And thus concludes my month of manga with female leads. Like I said, this wasn't much of a challenge since I wasn't starved for choices, but it was nonetheless nice to have a theme for this month to keep things organized for myself. BACKGROUND:
There are only so many ways I can say "I haven't heard of this manga," but here we are. SUMMARY: Due to circumstances in her family, high school student Miko Sonoda (nicknamed Meeko) moves away from her family home to her uncle's boarding house, where she must live with other folks who are slightly older than her. Her new living mates are quite the cast of characters, but none stand out to Meeko as much as Jun Matsunaga, a young designer with a bit of a prickly exterior. Meeko naturally takes time adjusting to her new environment, but her newfound company is more than happy to help her out. She eventually finds her groove and learns to be more responsible as she realizes that the adults she lives with can be just as clueless or lost as she is, as well as gradually finding a sense of belonging with the rest of the people in the boarding house. The bulk of Meeko's interactions are with Matsunaga, who made quite a scary first impression on her due to his disposition. As she spends more time with him, however, she sees that he's kind at heart and despite his penchant for yelling, he is pushy because he looks out for Meeko's well-being. Meeko then slowly finds herself taking a liking to Matsunaga (to the point where she starts to get tense around him), eventually culminating in a big moment at the end of the volume. Although Meeko has a sense of responsibility about her, it's nice to see her grow to be more self-reliant and contribute to her new household. I can feel with her initial struggle to adjust to this new environment (especially considering she lives with adults who have their own lives), and it's also nice to see her take that in stride and slowly connect with her housemates. Matsunaga is the other character who naturally gets the most screentime, and I totally see myself in him due to his general demeanor. I know I can be impatient and that I'm no stranger to the occasional outburst, though like him, I make efforts to be considerate and be more affable when interacting with others (and I also struggle a lot with those efforts). He clearly expresses his care and concern his own way, and I completely understand the struggle of being seen as hostile when in reality, I just work differently from most. Meeko acting like a responsible adult (and most of the volume not really showing her life in school) makes the age gap element of the budding romance feel less unnerving in a way, but I personally still can't get past it completely. Outside of that, there's something sweet about her seeing past Matsunaga's exterior (which I know from experience will deter many from most meaningful interactions) and learning to understand and accept him anyway. The romance seems one-sided for now as Matsunaga only seems to see Meeko as a friend to support and spend time with, which I'm totally fine with (I'd honestly be unnerved if he showed any interest). Other characters also get a bit of time, though obviously not as much as the leads. You have Meeko's uncle (who is absent due to business but clearly cares for his niece as if he were his own), as well as Meeko's other housemates Ken (a light-hearted, sometimes forward guy), Asako (a put-together young woman whom Meeko sees as a bit of an inspiration), Ryo (a college student who's mostly quiet), and Akane (a girl who seems to be a recluse, but does interact with the rest of the cast). I'd guess later chapters put a spotlight on them as well. What stands out with the art style here are how lighter tones are the most prominent as well as the solid level of detail (which really comes across with how animated many of the facial expressions look). The art likes to make the colors even lighter as well as add effects like sparkles when Meeko starts to see things a certain way, which I think is a cute approach. VERDICT: Age gap of the romance aside, I enjoyed Living-Room Matsunaga-san for its protagonist (who makes an effort to better herself, learns to adjust to a radically new environment, and sees the good in someone who others may dismiss as hostile) and the odd but still wholesome dynamic of the people in the boarding house (who still come together and help each other out or celebrate despite having fully independent lives from one another). Honestly, my interest is more on the latter since I want to read a story where such a friendship dynamic is the forefront, so if later chapters continue to feature that alongside the obvious romance they're shooting for, I wouldn't mind reading more of this. If you share my sentiment and think the dynamic of the friendship between the people in the boarding house is interesting, you may get something out of this book. As for the romance, they've only really set the stage in the first volume, so I can't really say if it builds up to be something compelling. - end -
0 Comments
Mario Day brought with it a few new additions to the Game Boy/Game Boy Color emulators on Switch Online. You know the drill; let's go through them one by one! BACKGROUND:
I played the original Dr. Mario on NES via Switch Online, so there's probably a brief summary of it in one of the old NES Online blog entries. Those were the days when the game rollout for the library was monthly, so my posts then were just brief summaries for each game. As such, I likely didn't say more than a couple of sentences on it, but the gist of it is that I found it a really addictive matching puzzle game that I just kept going back to. I'm fairly certain that the GB version is just a port of the original, so I know exactly what I'm getting into here. This is unrelated, but I should probably go back and write individual blog entries for those NES games that I talked about in that format. I ended up transitioning to giving new releases their own entries because Nintendo drip-fed them, and I can probably do a lot of those early NSO offerings better justice by giving them their own posts. SUMMARY: Dr. Mario on GB is indeed practically identical to the NES (outside the obvious difference of the original having color). The game is a matching puzzle game where you rotate and drop pills (which have differently colored halves) onto their correspondingly colored viruses. Line up four of the same color of virus and pill and you clear the virus from the board. Like most games of this time, you just try to go for as long as you can for the high score; if a piece goes over the board, it's game over. Each level has you try and clear a random assortment of the viruses, and as you go along, the number of viruses increases and the drop speed of the pills get faster. You can adjust the difficulty level before starting the game as well, allowing you to skip ahead to a more challenging level off the bat. Perhaps the most striking difference between this version and the original on NES is the lack of color. On the NES version, the virus types and the pills are differentiated by color, but that obviously can't work since the original Game Boy doesn't have color. Instead of red, blue, and yellow, this version has light, dark, and checkered, which works well enough given the clear limitations. This version also features the same music, including the iconic Fever and Chill tracks. The former remains as catchy as ever, and for whatever reason, I never get tired of listening to it. VERDICT: Dr. Mario is as pure as a block puzzler can get, sticking to the core of matching elements to clear a board and escalating the difficulty as you clear levels. It's simple as hell, but games like this are addictive as hell despite (and perhaps even because of) this exact fact. I will probably stick to the NES version since the colors make the overall game more readable, but I definitely appreciate the GB version's existence by making this game a portable experience at the time of its release. Since the original and this version are functionally the same, you can't really go wrong with either one. Just pick the one whose visuals you prefer. In general, this is definitely an "essential" Nintendo classic that everyone should try at least once, so give it a go! - end - Here's an interesting one from the depths of the backlog. BACKGROUND:
Again, we have another title I don't know about but felt like adding to the library just because. PLOT: The year is 1992, and you play as a pig farmer somewhere in the heart of the US. You're more than just a pig farmer, though; the mob uses your pigs to dispose of their bodies. It's been implied that the farmer's been doing this for years, and at the beginning of the game, he finally finds it within himself to say that he's done. Our main character communicates this to one of the mob's hitmen, whom he's been friends with for a long time. Most of the game is the two spending their day together shooting the shit, with the hitman doing his damnedest to get the farmer to reconsider. They both know how this story ends, and it doesn't seem like the farmer can be talked out of this. The story is then presented in separate, named scenes set in different places on the farm and focuses on a specific conversation/activity. As the two characters interact, you get a sense of the farmer's life, from his time in the Vietnam War, his relationships with his wife and son, his hobbies, life at the farm, and more. You also get a sense of the weight he feels tied to his decision at the start. The more he talks, his reasons for deciding to cut ties with the mob become clear (it's heavy stuff). Coupled with his seeming resignation towards his fate, I could really feel the weight behind his words as he reminisces, talks about the joys of taking care of the farm, and insists that he's well and truly done. The hitman's an interesting character, given he and the farmer actually share a friendship. He listens to the farmer's stories, is willing to help around the farm, and perhaps most notably, he's actively trying to talk the farmer out of quitting. On the flip side, the farmer is comfortable sharing personal feelings with this hitman, and he's comfortable enough with him to make certain requests, give gifts, and even mess with him a little. It's a dynamic I wasn't expecting, and it added more weight to the implication that the hitman would have to take matters into his own hands. You don't really meet any other characters other than the hitman's assistant (who's only around for one scene), one of the farmer's neighbors (who you only hear on the phone), and the farmer's son (also only heard over the phone). The phone calls in particular perfectly showcase the emotional burden that the farmer is dealing with, and the more impressive thing is how a lot of that is shown without dialogue. Like many narrative games, you're occasionally given an option to select a dialogue option you want to go for. Most of the choices are inconsequential (but lead to interesting conversations nonetheless), but what stood out to me the most was the fact that there are grayed-out options that the farmer will never say even if you pick them. I misunderstood this feature at first, as I thought it implied that I had to unlock a way to pick those options by accomplishing certain tasks (perhaps the farmer has to gather the courage first, I thought). After encountering this quirk several times, I came to understand that this is the game's way of illustrating things the farmer really wants to say, but for whatever reason, can't find the strength to do so. Upon realizing this, interactions with grayed-out dialogue took on a whole new meaning, because those interactions show that the farmer is going through some serious inner turmoil wrapped in regret. Overall, I found this mechanic incredibly clever in how it manages to convey so much with seemingly little, and how it subverts the typical expectations of the player's ability to control the narrative. Without giving too much away, the ending scene felt impactful in so many ways thanks to a number of key interactions that lead up to the finale. The end itself was fitting given how the farmer spoke throughout the game, and the dialogue mechanic I described added to the impact because you, as the player, don't actually get much of a say in how things play out. You have to accept what happens, because the choice isn't actually yours. That's something that you don't really see in games like this, and I really appreciate the bold approach. I will concede, however, that the ending does feel abrupt and unsatisfying