When a series is known for being as surrealistic as the Yakuza series is, keeping it fresh over the long term is all the more challenging. After all, the oddball stops being oddball when it becomes mundane. Thankfully, to date the developers at Ryu Ga Gotoku have been able to sidestep that, and indeed have become even more experimental and…
It was inevitable that Monkey Ball would be inspired by Fall Guys. Given that both properties are best known for giving players a fun and chaotic gauntlet to navigate – albeit one by rolling and the other by running – the Fall Guys proven success as an online experience was…
Read MoreMonkeys in balls going bananas – what is there not to love about the Super Monkey Ball titles?! The next brand-new game in the series, Super Monkey Ball Banana Rumble, is set to unleash a barrel of fun when it launches in June. We already know about its adventure mode…
Read MoreOf all the ways to use the mighty Demon Slayer license I honestly did not expect a Mario Party clone to be one of the first. And yet, that’s what has happened. Following hot on the heels of the perfectly reasonable slash-em-up from from a few years ago comes Sweep…
Read MoreThe last Super Monkey Ball game to launch for Nintendo Switch was a remake of the original two games, compiled under the banner of Super Monkey Ball Banana Mania. And it wasn’t so good, as Matt explains in his review. Super Monkey Ball Banana Rumble, the next upcoming game in…
Read MoreIt feels like I’ve been asking for a new Ogre Battle title for decades (probably because I have been). No, not Tactics Ogre, though those are also very fine. I do mean Ogre Battle, the JRPG/Real Time Strategy series of just two titles that I was obsessed with back on…
Read MorePersona 3 occupies an interesting role within the broader Persona series. Unlike Personas 4 and 5, there is less of an emphasis on the “J-Pop” bubbly quality that significantly lightened the mood of those two titles (however serious the underlying message of each was). Unlike Persona 1 and 2, Persona…
Read MoreEvery time it seems like the extended Yakuza franchise might be pushing its luck just a little too far, the development team at Ryu ga Gotoku find some way of reminding us all why it’s such a fine series. Like A Dragon: Infinite Wealth shouldn’t have worked. Pulling Kazuma Kiryu…
Read MorePersona 5 Tactica takes far too long to get to the point. However, once it gets there it shows itself to be a far more brilliant addition to the overall Persona 5 collection than many will give it credit for. At first, it seems like it’ll be irreverent fan service,…
Read MoreIt was inevitable that Yakuza 6 would not be the end of Kazuma Kiryu. It should have been, since it finished the series in spectacular fashion. However, this is the video game industry, and when you’ve got a bankable star, you keep returning to that well until enough people get…
Read MoreMost annual sporting properties have a reputation for each year’s edition offering little more than a new roster over the top of the base game. Sometimes that’s fair. Often it is not. Football Manager is the one series where “roster update” is actually one of the critical features that you…
Read More