Highlight Archives | Page 23 of 51

ENDER MAGNOLIA: Bloom in the Mist

Posted by Des Miller on March 8, 2025

Metroidvania fans have been eating well for the past couple of years thanks to fantastic entries such as Hollow Knight, Dead Cells, Blasphemous, and Metroid Dread to name a few. The long-beloved genre has delved deeper into the RPG world while mixing in Soulslike elements to keep things evolving. Wh… Read More »

Blades of Fire Hands-On Preview: Strike While the Iron is Hot!

Posted by Paul Skevington on March 7, 2025

You might not have heard much about Blades of Fire yet, and if so, that’s not entirely surprising. Blades of Fire is one of those rare treats: a game announced only a few months prior to its anticipated release date. What’s more, publisher 505 Games and Developer MercurySteam invited me to come and… Read More »

Rhythm Encounter 156 – (Xenoblade) X Gon’ Give It To Ya

Posted by Mike Salbato on March 6, 2025

Xenoblade Chronicles X: Definitive Edition is almost here, so what better time to dive into this musically fascinating “side” tale from 2015? Many fans were surprised that the first Xenoblade Chronicles was not followed by a “2” (though that happened later), but by Xenoblade Chronicles X. The name a… Read More »

Suikoden I & II HD Remaster: Gate Rune and Dunan Unification Wars

Posted by Zach Wilkerson on March 5, 2025

(Reviewer’s Note: Konami recently announced multiple adjustments that were not available to us at the time of the review. This review is true to the version available to us at the time of review.) The morning after I rolled credits on Suikoden II in the Suikoden I & II HD Remaster: Gate Rune and… Read More »

Ever 17: The Out of Infinity Remaster

Posted by Sean Cabot on March 4, 2025

Kotaro Uchikoshi is one of a few select creatives who has permanently imprinted my brain structure. While I brought this up in my review of his early attempts at genre mashup in Never 7, I didn’t have much space to explain his exact appeal in great detail because it was so different from what I’d co… Read More »

Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 Hands-on Preview – The Brushstrokes of a Dream

Posted by Zek Lu on March 3, 2025

What if I told you there’s an upcoming game that’s a cross between Final Fantasy XIII and Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door? Would that excite you, or worry you? Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 certainly sounds like someone’s fever dream, but I couldn’t stop playing it. In fact, I played through the p… Read More »

RPGs Coming This Week, 3/2/25

Posted by Claton Stevenson on March 2, 2025

In this edition of RPGs Coming This Week: more games than you can shake a stick at! From old classics you may have missed to potential new ones you won’t want to miss, there’s really no shortage of RPGs you can throw your money at. In this economy, we’d hate for you to waste that hard-earned income,… Read More »

The Crimson Diamond

Posted by Jonathan Logan on March 1, 2025

And now for the words that every potential reader loves to see at the beginning of a review: It’s time for a history lesson! Before graphical point-and-click adventure games, we had narrative text adventures. In these games, players read descriptions and input instructions via a text parser, using t… Read More »

Retro Encounter 454 – Tales of Graces f Part I

Posted by Zach Wilkerson on February 27, 2025

We have to look for the podcast, Cheria. It’s the only way. On this week’s Retro Encounter we get together to talk about the first half of Tales of Graces f, a game renowned for its combat system, and maybe less so for its storytelling. Four players of varying knowledge (and skill) talk about whethe… Read More »

Crowdfunding Chronicles: Alterium Shift

Posted by Tina Olah on February 26, 2025

Hello RPGFriends, and welcome to 2025’s first installment of Crowdfunding Chronicles! Today we present the Kickstarter debut of a title which may be familiar to some of our readers; Alterium Shift, a SNES-inspired 2D-HD RPG featuring brisk turn-based combat and an epic journey through parallel dimen… Read More »

Never 7: The End of Infinity Remaster

Posted by Sean Cabot on February 26, 2025

I’ve been a fan of Kotaro Uchikoshi for a significant portion of my life. Very few other creatives can measure up to his distinctive style, and that’s quite the feat given that his most famous work is text-based games. 999: Nine Persons, Nine Hours, Nine Doors is one of my favorite games of all time… Read More »

Maliki: Poison of the Past Demo Showcases Unique & Challenging Gameplay

Posted by Patrick Gann on February 24, 2025

Ever since I discovered the French company Ankama—with its English release of DOFUS in 2005—I have been transfixed by their commitment to stunning visuals within clever gameplay formats. But if there’s one thing I wasn’t ready for, it was Maliki: Poison of the Past. I was familiar with Maliki as a w… Read More »