in a sense because of this choice to tell a story that isn't your own (which feels antithetical to what video games are to most people), and even I misled myself into thinking there might be alternate endings because of how things played out. Arguments can be made about how this would have been equally, if not more effective if it were some other form of media, but I personally don't see how something like a movie or a comic can pull off the narrative impact of the grayed-out dialogue. PRESENTATION: The game has a cel-shaded look to it, but apart from that style, the models and the environments feel more or less grounded in reality when you look at them. I feel like the graphics overall are a bit rough around the edges (stuff like character faces feel off when I look at them), but they did an adequate job of capturing that peaceful yet utterly lonely vibe of the main character's farm. I didn't really fixate on the infrequent music, and that's because my focus was on the excellent voice acting of the farmer and the hitman. The emotion really comes across in both performances, and even the minor roles (the farmer's son in particular) were able to do the same. The cast was certainly a significant part of why I found the story so engaging. GAMEPLAY: When it comes to the actual game aspect, Adios isn't really much of one. You play as the farmer in a first-person view, move around the farm to marked locations to start the story scenes, and sometimes you interact with stuff to progress the scene. The few interactables there are either don't serve a purpose (you can inspect so many objects that have no significance at all to the story) or are incredibly straightforward (e.g. click on the shovel, click on the pile of manure, click on the wheelbarrow). Some of them are a bit janky, too, especially when you start dropping items all over the floor. For whatever reason, you can sprint and jump even though there are exactly zero scenarios where they're useful. I suppose sprint has its merits in getting you around the already small farm slightly faster, but jumping is truly useless. Also, the game also has the inexplicable quirk of having two interact buttons, and they each have different behaviors depending on the item. It's really weird and clunky. There really isn't anything else you can do other than what I described and selecting dialogue options when prompted. For what it's worth, there are a few interactions that are neat (like feeding the horse apples) or have a lot of emotional weight. And for how small the farm is, there are some interesting corners in the house that add to the story of the farmer. VERDICT: It only took me about two hours to get to the end of Adios's story, but that's all the time it needed to deliver a memorable narrative experience. Sure, there's barely any game, but the excellent dialogue between two interesting characters and the themes explored both by what they say and what the game keeps you from saying kept me engaged all throughout. I'm still contemplating everything the farmer said (and the underlying emotions behind those words), and I think that speaks to how well done the story was. Plus, I'm still blown away by how effortlessly brilliant the grayed-out dialogue approach was; it's such a simple thing but I'm still thinking about how its implementation adds so much to the story. Doubtless there are people who call this a "walking simulator," and in all fairness, they wouldn't be far off. However, some may even question if this is worth calling a game, given you do so little in it. I take exception to that, as I think the game's surprising approach to dialogue (and how that impacts the narrative and conveys emotion) is something you can only pull off in an interactive setting. For that alone, I'd say this game is worth checking out, but I'm also fully aware that many people prefer their games to have more gameplay, or that the story (which, for how compelling I found it, isn't exactly breaking new ground) may not resonate with them. I suppose another sticking point is the price given how short the game is; I'd recommend waiting for a sale if that's an issue. Adios is available on Steam: Adios on Steam (steampowered.com) - end - I continue as normal with my manga reads this week, but today's title is definitely new territory for me. BACKGROUND:
I'm just going off of the synopsis since I haven't heard anything about this book, but based on that, this story seems pretty intense. SUMMARY: This manga follows the story of Nao Hanaoka, whose mother was a live-in wagashi confectioner for Kogetsuan, a prestigious confectionery. Her childhood was quite a happy one, as she acquired her mother's passion for making sweets, and she made friends with Tsubaki Takatsuki, the heir apparent of Kogetsuan. All of that ends one fateful night when Kogetsuan's master (and Tsubaki's father) is found dead, and a blood-covered Tsubaki frames Nao's mother for the murder. The story skips to fifteen years later, where we see that Nao (despite the loss of her mother) has maintained her passion for making sweets. It seems like she's found peace doing her own thing at a small-town shop, but her life is turned upside down when the past catches up back to her and she takes a job where she crosses paths with Kogetsuan again. Sure enough, she sees Tsubaki again after a decade and a half, but he seemingly doesn't recognize her. As if things aren't tense enough, Tsubaki (who has apparently grown to be quite abrasive) just straight up asks Nao to marry him. Despite her totally understandable disdain towards the man, Nao decides to go for it in order to get to the bottom of what really happened on the day of the murder. After a highly dramatic interruption of a wedding ceremony (which was going to see Tsubaki marry some other woman), Tsubaki shares the reasoning for his bold decision, as he intends to take over Kogetsuan so he can steer it through his own path. And thus, the marriage built on a lie (and two ulterior motives) begins. The last chapter sees Nao take on her first job as part of Kogetsuan, but the drama intensifies right off the bat as she takes on an order for the sake of pursuing her own investigation. Tsubaki accordingly punishes her for going behind his back, which hammers home how their "relationship" is not built on trust. As of now, there is no love lost between the two leads, so I'm not really sure where the "steamy romance" the synopsis describes comes into play. Nao and Tsubaki have their own goals for arranging the marriage, and the last chapter made it clear that they do not trust each other. Hell, Nao straight up says "something's wrong with me" for even going with the idea in the first place. If this story is indeed going in the direction of "they actually end up falling for each other for real," I haven't the slightest clue how they get from point A to point B. While I am quite curious about how the romance element eventually surfaces, I'm more interested in the mystery element of the story right now. Next to nothing is established about the facts of the murder that saw Nao's mother be taken, and even less is known about what Tsubaki actually knows (and if he had a reason as to why he decided to frame Nao's mom for the murder). I don't know how the rest of the manga is paced, but I'm interested to read about Nao trying to solve the mystery while the constant threat of the facade falling apart (and what untold repercussions that may bring) hovers over her like the Sword of Damocles. Nao herself is a straightforward character. She's passionate about her chosen craft, she's still traumatized by what happened (though she does her best to persevere), and her determination to find the truth is shown perfectly as she enters a "relationship: with a man she has every reason to (and absolutely does) hate. Tsubaki, in contrast, is a man shrouded in mystery, and not just because we don't know what his intentions were on the night of the murder. He does state his reasons as to why he even cooked up the marriage scheme, but I feel like there's still more lurking underneath the surface. Other characters are introduced, though with significantly less focus given to them. The most notable ones for me were the mysterious man who delivers Nao a letter from her mother (which compels her to search for answers), Tsubaki's mother (who has an intimidating aura and has immediate suspicions towards Nao and her "relationship"), and Tsubaki's grandfather, who, despite his affable exterior, has extremely high standards and is keen to see Tsubaki put his money where his mouth is at the risk of him being effectively banished from Kogetsuan. The overall art style has a solid amount of detail, and there's quite the variety when it comes to the linework (which occasionally deviates from the thinner outlines to much bolder ones), textures, and shading (which was the most notable element to me, as the high-contrast panels really pop next to the more muted panels). As for other elements, the facial expressions for the more intense moments definitely feel intense when you look at them, there's a recurring theme of flowers used as background elements for characters, and the wagashi (which I don't think I've ever had any of in my life) look pretty tasty. VERDICT: I am quite intrigued by the mystery of Something's Wrong With Us, and while I am invested in Nao's journey to unraveling said mystery, I find her methods for doing so quite stressful to read (and I mean that more positively). Her choosing to live out a lie to get back into Kogetsuan is practically begging for trouble, and I feel like this is going to end up as one of those figurative car crashes you can't look away from. Like I typically say for such stories, I have a morbid curiosity when it comes to seeing the inevitable consequences, though in this case, the tension is exciting (since it feels kind of like a race to find the truth before than happens). I'm also curious about the supposed romance, but given it's a non-factor right now, I'm not too invested in that as I am with solving the murder. This manga seems like it's up the alley of people who are into a little mystery (and perhaps those into more intense romances with a forbidden air to them, if that's where the story's going), though I can't say if the overall story is well-paced (which I'd say is quite important for mystery stories). - end - I've been having a blast with Rare's additions to the Switch Online emulators so far, and this game is no exception. BACKGROUND:
I haven't heard of this one before, and that will make the observations I make in the next section interesting. Don't worry, I'll explain what I mean. SUMMARY: R.C. Pro-Am is a racing game where you race RC cars in a sort of top-down view against three CPU racers in a couple dozen assorted tracks. As you may expect, the goal is to get first in every race, but instead of a grand prix with a fixed number of races and a whole point-based ranking system, this game is endless. As long as you qualify at the end of each race (i.e. do not get 4th), you'll proceed to the next race, and so on and so forth until you reach a point where you simply cannot beat the CPUs. The game's box art boasts that there are 32 tracks, though I'm not sure how true that is. Regardless, I've encountered a wide variety of track layouts, and even if there are repeats, the game mixes it up enough with different object placements that I don't notice the difference anyway. I personally wish that the tracks themselves looked different in terms of aesthetic, but gameplay-wise, I'm satisfied. Where this game stands out for its time are its gimmicks. This game originally came out in 1988, and to my knowledge, it is one of the earliest games to introduce offense-oriented power-ups to racing games. Of course, that's since become its own subgenre of racing games (with the Mario Kart series being the most popular example most people can think of), but a lot of the other racing games from this era that I've played don't really have anything like that. Cars can be wrecked momentarily by crashing, but you can deliberately do this to your opponents by picking up either missiles (which you shoot out the front of your vehicles) or bombs (which you drop from behind) and having them run into them. You can pick these up by driving over their sprites as you race, but ammo is scarce, as power-ups (including ammo refills) do not respawn. Other power-ups include items that improve your acceleration, top speed, and handling. These upgrades carry over between races, and they level up the more of the respective item you pick up. You can also pick up an item that briefly makes you immune from crashing, as well as letters that spell out the word "Nintendo." If you manage to spell "Nintendo" out, you get bonus points, which I'm not really sure means anything outside of a measure of your success. The tracks themselves have hazards to navigate like puddles of water and rain clouds that slow you down, oil slicks that cause you to spin out, and barriers that pop out from the ground that will result in a crash if you collide with it. With how fast the game goes, it can be tricky to avoid these hazards (especially in later levels where there's just an unforgiving gauntlet of them waiting for you), though it's probably possible to memorize the layouts if you play enough. Strangely, there is no two-player mode for this game, which I'd say is quite the missed opportunity for a racer as exciting as this. I don't know if its omission is due to some sort of technical limitation or if there was no intention to add it to begin with. VERDICT: Despite having mostly straightforward tracks and an endless grand prix with no payoff, I really enjoyed R.C. Pro-Am. The action is fast, the CPUs are challenging, and it's satisfying to blow up the other racers with missiles and bombs (even if they don't stay down for long). I can see myself playing this on occasion just to see how far I can get. I would mark this as an "essential" game simply on the merit of being one of the earliest examples of the combat racing subgenre to exist, so I'd say players should play a bit of it just to appreciate where legendary series like Mario Kart took their cues from. I also think it's super fun for how simple it is, so if you want a racer that's easy to pick up, is fast-paced, and has a few gimmicks to play around, this is worth checking out. - end - It seems my curiosity towards indie titles has paid off yet again with this one. BACKGROUND:
