Samantha Lienhard's Blog, page 42

Bayonetta Origins Demo is Out Now

We talked about Bayonetta Origins: Cereza and the Lost Demon when it was announced during the Game Awards 2022.

Bayonetta Origins is a T-rated prequel spin-off starring a young Cereza.

How it fits into the series overall is a little unclear, particularly in light of certain aspects of Bayonetta 3’s plot, but the premise seems intriguing and it sounds like it will expand on the role of faeries in this world. It also has a gorgeous storybook-style presentation that I love.

While it had a tiny teaser demo within Bayonetta 3 itself, a proper Bayonetta Origins demo is now available. It covers first couple of chapters, and your save data will transfer to the full game.

I haven’t finished the entire demo yet, but I’ve played enough to be interested. Although following a young, unsure Cereza takes some getting used to compared to the usual Bayonetta, the game looks beautiful and plays well so far, and the map makes it look like it will be a decently sized game after all.

I’m looking forward to finishing the demo and playing the full game when it launches later this month. Have you tried the Bayonetta Origins demo yet?

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Yakuza 5: The Parts Are Greater Than the Whole

In the midst of our romance celebration last month, I also finished Yakuza 5, the third and final part of the Yakuza Remastered Collection.

Like Yakuza 4, Yakuza 5 features multiple protagonists, each of whom has a story you play through before their stories come together at the end.

But unlike Yakuza 4, where everyone’s story was set in Kamurocho, Yakuza 5 has each part set in a different city.

Moreover, not only does each character have their own slate of substories, but each part also includes a side story with its own story and set of missions.

For example, the first part follows Kiryu, who is now living in Nagasugai under a fake name and working as a taxi driver. So alongside all the usual Yakuza gameplay and substories, you also can take on taxi missions and racing missions. Each side story is unique and has its own systems.

All of this together means there’s a massive amount of side content in Yakuza 5. It’s a huge game, with a ton of optional things to do.

And it’s great! The substories are as entertaining as usual, and I loved the side stories. I started joking that if RGG had interest in any genre at all, they found a way to include it in Yakuza 5, because the side story gameplay is often completely different from the main game. Meanwhile, the combat is a step up from the previous entry and really felt a lot like Yakuza 0 to me.

(Yakuza 5 is also by far the most Christmas-themed Yakuza game so far.)

In terms of gameplay, there are only two real downsides in my opinion. First, the encounter rate is absurdly high. I could run into five battles just trying to reach a save point. Walking slowly past enemies to avoid battles is something I started to do more and more. Second, although there are five protagonists, there are only four side stories since two character share a part. I wish all five characters had a side story. On the other hand, though, that would make Yakuza 5 even longer than it is already, so maybe it’s for the best.

Each part also has an interesting story, but it’s when they start to come together that it runs into problems. This isn’t like Yakuza 4, where the story is dragged down by a couple ridiculous plot twists. No, the problem with Yakuza 5’s overarching story is that it just doesn’t make a lot of sense. Some aspects of the overarching story work and brought plot points together in a great way! Others, however, just left me saying, “Huh?”

Click for Yakuza 5 spoilersThe Kurosawa reveal? That was great, I started to have suspicions ahead of time, and I thought it worked great (aside from it being on the heels of the protagonists coming up with the stupidest plan imaginable to bait out the mastermind). His plan, however? It barely makes sense and feels complicated for the sake of being complicated.

Then there’s the whole Aizawa & Morinaga mess, which still doesn’t quite make sense to me.

It feels like certain twists and plot points were added solely to surprise the player, regardless of how much sense they actually make. There’s an interview from around when the game originally came out where producer and writer Yokoyama said he didn’t decide how the story would go ahead of time because he likes to surprise himself, and while I respect and appreciate that style of writing, it’s important to go through afterwards and make sure all the pieces line up.

But despite my criticisms of the overarching plot, Yakuza 5 is an incredible game with great moments, interesting story moments in each individual part, and so much fun side content to enjoy that even though story is one of my biggest priorities, I came out of Yakuza 5 loving it. For the overall game experience, I’d rank it near the top of the series.

So if you’re making your way through the Yakuza series and are wondering if you should pick up the Yakuza Remastered Collection, or you’ve played up through 4 and are wondering if you should dive into 5, it’s absolutely worthwhile.

