Ender Lilies – Quietus of the Knight: Although the box art and the notion of ELQK being an ARPG really piqued my interest, I balked at the thought of purchasing it for quite some time. I was afraid the platforming aspect would prove irritating, and the dark-ish aesthetics depressing; but those reservations were shattered during a visit at my favourite video game store, when I spotted ELQK and succumbed to its lure. And guess what? I was a million times right to do so. ELQK’s atmosphere is properly unique, and quite amazing: “depressing” doesn’t do justice to that mix of melancholy, delicateness, menace and broodiness. The physics are stellar beyond belief, with the heroine moving in an impossibly graceful yet deadly precise way. The graphics are splendid, with a lovely parallax effect and a striking contrast between the heroine’s white, glowing sprite and the layered darkness of the décor. Do I love that game? Ooooh yes I do, folks!
Harvestella: It looks really darn pretty, that I must admit; and the character design is right up my alley. Alas, combat is too slow and clunky for my taste; and the farming simulation drags on too much to keep me focused. There is a subtle difference between contemplative and boring; and this game crosses the boundary into the latter as far as I’m concerned.
Bloodstained – Ritual of the Night: There is not much missing here, honestly. I like everything about that game, from the badass MC to the atmosphere, without forgetting the Metroidvania element; but alas, the controls are just a bit too unprecise for me, and the physics just a bit too slippery. I suck so much at Platformers that I simply need perfect controls and physics — not only to enjoy myself, but also to be able to play the darn game at all.
Tasomachi – Behind the Twilight: Here’s another weird Japanese indie developed and published by entities no one ever heard of — not that it’s a bad thing at all, mind ya. That being said, Tasomachi suffers from the blurriest graphics this side of a cold sea fog, as well as from very approximative hitbox management. There seems to be no gameplay apart from wandering around while collecting items to reach the next zone — rinse and repeat. But it so happens that I love Tasomachi’s atmosphere to pieces; so much so that I actually bought it based on gameplay pictures alone, without even bothering to check the type of gameplay. Guess that means any gameplay could do, right? Well, it turns out that Tasomachi’s controls and physics are just tight enough for my taste, which makes wandering around a real delight. Happy retinas, happy fingers: I don’t need more to welcome a game in The Collection!
Sonic Frontiers: This game seems to have a lot to offer, if the reviews are to be believed. But alas, I couldn’t even sneak a peek at all that goodness, because the darn game halted my progression and forced me to replay its first level, until I racked up a number of arbitrary goals. Sonic FRONTIERS indeed, ha-ha-ha! You know I just hate when a game plays coy or hard-to-get, and makes me jump through hoops to gain the very right to play it; and so, SF has to go.
Dark Souls Remastered: So, we have slow movement and clunky controls, paired with deadly foes that somehow seem much faster than us — despite operating in the same world, and presumably experiencing the same physics as our MC. Some call this a thrilling challenge, and more power to them; I call that fake difficulty, and to the pawn shop DSR goes.
Bayonetta 3: After my immediate crush on the second entry, I assumed the third would pass with flying colours; alas, it’s not so simple. First, I’m really not fond of the gloomy apocalyptic setting; secondly, the ‘transforming into demons’ gimmick makes combat too fussy for my taste. I could get used to all this, mind you; but I actually don’t need to, nor do I want to.
BlazBlue
– Cross Tag Battle: Flashy characters, great
physics, smooth and not-too-technical combat, many ways to play, and a neat
crossover element to boot; I really don’t need more to welcome a fighting game
into The Collection!
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