HIGH New gameplay mechanics updates and characters.

LOW What story mode?

WTF Divide! 2nd Clause! Immortalize! It’s the standard Arc System Works word salad.

As a fan of the original UNDER NIGHT IN-BIRTH, I was curious to see how UNDER NIGHT IN-BIRTH II Sys:Celes changed up the formula.

UNDER NIGHT IN-BIRTH II Sys:Celes (UN2) takes the captivating universe of its predecessor and amplifies it with new characters and enhanced mechanics. It also feels like an incremental update over the original, now with less story, though it ‘finishes’ some plotlines the prior left open. Developed by French-Bread and published by Arc System Works, UN2 is ultimately a strong entry to the series for fans of the original, and those looking to get into it as a pure fighting experience won’t be disappointed.

Visually, UN2 has the same beautifully-drawn 2D character sprites as the original. Simply looking at it, I would be hard-pressed to tell that it was a new game — it seems to be all the same sprits and assets, but this isn’t necessarily a bad thing, as its predecessor had some of my favorite designs in a 2D anime fighter. The animations are fluid and dynamic, breathing life into each character. Whether it’s the swift strikes of Linne or the powerful spells of Hilda, every move feels impactful and satisfying.

Speaking of which, the UN series has great character diversity, and with 24 faces currently on the roster, there’s something here for everyone. With the same characters from UN1, UN2 then adds three new playable characters, Tsurugi, Kaguya, and Kuon. All of them feel strong and complement the cast well. Tsurugi wields a shield in combat, and hits harder. Kaguya is a speedy gun kata fighter. I enjoyed playing her quite a bit, and imagine she might become a fan favorite. Finally, Kuon is the new “boss” character, as he’s featured in the story as such. Out of the three new characters, he felt the most powerful thanks to some brutal moves and floating swords. While there will always be tier lists and characters who are stronger than others, UN2 feels balanced to the point that someone who devotes time should be able to have a good shot in competition, no matter who they choose.

Some of the key mechanics in UN1 have been improved. For example, the Grid system still adds an engaging tug-of-war style mechanic. Represented by an on-screen “Grid” (GRD) at the bottom of the screen, the Grid is based on retreats, blocked attacks, and using the “concentration” ability which is simply holding down a button to charge it. When a character’s grid bar is filled up. the character will enter “GRD Vorpal”, which gives a 10% damage boost.

Likewise, “Chain Shift” is a state the player can enter if they have Vorpal and press the “D” input quickly twice. The player will gain EXS (their meter) depending on the amount of GRD they have. All movement stops for just a moment, but then players in Chain Shift can cancel all of their attacks into each other. UN2 also features other mechanics such as “gatling” inputs to chain normal combos into one another, as long as it’s not the same normal in a combo.

If it wasn’t made clear by the paragraph above, UN2 is a very technical fighting game. Unlike some that might be more approachable to newcomers or casual fans such as Mortal Kombat, those who aren’t ready for this level of complexity might be a bit daunted. However, UN2 does have an auto-combo system, seen elsewhere in recent titles like Granblue Fantasy Versus. This system lets the player mash the light attack button and perform a simple combo if they land all of the follow-up hits. While an experienced player will be able to compensate and overcome it, it helps bridge the accessibility gap for new blood.

There are also other useful tools in the Tutorial and Challenge Mission modes to teach virtually every mechanic UN2 offers, and many that are generally key to competing in fighting games. This is a good touch, though they are relatively dry — essentially, the player just reads and does what they instruct. Depending on one’s learning style, they can potentially be a great help.

At this point I’ve covered UN2‘s systems, but what about that story?

Most fighting game players I know don’t come to the genre for the story. Me? I’ve put almost 80 hours into Guilty Gear Strive in the past few months and I’ve never experienced the story. UN2 seems to realize this truism, and doesn’t devote much time or effort on changing it. The singleplayer story mode is essentially just an arcade mode with little narrative, but this stands in contrast to the prior installment. The first had a full visual novel (of sorts) with detailed stories for each character. Despite not generally being in the market for fighting game stories, I would have liked more plot here.

In terms of performance, it runs great on the Playstation 4 and I had no problems playing with friends on that system. It does have Rollback netcode which should reduce the input lag and visual stuttering that affects some other online fighters. Lacking crossplay, I was unable to play with friends on PC — a factor for prospective players to keep in mind for those who might not have friends handy.

I believe UNDER NIGHT IN-BIRTH II Sys:Celes is a strong entry in the series and I’m happy to see it get a sequel, even if it feels more like a small step forward instead of a substantial shift. However, something that’s broken shouldn’t be fixed, so this level of refinement clearly has a lot to offer to fans and newcomers alike. 

Rating: 7 out of 10

Disclosures: This game is developed by French Bread and published by Arc System Works. It is currently available on PS4/PS5 /PC. This copy of the game was obtained via publisher and reviewed on the PS4. Approximately 10 hours of play were devoted to the single-player mode, and the game was completed. 9 hours of play were spent in multiplayer modes.

Parents: According to the ESRB, this game is rated T and contains Language, Mild Blood, Suggestive Themes and Violence. The official description reads: This is a fighting game in which players engage in one-on-one combat by selecting amongst human and supernatural characters. Players use kicks, punches, and weapon attacks (e.g., sword slashes, claw strikes) to drain opponents’ life meter. Characters can perform special attacks, resulting in brief animated sequences that depict fiery blasts and brief blood-like effects. One character is depicted with blood covering his hands and arms. Some female characters are designed with revealing outfits (e.g., deep cleavage); the dialogue also references suggestive material (e.g., “…I thought you’d be satisfied with having seen me naked”; “Shame on you, subjecting this girl to your vices“; “…you little perv…”; “What on earth are you doing? She’s naked, for crying out loud.”). The word “sh*t” appears in the game.

Colorblind Modes: There are no colorblind modes available.

Deaf & Hard of Hearing Gamers: This game offers subtitles. The subtitles cannot be altered and/or resized. The entire game can be played without sound and contains no informational dialogue (audio sounds are mostly reaction noises during combat). As such, this game is fully accessible.

Remappable Controls: Yes, this game offers fully remappable controls.

HIGH Combat, quests and core gameplay.

LOW Enemy variety, difficulty, and lack of story co-op.

WTF Why can’t I play the campaign with my friends in a co-op focused game?

I’ve been anticipating Granblue Fantasy: Relink (Relink for short) since I first got my hands on it for a preview last year. It’s the new realtime Action RPG game by Cygames and it feels like a mix of Final Fantasy XIV and Monster Hunter — yet as much as I want it to, in its current state it doesn’t surpass either. The director, Tetsuya Fukuhara, has worked on several Platinum titles and has nailed the combat that makes each character a joy to play... The fast-paced, yet tactical action kept me engaged well into the endgame hours of questing with friends. However, while GBF:R was a ride I loved, it ultimately left me wanting more of what it could be.

