For the week of June 10 to 16
Click here to see the games I played last week
Following Summer Game Fest, I am already looking at what games interest me for the rest of the year. It’s good for me to start planning what I’d like to try later this year. It also allows me to see what games are sequels or remakes I could try, and there are quite a few.
June 10 – The Legend of Heroes: Trails Through Daybreak
This will be the first time in a couple of years that I won’t be getting an early copy of The Legend of Heroes game. NIS changed the way they supply review copies of their games, and I was unable to secure one. Thankfully, they did release a Trails Through Daybreak carryover demo, and I could play it a bit.
One thing I like about the series is its great storytelling. But with Trails Through Daybreak, the story isn’t grabbing me thus far. This is a new adventure, so you don’t have to have any familiarity with other games. This one starts with the death of an informant and your character is trying to find out who’s behind it.
After the first hour, I don’t have much to share. The combat is still solid. This one introduces some action-RPG elements. You can now fight some enemies in real time. Turn-based combat only takes place in certain situations, or if you trigger it on your own.
I will play a bit more of this, at the very least, play what is available in the demo. If it keeps my attention, I might pick this up at a later date and see it through to completion.
June 11 – Super Lucky’s Tale
Outside of Nintendo, I don’t play too many 2D or 3D platformers. Nintendo has done this genre so well, that other developers cannot keep up with their pace. I remember hearing about Super Lucky’s Tale after its prequel Lucky’s Tale was a notable Oculus Rift launch game. Although I have an older Oculus Quest, I never played it (I’m not sure it’s playable there). So, when I was browsing potential games to try today, I saw the follow-up on Game Pass and decided to give it a shot.
This game looks great. I love the animations, the character designs, and even the environments. But once I started playing, I got a sour taste and I’m not having fun. My biggest problem is that the story isn’t engaging and the platforming is confusing and unfun. Incorporating 2D and 3D elements can be fun when done correctly. Unfortunately, it feels like those sections were designed with a VR headset in mind.
There is a 2D section, where your character is far in the distance. You need to collect coins, but they block your field of view. It’s not enjoyable, especially if you’re trying to avoid spikes, enemies or to make it over a gap. After playing a few levels and walking around the overworld, I had enough of the game and didn’t want to continue.
June 12 – Fe
It’s tough to describe Fe. This is an adventure game but it also feels more like a puzzle game. There are platforms and other objects to traverse. At the same time, you’re trying to avoid combat. Lastly, you need to learn how to communicate with the other animals to progress. The game doesn’t have a concrete narrative, but there is still plenty to learn as you play.
For a game that I think came and went without too much fanfare, this is the kind of adventure game I can appreciate. This isn’t difficult, and I’m learning more as I continue to venture through this world. The visuals are incredible and I’m certain the further you progress the more elaborate it gets.
I do understand how some people might be frustrated at its lack of direction. There is a map and the game has a few ways of leading you to the next objective. But I think the developers also wanted you to explore at your own pace. This might not be for everyone but I’d be willing to put in more time to see what else they have to offer.
June 13 – Redout II
The Epic Game Store had two free games out this week. The first is Idle Champions of the Forgotten Realm. I haven’t played it, but based on the title and the screenshots, this is another auto-battler. After trying out Firestone Online Idle RPG a few weeks ago, I decided to pass on this one. However, the other free game, Redout II, is one I’ve heard about but never got around to playing. It’s exactly what I expected and I am having a lot of fun.
If you’ve played games like Wipeout or F-Zero, then Redout II is easy to grasp. This is an incredibly fast racer and it has me hooked. I’ve gone through a few races and I love the challenge they are throwing at me. The first set of races is easy except for one race. Once I started racing in more competitive matches, I knew I’d need to upgrade my vehicle to stay competitive. I’m staying close to first place, but I don’t have the power to win.