I can't recall if it was a tweet or the Steam store page where I first saw this game, but in any case, I learned of Balatro just by pure luck. I saw that it was an upcoming release, and upon noticing that the game involved cards, I naturally had to take a look. All I needed to see on the description were the words "poker-inspired roguelike" and I was sold. I intended to just pick it up on Steam, but upon seeing that it was also coming to Switch, I bought it as soon as I could. PLOT: Unless there's some hidden lore in the cards that I'm not picking up on, I'm fairly certain that this game has no story. PRESENTATION: Balatro's aesthetic is quite the vibe, as it goes retro pixel art (complete with a CRT filter) while boasting psychedelic (but not too flashy) shifting backgrounds. There's honestly not much going on apart from that and the cards (which are fairly detailed despite the style's obvious limitations), but it fits this game quite well since you'll likely spend most of your time carefully planning out moves. The music complements the visuals as well, with the tunes being super chill synthwave-like tracks. I find it quite relaxing to listen to, though as is usually the case with games like this, I eventually transition to listening to my own stuff. GAMEPLAY: Balatro sells itself as a "poker-inspired roguelike", but what does that actually mean? Well, the basic idea is that with a standard deck of 52 playing cards and a limited number of plays (called hands), you have to play valid poker hands such that your total score meets the level's quota. There are a lot more things that make this more than just some variation of a traditional card game, but I'll ease into those mechanics as I go along. If you're familiar with classic card games, the basics should be easy to grasp. The game follows the typical convention of the ace being the highest and 2 being the lowest, and the poker hands are just the standard ones everyone's familiar with (from high card to straight flush). You don't have to worry at all about stuff like which suits are higher or what the highest card of your five-card hands are since you're not comparing your hand to any other player, as this game has its own scoring system for the hands that you play. Each poker hand's scoring is split into two parts: the raw point value (called chips) and the multiplier. For example, playing a high card only has a value of 5 x 1, while something like a flush is worth 35 x 4. The rank of the cards you play is factored into the calculation by being added to the base chips value of the hand, and here, the scoring per rank is based on blackjack rules (face cards are worth 10, aces are worth 11, numbers are equal to themselves). For a more illustrative example, let's say you play a flush with A, J, 9, 4, 2. As established, a flush is worth 35 x 4, but before you do the multiplication, you add the total of the rank values of each card (in this case, 36) to 35, so the score you get is 284 (71 x 4). Most poker hands typically consist of five cards, but the game is lenient and lets you play less than five cards for hands that don't necessarily require five cards (like pairs/two pairs, three/four of a kind, or a single high card). You can choose to play the maximum five cards on something like a pair just so you can get some cards out of your hand, but the individual point values of those extra cards won't be counted towards the total. For instance, playing a random 5 alongside a two pair of Q and K will not add 5 to the score. Typically, you can only hold eight cards at a time, so like any card game, success is kind of dependent of the luck of the draw. You have a limited number of discards you can spend to get cards out and draw from the deck, but you have to be judicious with using them since they don't replenish until the next level. A regular run is split into 8 Antes, each with three levels you have to clear (called Blinds in this game). You have the Small Blind, which has a base value of chips you have to meet, the Big Blind (which is double that), and the Boss Blind. The Boss Blind is unique in that you can face one of 25 possible named Boss Blinds, and they each apply their own sort of challenge to that specific round. For example, certain Boss Blinds render certain card types useless (like specific suits, or face cards), or apply some other penalty you have to navigate around (e.g. all plays must have five cards, forced discards every play, and much more). You can choose to skip the Small and Big Blinds in any of the Antes to redeem Tags, which give you some sort of helpful bonus that typically gives you more resources to create your build. The drawback is that you don't get to earn currency and visit the shop, both of which you only really encounter after finishing a Blind. It's a neat tradeoff mechanic, and it's a fun challenge in itself to try and beat a run while playing the least number of rounds that you can. Speaking of the shop, that is the place where you spend your winnings for game-changing items. These include the Jokers, the Major Arcana tarot cards, planet cards, spectral cards, vouchers, and even extras of normal cards (allowing you to have stuff like a five of a kind, which is typically only possible in a regular poker game by cheating or if wild cards are allowed). Each one of these is significant in their own way, so I'll go through them one by one. It can be argued that the Jokers are perhaps the most important cards you want to get. Think of the Jokers as this game's equivalent of the main items (a staple in most roguelikes), as they grant all sorts of passive buffs that can make your poker hand plays worth significantly more points. As of now, there are a whole 150 of these you can pick up and unlock, and their effects can range from situational (more chips or multiplier increases for certain hands or played cards) or borderline game-breaking (multiplier increases built up over time, copying abilities of another Joker). There are a ton of possibilities for builds here, and I've only managed a handful of busted builds so far that were utterly satisfying to see come to fruition. The Arcana cards are consumable cards that you can use freely during Blinds. Although there are exceptions, most of these cards modify the cards in your existing deck, like raising their rank values, transforming one card into another, or even changing their suits. Some even apply what are called enhancements to your cards, converting them to Bonus cards (more chips given), Mult cards (multiplier increase), Steel cards (multiplier bonus if held in hand), and more. You don't really need the Arcana effects to succeed in a run, but they're a really useful bonus if you can get them since you can make your cards more effective or even craft a deck that fits a specific Joker build. Planet cards level up the base score of each poker hand. Using Two Pair again as an example, using the Uranus Planet card increases its level by one, taking its base score from 20 x 2 to 40 x 3. These cards are more nice-to-haves since relying on playing only specific poker hands can be difficult unless you're playing easier ones (like High Card or Pair), but if you find your build favors certain hands more than others, these can make such builds even more potent. Spectral cards are a lot like Arcana cards, but with more risk/reward or more significant effects. You can pick up effects like destroying a card to create a bunch more, changing several cards to a single random suit, cloning Jokers (but destroying all other Jokers), and even a few secret bonuses. These come around the shop less frequently, which makes sense given the potency of their effects, but when they do, you'll want to weigh your decisions carefully with some of the cards. You can also purchase extra copies of the regular cards, and you can even buy ones that are already enhanced. It would take quite a while to customize the base deck by just buying one or two over the course of a run, but it's a bit of a help in conjunction with Arcana and spectral effects. This is also not as common, but you may sometimes chance upon Jokers with modifications of their own, like Foil (chip bonus), Holographic and Polychrome (multiplier bonuses), and Negative (adds an extra Joker slot, which typically maxes out at 5). These effects typically only feel significant in the early game, but they still help in the long run, and they can be pretty strong if you luck out and get a bunch of them. Lastly, you can purchase vouchers, which provide passive bonuses like Jokers, but cannot be sold like them. Majority of the bonuses the vouchers give are related to the shop (like better odds for certain card types) or a helpful increase to your total number of plays or discards. If you happen to not like what the shop is offering, you can pay to reroll the current selection (though the price scales up the more you reroll). You can also buy booster packs for all the card types, allowing you to choose between a random selection (or skipping it altogether if you don't get anything you particularly need). Both booster packs and vouchers are not rerolled, with the latter only changing between Antes. Most of the Jokers and vouchers have to be unlocked, and what's fun is that they're all tied to the game's achievements. You can check the collection at any time to see the unlock conditions (of which there are many kinds, from typical milestone achievements to tricky challenges), as well as keep track of everything you've found. Having everything tracked in the collection is a fun journey in itself, because you have to actually acquire the card in a run to have a record of them. You can also unlock various starting decks as you play, each with different starting conditions. Some are simple, like an additional discard or play, while others feature a gimmick, like a deck with no face cards. These are well worth unlocking, since your strategy can vary greatly, and a level of variety that incentivizes repeat runs is a hallmark of any enjoyable roguelike. As you complete runs on any one deck, you unlock the higher difficulties for that deck (called Stakes, appropriately), adding some sort of challenge you have to navigate for that run. This is the game's equivalent to mechanics like the Pact of Punishment in Hades, One Step From Eden's Hell Pass, or Ascension in Slay the Spire, where you can increasingly stack the deck against yourself if you want a true challenge. Beating runs with five different decks unlocks Challenge Mode, which are runs with fixed conditions (like set starting Jokers and other similar parameters). In addition to that, you can toggle seeded runs and use seeds shared by other players, or any previous run that you've managed to save. VERDICT: