Lucky_Deity
Pokémon Master
Was hoping to play FF16 today but it's stuck in Swansea which is disappointing, hopefully it'll arrive tomorrow.
What Games Are You Playing?
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Spark_Heal
Kiznaiver
Finally got back to playing AI: The Somnium Files – Nirvana Initiative and put a good number of hours into it this week in an attempt to clear the backlog. I got burnt out last year so I put it aside. It feels like I'm getting to the final act. The jokes are still landing, a lot of the characters are fun (both returning and new) even if some of them are plain.
It does feel like the Somniums have been oversimplified this time. Somniums are sections where you explore a witness or suspect's mind to uncover their secrets. In the first game they often followed absurd dream logic while in Nirvana Initiative they are a lot more straightforward. Which probably designed to make it more of a straight forward puzzle game along with the inclusion of more traditional puzzles. There's only been a few that I think really stood out so far.
The central mystery in the first game was fun but you could mostly figure out vital conclusions hours before the characters. Because Nirvana Initiative is a lot weirder in the ideas it's kicking around it feels impossible to predict what is happening, who is responsible, what's a disappointing reveal, what's a misdirection and what is just boldfaced truth. At this point I feel like I've got a read on what the big, big twist is but I also have no idea how it is possible or where it goes from there. By this point I'm deep enough in that I have to find out the answer on my own or it'll drive me up the wall.
It does feel like the Somniums have been oversimplified this time. Somniums are sections where you explore a witness or suspect's mind to uncover their secrets. In the first game they often followed absurd dream logic while in Nirvana Initiative they are a lot more straightforward. Which probably designed to make it more of a straight forward puzzle game along with the inclusion of more traditional puzzles. There's only been a few that I think really stood out so far.
The central mystery in the first game was fun but you could mostly figure out vital conclusions hours before the characters. Because Nirvana Initiative is a lot weirder in the ideas it's kicking around it feels impossible to predict what is happening, who is responsible, what's a disappointing reveal, what's a misdirection and what is just boldfaced truth. At this point I feel like I've got a read on what the big, big twist is but I also have no idea how it is possible or where it goes from there. By this point I'm deep enough in that I have to find out the answer on my own or it'll drive me up the wall.
Lucky_Deity
Pokémon Master
Mega Man 11 (PS4)
Mega Man 11 is the first Mega Man game I've played to completion as I usually give up on them, thanks to this title having easy options I was able to beat it. Had a decent time with it, some frustrating parts but overall a solid experience and liked the two gear mechanic. I don't think the series is going to be a favourite anytime soon but I enjoy the world of Mega Man and will give more a go / go back and attempt the ones I've given up on before sometime.
Mega Man 11 is the first Mega Man game I've played to completion as I usually give up on them, thanks to this title having easy options I was able to beat it. Had a decent time with it, some frustrating parts but overall a solid experience and liked the two gear mechanic. I don't think the series is going to be a favourite anytime soon but I enjoy the world of Mega Man and will give more a go / go back and attempt the ones I've given up on before sometime.
Vincentdante
Time-Traveller
I just ordered ff16 yesterday. But until it arrives I'm still playing tears of the kingdom
Sunshineabove
Great Teacher
Still playing Tears of the Kingdom am really enjoying it, just looked at the time i spent in the game and its saying 70 hours damn didn't think i've played it for that long and still not done
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João Gomes
Thousand Master
Man, I got this game just as I started and got busy at uni, and didn't actually play it as I didn't instantly gel with the gameplay. Definitely regret it now after reading how EVERYONE raves about it, but at least my brother got to play that and love it heh. That copy is long lost sadly
For my money, it's one of the best presented, best written, best games ever made. Vagrant Story was pulling cinematic tricks that Kojima and other creatives were highlighting during marketing in the PS3 generation, like cinematics-gameplay transitions and such. I'm not even going to get into the cutscene direction, which is better than most stuff still out there, just much more technically limited.
Mechanically, it's dense, but it's a very singular game. You should play it, if you ever get the chance! I got it on Vita and still have the original disc. I replayed it this year still! It was the only game I needed to become a lifelong Matsuno fan!
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And I'm now playing FF XVI and having a great time. If you enjoy anime, it's impossible not to enjoy this game. It's clear where they decided to allocate most of the resources, the Eikon battles. Magnificent stuff so far.
I think I'm not even half way through, though...
