Virtual Haven

Coffencing — an ancient and mysterious combat style that requires the Coffencers to strike their opponents in an attempt to have them spill their cup of coffee while carefully balancing a mug of their own. Coffence’s silly concept had the potential to make a charming and fun fighting game, but the final product is a disappointing mess.

Coffee Brawling

In Coffence, a player’s health bar is represented by how many drops are left in their coffee cup. By attacking another player’s cup, coffee will fly out of it, but the attacked player can jump, slide, and extend their mug in an attempt to catch these drops. Unfortunately, players have a limited number of commands in Coffence, and what's worse is that all six fighters have the same moveset. The only difference between the playable characters are slight tweaks in their stats. Additionally, you can't map the inputs to different buttons, which is frustrating because it's poorly configured as it is.

A Campaign Faster Than Light

There are five playable campaigns in Coffence. Each one takes about five minutes, and upon completion you get a fighter, adding up to a total of six playable characters. But because the game’s single-player component can be completed in less than thirty minutes, it’s irresponsible to recommend this game to anyone who plans to play it alone.

This is especially true when considering how unpopulated the online community is. I was searching for an online match for thirty minutes straight and never found a single opponent.

It’s hard to imagine that anyone would bother playing Coffence for more than an hour unless they have a friend who also owns the game.

Poor Optimization

I was baffled when I didn’t see the option to turn on windowed mode in Coffence’s video settings. My confusion grew exponentially when I forced it into windowed mode, and the game would no longer accept my input commands. I proceeded to close Coffence, and for some reason, the strumming of the in-game guitars continued to surge through my headphones. By investigating my Steam library, I noticed that the client still believed the game was running. I brought up task manager and carefully scanned all of my open applications to see if Coffence was hiding somewhere. Yet, the game was nowhere to be found, adding even more confusion to my confusion. My last resort was to force quit Steam altogether, and thankfully, this worked. In conclusion, Coffence is simply poorly optimized.

Additionally, Coffence’s graphics engine is a mess. When the game’s camera jumps to a specific area, a large number of assets fail to fully load in. This is evident in the very first screen of the game when the player is shown a coffee shop with tables, chairs, and colorful umbrellas with blurred textures that eventually become more defined overtime. This issue also appears when the game goes into a victory screen. The camera quickly shifts to the characters posing, but they’re not in their positions by the time it gets there, so fighters are often glitching around on the screen for a split-second.

The Few Redeeming Qualities

Coffence does a couple of things right: Its soundtrack and the graphical design of its arenas.

The menu music is especially lovely, as it immediately wrapped me up in the strumming of acoustic guitars. And when the soundtrack is coupled with gorgeous sakura trees in a lush green landscape, it’s quite a pleasant experience.

However, the same can't be said for the character design, as each one suffers from visibly low quality textures on their face.

Verdict

Even with the few aspects I did like, Coffence is a mess. Paying $14.99 for six playable characters with the same moveset, a single-player experience that can be completed in thirty minutes, and a desolate online community is not worth it.

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Score

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Good Bad Certain Stages Look Nice Poor Optimization The Soundtrack Character's Aren't Unique Overpriced Very Short Campaign Nonexistent Online Community Low Quality Character Textures

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- 2/10 -

Developer Sweet Bandit Studios

Publisher Sweet Bandit Studios

Price $14.99

Tabletop Gods is a strategy game that kicks your butt and inspires you to only try harder. I lost every single Arena match of the eight I played against a friend. Those defeats ranged from near victories to complete annihilations. But as my understanding of the game improved with each round, I began utilizing new strategies in the hope of securing some kind of advantage. While that didn’t really work (because I’m bad), I found Tabletop Gods to be complex, engaging, and tons of fun despite my record of losses.

Tabletop Gods is a top down strategy game available on Windows for $19.99. It’s currently being developed by Ghost Fish Games and was published by Other Ocean Group in early access (with VR Support available now).

Factions, Maps, and Match Settings

In Tabletop Gods, the player has to defend their fortress with a set of towers, traps, magical abilities, and various units who can also attack the enemy’s base. Since it’s currently in early access, everything is subject to major change. As of right now, the game has only a couple of maps and factions, players are unable to edit match settings, and there’s just one competitive gamemode.

The two in-game races are Humans and Undead, which each have five unique units and three individual towers. Either race can replace these five units with any of the four mercenaries. Mercenaries are neutral units that often serve a general purpose which both sides could find useful.

However, both factions are generally similar with slight tweaks in stats. Humans have a ranged unit which does more damage than its Undead counterpart, but it has much less health.

So far, my favorite unit is the Necromancer. Watching a powerful army of skeletons quickly grow without having to waste resources is undeniably satisfying. Not only that, but the fact that it levels up quicker than any other unit has nearly led me to victory quite a few times.

These two factions are rather complex on their own, so the game would need only a few more for its full release.

On the other hand, Tabletop Gods could do with at least half a dozen maps. This would add much needed variety to the game, since switching between two maps can get repetitive. Currently, the player can battle in the Castle Grounds or the Nether Realm. However, both tabletops (maps) are well-designed, with each being a thematic parallel of the two races. The Castle Grounds is home to adorable stone structures and lush greenery, while the Nether Realm is the complete opposite: a vile and monstrous stronghold for the living dead.

What would make the limited number of maps more bearable is if Tabletop Gods gave the player control over the match settings. My friend pointed out (as he continued to thrash me) how useful it would be if we could increase the round timer. Additionally, there’s only one competitive gamemode, and it would be nice to see some other ways to play.

Deceptively Simple

What I enjoy most about Tabletop Gods is how deceptively simple it is. My initial impression was that there wasn’t much to it aside from randomly spawning units, but as my friend and I continued to battle, we were conjuring new strategies every other round.

