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video game reviews

Is Dokapon Kingdom: Connect Worth It? Honest Review

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Disclaimer

I was sent a free copy of Dokapon Kingdom: Connect to review for my blog. While I am very grateful for the opportunity, I won’t let it sway my opinions. This will be my honest review.

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Table of Contents

What is Dokapon Kingom:Connect?

Dokapon Kingdom is a fantasy themed party game out now on Steam and the Nintendo Switch. The game is currently on sale until July 7, 2026 for those with enough friends (real or imaginary) to take advantage of this wacky adventure game.

Hook

The kingdom is in trouble. Monsters have appeared and terrorize the town. The king has summoned the kingdom’s bravest heroes to fight back against the scourge, and make the country profitable again. You and your friends must race across the kingdom, fighting monsters, collecting loot, and making as much money as possible. The hero who makes the most money at the end of the game will win the princess’ hand in marriage. Will fortune favor you, or will this be the end of a long time friendship? Boot it up and find out!

Gameplay

Players take turns moving across the board, sort of like Mario Party. Players will roll a dice, and move the required spaces. Where the player ends up will trigger an event. Events can be loot, random encounters, shops, or boss encounters. Players will need to plan accordingly to optimize their income generation. The game has three modes: story, normal, and battle. Story is for players who have a lot of time to play. Normal lets you choose the number of rounds for those who want shorter, more manageable games, and battle is a race. There is offline, couch support but you can also play online. You can host/join a game with random people, or link up with all your online friends and play over discord. For those who have no friends, the game has CPUs you can play with.

Combat

If you aren’t rolling for random loot or money, you are fighting the many monsters that threaten the Kingdom’s profit margins. Players can also fight each other. Combat in this game is a simple game of rock paper scissors (where each type is a different type of attack). Combat gets a bit more complicated as you move around the board and collect better equipment and spells. Throughout your run, you also level up. Leveling lets you increase stat points so you can customize your character to deal the most damage.

Does it work on the Steam Deck

The game works on everything, including the Steam Deck. If you’re playing online with your friends, you aren’t going to hate the experience. Everything is clear and easy to read, and the game runs great.

Review

As I wrap up my collaboration with Idea Factory, I am very disapointed that this is the game I ended on. The game is fine, but you really need friends for this game to be fun, otherwise you aren’t having a good time. The game feels slow, and story mode drags on forever. Had I been playing with my friends and smack talking the whole time, the wait between turns wouldn’t feel like torture. If you have friends who can survive competition where the RNG can screw you, I can see Dokapon Kingdom: Connect having some value.

Aesthetic

Dokapon Kingdom: Connect sort of reminds me of Streetpass on the 3DS, and I loved Streetpass. Nintendo needs to bring that back. I loved collecting all the different Miis. The characters in this game sort of remind me of Miis, but a little cuter. The world feels like a Miiverse type world, and I can respect that. I like that this game can run on everything, which means you can play on a toaster and have fun with your friends and family. For me, the art is the best part, because the gameplay wasn’t very impressive.

Story

The game doesn’t really have a story except for the initial hook. Occasionally, the king will come in and give you random loot or stat points, but there isn’t anything deep you need to follow or keep track of. Story mode is just the longest and most strait forward of the modes.

Combat

Combat is fine if you enjoy rock paper scissors. Whether you are defending or attacking, you get a set of skills that can potentially counter enemy action or at least reduce damage. The NPC fights do get a little repetitive. Maybe I got lucky, but I was mostly always able to guess what the lower mobs would do. I can see how PVP can be more exciting, especially science you rob your friends of their money and their turn. As you move across the board, you pick up equipment, spells, and levels that make you more powerful.

But is it fun?