Lucky_Deity
Pokémon Master
Crash Bandicoot 4: It's About Time (PS5)
Now this was fantastic, loved it (and hated it). Crash is one of the earliest game series I got into with the PS2 titles and I have finished every mainline title apart from Mind Over Mutant and overall this is the best entry in the series (though Twinsanity is my personal favourite still).
Apart from the slide to jump feeling a bit off compared to other titles Crash and Coco have never felt better to play and I enjoyed what the other playable characters brought to the table as well with Dingodile being my favourite to play as out of the side characters. The negative takeaway with the side characters stages though is that the majority of their levels, once you finish their section, you have to replay a part of a Crash stage which you would had just done but with differently arranged crates making it quite repetitive.
As mentioned earlier outside of loving it I did also hate it at times which is the games difficulty, this isn't an easy game and this is coming from someone who has been playing platformers their whole life basically. The precision is on point in this game and will require a lot of trial and error but I will say when I did mess up it did feel like my own fault and not the game being cheap but some sections were quite frustrating at times but I kept calm and powered through, and this is because the game is so fun and enjoyable.
The game looks gorgeous as well, the environments all look great and the character animations are to die for. The voice acting and dialogue is top notch as well with the standout (as always) being Lex Lang as Cortex, you can't dislike it, it's so cartoony and charming. I enjoyed Dingodile as well, I got a good amount of laughs from this game.
This review of sorts is very disjointed but I did adore this game and just wish I'd played it sooner. Can't say I'm overly interested in Crash Team Rumble but heard it isn't terrible so may check it out when it drops in price but I am hoping we will see a Crash 5 soon enough of the same quality as 4.
Now this was fantastic, loved it (and hated it). Crash is one of the earliest game series I got into with the PS2 titles and I have finished every mainline title apart from Mind Over Mutant and overall this is the best entry in the series (though Twinsanity is my personal favourite still).
Apart from the slide to jump feeling a bit off compared to other titles Crash and Coco have never felt better to play and I enjoyed what the other playable characters brought to the table as well with Dingodile being my favourite to play as out of the side characters. The negative takeaway with the side characters stages though is that the majority of their levels, once you finish their section, you have to replay a part of a Crash stage which you would had just done but with differently arranged crates making it quite repetitive.
As mentioned earlier outside of loving it I did also hate it at times which is the games difficulty, this isn't an easy game and this is coming from someone who has been playing platformers their whole life basically. The precision is on point in this game and will require a lot of trial and error but I will say when I did mess up it did feel like my own fault and not the game being cheap but some sections were quite frustrating at times but I kept calm and powered through, and this is because the game is so fun and enjoyable.
The game looks gorgeous as well, the environments all look great and the character animations are to die for. The voice acting and dialogue is top notch as well with the standout (as always) being Lex Lang as Cortex, you can't dislike it, it's so cartoony and charming. I enjoyed Dingodile as well, I got a good amount of laughs from this game.
This review of sorts is very disjointed but I did adore this game and just wish I'd played it sooner. Can't say I'm overly interested in Crash Team Rumble but heard it isn't terrible so may check it out when it drops in price but I am hoping we will see a Crash 5 soon enough of the same quality as 4.
Geriatric hedgehog
Pokémon Master
Sounds like it'd be perfect for a remaster or at least a digital version to be able to play on the new consoles. I may get the PS1 version but I just know it'll collect dust as I'm too lazy and lacking in space to get my PS2 back out for that heh. Got FF XVI deluxe also as an impulse buy but haven't gotten past installing it
but hopefully I'll have better luck next weekend!
unknownfate
Pokémon Master
After about 12-14 years finally got around to finishing Persona 3 Portable. Got the male MC finished soon after it released but only got around to starting the FeMC path a few weeks back.
Yes my backlog is ridiculous...
Yes my backlog is ridiculous...
DragoStark
School Idol
I finished Tales of Berseria and all the post game stuff too. I really enjoyed it (apart from some of the post game dungeons but it's whatever, didn't take away from the story) so much so that I got Tales of Zestiria in the steam sale to play at some point because I got kinda invested in the lore so I figured eh, why not.
I'm not gonna play that next though. Instead I also got FF VII (original) on steam too so I think I'm gonna delve into that next as I am still very much in a JRPG mood but wanted something different. Not that I don't have other games to tackle in my backlog. Totally fine I bought two more time sink games. All good.
I was also told by a friend that I should play the original FF VII before playing the remake (that I do intend to get round to some day) which was another reason I picked it up.