There was a point where I spammed Spike Traps because I believed they were overpowered, but in retaliation, my friend spawned Bombers, which set off the traps for the sake of his other units. Then, I built three cannons in a triangular shape at the center of the Castle Grounds, and this strategy worked for a couple of minutes, but my friend quickly realized that his special unit, The Champion, had a shield that could reflect all ranged attacks. Long story short, I got wrecked.

The most memorable moments of each match is when one of us used an ultimate spell. Seeing a giant fireball crash down and completely obliterate all of your units when you’re finally in a good position is as much of a devastating sight as it is a hilarious one.

Surprisingly Smooth

For an early access game, I was surprised by how smooth Tabletop Gods is and the fact that I didn’t encounter any bugs.

On top of that, all of the menus were quite pleasant to navigate. They were presented via an unraveling scroll with a gorgeous temple in the background and the game’s use of vibrant colors creates an enchanting quality. I especially love all of the units, as they’re a wonderfully cartoonish iteration of standard high fantasy designs. In a game like Dark Souls, skeletons take on nightmarish qualities, but in Tabletop Gods they’re comical, with features like crossed out eyes and an unhinged slab for a jaw.

It was also quite fun to navigate the Codex and admire all of the quirky illustrations created for the different units, towers, spells, and traps because they add to the silly nature of the graphical style.

Verdict

Shin and Gai’s ties to the Shiryu reawakens Gai’s Busoma transformation and engages viewers through their bond.

Shin’s understanding of his possession by the true Shiryu sword causes him to follow Shiryu’s beckoning to seek out Gai with the false Shiryu arm that Gai once wielded. The two finally meet and Gai becomes consumed by the murderous rage to kill while fending off a Busoma attack on the Gabi. The episode’s focus on a Shin and Gai allows viewers to feel invested through their fateful bond.

The battle sequence between the rogue Busoma and the Gabi intrigues viewers as the intense fight scene invokes emotions from the viewers due to Gai’s internal conflict. His mental battle with combating his murderous desires and his urge to save everyone makes Gai more human than he was before. His broodiness was a deterrent and created a wall to where viewers couldn’t find any likeable traits, but his change of heart in wanting to be a better person truly speaks to the redemption theme for the show.

Shin and Gai’s personalities are polar opposites and when viewers compare the two with the weapons they wield the Shiryu’s also match their wielders as well. But their dualistic nature is another component the series displays through humanity’s corruption and wanting desire to change. Despite the themes, the episode combines enough interesting action with character development to entertain viewers to entice them to continue watching. However, the show’s unstable storytelling through the use of its characters produces a false hope for fans as character development hasn’t been the series strong suit.

Sword Gai: The Animation doesn’t disappoint with the second season’s sixth episode, however, it all depends on how the established protagonists interact with one another after Gai’s sudden fallout.

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Score

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Good Bad Gai's Change of Heart Conspiracy Theories Shin's Consistently Nice Shin's Dad Character Development Random Scene with Shin's Sister

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Gai’s return centers on his change of heart and rebelling against his nature, which invokes a sign of growth much needed for the show’s story.

Gai’s survival from his suicide attempt shifts the story’s uninteresting plot development as he focuses on learning from the Gabi. All the while, a young boy transforms into a Busoma from having suffered at the hands of school bullies. The shift in story of focusing on Gai’s wanting desire to change is a breath of fresh air for the show, which makes the episode tolerable.

Himiko’s character truly adds to the episode and story in providing something different that the prior episodes lacked: Hope and redemption. Her character acts as a messiah toward saving those corrupted by the demonic weapons that shapeshift into Busoma. Himiko’s interest in Gai adds another interesting layer through the potential relational bond forming between them. As a result, this entices viewers to become emotionally invested between Himiko and Gai’s interactions. But Himiko herself is an underrated character that was introduced early on in the series, but was never given the spotlight until now.

Gai’s willingness to not fight and protect is both refreshing and relatable as viewers can now resonate with him since his broody nature has subsided. Yet the story still follows the same plot pattern of another person becoming a victim to a weapon’s corruption and changing into a Busoma. This consistent and annoying motif doesn’t make the show any better as the show’s premise focuses on human suffering along with preaching about a weapon’s purpose, which is to kill.

Nonetheless, Himiko and Gai’s connectedness helps the show’s story as it focuses on character development. If the show can shift its gears to focus on its characters and brings hope rather than the somber setting its established, then the series could redeem itself; much like its characters.

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Score

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Good Bad Himiko Tasteless Bullying Gai's Return Unappealing Motifs Character Development

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Big Bad Wolf Studio’s The Council has reached its penultimate chapter, and in comparison to earlier episodes that remained consistently strong, “Burning Bridges” doesn’t fair as well. However, even with its issues there’s still a glimpse of promise for the final chapter.

The problem with chapter four that makes it weaker than the previous episodes is that the usually strong narrative falters. There are two main issues with the storytelling this time around and that’s the chapter’s overall pacing and the delivery of the narrative. Chapter four reveals a lot of major plot points that having been building since chapter one, but it all feels rushed. This chapter is slightly shorter than earlier chapters, clocking in at two hours versus the normal three, and because so much is being revealed, this chapter in particular could have really used the extra time to develop the story.

If the story had more time to develop this chapter, it may not have struggled so much with its delivery. Depending on how player’s faired in chapter three, at the start of “Burning Bridges” Louis may be horribly injured in a way that cannot go unnoticed and yet does. No one seems to care that Louis is now disfigured. It is as if the consequences of the player’s actions failed to influence the story in any real way outside of a cosmetic change. This chapter either neglects to incorporate information for the sake of time or delivers it in a way that’s less engaging.