You can add Balatro to the ever-growing list of games that can easily suck me in for hours upon hours at a time. It has everything I look for in any card-based roguelike (a myriad of possibilities for builds, a variety of challenges, lots to unlock, and many different ways to play) and mixes it with traditional card games (which I have had a fondness for since childhood). This was absolutely worth buying at full price a week or two after release, and I can easily say that it's an early favorite of mine for this year. Folks like me who are into card games and roguelikes ought to give this game a shot sooner rather than later. I can confidently say that it scratches a lot of the itches fellow fans have when it comes to these genres, and I think it'd be fun to see even more people get addicted to this experience. If you're not well-versed in either, I can see the roguelike aspect being tough to get into since the selection of Jokers you need to last in later rounds are as random as your draws (and crafting a strategy with what you have can be tough), but the game clearly explains what poker hands are if you don't know what they are. Balatro is on Steam, among other places: Balatro on Steam (steampowered.com) - end - I've been working on another origami project (let's call it Project Initiative, just for fun), though it's more of a mix of a silly idea and some fun math than an ambitious undertaking. I'll cover a few topics outside of the usual creative process, and I hope people find that interesting, too. BACKGROUND: Although I have a long history with video game RPGs, I never messed around with Dungeons & Dragons until two years ago, where a friend of mine looped me into a beginner-friendly group. We've had the occasional sessions ever since (including one that took place in-person, and the most recent one just took place a few weeks ago), and with the guidance of some newfound friends, I have been having a lot of fun with the game. I'm still struggling with the actual role-playing part (I'm no actor, and I really have trouble getting into character), but I am enjoying immersing myself into a story, making in-universe decisions, and watching any sort of interaction be resolved meaningfully with simple dice rolls. Since I'm a total newbie, I naturally didn't have the standard set of D&D dice (I instead do my rolls through a browser-based app). I'm sure buying a set wouldn't be too hard (I know exactly who to ask for that), but I felt like I didn't play the game enough to justify doing so. I found my solution while watching some math videos on YouTube (yes, you may yell "nerd" at me now) and watched one all about polyhedra. That leads us into the next topic. THE PLATONIC SOLIDS: With the exception of the D10, all the standard dice in D&D are what are referred to as the Platonic solids. These are special 3D polyhedra where all the faces are congruent regular polygons, and each vertex is a vertex for a fixed number of faces. By these rules, there are five Platonic solids:
The Platonic solids have a lot of interesting geometric properties that we don't have time to get into, but what makes them ideal shapes for "fair" die is the fact that they're isohedral. In simple terms, there's no configuration where you can view the solid and you can immediately identify a vertex as unique. In short, they're pretty much symmetrical no matter how you mess with them. "FAIR" DICE: What you want for any fair die is that for any given roll, each face has an equal probability of landing. Since Platonic solids are symmetrical, you can reasonably believe that they'll land the exact same way every time you roll, and that nothing about its shape will cause it to favor landing a certain way more than others. In the physical realm, other factors also affect the fairness of dice, like the material used, the quality of how it's manufactured, and even the way you throw the die when rolling. A common standard for numbering fair die involves ensuring that the sum of the opposite faces is equal to the number of faces + 1. You can easily observe this in a regular D6, where the sum of opposite squares is 7. I found myself looking into whether this is enough to make a die mathematically balanced, which led to a rabbit hole of reading legitimate scientific papers on the subject, including this one. For this exercise, I decided to just focus on the standard numbering and not worry about other mathematical computations. Now, you've probably already figured out that my goal here is to make the five Platonic solids through origami, then modify the resulting paper models such that they can reasonably function like fair dice. The steps I laid out for myself as follows:
THE MODELS: In this section, I'll showcase each model for the five Platonic solids and get into the usual details (where I learned it, and their overall difficulty), but first, I want to highlight a name that you'll be seeing a lot here: Shuzo Fujimoto. Shuzo Fujimoto was an origami master whose specialty was geometric models. His contributions to the art are truly massive, from incredibly useful methods to divide paper into thirds and fifths (which I used to eyeball with varying degrees of success) and constructing various shapes and solids through meticulous crease patterns. I learned a lot just skimming the diagrams he has in his book, titled Invitation to Creative Playing with Origami (here's an archive.org link where you can download the PDF), and if I actually knew Japanese, I would probably have a deeper understanding of how he arrived at his methods. He's definitely a creator worth looking into if you have an interest in the craft. Now, onto the models: TETRAHEDRON (D4) Instruction Source: I picked this up straight from the source and learned it off Shuzo Fujimoto's diagram in Invitation to Creative Playing with Origami Difficulty: The only tricky part here is dividing the paper into thirds if you don't know the special method. If you don't, you can try the old method I used to use, which I call the S-fold method. This involves twisting the paper to form the S, aligning the points where it curves in the other direction, then sharpening the creases. This takes some trial and error to get right, but I found it largely reliable. Outside of that, assembling this model is easy. CUBE (D6) Instruction Source: While this is also in Fujimoto's book, I actually learned this model when I was a teenager, as it was featured in Classic Origami by Paul Jackson (the book I've had a photocopy of since I started making origami). Difficulty: It takes some time to set up the folds to construct this model, but they're all basic and don't really require any tricks. Making this cube is particularly satisfying, as the crucial step has you slide the paper until the cube magically forms its shape. I recommend starting with this one if you want to make any of these models. OCTAHEDRON (D8) Instruction Source: Again, I learned this in Fujimoto's book. Difficulty: If you started with the tetrahedron (which you probably should, since it is easier), the construction for that and the tetrahedron is largely similar except for how you divide paper at the start. What makes this tricky is that locking the model requires a bit of fiddling to get the loose paper in the right configuration. The final model is also a bit loose, so glue isn't a bad idea here. DODECAHEDRON (D12) Instruction Source: While Fujimoto has a model for this in his book (and the construction of it is highly impressive), I found it extremely difficult to make especially considering I wanted to make relatively smaller final models. I decided to find an easier one, and I found this modular model credited to David Brill. Difficulty: Construction the pentagonal modules for this model is much, much simpler than all the setup I had to do to create the crease patterns for Fujimoto's dodecahedron. Assembling the final model is as simple as interlocking paper tabs into pockets, though you'll want to secure them with glue if you want a rigid model. ICOSAHEDRON (D20) Instruction Source: Like the dodecahedron, Fujimoto has a model for this, but it involves a ton of creases that are tough to do on small paper. My alternate is Jo Nakashima's modular version constructed with triangular modules (video instructions here). Difficulty: The modules are pretty easy to make, though the smaller you go, the harder it is to set up the final folds and to get into assembling the final model. I do not advise making a small version of this; preparing the triangles and folding the modules is tedious enough as it is, and you don't need to add fumbling with tiny pieces of paper to that. Other Things: You can use the triangular units Nakashima teaches you in the video to make the tetrahedron and octahedron, if that's more your style. You'll notice that I left out the D10, which is typically part of the standard D&D dice set. As of now, I still haven't found an origami diagram for it. All I've seen so far is those premade nets that you just have to glue together, and I want there to be a lot of involved folding for projects like this. I hope I find one at some point, because I'm not good enough at geometry to derive my own model Fujimoto-style. CREATING THE MODELS: As you can see above, I took the time to make some practice models so I know what I'm doing when I start using the paper I want. I got the hang of the models on the first go, so I focused more on experimenting with what size paper to work with. Afterwards, I prepared the origami paper my mom gifted me last Christmas (cutting them down to the desired size depending on the model) and got to work. While it would have been nice to have the dice be the same size, that would require me to calculate the ratio of the final model's size to the size of the starting paper. I decided to strike the balance between making the size for a particular model small enough that it'll roll (I observed that a larger surface area for something like a cube doesn't roll so much as slide when I throw) and having the paper not be too small that I can't make precise folds without a tool. I made sure to secure all the loose parts and modules of the final models with glue so that they don't fall apart when they're rolled. I took care to not overdo it, because too much or too little glue can cause weight imbalances that can affect the fairness of the dice. I then proceeded to follow the standard numbering conventions and labeled each face accordingly. Excuse my poor handwriting. Lastly, I decided to experiment with sealing the paper with material that will keep it from getting worn down too much. Realistically, I couldn't make the dice solid (i.e. they'll still crumple if I squeezed them in my hand) without putting something in the paper that can cause a weight imbalance, so making the exterior rigid with some sealing material is the next best thing I can do. I considered a few options for sealing based on advice from people who make origami jewelry (that's a future project for another time), and I ended up deciding between clear nail polish and epoxy resin. Considering how careless I can be, I decided against the latter (developing an epoxy sensitivity sounds like no joke) and instead bought some clear nail polish at the grocery store. Before I went forward with sealing the final models, I practiced with one of the practice cubes I made. Thanks to the built-in brush, applying the nail polish uniformly was very easy, but I was not prepared for the smell. Why do people put this on themselves? The odor is genuinely awful to me. THE MODELS AS DICE: Before I sealed the models, I played around with them as they were and spent a bit of time rolling them, seeing if they were obviously imbalanced in any way. I did not perform a rigorous testing process that can be described as statistically significant (I've done enough math just measuring out the paper, trust me), but as far as I can tell, the models roll properly and the numbers I get feel sufficiently random. I'm not going for perfectly random (that's probably impossible with my processes entirely done by my shaky hand), but I want the dice to be reasonably fair, and I'm hoping what I have here is good enough to be used in games. This was a fun project that not only featured some fun models to make, but also an interesting review of geometry, learning more about a bona fide origami master, and messing with sealing paper (which I may use again for a future project). I doubt I'll end up using this in D&D sessions since its fairness is dubious (unless I get an all-clear), but I'll have just as much fun rolling these just for the hell of it.
