Bandai Namco Game Reviews
Review DRAGON BALL: Sparking! ZERO (Switch 2) - A Brilliant Brawler With A Colossal Roster
The spark that lights the fire
When Dragon Ball Sparking! Zero launched last year on non-Nintendo platforms. I was taken aback at how much time had passed since the last entry in this series. I was a teenager still in school! With the launch of Nintendo Switch 2, a flurry of ports are coming to the updated console and handheld system, including...
Review Once Upon A Katamari (Switch) – A Roll-'Em-Up Revival Done Right
A star is born
The core gameplay conceit of the Katamari series — rolling up everything you see into a giant ball of wriggling debris, one object at a time — almost feels like it shouldn’t work. Yet Once Upon a Katamari manages to turn mess into something meditative, pulling you into a satisfyingly tactile flow state where hoovering stuff up...
It takes two (consoles)
When the original Little Nightmares was released in 2017, it won praise for its fresh take on puzzle platforming horror. Its sequel upped the scare factor even further, earning critical acclaim while deepening the series’ mythos. With a new developer at the helm of its threequel, the question on everyone’s minds is...
Review Pac-Man World 2 Re-Pac (Switch 2) - Short, Sweet, Prettified, And Not For Everyone
Waka Waka Waka 2: Much Prettier
I admit it. When this review came along, my gaming patience was being tested to its limit by Silksong’s brutal difficulty. So I rolled pretty enthusiastically towards an alternative I hoped would be more relaxing. (I genuinely regret the hours I spent defeating The Last Judge.) Pac-Man World 2: Re-Pac seemed the...
A good walk spoiled
Fans of Everybody’s Golf have had to twiddle their one-gloved thumbs for a while now, waiting since 2017 for a new official entry in the series. Mashing together the series’ previously regionally distinct names (Everybody’s Golf and Hot Shots Golf), Everybody’s Golf Hot Shots has finally stepped up to the tee. Have series...
Review Patapon 1+2 Replay (Switch) - A Pleasing Return For Some PSP Charmers
Drumroll, please
Ever since I was a kid stomping his feet to pop songs in Dance Dance Revolution and getting pep talks from PaRappa the Rapper about how I gotta believe, I’ve been a fan of rhythm games. And while I love popular juggernauts in the genre like Guitar Hero, I’ll always prefer something with more originality than just simply holding...
Review Shadow Labyrinth - Nintendo Switch 2 Edition - Sometimes 'Good Enough' Is Just That
For Puck's sake
Pac-Man, as iconic as he is, has felt like he’s been in a bit of a rut in recent years. The rather delightful PAC-MAN 99 aside, there’s an undeniable sense that the series has simply been unable to break away from its core concepts. So, regardless of what gimmicks are chucked in to justify a new entry — Battle Royale in Chomp...
Review Tamagotchi Plaza Nintendo Switch 2 Edition - Well, At Least It Looks Great
A rotten egg
Back in the mid-to-late '90s, Tamagotchi virtual pets were a massive fad, with kids around the world eagerly raising and interacting with cutesy animals on their tiny pea-green screens. Though the fad inevitably died out, Tamagotchi continued to exist in various forms across the next couple of decades, including a handful of video games...
Review Tales Of Graces f Remastered (Switch) - The Characters Steal The Show In This JRPG Classic
f yeah
The Tales series is one of those JRPGs that sometimes flies under the radar. It doesn’t typically get the same hype as Final Fantasy or Persona, but Bandai Namco has been consistently putting out solid Tales games for 30 years. Tales of Graces f Remaster continues that tradition, bringing one of the best entries in this franchise to modern...
Review Freedom Wars Remastered (Switch) - A Fair Reprieve For One Of PS Vita's Best
Free from Vita jail
Like Nintendo’s own Wii U, the PS Vita has seen a good chunk of its best games migrate to alternative platforms in the years since the system itself veered into the realm of ‘commercial failure’. One of those games is Freedom Wars, a third-person action title created by Dimps that, at the time, was one of the most...