The game’s (short) story picks up suddenly and places the player in the role of Gran or Djeeta as captain of the Grandcypher airship. As a successor to Granblue Fantasy, Relink expected me to be familiar with the cast and story of the original mobile title which has yet to be released outside of Asia. There is an anime – available on Cygames’s YouTube channel for free – for those who want to know the preceding story and characters, though. Having watched part of it myself, it did help somewhat, but isn’t necessary as one can understand the characters and their motivations relatively quickly thanks to Relink’s standard plot.

Frankly, there was barely a single breath of character development throughout the story, and nearly all character beats were relegated to text-based “Fate Episodes”, which I feel should have been seamlessly integrated into the plot. Not having actual conversations between characters during the story was disappointing. Some localization choices made in the style of a Saturday morning cartoon was odd, and didn’t help engage me either.

While Relink’s story never surprised or felt deep, it was charming enough and did entertain until the end of its 10-hour run. At that point, it turns to its real focus — questing. Questing and action setpieces are where Relink shines, and playing with friends felt like how the content was meant to be experienced. Once I realized what the actual goal was, I was more okay with the scant script. The misstep, though, is that the narrative is not co-op. This meant that I was forced to have my friends rush through their own story modes to join me in the ‘postgame’ of Relink, as most content unlocks upon completion.

Each character controls in a snappy and polished way, though I was disappointed that I couldn’t change or remap the controller, and it somehow only shows Xbox controls. This is a small gripe, though, as Relink’s character roster and gameplay gave me enough fast-paced action to last another ten or twenty hours after the credits rolled.

Quests function similarly to Monster Hunter in that they revolve around the player undertaking increasingly powerful foes and boss fights to gain XP and materials to upgrade characters. The game currently hosts 20 playable characters, and more are already planned. Thankfully, the developers skip out on gacha-like random draws to unlock more characters despite its gacha roots. After over 30 hours in, I was able to unlock almost all of them and could have earned the last one had I tried harder to obtain him in my endgame grind.

Speaking of endgame, the quests here are both the best and worst part of Relink. The best because they’re legitimately enjoyable, and fighting bosses with friends was something I wanted more of. The worst, because the enemy variety is severely limited. I only encountered one unique boss that wasn’t in the campaign, and many encounters felt like recycled palette swaps. This trend continued throughout the “difficulty” modes I unlocked in multiplayer, though they never felt like they got harder.

Technically, Relink ran well for me on PC. Outside of crashes while loading endgame quests, I never had any issues, and with some tweaks it ran great, even on my Steamdeck. 

The player base seems to be growing quickly on Steam, but for it to succeed in the long term, I believe it needs to focus on expanding the endgame considerably, with harder difficulty settings and a wider variety of monsters and bosses. I can see some potential as a long term co-op multiplayer experience with raid groups and serious challenges, but whether it will receive that content remains to be seen.

As a nine-year-long passion project of its developers, Granblue Fantasy: Relink oozes promise and style boosted by addictive action gameplay, a large cast and engaging mechanics. However, without more to offer endgame players and perhaps a bit of buffing in the narrative side, it’s likely to fizzle out and be eclipsed by larger titles. I can only hope the developer shows the same labor of love in supporting it, as they have in crafting it.

Addendum: After the original text of this review was written but before it was published, many people — myself included — have found that Granblue Fantasy: Relink has been corrupting, overwriting or otherwise deleting save files. This happened to me after almost 40 hours — suddenly all my saves were simply gone. I contacted support and also attempted to restore the files, but it wasn’t possible from my end. The devs said that they would have no information to share with me, and that they would not make any efforts to restore saves. Losing so much time invested without recourse or support from the dev side just isn’t acceptable.

Until the issue is solved I absolutely can’t recommend this game.

Rating (prior to losing my data) : 7.5 out of 10

Disclosures: This game is developed by Cygames, Platinum Games Inc. and published by Cygames, XSEED Games, and Plaion. It is currently available on PS4/5 and PC. This copy of the game was obtained via publisher and reviewed on the PC. Approximately 37 hours of play were devoted to the single-player mode, and the game was completed. 26 hours of play were spent in multiplayer modes.

Parents: According to the ESRB, this game is rated T and contains Language, Mild Suggestive Themes, and Violence. The official description reads: This is an action role-playing game in which players assume the role of an airship captain battling monsters across a fantasy realm. From a third-person perspective, players control their character and other party members through melee-style fights against various enemies (e.g., wolves, goblins, robots, boss characters). Characters use swords, magic, and guns to kill enemies in fast-paced combat; fighting is highlighted by light and slow-motion effects. Some sequences allow players to control mechanized armor suits in battle; these scenes depict frequent gunfire and explosions. Some female characters are designed with revealing outfits (e.g., deep cleavage); camera angles can focus on characters’ revealing outfits and/or anatomy (i.e., upskirt detailing). The words “sh*t” and “a*shole” appear in the game.           

Colorblind Modes: Colorblind modes are present.

Deaf & Hard of Hearing Gamers: This game offers subtitles. The subtitles cannot be altered and/or resized. The game can be played entirely without sound, and everything relevant is conveyed through visual cues. This game is fully accessible.

Remappable Controls: Mouse and keyboard are remappable, the controller layout is not.

HIGH It’s a fine franchise choice to work out to.

LOW There’s no Japanese voiceover option, and the alternatives aren’t great.

WTF Kenshiro claiming that my punches are every bit as good as his. Uh… no.

Oh God! I’m not sure if anyone’s aware of this, but NUCLEAR WAR OCCURRED AT THE TURN OF THE CENTURY AND MOST OF THE PLANET IS NOW A SCORCHED WASTELAND! Oh no!

Bandits! Pillaging! Wanton slaughter! Bad words! Survivors rummaging through the wreckage for irradiated rats to feast on! It’s horrible, and only the successor to the Divine Fist of the North Star Kenshiro and his knowledge of boxing exercise techniques can save the day for all the wafer thin, malnourished victims tottering around the ruined Earth scavenging for meagre scraps of food.

Well, sort of. It’s made clear during the introduction that players are rediscovering the lost art of pre-apocalypse exercise instead of the murderously explosive art of Hokuto Shinken, so don’t expect to be able to waltz down the street blowing up passers-by at random in real life after a few sessions on the Switch.

In gameplay terms, anyone who’s played any of the Fitness Boxing titles should be able to slide right in here. Standing upright and holding the Switch’s nunchuck controllers in each hand, players will mimic the actions of their chosen onscreen instructor as they follow an exercise routine from start to finish, optionally warming up and cooling down at the end of each session. Sessions typically last between twenty to forty minutes depending on player choice, and range from “This Isn’t Bad, Actually” to “Oh Sweet Jesus I’m Gonna Die Help Me Help Help Help” in terms of intensity.

