I’m late to the party on Secret of Mana. Back in the days of the Wii shop, I played past the bit where the main character gets kicked out of his village, only to fail to recruit the girl early and subsequently die in a “[CHARACTER] was never heard from again” incident. Despite resolving to move past this setback, it was only the release of both the PS4 remake and the Switch Collection of Mana that finally got me to touch the game again. Continue reading
He may only be a fourth-grader, but Aoyama is already a budding genius with a keen interest in all things scientific – not to mention a secret crush on the lady who works at the dentist. When large numbers of penguins start showing up in his sleepy Japanese town, Aoyama decides to apply the scientific method to finding out where they came from. Continue reading
The world is slowly turning to desert. Almost all timelines lead to ruin – except one. Entrusted with the mysterious White Chronicle, special agent Stocke gains the power to travel between past and future, but can even he guide the world to its salvation? Continue reading
Natsume Yuujinchou, or Natsume’s Book of Friends as it’s known here in the West, has long been one of my favourite series. Over the years I’ve eagerly watched each anime series, and I’ve read all twenty-two volumes of the manga released in English so far. What’s more, I’m not even bored of the series – unlike various other series which start to get tired and convoluted after a while, Natsume Yuujinchou continues to deliver the same high quality stories as it’s always done. Continue reading
With its massive world and open-ended gameplay, Breath of the Wild was a well-received game that claimed hundreds of hours in the lives in many Legend of Zelda fans. With that in mind, it’s no wonder that the trailer for Breath of the Wild 2 has been intently studied and analysed in great detail, as fans await the chance to get stuck into the sequel. Continue reading
Long ago, a war raged between two gods, the Bionis and the Mechonis. Now, those gods have fallen still, and their bodies have become home to all manner of life. On the Bionis, the humanoid Homs face continued assault from the mechanical Mechon, with only one weapon in their arsenal able to defeat them – the legendary blade of the Monado. As the only Homs who can wield the Monado without injury, it falls to eighteen year old Shulk to take up the blade and avenge those lost to the Mechon. Continue reading
Together with his faithful retainers, Prince Noctis Lucis Caelum is on his way to get married, a move designed to secure peace between his nation and the Niflheim Empire. But all that goes horribly wrong when Niflheim attacks the Lucian capital and kills the king. Now, Noctis must rally the ancient powers of his bloodline if he is ever to reclaim his throne. Continue reading
Kingdom Hearts 3 is finally here. Part one of the Final Fantasy VII remake is coming in March. Apart from churning out more episodes of FFVIIR, what will Square Enix focus on next? Rather than considering the prosaic and realistic possibilities, I’ve put together an increasingly ridiculous wish list of things for them to spend their time on. Continue reading
Chis Hatori has always been able to see magical beings, a talent that has both made her life more dangerous and estranged her from what’s left of her family. Having lost all hope and optimism for her life, Chise puts herself up for sale at a magical auction, and is bought by the mage Elias Ainsworth. Elias, who is a being somewhere between human and fae, is looking for both an apprentice and a future bride. Under his care, Chise starts learning more about the world of magic, but along the way she ends up teaching Elias about the nature of humanity. Continue reading
Over the past few days, I’ve been trying my hand at Final Fantasy Type-0. This HD remaster of a PSP release marked the game’s debut in the West, and although I had let it languish on my shelf for a few years, I felt mostly optimistic about it. However, when gameplay got underway, I was left feeling sorely disappointed. Continue reading
