[Preview] Disgaea 7: Vows of the Virtueless – PAX West 2023
Posted on 1 year ago by Nicholas Serpa in Previews, Switch | 0 comments
If you’re a longtime fan of Disgea, you’ve probably had the upcoming entry in the series – Disgaea 7: Vows of the Virtueless – on your radar for some time now. It’s a series I’ve always been curious about, but my love for strategy RPGs is somewhat of a recent development, and so I’m still cutting my teeth on the genre as a whole. That’s exactly why I was eager to get a taste of this high-energy franchise at PAX West 2023, and while I only got to sample a small portion of the game, I’m already interested in playing more – if not a bit intimidated by the prospect of it.
More: Disgaea 7, highlight, Nippon Ichi Software, NIS America, top
The best moments from Reggie Fils-Aime’s keynote at PAX West 2023
Posted on 1 year ago by Nicholas Serpa in Features, General Nintendo | 0 comments
One of the high-profile events at this year’s PAX West was the presence of former Nintendo of America president and chief operating officer Reggie Fils-Aime, who presented a keynote address to a room full of fans. As this year marked my first time attending PAX, I couldn’t miss the opportunity to hear him speak in-person – after all, you never know when that next bit of interesting Nintendo history might be revealed, right?
More: highlight, Reggie Fils-Aime, top
[Review] Bomb Rush Cyberfunk
Posted on 1 year ago by Nicholas Serpa in Reviews, Switch eShop | 0 comments
System: Switch
Release date: August 18, 2023
Developer: Team Reptile
Publisher: Team Reptile
Jet Set Radio is one of SEGA’s classic Dreamcast games – its combination of fast-paced rollerblading, urban vandalism and high-energy hip-hop have remained unique in the decades since the original release. Sadly, it’s a title that’s become increasingly inaccessible these days, and the franchise has been dormant for a long time. Well, if SEGA were to make a Jet Set Radio game in 2023, it would probably look a lot like Bomb Rush Cyberfunk – the developers at Team Reptile have taken everything you loved from the titles that inspired it, revamped it all with modern controls, and repackaged it with some incredible music and a high-energy cast of characters. This is the game Jet Set Radio fans have been waiting for – and for everyone else, it’s one of the most creative, exciting skating games released in decades.
More: Bomb Rush Cyberfunk, highlight, Team Reptile, top
Pikmin 4, more Zelda games hit Switch Online, Metroid rumors and more | Nintendo Everything Refresh Ep. 060
Posted on 1 year ago by Nicholas Serpa in Podcast, Switch | 0 comments
Welcome back to Nintendo Everything Refresh! This week, join your hosts Nick and Nicolas as they discuss the recent release of Pikmin 4, and what this could mean for the future of the franchise. We’ll also chat about the rerelease of the Zelda Oracle of Ages/Seasons games via Switch Online, rumors related to Metroid Prime 2 Remastered, and much more!
[Review] Disney Illusion Island
Posted on 1 year ago by Nicholas Serpa in Reviews, Switch | 0 comments
System: Switch
Release date: July 28, 2023
Developer: Dlala Studios
Publisher: Disney Electronic Content
Mickey, Minnie, Donald & Goofy may be some of the most recognizable characters of all time, but it’s been a hot minute since they featured in a noteworthy game of their own – something true of many Disney franchises since the shuttering of Disney Interactive in 2016. As such, Disney Illusion Island is something of an experiment; an attempt to craft a modern, original Mickey Mouse story in a new world with new characters, with the structure of a Metroidvania (or “Mickeyvania,” as the developers have put it). While a lack of meaningful surprises can cause the experience to drag and feel overly simple, the game’s charming humor and silky-smooth platforming result in a fun and amusing adventure.
