HeyL1sten

I have the original European Mega Drive version with the title Empire of Steel. I don't like horizontal shooters generally, just not my cup of tea, but this was a lot of fun. Fond memories.

I bought one, played with it for a day and returned it. The deal-breaker for me was just how noisily clicky the L and R Buttons are. Like way noisier than other controllers. Was trying to play in bed next to my wife and it didn't go down well. It's the only chance most days I get to play, what with kids and work and life. If you're not trying to play quietly it would be pretty nice.

This was one of my favourite games on Vita some years back. One of the few games I've actually played through twice. Yeah, it's got some dumb 'saucy' stuff, which I really don't go in for, but it's tongue-in-cheek and surprisingly mild compared to so many Japanese games.
The real joy of this game is the virtual tourism around Akihabara. You can collect flyers for real local businesses as you go, interact with people, wonder how similar the buildings and layouts are to real life (I'm privileged to have visited since playing, all pretty spot on).
The plot is daft but good fun, and gameplay is a league above the OG Akiba's Trip, recently released on switch.
Good fun to be had here.

@nessisonett Cool, thanks for the info Joshua and Estelle actually crop up in the back half of the Cold Steel games too. Thinking that I managed to get by with some gaps in my knowledge there, so hoping Zero will be ok. Could wait forever for the Sky games and may not actually get them.

@nessisonett how about for a player who has played through all 4 Cold Steel games, but not the Sky games? Enough context to appreciate it? Hope so, cos I'm quite excited for this one.

Worth noting that Flea has another physical release, on the Indie Heroes cart for Evercade. I played through it a month or two back and can honestly say I loved it. Pure fun beginning to end. Tricky at times, but the mechanics are great, and save states on the Evercade certainly help! Would love to see more of this guys games.

Excellent news - sounds like they're prioritising the Switch some more. Still holding out a glimmer of hope for Tokyo Xanadu 2. Perhaps I'm just deluded.

This is no bad thing. Not averse to the challenge myself, but my 4-year-old has found Sonic games a bit tricky. This might help me indoctrinate him properly.

I had such a mixed experience with the first Caligula Effect game. The combat was genuinely innovative and interesting, but pretty much everything else about the game was average at best, often just poor. Messy plotting, indistinct characters, retreading basic repetitive dungeons, no enemy variety and difficulty so low that you didn't get to really stretch the otherwise excellent combat even on the hard setting. I ended up wishing they could put the same combat system in just about ANY other rpg. If that's what this sequel does, then I'm all for it.

Pretty sure there's also a standard retail physical version. The £49.99 limited edition at Funstock is just a collectors' edition. Enjoyed Root Letter a few years back, of which this is a follow-up rather than sequel. Will likely pick up the retail version.

I adore the Switch and loved the GB, GBA and DS. Never owned a 3DS, for some odd reason. BUT... the Vita. It has a special place in my heart that goes unrivalled. It's for no objective reason, it was (is!) simply the right thing for me at the right time in my life. The endless hours I sank into JRPGs on that machine while rocking a baby to sleep at 2am. It kept me sane and reignited my love of JRPGs. A love that I now continue on the Switch and share with my son.

I'm so pleased that Falcon and NIS are investing into he switch now. Played the first two of these on Vita and just finished the third in Switch with 170 hours clocked.
Totally get the argument that it's annoying the first two haven't been released on Switch yet, especially when they're so connected to the following two games narratively, but ultimately any series that runs for a number of years is going to cross console generations and its not always possible, realistic or economic to release older games in newer platforms. It's nothing new. I wonder how many people who begrudge the absence of the first two games simply don't own another platform they could play the games on? Realistically most of us do, and I suspect Falcom and NIS know that. There probably aren't many people who would be interested in a 100+hr epic JRPG whose only gaming platform they have owned in the last decade is the Switch. It's an inconvenience, but clearly isn't stopping people playing these brilliant games.

Chiming in on the d-pad thing - it's excellent. Comfortable and responsive. The deep press of the action buttons is pretty satisfying too. To be honest, we can debate the build quality, and yes the build is not up to the standard of the switch overall, but this is a console that retails with a cartridge of games included for £59.99. It's cheaper than a pair of joy cons. Yes, there are slight niggles but it's still one of the best value gaming devices I've ever bought.

@Alucard83 Yeah, totally get that, there's something deeply satisfying about levelling up, upgrading gear and ploughing through enemies. Love an RPG, adored Ys Memories of Celceta and Ys VIII, and loved the progression in those games. Perhaps I just wasn't in the right frame of mind for Origin.

Oddly, when I played this (on Vita) I found it anything but easy-going. Enjoyable, with excellent mechanics, but punishingly difficult at times. I'm no stranger to a jrpg, both action and turn-based, and always play on whatever the default difficulty is. I have literally never had a problem with any rpg until Ys Origin. I looked into it and many folks on forums were warning that the default 'normal' difficulty was more like a pretty harsh 'difficult' setting on other games. To my dismay I discovered that you couldn't change difficulty part way through a play-through either, so you're stuck with your in initial choice. No idea if this is true of the Switch version too.

@SaveDinos Thanks, man. I find it so odd that people get upset at people getting upset. We're here on this thread, listening to a range of opinions. The developer listened to some opinions too, reflected on their values and decided they'd do it differently next time, not forcing anyone to do the same. That's all.

There's an issue with the term 'wheelchair-bound' too, which cropped up both in the article and this comments thread. I have no disabilities but have worked with disability in varying ways for about 15 years, and the perception I have, and that of most people I've known, is that wheelchairs don't bind the individual, they free them. They are the method by which some poeple with disabilities can become MORE able.
This certainly doesn't strike me as a witch hunt at all. As others have commented, some people who have experiences of using a wheelchair have spoken out to say 'yeah, this kind of isn't how it is for us', and the developers have responded graciously by taking it as the learning opportunity it is.
Literally nobody has said 'YOU'RE NOT ALLOWED TO TALK ABOUT WHEELCHAIRS LIKE THAT!'. It's a dialogue between disabled gamers and (presumably?) able-bodied developers. Accessibility and representation are big issues at the minute and it's great to see some developers being proactive (see TLOU2), or in this case at least reactive.
Let's not get mad at a wider range of people having their lives and experiences represented better in gaming.

Really enjoyed the first Ryza. Hope they adjust the battle system a bit. It was so fast that it degraded into button-mashing at times, and the CC system was harsh enough to effectively punish item use, so your battle progress felt quite divorced from your alchemy progress - quite the opposite of other Atelier games I've played. Still, there was plenty of stuff to really enjoy, and with a few tweaks the sequel could be great.

This is my 3-year-old's favourite game. Whenever we're playing on my consoles he always wants me to fire up the Cube for a bit of Mario Sunshine (that or Sonic Chaos on my OG Master System MK1. Probably sacrilegious to mention here). He's crap at it, but I think I'm supposed to forgive him that at this stage. Really hope it becomes a proper memory for him.

Really enjoyed Ryza, even if not 100% sold on the new combat system. Definitely glad to see more players coming to the series. Wonder what proportion of sales were for switch.