The delivery of the narrative feels rushed because of how things are either ignored or revealed. The previous three chapters do a good job of letting the narrative play out through scene, but chapter four breaks the age-old rule of fiction which is “show, don’t tell.” While all of what is discovered remains intriguing and takes the game even further into the bizarre side of things, everything Louis learns is through one character telling him over and over again. While narratively it makes sense for this character to open up, the delivery of the information is not as engaging or interactive as other chapters.

While the information revealed certainly sets up for an enticing finale, how it is done does not make revisiting chapter four as appealing as the first three. The stakes also do not appear to be a high with the confrontations found in this chapter. There are fewer decisions to be made, and while none seem to be settled by the end of the chapter, there is hope that they are a set up for things to come and will return in the finale.

There are also more issues with small bugs this time around. While voice acting and lip-syncing issues have been present in previous chapters, they are far more abundant this time around, which makes getting through long chunks of dialogue more difficult, and thus the delivery of the narrative only gets worse.

Chapter four of The Council still maintains its mystery and it sets up for a potentially interesting concluding chapter, but the penultimate chapter definitely feels like the weakest of the bunch. Here’s hoping for a more satisfying resolution in chapter five.

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Score

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Good Bad Enticing Plot Development Engaging Puzzles Pacing Narrative Execution

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Marcus’ rampage as a Busoma and Shin’s sister create a semi interesting plot twist near the end, but not enough to save the episode.

Marcus’ fragmented mindset in reliving past memories makes him appear deranged and psychotic as he slaughters several innocent bystanders. Meanwhile, Shin’s sister escapes from the hospital when he sees her running and faces off with Marcus in his Busoma state. With Shin wielding the other Shiryu sword, the short bout the two characters have is entertaining but not enough to redeem the episode.

Sword Gai: The Animation’s continual struggle with sustaining its audience through its lack of captivating storytelling doesn’t change in this episode, but hints at something positive toward the episode’s end. Sadly, it takes approximately twenty-three minutes of the episode’s length to intrigue fans as to who the mysterious individual is at the Gabi shrine. Unfortunately, that brief scene was the only interesting plot twist in the episode.

One can only guess as to who the true identity of the mysterious traveler is, but the show’s unappealing characters and lack of focus on its story elements makes the viewing experience a chore. Shin’s character is the only lighthearted and positive addition to the show’s bleak premise, but his character is overshadowed by the inconsistency of the slow story line. Nonetheless, the hint of Gai’s return at the end could help bring some entertainment back to the series.

The animation of the fight scene between Shin’s powerful aura and Marcus’ Busoma state doesn’t disappoint as its crisp action sequences keeps viewers engaged as a distraction from the abysmal plot. Sword Gai: The Animation’s visual style has always been appealing, which is good considering how the show suffers everywhere else.

Only time will tell how Sword Gai: The Animation evolves as we approach the halfway point of the second season. So far, the journey has been a rocky one.

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Score

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Good Bad Shiryu's Power Unappealing Storyline Shin's Goofiness The Doctor Marcus' Death Marcus Visually Appealing

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The Predator is unsurprising, providing a similar structure and style as previous entries in the series. However, Shane Black delivers a unique twist to the humor, and even though this doesn’t save the film, it’s amusing enough.

Thankfully, The Predator understands its audience, sprinting directly into the action with an opening shot of a Predator ship crash landing on Earth. Immediately afterwards, the protagonist (Boyd Holbrook), is working on a sniping gig when the ship heads straight for him and his team. It doesn’t take long before the gears start rolling and the Predator starts murdering everyone, which is a goddamn relief. Black knows that no one wants to waste time with elongated exposition, so he made the right decision.

Black’s Humor

Black is one of the best comedy directors in Hollywood, so I expected The Predator to be as funny as some of his other films (The Nice Guys, Kiss Kiss Bang Bang). However, even though some of the humor in the film works, a good portion of it is obnoxious. It uses an intentionally annoying style of comedy seen in a lot of other action films, hurling cheap jokes out there for the sake of a quick laugh. When comparing this to Black’s other films, something definitely felt off, since he usually writes clever quips rather than generic nonsense.

Charming Characters

Even though the humor can be hit or miss, all of the characters in The Predator are rather charming. Boyd Holbrook is perhaps the most underwhelming performance, as his plays the straight-faced hero man. However, the supporting cast are great fun. Trevante Rhodes’ role was particularly memorable, playing an honorable man who doesn’t seem to care about living anymore. Additionally, the chemistry between Keegan-Michael Key and Thomas Jane is very satisfying, as both are completely insane.

The film’s secondary villain is also quite fascinating, making calculated decisions as opposed to succumbing to hubris like your average action antagonist. Unfortunately, the movie ends his arc abruptly, and it’s unfortunate that he didn’t get a more deserving conclusion.

Design and CGI

Despite the CGI looking gross when the Predator is eviscerating people, it actually enhanced the campy vibe. The tacky effects add another layer of levity to the murder and brutality, as more sophisticated graphic enhancement might’ve made things a bit too tense.

However, on the other hand, The Predator’s practical effects are top notch. The Predators in this film look great, and when a mangled body is shown via a real prop, it’s nauseating and awful to look at it. Yes, this is a good thing... sometimes.

Satisfying Brutality

The Predator doesn’t hold back on letting dozens of people die, which is pretty much what any fan would want, especially since some horror movies are too lenient with the death counter. Additionally, characters die in wonderfully brutal ways. One example occurs later in the film, when a non-important character attempts to use the Predator’s technology against him, throwing some sort of ninja star that returns to rip his arm off. Afterwards, his boss shoots him in the head to keep him quiet.

