Recent reviews by ekolis

It's a classic JRPG. Play it, unless you have the updated edition, then play that instead. I do miss the ability to change characters' jobs from some of the other games but the characters do shine with their unique personalities in this game!

This game is a reminder that games don't need to be long or complicated to be fun. You just fly around and try to get to the end of the maze, and then try again on the next maze. The first few are really easy, the later ones are insanely hard. Don't forget to speedrun if it gets too easy! And just when you think you mastered the gravity...

It's like, Final Fantasy with the serial numbers filed off, and focused on interactions of game mechanics (especially in combat) rather than (a mostly nonexistent) story. Supposed to be open ended but there are a lot of "you need this many crystals to pass" gates. Maybe it opens up more, I still only have six of them and there are a total of 18 or so in the game, and I've played for over 50 hours now! Or do I just suck at finding hidden things and force myself to grind to get the ones in plain sight that require leveling up? The job system is cool, you can set a primary job and a secondary job just like the classic games such as FF/DQ/BD, but your stats depend on not just your current job and level but also all previously used jobs that you've leveled up in. There are all sorts of cool interactions between the different jobs, like there's one that has a passive ability of reducing ability cooldowns, which does absolutely nothing for most other jobs that you could choose as a secondary as they might rely on MP or something else rather than a cooldown, but there are a few where it absolutely shines. There's also an adrenaline gauge where you can store up AP by engaging in melee combat and spend it on powerful martial abiltiies, which I suppose is similar to limit breaks but more flexible. So it's really cool how you can build up your characters to be powerhouses, but don't expect a riveting storyline because it's really basic. Great game though if you loved tweaking characters in RPGs to be as powerful as you can make them to take on insanely difficult bosses!

Oh yeah, one thing I forgot to mention - you HAVE to explore. You might like it like I do, or you might hate it, but if you're not willing to go off the beaten path and find creative ways to seek out new adventures, you will NOT progress in this game. And a lot of that exploration takes the form of 3D platforming from a mostly fixed perspective, which could be annoying. Be prepared to jump on people's heads, look under rock outcroppings where the camera won't let you see, and run across rooftops!

This game is so hard and so random it might qualify as an honorary "traditional roguelike". But the more you play, the better you get, and then it really gets fun! Tip: explore the first level thoroughly before facing the boss, you won't stand a chance with your default weapon! There, I just saved you lots of time that I wasted before I figured that out and the game actually became fun! 😂

A great roguelite platformer with tight controls, reminiscent of Megaman Zero. I might be in the minority in not liking the pixel art compared to 20XX's vector art at first, but it grew on me. There are lots of special weapons to find and powerups to make insane combos out of. I do miss the lighthearted tone from the original 20XX game though; this game takes itself a bit more seriously! But it you get tired of the original parts that levels are built out of, you can even build your own and play the game with other player's custom level parts mixed in for endless variety!

This is a weird game that defies categorization. I guess you could call it a "roguelite deckbuilder" but even that doesn't sound quite right. You've got the two modes of play, building a settlement and exploring the world, reminiscent of games like ActRaiser, but the adventuring part is more "equip your hero and manage the terrain he'll encounter in his travels so it's challenging enough to let him level up to beat the boss, but not challenging enough to kill him", rather than actually engaging in combat yourself. Definitely something different from other games and something worth trying! Oh yeah, the dialogue and unlockable lore is rather amusing!

I don't usually review games after less than a couple hours of playtime unless they're so bad that I know immediately they're not worth playing. But this one is getting a bunch of negative reviews that it doesn't deserve. Guys, it's in early access and it's fun to play! What are you expecting, a complete, polished game? There are cool new features like resizable blocks to build your "robocraft" (huh, I thought the name was just a riff on Minecraft?) and on-foot combat, and the graphics and physics are greatly improved from the original game. They're going to add the missing vehicle parts later, once they reimplement them in the new engine. And I love how the wheels handle now, can't wait to try out tanks and mechs and helicopters and all the rest!

A true classic, much imitated but never matched, that still holds up to this day. Well, the UI is a bit clunky, but believe it or not, people have modded the game to add features from mousewheel scrolling to Lua scripting! The game is a bit frenetically paced later on, with new tech advances coming seemingly every few turns, but it's so satisfying to blast those dang Antarans who have been bugging you all game and claim your throne as the master of Orion!

A challenging 8-bit-styled metroidvania with a character swapping mechanic similar to Trine; you'll need certain characters' unique abilities to progress past certain sections, and some characters are more effective versus some bosses. The retro music is catchy, too! You can collect soul orbs by defeating enemies which let you upgrade your characters, though I wish there was more explanation of what the upgrades do before you buy them. Maybe it's supposed to be mysterious because you're basically making deals with the devil?

A classic, atmospheric, challenging metroidvania. Why didn't I pick this up sooner? I love how everything in the game feels almost optional as there are often multiple bosses or unexplored paths you can tackle at any given time, giving you a greater sense of discovery than a more linear style metroidvania - think Super Metroid vs. Metroid Dread! But is it optional? Only one way to find out! The map system is also unique; you can only start mapping an area once you find the map seller in that area, and your map doesn't update immediately; rather, it updates when you return to a save point, either by going there or by dying. Until you do so, you're just in unknown territory according to your map. Not sure if I like that but it is different!