[Review] Ys VIII : Lacrimosa of DANA (by YouNa)

"Everyone breaks up someday. But the important thing is that we do our best in the present so that we can say goodbye with smile to each other when that day came. - In Ys VIII: Lacrimosa of DANA"

Ys VIII: Lacrimosa of DANA. This game is the 8th official project of the Ys series, which started in 1987. It is an action JRPG game centered around the adventures of the hero Adol and his colleagues. Specifically, this series features "High Speed Action" along with the game system that allows players to freely change their characters during battle. Thanks to these features, users can play fast-paced combat and dungeon exploration. Moreover, the touching story of Ys VIII is the best of Falcom's Ys series. Ys VIII finally became available on Nintendo Switch, Playstation4, PS VITA , and Steam thanks to NIS America & Nihon Falcom. In this review, I would like to introduce why 'Ys VIII: Lacrimosa of DANA' has become the best JRPG of this year for me. In order to make it easier to understand, I would like to take a closer look at this game in terms of gameplay, graphics, and sound.

1. GamePlay
Ys VIII is a modern succession of classical JRPG. One of the JRPG's main features is that small events are elaborately organized to lead its story. These events are connected naturally and the hero grows through these experiences. The characters are saving the world or moving towards a new world. Ys VIII follows this formula faithfully. The story begins as Adol's party is attacked by a mysterious creature in the sea and have drifted to an island. The stage of Ys VIII is a large island with no interaction with the outside world. They save other survivors on this island and help each other. As they work together to find out what they can do to survive, their members become more family-like. In this process, the player will encounter another heroine, DANA. And in order to escape from this island, they will discover secrets in their adventure together. There are a few grinding elements that are common in JRPGs and the adventure of this game is full of interesting things.

2. Graphics
The graphics can be a bit old-fashioned compared to current AAA games, but that's not a problem at all. The graphics are surprisingly delicate and natural. Furthermore, 60 FPS is used without any problems. And even though the 3D character modeling is somewhat simple, the 2D animation is excellent. Players will feel more comfortable and familiar with them as they control their own characters. Thanks to the high-speed action, the battle motions of characters are great. So unlike at first glance, I think that the more you play this game the more you will be satisfied with the graphics of this game.

3. Sounds
As you may have heard, Falcom is famous for bringing out great music. This is the same for this Ys VIII. In particular, the attractive BGM and the voice acting of each character play a good role. OSTs that fit well in each situation give a good impression to the game. It is not full voice supported, but in the main events the voices of the characters are vividly expressed. Furthermore, the sound effects used in combat make the game even more exciting. These wonderful melodies have remained in the hearts of players for a very long time.

To summarize, Ys VIII: Lacrimosa of DANA is different from AAA games these days. It does not rely on huge scale designs or numerous characters from the start. In Ys VIII, the small but charming characters gather together to move toward a single great goal. The key to good RPG games is interesting stories and attractive characters, and Ys VIII is faithful to these basic things. If you have nostalgia for a well-made JRPG or are looking for one, Ys VIII will be the best gift for you. Highly Recommended!

* Ys VIII : Lacrimosa of DANA (by Nihon Falcom / NIS America)

https://www.nintendo.com/games/detail/ys-viii-lacrimosa-of-dana-switch

https://store.steampowered.com/app/579180/

[Review] Mugen Souls Z (by YouNa)

Mugen Souls Z. This game is made by Idea Factory and published by Ghostlight. Idea Factory is a specialist in creating games for Anime fans. The games are first released as console titles first and then launched as PC versions. In particular with Ghostlight, the publisher seems to have an outstanding talent in porting these console titles to PCs. Thanks to that, we can now enjoy these games on Steam as well.

This game is for Anime fans. So it is designed to give you the full enjoyment of fan service. Sometimes, games that offer such direct usage of fan service are better than indirect ones. This includes the dialogue of characters, words used in games, game systems, stories, visuals, sounds, directing scenes and so on. The story is especially full of pleasant twists and humor. Mugen Souls Z tries to satisfy players' needs in the best way from beginning to end.