Review Gundam Breaker 4 (Switch) - A Return To Form That Focuses On The Series' Strengths
Breaking free
In many ways, Gundam Breaker 4 represents a fresh start for Bandai Namco’s mecha action series. Not only is this a return to the roots after the divisive New Gundam Breaker didn’t go over so well with the fanbase, but this marks the first time that the mainline series has come to either the Nintendo Switch or Western audiences...
Review One Piece Odyssey (Switch) - A Safe But Solid Caper For The Straw Hats
Here be dragons
A couple of years ago, it was notable when the Switch remakes of Pokemon Diamond and Pearl were developed not in-house by Game Freak, but by a smaller Japanese support studio called ILCA. That remake project was actually ILCA’s first crack at being the lead developer on a game, and it soon followed this up early last year with One...
In the Summer skies, flying high!
Did you know the F-16 first took flight 50 years ago a few months back? It is currently enjoying its Block 70 revision in case you were fearing that air forces around the world are still flying half-century-old technology. Meanwhile, Ace Combat is turning 30 next year and, much like an airplane block revision, it...
Review SPY×ANYA: Operation Memories (Switch) - A Very Easygoing, Sometimes Awkward Anime Outing
The most adorable spy mission you'll ever play
Listen up, Spy x Family fans. Operation Strix is on and the only way to ensure world peace is to help Anya Forger with her homework. In the case of Spy x Anya: Operation Memories, that means taking her to lots of fun places and taking pictures of her while she does adorable things. It is a low-stakes,...
Review Pac-Man Mega Tunnel Battle: Chomp Champs (Switch) - Pac-Man 99’s Successor Is A Flop
First as tragedy, then as farce
“Comparison is the thief of joy,” said former US President Teddy Roosevelt. The gist is that sometimes a comparison can negatively skew our perceptions or diminish our appreciation of individual qualities. Roosevelt didn’t have multiplayer Pac-Man in mind when he came up with his oft-quoted consolatory aphorism,...
Pick a card, any card
These days, Monolith Soft is well known for being one of Nintendo’s finest internal teams, with the Xenoblade Chronicles games delivering some of the finest open-world JRPG goodness available. Long before the company was acquired by Nintendo, however, some of the first projects it produced were the two Baten Kaitos games,...
Review We Love Katamari REROLL + Royal Reverie (Switch) - Yes, We Still Do
It's hard not to!
We Love Katamari might be the perfect video game sequel. Dialing just about every beloved mechanic and detail from the first game up to 11, all while ditching some of Katamari Damacy’s less beloved aspects, it’s no surprise that this entry is the fan favorite. For better and worse, its re-release, We Love Katamari REROLL +...
Review Digimon World: Next Order (Switch) - A Repetitive, Open-World Grind For Die-Hard Fans Only
The only way is Easy Mode
Just like any franchise that’s been going as long as it has, Digimon video games have had plenty of ups and downs. Digimon World: Next Order was first released in 2016 for the PlayStation Vita, with a PlayStation 4 release making its way to the West the following year. Since then, it has enjoyed enough of a cult following...
Review Tales of Symphonia Remastered - A GameCube Classic That Shows Its Age On Switch
Dwarven Vow #108: Let sleeping dogs lie
Though it’s never quite had the popularity of the Final Fantasy or Dragon Quest franchises, the Tales series has set a good reputation as the ‘other’ classic JRPG series that’s consistently maintained a decent quality for quite some time now. Back in 2004, Namco (no Bandai yet) was only on the fifth...
Review Doraemon Story Of Seasons: Friends Of The Great Kingdom (Switch) - Familiar Farm Sim Fun
Planetary exploration has never been so chill
The first Switch Doraemon: Story of Seasons launched in 2019 and was praised for harmoniously combining the cast of the much-loved children's anime with the relaxing gameplay of one of the most well-known farm sim franchises, and while it may not be the most obvious combination, its beautiful art style...
