Final Fantasy XIV Dawntrail - review

Couldn't take a screenshot of the title screen so uh have the keyart!

Genre: RPG.

Developer/publisher: Square Enix.
Platform: PS4/5, PC, xbone.
Official Site: N/A.

Release date: 27-6-2024.

 

I have been playing FFXIV for quite some time but never wrote a review on it.

This post is mostly about the new expansion dawntrail and it isn't much about the previous.

There aren't any major plot spoilers in this post but anything could count as

a spoiler to some so whatever I guess this is just a blog post and I am writing my own

personal thoughts as a review of a game I played, if you don't like it then close the tab/browser.

Pro's

- Decent enough plot.

- Great character development for Krile and Erenville.

- The first four zones are beautiful.

Con's

- Levels are simply given to you and I personally don't feel like I earned the lvl 100.

- Recycles too much old tunes and enemy models as well, its like i've seen/heard this before.

- I get Wuk Lamat is a main character but she steals too much of the spotlight...

 

 The expansions features a slight graphic update with better textures and models

gotta admit I was a little nervous, my WoL turned out okay but there may have

been those the update wasn't too kind of. The developers were kind enough to

give players a free fantasia to edit the character again. Which is a good thing.

Not really great at taking screenshots but thought this was a nice spot in the game.

 

More rambles after the jump but if you want the short of it, I think Dawntrail is decent

however don't expect too much out of the story and just enjoy it for what it is not for what it is not.

 

Ys Memoire The Oath in Felghana - Review

Title screen not much so have one of these images you unlock for clearing the game?

Genre: RPG.

Developer/publisher: Falcom
Platform: PS4/5,witch.
Official Site: https://www.falcom.co.jp/ysf/.

Release date: 22-5-2024.

 

With not much games of interest coming out and to take a break from otome games

I decided to get this game instead. Ys Felghana is also another ys games I never played

so now only VI and Seven remain unplayed.

V does not count and/or doesn't exist, remake it falcom... it deserves better. 

 

Pro's

- Fun boss fights (some annoying ones). 

- Exploring is rewarding, plenty of goodies to find in each area.

- Great OST.

 

Con's

- Ending feels a bit rushed.

- Short, its replayable but lacks an optional boss or reason to grind to lvl 60.

 

More rambles after the jump there's not really any plot spoilers in this post

but I did write somethings that bothered me, its all pretty minor.

 

Akuyaku Reijou wa Ringoku no Outaishi ni Dekiai Sareru - review

 Genre: VN.

Developer/publisher: Operahouse.
Platform: Switch.
Official Site: https://akuyaku.operahouse.co.jp/

VNDB: https://vndb.org/v47740

Release date: 21-3-2024.

This is an adaptation of a villainess lightnovel, Akuyaku for short or in english as:

The Villiainess Is Adored by the Crown Prince of the Neighboring Kingdom.

I never read it but it seemed like fun so I gave it a shot. I am well aware this is by the developer

who released charming empire and gakuen club, so I was still a little skeptic going into it.

I wasn't too sure what to expect but it suits the quality of their other releases.

 

I haven't really seen too many villainess works other than hamefura or taming the final boss.

Sorry if this sounds harsh but Akuyaku Reijou unfortunately wasn't able to do much new

other than just having cute romance... with not much substance to it.

I did think it is perfect to play if you don't have much else you'd rather be doing...

Pro's

- Voiced heroine.

- Sweet SWEET romance.

- Great art.

Con's

- Long text dumps/monologue's.

 - Primitive system, this grandma's fingers hurt from holding button to skip.

- Music can be grating on loop.

 

System is just standard stuff but when I saw the UI... I was like is this a PC game?

it sure had that kinda layout, idk what to expect of systems in VN nowadays

but Akuyaku Reijou was so backwards compared to other visual novels.

 

Akuyaku Reijou is pretty much a straight-forward visual novel

that adapts part of the lightnovel and it doesn't have any routes so there's like

only one love interest. This is also one of the rare cases where it may be better

to go into it without knowing anything about it so the twists will still be interesting.

So if you never heard about Akuyaku Reijou then yes you can start here!