More: Disney, Disney Illusion Island, Dlala Studios, highlight, top
[Review] Oxenfree II: Lost Signals
Posted on 1 year ago by Nicholas Serpa in Reviews, Switch eShop | 0 comments
System: Switch
Release date: July 12, 2023
Developer: Night School Studio
Publisher: Netflix
When Oxenfree released in 2016, I was enamored with it. I was younger then and found comfort in its high school drama and socially awkward characters, who were relatable and felt real. The supernatural yarn it weaved was surprisingly dark, yet grounded in events that felt possible in its strange world of ghosts and timeloops. But players who made it the end were likely left with at least a few unresolved questions, and Oxenfree II: Lost Signals tantalizes with promises of answers, or at least a deeper glimpse into the strange phenomena that occurred on Edwards Island all those years ago. While Oxenfree II delivers in that regard, its narrative and new exploration mechanics felt disappointingly safe for most of its runtime, failing to surprise and hook me in the way its predecessor did (outside of a few key moments); still, fans of the original owe it to themselves to see this story through to its conclusion.
Mario Kart DLC’s exciting new tracks, Pokemon Sleep, Kid Icarus, and more | Nintendo Everything Refresh Ep. 059
Posted on 1 year ago by Nicholas Serpa in Podcast, Switch | 0 comments
As life races by at the speed of a Blue Shell, it’s important that we all take the time to enjoy some good old-fashioned vroomin’ from time to time. Fortunately, in this week’s episode of Nintendo Everything Refresh we finally get to take a deeper look at the next round of Mario Kart 8 Deluxe DLC, which is bringing back some classic tracks that have at least one of us unreasonably excited. Nick and rising co-host Dawn will also discuss what the heck is going on with Pokemon Sleep, nerd out about the newest Sakurai deep-dive on Kid Icarus Uprising’s development, and much more!
[Interview] Little Kitty, Big City game director on game design, development process, and cats (of course)
Posted on 1 year ago by Nicholas Serpa in Interviews, Switch eShop | 0 comments
One of the standout indie games we played at Summer Game Fest Play Days was Little Kitty, Big City, an exploration-driven game that was highlighted in a recent Nintendo Direct a while back (check out our new hands-on impressions here). It may be the first release from Double Dagger Studio, but it’s far from being the first project for game director Matt Wood, who’s contributed to numerous influential games released over the past twenty-five years. During our hands-on demo, we had the chance to chat with Matt about his experience developing Little Kitty, Big City, what made him want to make a game about a cat in the first place, and much more.
[Review] Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope – The Last Spark Hunter
Posted on 1 year ago by Nicholas Serpa in Reviews, Switch | 0 comments
System: Switch
Release Date: June 21, 2023 (new DLC)
Developer: Ubisoft
Publisher: Ubisoft
2022’s Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope was an excellent evolution of its predecessor’s fast-paced, freeform strategy gameplay, and I’ve been eager to check out its DLC to have an excuse to play more of it. The Last Spark Hunter is significantly larger in scope than the run-based Tower of Dooom DLC from earlier this year, this time offering up a whole new planet to explore, a new antagonist, and even some new mechanics to shake up gameplay. But for players who have likely already sank dozens of hours into the base game, is the overall quality high enough to justify revisiting the world of Sparks of Hope?
More: DLC, highlight, Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope, top, Ubisoft
[Preview] Hands-on with Another Crab’s Treasure, an underwater Soulslike
Posted on 1 year ago by Nicholas Serpa in Previews, Switch eShop | 0 comments
Over the years, I’ve made a few attempts at the Soulslike genre – most notably via Bloodborne and the recent Demon’s Souls remake – but have yet to find one that I truly want to sink a lot of time into. I think it’s just a matter of preference, as I don’t have much patience for games that don’t respect the player’s time or are needlessly opaque and difficult – but at the same time, I love games with moderately challenging, strategic real-time combat. It’s why I was so curious to try out Another Crab’s Treasure at Summer Game Fest; finally, here’s a Soulslike game that seems purpose-built for relative genre newcomers like me. After going hands-on with the game, I think this could be the first Dark Souls-inspired game I actually complete.