Monster Hunter Wilds

Posted by Zek Lu on February 24, 2025

Monster Hunter Wilds is finally here! It’s not a perfect hunt, but it moves the franchise forward in mostly the right ways. As the sixth core entry, Wilds delivers a sprawling, dynamic world, weather systems that genuinely shake up gameplay, and some of the most thrilling monster encounters the fran… Read More »

Random Encounter 317 – Pirate Watcher in Eora

Posted by Jonathan Logan on February 24, 2025

On this episode of Random Encounter, we’re talking about two of the most highly anticipated games of 2025! We’ve been eagerly awaiting Obsidian’s answer to Skyrim for years, and Avowed is finally here. A spin-off of the beloved CRPG Pillars of Eternity series, Avowed replaces the isometric view and… Read More »

RPGs Coming This Week, 2/23/25

Posted by Audra Bowling on February 23, 2025

In this edition of RPGs Coming This Week, we tackle some interesting titles you may not have heard of. Oh, and the big, stinkin’ Rathalos in the room. Fearsome monsters, handsome men — neither are in short supply as we close out February. Let’s dive in! Shadow Spell Saga: The Winds of Fate – Februar… Read More »

Him, the Smile & bloom

Posted by Audra Bowling on February 22, 2025

Flowers have long been associated with love in a veritable language all their own. Otome visual novel Him, the Smile & bloom wholeheartedly leans into this tradition, telling four interconnected romances in a peaceful slice-of-life setting with flowers as the central theme. With four different h… Read More »

Peripeteia Hands-On: An Engaging and Promising Cyberpunk World

Posted by Ben Love on February 21, 2025

No gaming genre is more hotly debated than the “Immersive Sim.” Combining elements of RPG, First-Person Shooters, Stealth, and Action-Adventure, the genre is more defined by developer pedigree and the amalgamation of various disparate gameplay mechanics rather than any truly defining structure. Peri… Read More »

Stories from Sol: The Gun-Dog

Posted by Matt Wardell on February 20, 2025

A glance at a few screenshots from Stories from Sol: The Gun-Dog is all one needs to get a feel for the game’s surface-level selling point. Visually, The Gun-Dog is a proud homage to sci-fi anime of the late ’70s and ’80s, its mecha designs evoking the titular suits from Mobile Suit Gundam, and its… Read More »

Random Encounter 316 – Canadian Encounter

Posted by Jonathan Logan on February 19, 2025

On this episode of Random Encounter, we’re celebrating all things Canadian! For absolutely no reason (certainly not related to any current events in February 2025), Jono has gathered a few of his fellow Canucks at RPGFan to chat about some of their favourite Canadian games. The thing about games fro… Read More »

Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii

Posted by Jonathan Logan on February 18, 2025

I can only imagine what it is like to be a developer at Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio. It seems like every year, RGG releases a brand-new Like a Dragon game (and some years, two of them). While they’ve mastered the art of asset recycling, that still has to be a strain and probably why they started making gai… Read More »

Lost Records: Bloom & Rage Tape 1: Bloom

Posted by Zek Lu on February 18, 2025

From the team behind Life is Strange and Life is Strange 2 comes Lost Records: Bloom & Rage, the first part of a new narrative-driven series. If you’re a fan of DON’T NOD’s previous work, there’s a good chance you’ll find the story here intriguing enough to stick around. That said, the game is h… Read More »

Avowed

Posted by Jerry Williams on February 17, 2025

Imagine if Skyrim was good. Now imagine if Skyrim was set in the world of Eora, which Pillars of Eternity introduced us to with its rich, dark history, high fantasy politics, and focus on unique gods. While comparing titles can feel reductive because creative works are much more than their ilk, one… Read More »

Rhythm Encounter 155 – Music of the Year 2024: Part II

Posted by Mike Salbato on February 17, 2025

It’s time for more of 2024’s best RPG music! In the last episode, we featured nine excellent songs from last year, and today we return with Part II, bringing nine more tracks! Look for some Shin Megami Tensei V: Vengeance, Flowstone Saga, a double dose of Stellar Blade, and more! Scarlet Moon’s Jays… Read More »

RPGs Coming This Week, 2/16/25

Posted by Claton Stevenson on February 16, 2025

Hey, it’s Gio again, and I’m so, so excited to be back for this week in particular! We will, of course, be tackling the latest from powerhouse studios like Obsidian and RGG Studio, but that’s far from all of it. From a science-fiction ADV throwback to an immersive sim inspired by the likes of Deus E… Read More »

The Legend of Heroes: Trails through Daybreak II

Posted by Audra Bowling on February 14, 2025

Those who forget the lessons of the past are doomed to repeat them. The Legend of Heroes: Trails through Daybreak II takes this notion and runs with it, offering several chances for players to experience “do-overs” of significant plot events that can open up markedly different outcomes. Ultimat… Read More »

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