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Capcom Spotlight Announced for March 9

Capcom has announced a Capcom Spotlight live stream to be held on March 9 at 2:30 PM PT / 5:30 PM ET.

It will be 26 minutes long and showcase their upcoming games.

The following games have been confirmed:

Resident Evil 4Mega Man Battle Network Legacy CollectionMonster Hunter Rise: SunbreakGhost Trick: Phantom DetectiveExoprimal

I’m excited to see Ghost Trick being featured, so I hope we get more than just another trailer. Maybe a release date? While it might seem unlikely to get a release date only a month after the game was announced without one, Capcom has made stranger decisions in the past (like when their not-E3 showcase last summer featured Dragon’s Dogma, but only to announce an anniversary video for a week later, which is where they announced Dragon’s Dogma 2).

There’s a chance it will just be another trailer to show off Ghost Trick to players unfamiliar with it, but I can’t help but hope for more.

Likewise, I know I shouldn’t get my hopes up for any Ace Attorney news at this event, but since they didn’t specifically say it’s only for previously announced games this time, maybe we have a chance.

With that said, I feel like they might not make any Ace Attorney game announcements until after Ghost Trick comes out. The official Ghost Trick webpage advertises it as “the supernatural puzzle-solving thriller from Shu Takumi, the mastermind behind the Ace Attorney series,” and the Japanese Ace Attorney Twitter account is temporarily the Ace Attorney & Ghost Trick Twitter account, so they’re associating the two enough that they might not want Ace Attorney news distracting from Ghost Trick.

All the same, I’ll still be waiting with bated breath for even a shred of Ace Attorney news. …Maybe we’ll get to see Phoenix’s silhouette in the intro and have it come to nothing again.

(March 9 is also the date of a Level-5 showcase, which will feature their recently-announced games, including Fantasy Life and Professor Layton. It’s at 3 AM PT / 6 AM ET, though, so I doubt I’ll watch live.)

Are you looking forward to Capcom’s showcase? Do you expect any surprises?

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The Great Ace Attorney is Getting a Musical and a Recitation

March is upon us, and our February contest is at an end.

It was a close race this time, so while I count up the scores, let’s take a moment to discuss the recent Ace Attorney news!

While it’s not a new game announcement like I’ve been hoping for, a couple of events related to The Great Ace Attorney have been announced for Japan.

Last week, a Great Ace Attorney musical from the Takarazuka Revue Company was announced, to be performed in July and August. They’ve done three previous Ace Attorney musicals, but this will be the first one in ten years.

(These aren’t to be confused with the other Ace Attorney stage plays, which are separate.)

Now today, Capcom made another Great Ace Attorney announcement: a recitation from the voice actors of the two games’ story, as well as a new story episode written by Shu Takumi. This will be held on August 12.

Neither of these events is likely to get an official translation, but maybe someone will translate them into English eventually. I’m especially curious about the new story content being written for the recitation. Overall, I’m just thrilled to see more Great Ace Attorney content being made, not to mention Capcom paying attention to Ace Attorney in general.

Maybe our new game announcement is right around the corner. (Please.)

How do you feel about these two announcements?

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Celebrating All Things Romantic: Knight Bewitched

As we approach the end of Celebrating All Things Romantic 2023, we actually have a game to discuss that isn’t a visual novel!

Knight Bewitched is a turn-based RPG that follows Ruth, a knight who has defeated many monsters in the kingdom and is next tasked with killing a witch.

But when the witch, Gwen, turned out to be a good-natured alchemist who saves her life, Ruth refuses to kill her. This decision makes her an enemy of the kingdom, who believe her to be bewitched.

The stakes quickly rise higher as an ancient enemy returns, but amidst all the world-saving, the growing relationship between Ruth and Gwen is an important part of the story.

As an RPG, Knight Bewitched plays like a classic turn-based JRPG (albeit one that lets you save anywhere) and has a strong focus on applying debuffs and status effects. I found myself paying more attention to that than in most JRPGs. Combat is fun and can be challenging at times, and the game rewards exploration with a handful of side quests, some optional bosses, and a number of secret areas to find. Dungeons are maze-like enough that eventually I got tired and no longer cared to find all the items, but that’s the only thing I disliked about the gameplay.

The story is fine, with nothing too unpredictable. A few character moments felt rushed, but overall it works well enough for such a short RPG – around 10 hours, a little more or less depending on how much optional content you do.