I'm not gonna play that next though. Instead I also got FF VII (original) on steam too so I think I'm gonna delve into that next as I am still very much in a JRPG mood but wanted something different. Not that I don't have other games to tackle in my backlog. Totally fine I bought two more time sink games. All good.
I was also told by a friend that I should play the original FF VII before playing the remake (that I do intend to get round to some day) which was another reason I picked it up.
Finished FFIII Pixel Remaster and it’s the best of the NES entries. I’m now playing Like a Dragon: Ishin! in which I’ve barely touched the plot but have spent several days just running errands for NPCs and building up relationships - par for the course in any Yakuza game!
Dai
Death Scythe
Final Fantasy XVI
When I saw the initial reveal trailer for this, it certainly looked impressive, but I worried that the obvious Game of Thrones influence would come at the price of it not feeling like Final Fantasy. Having just finished it with almost 60 hours on the clock, this is absolutely still Final Fantasy.
Square were doing political drama and dark fantasy back in the 90s with the likes of Final Fantasy Tactics and Vagrant Story, and FFXVI feels very much in that vein. Both elements are pushed to greater extremes here though. The political landscape of Valisthea is so complex and mutable that the game eventually gives you both a political advisor and a loremaster to help keep track of everything. It's a lot more violent than previous Final Fantasy games too, with throats being slit and blood gushing on a regular basis, plus there's a lot of swearing. It's also the first Squenix games since Xenogears to acknowledge that sex is a thing that exists. Predictably it's more prudish here than with the violence, but there's a fair bit of nudity of the Austin Powers variety (ie. where there's always something blocking our view of the good stuff).
It's a very good story, and surprisingly well paced considering its length. It spreads out its mysteries, reveals, twists and developments so that it never gets stagnant. Thankfully the mistakes of FFXV haven't been repeated; this is a complete, self-contained story that doesn't require a movie, ONA series, or a bunch of DLC chapters to tell everything. Characters are generally good, though some of those from the nobility come across as a bit stiff at times due to the faux Shakespearean style of their dialogue. FFXVI's Cid might be my new favourite character to bear that name in the series though (I'm referring to this game's Cid I, not Cid II here).
Character designs generally feel more restrained than is typical for the series. There are a few distinctive costumes here and there, but it's generally a bit too medieval fantasy here for it to capture the flashy, memorable looks that are usual a hallmark of Final Fantasy. Locations, too, are generally in the medieveal fantasy vein, aside from some ancient ruins. There's no lack of quality design in the locations though, with towns and cities being especially detailed and multi-layered affairs.
Once combat starts, any worries that the game might have been put in shackles of realism are thankfully detonated with high-yield explosives. It's fast, fluid, and gets increasingly flashy as the game progresses. I was concerned when I heard that there was only one playable character, and even more so that he only has one weapon type, but again those fears were unfounded. The combat has excellent fundamentals and evolves throughout the course of the game, adding new abilities at regular intervals, some of which can radically alter how you approach battles. It encourages customisation and experimentation with your character build by allowing you to respec your abilities any number of times without penalty (something a lot of games with extensive ability trees could learn from). While I never got bored of the combat, I do think that the varied play styles of the different characters in FFVII Remake give it a bit of an edge over XVI, but it's closer than I expected.
The headline boss battles between the series's trademark summon monsters are completely bonkers. Some of them are like interactive Godzilla movies, or maybe something even more over the top like Ultraman, considering the technicolour insanity of some of the later ones, and that I'm pretty sure I saw Ifrit pull a Rider Kick at one point.
And the music? I haven't played FFXIV, so this is my first encounter with composer Masayoshi Soken, but I can see why people gush about him. There's about 8 hours of music in the game, and I don't think a single track is a dud. Location music and character themes are great, the main theme is a banger, and I cranked up the volume every time one of the boss battle themes kicked in.
Overall, it's a solid entry in a series that includes some of the best JRPGs of all time. It doesn't quite stand toe-to-toe with the best of the series, since it's a bit lacking in some of the charm and personality that made the golden era of FFVI-X sing, but it's still a great game on its own sweary, blood-soaked terms, and tells a story that has a lot more heart than I expected.
When I saw the initial reveal trailer for this, it certainly looked impressive, but I worried that the obvious Game of Thrones influence would come at the price of it not feeling like Final Fantasy. Having just finished it with almost 60 hours on the clock, this is absolutely still Final Fantasy.