If you’re playing with friends, I can see the value. You get trapped in this slog where RNG can easily turn the tides in your favor with a simple coin flip. I lively friend group will certainly enjoy the hell this can become, but it has the potential to ruin some friendships. If you don’t have friends, I wouldn’t bother. I played with the CPUs, and they cheat even on easy. Losing to NPCs is not as fun as losing to your friends because you can’t smack talk. I would argue that playing online would be a worse experience because this feels like more of a party game you pull out with your friends, not something you want to compete with strangers. Unless you get lucky and find some cool stranger who will later become your friends I mean. If you were thinking of buying your game for yourself, don’t bother. If you have a fun friend group to play this with, color me jealous.

Conclusion

I never really enjoyed these types of party games, but Dokopon Kingdom fairs a little better than the newest Mario Party. My issue with Mario Party is that there are only a couple of mini games I want to play, the rest feels like torture. Even only playing the mini games I like doesn’t really interest me. I like that Dokopon is more strait forward, albeit a little more random. You roll, you move, and you pray to the gods you get something good. At the end of the day, whether this game is good or not really depends on the group you play with. I don’t have a group of friends to play, so I didn’t have a good time. That said, I can see this being hilarious with the right group of people. If you like fantasy, need a new party game, sure, but wait for a sale.

You can pick up Dokapon Kingdom: Connect on Steam and the Nintendo Switch.

Trailer

video game reviews

First Impressions of PiPu Party: A Fun Puzzle Platformer

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Disclaimer

I was invited to cover the PiPu Party demo on my blog. I understand the game is not finished yet, so I will try to be a bit more lenient with my review. That said, these will be my honest first impressions of the game.

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Table of Contents

What is PiPu Party?

PiPu Party is a chaotic puzzle platformer. You can brave the puzzles on your own, or play with your friends. The game supports up to 8 players for those who want to get really crazy. There is a demo available you should definitely try.

Hook

Players will jump through creative puzzles in a race against time. Team up with your friends for some creative co-op solutions, or race against your crew in a wacky adventure you won’t forget. Use your inventory to control the world around you to find your way to the solution. Are you smart enough to clear the levels?

Gameplay

Players will use their character to jump across the platform puzzle without falling as they race to get the fastest clear possible. Falling means starting the level over which results in a slower clear. What makes Pipu Party unique is that players will pick up abilities they can use to manipulate the world around them. Abilities will move, rotate, or stop platforms. Players can only hold three abilities at a time, and abilities are used in order. Players will need to know when and how to use their abilities efficiently to get the solve.

The game can be played solo, or with friends in couch 2-player co-op. The inventory is shared in multiplayer. There is an up to 8 player race game that sounds fun for a party, but I do not have enough friends to test it out.

Impressions

Since I’ve starting this blog, I’ve gotten more fond of platformers. I was never a fan because I was never good at them. Having to review games of every genre, I am proud to say that I have developed enough skill to appreciate a good platformer. PiPu Party is shaping up like a good platformer, even for the people like me who don’t have enough friends to take full advantage of the game’s design.

Art

PiPu Party has a simple retro vibe that gives the game its charm. If you are a fan of classic platformers from the SNES era, you will appreciate how well these pixels are put together to create its unique world and platforming experience. The game also has a fantastic soundtrack to get you in the mood for some intense jumping puzzles.

Puzzles

The demo has a few puzzles to play through, but they give a solid grasp of what to expect from the game. They all felt creative and get challenging, without feeling impossible. This may change in the full game, but I didn’t feel too frustrated trying for a solve.

What makes the puzzles in Pipu Party unique are that they move with or without a players interaction. Sometimes, you will be dropped onto a puzzle in motion and you have to act fast to solve the puzzle. Precision and efficiency is key in solving these puzzles. Other times, you will need to move or affect the direction of the puzzle pieces to get to the goal. The experience is very memorable, and I can’t wait to see more.