The only race that wasn’t fun was one where there were no “walls”. It reminds me of Rainbow Road in Mario Kart. But here, going off course doesn’t reward you with a shortcut. Instead, you get penalized and have to start from where you fell off. Because of the speed, memorizing the course is key. I didn’t mind this but I know I’ll have to race it a few more times before I can stay on course the entire race.
June 14 – Shin Megami Tensei V: Vengeance
My experience with the Megami Tensei universe of games starts and ends with Persona. Even there, I have many gaps, but that hasn’t stopped me from keeping my eye on them. I have a sealed copy of Shin Megami Tensei V for the Nintendo Switch, which I had intended to play. That is until I saw the positive buzz around Vengeance. Now that this “definitive” version is out, I picked it up and began playing. I’m only a few hours in but I can see why it is so well received.
I’m playing in casual mode, but it still offers quite a challenge. There is a lot to grasp and learn early on. I thought that my experience with other RPGs would give me an advantage, but that isn’t the case. Early on, there is a lot to learn and you can’t jump into battle and assume success. I wasn’t saving frequently enough and got wiped out pretty quickly. Building your squad is key, so don’t just play with the hero and not recruit enough demons to pair up with you.
After two hours, I’m still in the game’s opening Netherworld area. I’m supposed to reach Tokyo Tower but I’m trying to recruit demons and level up all my characters. On top of throwing a lot of different mechanics at you, you also get a fair share of side quests you can complete. So, I could see myself spending even more time here.
While this is hitting all the RPG aspects that I enjoy, it’s also making me wish I put in the time to play Persona 5: Royal. I bought that last year, put in a bit of time but never got far enough. It’s also increased my excitement for the upcoming Metaphor: ReFantazio. I can never get enough RPGs, even if I don’t have the free time to play them all to completion.
June 15 – Skul: The Hero Slayer
When I bought the recently released M4 iPad Pro, I bought it for two reasons. The first was to have a better-performing tablet for reading (the Amazon Fire I have is slow, even for books). And the other reason was for gaming. I’ve been playing a few games on it, but I am always looking for more. Skul: The Hero Slayer is a recently released game on the iPad. It came out a few years ago on PC, and from what I saw, it looked cool. I enjoy roguelikes, even if I’m not good at them. While this should be a lot of fun, its performance on iPad is disappointing.
The biggest gripe I have with the game is my perceived input lag. This is a massive problem with a lot of mobile games. Because your controls are on the screen, it can feel like your input is delayed. In roguelikes, timing is important, so not feeling like you have that under control is frustrating.
While I expect to die, it should be because my enemies are too strong. Here, I feel like I should be able to attack and dodge but can’t. Those moments when I’m not jumping properly make me want to stop playing. Skul is not a free game, so these development hiccups are inexcusable.
I don’t want to have to invest in an iOS-compatible controller. The developers are looking into the issues (others have complained about performance). If this improves, I might return to it. Otherwise, I don’t see myself playing anymore.
June 16 – S.T.A.L.K.E.R: Shadow of Chernobyl
I’ve heard great things about the S.T.A.L.K.E.R. series. With the anticipation of the sequel this September, I thought it would be nice to try the original games. Through GOG, all the series are available for $15, so I picked them up and started with the first game. As someone who missed out on a lot of FPS from the early 2000s (eg, C&C Renegade), this one took me a bit of time to get used to.
For starters, I’m not used to the mouse and keyboard setup. Yes, it’s the de facto “correct” way to play FPS games on PC, I’m a controller user and this does not support controllers. So it took me some time to get used to some aspects of this game. “F” is used to search through bodies and to pick up items. I’m more accustomed to “E” being used there. This also doesn’t have an auto-save function, which was confusing. I would constantly see the Save icon in the bottom right corner, so I assumed the game was saving. That was not the case. So when I died in the game’s first combat mission, I had to go through a lot of chit-chat a second time.
This isn’t as open-narrative as I had expected. The map is large but they are broken up into “levels”. I am still learning more about the world and there is plenty here to explore and discover. Even if I don’t play this through to completion, it has gotten me more excited for its sequel, Heart of Chernobyl.