Out of Place Soundtrack

It’s certainly an odd choice to pick a whimsical and Star Wars-esque soundtrack for a movie like The Predator, as the two series’ are complete opposites tonally. The Predators are supposed to be horrifying hunters, and our heroes are meant to be badass with a good sense of humor. Where in this universe does the space journey music fit?

Visually Underwhelming

While The Predator’s cinematography isn’t bad, the film has few moments that stand out. There’s only one scene I can think of, and the fact that it happened very early in the film made me think that the rest would be as intriguing. The scene presented a corpse hung from a tree, and as a Predator weapon activated, that body gets cut in half with blood and guts landing on a cloaked Predator, revealing his horrifying face. This moment provided a particularly chilling visual, and it’s disappointing that the rest of the film didn’t have more moments like this.

Verdict

The Predator might be a fine movie for fans of the series, but some of its cheap jokes are obnoxious, and too many odd design choices get in the way of the experience.

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Good Bad Some Funny Jokes Some Cheap Jokes Predator Design Obnoxious Moments Great Practical Effects Unfitting Soundtrack Charming Characters Visually Underwhelming Violent and Brutal The Villain's Conclusion

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Megaquarium’s promising concept should’ve yielded a delightful experience, but its complete lack of a freeplay mode is discouraging.

Managing an aquarium full of charming little fishies is a wonderful idea, and visually, Megaquarium is adorable. However, all I could think about is how much I’d love to play the game at my own pace. The game restricts you from a majority of the fish, scientific advancements, decorations, and utilities until you go through its mission-based campaign.

When you finish all of the objectives in a mission, you’re prompted to move on to the next level. If you decide not to move on, you won’t level up, get any new items to use, and you’re essentially trapped. If you decide to move on, you have to build a new aquarium from scratch. This happens quite a few times, and it completely ruins the pacing. All I want to do is continue to expand on my aquarium and go as far as I possibly can without constantly being stopped. This wouldn’t be an issue if the game provided a freeplay mode, as it’s really Megaquarium’s biggest problem.

Gameplay

The best aspect of Megaquarium is how relaxing it can be. The game’s core mechanics are reminiscent of similar tycoons, but caring for dozens of different fish feels much more satisfying. The ability to extend your aquarium, add unique types of tanks, paint those tanks, and fill them with fish that require specific needs to thrive provides an experience that’s sometimes relaxing and other times strategic. Utilizing customer satisfaction as a gauge for its progression system was a good idea, as it adds an additional layer to the game.

You can level up depending on how significantly consumers enjoy your aquarium, or in other words, how many stars fly out of their head. This mechanic gives the player access to over a hundred new items to play around with, including special fishies. However, you can also lose stars, and although there’s a menu which informs the player of why they’re losing stars, the math rarely adds up. For example, when it showed me dozens of positives and only a couple of mixed reactions, I quickly lost stars. Another time it showed me the same exact reactions yet my total star count increased instead.

Camera

The game is lovely to look at, but the perspective of the camera can be trippy and even headache inducing. Sometimes walls phase out of existence when you shift the camera at a certain angle, and although this is intentional, it wasn’t done very well.

Verdict

With Megaquarium’s fun and quirky style, it should’ve been a complete success, but its linear structure is a severe detriment to its potential.

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Score

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Good Bad Cute Artstyle No Freeplay Mode Engaging Mechanics Confusing Star System Weird Perspective

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Sayaka’s constant sorrow echoes through the core of Sword Gai’s theme of darkness consuming the human heart, leaving a sad and bewildering impression.

Sayaka’s struggle in dealing with Gai’s suicide bubbles to the surface with her breaking free from her own sadness with a renewed conviction to help a dear friend. Meanwhile, three Chrysalis seek out Marcus, who transformed into a Busoma. But this episode leaves viewers feeling sad for Sayaka’s struggle and bewildered all at the same time as the random chain of events played out don’t aid in advancing the plot at all.

Sword Gai: The Animation struggled with constant scene transition from one new character to another without any breadcrumbs for viewers to follow along until later on. Season two’s third episode pulls the same tactic and leaves a bitter aftertaste, considering its previous episode delivered more entertainment and plot development. It wasn’t made clear if Gai did die or not from his suicide, but viewers are now left to believe that is the case considering how Sayaka’s been suffering. In a way, viewers can feel mislead in how the show has progressed and that all of the established protagonists are expendable.

The series’ bewildering scene transition creates a lot of concern for the show’s story progression as it continues to fail in delivering solid storytelling. Only time will tell with how the second season tries enticing viewers in continuing to watch. Sayaka seems to be the only redeeming quality for the show aside from her friend.

Sword Gai: The Animation’s fails on creating an engaging story with the number of inconsistences in its plot and so viewers may be waiting on bated breath for the show to transition into any sort of redeeming quality.

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Good Bad Sayaka's Recovery Inconsistent Storylines Protagonists Dying Experimentation On Children Lack of Character Development Gai's Death

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The latest addition to Sword Gai: The Animation has Marcus taking center stage uncovering the truth behind a series of lies, creating a another suspenseful episode.

The second episode of season 2 shifts gears from Gai’s suicidal attempt to Marcus showcasing his growth as a Chrysalis. However, his vulnerability in trusting a fake lover assigned by the organization he’s fighting for causes him to transform into a Busuoma. Marcus’s susceptibility to corruption continues to feed into the show’s underlying themes, but presents real life issues that add an element of intrigue to the show’s plot development.