After the workout, each instructor will give out some advice or observations on the player’s performance. Kenshiro mentioned that I had an amazing jab and he couldn’t do better himself — and considering he can punch through someone’s skull and atomize the person standing behind them, I found this to be quite a compliment. Either that or he just lied straight to my face.

Players are also graded on their performance and how well they kept up with the onscreen action and given a bunch of stats showing estimated calories burned, punch success rate and the like. It all gets jotted down into a permanent gameplay record so users can track their exercise sessions over time, and each workout also doles out a little cash for buying new music, instructors and outfits along the way. Want characters like Mamiya or Raoh to teach fitness boxing instead? Go for it.

The other, more original, half of this package revolves around battles where Kenshiro works his way through multiple rounds of bad guys to square off against enemy bosses such as Shin and Southe… sorry, Thouzer. This mode isn’t that different from standard workouts as far as gameplay goes, but there are new victory conditions attached to the workout. Perform combination instructions correctly and the bad guys get defeated, get it wrong and they stay on their feet.

Bosses are slightly different, with both Kenshiro and adversaries like Shin having a health bar as well as attacking and defending phases. Hit the combos precisely during either sequence and Kenshiro’s opponent will get smacked and whiff their attacks, fail and he’ll be the one getting hammered into the ground instead.

Like I said, it’s basically the same mechanics as in the standard workouts, but there’s definitely something more engaging about ‘winning’ the workout as enemies fall by the wayside. That said, this is an all ages title. Adversaries seem to collapse in a weird sweaty explosion when defeated as opposed to having their intestines rupturing like they accidentally scarfed down a pack of military grade semtex.

The music seems mainly comprised of original pieces, though some of the more recognizable themes such as Tough Boy and Ai wo Torimodose also make an appearance… minus their lyrics, which is slightly disappointing. Songs can be set to each individual phase of the workout, so there’s also no danger of being forced to listen to a single song on repeat for more than half an hour.

Annoyingly, there’s no option to choose the Japanese audio for dialogue and the English voiceovers are inconsistent to put it mildly. Kenshiro and Raoh sound pretty much okay, even if their line delivery lacks dynamism. Toki sounds like he’s reading entries out of a phonebook and Rin’s performance simply confuses me, like it was meant for another character entirely. There are French and Italian options, but it’d have been nice to get the original Japanese dialogue given the origins of the franchise.

Included with our review copy was a code for some DLC — essentially, a few side games which can be played to unlock music and outfits for instructors. One of these minigames involves repeatedly punching Kenshiro’s rotund adversary Heart a multitude of times to blast through his blubber, then keep doing it over successive rounds until fatigue causes failure. The other event involves taking control of Raoh and punching bandits as far into the distance as possible through a combination of correct timing and swift punch speed. They’re a neat addition to the package that add some variety, but they’re hardly vital.

In summation, Fitness Boxing: Fist of the North Star delivers on its given premise. It’s still an exercise program first and foremost, so don’t expect the game aspect to distract from the fact that players are working up a sweat and fatigue is setting in as continual combinations of hooks and uppercuts slowly take their toll.

Even so, there’s definitely something to be said for performing fitness routines to visuals of rambunctious post-apocalyptic punks being smacked in their stupid faces to keep players engaged. And hell, if Kenshiro himself can’t get players to burn off some excess calories, who can?

Rating: 6.5 out of 10

Disclosures: This game is developed and published by Imagineer. It is currently available on Switch. This copy of the game was obtained via publisher and reviewed on the Switch. Approximately 15 hours of play were devoted to various workouts. There are no multiplayer modes.

Parents: According to the ESRB, this game is rated E (10+) and contains Mild Violence and Language.  The official description reads: This is a rhythm/fitness game in which players perform boxing exercises by following timed prompts along with music. Players match an on-screen character’s movements (e.g., jabs, uppercuts, dodges) to earn points and achieve fitness. In a Battle Mode, matching movements correctly results in players punching opponents (e.g., outlaws, rivals) until they are defeated. Players can also use special techniques to unleash a flurry of punches against an opponent. The word “bastard” appears in the game.

Colorblind Modes: There are no colorblind modes available.

Deaf & Hard of Hearing Gamers: This game offers subtitles. (See examples above.) The subtitles cannot be altered and/or resized. There are no audio cues needed to successfully play the game. This is fully accessible.

Remappable Controls: No, this game’s controls are not remappable. There is no controller map. Most motions are performed using the player’s body to punch, with very little typical use of the controller outside of menus and the like.

GameCritics was recently invited to a preview event in LA to sit down with both the singleplayer and multiplayer content of Granblue Fantasy: Relink (GBF:R). I was not disappointed.

Disclosure: Accommodations for the trip were paid for by Granblue PR.

A new action-RPG from Cygames, GBF:R feels like a mix between a story-rich JRPG and Platinum action
titles — which isn’t surprising since the director, Tetsuya Fukuhara, has worked on
several other Platinum games. The fast-paced (yet tactical) combat kept me on the edge of my seat and was perfectly intermixed with a story that I was sad to put down when we ran out of the time allotted for singleplayer story content.

GBF:R is divided into two parts.

The first is the singleplayer story content. The demo slice picked up in the middle of what felt like a new adventure with the main character and their airship crew. I was happy that I could choose between a male and female protagonist who I was able to rename.

Incidentally, these choices are from the original mobile game Granblue Fantasy — GBF:R is a continuation of its story. While the mobile game isn’t available in the US, there is an anime adaptation. Those looking to jump in may want to track it down to become familiar with the characters and their motivations.

Things picked up quickly, and I was able to get a grasp of what was going on without too much effort, thanks in part due to the handy glossary that was available with a button press. After a short tutorial in the form of a monster attack on the airship, GBF:R pivoted into a grand summoning of Bahamut, which then went awry and damaged our airship.

After this prologue I was introduced to new characters, a primary town, and what seems to be the initial plot of the game, as “Primals” (creatures of power similar to the summons in Final Fantasy) are going berserk. Before the preview was over, I was able to defeat one of these in a boss battle which left
me wishing I could see what happened next.

Gameplay itself consisted of linear stages, like many RPGs and action games. That doesn’t
mean the game itself is linear, however. Just in the first town alone, there were a good deal of
side missions and quests which were reminiscent of multiplayer content like online hunts in Capcom’s Monster Hunter, or raids in Final Fantasy XIV. Up to four players can engage in a boss
fight taking place in an arena-like area that seemed to be a location taken from the singleplayer campaign. The game’s AI can take control of up to three supporting characters to help keep
them balanced, though for an extra challenge it is possible to play with less than four. (The devs said there are no bonus rewards for doing so, however.)