In addition, this game itself is quite well-made as far as RPG games go. This game is a straightforward RPG that follows the story like a typical JRPG style. However, there are a lot of different kinds of fun to be had. You can immerse yourself in Mugen Souls Z because there are elements like collections. The key point of this game is the battles. As each character's turn arrives, the player can enter a variety of commands to strategically go through battle. Like 'Moe Kill', it makes enemies into items or servants. In battles, attributes change using crystals, Linked Attacks among your colleagues that can be used when certain conditions are met, and you can view spectacular anime effects. There are various possibilities in the battle itself, so the battles will always be interesting. This is a fairly advanced combat system among Idea Factory RPG games.

In summary, Mugen Souls Z is the best anime style game for fans. There are a lot of fan service scenes, action attacks are quite gorgeous, and the story is really pleasant. This game will make players very happy. Enjoy a game that is well worth it and should be in your Steam library. Highly Recommended!

[Steam] Mugen Souls Z (by Idea Factory / Ghostlight LTD)

https://store.steampowered.com/app/466920/

[Review] Newton and the Apple Tree (by YouNa)

"Newton and the Apple Tree is the best love comedy visual novel game released on Steam this year."

One of the big trends of comics and anime in recent years is alternate history. The key to this trend is to adapt a great historical event differently from the original setting. Especially in Japan, it is very popular to create characters with stories by switching the gender of these historical greats. Well known examples include: King Arthur Saber in the Fate series and Uesugi Kenshin in Sengoku Rance. Such an attempt is quite interesting because there is an amazing twist of freshness and familiarity.

So what I want to introduce this time is a fairly interesting visual novel game with these alternate history settings. It's called Newton and the Apple Tree. This game is made by Laplacian and published by Sol Press. It is Laplacian's second project which has already received quite good responses in Japan. This game has been localized and translated thanks to Sol Press, so now we are all able to play it on Steam. We should give high value to their efforts in these wonderful projects. Thanks to these lovely games, my life has been more emotionally and mentally satisfying than before.

What invited us to the world of Newton and the Apple Tree? The story begins when Syuji Asanaga receives a letter from his missing grandfather. After getting a clue about his grandfather, he and his childhood friend Yotsuko Utakane headed to England, the destination of your letter. Upon arrival, Asanaga accidentally activates an unidentified machine left by his grandfather. This unusual phenomenon causes them to time travel to the 17th century. There they meet a girl with a small chest called Isaac Newton(Alice Bedford). This is the beginning of 'Boy Meets Girl'. It is quite surprising that Isaac Newton is a Moe girl, but the problem is that Newton is not inspired by apple tree about the law of universal gravity. Because of you! This could be a crisis where human science is going to decline. But fortunately, this game is not a tense game at all.

Is this interesting setting all about making Newton more adorable for love comedy? Of course, but that's not all. Another attraction of this game is in the science girls. This game is taking full advantage of the science humor that is popular in subculture recently. Although some users may not know about such scientific humor, the game is fun enough. But the more you know about it, the more enjoyable the game will be. Most of the heroines in this game have researcher characteristics. Because of their nature, they are analytical but often mistaken. The cuteness from them are their charming points.

Newton and the Apple Tree is a love comedy with healing. It's a game with a fairly interesting set-up, but the key of this visual novel is the heroines, centered around Isaac Newton. The main setups and scenarios are made up of dramas that make the 'Boy Meets Girls' aspect more compelling. Furthermore, this game is full of funny humor and pleasant events along with impressive illustrations that make their stories more wonderful. So while playing this game, the players will laugh a lot. Every episode feels complete. Thanks to the catharsis of this game, I can be sure that this Newton and the Apple Tree will remain for a long time in the hearts of the players. That's what the developer Laplacian is looking for. Even beginners who are not familiar with these genres can enjoy this game comfortably. I personally believe that the best love comedy released on Steam this year is Newton and the Apple Tree. It should definitely be selected as "The best alternate history game" in the Steam Awards. Highly Recommended!