Review Ultra Kaiju Monster Rancher (Switch) - Bigger Means Better In This Monster Raising Sim
Size definitely matters in this one
In the world of Monster Rancher, bigger doesn’t always mean better, but it certainly doesn’t hurt. The newest entry in the series, Ultra Kaiju Monster Rancher, takes this philosophy and turns it up to epic proportions, creating a world filled with monsters the size of mountains that need to be fed, trained,...
Review Dragon Ball: The Breakers (Switch) - Dares To Be Different From Other Dragon Balls
Survive in the nightmare that is the Dragon Ball universe
Video games based on the Dragon Ball franchise usually have a very specific focus. While there have been the occasional RPGs like Kakarot or The Legacy of Goku thrown into the mix, most have been firmly focused on fighting your way across the series’ story. However, Dragon Ball: The...
Review Sword Art Online: Alicization Lycoris (Switch) - One For Forgiving SAO Fans Only
This link takes a long time to get started
Anime fans around the world will be familiar with Sword Art Online. The light novels and the sprawling media empire that they spawned follow the exploits of Kirito as he stumbles from being trapped in one online video game to another. Sword Art Online: Alicization Lycoris is the latest game to follow...
Review Taiko no Tatsujin: Rhythm Festival (Switch) - A Solid Entry That Marches To A Familiar Beat
The same old song and dance
More than twenty years after its initial inception, chances are you know by now whether or not the Taiko no Tatsujin franchise is for you. Featuring rhythmic gameplay via four methods of control (buttons, touch screen, motion controls, or the drum accessory itself), the new entry from Bandai Namco — Taiko no Tatsujin:...
What a beautiful Duwang!
Anime games are in a weird spot. During the late '90s to mid-2000s we would get varied games like Berserk: Guts’ Rage, and Arc System Works’ Fist of the North Star. Aside from Dragon Ball — which in the last few years has gotten an RPG, 2D fighter, and even a Dead By Daylight clone — most anime series are relegated...
Mini Review LEGO Brawls (Switch) - Disappointingly Basic Brick Battles That Stutter On Switch
All minifigures, except the price
Originally released back in September of 2019 on Apple Arcade, Lego Brawls is a Super Smash Bros. style fighting game that sees you jump into eight-player action as one of over 200 unlockable Lego minifigures. You'll battle it out here across a slew of Lego-themed arenas in free-for-all fights or cooperative...
Review Pac-Man World Re-Pac (Switch) - Perfectly Passable PS1 Platforming
"I'm a mad Pac-Man, livin' in a leveled world..."
By the late '90s, the golden age of the arcade was a dim and distant memory, and with it the ubiquitous Pac-Man fever of the early '80s. Not ones to let the yellow puck thing fall by the wayside, Namco moved to reinvigorate its video game icon by having him star in a 3D platformer, which were all the...
Review Digimon Survive (Switch) - This Champion Visual Novel Proves The Wait Has Been Worth It
DigiDestined for greatness
The long wait for Digimon Survive is finally over, with players at last able to dive into this unusual entry in the series. Fans expecting the usual fare from a Digimon game might be understandably disappointed, but for those with an appetite for visual novels and tactical RPG combat, there is plenty to get your teeth sunk...
Review Klonoa Phantasy Reverie Series (Switch) - A Classic Platforming Pair Worth Catching Again
Dream a little dream of me
The fifth console generation represented arguably the greatest shift in game design the industry has ever seen, as developers all over the world wrestled with how to transition 2D tenets into the 3D realm. There was lots of experimentation, and while platformers like Super Mario 64 and Spyro dived head-first into the new...
Review PAC-MAN MUSEUM+ (Switch) - A Gaming Legend's Best Collection Yet
Who let the ghosts out?
Pac-Man Museum+ follows Pac-Man Museum (2014), a collection for the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3. This updated compilation includes some of the titles in the previous release, and adds several new ones, bringing the total count to 14 (although Pac-Man Arrangement is featured twice with arcade and home versions). It comprises...