Combat in both the main story and multiplayer is real-time, with a focus on dodging, combos, and high mobility. As characters level up, they gain additional skills, up to four equipped at a time, and each are on
cooldowns. Party members also have a kind of ultimate ability that builds as they attack and is the unleashed to deal even more damage via exciting and flashy animations.

In addition to the player’s character, at least 20 recruitable characters have been announced so far, with more on the way, each with their own style and flavor.

Finally, I have to respect to the visual style in Granblue Fantasy: Relink. A beautiful feast for the eyes, the
game uses a cell-shaded, watercolor-esque palette that stands out for the franchise in both character and world design terms — from the kinetic combat animation to the gorgeous clouds and islands in the sky, every frame was interesting and engaging.

While every moment I spent with GBF:R had me wanting more, I did create a short mental wishlist before my time with it was up — things like the ability to play in split-screen co-op, and possibly a full recap of the story for those of us who haven’t been able to play the prior game or see the anime.

That said, I look forward to exploring the full game in more detail once I get my hands on it early next
year. Until then, I stand poised to start my journey!

Granblue Fantasy: Relink is developed by Cygames, PlatinumGames Inc., and published by Cygames and XSEED Games. It will be available on PS4/5 and PC on January 29th, 2024.

HIGH Exciting and addicting combat.  

LOW An unhelpful map.

WTF Wait, that grueling ordeal wasn’t the final fight?!

Lost Epic is a combat-focused 2.5D sidescrolling title with anime aesthetics and light RPG elements.

Mechanically, it borrows from the Souls series (there are corpse runs, a stamina bar, and jolly cooperation with up to two other players) and Devil May Cry (attacks easily string into combos that keep enemies in midair) but it easily finds its own voice and establishes a somewhat unique rhythm of play. While the story failed to keep my attention and a pair of late-game bosses prevented me from rolling credits, the good parts here are really, really good!

Let’s start with Lost Epic’s most likable quality – the delicious flow of combat that never got stale, even after my 30-ish hours with it. Soon after we create an avatar by selecting from a list – a choice without gameplay ramifications – we study basic enemy movesets in the introductory areas. The baddies use melee, arrows, and spells. Some of them fly, some teleport, and they’ll also attack in squads while supporting each other. They also signal when using special, stronger attacks. These alerts manifest as glowing exclamation marks above their heads, which might be yellow or red. Logically, the red ones lead to unlockable attacks that must be dodged, but the yellow ones — which are far more common — turn out to be excellent combo opportunities for a quick player.  

Add to that the knight’s ability to double jump, dodge in midair and map up to five “Divine Skill” power attacks at once, and it’s easy to see how gripping this concept is. The more weapons I came across while uncovering the map, the deeper the well of available moves got, with new ones constantly competing for well-deserved attention. Also, not all of them were offensive strikes, as there’s a good chunk of supportive buffs and defensive maneuvers to utilize as well.    

The real draw here, however, lies in how Lost Epic acknowledges a player who’s mastering its risky counter-based system. This becomes far more significant once we reach the halfway point and advanced enemy groups start filling up the screen and piling on the player.

When facing stronger opposition, the screen became littered with flashing symbols of enemies about to execute a devastating attack, and the space where I could safely catch a breather dwindled. Of course, it was easy to succumb to panic, as keeping an eye on all on-screen events can get daunting. However, after steadying my senses, I noticed how countering multiple enemies at once (with the right Divine Skill) is the true language of Lost Epic. After executing my first dopamine-inducing “super” counter – the camera zoomed in on my character for a split second in the spotlight, and all the nasty enemies around me were left floundering.

Lost Epic, unfortunately, doesn’t fare that well in aspects outside of combat. The map doesn’t show nearly enough, and I couldn’t place markers of my own. In a world of its size, finding a particular NPC who demanded some particular item quickly started to irk me. Equally worthy of note is that completing NPC quests is essential for making progress. This busywork did come close to grinding me down at points, but the flashy combat system kept me going.

The cooking and crafting systems weren’t exciting in the slightest, and they were made irritating by the fact that the player must collect herbs to be prepared for the next major boss, rather than having a stock of health potions that regenerate at a save point.

Looking at Lost Epic’s bosses, I’d rate them fair and well-drawn. However, they’re also my biggest gripe with it, mostly due to a certain late-game sequence where I had to face two bosses that were approximately the same size as the player – and we all know that same-size-as-the player bosses are usually tough fights that bookend an experience. The difficulty here was such that I practically had to re-learn the game and change my equipment to have a chance, on top of unskippable dialogue I had to suffer through on each and every one of my dozens of attempts, and there’s no rest or recuperation between the foes!

I won’t lie, I was close to quitting in frustration.

So, while I eventually prevailed over that grueling fight and waited for the credits to roll, Lost Epic surprised me by continuing on, sending me on yet another main quest and asking me to defeat stronger versions of previous bosses to be able to face the real final boss… and that’s where I tapped out. Instead of finishing strong, the game strung me along and I’d already seen everything I needed to.

Rating: 7 out of 10

Disclosures: This game is developed by Team Earthwars and published by One or Eight Inc. It is currently available on PS4/5, PC and Switch. This copy of the game was obtained via publisher and reviewed on the Switch Lite. Approximately 30 hours of play were devoted to the single-player mode, and the game was not completed. There is the option for co-op at certain areas of the game, and I spent roughly 45 mins with the help of random online players during my playthrough.

Parents: This game has received an “T” rating by ESRB, and contains Fantasy Violence, Mild Blood and Language. The game features 2D anime-like characters depicting humans and monsters. The combat is designed around building long chains of attacks and keeping the enemy in the air. The player can use melee, ranged, magic and cooldown-based special attacks called Divine Skills. The fights are not gory and most of the enemies disperse into debris instantly upon defeat.

Colorblind Modes: There are no colorblind modes available.

Deaf & Hard of Hearing Gamers: The vast majority of the conversations and narrations are recorded in Japanese audio, and there’s written text for everything communicated to the player.  I found the subtitles’ size easy to follow. Sound is completely unimportant for playing and beating this game due to the total absence of audio-only enemy attack cues. I played for about 3 hours with the sound completely turned off and had no issues. This game is fully accessible.

Remappable Controls: This game does not offer a controller diagram and the controls are not remappable. This is a 2,5D game action title where the analog sticks are for moving the character while holding the left bumper button in conjunction with a direction results in a special move. The bumpers are also for parrying and dashing, and the face buttons are for jumping, light/strong attacks and interacting with the world.

HIGH Fertile grounds for master tacticians.

LOW Poor English localization and outdated presentation.

WTF Menus that blend behind the UI?!

