I got to try SteamWorld Buildat this year’s GDC, and I have been excited to get my hands on it. You can check out my previous post to read my complete impression.
SteamWorld Build is a cute little village builder coming to Steam, PlayStation, Xbox, and the Nintendo Switch on December 1st. This is a cute little village builder with an interesting defense mechanic that you are going to want to try at least once. I just got a copy and will be reviewing it as soon as the embargo is lifted. Stay tuned for that.
You can preorder a copy of SteamWorld Build for your favorite console starting today. The game retails for $29.99, but preordering on Xbox and Switch saves you $3. PlayStation Plus members also get this discount. If you aren’t ready yet, at least add it to your wish list!
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I was sent Illuminaria as a review code. While I am very grateful for the opportunity, this will be my honest review of the game. If you enjoy my reviews, please leave a like, comment, follow, and share this with your friends.
Illuminaria is a base building, resource management game for PC,Switch, Android, and IOS devices. Take control of an army of adorable robots as you work to bring light back to the land. Use the robots to gather resources, build bases, and fight monsters.
Illuminaria has a unique and interesting gameplay loop. Building is probably the most relaxing experience I’ve had in the genre because of how easy it is to get organized. All you have to do is build squares, and the robots will fill those squares with resources based on your designations. This loop feels fantastic on the iPhone because all you do is tap and watch your little robots get to work. While you wait for resources, you are also researching new technologies, upgrading structures, defending your bases, and sending your robots on quests for more materials. You’ll be as busy as your little buddies on the screen, and it is such a wholesome good time!
My only real issue with this game is the price. $5 for the app is perfect. You’ll get $5 of fun from the app. If you are looking for a chill game to pick up in a waiting room or something to fill those rare gaming hours that present themselves, Illuminaria is a solid choice. The mechanics are easy to pick up, the gameplay is engaging, the art is cute, and the music is great. This is a fun game, and it’s a perfect mobile gaming experience. The problem is that this game feels short. You can try to beat the game at different difficulties, but it still feels like a $5 app. I can’t see it ever being worth full price on a console or PC. It’s not a bad game, there just isn’t enough for it to be worth it.
You can pick up Illuminaria on Steam, and Switch for $14.99, and on Android and IOS Devices for $4.99. It is on sale right now on Steam for $9.74 until November 7th, but you can also try the demo if you need some more convincing.
I was sent Fabledomas a review code. While I am very grateful for the opportunity, this will be my honest review. If you enjoy my reviews, please make sure you like, comment, follow, and share this with your friends.
Fabledom is an adorable city builder available on Steam. The game is in early access, but it certainly doesn’t feel like it. It’s also got a healthy roadmap, and I am sure the game will get better. If you are looking to get into the genre, or simply looking for a new title to get into, Fabledom is a fantastic place to start.
Players start with a small population of peasants, limited resources, and an easy-to-follow tutorial. As your village grows, you unlock new mechanics. Fabledom lets players practice diplomacy with neighboring kingdoms, raise renowned heroes and armies, and find their true love.
Don’t let the adorable fairytale facade fool you. You’ll need to be tactical about how you grow your village. While I never hit the point where my village failed, I did hit bottlenecks in my progress that stemmed from my mistakes. I am sure there are guides designed to play Fabledom optimally, but I like learning from my failures. I always recommend going into these games as blindly as possible. It’s more fun that way.
I am obsessed with this game. The gameplay is relaxing yet engaging, the art style is cute, and the music is such a vibe. This is one of those games you need to try at least once, especially if you are curious about the genre. You can pick up Fabledom on Steam for $11.99 (normally $15.99) until October 30th. It’s worth it at either price!
The Pokémon Company has partnered with the Can Gogh Museum in Amsterdam to produce some of the cutest and most unique products to come to the space. If you are a collector, or just need another excuse to go to the museum, this event is worth looking into. The exhibit will run from September 28 to January 7th, and you can access it for the price of a regular museum admission ticket.
The Exhibit
The collaboration intends to get the new generation into museums which I love to see. The museum will be hosting six pieces by an artist from The Pokémon Company where they fuse Van Goh’s iconic style with familiar Pokémon such as the Self-portrait with Grey Felt Hat (1887).
Snorlax & Munchlax inspired by The Bedroom
Sunflora inspired by Sunflowers
Pokémon Adventure & Pikachu Promo Card
The museum will also be hosting a Pokémon Adventure activity for kids ages six and up. Participants will be given a leaflet to fill out that will guide them through the museum and teach them about the artist in a fun interactive activity. The leaflet will be available in both Dutch and English and completed leaflets can be exchanged for a cute Pikachu promo card you are going to want in your collection. I am hoping the museum has a good way to mitigate the scalpers or greedy collectors. It would be a shame if the target audience for this event weren’t able to participate because there were too many greedy adults. I guess it won’t be a huge deal if it drives up attendance.
The Merch
But if you aren’t able to get your hands on the promo card, you can settle for some of the adorable exclusive merch that will only be available at the Van Gogh Museum’s gift shop. There is an adorable plushy, a cool tote bag, and more while supplies last. Purchases will also come with a copy of the Pikachu with Grey Felt Hat if any are available.