 

I didn't understand why there were even choices, other than to get CG's maybe?

but there weren't that many and so I started to wonder what the purpose of this game was

because they may as well have turned it into a kinetic novel like witch on the holy night.

It was a chore to collect the other CG's in the three different volumes especially

with how you have to hold the skip button... to even get through it but atleast

it made it seem like your choices affected things so that's not bad.

 

The art is really gorgeous and I have no complaints of it.

The music wasn't really anything special there weren't a lot of tracks

and to hear it on loop for too long is grating so yea meh.

 

Now that we have the bad out of the way, the heroine was voiced which was a plus!

only downside is that her thoughts aren't voiced, if it was I think it would be funnier but alas.

I liked the art and was intrigued by the setting/story but there wasn't much of a plot that was

memorable, this focused way too much on romance. Its nice there weren't any bad endings

and you can enjoy romance with the leading man Aquasteed. The heroine did have multiple

outfits which was another nice thing, I actually like it when the sprite suits the scene.

Anyway since Aquasteed was really nice I almost didn't want anyone else anyway buuut

while I get it he saved her from certain doom as a villainess things did seem a bit too good to be true.

Of course I was disappointed that there was only one love interest but by volume 2

I did realize that it just wouldn't have worked, they would have to change the scenario a lot.

Aquasteed aside... Keith interested me the most, Akari can have Heartnight tbh...

 

 I can't really recommend this game though unless you have low standards

and just want to be swept off your feet without much plot/substance

which is probably the only thing the game was good at.

Some of the names are also kinda weird like what is a Heartnight Lapislazuli Lactomut?!

that sure is a mouthful of word vomit that seeing it in full makes me cringe to the point

Aquasteed Marinforest sounds normal in comparison. That aside the game

honestly feels like eating something very sweet and then feeling sick afterwards

like its not bad but you may not want too much of it? it also reminds me of the fact

that a visual novel can have gorgeous art and even a voiced heroine but if the rest

doesn't measure up then it is such a waste. Character interactions were barebones

and not that fun, it honestly makes me want to play something with more substance

cuz Akuyaku Reijou just didn't do much for me, I can't rate it higher than a 5/10.

 

I probably sound ungrateful but eh can't like everything and after sitting through

a bunch of otome's I liked i'm bound to find something that doesn't match up.

If there's anything memorable about this game it was cute romance, voice acting 

and the insanely beautiful art, everything else was pretty meh to me.

I am more inclined to think that this game is some kind of marketing trick

because there's so many otome games on switch and then there's Akuyaku...

which could get you interested in the novels that are readily available in japanese.

Anyway keep on trucking operahouse! this may be the last time I buy a game from you guys...

More rambles after the jump, there are spoilers as well as a few of my fav cg's

so if you want to play don't read further.

13 Sentinels Aegis Rim - Review

 Genre: VN/SRPG.

Developer/publisher: Atlus.
Platform: PS4/5,Switch.
Official Site: N/A.

Release date: 22-09-2020.

 

I had this game on my wishlist for a while and then... right after I finished Yakuza 2 Kiwami

this went on sale, it was less than 20$ so I said why not? but I ended up playing UtaChro first.

Pro's

- Interesting characters.

- There's payoff if you do all of the character stories.

- Beautiful artstyle.

- Yakisoba pan.

Con's

- Poor presentation, confusing story.

- Repetitive combat system.

The story is the kind of wtf is happening but you ain't getting it from one perspective

so it constantly jumps back and forth between a bunch of characters. I didn't really like

this sort of non-linear story-telling but I was intriguid by the story so I continued anyway.

Besides the characters and interactions were kind of fun too which is a plus in my book.

 

The game is split between two modes Remembrance and destruction.

There's also analysis but it just kinda exists for collection purpose

and to go over the confusing plot in case you're still confused.

Remembrance being about getting to know the characters and finding out why they're

even fighting in destruction which wastes no time on that,  there's some fluff dialogue

before & after battles but in terms of story destruction fell flat. It seems its only there for

gameplay and to progress remembrance. The loop back and forth wasn't so great 20 hours in

which is where I kinda had a good grip on the plot but I was still confused.