Chaos Galaxy is a competent menu-based 4X title with pixelated visuals and futuristic-anime inspired aesthetics. Think Dune without the giant worms, plus heroes sporting spiked haircuts and capes.

The game has one mode – the campaign – and once we boot it up, we select a faction to play from a dozen choices. Each nation occupies a set starting point (cluster of planets) within a shared galaxy, and some of them start the game as a vassal state of another ruler. Upon picking a leader, we enter the political scene with the aid of two to three lieutenants, depending on the nation in question. Also, some of the factions begin the story wealthier than others, and perhaps with more commanders that can carry a fleet as well.

As for the fleets we can order around, they’re either agile mechs that can safely travel through asteroid belts, or sturdier (but far slower) warships, some of which can even “dive” in open space to conceal themselves from enemy eyes. The starting choice of a faction largely determines the difficulty of the campaign, though the majority of one’s playthrough will be spent comparing numbers and hoping for a good roll of the dice either way. This is due to how each unit has a myriad of stats that should be taken into account, like its total HP, speed, availability of ranged attacks, or energy points.

It’s worth noting that Chaos Galaxy was originally envisioned for the PC, meaning that it’s primarily played via the on-screen cursor we can move with the analog sticks on the Switch. Luckily, the touch screen controls speed up this process, and I could easily jump between various coordinates of the galaxy in an instant. The same goes for the heated moments as battle commences, when the touch screen allowed me to quickly dispatch a unit to a specific square on the grid-based 2D field.   

That’s not to say that this port is perfect, though — I noticed several instances where a particular unit’s menu was obscured by other UI. Plus, the English localization is lackluster, to say the least, with even basic sentences like “We have arrived on the battlefield” turning out as “We have arrived the battlefield” … Such recurring errors did pull me out of the experience a bit, and also reminded me that a single non-US person developed this game entirely by themselves.

Campaign-wise, Chaos Galaxy is similar to other titles in the 4X genre in that it serves a giant map for the player to slowly contemplate upon while chasing one of the few winning conditions. Total victory is not possible only by capturing each of the game’s 50 planets – the more diplomatic routes are also perfectly feasible options. Plus, each of the available factions has a slightly different arc with random events endemic to a chosen nation, spicing things up from time to time. This gives Chaos Galaxy a healthy amount of replay value and hides plenty of exciting opportunities for grand strategic maneuvers.

The main gameplay loop starts with spending resources to fortify our planets, upgrading the trade routes between them to leverage higher income, setting policies, establishing communication with other factions in order to ask for resources, declare war or propose a truce, and then we move our fleet across the galaxy. At all times, we can check the map to gather relevant data about other nations and commanders, the strength of the fleet they govern, and to observe allegiances that might tether nations together — at least, temporarily.

The political landscape in Chaos Galaxy is subject to much change over the course of a playthrough, and following up on the latest developments is easy enough. As such, I’d say there lies the biggest highlight – talking our way into and out of trouble is often a feasible option, especially as our pool of prestige points, earned by combat victories or research breakthroughs, grows.

Therefore, our hands are never tied as to which route we want to take in terms of strategy and it’s possible to outplay the ‘sovereign’ ruler when they’re least expecting it. For example, when two factions clash, the commanders of the defeated army will try and join the ranks of a nearby state later on!

While the AI is smart and can act ruthlessly, it’s actually (mostly) up to the player to initiate conflict. Thus, one can take their time and devote a handful of seemingly uneventful turns just to set the stage for an upcoming streak of aggressive maneuvers. And that right there is the delicious core awaiting every Chaos Galaxy player who was disciplined enough to devote themself to the task of carefully peeling off the hard layers stacked up on each other.

Still, it might not be smooth sailing even with the right mindset, as a bad roll of the dice often resulted in my units missing 75% chance-to-hit shots three times in a row, right before an enemy warship pummelled them with a laser shot while they were hiding behind an asteroid. Such turnarounds make this game’s philosophy quite a double-edged sword: anyone looking for instant gratification and a clear path to victory might get tired of bashing against the game’s many walls even before the tutorial missions conclude…

Ultimately, Chaos Galaxy is a demanding experience that knows how to reward a well-thought-out approach, albeit one’s enjoyment of it can and will depend on their appreciation for the 4X genre and a bit of RNG at times.   

Rating: 7.5 out of 10

Disclosures: This game is developed by ChaosGalaxyStudios and published by EastAsiaSoft. It is currently available on PC and Switch. This copy of the game was obtained via publisher and reviewed on the Switch Lite. Approximately 10 hours of play were devoted to the single-player mode, and the game was not completed. There are no multiplayer modes.

Parents: This game has received an “E” rating from the ESRB. The commanders and units are all hand-drawn and anime-inspired, presented via pixelated portraits. Once battle commences, there are quick animations depicting two mecha units performing melee or ranged attacks followed by small explosions and the disappearance of the defeated unit. These animations can be turned off/on at all times.

Colorblind Modes: There are no colorblind modes available.

Deaf & Hard of Hearing Gamers: This game does not feature any recorded audio, so there’s written text for everything communicated to the player. (See examples above.) Sound is completely unimportant for playing and enjoying this game. It is fully accessible.

Remappable Controls: This game does not offer a controller diagram and the controls are not changeable. This is a 4X-turn based title where every decision we make comes from a menu. There’s always a cursor on the screen we can move using the analog sticks or the directional buttons, and we confirm or cancel a choice with the face buttons. On the Switch, we can also utilize the touch screen to issue commands and reposition units across the grid.

HIGH Great character designs with varied combat styles.

LOW This Switch port performs worse than on Playstation or PC.

WTF ‘The Seeds of Volition Bring Forth a Challenger’ is a weird intro to each bout.

Give a man a fish, and he’ll eat for a day. Give Arc Systems Works an intellectual property and they’ll turn it into a beautiful and competent anime infused brawler. When they’re not polishing their own Guilty Gear to a mirror-like sheen, they’re turning Kill la Kill, Granblue Fantasy and Dragon Ball into visually stunning hyperkinetic beatdowns.

This is a company with a real talent for turning franchises into fighters, and naturally they’ve gone and done it again with Nexon and Neople’s Dungeon Fighter Online side-scrolling series, which is now a one-on-one anime fighter. It actually first came out in 2022, but was only recently brought to Nintendo’s Switch — and while it took a few visual knocks in the transition, it’s still a fine experience.

As is typical for a fighter, the story’s not much to write home about. There was this world, then the world fragmented a bit, and then these magical gates appeared to let people meet up who were destined to punch each other in the face… or something. Beyond that, there’s a range of the usual game modes to choose from, such as Arcade or Survival, and while the script is largely throwaway it does have some beautiful artwork between matches. (The first NPC I saw in Grappler’s story mode had me wishing she was a playable character.)