Conclusion
If you are in the area, make sure you go anyway. It is always good to support the arts. Even if you’ve seen pictures of the famous paintings at an exhibit, nothing beats being in the same room and being able to examine them up close. It is so cool to see how pop culture seeps into the classical. I love this collaboration because it creates this neat retrospective of art that I hadn’t considered. It shows how eternal some ideas have become, but also how these ideas continue to inspire and evolve. I bet Van Gogh never imagined he would have a whole museum dedicated to him, but here his work is, on a Pokémon card.
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The Disgaea 7: Vows of the Virtuelessdemo for the Nintendo Switch has been out for a few days, but I finally got to play it. I loved every minute of this demo. The art is cute, the voice acting is fantastic, and the gameplay is engaging. I haven’t played any of the Disgaea games before, and I am regretting my life’s decisions. Disgaea is a cute and quirky strategy RPG coming to PlayStation, Steam, and the Nintendo Switch on October 3rd in the US, the 6th in Europe, and the 13th in Australia.
A tyrant rules the Netherworld of Hinomoto. Its once proud warrior people now live under the Hinomoto Code of Destruction. It is up to two unlikely friends to join forces and bring back the Bushido code that was once the staple of this proud civilization.
You don’t need to have played any of the other games in the series to enjoy the demo, but you are going to want to. The demo does a fantastic job of walking players through the different mechanics and setting up the story as its own entity. I’ve been excited about Disgaea 7 since it was first announced. This is definitely going to be in my cart at launch. If you are a fan of the series or want some extra swag, you might want to check out the special collector’s edition available at the NIS online store. There are two different sets, one with plushies ($159) and one without ($99.99). I’ll leave the details below. You can buy the plushies separately.
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Since we are a few days into September, it is the perfect time to start preparing for Halloween season. Pokémon has released a couple of products that you are going to look at. If you’ve been enjoying these updates, don’t forget to like, comment, follow, and share this with your friends!
Pokémon Trick or Trade Booster Bundle
This booster bundle is the perfect alternative to candy. Bundles include 50 3-card packs for you to pass out. There isn’t going to be much value in this product, so only purchase it if you are going to give it away. It could also serve as a cheap and inexpensive way to open packs with a younger kid. The BOOster bundles retail at $19.99.
The advent calendar makes the perfect holiday gift for the little trainer in your life. It includes a cute cast of collectable figures, and advent calendars always make for a fun time. The cheapest I found was Amazon for $39.99, but you can also try Walmart for a few bucks more.
Mimikyu at Build-a-Bear
This news is a little old, but I thought I would share it anyways. Mimikyu is at Build-a-Bear and its super cute! If you are a fan of Mimikyu and are looking for a high quality plushy collectable, you might want to check it out. You can only buy the Mimikyu bundle online. The bundle includes the plushy, hat and bow tie set, and the voice box for $52.50. You can pick up Mimikyu in-store for $34.
Mimikyu at Gamestop
In other Mimikyu related news, get your Electric-Tera Mimikyu from participating Gamestops this October. Trainers in the US and Canada can pick up codes for Pokémon Scarlet or Pokémon Violet games. No date has been announced for the start date, but I’ll make sure to make an announcement as soon as its available.
If you haven’t been watching this mini-series, you need to. It is an adorable re-imagining of the Pokémon TCG competitive scene that doesn’t require any knowledge of Pokémon or the card game to enjoy. It has a great protagonist, a fun story, and a cute art style. If you weren’t playing the TCG before watching this, you’re going to want to after.
As I did with last weeks episode, I am going to over analyze what happened in Worlds. This will contain spoilers, so make sure you watch the episode before reading the rest. If you enjoy these posts, make sure you like, comment, subscribe, and share this with your friends.
Last week, Ava experienced her first big loss. She became so consumed by her desire to win that she forgot to have fun. The loss devastates Ava because she feels like she let everyone down. This pressure breaks her, and Ava decides to quit the game. She stops going to the club or talking to her friends because of the shame she feels for losing internationals.
In previous episodes, we’ve seen her mother try to talk to Ava about the competitive scene. The cards that were the catalyst for Ava’s adventure once belonged to her mother. We got the sense that Ava’s mother was also a competitive player and that Ava’s natural talent might have also been passed down through her. In this episode, confirmation through some important back story. We get to see Ava’s mother comfort her from a place of empathy, and it is a very cute moment. Ava’s mother faced a similar loss and quit the hobby as a result. She advises Ava not to do the same and to remember why she started playing.
This is an important moment for Ava because not only does she learn how to deal with loss, she remembers why she started playing in the first place. When Ava played the game to win and be the champion she thought everyone wanted her to be, she lost the connection she had to the game. You see less of the Pokemon and more of the mounting stress that looms over Ava as she grinds through the scene. The Pokémon TCG is important to Ava because it is what helped her make important friends and find her place in society. Remembering why she played in the first place helps her deal with the stress, and she starts to have fun again. At this moment, the series shifts focus to the Pokémon, and the audience gets to see a cute and fun battle. Unfortunately, this marks the end of the series, but it was such a fun ride. I loved watching Ava grow as a character, and it even got me excited to play more Pokemon.
