- Review
Another Crab’s Treasure
“Souls-like” is a somewhat exhausting term. It gets thrown around a lot in a gaming landscape where titles are endlessly compared to Demon’s Souls and FromSoftware’s oeuvre since then. Regardless of whether you think Souls-like is a “real” genre, it’s helped lump the many games that flagrantly lift… Read More »- Feature
Comfort Games are Important
Everyone has something that gives them comfort, for one reason or another. Some people find it in a specific book or movie, others in a particular place or person; it could be anything. I imagine many of you have a collection of comfort games, as do I. Why is it that these games give us this sense o… Read More »- Feature
Avowed: Anniversary Update Interview with Obsidian Entertainment
In our review of Avowed, Jerry Williams praised its story, combat, and worldbuilding. A year later, Obsidian Entertainment returns to the Living Lands with Avowed’s most substantial update yet, alongside the game’s PlayStation 5 release. The Anniversary Update introduces New Game+, new playable race… Read More »- Review
Paranormasight: The Mermaid’s Curse
Paranormasight: The Seven Mysteries of Honjo graced our computer screens in 2023. Visual novel and mystery enthusiasts clamored for more after this surprise hit. Three years later, here’s Paranormasight: The Mermaid’s Curse, and I couldn’t be happier. Thank you, Square Enix, for continuing this univ… Read More »- Article
- Preview
Danganronpa 2×2 Hands-On Preview
I recently had the pleasure of reconnecting with the fine folk at Spike Chunsoft in their new Tokyo headquarters to try a demo of Danganronpa 2×2 (“two by two”), their upcoming “retelling” of the hit 2012 murder mystery visual novel, Danganronpa 2: Goodbye Despair. Riding the elevator up to their lo… Read More »- Review
Calamity Angels: Special Delivery
Ever wonder about the chaos a package carrier must be dealing with when you get the notification that your order will be late? Calamity Angels: Special Delivery takes a fantastically imaginative view on the obstacles a delivery person might… Read More »- Article
- Random Encounter
- Podcast
Random Encounter 341 – Proud RPGFans
On this week’s Random Encounter, we’re talking about two “old” games (though one is significantly older than the other)! First up, Audra is here to share her thoughts on Ys X: Proud Nordics. But wait, didn’t Ys X: Nordics just release in 2024? Yes, it did! But now, an even more complete version is h… Read More »- Review
Under the Island
One of the most admirable qualities of smaller, independently developed games is their ability to remix and revitalize older game formulas for a modern audience. Such revisits to classic concepts are particularly notable when the previous standard bearers have shifted their focus. The Legend of Zeld… Read More »- Article
- News
RPGs Coming This Week, 2/15/26: Colorful Deliveries, Updates, and Curses
This may be one of the most colorful lineups for RPGs Coming This Week in a long time, even if you aren’t comparing to last week’s spreading darkness. I suppose this brings things back in balance. Whether you’re looking for Compile Heart antics, classic pixel art adventures, a surprise sequel, or a… Read More »Music Review
Remastered Soundtrack: Final Fantasy VI, Disc 1
Editor’s note: this album is the 2024 updated version of the Joypad Records release Final Fantasy VI Remastered Soundtrack: Disc One, originally released in 2013. Arranger Sean Schafianski completed his three-disc remaster project between 2024 and 2025, including this upgraded version of that 2013 R… Read More »Music Review
GET GOOD / 8-bit & The Single Players
Normally, when someone tells me to “GET GOOD,” it’s because I’m complaining about difficulty in NES-hard games (or Souls-like games). In this case, however, I think they’re telling me to jam out to the second album from 8-bit & The Single Players. Not to be confused with the also-excellent 8-Bit… Read More »- Article
- Preview
Monster Hunter Stories 3: Twisted Reflection Preview – A Breath of Fresh Air
The Monster Hunter Stories series has come a long way. Starting as a multimedia project with the first 3DS game and a tie-in anime, the series doubled down on delivering a high-quality monster-taming RPG experience with 2021’s Wings of Ruin, expanding the scope of the game while maintaining the appr… Read More »- Article
- Retro Encounter
- Podcast
Retro Encounter 479 – Fire Emblem: The Blazing Blade Part I
For years, I’ve podcasted. Now, let those podcasts show their worth! This week on Retro Encounter we’re discussing the first half of the first game localized to the West of that most famous SRPG series: Fire Emblem: The Blazing Blade. Does the host jive with the squares and the RNG? Do we even disc… Read More »- Review