Speaking of the roster, there’s a total of sixteen characters so far. Weirdly, they aren’t given personal names and are instead referred to by their class — Grappler, Kunoichi, Striker, and that sort of thing. Regardless, the cast are almost certainly what most players would want from an anime fighter. The designs are on-point with a varied array of manly men and pretty ladies punching each other across the screen in aesthetically pleasing ways, employing either their fists or a variety of weapons such as guns and magical attacks to gain the upper hand.

For anyone who hasn’t played a 2D anime fighter before, battles are usually play out at a decent clip with a ton of visual effects whirling around the screen. Characters zip in and out of range with a variety of dashes and evasive tactics, zoning at range by employing projectiles or closing the distance to land punishing grappling techniques or various combo strikes. While DNF Duel does slow things down a touch compared to some of the more aggressive anime fighters on the market, players can still be murdered in a hurry if they let their guard down and receive an avalanche of special moves.

DNF Duel is fairly easy to pick up, with special moves activated via directions and a single button press, and stronger specials coming from a button that implements the character’s MP gauge — a resource which rapidly refills after use. There’s also a dual damage system where characters take permanent damage from attacks, but also temporary damage that can be recovered during battle by simply not taking more hits to the face.

One slight downside about this simpler approach (and a lack of defensive options) means that I quickly started to play in patterns. After I found a good opening gambit for a character, I’d use that over and over to get inside the opponent’s space rather than having any real ‘footsie’ or mix-up game to break through their guard, leading to abusing the same moves repeatedly. That said, I like the combat fine overall, even if it’s seemingly not really tuned for high-level play.

A more serious issue, however, is that DNF Duel on the Switch comes with performance issues. The excellent character portraits in the menus and versus screens are razor sharp, but once into the game proper, there’s an immediately noticeable (and offputting) blurry sheen smeared over the characters. The crisp detail seen in the PC and PS5 versions is gone, and previously fine lines now look like they’ve been roughly sketched out with a graphite pencil. The same lack of definition also applies to backgrounds, meaning the Switch version comes up short in a comparison between available platforms.

It’s not the end of the world, admittedly, but a large part of DNF Duel’s appeal lies in how good everything looks as all kinds of chaotic craziness unfolds on the screen, so some of the concessions made to get it running on Switch are a disappointing compromise.

Another thing that should be mentioned is that the online lobbies are basically dead. The Switch version of DNF Duel uses delay-based netcode instead of the universally-preferred rollback model, which unfortunately means a worse online performance and presumably no chance of ever seeing crossplay being activated to connect players up with people on other platforms.

The unfortunate result is that in a genre known to shine when taking on opponents of similar skills from across the world, most players will instead have to treat DNF Duel as a primarily single player experience or find matches through online forums and fan communities rather, than simply hopping on and playing online at their own convenience.

I found DNF Duel to be enjoyable overall, but this cool, high-energy anime fighter with great characters and an appealing style is hampered by a lack of depth, low online playerbase, and the Switch’s hardware. That said, when it comes to a bit of brawling on the go, players could certainly do a lot worse than this. It’s not going to be the next big thing in fighting games, but it doesn’t have to be in order to still offer a fairly solid experience.

Rating: 7 out of 10

Disclosures: This game is developed by Eighting, Arc System Works and Neople and published by Nexon. It is currently available on PS4/PS5/Switch and PC. This copy of the game was obtained via publisher and reviewed on the Switch. Approximately 6 hours of play were devoted to the single-player mode, and the game was completed. 4 hours of play were spent in multiplayer modes.

Parents: According to the ESRB, this game is rated T and contains Blood, Mild Suggestive Themes, Use of Alcohol and Violence.  This is a fighting game in which players can select from 16 characters in a fantastical world/storyline. Players use punches, kicks, and special moves to deplete opponents’ health bars in frenetic on-on-one combat. Fights are highlighted by cries of pain, dramatic light/sound effects, and screen-shaking effects. Cutscenes sometimes depict still images of characters with blood-splattered faces and clothes; one image briefly depicts a monster corpse impaled by several weapons. Some female characters are designed with revealing outfits (e.g., low-cut tops, deep cleavage) and jiggling breasts.

Colorblind Modes: There are no colorblind modes available.

Deaf & Hard of Hearing Gamers: This game offers subtitles. The subtitles cannot be altered and/or resized. As a fighting game, the gameplay should be almost fully accessible without sound.

Remappable Controls: Yes, this game offers fully remappable controls.

HIGH Great plot, excellent pace, strong ambiance.

LOW Too short and lacks depth in exploring its themes and artwork.

WTF The crawling painting ladies.

Ib (2023) is a remake of the original made with RPG Maker in 2012.

Those who were into indies at that time know that RPG Maker was the preferred tool for amateurs creators, and it’s an incredible tool for that purpose. It’s simple to learn and use, has a wide variety of objects to build a game with, and the results are easy to publish.

However, despite its capabilities, the tool tended to make homogeneous-seeming products due to the lack of graphic and formula options. After all, it wasn’t a suite for professionals, and with the relatively limited content within, it’s not easy to make a unique experience. However, if we looked hard enough, we could find some special gems — things like Yume Nikki, Omori, or… Ib.

Ib is a young girl that visits an art gallery with her parents. No further explanation is given to us at the beginning, nor it is needed. The scene is established, and we start by quickly exploring the gallery, talking with other visitors and observing the artwork.

The exhibition is about an artist called Guertena. We know virtually nothing about him, but judging by the work, we quickly realize he’s an artist with somewhat whimsical tastes. As we explore further, we reach the top floor, which contains a giant painting. At this point, the lights go dim and weird things start to happen, including the disappearance of all visitors.

In classic Alice in Wonderland style, Ib is teleported into a kind of parallel universe — it’s a dark version of the gallery, and the adventure unfolds as we delve deeper and unveil the mysteries of Guertena’s art.

The world takes the form of a spooky labyrinth decorated with paintings and sculptures. However, the game is linear, so we hardly ever get lost — which is a pity! We interact with the art, and some of it activates scary moments and leads us to solve puzzles. At this point it’s a straightforward progression of completing a puzzle to go on to the next one, which will then take us to another one, and so on.

The puzzles aren’t very complicated. Basically, we need to look for things that stand out in the environment and pay attention to the labels on art. It’s easy but not boring — simple, but with a good pace of exploration. In fact, its simplicity keeps us interested and moving forward while learning more about what’s going on.

Another aspect that keeps us moving forward is the plot. Although not original, it was well-matched to Ib‘s concept. I won’t reveal too much because the plot is the most important element of this experience, but I must congratulate the creator of Ib for not reducing the game to being another cliché horror story. In an implicit way, Ib touches on sensitive topics, and through puzzle after puzzle we are confronted with themes that, in one way or another, are related to our protagonist’s journey and the anxieties of being a teenager.

