I was so excited when Octopath Traveler II was announced in September 2022's Nintendo Direct. I love the first game — warts and all. I know it has problems, but it was the cosy RPG I needed back in 2018, complete with an incredible soundtrack, a wonderful battle system, and a whole new visual style for me to obsess over.
If you were someone who didn't enjoy the first Octopath Traveler , what if I told you the sequel was 100% better in every single way? More fully-realised characters with extra interactions with each other. Better stories for each of the eight new travellers, all of which defy standard RPG tropes. A battle system with minor tweaks to make it even better, perhaps becoming one of the best turn-based systems of all time? And somehow, HD-2D visuals that look even better than they did five years ago. Octopath Traveler II is magical — a pure chocolate box of an RPG with so much to satisfy genre fans. If you're not sure, go try the demo. If you decide to bite, you're jumping into one of the finest RPGs of the generation. AH
The first in Digital Eclipse's Gold Master Series, The Making of Karateka was another triumph. Carrying the 'interactive documentary' design language of Atari 50 into an ongoing roster of titles, it explores video game history by weaving the narrative of Karateka's creation through playable builds of prior games and prototypes. The result is a dynamic, anecdote-filled celebration of a game that an increasing number of gamers may have only read about, if they've heard of it at all.
Thanks to the engaging contextual framework DE assembles, the tiniest spark of interest in games is all that's needed to discover and appreciate Jordan Mechner's profound influence on the industry. The upcoming Llamasoft: The Jeff Minter Story looks set to continue this line in 2024, and long may it continue. Essential stuff for anyone who cares about the evolution of the medium. GL
After the phenomenal success of Three Houses on Switch it was hard to know in which direction Intelligent Systems would take their strategy franchise next. Would they stick with the more relationship/romance focus that had gained them so many new fans in 2019? Surely yes.
Well, no actually. Fire Emblem Engage does the exact opposite of what we were expecting, dialing back the personal drama, romance and friendships in favour of non-stop battling. We say "non-stop" in direct comparison to the glacial pace of its predecessor, there are still plenty of chances to rest, chat, level up and more at this game's glorious new hub area here. It's just that the focus here is 100% on the fights this time, never mind who you fancy, mate, it's about engaging in some of the best strategy battles on Switch this time, not daydreaming in your dorm.
Now get over here and deal with these snipers while I go have a word with these folk who're laughing at Alear's haircut. PJ
I've been a huge sweaty fan of all things Blasphemous since first playing the original game for review back in September of 2019. The Game Kitchen's incredible art style, deep lore, and meaningful religious symbolism, combined with top-notch combat, made it a dark, disturbing and deliciously addicitve highlight of that year's indie offerings for me.
With Blasphemous 2 , the Spanish dev has really gone to town, expanding much more than I'd expected on the combat and exploration aspects of its first game. This is slick and polished stuff that features much better level design in terms of area connectivity and how you retread steps. Its bosses are improved too, now smarter, tougher and more spectacularly animated than ever, and there's a whole bunch of new tricks for you to get to grips with as you engage in some of the most brutal, bloody, and beautiful battling on Switch. It's no wonder I gave it 9/10! PJ
Figment 2 feels like an absolute fever dream of the best kind. Each and every character and enemy is some bizzaro figment (oh!) of the host person's imagination, but those that reside within this person's mind are only aware of this fact to a certain degree. As a result, their own drives and desires are able to be realised in a fully established world rather than constantly serving their host, which for a trope of 'there's a world in your head' is quite refreshing.
It's an absolute triumph of a game, and even though it runs not-so-brilliantly on Switch, it's worth suffering some dodgy frame rates for the ride it offers. See the 'Song of Discarded Opinions' featured below, and you'll see. AO
Never have I been more addicted to a game than the first two weeks after F-Zero 99 's launch. It was like the 99 format was made specifically for this game. All the mechanics to compensate for having 99 players on the racing track played together flawlessly and getting first in a race with that many players, well, there’s not much else that compares! FS
A gorgeous puzzle game, up there with Portal , Gorogoa , and Braid in the way it blends so cohesively and elegantly mechanics and art direction. Its simple, wordless presentation belies a mind-bending central idea that sees you jumping between worlds contained within carriable orbs, worlds which loop and warp into one another with environmental puzzles that feel as intuitive to solve as they are difficult to describe.
The frame rate on Switch is consistently in (I'd guess) the 20-25fps range, which may well be a non-negotiable for some people. However, such is the nature of its gameplay that Cocoon 's fundamental mechanics don't feel compromised, and it remains one of my highlights of 2023. GL
Oh... come on, now. Do I need to explain this one? Tears of the Kingdom is an absolute marvel in game design. The exploration is perfect and often terrifying — the Sky and the Depths are incredible. Ultrahand, Recall, Ascend, and Fuse open up a world of possibilities. And the improved story is basically exactly what I wanted from a sequel. Zelda's new direction continues to be something special, and I can't wait to see where this series goes next. AH
I mean, what can you say about this one, really? Nintendo has topped Breath of the Wild and taken this particular incarnation of Hyrule to its limit, or at least you would think. I wasn't fully convinced back when the original trailers revealed the incredibly deep building and construction aspects of this one, it seemed like more fuss on top of gameplay that was already fussy enough thank you very much.
However, within hours of jumping in, the genius of gifting players the ability to freely manipulate, build, and break so many different aspects of the world becomes clear. It presents you the most incredible open-world rendition of Hyrule yet, stuffs every corner of this world with secrets, surprises, and high adventure, and then lets you loose in it with a toy box full of the series' best tricks to date.
This game is another masterpiece from Nintendo. I find myself going in with a plan and quickly getting side-tracked…and that’s a good thing! Much like Breath of the Wild, it’s easy to get lost in this one for hours on end. It’s the mark of brilliance in my opinion, and when you are chipping away at the main quest, it’s just as immersive. LD
This is Nintendo at its freewheeling best when it comes to creativity, and the result is easily one of the strongest games on any platform this year. The best Zelda of all time? Probably. The best game of 2023? It's an easy-peasy argument to make. PJ
Alright, innit? GL
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