- end - Let the manga reading continue! BACKGROUND:
Surprise, surprise, I don't know anything about this series, either. I picked this one out because I thought the dynamic presented in the synopsis was interesting. SUMMARY: Hayami is what the kids call a girlboss, as she is pretty much the ace of her sales department, and she's caught the eye of her coworkers with her effortless beauty to boot. Unbeknownst to everyone, however, she is quite the slob at home, living in quite a pigsty. While she'd really prefer to live in better conditions, she just doesn't have her heart set in cleaning up, which leads her to keep her living situation a secret. Everything changes when Yamamoto, Hayami's junior, visits her house to return a lost item. He is horrified at what he finds (and his image of Hayami is quickly shattered), and Hayami quickly learns that Yamamoto is quite the neat freak (and a stern one at that). Hayami is amazed by Yamamoto's proficiency at cleaning, cooking, and all things domestic, and they end up spending more time together as he helps keep Hayami's place spic and span (while Hayami continues to be an excellent mentor to him at work). Not long after, an idea floats into Hayami's head: why don't the two of them just live together? She seems to enjoy Yamamoto's presence, his influence is enough to inspire her to sometimes do small things, and she can give it her all at work now that she doesn't have to think about housekeeping. Yamamoto agrees, and thus he becomes Hayami's "wife," while Hayami decides to take the role of breadwinner to pay for their new place. The pair decide to keep their living arrangement (which they agree is completely platonic) under wraps, though their coworkers end up gossiping anyway. The rest of the volume sees them navigate their new life together (the dynamic of which is largely Yamamoto dealing with Hayami's bullshit as she sits there amazed) and come to the realization that they each may have deeper feelings for the other person. Hayami starts to feel a bit of fear at the thought of Yamamoto finding some other girl (and not just because their arrangement has to end if that happens), while Yamamoto comes to terms that he may actually like Hayami. Neither of them really discuss their feelings until the end, where tensions start to run a bit high and they find themselves sleeping in the same room together. The circumstances that led to this are stupid, but the cliffhanger the volume ends on is anything but. Hayami is a pretty amusing lead given she's kind of the subversion of a usual trope, and while I know better to call the kettle black here, the extent of her messiness is legitimately terrifying (and nowhere near my occasional bouts of clutter). We get a little bit of how her messiness has affected her other relationships up until this point, though very little of why she became the way she is (which I would like to explore). Likewise, Yamamoto subverts the expectations for a character of his ilk, and I quite admire how put together he is (I can be as laser-focused on organizing and cleaning as he is, though both tend to falter pretty quickly when my emotional state takes a nosedive). He reveals a little bit of why he grew up to be such a whiz at housekeeping, though the mystery for him is what exactly about Hayami that draws him to her. As far as the romance goes, I'm not really invested yet since I don't have a sense of why Yamamoto likes Hayami despite her being the embodiment of his living nightmare. That being said, I totally understand Hayami's side of the story; I personally find it hard not to be taken by someone who excels at things you're not really good at and goes out of their way to be helpful and kind (especially if it's directed at you). People like that inspire you to be better yourself, and those are people worth building relationships (of any kind) with. A few other characters are introduced, but they don't get much screentime. The most significant ones to me are Akamine (a mutual coworker who somehow more girlboss vibes than Hayami and who's either interested in Yamamoto or sees Hayami as a rival) and Yamamoto's eldest brother (who pretty much acts like an overbearing mother and provides further context to why Yamamoto is the way he is). The dominant art style goes for a decent level of detail while keeping things in the light tones, but there are plenty of panels where they mix things up, like more dramatic shading to depict strong emotions, sillier, highly exaggerated facial expressions, sparkly effects for the more dreamlike points of view, and even variations in the linework (some panels look like they were done with marker or something close to crayon) and textures. Seeing all these variations made for a delightful read. VERDICT: Mr. Bride has fun with the whole role reversal of stereotypes by having an entertaining dynamic between the two leads (well-meaning but lazy woman who's also amazing at her job vs. put-together man who's still learning the ropes at work). I get that the romance between the two is going to be the heart of the story, but my interest at this point in the manga is more getting to know key aspects of the characters. Again, I totally get how Hayami falls for Yamamoto (and I want to see her succeed because I get it), but I feel like I don't know enough about her or Yamamoto to be invested in where the story will eventually lead. I will trust that later volumes will assuage my concerns, though. If a rom-com with these two interesting characters sounds like fun to you, this might be a manga for you. They set up the dynamic between the two pretty quickly while also not beating around the bush when it comes to setting up the romantic tension. I have no idea where it goes past the first volume, though that cliffhanger hints that things may get a bit intense. - end - Rare brought one more Super Nintendo game to the table with their Switch Online emulator rollout, and I'm talking about it today. BACKGROUND:
I have spoken about my background with the Battletoads series when I discussed the 2020 reboot (more on that here), so the only thing I'll add here is that I didn't know that there was a Super Nintendo entry in the series. SUMMARY: Battletoads in Battlemaniacs is split into six main levels, each with different gameplay. You play as either Pimple or Rash, and for many of the levels, you control them as you would in any other classic 2D beat-'em-up game. I'll discuss each of these levels in order. Before I get to the meat of the game, I ought to talk about the story. The gist is that the bad guys (Silas Volkmire and the Dark Queen) are up to no good and plan to use the power of another dimension to take over the world. In the process, the villains kidnap people, including Zitz (one of the Battletoads), and the remaining Battletoads jump into the other dimension to mount a rescue. It's nothing revolutionary, but I appreciate the silliness of this Saturday morning cartoon adventure (expressed mostly through the brief cutscenes between levels). The first level is the one that is the actual beat-'em-up. If you've played a game of this genre before, this will play quite familiar: move to the right, beat up a wave of enemies, then proceed ad infinitum. You don't really have that many moves (running, jumping, various strikes based on your state or the enemy's state, and a throw), and the variety of enemies is quite shallow, but it's still pretty fun to stunlock enemies and hit your finishers. The game messes with you in various ways outside of spawning enemies, like the ground falling apart (creating pits you can fall into) or fire raining down on you (dealing damage). Most of this level was manageable to me, including the end, which features a very simple boss fight. For the second level, you get a vertical auto-scroller where your character is on a floating platform. All you really have to do here is move around to avoid obstacles, though you do have to defeat the occasional enemy in order to proceed. The most dangerous hazards here are the spiked walls, and there are many gauntlets where you have to weave between whole sections of these (with a few forcing you to wrestle with increased speed or wind that pushes you towards the spikes). I found this mostly manageable until the insanely fast ending. The third level is a take on the infamous Turbo Tunnel stage from the original game (a level so infamous, even someone like me who has yet to play the NES game knows about it). This is an intense obstacle course where you pilot a speeder bike and try to dodge obstacles at high speed by swerving and jumping. I don't know how hard the original Turbo Tunnel was, but this level was no joke. You really have to have a lightning-quick reaction time, and the latter sections take things over the edge by not telegraphing the obstacles at all. It's definitely satisfying to beat, but I totally understand any controllers that have been spiked on the ground because of this level. Level 4 is a platforming challenge where you have to rely on moving snakes to get to the exit. There is very little margin for error here as well, as the snakes disappear once they've gotten to their point B, and many sections are riddled with instant-death spikes. I'd argue this is less forgiving than the speeder bike section since you have to figure out the layout as you go along, and each section takes longer to get through. Outside of the unforgiving aspect, it's a serviceable platforming level. We get a rather radical change for the fifth level, as it's sort of a race on rails. The idea is to stay ahead of the lunatic chasing you down with a buzzsaw-equipped vehicle by holding the correct direction such that you maintain as much of your top speed as possible. This is another one that requires you to know the layout in order to succeed, and as far as I can tell, you have to do this all in one shot, which is pretty challenging because your enemy here is always on your ass regardless of how well you're doing. It's probably the level I like the least because of this. For the final stage, you go back to 2D platformer gameplay, but the goal now is to beat the bad guy (who is a rat) to the three checkpoints with TNT by falling down the level and going through the gaps in the platforms. You can whack the rat to knock them back a little and give yourself space, and apart from a few sections with hazards, this part is straightforward. Once you get to the end, you fight the final boss, who is incredibly easy, and you get a little minigame that determines the ending of the story. At two points during the campaign, you will be taken to bonus stages where you try to earn as many points as you can by collecting bowling pins or dominoes while avoiding hazards (which not only hurts you, but also decreases your point total). This is the place to earn extra lives (as that's what your points will be converted to), but getting through the gauntlet unscathed is easier said than done. There is no penalty for dying here, though, so don't worry about any serious penalty. While I thought the graphics were pretty solid (especially the wacky animations of the Battletoads when performing attacks), what truly stood out to me was the awesome music. Many of the tracks are absolute jams with a mostly rock and techno vibe, and they really fit the high-octane action of many of the levels. They also made failing more palatable, since that just means I could listen to the music some more. VERDICT: Battletoads in Battlemaniacs is pretty short, but it manages to keep things interesting all throughout with distinct experiences per level. How fun each level is varies quite a bit (I definitely enjoy some more than others), and the overall difficulty led to a few moments of frustration, but I would say my experience here is a net positive. I think I would have enjoyed if there were more beat-'em-up levels, as I feel like this game barely scratches the surface with what it could do for those sections. Apart from that, I liked what I played here, and it reaffirms that I have to get around to playing the original Battletoads. As far as I can tell, many of the levels in this game aren't exactly new, as they're iterations of what I've seen on the NES game. If you just want a vertical slice of what Battletoads is all about, I suppose this is a fine enough place to start, though I think many would say that the original should be the first stop for anyone interested in the series (it is a bona fide classic that I'd say more than deserves the "essential" distinction). Regardless, I recommend not being shy with save states or rewinds when playing through this, because it's a good example of old-school hard. - end - I do my absolute best to seek out and play as many unique games as I can. I think this definitely qualifies as "unique." BACKGROUND:
A good friend brought this game to my attention, and we were in agreement that it was a really creative concept. Said friend ended up buying the game not long after, and I was further convinced when I actually got to see the game in action. Let's just say that my friend had a convincing argument on top of that, which leads us to today. PLOT: There's no story for this one. PRESENTATION: The actual game elements are pretty minimalistic, as you only really get basic shapes in flat colors. Such an aesthetic is not uncommon for games of this type, and it's tried and true for a reason. Having things be simple and clear is important so that you don't lose yourself when the game ups the ante and starts filling the screen with objects. The visuals here get the job done adequately, which is as much as I can ask for in this case. Where this game will stand out visually is how all its action takes place in windowed mode. The entire gimmick of this game is that the action takes place in a constantly resizing window, and as you go along, other game elements (including the menus) will appear on their own separate windows. It's precisely this gimmick that sold us on the game, as it's such a unique way to contain the action. The game will stutter in situations where multiple windows are loaded at once, but once everything levels out, the frenetic chaos of multiple pop-ups and windows moving by themselves is highly entertaining. They go all the way with the gimmick, too, as extra windows (like the ones for bosses) can even have unique names. You're able to customize the appearance of the windows once you start unlocking cosmetics. This includes the backgrounds, which includes an amusing transparent option, allowing you to play the game while seeing your desktop or any other window you have up on your screen. You can even customize the design of the windows themselves; you can choose to keep the Windows 10/11 style to match your PC's operating system, but there are other options like the Ubuntu window or older iterations of Windows (including XP and '98). I was quite amused by this option, though as a former Mac user, I'd love for an old school OS X option. You only have a few options for the soundtrack (with all but one requiring you to get achievements to unlock), but I will say that despite the fact that I was stuck listening to one track for each run, I enjoyed the high tempo percussion of the default track. The alternate tracks change up the vibe quite a bit, which is nice, though I imagine I may eventually play my own music on top of this game if I find myself playing this for extended periods of time. GAMEPLAY: Windowkill is more or less a classic shoot-'em-up where you try to survive as long as you can by moving your character around and shooting down an endless swarm of enemies. Going by this description, it's understandable to wonder what makes this one special when there are a ton of games that can be described with the exact same summary. That is where the window gimmick comes in; instead of your typical full screen experience, your playfield takes place exclusively in windowed mode, and the main window where you move around resizes constantly. The main window always tries to shrink down to a specific size, which makes keeping track of enemies challenging since you don't have much space to see them coming in (let alone maneuver around them). In order to make the rest of the field visible, you can shoot the borders of the window. This will resize the window in the direction you're shooting, allowing you to see anything over there as well as giving you extra real estate to move around it. Juggling the task of taking down enemies and manipulating the window to give yourself space and vision is quite tricky, especially when more stuff starts spawning. The basic enemies you run into are pretty straightforward, having one action that you have to watch out for. These range from simple triangles that just move slowly toward you, static heptagons that take a lot of hits and occupy precious space, and octagons that shoot little pellets at you. None of them are threatening on their own, and the real challenge is overcoming an onslaught of them while wrestling with the constantly shrinking window. Killing enemies drops purple currency, which you can spend at the shop for power-ups that will help tip the scales in your favor. Many of the power-ups upgrade or enhance your basic properties, like movement speed, fire rate, an additional projectile, extra HP, and so much more. Upgrades of this kind stack, so you can keep buying them when they come up to further enhance that property. Other power-ups are abilities that are cast instantaneously, like healing HP, activating a temporary shield, and a brief currency multiplier. You can bring up the shop at any time during a run, and you will always have a random choice of three that are replaced as you buy them. There is an option to spend cash to reroll the current selection, as well as the ability to lock one or two of the available power-ups so they don't get rerolled. Keep in mind that as you buy power-ups or use the reroll option, the prices will go up, but based on my observations, the currency drops as you survive will scale up such that you can still purchase stuff at a reasonable rate. The longer a run goes, the more likely you are to encounter bosses. There are only a handful of them to fight, but they each stand out as memorable with their unique gimmicks. Many of them spawn in their own separate windows away from where you are, and often, you'll have to expand your window such that it overlaps with theirs, at which point you'll be able to damage them. These bosses take up quite a lot of space, too, so maneuvering yourself to a position where you can damage them is tough with such little real estate and the fact that regular enemies don't stop spawning when they appear. Most of the bosses embody the chaos that is possible in this game, as their extra windows (which can either contain parts of them or indicate what attacks they're using) will pop up like annoying ads on your screen, but one boss in particular takes the gimmick to its logical conclusion, as the only way to damage it is to click the Close button on its respective window. I found this quite entertaining, but it definitely led to moments where I accidentally clicked outside the game. Defeating bosses awards you a star, which you can use to buy Perks. These are special abilities that last the entire run, and they include spawning extra windows that let you see other parts of the field without having to shoot your way to that spot. One of these windows is fixed and damages enemies that pass through, while the other type is actually one you can reposition like any other window to scout the area. Like your normal power-ups, Perks can be leveled up by spending more stars on them, making them more potent. One of the perks is an ability you can activate with another button, after which it enters a short cooldown. At the start, this ability is one that resizes the window to close to its max size, allowing you to see most of the field. There are abilities other than this one, which leads me to the next thing. This game also has a roster of playable "characters," with their primary difference being how they shoot. For example, the starting character shoots pellets, while another fires a laser burst. They also have a unique perk corresponding to the special ability that I mentioned. The rest of the characters have to be unlocked, but I'd say they're worth the trouble since they play so differently from each other. All unlockable content in this game is tied to achievements, so there's something to aim for other than trying to survive for as long as you can. If that's more your thing, the game does track your stats. There's also a timed mode if you're not in the mood for the regular endless mode, and the goal here is to simply survive for 20 minutes. You get a neat little cutscene of sorts when you reach the end, but other than that, it's functionally the same game. Apparently, there's a multiplayer mode, but it appears to be local-only, so I don't really know what that's about. VERDICT: Windowkill's flavor of shooter has been done many times before over the course of decades, but its ingenious use of windows (both the main one that changes size and the extra pop-ups) elevates a familiar experience into something truly unique. I can't think of any other game where the very window the game takes place in is part of the gameplay (let alone the core gimmick), and I loved all the creative ways windows are used to add a type of challenge that I'm pretty sure doesn't exist in any other twin-stick shooter. If this game were just the shooter aspect, I'd find it serviceable but not groundbreaking; the mechanics work well and there's fun to be had with the roguelike progression and the power-ups, but it's nothing I haven't seen before. The multiple window concept is truly what makes this game special, and it's more than just a visual novelty. From having to manually give myself space by physically expanding the playfield, to actually manipulating the actual windows, and even the amusing transparent background, I was amazed by the creativity showcased here, and it's my hope that future updates will continue to push the envelope and introduce even more wild ways to incorporate windows into the gameplay. I highly recommend this game to anybody on the merit of its concept alone. That's how much I'm blown away by the cleverness of it. As far as the shooter side of the game, each run is a gradual ascent in difficulty, so you won't get blindsided by a bullet hell two minutes in. The main caveats here are the roguelike elements (particularly the randomness of power-ups) and the very real possibility that this game will do a number on your CPU. The window resizing and the pop-ups aren't smoke and mirrors; those are the things that the game actually does, and the frequency at which these happen may adversely affect your PC's performance. There are various settings to mitigate this and any other issues, however, so don't be discouraged even if you have a lower end PC. Check out the game on Steam; it's pretty cheap! Windowkill on Steam (steampowered.com) - end - I continue my monthly challenge with this romance manga. I told you I didn't have a shortage of those. BACKGROUND:
This was a friend recommendation that works pretty well for the theme I'm going for in March since it has a female lead. They labeled it a "typical shoujo" on my list, though I don't think I've read enough to know exactly what that means. SUMMARY: Moe Sasaki is a transfer student at a new high school, having had to move to her mother's hometown after her father's passing. She's having trouble moving past her loss, and she's also struggling to fit in with her peers (ending up a loner), but everything changes when she's "rescued" in a fire drill by the serious but kind-hearted Kyosuke Ebihara, one of the local firefighters. They end up crossing paths more as the volume progresses, and Moe's admiration turns into infatuation as she finds comfort in Kyosuke's reliable, caring nature. A lot of the scenarios involve Kyosuke bailing her out of trouble (including one serious run-in with a serial arsonist), which irks Kyosuke as he notices how careless Moe can be at times. Above all else, Kyosuke inspires Moe to be more confident and responsible, which helps her find friends in school and grants her the courage to take the initiative in her everyday life. She also tries very hard to emulate Kyosuke's example and attempts to do the responsible thing in most situations, though she gets herself in trouble more often than not. Such situations typically end in Kyosuke getting her out of a jam, though she certainly doesn't mind the attention. Though Moe wishes Kyosuke would reciprocate her feelings, he's not making it easy. For one, he sees his rescuing of Moe as simply doing his duty, and he is quick to remind Moe to stay out of trouble and to think before acting. For another, he appears to be actively putting up a wall between him and Moe, as the book makes clear that he threw himself into his work after dealing with a devastating loss of his own. None of this deters Moe, however, as she talks with Kyosuke regularly and even goes out of her way to try to help him when he gets sick (stating that she wants to be able to rescue him when he's in trouble as some sort of recompense). Other