Square were doing political drama and dark fantasy back in the 90s with the likes of Final Fantasy Tactics and Vagrant Story, and FFXVI feels very much in that vein. Both elements are pushed to greater extremes here though. The political landscape of Valisthea is so complex and mutable that the game eventually gives you both a political advisor and a loremaster to help keep track of everything. It's a lot more violent than previous Final Fantasy games too, with throats being slit and blood gushing on a regular basis, plus there's a lot of swearing. It's also the first Squenix games since Xenogears to acknowledge that sex is a thing that exists. Predictably it's more prudish here than with the violence, but there's a fair bit of nudity of the Austin Powers variety (ie. where there's always something blocking our view of the good stuff).
It's a very good story, and surprisingly well paced considering its length. It spreads out its mysteries, reveals, twists and developments so that it never gets stagnant. Thankfully the mistakes of FFXV haven't been repeated; this is a complete, self-contained story that doesn't require a movie, ONA series, or a bunch of DLC chapters to tell everything. Characters are generally good, though some of those from the nobility come across as a bit stiff at times due to the faux Shakespearean style of their dialogue. FFXVI's Cid might be my new favourite character to bear that name in the series though (I'm referring to this game's Cid I, not Cid II here).
Character designs generally feel more restrained than is typical for the series. There are a few distinctive costumes here and there, but it's generally a bit too medieval fantasy here for it to capture the flashy, memorable looks that are usual a hallmark of Final Fantasy. Locations, too, are generally in the medieveal fantasy vein, aside from some ancient ruins. There's no lack of quality design in the locations though, with towns and cities being especially detailed and multi-layered affairs.
Once combat starts, any worries that the game might have been put in shackles of realism are thankfully detonated with high-yield explosives. It's fast, fluid, and gets increasingly flashy as the game progresses. I was concerned when I heard that there was only one playable character, and even more so that he only has one weapon type, but again those fears were unfounded. The combat has excellent fundamentals and evolves throughout the course of the game, adding new abilities at regular intervals, some of which can radically alter how you approach battles. It encourages customisation and experimentation with your character build by allowing you to respec your abilities any number of times without penalty (something a lot of games with extensive ability trees could learn from). While I never got bored of the combat, I do think that the varied play styles of the different characters in FFVII Remake give it a bit of an edge over XVI, but it's closer than I expected.
The headline boss battles between the series's trademark summon monsters are completely bonkers. Some of them are like interactive Godzilla movies, or maybe something even more over the top like Ultraman, considering the technicolour insanity of some of the later ones, and that I'm pretty sure I saw Ifrit pull a Rider Kick at one point.
And the music? I haven't played FFXIV, so this is my first encounter with composer Masayoshi Soken, but I can see why people gush about him. There's about 8 hours of music in the game, and I don't think a single track is a dud. Location music and character themes are great, the main theme is a banger, and I cranked up the volume every time one of the boss battle themes kicked in.
Overall, it's a solid entry in a series that includes some of the best JRPGs of all time. It doesn't quite stand toe-to-toe with the best of the series, since it's a bit lacking in some of the charm and personality that made the golden era of FFVI-X sing, but it's still a great game on its own sweary, blood-soaked terms, and tells a story that has a lot more heart than I expected.
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Gemsy-chan
Shrine Maiden
Just completed Final Fantasy XVI myself and I largely agree with what @Dai has said. It's definitely up there as my fave FF game. I think FFVII Remake just pips it.
Want to give a shout out to the awesome side characters: Gav, Byron and Mid. Loved these 3 especially.
I think this game has the best Cid in my opinion. Loved the banter between him and Clive.
Want to give a shout out to the awesome side characters: Gav, Byron and Mid. Loved these 3 especially.
I think this game has the best Cid in my opinion. Loved the banter between him and Clive.
Shadow Cat
Death Scythe
Just wondering if Atelier Ryza data carries on to the other games or if theres any benefit of staying on the same system?
Got Ryza 1 for free on Switch thanks to a giveaway
And the other two are on the steam sale whats tempting
Got Ryza 1 for free on Switch thanks to a giveaway
And the other two are on the steam sale whats tempting
Dai
Death Scythe
The only benefit is that you can use the characters' costumes from previous games in the sequels if you have save data from them. Nothing else carries over, but Ryza is quicker to learn basic recipes and abilities in the sequels anyway, showing how she improves as an alchemist.
