RYAN JOHNSON
Escape from Ever After Review
Escape from Ever After is a cute RPG that mechanically flies very close to Paper Mario with a tongue-in-cheek take on fairy tales akin to the first Shrek movie. It offers an excellent, witty story and challenges for people who are familiar with the Paper Mario series.
Super Crazy Rhythm Castle (PS5) Review
Super Crazy Rhythm Castle is a neat little game so long as you see it as a party game akin to Overcooked or Moving Out instead of a true rhythm game. Reviewed on what it is intended to be, it’s a quality, fun little title for plenty of laughs for up to four friends.
Rhapsody: The Marl Kingdom Chronicles (Switch) Review
Rhapsody: The Marl Kingdom Chronicles brings two sequels to a musical RPG that graced the PlayStation 1 to the USA for the first time with an official translation. The series as a whole is a nice, easy going RPG for someone wanting an easy game or a beginner who is just starting in the RPG genre.
Kofi Quest (Switch) Review
Kofi Quest is a fun parody-style RPG that gets plenty of laughs, but some of the mechanics could use a little polish. The humor Kofi brings to the table is up there with the greats of parody and tribute comedy.
Freshly Frosted (Switch) Review
Freshly Frosted is what I think a utopian cell phone puzzle game would be. No freemium game will ever be able to respect your time, patience, and brain cells the same way.
Samurai Riot: Definitive Edition (Switch) Review
Samurai Riot offers classic brawler gameplay with a unique choice mechanism. Major events happen, and you have the choice to branch the storyline in one of eight directions. It is a welcome return to classic “couch co-op” fun.
Lumberhill (Switch) Review
Lumberhill is a fast, frantic party game reminiscent of titles like Overcooked. It brings it’s own flair with random outdoorsy tasks to complete, but feels a bit more independent. You may be working on the same tasks but it often feels like you are doing it solo.
Aluna: Sentinel of the Shards (X1) Review
Aluna: Sentinel of the Shards is an excellent Diabloesque game in a unique atmosphere that does most things well. The AI has it’s limitations that can be exploited, which leads to the temptation to cheese your way through, but if you persevere genuinely you can find a good challenge.
Labyrinth City: Pierre the Maze Detective (Switch) Review
Labyrinth City: Pierre the Maze Detective is an interactive game based on puzzle books similar to the Where’s Waldo series. With plenty of little things to hunt out and a maze to traverse on each level, puzzle and maze loving kids have a perfect game to add some variety to their gameplay.
Star Renegades (PS4) Review
Rougelikes and RPGs are a strange mix, as the reset style of a rougelike doesn’t sound like it would mix well with RPGs and their long-term growth and planning. Star Renegades tells a unique story of multidimensional battles, where people flat out DIE and the only choice is to let go of an entire dimension and move on to the next.
Golden Force (Switch) Review
Golden Force makes some “old school difficult” design choices that, when combined, can lead to frustration. It is perfect for people looking for a Dark Souls/Super Meat Boy combination of challenge, but sparse checkpoints and cheap hits will deter more casual players.
Death Tales (Switch) Review
Death Tales is a cutesy-macabre platformer that is unfortunately weighed down with flimsy controls and psychedelic colors that make it hard to navigate. The game feels rather aimless and in need of a focus.
The Last Blade: Beyond the Destiny (Switch) Review
In the 90s, The Last Blade: Beyond the Destiny was an amazing handheld edition of something you could only get in an arcade. Whilst this is an amazing port with great honor done to the original Neo Geo Pocket Color experience, it’s hard to recommend when the original arcade experience this was emulating twenty years ago is sitting right there on the eShop at the exact same price.
Monster Truck Championship (PS4) Review
Monster Truck Championship is a wonderful game that brings a more mature feel to the world of monster trucks. With over 50 tweaks to streamline and perfect your truck and tons of race modes, don’t let the lack of an official license steer you away from this monster of a game.
Dread Nautical (Switch) Review
Dread Nautical is a strange amalgamation of survival horror and tactical RPG. Touchscreen control support proves that the Nintendo Switch is the superior system to play on, though the game’s unique mixture can be enjoyed by gamers on all platforms.
Ministry of Broadcast (Switch) Review
Ministry of Broadcast is a puzzle platformer in the veins of the Oddworld series of games. Set in a strange dystopia a man tries to win the chance to get to the other side of the Wall to be with his family by competing in a twisted game show.
Deep Sky Derelicts: Definitive Edition Review (PS4)
Deep Sky Derelictts: Definitive Edition accumulates all the currently available DLC and releases them on the home consoles. A unique mix of turn-based RPG and card game with a roguelike twist, this futuristic comic-book styled game is a neat strategic title with a dash of randomization to keep it interesting.
Langrisser I & II (Switch) Review
Langrisser is a Strategy RPG akin to Fire Emblem, while still having it’s own unique flair that allows for unique combat. This remaster is done with love, being able to swap between classic and modern graphics and music.
AO Tennis 2 (Switch) Review
Tennis games are always a good time, but the really popular ones tend to lean toward arcade or party style games. Mario Tennis Aces or the still-oft-played Wii Sports tennis matches can be enjoyable but don’t offer the Madden-level sim status that true tennis fans may miss. The AO (Australian Open) Tennis series brings the realism and customization in spades. It may deter players used to the prior mentioned titles, but with time gamers will find a satisfying, if perhaps a little too deep at times with the frantic pace of your average tennis match.
Tokyo Dark: Remembrance (PS4) Review
Tokyo Dark is a creepy tale in an amalgam of point and click and true visual novel experiences. Detective Ito must pay attention to how she interacts with the world and how it directly impacts her own sanity as she delves into a twisted world in the hopes of discovering what happened to her partner.