characters are introduced, though they don't get as much screentime. Moe's friends assume she and Kyosuke are dating and find the thought romantic, while Kyosuke's coworkers occasionally find themselves on the receiving end of his stern warnings in training scenarios. Perhaps the most notable characters outside those groups are Moe's younger brother Ryu (who, like his sister, misses his dad, and finds comfort in a male role model with Kyosuke) and Kyosuke's boss, who seems privy to what he has gone through and encourages him to move forward. The art is pretty solid in terms of the level of detail, between well-drawn faces and somewhat intricate background elements. I also noticed the prominence of lighter tones throughout the book, which makes the contrast of how Kyosuke (who is raven-haired) is drawn quite notable. VERDICT: As far as romance stories go, My Boyfriend in Orange is (so far) nothing I haven't seen before: girl falls head over heels for this perfect guy, but he doesn't see her that way just yet. I get where Moe is coming from (who wouldn't want to date a hot firefighter who's as responsible and effortlessly dashing as Kyosuke?), and I like that regardless of how things may turn out for the two of them, crossing paths with Kyosuke inspired her to be a more confident person. I also find Kyosuke interesting as a character, as it's clear that there's more to him than just what he puts out there, and I wonder what it will take for him to show his vulnerabilities (or even what those are). The whole point of the story is likely them ending up together, but I'm honestly more interested in the characters as individuals at this point, as it's clear that having each other in their lives will lead to growth for both of them. I could probably take or leave any drama that follows in later volumes, since they'll probably go through some common scenarios (like love triangles and such). This seems like a pretty standard romance story formula with some solid characters, so if you're into that, this may be worth reading. - end - It might as well be tradition for me to do at least one of these every March. THE THEME: It's a Leading Ladies theme. You know the drill. The theme within the theme this time, however, focuses on comic adaptations of popular TV shows with female leads. Incidentally, everything I read here is published by Dynamite Entertainment, which only adds to the astounding number of IPs I'm surprised they have licenses for. And for the record, I only really know of these shows and haven't seen any of them apart from perhaps the occasional clip online. THE COMICS: XENA: WARRIOR PRINCESS (2016) #1 Publisher: Dynamite Comics Writer: Genevieve Valentine Artist: Ariel Medel While Xena and her companion Gabrielle help two young girls get home, they learn that a faction called the Harpies seem to be wreaking havoc. Knowing them to be an ally against the Roman Empire, Xena tries to learn what she can, but the ending reveals that she may not know as much about the Harpies as she thought she did. CHARLIE'S ANGELS #1 Publisher: Dynamite Comics Writer: John Layman Artist: Joe Eisma This comic follows the original Angels from the TV show (AKA not the ones from the movie, which is the incarnation I grew up with) as they go undercover to catch an arms dealer who uses a club as a front. It's got all the action and espionage I expect from the series, plus a dash of romance for one of the Angels and a hint of an overarching plot involving a pair of assassins. ELVIRA: MISTRESS OF THE DARK #1 Publisher: Dynamite Comics Writer: David Avalone Artist: Dave Acosta Elvira is the host of a show called Movie Macabre, which was one of those shows where a host presents movies (in this case, horror B movies). In this story, Elvira is transported from her movie set to the 1800s by an otherworldly force, where she meets Mary Shelley (the author of Frankenstein, among other things) and fights some sort of evil warrior. The premise is definitely weird, and the comic embraces that with a good helping of goofy, fourth wall-breaking humor. CHARLIE'S ANGELS VS. THE BIONIC WOMAN #1 Publisher: Dynamite Comics Writer: Cameron DeOrdio Artist: Soo Lee The Angels cross paths with the Bionic Woman (also a hit TV show from the same era) in this one, but they're unfortunately adversaries here, as the Angels are tasked to infiltrate a facility that Jaime (the titular Bionic Woman) was requested to defend. I'm curious if they succumb to the trope where they eventually team up to fight a common foe. CHARMED #1 Publisher: Dynamite Comics Writer: Erica Schultz Artist: Maria Sanapo This comic seems to be set in the modern day, but otherwise follows the formula of the Halliwell sisters juggling their mission to fight evil supernatural entities with their witch powers and the hassles of daily life. There seems to be a plot brewing on the side of evil, although the sisters are yet to register it. I think my main takeaway with this selection is that I should go back and watch these shows (maybe not all their episodes, but at least a season or two). All these shows are familiar enough to me, which speaks to their impact on pop culture, but I only know the surface-level stuff. As always, I'm interested in exploring the source material of something if I see the adaptation first, and this is no exception. PANEL(s) OF THE WEEK: - end -
I'm taking on another retro Rare game on NSO, and it's quite the interesting one. BACKGROUND:
I've actually never heard of this one, and that had me excited to jump into it. SUMMARY: Snake Rattle 'n' Roll is a platformer with an isometric view where you control a snake and navigate through ten tricky levels (plus one extra stage) with a lot of verticality and hazards. You have to get to the end of each level, but the catch is that in order to open the exit, your snake must have enough segments to tip the scale found elsewhere in the level. In order to do this, you must eat little colored pellets (often generated at dispensers) until the snake's last segment is flashing. As the snake, you can jump and stick out your tongue to both gobble up pellets and attack enemies. The controls may get some getting used to since everything's in an isometric perspective, but apart from the utterly infuriating levels with slippery floors or flowing water currents, movement feels mostly responsive. Good thing, too, as you'll have to deal with difficult enemy placements and precise jumps as you go along. Aside from enemies (who only really have set movement patterns and don't do anything more complex), you'll have to deal with hazards like the aforementioned challenging terrain (which will send you to your doom), things that can squish you, pointy platforms (which you cannot land on), and falling past a certain height. While enemies touching you only take away one of your segments, everything else I mentioned will typically kill you instantly. If you only have your head remaining, enemy contact will cost you a life as well. You also have to contend with a level timer, which takes away a life if you hit zero. Thankfully, you can find extra lives in some of the levels, and if you do happen to die, you respawn right where you were instead of starting the level over. I took advantage of this in a few challenging levels by taking a death and using the invincibility frames to damage boost through hazards. The overall difficulty really ramps up the closer you get to the end, as the levels will demand serious precision, wrestling with terrain you can't control yourself on, and trying to juggle all of that while a timer winds down. The last level in particular drove me up the wall, as that entire level was slippery floor with insanely precise jumps. Another one of the levels also doesn't communicate how to proceed, as it involves picking up a power-up that is not seen anywhere else and interacting with something that you never have to interact with in any other level. Though pretty much all the levels are linear, you can explore a tiny bit to find power-ups, access bonus stages, and even find warps to later levels. On the subject of power-ups, you can pick up helpful things like extra lives, a power-up to extend your tongue's range, and a diamond that grants brief invincibility. There are also power-ups that screw you over, though, with the prime example being the power-up that reverses your controls. The final stage is odd, as it's kind of a weird "boss fight," except the enemy doesn't really fight back, and you're really only trying to attack it while dodging other hazards. It's rather tough because you have to deal damage with no breaks until it dies, but I don't think it's on the level of difficult of the level that preceded it. I obviously didn't get to try this, but it looks like this game can be played in two-player where you go through levels at the same time. I think there's a competitive aspect where you try to get more points than the other player (based on the victory screen between levels), but I don't know much else. Both the isometric view and the tiled levels are reminiscent of Marble Madness (a well-known title from the arcade era), but the levels here have more personality between the less rigid style, more interesting level elements like bodies of water, and cartoony sprites. The music and sound effects are also delightful, and after learning that the soundtrack was composed by renowned composer David Wise, I'm not surprised that each level has delightful jams to go along with them. VERDICT: Although the last stretch of levels really tested my patience, I thought Snake Rattle 'n' Roll was a fun platformer that mixes the isometric obstacle course conceit of Marble Madness with action platformer elements and an interesting collection aspect with how you have to eat to open the level exit. Apart from the levels I called out as frustrating, going through the game was mostly fun, and I also enjoyed the game's quirky personality between its visuals and sounds. It would be cool to see this game reinvented for the modern age with streamlined controls and more level mechanics. I don't think there are many games quite like this one, and I think that's reason enough to give Snake Rattle 'n' Roll a go regardless of what you're into. It does get quite difficult as you go along, so I wouldn't feel bad about using save states or the rewind feature. - end - I'm checking out more PS Plus Extra games today with this one. BACKGROUND:
I watched a friend of mine play this when they had a free sub to PC Game Pass, and it looked like a chill time. We ended up forgetting the name of the game after a while, and it took me digging through PS Plus Extra's catalog to remember what it was. PLOT: You follow an unnamed pilgrim as they make their journey through a beautiful world to follow in the footsteps of their people. As you go around collecting the game's glyphs, you learn of the story of the people of this world, who followed a mystical light and left the world in search of a better one. These people were led by the staffbearers, who were able to channel the world's light (which can be found in many objects and organisms in the world) and harness their power for all sorts of things. It is never explained where exactly they ended up after embarking on their great journey, but that's what our character is here to find out. Our protagonist is truly determined to reach this promised land their people have seemingly found, braving the elements to get to their goal. Their journey is a lonely one (save for an animal friend who tags along with them), but there otherwise aren't really any physical threats to contend with as they travel across the world. What elevates this story above the standard "great journey" story for me is the fact that the protagonist makes a major realization about their journey midway through it. As they make their way through the world, they find themselves admiring everything there is to see, and that admiration eventually becomes a bittersweet feeling as they realize that they'll be leaving all this wonder behind once they cross over into the light. By the end, they find themselves questioning if this light is really all that when the world they're already in has so much to offer. The overall theme of stopping to smell the roses, appreciating where you're at in the present, and not getting too lost in some big goal is one that resonated with me, and I could connect with the feeling the protagonist had as they gradually made this realization. I found myself thinking how this "light" they're going to must really be something if they're willing to leave this wonderful world behind, and I was glad they