Rundown (12/15-12/21) The Slap of Reality!
Wherein I discuss personal issues, controller peripherals, the advancements of the legendary Nihon, and the quelling of a burgeoning typhoon.
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Rundown (12/17-1/06) I’m Back and I’m Tired!
Hello everybody. While I initially said that I was not going to start up the whole Nigmabox train until mid-January, I have been feeling a lot better post-surgery than I expected, and have been somewhat productive when it comes to playing games, so I figured that I’ll resume my usual review and rundown schedule. I was actually going to start things up sooner, but, well, I could not find enough noteworthy new stories to do a full Rundown, hence why I’m bundling together three weeks of news here.
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Gurumin: A Monstrous Adventure Review
Falcom is a very odd developer. A long standing Japanese developer with a history based in creating games for older Japanese computers and creating a wide variety of innovations in the RPG genre while primarily being known for Trails, a series of incredibly detailed JRPGs with a strong fanbase, and the Ys series, a collection of action RPG titles that shifted and mutated its exact genre over the years, and is home to some of my favorite examples of the genre of all time. Yet they can also be very experimental, as seen previously in games like Xanadu Next, which I reviewed a few months ago, and even more so in one of the more unique titles in their release history, Gurumin. (more…)
Xanadu Next Review
The original Xanadu was released for Japanese home computers back in 1985 as the second entry in the Dragon Slayer series. An incredibly long running franchise that was known for changing up its core concept and general gameplay almost completely with each installment, and went on to inspire a multitude of subseries, most notable the Legend of Heroes or Trails series. Xanadu itself was more of an offshoot title, one that was expanded with an additional scenario and even a Hudson developed spin-off for the NES by the name of Faxanadu. (more…)
Rundown (1/01-1/07) Much Ado About PC Ports and Little Else
Seeing as how Nintendo will be unveiling a whole lot of information about the Switch next week, there really have not been that many announcements made this past week, or a lot that I consider to be worth discussing. Well, other than PC ports, which I will always go out of my way to talk about as it is something that pretty directly benefits me, as it increases the library of games I can play on my platform of choice for the past 3.5 years. (more…)
Ys Seven Review
Note: I re-reviewed this title in 2020. Please disregard this review.
Before beginning, I feel I should clarify what I mean when I refer to prior Ys games, as I have played Ys Chronicles, Ark of Napishtim, Oath in Felghana, and Origin before delving into the creatively titled Ys Seven. Aside from Ys: Memories In Celestia, which was released after this title. I just want to clarify how I’m going into this game, as it does a few things I feel it makes some… notable changes. Also, I legally own the game via PSN, and played it using an emulator, because the Playstation TV displays PSP games at 480p, which looks terrible on a 1080p monitor. (more…)
Ys Origin Review
About two years ago, I gave my thoughts on Ys Origin, a game I thoroughly enjoyed well above all other Ys games, at least the ones I played, meaning the ones on PC. Although, I didn’t technically fully complete the game as I only cleared it with a single character, Yunica, and felt that I should try out the other two and see how the game stacked up, only to then realize that there was a true ending I was not aware of, which leads into Ys I. Plus, I just felt like playing it again. (more…)
Rundown (5/03-5/09) Sad Land
…I’m just really pissed at myself for so much. I know, I poke fun at myself for being kinda shit time and time again, but lately it’s been getting worse and worse and I don’t have anybody who I feel I can share any of this shit with. It’s a pretty sad state of affairs that I thought I had conquered years ago, but I have not, and I truly do not think I will be able to get my shit together… at any point in my life. So, yeah, video games. (more…)
Ys VI: The Ark of Napishtim Review
Note: I re-reviewed this title in 2020. Please disregard this review.
If I had to give a brief summary of how the Ys series works in regards to its final products, I would say that the first few titles were more experimental than anything, involving large changes to the gameplay and point of view with each installment before the series hit a sour note with part V, and went away for a generation, only to come back with this title, Ys VI: The Ark of Napishtim, and revitalized the franchise for a total of three games before changing up the gameplay once. I previously reviewed the spiritual follow-ups Oath in Felghana and Origin, both of which I liked quite a bit, but felt that many of the RPG elements of these games bogged it down, and its emphasis on story was a bit out of place in such a frantic high paced and cathartic action game. This being a prequel, not much has changed. (more…)
Ys Origin Review
Note: I re-reviewed this game in 2015. Please disregard this original review.
So, let me get this straight, Ms. Nigma. After starting the year strong with a total of five Metal Gear Solid titles in your possession, you do three, stop with no plans to finish the quest, and instead review some Ys games. A franchise that you were pretty okay with when it came to Ys Chronicles, liked with the title you reviewed just a few days ago, Oath in Felghana. Fine, just be sure to get around to reviewing those titles when you get a PS Vita under your reservation price, ya cheapo… You are just buying Steam games instead, aren’t you?
Ys: Oath in Felghana Review
Note: I re-reviewed this game in 2020. Please disregard this original review.
Well, it’s been a good while since I touched the Ys series with my review of Ys Chronicles, but I ended up buying the other half of this franchise that I can buy on Steam. With Ys: Oath in Felghana being a remake of Ys III as much as Metroid Zero Mission is a remake of Metroid. In fact, arguably less similar as Ys III was a side scrolling RPG that looked completely alien to me when I looked up gameplay of one of its many versions. Where as Oath to Farharad is something far more distinct.
Ys Chronicles+ Review
It is customary to do a bit of research when doing a more underground game for a series that is fairly sizable. Yet, Ys is one of the odder ones I’ve seen. With the entire series only spanning about 10 games in reality, but 25 or so years. While the prospect of obtaining the entire collection would cost a couple thousand easily, due to how often the core group of these games have been remade and re released. Hell, the one I’ve got right here is the repackaging of two originally separate NEC PC-8801 games, which I’ve never even heard of. That was remade for the Turbografx, PC, PSP, and is now the compilation of two of the remakes because of reasons!