It’s interesting to see how the show utilizes relational bonds and brokenness of one’s inner thoughts to demonstrate how frail the human heart and mind are when faced with unsettling truths about the world. This adds a layer of suspense as the show is now treading into territory that is beyond more than just Busoma transformations and sword fights. However, viewers have to pay attention to these themes in order to understand the show’s ulterior motives. Episodes like this one create a dynamic element of surprise through the organization that hunts down Chrysalis’s and uses these individuals as tools rather than being concerned for their overall well being.

While the focus on Marcus’s descent into madness improved the show’s pacing of action sequences and suspense, viewers are left with questions on the show’s next direction, and ultimately, Gai’s character. Not much is known on if Gai survived his fall or not. Regardless, Marcus is very interesting.

Sword Gai: The Animation is picking up the pieces from its poorly developed first half and setting them ablaze with the new direction on character development and insanity.  Two previously established protagonists fall victim to their inner demons and the monsters lurking within their souls, weapons, and the organization they fight for.

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Score

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Good Bad Marcus' Maturity Gai's Unknown Status The Plot Twist

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We Happy Few showcased compelling teasers, but between the dull combat, outdated visuals, and weak narrative, the final product turned out to be a complete disappointment

In We Happy Few, you take control of Arthur, a young man who realizes his life has been ruined by an awful drug called Joy. This drug makes the user see everything in a positive light, and We Happy Few depicts this in creepy ways. The first example occurs early in the game, where Arthur is taken to a party and asked to hit a pinata. When he smacks this pinata, everyone is covered in blood as Arthur realizes they’re eating the guts of a giant dead rat. I've also watched as citizens jumped up and down in a pool of liquid fuel, which clearly indicates that these people believe they’re playing around in something else.

Joy exists as a way to keep citizens docile and happy, preventing them from rising up against the government. The drug also prevents the user from recalling painful memories. As Arthur decides to abandon the drug, people quickly find out he’s a “downer”—someone who is off of Joy—which forces him to run off into the wilderness. Once he gets his bearings, he recalls that he lost his brother, Percival, many years ago. Arthur starts heading to Germany in an attempt to find Percival, marking the beginning of his journey.

Bland Gameplay

We Happy Few could have been fun if it had a unique way of approaching combat. Creating additional melee mechanics would have definitely added an extra layer to this, but instead, the gameplay consists of smacking people with a stick until you run out of stamina. The lack of variety in combat gets old after the first hour, and it’s easily one of the worst aspects of the game.

You're able to sneak around and stealthily take down enemies, but the level design and AI movement patterns aren’t creative enough to make these mechanics interesting. Additionally, it takes much longer to finish levels through stealth than it would to just beat everyone to death. Compulsion Games should have attempted to strike a balance between these two mechanics by making direct combat risky, therefore the decision between going loud or quiet would be tough.

Skills & Crafting

Although the combat isn’t particularly fun, some of the unlockables in the game’s skill tree make it slightly more competent and amusing. It also helps keep a sense of progression so you don’t get completely bored. Additionally, you can use the items you find in the world to craft special weapons and throwable items that spice up the combat. For example, shock grenades and “bangers,” or just regular grenades, help add an extra layer to the mechanics.

Visually Underwhelming

It’s hard to appreciate We Happy Few when it’s visually subpar. The low quality textures on character give them faces that seem to be made wool, and the animations feel like they’re missing frames that would make them more smooth. If a game goes for a more cartoonish style, there needs to be satisfying fluidity in its cinematics. This isn’t the case with We Happy Few, as some things looks painfully outdated and robotic.

The Story of We Happy Few

We Happy Few’s most interesting aspect is its bizarre and fascinating world, so it’s disappointing that most of the story is a snoozefest. And while the voice actors provide a solid performance, the main story has lots of mixed moments. The best parts of the campaign are the interactions between Sally and Arthur. Alex Wyndham (Arthur) and Charlotte Hope (Sally) do an excellent job of capturing the bittersweet relationship between the two characters, and the dialogue is written in a way that properly conveys their complicated dynamic. On the other hand, the game also loves to shove a mountain of exposition down my throat whenever I find a “memory” in the world. These are the worst because they provide no interesting animations, performances, or story developments.

However, the big problem with the plot is that there's nothing drawing us to Arthur’s journey. The objective is to find his brother in Germany, but we know very little about him and don’t have enough of a connection with either of them to care. Not only that, but using poorly animated cutscenes to illustrate their relationship causes an even larger disconnect.

Additionally, We Happy Few really tries to be charming and clever in a lot of ways, especially with Arthur’s monologue throughout the game. For example, if you kill someone, he might say something like “that’s for knocking down my blocks in primary school.” Although it might be amusing the first time, it’s pretty obnoxious to hear over and over. At one point, I looked into the options to see if I could turn off his narration. Unfortunately, you can’t.

Uninteresting Start

We Happy Few has a rather rocky start, throwing you into a monotonous open field where nothing happens. It takes a few hours before it gets to something more thrilling like the cities filled with creepy guards that will destroy you. Sneaking through crowded streets and trying my damndest to blend in was quite thrilling. The most terrifying moments of We Happy Few are when I'm out after curfew and have to make it to a bed without getting caught.

No Morale System

It’s strange that there’s absolutely no consequences for murdering innocent people. If the guards can’t see you, you have complete freedom to murder whoever you want. This is awfully out of place, especially since similar games like Dishonored usually have some sort of karma system that changes the world depending on how you approach specific situations.

Lots of Content

While the game is underwhelming, there is a lot of content to shift through. As I approached what I thought was the conclusion after 16 hours of playtime, I was giddy to get the game over with. My journey had exciting and dreadful moments, but it definitely wasn’t engaging enough to get nostalgic over at any point. Then, once I witnessed the “final cutscene,” my reality was shattered when “Act II: Sally” appeared on the screen. At this point, I knew my journey was very far from over.