You can't get the full story from just 1 character so you gotta finish someone elses

but unlike some VN it all is presented so chaotically it makes my head hurt.

 

You know there's some truth to this...

I thought the story was intriguing but the presentation kinda sucks. This is just one

of those games everyone raves about but I just can't see what's that good about it.

Like its decent to me. I don't particularly enjoy being confused 90% of the time

but there's definitely pay off if you continue the individual stories so that's good.

I generally liked Shu's scenario except it got too ambitious at the end to the point

it couldn't properly finish it, Shu's also a good example of how they tried

to combine multiple stories, for some it worked but others... not so much.

Destruction ends up properly finishing the game but I am still like wtf man when I look back!

I also disliked Renya cuz this guy just had to be a smartass and its like watching sherlock....

*glasses fix* Lelouch voice but hey atleast it made some things make sense and wrapped up the story.

In the end my fav chracters were Shu,Natsuno and Yakisoba pan guy.

Atleast he's kinda infamous for it... also yea I did enjoy the fluff dialogue in destruction.

 

There was also romance but for some of the canon couples it  doesn't feel right or

more like some of them felt extremely forced in and man I just can't ship a few of them.

Like I could see Shu & Yuki/Tomi and even Tomi/Neji but Megumi had me cringing while the most

cringe romance in the game definitely was Iori & Ei but for some reason that gets a pass from me. LMAO I guess its the shoujo-manga vibes but whatever, romance is a hit or miss in this game.

Anyway! wasn't for me could be for you and if you really liked odin's sphere or nier automata

then Aegis Rim should be right up your alley too. The only reason why I continued to play

was because of the characters and trying to figure out how it all tied together, this combined

with the visuals was Aegis Rim's strongest points. I regret almost everything though

and at the very least for like 20$ I can say it was definitely worth a try.

For rating I'd give it a 6.5/10 and generally think the game is just fine!

its not as great as I heard people say it was but it was not that bad either.

 

Some more ramblings after the jump as well as my final thoughts but this is the short of it.

Also there's not really any plot spoilers in this post so don't worry.

Utakata no Uchronia - Review

Genre: VN.
Developer/publisher: Broccoli/Licobits.
Platform: Switch.
Official Site: https://licobits-game.com/uchronia/ 

VNDB: https://vndb.org/v40519
Release date: 11-04-2024. 

 

I still decided to get this game but the price... why is this game so expensive?

I even bought it digital but 8000 yen? damn that is the price of a limited edition

from the PS Vita era. Idk if this is just broccoli or the economy tanking

but I can see why people just don't want to blind purchase these games nowadays.

 

I'll say it right off the bat, this game was definitely not another Piofiore yet

it could be its successor in spirit. Also while this is not an otomate game

you can definitely tell this was by former staff of theirs.

 

Pro's 

- Interesting story in the grand scheme of things...

- Most love interests were likable except one.

- Gorgeous art and fitting bgm.

 

Con's

- Needs a high level of japanese to fully understand the story.

- Length, focuses too much on the big picture that it cuts itself short.

- Overall plot/flow of the game gets a bit repetitive with every route.

- Yori, i'm not even going to say anything else here.

 

I really liked the OP movie back in the demo and they finally uploaded it on YT

seems like they waited till the actual release date instead of alongside the demo's release.

I hardly ever skipped the OP, it generally was nice to see everytime you boot up the game.

Like I said in my demo impression post, UtaChro is very scenario focused, I just

did not expect it to be on such a grandscale and the fact it was legit surprised me.

UtaChro is very focused on the world they live in and the relationships of the people

in Hinagiku's life etc. Utachro is rich in worldbuilding and interpersonal relationships

but due to all that makes for a pretty long game, no joke. Due to that the romance takes a

while to develop as well but I generally had no complaints because of the pace of it.

For some routes the resolution could seem rushed or good enough... oh well.

What I also like is the whole main cast is part of the plot and don't just

disappear off the map once you lock onto a route which is great.

System is same as piofiore, lots of choices; 2 main endings a best and bad end.

There's no affection/correct choice indicator so easy to hit a game over end.