If you are interested in learning more about this game, 
check out the following sites for additional information:

[Sol Press] Newton and the Apple Tree
https://solpress.co/projects/newton/

[Steam] Newton and the Apple Tree (by Laplacian / Sol Press)
https://store.steampowered.com/app/721010/Newton_and_the_Apple_Tree/?curator_clanid=33855818

[Review] Sakura Sakura (by YouNa)

[Review] Sakura Sakura (by YouNa)

"Sakura Sakura is the best 'Pure Love Comedy' Visual Novel"

After the enjoyable time I spent playing, Sakura Sakura could be included in GOTY among the Best Visual Novels. Sakura Sakura is a Visual Novel with a very comfortable and pleasant storytelling. It's a romantic comedy about two overbearing Sakuras and their light-hearted love triangle. It was first announced over ten years ago. Thanks to publisher Sol Press, we are finally able to enjoy this game on Steam. 

You might think, "Why has this 10 year old game been localized & translated just now?' My personal opinion about it is that Sakura Sakura was worth the wait. The graphics may seem a bit outdated compared to CGs these days, but if you play this game, you will soon realize that it's not really an issue. Especially since Sakura Sakura is one of the Golden Age games of Japanese Visual Novel genre at that time. FYI, Sakura Sakura won the Gold Award at the pure love section in Moe Game Award 2009(Japan). 

So, what are the special features of this lovely visual novel, Sakura Sakura? Is it really worth the purchase? First of all, the full story of this game is more than 40 hours. These rich stories include pure love, school life comedy, and friendship. There are 4 heroines in total: Nanako Sakura, Sakura Kirishima, Akira Nitta, and Kurumi Tachibana. They are all really attractive. Thanks to them, the story is more alive and fits into a romantic comedy. The first two are the main heroines, and they represent Sakura Sakura, the title of the game. The latter two are the sub-heroines. I like this story's narrative because it gives fresh vibe among the characters. I want to emphasize that their stories provide enjoyable experiences beyond your imagination.

Furthermore, Sakura Sakura, the game itself is quite well-made too. The main parts of the story are made up of the following: Common routes, each routes for 4 heroines, 2 additional epilogues covering one year later, and 1 bonus privilege story for players. The main areas of Sakura Sakura are the dormitory and the school. This game makes a big effort to allow players to interact with main characters in dorm. The game provides the player with a dorm map, which allows the player to experience various sub-routes in addition to the main-routes. This would be highly regarded as a good attempt to go beyond the technical limitations of common visual novels. I think you'll notice these unique features of the game once you begin playing.

(Dorm Map Image in Sakura Sakura made by Vodoka, Sol Press Staff)

Of course, Sakura Sakura has basic features too. In particular, this game has nice convenience features. It provides CG Mode, OST, Record Memories, Skip & Auto Mode Control, Sub-Routes Check Table, etc. This means that Sakura Sakura is a really valuable 'Premium' Visual Novel. The only technical drawback of the game at this time is that it does not seem to support Steam screenshots by the F12 button. I would like to share the beautiful moments of this wonderful game with more players around Steam. This is an issue that could be improved with an update in the future.

Sakura Sakura is made by Hiqosoft and published by Sol Press. Thanks to the efforts of Sol Press and the hearts of our visual novel fans, after a long wait the game has finally been localized and translated. People who have been waiting long to play this game will feel rewarded and players who are new to this game will experience a new world through Sakura Sakura. Now that the wait is over, let's go play Sakura Sakura for a love comedy of dorm life!

If you are interested in learning more about this game, 

check out the following sites for additional information:

[Sol Press] Sakura Sakura

https://solpress.co/projects/sakurasakura/

[Steam] Sakura Sakura (by Hiqosoft / Sol Press)

https://store.steampowered.com/app/658140/Sakura_Sakura/?curator_clanid=33855818

[Review] Mary Skelter: Nightmares (by YouNa)

This game is made by COMPILE HEART & IDEA FACTORY and published by Ghostlight. This game presents a new direction for Dungeon RPG games. It gives players some of the best gameplay experience ever made by these developers. We need to give high praise to games that try fresh approaches while taking advantage of existing game genres.