Disciples: Domination
In the pantheon of high fantasy strategy RPGs, few series have clung to their roots with as much persistence as the Disciples range. Ever since Disciples: Sacred Lands launched in 1999, Nevendaar has felt like a setting perpetually stuck in the final five minutes of an apocalypse. Disciples II: Dark… Read More »- Review
REANIMAL
The horror-adventure genre has to be one of the hardest to create within. Unlike horror movies, which can be humongous cash cows thanks to low budgets and cheap thrills, horror-adventure games require a delicate balance between strong game design and immersion. Rely too heavily on gamification, and… Read More »- Review
Yakuza Kiwami 3 & Dark Ties
Have you ever seen Gus Van Sant’s Psycho? In the late ’90s, director Gus Van Sant embarked on a cinematic experiment: He would remake Alfred Hitchcock’s 1960 horror masterpiece Psycho. However, unlike most remakes that reimagine the story, his Psycho would be a shot-for-shot copy, only in colour wit… Read More »- Article
- News
RPGs Coming This Week, 2/8/26: Darkness x4
Wow, what an interesting shared theme among our four RPGs coming this week. Well, three RPGs and an adventure game. From the long (loooooong) awaited release of the latest game from the developer of The Binding of Isaac, to a horror adventure, a dark and heavy strategy game, and… well, Yakuza isn’… Read More »- Review
Fire Emblem: Path of Radiance
Nearly a year ago, when Nintendo announced the impending release of the Nintendo Switch 2, one of the big announcements was the arrival of GameCube titles to the Nintendo Classics online service. Eagle-eyed RPG enthusiasts may have noticed that during the trailer, a handful of boxarts were shown for… Read More »- Article
- News
More RPG Highlights from the Latest Nintendo Direct Partner Showcase
While our earlier coverage of yesterday’s Nintendo Direct Partner Showcase covered Square Enix’s several appearances—specifically Final Fantasy VII Rebirth, The Adventures of Elliot: The Millennium Tales, and Paranormasight: The Mermaid’s Curse—there was far more to see! So let’s do a quick rundown… Read More »Music Review
Final Fantasy VII Original Sound Track
Not only did Final Fantasy VII finally bring the iconic series to a unified worldwide release staggered throughout the year 1997. It also, more importantly, brought JRPGs into the Western zeitgeist. Reviewing Nobuo Uematsu’s original score for FFVII is akin to reviewing the soundtrack to The Empire… Read More »- Review
Mewgenics
Edmund McMillen became a name synonymous with indie developers “making it” after he met overwhelming success with Super Meat Boy, originally a Flash game in 2008. Then along came The Binding of Isaac, which McMillen couldn’t seem to get away from for a time due to its popularity. Aside from outstand… Read More »- Article
- News
Final Fantasy VII Rebirth Switch 2 Release Date and More Square Enix from Today’s Nintendo Direct
This morning’s Nintendo Direct Partner Showcase didn’t seem that packed with RPG and adventure game updates at first, but as it went on, I lost track of how many times I thought, “oh, this is also in our coverage at RPGFan.” We will get to more developers as well, but Square Enix alone featured a tr… Read More »- Article
- News
The Adventures of Elliot: The Millennium Tales Gets New Trailer, Coming in June
During this morning’s Nintendo Direct Partner Showcase, we got our first look in a while at The Adventures of Elliot: The Millennium Tales, showcasing the different time periods, and specifically how the same areas look at each point in time. As a major Chrono Trigger and Zelda fan, it finally dawne… Read More »- Review
Jimmy and the Pulsating Mass
There is no shortage of Earthbound-inspired games that seek to grab the attention of nostalgia-filled RPG fans. This only escalated with the release of Undertale in 2015, which is now so horrifyingly long ago that it apparently qualifies as retro itself. Console gamers have long been deprived of a k… Read More »- Review
Nioh 3
Nioh is my favorite Soulslike series of all time. Few games have ever rewarded mastery the way the series’ previous entries did, and even now, I struggle to think of another action RPG that offers the same sense of control once everything clicks. So, going into Nioh 3, my expectations were personal.… Read More »- Article
- Random Encounter
- Podcast
Random Encounter 340 – Cause and Effect
On this week’s Random Encounter, it’s all about games featuring cause and effect! First up, Audra is here to chat with us about the time-travelling, Souls-like sequel to 2019’s Code Vein: Code Vein II. Though it can occasionally feel like being trapped in a time loop while playing against a Souls-li… Read More »- Review