João Gomes
Thousand Master
I also finished FF XVI and I'm now finishing up a few of the side quests and hunts before probably going into FF mode for a 2nd playthrough.
tl;dr is I loved it and it has some of the best presentation I've seen in a while. The event boss battles are virtually perfect in their presentation and benefit from always being the center of major narrative progression. The OST has to be experienced while playing, it's absurdly good.
There are two things that bother me in this game, however. First is how mundane the side quest design generally is. The game has one main mechanic through which you experience its world and that is the battle system. There really isn't much else in terms of mechanics. The good news is that it's super fun at all times and I've not even tried all of the abilities. I'd have liked if side quests were maybe tied to dungeons and required more unique action on the player's part.
With that said, the side-quests weave a tapestry with all the important side characters, helping ground the world further and the hub in particular. The characters grow on you through these quests and the voice acting has the same level of quality as the main story...
... Which brings me to my second problem which is disparity of presentation. They chose where they allocated resources and that is the main story, no complaints from me there, loved it all the way through. But it's a huge adjustment to go from main story quest with really expensive-feeling cutscenes and AAAA boss battles to side quests that are presented at almost the same level as a d-tier rpg with very limited animation or dynamic camera work. Witcher 3 was more cohesive in this regard, as was The Last of Us Part II.
Still, that's it as far as I'm concerned, everything else is impeccable. The world is so dense and interesting, Clive is one of my favorite protagonists in the series and it's so refreshing to see a character who is open about his emotions. Cid is SSS tier as well, just instantly lovable. They could've done more with Jill, considering how much time she spends with the party. Her mini-arc was cool and she gets a few moments but I'd have loved to see more from her and her Eikon.
What a game.
tl;dr is I loved it and it has some of the best presentation I've seen in a while. The event boss battles are virtually perfect in their presentation and benefit from always being the center of major narrative progression. The OST has to be experienced while playing, it's absurdly good.
There are two things that bother me in this game, however. First is how mundane the side quest design generally is. The game has one main mechanic through which you experience its world and that is the battle system. There really isn't much else in terms of mechanics. The good news is that it's super fun at all times and I've not even tried all of the abilities. I'd have liked if side quests were maybe tied to dungeons and required more unique action on the player's part.
With that said, the side-quests weave a tapestry with all the important side characters, helping ground the world further and the hub in particular. The characters grow on you through these quests and the voice acting has the same level of quality as the main story...
... Which brings me to my second problem which is disparity of presentation. They chose where they allocated resources and that is the main story, no complaints from me there, loved it all the way through. But it's a huge adjustment to go from main story quest with really expensive-feeling cutscenes and AAAA boss battles to side quests that are presented at almost the same level as a d-tier rpg with very limited animation or dynamic camera work. Witcher 3 was more cohesive in this regard, as was The Last of Us Part II.
Still, that's it as far as I'm concerned, everything else is impeccable. The world is so dense and interesting, Clive is one of my favorite protagonists in the series and it's so refreshing to see a character who is open about his emotions. Cid is SSS tier as well, just instantly lovable. They could've done more with Jill, considering how much time she spends with the party. Her mini-arc was cool and she gets a few moments but I'd have loved to see more from her and her Eikon.
What a game.
Spark_Heal
Kiznaiver
Finished AI: The Somnium Files – Nirvana Initiative at long last. Very mixed on it. The game is prettier than ever, the designs by Yūsuke Kozaki are brought to life wonderfully, the cutscenes are better, the voice cast remains stellar, it's got some very fun puzzle section, the soundtrack by Keisuke Ito has some really lovely pieces and it has jokes and scenes that will really stick with me. It also falls back on some plot beats from the first game in a way that feels lazy by comparison.
I don't regret playing it. At the same time I'm likely never going to replay it either. Nirvana Initiative succeeds in many ways where the original AI: The Somnium Files failed. It also fails where the previous game succeed. It has a much better balance of tone between the absurd comedy and the violent crime drama. The pervious game's radical extremes made it really jarring and consistency went out the window frequently enough for it to be a problem. At the same time the shocking violence of the murder mystery and social issues it was willing to grapple with gave it some bite. Nirvana Initiative is less violent which is fine for this particular mystery but lacks intensity for the most part. But when it does decide to up the ante Nirvana Initiative tends to succeed while also involving some of the stuff that was really awkward in the first game that dragged it down.
