it’s stronger than the other. It lasts five rounds, with one card played each round and “winning” or “losing,” and the side with the most wins… wins. The aesthetics for the devices and character sprites are great, but it’s so disappointing. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ICCFACvxF84 Though those elements are annoying, playing Digimon Story: Time Stranger on a handheld gaming PC isn’t! I played on a Lenovo Legion Go, and it felt absolutely perfect. The framerate seemed pretty consistent throughout, which was my main concern, and it felt like it stayed around 60fps. It looked great too. The textures are on-point and all of the Digimon especially “popped.” Some minor hiccups aside, Digimon Story: Time Stranger is both a solid game in the series and the kind of JRPG that incentivizes experimentation due to the range of characters available. I loved playing around with Digivolution and the DigiFarm to create some exceptional allies. It was a shame that there are some minor pacing issues and notifications might not do as good of a job actually notifying me about things. There’s a strong foundation here with a lot of potential to build well-rounded armies of Digimon to help you face all of the game’s challenges. Digimon Story: Time Stranger will come to the PS5, Xbox Series X, and PC on October 3, 2025. The post Review: Digimon Story: Time Stranger Is a Solid Entry in the Series appeared first on Siliconera .

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