Although the main story is wrapped up, it ends with a sequel tease. There is a sequel called Knight Bewitched 2, as well as a few other games set in the same series. I have Knight Bewitched 2, so I’ll probably play that eventually, and then we’ll see about the others.

In the meantime, if you’re looking for a short turn-based RPG with a love story at its heart, Knight Bewitched is worth a look.

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Celebrating All Things Romantic: eden*

Today I’d like to talk about eden*.

With the subtitle “They were only two, on the planet” and a description of “the planet’s final love story,” it shouldn’t surprise you that this visual novel has a bit of a melancholy tone at times.

Set in a world where an approaching red star heralds the end of all life on Earth, eden* follows a soldier sent to guard the genetically modified superhuman girl called Sion, who has spent the past 100 years working on a plan to evacuate all of humanity and save them from the world’s destruction.

The importance of this plan means Sion has never gotten to see the outside world, and that is her sole wish.

Despite the bleak premise of the story, eden* actually has a bit of humor, especially early on. It also has some action in the early parts of the story, but its core is a slow-burn romance with slice-of-life scenes to build up the growing relationship between the characters.

It is a kinetic novel, without any choices. All you have to do is follow the story.

There is something bittersweet about its story, a story that can’t escape the shadow of the end, yet pushes a message of love and hope. The excellent art and music help build everything up.

Now, there’s also a version you can get with 18+ content, or 18+ DLC to add that content to the Steam game, but I didn’t play it. According to the reviews, it adds some blood/violence and nudity to certain parts of the main story, but the sex scenes are separate side stories rather than being integrated into the main visual novel. So you can decide if that sounds like something you want to pick up or not.

eden* is certainly not one to read if you’re looking for a lighthearted, feelgood story, but if you want a soft, melancholy romance told at the end of the world, then I definitely recommend it.

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Celebrating All Things Romantic: Synergia

Today let’s talk about Synergia, a visual novel described as a yuri thriller, with the tagline “At the end of the world, sometimes love is the ultimate crime.”

It’s set in a cyberpunk world and follow Cila, a woman whose job mainly involves dealing with hostile android situations.

Her life begins to change when she replaces her own android with a new android called Mara who is so advanced, she seems almost human, while at the same time a mysterious hacker starts trying to contact Cila.

At key points in the story, you have choices to make, which put you on track for one of two endings. While I say endings, they actually branch off a decent amount of time before the end and are pretty different from one another. Once you complete both endings, you unlock an epilogue that sheds further light on the story.

Synergia has a lot of detail to its world, enhanced by optional logs you can read at certain points, although there are parts I wish had been fleshed out further and big moments that feel anticlimactic. It’s a short visual novel, which is probably why the pacing feels a bit rushed.

So what about the romance? I actually hesitated over whether or not to include it as part of this romance celebration. Cila and Mara’s relationship is important, but not as much as you might expect from its tagline. Cila’s feelings for Mara mainly contribute to her changing views about androids and the decisions she makes, but the actual romantic aspect felt lacking to me.

(This is the second cyberpunk human-AI romance visual novel I thought to cover this month, but the first one had so little romance that I decided not to cover it. At least here, the romance is present.)

Despite my criticism of the romance and some rushed parts of the story, Synergia is an interesting visual novel to consider if you want a dystopian cyberpunk story in a rapidly changing world.

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Celebrating All Things Romantic: Amnesia Later

Two years ago (almost to the day), we discussed the otome visual novel Amnesia: Memories.

Now we’re going to talk about its first fandisc, Amnesia Later, released for the first time in English last year as part of the two-game collection Amnesia Later x Crowd.

(Once again, if you’re unfamiliar with the concept of a fandisc, think of it as a game-length epilogue or a sequel focused on the characters enjoying their happy ending.)

I had a lot to criticize about Amnesia: Memories, but when Later x Crowd was announced for localization, I said I’d pick it up for the two love interests I actually liked as well as for the side story featuring Waka.

And, now that I’ve played Amnesia Later… yes, my reasons for getting it remain intact.

Amnesia Later features a short story that lets you spend time with any of the game’s major characters, which unlocks their related content. The core of this fandisc are the after stories, one for each of the five love interests.

I adored the after stories for Kent and Ukyo, my two favorites. They were enjoyable enough that I’m happy with my purchase just for them. Of the other three, I found Ikki’s story to be sweet, but unfortunately Amnesia Later did nothing to make Toma and Shin rise in my estimation at all.