found something to appreciate and cherish within said world despite the fact that they're pretty much alone in it. Granted, a lot of this story is told through the optional glyph collectibles in the game, and you really only get to the interesting bit very close to the end. That may not be worth it to some, but with how the game is structured, you're likely going to pick these collectibles up anyway. None of them are particularly hard to find, and the game doesn't overwhelm you by splitting up the collectibles somewhat evenly across each area. The game doesn't really go too deep on the lore of the staffbearers and the nature of the light they harness, but that actually works to the story's advantage since the whole journey is about realizing that what every other person in this world sought doesn't necessarily need to be your character's endgame. Yes, I found myself wondering about all this light stuff, but by the end, I found that appreciating what I had seen up until that point was just as, if not more fulfilling than the possibility of finding the answers the protagonist was also looking for. PRESENTATION: This game is quite beautiful despite the simplicity of its 3D models, environments, and textures. The wide variety of landscapes are brought to life with vibrant colors (made more so with a cel-shaded style), the abundance of nature (from lush flora to adorable or majestic-looking creatures), and the scant but nonetheless ethereal architecture left behind by the civilization that came before. I took the time to take in the sights and was treated to snowcapped mountains, lively forests, beautiful skies, and colossal (yet friendly) creatures. The fact that every location in the game was a memorably picturesque sight worked perfectly in tandem with the story, which was all about appreciating what it had to offer. The music helped bring an atmosphere of wonder to the already breathtaking world, as the score was as beautiful as the visuals. I already found myself captivated by all the locations you visit in the game, but they go the extra mile with tracks that made the simple act of looking at these places somehow feel like a moving, emotional experience. GAMEPLAY: Omno is a 3D plaftormer where the goal is simply to explore each of the game's areas and find at least three of the orb collectibles to unlock that area's puzzle. Once you solve the puzzle, you move onto the next area, and you repeat the process until you get to the end. Exploration is as chill as it gets, with zero combat to deal with and mostly easy puzzles. The most challenge you may deal with is the occasional tricky platforming (mostly in cycle-based sections) or the danger of falling into the abyss, but since the game has checkpoints and lets you play at your own pace, even these elements barely registered as stressors. I will say that platforming itself isn't perfect, as the occasionally strange geometry of some platforms can lead to you falling off. Each area feels vast at first glance, but they're all actually not that large. Still, it's a delight to wander around and take in the sights, and there is room for optional areas and collectibles in most areas. I wouldn't go as far as to say that anything's deviously hidden, but you still have to be fairly attentive if you want to collect everything. While the bare minimum to proceed is three of the collectible orbs, each area can be 100% by finding all the other collectibles. These include the bonus orbs (which also give you options on what to go for if you're just trying to beat the game quickly), the glyphs (which tell the pilgrim's story, so they're worth getting), and interacting with the game's many creatures (which rewards you with something akin to a Pokedex entry for them). There's also a meditation spot that reveals the location of all the orbs if you use it, which (along with the readily available completion percentage tracker) will help with completion. There's a mechanic where you draw light energy from interacting with creatures and objects in the world, but it's only used to activate obelisks (which, in turn, give you one easy orb). I kind of wish this mechanic saw more use, because it made accumulating energy pointless after activating the obelisk. If it's any consolation, one way to get energy was to interact with the creatures of the game (which let you see their adorable behaviors), but apart from that, I wish energy had some other purpose. The game's puzzles make use of mechanics like switches that activate things like moving platforms, blocks you can push so you have something to bridge gaps, devices that involve matching patterns, rings/gates you have to travel to in order to activate some other thing, and light orbs you can move between terminals to toggle all sorts of devices. Again, none of it is complicated, but it was nice to have these puzzles to keep things interesting after you've explored an area. Your character also gains a few traversal abilities that you use in some of the more platforming-based challenges of the game. These include a forward dash, a float that lets you descend slowly, the ability to surf down slopes, and the ability to teleport to special warp points in the world. They all serve their purpose, though I will note that the teleport and the float are used in interesting ways. The surf is also fun, but I wish it weren't restricted to downhill movement. VERDICT: Admittedly, Omno isn't a game that's new in my eyes. I've definitely played more than a few atmospheric, chill 3D platformers with beautiful visuals, a mostly esoteric story, and an emotional hook (I've talked about some of them here, too). While I found that games like that leave me wanting more in one or more of the departments, Omno appears to be the first instance I can recall where everything they set out to do here mostly lands for me. Exploring the world is a delight while not being a chore, the game doesn't give you too many execution-heavy platforming sections, the puzzles are neat (if a bit basic), and the story resonated with me more than I expected it to at first. I personally would have loved if the gameplay had more meat to it, but apart from that, I enjoyed this casual experience. Considering this is the third game of this kind I've encountered so far (at least in terms of what I've talked about on here and what I can remember), it might be a safe bet that "chill 3D platformer with pretty visuals" is its own subgenre at this point. If such a subgenre is your cup of tea, Omno is the one game I feel most comfortable recommending above the others I've played at this point. Anybody can pick up this game with no trouble at all, and while the story takes a while to get going, I think it's one most people can connect with. It is, however, a short game, so if you're a stickler for the whole money vs. playtime ratio, you might want to wait for a sale. Omno is available on Steam: Omno on Steam (steampowered.com) - end - For the month of March, my personal challenge is to read manga with female protagonists. This won't be difficult, either (I am not starved for choices, trust me), but it's more to make picking what to read easier for myself since I've been having difficulty choosing from literally hundreds of titles. BACKGROUND:
As usual, I'm coming in with no prior knowledge at all. I did read the synopsis, though, and it seems like this will be an interesting mix of comedy and a coming-of-age story. SUMMARY: O Maidens in Your Savage Season follows the story of a high school literature club made up of five girls. You have the de facto main character Kazusa Onodera, her good friend and "comrade" Momoko Sudo, the silent, brooding writer Hitoha Hongo, the super prudish Rika Sonezaki, and Nina Sugawara, the most popular girl in school. They're a bit of an odd bunch, but they certainly enjoy their books. The story kicks off right after the club reads a rather erotic book, which prompts very different responses from the club members. For the most part, the manga focuses on Kasuza's perspective, as she navigates being introduced to intense language in the more adult books they've been reading. What complicates her feelings about sex is her relationship with her childhood friend Izumi, who she's starting to see differently. Kazusa already avoids him as it is due to bullies getting on her case (Izumi is seen as attractive by the other girls), and here comes the concept of sex to mess things up further. Things get even more complicated when Kazusa catches Izumi jerking off (that's awkward, obviously, and it puts sex on her mind even more), and she learns that some other girl is looking to confess to him. The latter has the more profound effect on Kazusa, as she slowly but surely comes to terms that she has feelings for Izumi. Kazusa's journey with accepting the nature of sex seems in line with that of a lot of adolescents, so the wrinkle of having a specific guy she likes on her mind makes her journey slightly more interesting. Nina is a curious one, as no one really knows why she decided to join the literature club. In any case, she reveals to the group that she is quite curious about sex (thanks in no small part to its prominence in literature) and is interested in experiencing it for herself. Her appearance has her deal with creeps, unfortunately, although she's able to handle those situations creatively with her theater experience. I'm not really sure what her character arc is supposed to be yet, but it's nice to see that there's at least one person in the club who at least appears to be level-headed about everything. Sonezaki is outspoken when it comes to her aversion to sex, as she cannot stand even the mention of it apart from her idea of tasteful eroticism. She gets a lot of shit for her looks and gets bullied for it, and combined with her inability to process that one guy at school seems to genuinely like her, it becomes clear that her disdain for all things sexual is her repressing something. She's pretty much the extreme when it comes to attitudes about sex, so seeing her wrestle with all that should lead to some big character moments for her. Hongo doesn't really interact with the rest of the group, but you see that she gets plenty out of being in the club. On the side, she's quietly working on her writing, and she's taking heavy inspiration from the club readings to write her own steamy stories. She's even going as far as to submit manuscripts to publishers, but it seems like she has a long way to go before becoming a published writer. Outside of that, she doesn't seem to have a personal journey of her own, though she might get one that eventually influences her future in writing. Lastly, you have Momoko, who sadly gets the short end of the stick in terms of character. The extent of her presence is assenting to whatever Kazusa is saying, so I'm left wondering if she has her own story going on or what her personal thoughts are on everything that's going on. The manga alternates between literature club meetings and the situations the individual members get into, with Kazusa getting the most screentime overall. The club meetings are humorous, as everyone dances around the whole sex thing (not that weird considering everyone's age), but the ending throws a wrench into everything as the club is under threat of being disbanded by the administration. The art is pretty nice with its decent level of detail, and I particularly enjoyed the variance when it comes to the shading and the linework (as some panels really mix it up with lighter tones and thinner lines). That variance really comes across when Nina is present, as she appears to be drawn quite differently from the rest of the cast. VERDICT: O Maidens in Your Savage Season features quite the cast trying to deal with the revelation that is sex, and while there's a solid mix of personalities within the literature club, the amount of focus given to each feels far from equal. I'm curious about the how Kazusa and Sonezaki will grow from their current state, for example, while I find myself left wanting more out of Hongo or Momoko (who don't get as many character moments). I would read more of this if I knew everyone ends up having a fleshed-out and unique arc, though I am interested to see how the threat of nonexistence of the club would actually affect their high school lives. If you find humor and/or something relatable about of a group of high school girls navigating through their awkward feelings about sex, this book might be exactly what you're looking for. I can't really say if they stick the landing when it comes to character arcs, though. - end - |
Categories
All
Archives
June 2024
Derryck
|