While themes like childhood innocence, loneliness, fear, jealousy, family, and sanity are explored, I think Ib missed an opportunity to go deeper to better convey what was going on in the plot. For a game whose setting is an art gallery, it’s surprising that the paintings and sculptures are often out of step with what’s going on — in a way, it feels that the art isn’t the point, despite being so core to the concept. Plus, I do think an opportunity was missed by not using real works of art as inspiration. Throughout the entire game, I could only identify two or three paintings inspired by, maybe, Van Gogh and Dalí.

One of the main objectives of play in Ib is to collect works of art. There are 150 pieces to collect, and to see all of them it’s probably necessary to play the game more than once. As such, replayability is not a problem, because the story is short (each playthrough is about an hour) and has multiple endings. I’d say that it’s worth seeing each one.

It’s true that Ib lacks depth when exploring its themes and I did think that a longer campaign might afford it that opportunity. Perhaps this Switch remake will galvanize its popularity and create an opportunity for the developer to create a more expansive and ambitious iteration. However, as it stands I’d still recommend Ib to anyone interested in the concept, or to those looking for a short, but still meaningful game to decompress with.

Rating: 6.5 out of 10

Disclosures: This game is developed by kouri and published by PLAYISM. It is currently available on Switch and PC. This copy of the game was obtained via publisher and reviewed on Switch. Approximately 6 hours of play were devoted to the single-player mode, and the game was completed. There are no multiplayer modes.

Parents: According to the ESRB, this game is rated T and contains Fantasy Violence, Use of Tobacco, and Mild Blood. There are scenes of stabbings, murders, and blood. In addition, there are themes that can be difficult for children to understand, probably leaving them disturbed. keep this one to teens and up.

Colorblind Modes: There are no colorblind modes available.

Deaf & Hard of Hearing Gamers: This game offers subtitles. The subtitles cannot be altered and/or resized. The game can be played without audio. The only audio this game makes is the soundtrack and the environment sounds. Although the game is based on puzzles, there are no sound cues needed to solve them. In my view, the game is fully accessible.

Remappable Controls: No, this game’s controls are not remappable. This game doesn’t have a controller map diagram but offers a display with control icons in the upper left corner. The controls are very simple. Movement is on the left stick. Interact with the objects in the map is A. Access the menu and inventory is B. Talk to your companions is X. Zoom in is Y.

HIGH Friendship super attacks are a delight.

LOW The bird ninja is essentially a machine built to stun-lock the player.

WTF That was a twenty-minute conversation leading into a 2-minute obstacle course.

If nothing else, Samurai Maiden has a great premise.

As the game opens, a modern-day student is dragged through time to the night that Nobunaga Oda was killed inside of a burning castle back in feudal Japan. With the help of a ninja, she’s able to intervene and defeat the zombies packing the halls, saving the embattled lord. This change in history leads to the opening of a rift that introduces more monsters, interdimensional enemies, and dire consequences should the player fail to fix everything that’s gone sideways.

A new 3D brawler from the developer responsible for such light fare as Bullet Girls Phantasia and Kandagawa Jet Girls, Samurai Maiden is basic, as far as gameplay goes. The player controls the titlular samurai, pitted against fantasy creatures and the undead as she attempts to unwind the damage caused by her trip back in time. There’s a surprisingly elaborate plot involving curses, demons and fated encounters, but the real attraction here is the swordplay — and as long as Samurai Maiden sticks to it, things work well.

Samurai Maiden has satisfying combat flow down pat. While there’s just one moveset with new abilities unlocked as players deepen their relationship with ninja sidekicks, the player is able to select from a couple of different swords that offer various strengths and encourage fresh playstyles. Slicing enemies has a satisfying feel to it — baddies stagger when slashed, they do exaggerated windups before unleashing attacks, and they even clearly telegraph where their ranged attacks are going to strike. Armed with the ability to block and dodge without restriction, it’s an incredibly fair combat system.

In addition to the base swordfighting, players have a trio of ninja to rely on, each one equipped with an elemental attack that charges up as the player racks up hits on opponents. In addition to special attacks, the sidekicks can help by using items, throwing rocks, and swinging across chasms. Every ability is useful at one time or another, and the player is free to swap between sidekicks at any point. One interesting wrinkle is that one ninja is always in combat with the player at any time, and they can be attacked by enemies. Samurai Maiden isn’t harsh enough to allow them to be KO’d, but they can be interrupted mid-attack, meaning the player has to be strategic about when and how to use the ninja – they can’t rescue players from unblockable boss attacks, and using one at the wrong time will waste their energy.

While the gameplay is solid, level design isn’t particularly interesting. The occasional castle or cave liven things up a little, but the majority of levels find the player hopping through a series of floating islands, with monsters popping up every time they arrive at a fenced-in arena. This leads to plenty of uninspiring backdrops where a uniformly-bland skybox hovers above the action. The platforming isn’t great either – the player is armed with a double-jump which smooths things out considerably, but the camera clearly isn’t suited to the action as it never pulls back far enough to give a good sense of where the character is going to land. Thankfully, outside of the challenge obstacle course levels, there’s not a ton of jumping required – it’s just enough to be annoying without being a dealbreaker. However, Samurai Maiden‘s biggest issue is how it handles character advancement.

Killing enemies earns currency that can be used to power up weapons and unlock costumes – the strange part is that the player’s health is directly tied to their weapon level. Every time a weapon levels up, it gains a few points of attack and a few hundred points of health. This means that switching to a new weapon not only massively lowers the player’s attack ability, but their health as well.

I’d gotten my base sword up to level 20, allowing me to tank my way through fights with over a thousand hit points. Then I made the mistake of trying out a new weapon in the next level – late in the campaign – and was suddenly getting one-shotted by almost every opponent. If players want to try new weapons, they’re essentially forced to grind for currency, which slows everything down considerably. It’s also strange that new abilities are tied to friendship levels with the Maiden’s ninja sidekicks, and these are raised by using ninja abilities in combat. The result? It’s vitally important that the player never lean on any one partner too much, or they’ll never get the chance to learn how to parry attacks or do aerial combos.

Finally, there’s the story, which deserves to be mentioned — I’m not clear about whether to treat it as a plus or a minus. It’s written well enough and the characters are enjoyable, but the presentation is a little challenging for what’s otherwise a fast-paced action game. Every level starts and ends with a long Visual-Novel-style conversation between characters that runs from five to ten minutes long, and it’s not an exaggeration to say that these take up more time than actually playing the levels does. It’s generally good stuff, but I can’t help but feel it could have been edited down. Thankfully, these can be skipped on replay, which is the only thing that makes grinding for levels tolerable.