Rarely does a game manage to surprise me with how long it is, but We Happy Few definitely did. This was both a good and bad thing, as it impressed me with its amount of content, but that content wasn’t engaging enough for me to continue it.

Verdict

Although We Happy Few had a lot potential, the experience is severely displeasing. Sure, the aesthetic is amusing, there’s lots of content, and the skill tree adds an extra layer of fun, but the uninspired combat system is a detrimental to your enjoyment. Unfortunately, We Happy Few is more entertaining to look at, and think about, than it is to play.

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Good Bad Lots of Content Underwhelming Combat Some Solid Performances Outdated Visuals Intriguing World Boring Story Skill Tree Crafting

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Inner demons and unrest highlights the second season’s first episode as Gai’s struggle with controlling his urges leads to his downfall, creating a surprising thrill near the episode’s end.

Ichijo’s transformation into a Busoma rages on until he battles Gai who changes into a Busoma as well to kill his former comrade. Gai’s advice to return home centers on him living a normal life with Sayaka, but the fear and raging urge to kill from the possessed Shiryu weapon in his arm takes a toll on his mind. This corruption leads to a shocking end through the show’s usage of suspense and thrills that deviates from its cookie-cutter action sequences of Busoma fights.

Gai’s decision to return home helps to develop his character and creates a sense of hope for Gai as fans feel that he is uncovering his purpose or calling to protect Sayaka. However, his return is marked with hardship through battling Shiryu’s demonic voice urging him to kill, which echoes the show’s established themes of human corruption. And yet it creates an intriguing engagement with the audience as fans see Gai’s heart and mind distance themselves more and more from Sayaka despite the scenes of him enjoying festive nights and meals with her.

The episode does a great job at focusing on dualism where the forces of good within a man’s heart conflicts with instinctual urges to destroy, which the Shiryu weapon embodies. Gai’s portrayal of his inner conflict manifests well through how he sees himself in both his mind and reflection in the water. The second season immediately shifts gears to focus on character development, but the shocking end makes viewers wonder if Gai will survive. Nonetheless, its pace and flowed succinctly and didn’t feel out of place as its prior episodes did in season one.

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Good Bad Sayaka's Love Gai Removes The Shiryu Gai's Return Home Ichijo's Death Episode's Shocking End

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Wotakoi: Love is Hard for Otaku is a refreshing twist on the romantic comedy genre featuring a charmingly diverse cast and relatable interactions that make for some of the most “realistic” relationships in anime.

The show follows different otaku in various casual and romantic situations. The plot might initially feel somewhat mundane compared to more story driven romantic comedies like Toradora, however this actually lends itself to one of Wotakoi’s greatest strengths. By grounding itself in reality more than most romcoms, it is able to ironically stand out similar to how Tsuki ga Kirei is noteworthy for wholesome middle school innocence. Characters go about their daily lives working in a traditional office, juggling work with their personal lives, and doing their best to foster relationships.

Choose Your Character

Narumi, a closet fujoshi, and Hirotaka, a hardcore gamer, are the title couple. Entering a relationship so early in the show let Wotakoi focus on more engaging character and relationship developments as opposed to leaving viewers hanging with a slow drip romance culminating in a cliché kiss near the finale. Meanwhile, Kabakura, a more casual bishojo otaku, and Koyanagi, an intense cosplayer, are already in a relationship for some time at the start of the anime. Their initially volatile relationship juxtaposes Narumi and Hirotaka’s laid back approach to dating, making for more varied moments.

A third pair of characters rounds off the small cast later in the show. Naoya is Nifuji’s younger brother that gives otaku activities his all despite being a “normie,” and Kou is a very quiet introvert that expresses herself through games. Unbeknownst to Naoya due to her short hair, Kou is a girl.  Their almost inevitable romance provides a more traditional approach to anime relationships in terms of oblivious behavior regarding feelings and slow developments.

While there are no characters outside of the three couples, barring a few exceptions where forgettable one off characters say a few lines, Wotakoi has enough material to work with that more characters aren’t necessary. Most of the enjoyment stems from the eccentric cast coming together to play games, drink, or just even talk at Starbucks.

Love is Hard for Everyone

Solid character development is apparent for the entire cast throughout the anime. Kabakura for instance sheds his tough exterior to reveal more of his tender side. His hot and cold personality, clashing with Koyanagi, and being a great wingman for Hirotaka will likely make him a fan favorite character. Narumi on the other hand becomes more comfortable expressing her otaku interests thanks to her new friends. Wotakoi’s purity makes you want to root for the characters, outside of a few distasteful, but typical anime jokes.

The colorful cast enjoying manga shops, video games, drinking, and more give viewers the sense that there’s nothing wrong with being an otaku and people shouldn’t feel ashamed to be one. While otaku are far more prevalent in Japanese than American culture, this underlying theme is subtle. Viewers don’t need to have any geeky interests to enjoy the anime, although many jokes might fall flat.

Episodes for the most part are divided into two segments with the best episodes being one long segment. The longer segments allow some of the show’s diverse settings like the amusement park to shine, giving the writers additional opportunities for clever jokes and gags. A few segments drag on and rely on less effective jokes. However, the better segments overshadow them.

Whether the characters are walking in the rain or reminiscing about the past, nothing feels forced, adding to the natural developments between characters and their relatability. These aren’t people that one day suddenly decided to fall in love and everything is perfect. Wotakoi exemplifies the often-slow awkward nature of relationships that many people find themselves in before becoming more comfortable around each other.