As someone who plays a lot of card games, this series is amazing. It had a fun story, cute art, and animation, and it was able to capture why card games are so fun. It is easy to lose sight of what’s important when you are climbing the ladder, and even easier to be stuck in a stressful grind. I’ve done my fair share of obsessing over rank, and remember the tilting frustration that came with the grind. Games and hobbies are supposed to be fun. When they start feeling like a job, it is okay to take a break. Don’t let the climb become more important than your love for the hobby.
Anyways, if you haven’t watched Path to the Peak, go check it out on the official Pokémon YouTube.
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High Score Girl is an adorable anime you should be watching if you have a Netflix subscription. It has a great protagonist and a cute romantic story, and it will make you feel a series of emotions you aren’t ready for. At the very least, this series should be on your watch list.
Hasuo is a hardcore gamer with a one-track mind. He obsesses over video games and spends all his time and money playing them. Ono is a quiet girl who comes into his life as the first challenger to beat him at a fighting game. From that moment, Hasuo makes it his goal to beat her. He spends the following years perfecting his technique to prove he is the better gamer. But what draws Hasuo to Ono isn’t a simple rivalry, it is something much deeper. Will Hasuo ever come to terms with his true feelings, or will they be lost in the chaotic sounds of the arcade?
What I like most about this series is Hasuo as the main character. He is a bit clueless, and that cluelessness can be frustrating at times, but it is a flaw that he works on actively to fix. By the end of the series, Hasuo isn’t the same clueless kid obsessed with gaming, and it is a delight to watch him grow to that point. I don’t want to overshare because I don’t want to ruin the experience, but it’s a very cute love story and I am ready to watch it again.
The cast is full of fun and colorful characters with terrific voice actors who help Hasuo on his journey. I loved watching how his relationship with the people around him evolved the older he got. Watching the impact others make on Hosuo and vice versa makes this anime incredibly charming.
I loved how video games are used to emphasize emotions and important moments in Hasuo’s journey. Hasuo understands the world through the lens of video games, and it is interesting how the story meshes the video game world with important character moments. As he grows, his relationship with video games changes, and it is interesting to see how that affects this view of the world. The tone of the series is a little over the top for a slice-of-life anime, but I believe it does a wonderful job of emulating the loud and colorful vibe of a classic arcade.
One thing to note before watching is that High Score Girl makes a lot of references to classic-era gaming. You don’t need to know anything about gaming to understand the story, but you’ll appreciate the references if you do. The series will often stop to explain important references, so you shouldn’t feel lost. Aside from being a cute love story, High Score Girl is a proper love letter to an era of gaming that is slowly disappearing.
High Score Girl is a fantastic anime to throw on if you want something comforting and cute to watch. The animation may be a bit wonky, but it gives the series its charm. It has great characters, fantastic voice actors, and the cutest story you’ll ever sit through. Go stream it now on Netflix, but make sure you grab something to cry into when you do.
Persona 5 Tacticais coming to consoles and PCs on November 17, 2023. The Phantom Thieves find themselves in a strange realm surrounded by Legionnaires. Now they must help the revolutionaries and find a way back home. Do you have what it takes to get the Phantom Thieves back home safely?
I love the art style of this game. If you are a fan of Persona or just want a new strategy game to hop into, this might be worth looking into. It certainly gives me Mario vs. Rabbids vibes, and I love Mario vs. Rabbids.
Persona 5 Tactica will have a skill tree to unlock for each character, unique combos you can perform, and a reserve unit system that I am dying to try. You are able to change the difficulty after you start the game, which is an amazing feature for people like me who aren’t very good at strategy games but still want to enjoy the experience.
I’ll be picking up a copy when it comes out, but am still deciding which version. I am not convinced the digital deluxe version is worth getting if I am only getting two additional characters.
Preorder your copy today!
Xbox: Regular ($59.99)/ Digital Deluxe Edition ($79.99)
Terra Memoria is a cozy turn-based RPG coming to Steam, Xbox, PS5, and Switch. This cute RPG mixes a beautifully drawn 3D world with cute 2D pixel art characters and I am here for it. It definitely gives me some Octopath Traveller vibes, but Terra Memoria seems a bit more whimsical. Terra Memoria puts its emphasis on exploration and adventure as a group of friends travel across Terra in search of a solution for the crystal shortage. What makes this game unique is its building mechanic. Players can use this mechanic to create objects, solve puzzles, and create their own village. If is anything like Animal Crossing or Stardew Valley, I’m never getting anything done.
If you are looking for a new RPG that might be a bit more on the casual side, you should give this a look. No release date has been set yet, but you can at least wishlist it on Steam.
I’m working on getting a review code for this, so stay tuned for the full review when it’s out. Until then, It might be time to finally start up Octopath Traveller II.
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