Recent reviews by Criosphinx

I have 90+ hours in this game and I think I'm only around halfway through it. I am in DISBELIEF with the magnificence of this game, and I think I can finally legitimately consider it my favorite game of all time now, after all the turds the gaming industry has been dumping down on us for years.

The game just doesn't stop. After the best intro sequence I've ever witnessed and hitting every possible nostalgic note in my whole being for the Harry Potter franchise, it just keeps going and going and getting better and better with all the things you keep discovering and unlocking. It's like a never-ending tutorial but in the best way possible. There's SO MUCH to the game and with such particular care and attention that there's simply no real room for disappointment. If you're actually still disappointed then there's something wrong with you. These devs have absolutely outdone themselves. Not to mention any bugs or glitches being MINIMAL from what I've seen so far. Just truly and honestly well done.

That said, of course it's not PERFECT and there's some room for improvement and features to be desired (although that's hard to believe given HOW MUCH we were already spoiled with), but I just can't legitimately complain because it would be too overwhelming if we were given more. My brain would implode. The way it is now is well paced with discovery and amount of content at our disposal. There's a plethora of Easter eggs included that fans will easily recognize and be pleasantly surprised by, and even if we can't literally assimilate with the world in every way, shape and form, the content to go through is still nearly endless. And that's just for one playthrough, given we can have 4 with all the different Houses that have modified experiences.

I'm only halfway through at the time of writing this review and I don't even need to see the ending at this point. I'm still recovering from the splendor of what I've seen so far and combing through all the side quests and world exploration. The voice acting is super professional, the music is heart-melting, the combat is versatile and enjoyable, the visuals are ORGASMIC and it's been performing well for me so far, just...Jesus Christ, man. I don't know what else to say. Absolutely spectacular and worth every penny.

Horror is definitely not my type of genre since I don't really enjoy being scared, but psychological horror like Silent Hill or this game are an exception for me.

I played this game for the PS1 and it ran ABYSMALLY. It was probably a constant 10 FPS or so (if even that much), but regardless, back then, it was considered natural so I had to deal with it and get used to the agonizing controls, and it was absolutely worth it for this fantastically made gem of a game. So when I learned a remaster was available I rushed to get it, and SWEET JESUS have they done it justice. Not even that, they went above and beyond to make it as amazing of an experience to both hardcore fans and newcomers alike by expanding the game with either cut content, or QOL updates, or new features never seen in the original. The only thing I despised was the extra horror mode since it was made as a chore you had to power through in order to unlock the last achievement, but at least I don't have to deal with it anymore.

The gameplay is enjoyable, the atmosphere is bone-chilling and the story is amazingly written. I whole-heartedly recommend it for both horror and action-adventure platformer fans alike.

I believe I can say this is my favorite game/RPG of all time, or at the very least for the PS2. And the fact we got it remastered with HEAVY QOL updates made me get it as soon as I learned it was available.

There are so many things to do in this game to make it feel like actually playing an MMO, but in an enclosed RPG setting. For completionists like myself it has hours and hours of content to dive through, and the story is fascinating and nicely written in a true anime fashion. Things seem all over the place to begin with, but it all properly connects the further you go along. Leave it to Bandai Namco to know how to do anime games right.

The QOL updates just for the remaster are also godsent, especially the movement speed which was fairly slow in the original, but now, especially when using additional movement speed addons, it makes some of the more tedious grinds that are inevitable for 100% much more bearable. The animation upscaling is spectacular and in pristine quality that I could just squeal. And then, while not very lengthy, the newly made 4th volume is very fulfilling as a wrap-up for the trilogy. It's a very sweet bonus they awarded the fans.

There's so much appeal to me in the .hack series that, unlike its ADHD version Sword Art Online, this I can actually get into. For anime and RPG fans alike, I can definitely recommend the .hack series, and G.U. is a perfect introduction to start with.

I'm blown away by how much this managed to impress me.

My introduction to the Digimon games was Digimon World 2, after which I played World 3 and Rumble Arena. I always loved the 3-member party system in DW2 and never liked how limited you were with your party and playable Digimon selection for DW3, but I still liked that one regardless. This game managed to do everything right. From the 3-member party to the vast branching paths you can take for the Digivolution trees, and the skill system that lets you accumulate 20 skills to mess around with for your party, and having 8 party reserve slots that all receive the EXP that the main 3-member party gets, and even having online (or offline) tournaments to try out, AND DEAR MERCIFUL HEAVENS DON'T EVEN GET ME STARTED ON THE OST, it's all just fantastic.

Running around the Tokyo districts and going through missions throughout the chapters in a Persona-like feel also checks a positive mark for me. The story is also much more serious and somewhat darker than the Digimon we're normally exposed to, but it always was a series that pushed beyond the childish, cheerful, ditzy, bubbly, rainbows-and-sunshine feel that something like...I dunno, Pokemon did. Digimon has always done something different for everything in its series, from the games to the show as well, and this game did too and amazingly at that. I don't care how close to Persona it actually is, I'd consider it a very good thing. I don't think I can praise and recommend it more than I already am. I just feel kinda bad that I got it at an extremely low price while on sale and feel like I ripped the devs off. They absolutely deserve my money.

This game (2 of them, even) is a must-have for Digimon lovers, but Persona and turn-based game lovers as well. You can't be disappointed.