The Sounds and Visuals of Love

The show’s cute, catchy vibrant opening is hard to skip. Narumi, Hirotaka, Kabakura, and Koyanagi show off some dance moves, along with different clips of the characters in their otaku habits, and the cast simply going about their daily lives. The animation is crisp and detailed before declining somewhere later in the anime. That being said, the drop in quality isn’t a detriment to the series since Wotakoi isn’t an anime you watch for visual splendor, but for the cast.

The ending sounds nice, although it isn’t as catchy or visually remarkable as the opening. Viewers will likely skip it after listening once in order to get to the next episode faster.

Lingering Feelings

Wotakoi is a treat for fans of romantic comedy. It is a great entry point for people reluctant to watch romcoms because of the minimal number of over the top cliché romantic moments. For example, characters do not dramatically rush to catch their love interest before they take a plane, move, or make some sort of questionable love triangle decision that divides viewers into determined support groups.

There is hope for a second season since the anime ended so naturally. I can only assume it followed the manga and didn’t force an original ending. For fans eager for more Wotakoi, they can jump into the manga. Otherwise, replay that opening and learn some new dance moves. Just make sure you have a partner to do them properly.

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Good Bad Character Development A Few Dud Segments Mostly Grounded in Reality Animation Declines Later On Natural Development in Relationships Catchy Opening

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Sword Gai: The Animation’s underlying theme of violence being humanity’s greatest weakness echoes throughout the episode via Gai and Ichijo’s battle.

Gai and Ichijo’s face off with Zsoltgewinn ultimately leads them to battle with one another due to the rising urge to kill within their possessed hearts. All the while, Gai’s potential love interest and his polar opposite focus on peace and tranquility, but foreshadows the episode’s end of violence trumping over all that is good.

Season 1’s finale creates a bleak end where viewers can feel there isn’t any hope for humanity. Gai and Ichijo’s characters represent the struggle humans have with battling their own instinctual urges. The fight with Zsoltgewinn’s depicts this imagery well when analyzing Sword Gai: The Animation’s themes, although, even the climatic fight could have been more entertaining. Nonetheless, Ichijo’s character shines by being relatable during the episode’s dark moments, especially with how he views life even in his final hour.

Gai, on the other hand, shows a slight change in showing concern for Ichijo, but his broodiness inhibits his growth and likability. We can only assume that the second season may have Gai undergo a different type of transformation in how he develops into a more passionate person with a goal instead of the empty void he currently exudes. Gai’s character appeal suffers from his annoying traits, but in a sense, represents exactly what the creators wanted in telling the anime’s story. Especially when it comes to forming relationships. The show focuses on pairings of characters like Gai and Ichijo that create a dualistic philosophy where violence and peace become a recurring theme.

Character growth needs to be the primary focus in the second season as the episode’s bleak ending doesn’t generate an exciting feeling for fans to want to explore more. However, the animation superbly showcases the dark themes of Sword Gai: The Animation’s world through its use of dark crimson colors and computerized character transformations.

Sword Gai: The Animation’s transition into its second season leaves viewers feeling sad or even uninterested given lack of emotional drama and primary focal point of violence being part of human history.

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Good Bad Crisp Animation Unnecessarily Sad Cliffhanger Gai's Transformation Ichijo's Plight

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More truths are revealed about the Shoshidai’s goals while the commander’s backstory contributes to plot advancement as the first half of the show’s story edges closer to the end.

Gai’s return to the Shoshidai headquarters allows him to gain insight into the truth behind the organization for how Chrysalis’ are used and viewers learn more about the commander’s father before his corruption. Zsoltgewinn’s appearance sets up the final arc for the first half of the series, but the episode’s focus on its established characters aids the story’s entertainment value rather than hinder it like before.

The earlier episodes struggled to keep viewer interest and tell a cohesive and connected plot when new characters were introduced in every episode. However, it seems the show found its footing when it finally started to focus on the story through the use of character development. The commander’s backstory interplays with the show’s plot development nicely as fans become aware of her relationship with Zsoltgewinn. Sword Gai: The Animation is known for its fights with Busoma and weapon wielding Chrysalis’s, but the only noticeable action is from Zsoltgewinn’s appearance.

Gai’s pondering about his existence and connection with the world makes viewers wonder how the show will utilize this protagonist as he’s been taking more of a back seat since his partnering with Ichijo. While they’re complete opposites personality wise, their chemistry contributes to the show’s focus on bonds as characters that are possessed by a spirit in weapon have better resilience toward the corruption of their hearts. Interestingly, that theme echoes a truth that many viewers can relate to when it comes to companionship. If the show hones in more on this aspect, Sword Gai: The Animation could develop more of an everlasting impression that influences its audience to continue watching and wanting more as the plot continues to unfold.

Sword Gai: The Animation enters a climactic battle between Zsoltgewinn, Ichijo, and Gai, but it’s unclear if Gai’s role will be to break the cycle of the Chrysalis’s inevitable demise, or become something else entirely.

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Good Bad Ichijo and Gai's Partnership Brief Fight Scene Sayaka Moving on With Her Life Gai's Continued Broodiness Zstolgewinn's Backstory Miki's Fate

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With the addition of more fan favorite newcomers, 100 stages, and roughly 900 songs in the recent Nintendo Direct, Super Smash Bros. Ultimate lives up to its name.

Everyone is Here… and More!

King Dedede is and forever will be the greatest character in Super Smash Bros. Not only because he is voiced by series creator Masahiro Sakurai himself, but because King Dedede disguising himself as King K Rool makes him one of the best trolls.