Samurai Maiden is entertaining enough – the characters are likable, the combat is high-quality, and there’s enough to unlock to keep players coming back for ages, and all of its flaws are things that can be ignored or worked around. In the end, it’s a charmingly upbeat experience about a schoolgirl cutting up zombies with a sword, and what’s not to like about that?

Disclosures: This game is developed by SHADE and published by D3. It is currently available on PC. This copy of the game was obtained via publisher and reviewed on the PC. Approximately 40 hours of play were devoted to the single-player mode, and the game was completed. There are no multiplayer modes.

Parents: This game was not reviewed by the ESRB, but it contains Blood and Violence. Despite the schoolgirl vs. zombie premise, there’s nothing too lascivious or gory here. Player clothes are never torn off during combat, for example, and enemies die in fiery disintegration, rather than being torn to pieces.

Colorblind Modes: There are colorblind modes available in the options.

Deaf & Hard of Hearing Gamers: I played most of the game without audio and encountered no difficulties. All dialogue is subtitled. Subtitles cannot be resized. This game is fully accessible.

Remappable Controls: Yes, this game offers fully remappable controls.

HIGH Suplexing alligators, hell yeah!

LOW Defensive options in combat often feel inaccurate and clunky.

WTF Did I miss the reasoning behind Doctor Naomi being turned into a tree?

No More Heroes 3 is a game aimed at established fans, with storyline threads continuing from every entry in the series including the Travis Strikes Again spinoff. As such, any potential newcomers using NMH3 as a jumping-on point may be wondering just what the hell’s going on as the curtain rises.

Long story short? Protagonist Travis Touchdown talks about an 8-bit game he never completed, aliens invade the earth and blow up various cities, then Travis embarks on a quest to become the number one intergalactic assassin so that he can challenge their leader to a one-on-one duel with the fate of the galaxy hanging in the balance. All in a day’s work, right?

Unfortunately, despite having a strong cast of potential characters from past games in the form of Travis Touchdown, Shinobu Jacobs, Bad Girl and Badman, No More Heroes 3 wastes absolutely no time in establishing that Travis is completely on his own as the only playable hero. It’s a shame to immediately sideline these fan favorites, but at least Travis himself remains as deadly as ever.

Once again returning primarily as a third-person combat melee-focused game, the general beats of play will be familiar to returning players. Having signed up for an intergalactic death match where Travis has to work up through the rankings and take out each ‘boss’ along the way, he now has to earn an entry fee prior to each deathmatch by killing various low-level benchwarmer flunkies and doing odd jobs in the open world. Mowing grass, chasing down delinquents on his bike and picking up trash from polluted waters is all par for the course — as is suplexing the occasional giant alligator.

Massive fights against trash mob enemies as seen in past iterations are largely gone now, replaced by smaller-scale skirmishes against harder foes. Combat feels different, with Travis dishing out heavier sweeping hits smashing into enemies, and an improved variety of animations. Travis is still able to perform wrestling moves on stunned opponents and must recharge his beam katana mid-fight as its power dwindles, but he also has a shiny new Death Glove which gives him new options on a cooldown timer. At first it’s just a basic dropkick, but he soon learns to force throw enemies, slow them down or pepper them with digital bullets.

It’s not all good news though. While offensive actions typically feel solid and rewarding, Travis’ defensive options are massively underwhelming. The only aspect which feels satisfying is pulling off a perfect dodge to slow down time and counterattack. Everything else is rough as hell — blocking is inconsistent and drains battery power from the beam katana. The standard dodge seemingly has no invincibility frames and doesn’t pass through attacks that players might expect it to, and it often rolls in weird directions whilst locked on to an enemy. These might might not sound like huge sins but it’s clunky as a whole, and having to mash Travis back onto his feet with repeated button presses after being knocked down is incredibly outdated design.

On the plus side, the boss battles remain freshly interesting, some of which have extremely unexpected twists. From musical chairs and giant operatic robot space battles to quirky takes on various genres of videogame, there’s a lot of imagination on show here. Some of them don’t quite work, though. The showdown against Jesse Baptiste VI  is the most obvious offender due to periods of invulnerability, and one artistically-censored conversation (which amusingly, presumably, takes the piss out of Final Fantasy 7) is followed by an approach that’s downright dull to play through. That said, most are more interesting and going from a horror scene with deadly musical chairs to an impromptu rap battle, many of the massive tonal and gameplay shifts are a delight to see unfold.

No More Heroes 3 winds up being something of a mixed bag in the end.

The combat’s solid aside from certain encounters where the lack of defensive tools causes frustration. The variety in boss battles and unique encounters runs the gamut between being thoroughly inspired and soul crushingly insipid, and even the overworld where odd jobs happen is cute in a retro way… while ultimately feeling more pointless and lifeless than it did in the original. In short, No More Heroes 3 often falls short of its true potential, but that’s not to say that it never shines.

Disclosures: This game is developed by Grasshopper Manufacture and published by Marvellous Inc. It is currently available on XBO, XBX/S/PS4/PS5/Switch and PC. This copy of the game was obtained via publisher and reviewed on the XBX. Approximately 10 hours of play were devoted to the single-player mode, and the game was completed. There are no multiplayer modes.

Parents: According to the ESRB, this game is rated M and contains (Blood and Gore, Intense Violence, Strong Language and Suggestive Themes. The official description reads as follows: This is an action game in which players assume the role of Travis Touchdown, an assassin battling aliens while trying to reach the top of the Galactic Superhero Rankings. From a third-person perspective, players use a beam katana to engage in frenetic melee combat against alien and human enemies. Combat is highlighted by large blood-splatter effects, dismemberments/decapitations, and screams of pain. Finishing moves can trigger a zoomed-in perspective and slow-motion effects. Cutscenes depict further instances of intense violence: an alien ripping the arms off a fallen foe; an character crushing the skull of an enemy; a bound man repeatedly slashed, then decapitated. Camera angles sometimes focus on female characters’ revealing outfits and anatomy (e.g., low-cut tops, short skirts); some areas allow players to zoom in on female figures with upskirt detailing. During the course of the game, players’ character uses a masturbatory gesture to charge their beam katana. The words “f**k” and “sh*t” appear in the dialogue.

Colorblind Modes: There are no colorblind modes available.

Deaf & Hard of Hearing Gamers: This game offers subtitles. The subtitles cannot be altered and/or resized. The game is essentially completely playable without sound. Several optional chips make finding hidden items easier with a beeping noise becoming more frequent as you approach them in the open world, but it won’t hinder general gameplay. In my view, this is fully accessible.

Remappable Controls: No, this game’s controls are not remappable. This game does not offer a controller map diagram, but most of the time movement is on the left stick. Camera is the right stick. Jumping is A. Dodging is B. Attacks are X and Y, Locking on and blocking is left trigger, using Death Chip attacks is L1 and a face button.