Dragon Quest VII Reimagined
Sometimes I think I played a different game when people talk about the original Dragon Quest VII. What do you mean it’s too long? You want fewer islands? Okay, sure, I could do with things going a little faster in the beginning, but that’s part of the beauty of Dragon Quest VII: it takes its time. I… Read More »- Review
Hermit and Pig
Much of the joy I derive from playing indie RPGs comes from seeing how independent developers remix familiar mechanics and classic presentation towards a singular purpose that a larger studio or publisher would never touch. Many big productions are so focused on appealing to everyone that they lack… Read More »- Article
- News
RPGs Coming This Week, 2/1/26
While our RPGs coming this week column technically includes anything coming out between February 1st through the 7th, it seems most publishers have their eyes firmly set on Thursday, as three of our four titles this week all launch on February 5th! With a new entry in a small-but-popular Souls-like… Read More »Music Review
Lies of P Original Soundtrack
2023’s Lies of P, a dark, Souls-like twist on Carlo Collodi’s classic 1883 novel The Adventures of Pinocchio, is all about exploring what it takes to turn a cold, mechanical heart into something human. Sure, some of that involves slaying giant, demented puppets and zombified beasts to an epic, dread… Read More »Music Review
Final Fantasy VI Original Sound Version
As a teenager, I pilgrimaged to the Nintendo Store in New York City with my parents as part of a family vacation. My most distinctive memory of that visit is of “Terra’s Theme” blaring inside, and of my father, a gamer but certainly no RPGFan, whistling the iconic melody. That’s the compositional po… Read More »- Article
- Retro Encounter
- Podcast
Retro Encounter 478 – RPGs That Deserve a Perfect Score
On this week’s episode of Retro Encounter, we discuss something that has only been awarded once at RPGFan: a perfect score. So, each panelist brings on one game they think deserves a perfect score and defend it against the panel. But there can be only one! Who will be our winner? Listen in to find o… Read More »- Review
Cassette Boy
One of my favorite things about smaller games is their willingness to embrace off-the-wall mechanics and take quirky concepts as far as they will go. While big and even mid-budget games are so focused on appealing to the largest number of players possible by iterating on proven ideas, small developm… Read More »- Review
Steel Century Groove
I love indies because they can do almost anything, any way. Triple-A titles can break from the pack, but most of their qualities are time-tested and safe; after all, there is investors’ money on the line. Indies come with dreams, vision, and minimal worries about risk. That’s how we get titles like… Read More »- Article
- News
RPGs Coming This Week, 1/25/26
Hello, fellow RPG fans! This week we have a pair of offbeat indie titles you may want to keep an eye on, plus a decidedly larger title with vampires or something. So whether you’re into open world anime soulslikes, British comedy adventure, or dancing robots, the RPGs coming this week don’t lack in… Read More »- Feature
RPGFan Chapters Review: Boss Fight Books ‘Legend of the River King’ by Alexander B. Joy
After hearing about publisher Boss Fight Books from podcasts and reviews (like Alana Hagues’ review of BFB title Final Fantasy VI) over the years, yet somehow never picking up one of their titles, I jumped at the opportunity to review their newest addition to their vast library of documentary-style… Read More »- Feature
Retro Encounter Final Thoughts – 13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim
Aleks Franiczek It’s been over 6 years since Vanillaware released 13 Sentinels: Aegis Rim, and in that time the game has garnered a reputation as one of the great videogame narrative masterpieces of the modern era. Obviously, I had lofty expectations going in. Cue the first scene: a schoolgirl is er… Read More »Music Review
Final Fantasy V Original Sound Version
In summer 2000, at the young age of 16, I wrote an embarrassingly terse review of the Final Fantasy V soundtrack. Granted, everything about this entry in the acclaimed series seemed novel at the time, given its lack of official localization until around the same time as Final Fantasy VIII. But there… Read More »- Article
- News
Max and Chloe Make a Comeback in Life is Strange: Reunion
The PEGI rating leak for the next Life is Strange installment has now been confirmed. During a recent livestream, developer Deck Nine and publisher Square Enix officially revealed Life is Strange: Reunion, marking the long-awaited comeback of fan-favorite characters Max Caulfield and Chloe Price as… Read More »- Article
- News
