[REVIEW] Mighty Gunvolt Burst (Switch)

Mighty Gunvolt Burst
Played on: Switch
Genre: 2D Action Platformer
Developer: Inti Creates
Publisher: Yacht Club Games

It's fair to say Mighty No. 9, Keiji Inafune's spiritual successor to the dormant Mega Man franchise, was a disappointment. A successful Kickstarter campaign was followed by numerous delays and bad game design decisions. Mighty Gunvolt Burst, then, is an attempt to salvage the franchise by making a crossover with Inti Creates' well-received 3DS series Azure Striker Gunvolt. The result, surprisingly enough, feels like the game Mighty No. 9 should have been all along.

[REVIEW] Night in the Woods (PS4)

Night in the Woods
Played on: Playstation 4
Genre: Story-based adventure
Developer: Infinite Fall
Publisher: Finji

My opinion on the relationship between gaming and storytelling is... well, complicated. Stories have always been a very efficient way to make players emotionally invested in a game, but the trend of turning all of the spotlights to the story, while actual gameplay takes on a supporting role, isn't something that usually appeals to me. This is pretty much what happens in Night in the Woods, and yet the game's many charms kept me coming back until its shiver-inducing ending.

[REVIEW] Wonder Boy: The Dragon's Trap (Switch)

Wonder Boy: The Dragon's Trap
Played on: Switch
Genre: 2D Metroidvania Platformer
Developer: Lizardcube
Publisher: DotEmu

As a Brazilian, it should come as no surprise I have a keen sense of nostalgia for the Master System. It was my second ever console, after the NES, and it went on to be a staple of my childhood. The Wonder Boy franchise (which was localized in Brazil as Turma da Mônica, after a popular comic book series) has always stood tall among the console's library, and now one of its best titles has received a loving remaster for a new era.

[REVIEW] The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild (Switch)

The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild
Played on: Switch
Genre: Action-adventure
Developer/Publisher: Nintendo

It has become commonplace over the last few years to refer to The Legend of Zelda as formulaic, but the franchise is no stranger to sweeping change. From Ocarina of Time's 3D revolution to the touch-based DS experiments, Nintendo's flagship adventure series has tried quite a few bold new directions, with varying levels of success. None of those experiments, however, were as comprehensive as Breath of the Wild. And, it can be argued, none of them were ultimately as fantastic.

[REVIEW] Dragon Quest Builders (PS4)

Dragon Quest Builders
Played on: PS4
Genre: Action RPG, Survival
Developer/Publisher: Square Enix

Given how I love open-ended adventures with a focus on crafting and building, you'd think I'd be all over Minecraft. However, some of that game's quirks, such as the first-player perspective, questionable character design, and lack of objectives, are too off-putting for me. If you change all of those to something more akin to my tastes, you get Dragon Quest Builders, and that makes Square Enix's take on the survival genre a game I surely won't soon forget.