While I enjoy many different Dungeon RPGs, they have mostly monotonous playing in very similar ways. They usually involve exploration of mazes in first person view, encountering enemies in random intervals, and to battle bosses at the right time for story progression.

So what are the special features of this game, Mary Skelter? Is it really worth the purchase or try? First of all, the dungeons of Mary Skelter are fairly dynamic. Traps are set up around the map, players can break the walls of the dungeon, and these mazes contain puzzle elements. In a nutshell, it's like a living dungeon. The event scenes in the dungeon are also quite impressive. These are some of the new approaches but these levels are so well designed that even beginners can easily adapt. In addition, the characters' upbringing and favorability systems are special features that make this game even more interesting. I can be sure that many players will be satisfied with these gameplay elements.

The story of Mary Skelter is dark fantasy, but the humor is alive and there is a lot of content. This game would generally provide more than 50 hours of gameplay. The more you play, the more you will be immersed in this game. This game has a fantastic backdrop of joyful twists from various fairy tales that will keep you from getting bored. Playing as the hero Jack, the player & your powerful Blood Maidens will explore a living Jail dungeon. This dungeon has desires because it is alive, and sometimes these desires would be the key to releasing game clues. How will you overcome Nightmares? This is another feature of the game that is quite challenging. But do not worry. There are lovely Blood Maidens beside you. You can use your blood meter to power up or heal your Blood Maidens. Everything depends on you!

'Mary Skelter: Nightmares' is a fairly interesting Dungeon RPG that has tried new approaches to the genre. The new features are not forcibly injected into the players and are naturally woven into the game. Furthermore, beautiful & cute anime girls are indispensable elements in this game. I think the most important thing in today's anime character-based games are the characters. Living characters with personality are attractive and lead you into the story. From this perspective, 'Mary Skelter: Nightmares' is very successful. So there is absolutely no reason to miss this game, which guarantees an enjoyable game experience with lovely characters. Highly Recommended!

[Steam/GOG] Mary Skelter: Nightmares (by IDEA FACTORY / Ghostlight)

https://store.steampowered.com/app/837610/Mary_Skelter_Nightmares/

https://www.gog.com/game/mary_skelter_nightmares

[Review] Disgaea 5 Complete (by YouNa)

[Review] Disgaea 5 Complete (by YouNa)

Disgaea 5. This game is made by Nippon Ichi Software and published by NIS America. The Disgaea series is known for being a masterpiece of 'Nippon Ichi Software' and being loved by many fans. Even players who try this series for the first time can easily adapt to the game. Moreover, once you start to discover the charm of Disgaea, it's hard to stop. Disgaea 5 was originally released on PS4 for the first time in the series. Disgaea 5 boasts very high game performance and graphics. Thanks to these points, Disgaea 5 can have over 100 characters. There are also a number of advantages such as perfect 60 frames and detailed high-quality images. So Disgaea 5 is probably the best Japanese art style SRPG. Finally, players can now enjoy the Disgaea 5 Complete on Steam as well.

This game has a solid performance that is much better than previous games including huge maps, massive characters, and gorgeous combat effects, making it the best in the series. As mentioned previously, you can easily see more than 100 characters on the field and there is no frame degradation or loading problems. Skills and event scenes will further enhance your enjoyment of the game. The dot images implemented in the game have also become very detailed. In addition, 3D rendering and effects have been enhanced, and the appearance of objects and regions has also been improved. This really shows how far the series has evolved. 

The features of Disgaea 5's gameplay itself are also noteworthy. The most noticeable part is the addition of attributes, weapon attachment systems, and the wide range of attacks that were excluded from the previous series. The weapons system has also changed. Thanks to the system that allows two weapons, a lot of possibilities can be experimented with various job classes and species. This creates some unique fun in battles and enables special combo attacks including magic.