Conclusion

If you are a fan of platformers, especially the more difficult ones, you should try out PiPu Party. The game has a very cute retro vibe with some puzzles that will have you only using the edge of your seat. I only tried the solo mode and liked it enough to play more, but I can see how the game’s potential for being that silly party game you bring out with your most competitive friends. Do yourself a favor, go check out the demo and don’t forget to add PiPu Party to your wishlist!

You can check out PiPu Party on Steam.

video game reviews

Headbangers Rhythm Royal already needs a discount

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I was sent Headbangers Rhythm Royal for free to review for my blog. While I am very grateful for the opportunity, I won’t let it sway my opinions. This will be my honest review. If you enjoy my reviews, please leave a like, comment, follow, and share this with your friends. You can also always buy me coffee.

Headbangers Rhythm Royal is a quirky rhythm game out on PlayStation, Xbox, Switch, and Steam. Play as stylish pigeons just groovin’ and trying to have a good time. Compete against people around the world in a series of rhythm-based party games. Do you have what it takes to be the grooviest pigeon in town?

There is no denying that Headbangers Rhythm Royal is a cute game. It has a fun art style, cute characters, and a solid soundtrack. When you get past the charm, you are left with a game that isn’t worth $20.  

Headbangers Rhythm Royal promises this massive party game experience that pits 30 people against each other in quirky and fun mini-games. The game fills the game with bots if not enough humans queue up. Most of the games you play will be full of bots, except for the few humans grinding for accessories. A lobby full of humans wouldn’t have made this game any more fun, but it would make the stakes real. Most of the time you’ll make it to the top 5 unless you’re unlucky and get a room with six or more people. This game isn’t dead, but it desperately needs more people.

Games are split into four randomly selected mini-games. Half of the round’s population is eliminated based on performance. Once you get into a game, you might get trapped in a minigame you hate. Not all of the games are fun, but that is to be expected from the genre. I wish there were a way to vote for a game, but the amount of bots would complicate this system. Nothing is worse than being stuck in a boring mini-game, waiting for it to be over, only to be trapped in something worse. There are a few delightful and fun games, but not enough for $20. 

Headbangers Rhythm Royal is a cute party game that you’ll play until the novelty wears off. It’s not bad, but it isn’t worth $20 either. You can pick it up on PlayStation, Xbox, Switch, and Steam, but I’d wait for it to go on sale.

video game reviews

GDC Recap: Pool Party

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At GDC I got to try out Pool Party, a cute little party game you might want to wishlist if you have the friends for it. The game supports four-player couch co-op. You take control of the cutest pool ball character that you can customize. There are only six game modes, but they have more planned for the future. The game modes include Sumo, Tennis, Pool, Football, Jinxed, and Free For All. Each game is based on a sport and has been adapted to fit the pool theme, and it works brilliantly.

1 / 9

The developers wanted Pool Party to be skill-based. Each game relies heavily on physics. Although each round erupts into chaos, you need to put thought into the moves you make to complete the objectives. The devs also wanted the focus to be on the mini-games, so they eliminated all the boring bits you would find in games like Mario Party. Instead of waiting through boring animation, you spend your time between rounds voting on the next mini-game.

The mini-games are a lot of fun, but I loved football (soccer) the most. Having to recalibrate my approach for each game mode kept me engaged, and the chaos had me focused. You have been warned, this game might destroy a couple of friendships.

The biggest draw to this game is its appearance. This game is super cute, and the maps are vibrant and fun. The developers plan on releasing multiple maps to give the game its variety. 

Taken From the Steam Page

If you are looking for a party game and have the friends to play with, you should at least wishlist Pool Party on Steam. They also plan to release it on the Nintendo Switch, but there isn’t any information on that release yet. There is also a demo you can download and try before you commit.

I want to thank the devs who joined up to play and answered all my questions. I didn’t win any of the matches, but I had a lot of fun regardless. Make sure you follow them on their socials to stay up to date on all the news. You can find them on Discord, YouTube, Twitter, Facebook, Reddit, and Instagram.

*images taken from the press release