Langrisser IV dared to reshape the remains of the well-intentioned misstep that came before it, cleverly polishing Langrisser III's unpopular albeit inventive rock into the shining gem it always could have been, guiding the series in a thrilling new dire— Oh wait no Langrisser IV is actually trying very, very, hard to be Der Langrisser v1.1. In fact this is so keen … Continue reading Langrisser 2+2
It's that time of year again! Time to have a rummage through the past twelve months of gaming and find out exactly what I did and didn't like, highlight something that pleasantly surprised me, spend a paragraph or three sticking the boot into a game that disappointed me for some reason five months ago, and … Continue reading And my game of the year is…
After Der Langrisser made all that effort establishing the series' most recognisable formula, Langrisser III then goes and throws most of what worked straight out the window. The branching multi-multi-path scenario's gone straight in the bin and been replaced by a linear set of 30+ battles (as well as five optional and easily missed additional stages). The battle system's been … Continue reading Throwing it all away
Fans of the original Dungeon Master will find Dungeon Master Nexus' opening eerily familiar: Once again you are Theron, a brave young man who can't seem to keep himself alive and corporeal for more than five minutes, once again made to rescue his magically unavailable master Greylord from another huge dungeon of nefarious design using a player-picked selection … Continue reading Authentically different
I know I've definitely played Konami's groundbreaking dating sim Tokimeki Memorial before, although that happened so long ago I honestly can't tell you which version of the game that involved other than that it was definitely on a disc (I went through the Saturn port this time around). I can't recall the details but I think it's … Continue reading Happy days at Kirameki High
I can remember only three things about Raizing's celebrated/feared arcade shmup Battle Garegga: It's rank-based, which means the difficulty dynamically alters depending on your actions as you play, it's really hard even at the best of times, and counterintuitively to established genre rules you're supposed to kill yourself off at several points due to the aforementioned rank-related shenanigans and other … Continue reading 1UPs for rent
Another day, another Sakura Wars fan disc set. This two disc release was the last of the Saturn offerings, and unlike the ones that came before it Teigeki Graph in Sakura Wars is packed with new content and an easy recommendation for any fan of the series, whether they have a back tattoo of the full … Continue reading Sakura Wars Corner: Teigeki Graph in Sakura Wars
Released in 1997 - the same year as Sakura Wars Hanagumi Tsushin and a year before Sakura Wars 2 - Sakura Wars Steam Radio Show is again billed as "Multimedia Soft" and a "Digital Fan Disc" rather than a game, although this time around there's been a far greater effort to make the player feel … Continue reading Sakura Wars Corner: Sakura Wars Steam Radio Show
This movie card compatible disc, one that takes the trouble of stating in big red boxes that this is a digital fan disc and not a game, released on Valentine's Day 1997 and came with a little card for "Ogami", which when folded out revealed portraits of the entire (pre-Sakura Wars 2) Flower Division complete … Continue reading Sakura Wars Corner: Sakura Wars Hanagumi Tsushin
The final entry in this energetic little trilogy, titled Mobile Suit Gundam Side Story III: Sabakareshi Mono, debuted on the Saturn three short months after the previous game, Mobile Suit Gundam Side Story II: Ao wo Uketsugu Mono, which itself released roughly three months before the opening effort, Mobile Suit Gundam Side Story I: Senritsu no Blue. As is … Continue reading Saving the best for last
Kimimi The Game-Eating She-Monster 