Maurício Katayama

“Eternal Hope is a game with an excellent visual and sound presentation, which make charming the dark and disturbing universe in which the adventure takes place. Despite having unresponsive controls and a character whose slowness often causes distress to the player, the design of the puzzles is simple and challenging in good measure, combined with the mechanics of transition between worlds that enhance this short, but memorable journey.”

“Freshly Frosted is a satisfying, charming and positivity-filled puzzle. Its mechanics are extremely simple to understand and yet the challenges presented are quite varied, with a good amount of puzzles ranging from the obvious to the extremely challenging, providing relaxing entertainment and a lot of desire to run out to taste a donut.”

“Yars: Recharged is a great remake that vastly improves the gameplay of the original classic, featuring new weapons, more challenges and more balanced difficulty, with original graphics and music that reinforce its modern retro spirit. Unfortunately the gameplay can become repetitive over time, in addition to having a bug that reduces the music as we go through the levels and that spoils the experience a little. Still, it's a solid, fun game for anyone who wants to challenge themselves with a simple, mechanically satisfying indie game.”

“Missile Command: Recharged is a beautiful reinterpretation of the classic, which serves very well the proposal to satisfy the nostalgic audience that spent afternoons defending cities on arcade screens or the Atari 2600. The aesthetic and mechanical modernizations are very welcome and really improve the gameplay. As for the audience that doesn't have nostalgic feelings for the classic, perhaps the game is unflattering for the repetitive gameplay and lack of variation. Still, it's a well-made remake of an immortal classic, with basic gameplay but at the same time straight to the point, which can yield good moments of fun.”

“Punhos de Repúdio is a simple beat 'em up and has a short campaign, offering beautiful hand-drawn arts and fluid animations. The game mechanics, while simple, are really fun, highlighted by the importance of using defense at the right timing, unlike most games in the genre, which focus entirely on offense. The Brazilian game is a satire that doesn't mince its efforts with gore content and improper language but, if that doesn't bother you — and you don't feel offended by it —, it will give you a mechanically fun brawler game and a funny portrait of a fictional but familiar environment like the current Brazilian society.”

“With a very competent level design, Hazel Sky offers a pleasant environment to explore and well-planned puzzles, combined with a well-conducted narrative that will make the player reflect on the game's universe. Despite the lack of punctual polish in mechanics and voice acting, the engaging story, the beautiful settings and the interaction of the characters make this short adventure an interesting experience.”

“Of Bird and Cage presents a very interesting premise that mixes a movie, a metal concert and a game. Unfortunately, it fails to execute this idea, with poorly polished graphics and gameplay and a poor story. The soundtrack is neat and there is a great effort by the developer in this aspect, but it is not enough to sustain the title. It's worth a conceptual experience, but as entertainment, it leaves something to be desired.”

“Senren Banka is a visual novel with beautiful artwork and emotional romance and drama scenes. It's a work with good artistic direction and, despite its main plot having a slow start that's a little unappealing, it starts getting better in the love interest routes themselves. The main strength of this visual novel is on the uncertainties of love rather than its erotic appeal.”

“Full of personality, with complex characters, deep plot and an extremely original game design, Wolfstride is an unforgettable title, which permeates moments of humor and drama with fun and surprisingly complex combat despite its apparent simplicity. Despite having some reservations about its rhythm and repetitive grinding, it's one of the most creative games I've ever had the opportunity to try.”

“Deadcraft is a creative and addictive game that introduces new ideas and subverts established concepts for zombie games, balancing farm management with survival and combat mechanics. The immense amount of activities available has the potential to entertain the player for hundreds of hours.”

“Seven Pirates H is a simple and fun JRPG with unique mechanics, filled with absurd humor, with satisfying gameplay and an unabashed focus on fanservice as its selling point. On one side, this emphasis on eroticism can be uncomfortable for some people. On the other, it'll definitely please adults looking specifically for this feature. It isn't a game recommended for everyone, but it certainly has appeal for its target audience.”

“Taito Milestones is a very simple emulator that, for the general public, may be of little interest due to the simplicity of the works available here and the lack of extra features. I consider the selection of ten games too small comparing it to other collections previously released, such as Taito Legends e Taito Memories. Though they represent various genres, I felt the absence of titles of more value, more significance to Taito's legacy. I recommend this product to those interested in the history of arcades who wish to know Taito titles of various genres from their early works. If a specific title in the collection is desired, it may be more appropriate to buy it individually on the eShop.”

“Takorita Meets Fries is a short pastime, with predictable and unvaried endings. The absence of an interesting script, low replayability and poorly worked art make it difficult to recommend. Perhaps it could be considered a children's book aimed at young children, but its style of humor rules out even that possibility. Despite its friendly atmosphere, I believe there are better titles to occupy your time on Switch.”

“Kansei the Second Turn HD is a short, engaging adventure that will keep the player entertained for roughly the length of a mystery movie. The characters are interesting and their paranormal powers add elements of fiction that set this title apart from other police investigation visual novels. Despite not having Brazilian Portuguese localization, its interface perfectly integrated into the Switch's hardware makes this game an interesting experience for enthusiasts of the genre.”

“Reverie Knights Tactics is a great RPG, with a unique art style, captivating characters, a deep story and rich in details. Combat is challenging and tactically deep, and requires the player to think ahead when making decisions. Even those who don't enjoy a challenge will enjoy it playing in Story mode. It is a highly recommended game for tactical RPG enthusiasts, especially fans of Holy Avenger and the Tormenta universe.”

“In My Shadow is a platform puzzle with a good premise, interesting mechanics, but it's not that fun in practice. The idea of manipulating objects to use their shadows on multiple planes is fantastic, but the puzzles end up requiring a lot of trial and error, which becomes tedious and frustrating. It has an emotional backstory, but it hasn't been explored very well, leaving many questions unanswered.”

“Shadow Tactics: Blades of the Shogun - Aiko's Choice is a chance to re-encounter our favorite assassin quintet in unique and impeccably well-planned missions. It's true that no new additions were included in the expansion, but on the other hand, it carefully executes what was already excellent and deepens the story of one of its most beloved characters. It is highly recommended for those who enjoy RTS and mandatory for those who liked the original title.”

“Red Ronin is an indie that unites action and board mechanics in an exciting turn-based tactical game. The visual and sound effects are very stylish and convey the feeling of extreme skill on the part of the protagonist. The first half of the campaign is excellent and will hook the player, but the final missions can be a rather tiring exercise in trial and error. It's a title with interesting premises and recommended for anyone who wants to try a tactical puzzle, but with frantic action.”

“Little Bug is a platform puzzle with unique mechanics that shows how simplicity doesn't equate to lack of challenges. Despite having annoying difficulty peaks, it's an interesting game that will put the player's control over the controls to the test, as it tells the most incredible adventure ever experienced on the way home from school.”

“NeoGeo Pocket Color Selection Vol. 1 is an interesting and varied collection with great games from the SNK portable console. It's a product that is sure to appeal to retro enthusiasts and portable enthusiasts, with the potential to appeal to a wider audience, especially casual gamers, given the simple, “to the point” nature of the games. Although it's a bit under-resourced and despite the absence of SNK Vs. Capcom: The Match of Millenium, the quality of the collection will guarantee a lot of fun.”