Sakurai continued this installment’s trend of introducing highly requested characters. King K Rool, one of the most wanted characters worldwide according to speculation based on information gathered by Source Gaming, will finally make his playable debut after being sentenced to a mii costume in the previous game. 

If Inkling and K Rool are any indication, mii costumes could provide a glimpse into some of the remaining newcomers, like the possibility of Geno. Naturally, it’s not safe to make assumptions, especially with Sakurai who is always unpredictable. After all, Ridley was once deemed too big and Villager initially wasn’t included because the character doesn’t fight.

While many may have seen Simon Belmont coming, his reveal featuring the always-scared Luigi was one of the best yet. Luigi is still Nintendo’s punching bag and the most recent character to “die” in a reveal, following Mega Man and Mario in Ridley’s trailer.

Simon’s whip and various weapons straight out of Castlevania make him unique. His long range might make him and Richter difficult characters to battle. No one saw Richter Belmont, Simon’s echo fighter, coming. Although he doesn’t have much of a following compared to his relative. The next two newcomers caused more of a stir.

It’s another day and Chrom finally got his chance. Despite Smash for Wii U’s Palutena guidance for Robin where Viridi teases Chrom about being too similar to Ike, Chrom is actually an echo fighter of Roy. However, Chrom has Ike’s up b, meaning echo fighters might be more different than anticipated. Chrom is also likely removed from Robin’s final smash, so maybe we’ll get a Grima transformation instead.  The final echo character revealed in the Direct was Dark Samus, whose floating animations make her more desirable to use than Samus. Whether or not her aesthetic changes have different attributes has yet to be seen.

Everywhere is Here!

The stage list for this game is massive no matter how you look at it and the best part is that there’s something for both hardcore and casual fans. The stage hazard toggle makes stages like WarioWare, Inc. legal for competitive play. Casual players on the other hand might even feel overwhelmed by the sheer number of stages, all of which are fortunately unlocked from the start. Stage morphing, or switching between two stages midgame, was another unexpected addition that will surely spice up gameplay.

Dracula’s Castle is one of the best looking stages yet. The large number of bosses makes it one of the most complex stages. K.K. Slider appears on both Animal Crossing stages if you play on Saturday, so Dracula might appear in his castle under similar conditions. I’m guessing more stages have yet to be confirmed, since there can’t be that many blank spaces on the stage select screen and there may have been a Monster Hunter stage shown.

Everything isn’t Here, But Many Other Things Are!

The ability to use your Switch as a portable music player with 28 hours worth of music might entice people to plug in headphones and listen on the go. The Nintendo Switch is too big to fit in most people’s pockets, but keeping it in a bag while you listen is a more feasible option. 

Squad Strike plays out like a built in crew battle, where two players or teams select three or five characters to face off. It’s unknown whether this plays out like the end of Smash Tour from Smash Bros for Wii U, which featured a one character per stock battle, meaning the next character would spawn after your previous one is knocked out, or if one character losing all of their stocks ends the match and immediately starts another with your next character. This mode could have big implications for competitive play, a direction many of the game’s changes seem to favor.

The chargeable final smash meter is ironically reminiscent of PlayStation All-Stars Battle Royale. Giving people multiple ways to play this game is definitely one of Sakurai’s goals. It will be interesting to see if the competitive community adopts meters for side events. Regardless, the meters will make for great fun with friends.

Who and What Else Are Here?

More of almost everything is inevitable with a few months to go and entire modes still unknown. Isabelle and Shadow have yet to appear as assist trophies meaning they might get the Dark Samus treatment and become playable. Isabelle was also a Mii Fighter costume and her large following makes her a strong candidate as an echo fighter for Villager. Richter set the precedent of a third party developer having an echo fighter, so Shadow might be the next addition to the cast as an echo fighter of Sonic.

In terms of more new fighters other than Geno, eagle eyed viewers noticed similarities between DK watching TV and Karate Joe from Rhythm Heaven. This could mean nothing, or it could be a hint that Karate Joe might be coming. Lastly, Bandana Dee’s steady popularity in the East and West could land him a spot on the roster. Even dream picks like Sora and Banjo and Kazooie seem slightly more likely due to Sakurai’s determination to add an unprecedented amount of content and features to the game.

Sayaka’s longing for Gai and the theme of understanding one’s purpose spurs more satisfying character development and continues the show’s slow upward trend.

Sayaka’s drive to be with Gai and Gai’s desire to understand himself through his broodiness create an interesting dynamic between characters, while the other owner of the Shiryu takes center stage. Various characters are set to collide with one another as the series nears season two. However, the additional character development through Sayaka’s intimacy is refreshing.

Viewers will likely start to piece together the importance of Sayaka and her bond with Gai through a flashback, but more importantly the scene mirrors the show’s progression. Characters without goals or something to fight for give viewers little to empathize with and aren’t compelling. Sword Gai capitalizes on this notion through Gai and Sayaka’s mental states. Both appear lost and concerned for something beyond themselves, which happens to be each other.

While Gai’s loner attitude can be annoying, it is a good indication of how he can changed over time in relation to Sayaka. On the other hand, Sayaka’s focus on Gai adds another exciting dimension that strays from the show’s previously repetitive plot. The episode’s only fight scene didn’t detract from the story’s plot advancement, although it was too brief. Gai’s development is exemplified through his difficult decision to protect Sayaka, or stay solo on his own path.

If Sword Gai: The Animation keeps up the momentum, the series might be able to engage viewers with its deep themes and fleshed out characters. The show’s success hinges on the cast’s development. But to be fair, the series is moving in the right direction.

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Good Bad Sayaka's Longing For Gai Creepy Hooligans Ichijo's Challenge to Gai Brief Fight Scene Character Development

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