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Skull & Co Grip Case
It’s been quite a long time since I’ve done any hardware or accessory reviews, but I’ve been looking around, and I’ve gone through numerous cases for the Nintendo Switch. This will be the first of many reviews, culminating in an article that compares my favorites and their features. With said, let’s start with the rather popular case/grip combo simply called the Grip Case from Skull & Co. I first found out about Skull & Co.’s Grip Case when my girlfriend showed me their Kickstarter page. I really wanted the case because it looked like it would have enough room to stow my portable battery in the bottom, and all she…
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BlazBlue Cross Tag Battle
When I think of fighting games, I think of semi-complex motions, perfect timing, and a strong focus on competition. It’s you vs me in a battle to the death…or knock out. It’s a battle of wits and skill. In many fighting games, a good deal of skill is dedicated to being able to perform the previously mentioned semi-complex motions with perfect timing. In BlazBlue Cross Tag Battle (BBCTB), things are slightly different. Fighting games have always struggled to hit the mainstream market in a meaningful way. Sure, most casual gamers know who Chun-Li, Kazuya, and Scorpion are, but most of you don’t really identify with Cerebella, Iori, or Sol Badguy.…
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Punch Club
perhaps a more accurate title would be, “Get Punched Club.” Sometimes it’s even just “Get Clubbed.” However you want to call it, one thing is for sure…You will take far more punishment playing this game than you will deal out. This game is just brutal, that’s all there is to it. So what exactly is Punch Club? Well, essentially it is a time/resource management game where you navigate a wannabe MMA fighter through his day to day dealings in the hopes you gain fortune and glory. What’s that now? You were expecting a game named Punch Club, featuring an aspiring MMA fighter to be an action game? Well, you’re sorely…
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Yakuza Kiwami
Yakuza Kiwami! is Sega’s grand remake of the original PS2 Yakuza released in 2005. Utilizing the previously established fighting and graphics of engine of Yakuza 0, Sega succeeds in breathing new life into a 10-year-old classic. Story and Gameplay: Yakuza Kiwami! is a story-driven, open world, action RPG, set in Kamurocho, the fictional representation of Japan’s red-light district Kabukicho. In Yakuza Kiwami! you play as Kazuma Kiryu an Ex-Yakuza on a mission to find his long-lost love interest Yumi. On his quest Kazuma encounters a lost girl named Haruka. Haruka tells Kazuma that she is looking for her mother who is revealed to have a connection to Yumi. In search…
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Hakuoki: Edo Blossoms
“I’d rather be dating pigeons…” Ok, maybe that is a little harsh, this game isn’t THAT bad. In fact, it really isn’t bad at all. It’s just super niche; way too niche even for a self-proclaimed connoisseur of niche genres such as myself. I’ll be blunt: This game is not my cup of tea at all. That aside, I will still try to judge it on its merits, knowing that there IS an audience for this other than me out there. With that out of the way, on to the review! Hakuoki is an interactive novel, slash dating sim, slash samurai life simulator (see what I meant when I said…
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Clustertruck
Clustertruck…Oh where to begin. I guess the name is a pretty accurate representation of what you’re going to get in this package. Using any sort of permutation of “cluster fuck” as your game title should be a red flag at this point. The joke has worn FAR too thin, but in this case, you actually are getting a cluster of trucks. So it works, and i’ll let it slide. Well, when I say works, I mean it works about as well as a concept like this realistically could work. The whole game takes place atop of a cluster…of semi trucks. Frantic semi-trucks with panicking spider monkeys driving them (Not really,…
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The Longest 5 Minutes
The Longest 5 Minutes should have just been a visual novel, full stop. I guess I can expand on that thought. Let me start by what I feel the game sets out to do and build from there. The Longest 5 Minutes is a traditional JRPG told in such a way that you, the player, are experiencing memories of the main character who has lost his memory during the final fight with the game’s final boss, the Demon King. These memories take the form of micro dungeons and specific encounters. In each of these, the characters have a set starting level, gear, and money. Each of these memories have anywhere…
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Rive: Ultimate Edition
If I were to judge this game based on its logo and screen shots, I would probably pass it by. That’s exactly what I did. It may be what you did, too. Well, I picked it up to see what it’s about and I was pleasantly surprised. First off, I’ve heard people call it a metroidvania-like game. It’s not; not really. While you will likely revisit areas, it’s from a central hub area. The story mode has the player going through levels, sometimes repeating areas with a different path. It’s definitely not an open world game like those classics, but that doesn’t mean its not good. In fact, I found…
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Brawlout
Here you are, dying to hear that Nintendo is porting the last Smash Bros. game to the Switch, but they’re leaving you in the cold, waiting. Then along comes Brawlout, and you’re chomping at the bit to try it out, right? Unfortunately, there’s no demo available to take it for a spin. That’s where I can help. After reaching out to Angry Mob Games with no response, I decided to pick it up myself so I could have a first-hand experience to share with my readers. Brawlout, while fun, is pretty lackluster. Not because it’s a Smash Bros. clone or because it has no-name or “generic” characters. The character designs…
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Slain! Back From Hell
Slain! was originally released on Steam to a disappointed audience. After numerous delays, developer Wolf Brew Games decided to launch the game in a semi-unfinished state. It was kind of a mess. The game was filled with cheap deaths and framerate hiccups. After a few months, and numerous fixes, they decided to re-release the game as Slain: Back From Hell. This is the version that we have on the Nintendo Switch. Despite having the better version of this game, it still has some issues. “Cheap” deaths are still a thing, but it seems to be by design. I vowed that I wouldn’t write this review until I managed to beat…
Handheld Gaming Reviews
