All of you are such casuals…
Oh boy do we have a bit here. Today the Inverseman will dissect the “recent” phenomenon of casual gaming that has emerged over the past five or so years, and does he have a bone to pick.
Nov 242012
Oct 172012
Ohhhh boy. Do I have some words to throw out on this topic. I really love the concept behind Persona 3 and 4. The blending of relationship social link simulation and JRPG combat is incredibly compelling to me, and stellar writing plus deep character exploration only go to heighten the experience. If you haven’t been exposed to the games, ignore this post and play them now. For those who have played the two later PS2 games (the two I will be discussing today as P1 and P2 are much different and perhaps worthy of later discussion, but not today), you probably already now which you prefer. And that’s fine. I know hordes of people on both sides of the fence. Some adore the dark themes of P3 and ridicule the somewhat silly adventurism engulfed in P4. Others share the opposite view, viewing the P3 themes as needlessly angsty and emo, all the while appreciative of the more fun, stylish attitude of P4. I’m not going to lie to you, I much prefer the latter to the former. But I think it’s important to get the reasons out in the open to facilitate healthy debate. Or inspire unholy mudslinging. Whichever works for you. So without further ado, here are a couple reasons why I prefer Persona 4 to Persona 3. Feel free to disagree to your heart’s content.
Aug 252012
Uh… Guys… Her Shadow is about to go berserk. Dontcha wanna uh… Do something? Guys?
In the unlikeliest of developer crossovers, Atlus and Arc System Works teamed up to bring us Persona 4: Arena. Laevatein offered his own initial impressions, but I’m here to talk about the game in-depth. How did this joint project into a totally new genre fare for our MegaTen spin-off?
Aug 132012
The Persona series, and Shin Megami Tensei in general, is pretty popular, no doubt about that one. Many of our writers here are familiar with the entire series in one way or another. Many of our readers are pretty familiar with Persona, as well. Unfortunately, I’m probably the least familiar with the entire series of the staff, as all the Persona I have under my belt are a few hours of Persona 3. Pretty neat hours, but still just a few. I hate backlogs.
So it might seem a bit weird that the least Persona-versed writer is talking about a Persona title. However, Persona 4 Arena is special, in that it tries to court two different audiences. The first one, and probably the most apparent one, is the RPG crowd. Specifically, fans of the Persona and other Shin Megami Tensei games. The other crowd is the fighting game crowd. Continue reading »
Jun 172012
Warning: The following post will contain juicy spoilers. Juicier than the primest of rib.
Hiya, ladies and gents, the Inverseman here to review Persona 4: the Animation. Being an adaptation of the hit game from 2009, does this anime adaptation stack up to the game? Let’s find out! Continue reading »
Jun 112012
Last week at E3, Atlus announced that it has plans to publish Code of Princess, an “action RPG brawler” in North America this fall. This is a very unique hybrid RPG, much like Theatrhythm Final Fantasy is a unique RPG rhythm game.
Developed by members of the team that produced Guardian Heroes for the Sega Saturn, Code of Princess features four playable characters in the game’s singleplayer mode, but also lets you play as enemies and even villagers in its multiplayer mode. You can either battle with your friends or against them via local online or Nintendo’s online network. Continue reading »
Dec 312011
Yes, he’s still alive. And his New Year’s resolution? The same thing it is every year: try to take over the world. But wait, before that, back to the “normal” suburbs to visit the family… And the stark amount of concentrated normality that comes with it…
Okay, so after being liberated from the education system, I wish you all belated Happy Chritsmases, Chanukahs, Kwanzas, and such holidays. And for lots of folks it’s around that time where you have some kind of lull in work, either from a winter break as a student or a day or two off from the job. With a smidgeon more time at home, what to do? Chances are there’s someone you know who doesn’t understand the passions of holy geek-dom, so how do you make things a bit more accessible to the mainstream crowd? Well, I’ve got a few recommendations of recent stuff you could show to a [normal] friend, your folks, or significant other who hasn’t the foggiest idea what the heck you talk about.
Anime Series and Films
For those who have no clue about anime other than your typical long-running confusing shonen, dive into your library and try showing that person some of these more recent titles.
Sep 102011
SUNDAY! SUNDAY! SUNDAY! ONE NIGHT ONLY! IN THIS CORNER. THE SUAVE! THE SILENT! THE FIGHTER PREVIOUSLY KNOWN AS SOUJI SETA! YU NARUKAMI! AND IN THE OTHER CORNER THE MISOGYNISTIC MONSIEUR, THE CAPTAIN OF CABBAGE, ALSO VOICED BY JOHNNY YONG BOSCH! TOHRU ADACHI!
That’s right ladies and gentlemen. Arc System Works, the creators of Guilty Gear and BlazBlue, have teamed up with Atlus to make a fighter based on Persona 4 called Persona 4: The Ultimate in Mayonaka Arena. Two favorite companies of yours truly have teamed up to bring a unique experience to fighters. How you may ask? Well, let’s look at how the system works so far.
First, you have a Persona. As if ArcSys was taking a page out of Capcom’s fighter game based on Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure, summoning your Persona can give you a few extra hands to lay down a smackdown. You could also draw parallels to Arc’s Arcana Heart as well, with your Persona giving you various types of buffs. Continue reading »
Aug 272011
It’s 1 am. There I am in the office. Finally, after waiting all day, I can access some kind of monitor with high definition output. Curiously, I can only play in the dead of night, that’s the only time I can get a hold of this baby. I start up the PS3 and the hours pass by. The phrase “love is over” graces my screen again, but I keep going and going, slowly getting the hang of things as I desperately flail the night away. “Climb! Climb! Okay genius… How the hell do I get across this? How should I know? I’m your inner monologue, created from stress and lack of sleep. So keep climbing! You have to brave the nightmare! But darn it man! I’m tired! Sunrise is in an hour. You got through another nightmare at least. We’ll try again later in the evening.”
Hey guys, the Inverseman here again with another review. This week Atlus’ “Catherine” is what’s on the plate. This is Atlus’ first ever original title for an HD console. At the masthead is the same team that worked on “Persona 4″, so let’s see how the company’s maiden voyage in HD waters went. Continue reading »