It may be best to use a guide if you don't want any surprises. There's the switch the PoV

like in Piofiore but since this is from the same writer/director so its to be expected.

 

In terms of story I was hooked to some extent and wanted to see where it was going

but it was also a bit long-winded and the conversations were not always able to grab me.

In Utachro my attention often waned. I do not know if it was because of the level of

japanese or the dialogue just being... dry. Of course at times jokes were cracked

but comedy is not really the focus in this game and it was far and between.

The level of japanese UtaChro uses often betrayed me, because at times it is simple

but it also won't hesitate to throw some complicated kanji at you.

Haven't played Y7 yet but that's me whenever I encountered Kanji that tripped me up.

 UtaChro is also incredibly slowburn, I am glad I did Awayuki as my first route since it fit

really well and I liked their chemistry somewhat but it wasn't a route to bring out

the full potential of the story which was sad. Good starter but not much else.

I did Yori second because he was the resident trashbag and wanted him out of my hair

after the crap he pulled during Awayuki's route and at the end of the day

Yori just wasn't my cup of tea but it may be someone elses? Tobari on the other hand

was probably one of my favorite characters, the romance with him was just right as well!

It reminded me of non-toxic normal relationships, which after Yori was a breath of fresh air.

Idk what to say about Tsuyukusa without spoilers other than that I am kinda tired of the

friend-type routes but he was one of the more relevant routes in the game, he did take a while

to grow on me and like Tobari I couldn't really see it till like chapter 4/5. Got not much to say about

Yashiro tbh but throughout most routes he was sorta just there, I remember him saying

I'm just an amnesiac guy somewhere which sounds about right till you get

to his own route and he just fucks everything up literally.😨

 

Hinagiku as a heroine was pretty great, good natured and a bit pampered like a princess

but also fearless and not easily afraid of situations she is getting herself into

yet at times she is still a girl you know? don't expect too much of her and I think she was

at her best in Tobari's route! I did prefer her over Naaya from Matsurika.

 

I also made a low effort meme for fun.

Yashiro could be a bit more to the left but for the most part this fits.

 

Overall UtaChro is overly lengthy and complicated, I only really enjoyed&remember the

interactions with the love interest & other fun interactions but there wasn't much of that.

The conflict going on in the town..... sure I was intriguid by what was really going on

but I just was kinda bored with how it was presented. Maybe it really is the dialogue

since it just didn't grab me most of the time. Or I just wasn't interested in the big picture

which just makes it a me problem. Your opinion could differ from this so I will still encourage

this game to anyone that likes scenario driven visual novels of decent length & don't mind politics

but idk the routes are kind of a hit or a miss. The only guy I really liked was Tobari

so I don't know what that says either, probably not much(other than that I might like stupid guys).

 

I know Uta-Chro is scenario driven but it really surprised me that there was

enough romance along the way and this was for me the saving grace.

If I had to be harsh this was a 5/10 due its repetitiveness but it gave me Tobari so... its a 7/10.

Uta-chro was just a really weird game, I came here for the scenario but left with romance.....

I still hope Aksys or someone else still picks up Uta-Chro... I mean its not Piofiore

but it has some of its elements as well as Nicola&Yang's love child Yori

which I am sure people will either love or hate. Even if that person is not me. 

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

There are route restrictions and Yashiro, Tsuyukusa and Yori are off limits at the start.

Yori is unlocked by doing Awayuki, Tsuyukusa unlocks after doing Tobari and finally

Yashiro needs like everyone so no choice but to do him last.

My play order ended up being:

Awayuki > Yori > Tobari > Tsuyukusa > Yashiro >Finale.

I'll just recommend the same except maybe switch Awayuki/Tobari based on preference, this order

may be good to be able to go from those who're available at the start to a more important route.

Whether or not you do Yori right after Awayuki just depends whether you'd like to or not.

This game is even more restrictive than Matsurika and its not even funny.

Route babbles after the jump however the only routes I really wrote about

were Tsuyukusa and Yashiro, but only note-worthy things. This game is too long

someone else can do it if they'd like to but it ain't gonna be me. I'm drowning.