There are also some fresh new features. There is Revenge Mode, which aims to reverse the situation, and team attacks that can be used in special relationships such as lovers or rivals. You can also collect and manage only the characters you want by the squad system. Revenge Mode, a feature that can be used when your damage reaches a certain threshold, can reverse the entire battle. When this function is activated, all of your abilities will be increased and your SP will be fixed at 1 for special skills. All attacks are also triggered by Critical, so you can see incredible battle animations that are difficult to normally see. There are also team attacks with colleagues which are an important part of Disgaea 5. As you progress through the story of this game you will experience them inevitably, and the effects on team attacks are quite gorgeous. Furthermore, the squad system helps you play games more efficiently and systematically. Like team attacks, squad skills allow you to use various strategies in this game.

There is so much fun to be had with this game that it wouldn't all fit into this review. With the continued release of series, the downsides continue to decline and added convenient features make the game more enjoyable for over 999 hours. The Disgaea series provides users with a stable and enjoyable gameplay experience that could get anyone hooked. However, since it is a game that is faithful to the basics of SRPGs, users who do not enjoy the genre may have difficulty getting used to it. To solve this issue, Nippon Ichi Software has brought charming stories, characters, and game convenience improvements. So I am sure that anyone can easily enjoy Disgaea 5, whether you are a hard core player or a casual one. I recommend Disgaea 5 as a game definitely worth your time.

[Steam] Disgaea 5 Complete (by Nippon Ichi / NIS America)
https://store.steampowered.com/app/803600/Disgaea_5_Complete__5/

[Review] Megadimension Neptunia VIIR (by YouNa)

[Review] Megadimension Neptunia VIIR (by YouNa)

Megadimension Neptunia VIIR. This game is made by COMPILE HEART and published by IDEA FACTORY. They are well known to us for the Neptunia Series. Their games are popular for combining RPG elements with loveable Anime characters. The most important thing in today's great stories is the characters. When unique and lively characters are created, the story is completed naturally. It's not like characters follow stories, but stories follow characters. From this perspective, the Neptunia series is successful. So, what are the special features of the new Megadimension Neptunia VIIR? Is it really worth the purchase? Let's have a look.

Megadimension Neptunia VIIR is an enhanced version of 2016's Megadimension Neptunia VII. Thanks to the new graphics engine, you can enjoy more beautiful and improved graphics. It is the latest game to deal with the encounter and adventure of the Neptune friends who cross over the dimension. In addition, it includes a new and diverse system that allows you to enjoy the game on a deeper level. For example, new events and scenes that were not in the previous work have been added, and the balance of difficulty has been improved. Of course, the convenient functions (like Auto-Save) of the game itself have also updated. Therefore, even users who played the previous 'Megadimension Neptunia VII' can enjoy this game with a fresh new feeling.

The battle style has changed somewhat, but it is still enjoyable. In Megadimension Neptunia VIIR, the player can experience a great battle with various attack possibilities and strategies. Today, the JRPG turn-based battle system has evolved considerably. You can choose attack combos in advance with special skills to change the battle dynamic. Especially the newly added giant boss battles are quite impressive. Above all, what you should not miss in this game is the story with the characters. The story consists of 3 parts : Zero Dimension, Hyper Dimension, Heart Dimension, and additional VR Dimension. Just the story portion of this game is approximately 40 hours or more. Battle grinding is not required in this story progress as your characters will grow naturally. So you can enjoy the story comfortably with the lovely Neptunia characters.

The VR events are especially impressive in Megadimension Neptunia VIIR. In a space named 'Player Room' on the VR dimension, the player will communicate one-on-one with Neptune's party, which is implemented with 3D modeling. Neptune and friends can react to what the player sees or enjoy various conversations. And even if you do not have a VR device, you can still fully enjoy the VR related events in this game. 

Megadimension Neptunia VIIR features the most beautiful graphics and excitement in the series. It is an extremely well-made expansion and remake of a fantasic game. The game is designed to make it easy for beginners to adapt to the Neptunia World and to allow advanced players to enjoy hardcore gameplay. So there is no reason anyone should miss this game. All together Nep-Nep!

[Steam] Megadimension Neptunia VIIR (by IDEA FACTORY / COMPILE HEART)
https://store.steampowered.com/app/774511/Megadimension_Neptunia_VIIR/