So if you enjoyed the love interests in the main game, you’ll probably like their after stories here.

You also unlock three girls’ night scenarios with the protagonist’s friends, although these are actually just a way to unlock the profile information for the guys. They have some funny moments, though.

Then there’s Waka’s World, one of the main draws for me. Waka is a side character in the game whom I liked more than Ikki, Toma, and Shin all put together. His personality is different in each of the worlds, and Waka’s World is a collection of four short scenarios to let you get to know each version of Waka. Every one of them is pure gold.

I need a Waka game now. I would gladly take each of those four scenarios expanded into a full route. I am begging for a Waka fandisc, Otomate!

Finally, you unlock one final route after completing everything else, featuring Orion, which wraps up the story in a really sweet way.

And what makes everything even better is that since the protagonist has her memories back, she’s no longer a silent protagonist like in the original game, but talks to other characters and has internal thoughts. She feels like a real character here, which is a vast improvement for me.

Even though I had to power through some of the routes because I didn’t care about the love interests, Amnesia Later was worth it for the characters I do like. It was sweet, funny, and a pleasant follow-up to the original game that made me appreciate it a bit more. Amnesia Later is only one of the two fandiscs included in Amnesia Later x Crowd, so we’ll see how things go in the second one in the future.

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Celebrating All Things Romantic: Wrapped With a Kiss

We’ve got another indie visual novel to talk about today, this time a Christmas-themed otome called Wrapped With a Kiss.

You play Noel, a young woman who loses her job and finds herself with no choice but to move out of the city and into the small town where her sister lives.

There, she begins to settle into a new life with her sister, her niece, and the charming local carpenter as everyone prepares for Christmas.

The premise is about as classic as they get, but it’s a heartfelt story that explores these characters in a way that feels sincere and meaningful. The holiday setting adds additional charm and makes it a warm, cozy romance.

(Christmas is even more central to this story than it was in Wintertide Miracles, so I almost wish I’d read it in December instead.)

It takes only a couple of hours to finish, but despite its story length, it doesn’t feel rushed. Instead, the progression felt natural and believable. It has partial voice acting, although I found it distracting enough to have only occasional lines voiced that I turned off the voices.

Wrapped With a Kiss is a short, sweet Christmas story about family, romance, and finding what’s important in life. It might not be groundbreaking, but it’s the sort of feelgood visual novel that will leave you feeling happier afterwards.

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Celebrating All Things Romantic: I’m a love interest in my childhood friend’s reverse harem!!!

Today I’d like to talk about a short visual novel called *deep breath* I’m a love interest in my childhood friend’s reverse harem!!!

Now, despite how the store page describes it, this is not an otome in any way, shape, or form.

When the description says it’s “a not-so-generic otome game” and “a spin on your average otome game,” what it really means is that it’s written with the idea that you are playing from the perspective of a love interest in an otome game while your friend is the main character.

You are Geum, a teenage boy whose best friend Emily is supposed to be an otome game protagonist, with two other guys she could become interested in. However, you don’t think they really love her, so you decide to either win Emily’s heart first or make the two guys fall for you instead.

In other words, you play a male protagonist with one female and two male love interests.

I’d go a step further and say I’m a love interest in my childhood friend’s reverse harem!!! is stronger without its meta elements. Jokes about Emily’s nickname being MC or Geum noticing she seems to be looking at invisible choices in the air are good for a smile, but this visual novel is at its best when it focusing on the routes themselves.

The routes are split, so early on you decide if you want to try to win over Emily or the guys. Choices that favor any of the three characters still show up regardless of which path you pick, so I’m not sure why it’s split at the beginning. Once you do Emily’s route and at least one guy’s route on the same save file, you’ll also unlock a polyamory route (although it’s more like a harem).

No matter which route you’re on, you get a variety of cute scenes as you pursue your love interest of choice. While simple, the stories are sweet and heartfelt, and it has quite a bit of variability in the outcomes.

That’s part of why I feel it would be stronger if it didn’t try to play into the idea that Emily is an otome game protagonist. The actual routes here are sweet and humorous enough on their own without breaking the fourth wall, and the premise works fine on its own.

I’m a love interest in my childhood friend’s reverse harem!!! is very short and will probably only take you a couple of hours to beat, but it’s a sweet visual novel with more heartfelt romance than I expected.

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