The mystery is less predictabl and the improved investigation mechanics make you feel like you are actually having to think things through instead of having a robot give the detective all the answers. But the story is also more drawn out by design. Resulting in earlier sections feeling like a slog. Finding clues and creating theories is a marked improvement. Despite this the substantial lack of interrogations mean that you don't get to act on that information in a direct manner much of the time. This means you have to be more active while also not making any progress for hours on end. Ultimately I do like how the murder mystery resolves. Which in a lot of ways is all you can ask for. The story has two major problems for me. The first is a big twist that just does not sit right. The second is a giant reveal that is foreshadowed and built to subtly but feels pointless. Writer Kotaro Uchikoshi's previous title Zero Time Dilemma had a similarly awkward reveal. But despite ZTD being a rightfully controversial with Uchikoshi's fans the utter boldfaced and bonkers audacity when it came to those big moments, forced you to sort of role with them and enjoy the moment. The thing I am dancing around from Nirvana Initiative does not have that impact and feels like you could only appreciate it if you were to dissect the entire game scene by scene.
The bold premise to replace the main character of the first game, Date, with the duel protagonists Mizuki and Ryuki works more than it doesn't. The lengths the story actually goes to with Ryuki are actually really impressive. Fan-favourite Mizuki returns from the first game all grown up and I was worried she might not work in the role as the protagonist but she proved me wrong. She remains the strongest part of the franchise with her voice actress knocking it out of the park constantly.
AI: The Somnium Files – Nirvana Initiative feels like the sequel nobody planned for. The team made the original with no restraints and did everything they could think off. Then it was actually successful and then they had to come up with a proper followup. And it's really hard to say if they succeeded or not. Nirvana Initiative isn't bad but it feels like a lesser experience in a lot of ways. Never reaching the first game's peaks but never reaching its low points either. Worth checking out? Sure. But also makes me hope there is never a third game in the series. This is a good team that did good work but I'd rather they go off to make something different. They do leave the series in a good place and it's fine for them to walk away now.
Next up: Final Fantasy X.
I don't regret playing it. At the same time I'm likely never going to replay it either. Nirvana Initiative succeeds in many ways where the original AI: The Somnium Files failed. It also fails where the previous game succeed. It has a much better balance of tone between the absurd comedy and the violent crime drama. The pervious game's radical extremes made it really jarring and consistency went out the window frequently enough for it to be a problem. At the same time the shocking violence of the murder mystery and social issues it was willing to grapple with gave it some bite. Nirvana Initiative is less violent which is fine for this particular mystery but lacks intensity for the most part. But when it does decide to up the ante Nirvana Initiative tends to succeed while also involving some of the stuff that was really awkward in the first game that dragged it down.
The mystery is less predictabl and the improved investigation mechanics make you feel like you are actually having to think things through instead of having a robot give the detective all the answers. But the story is also more drawn out by design. Resulting in earlier sections feeling like a slog. Finding clues and creating theories is a marked improvement. Despite this the substantial lack of interrogations mean that you don't get to act on that information in a direct manner much of the time. This means you have to be more active while also not making any progress for hours on end. Ultimately I do like how the murder mystery resolves. Which in a lot of ways is all you can ask for. The story has two major problems for me. The first is a big twist that just does not sit right. The second is a giant reveal that is foreshadowed and built to subtly but feels pointless. Writer Kotaro Uchikoshi's previous title Zero Time Dilemma had a similarly awkward reveal. But despite ZTD being a rightfully controversial with Uchikoshi's fans the utter boldfaced and bonkers audacity when it came to those big moments, forced you to sort of role with them and enjoy the moment. The thing I am dancing around from Nirvana Initiative does not have that impact and feels like you could only appreciate it if you were to dissect the entire game scene by scene.
The bold premise to replace the main character of the first game, Date, with the duel protagonists Mizuki and Ryuki works more than it doesn't. The lengths the story actually goes to with Ryuki are actually really impressive. Fan-favourite Mizuki returns from the first game all grown up and I was worried she might not work in the role as the protagonist but she proved me wrong. She remains the strongest part of the franchise with her voice actress knocking it out of the park constantly.
AI: The Somnium Files – Nirvana Initiative feels like the sequel nobody planned for. The team made the original with no restraints and did everything they could think off. Then it was actually successful and then they had to come up with a proper followup. And it's really hard to say if they succeeded or not. Nirvana Initiative isn't bad but it feels like a lesser experience in a lot of ways. Never reaching the first game's peaks but never reaching its low points either. Worth checking out? Sure. But also makes me hope there is never a third game in the series. This is a good team that did good work but I'd rather they go off to make something different. They do leave the series in a good place and it's fine for them to walk away now.
Next up: Final Fantasy X.