Samuel Bazemore

Review An amazing testament to RPGs with a new twist. Bravely Default is a game that is a fusion between Final Fantasy III and the atmosphere of Final Fantasy IX. It's a game that came out from Square Enix as a new IP back in 2013 as a new take on the RPG formula of the job system that was introduced in Final Fantasy III. This being fleshed out alongside with the secondary equipment of job skills and other criteria that was expanded upon in Final Fantasy V gives a new take on the combat with it's BP system that is an introduction to the staple that makes the game so unique. BD's story is a combination of technological advances overshadowing the practice of ancient religion involving the elemental crystals of the world and is further explained on as the characters of the game all have their reasoning for their journey throughout. It's a story that is best played rather than told, because the adventure starts off with ominous feeling and devastation similar to Final Fantasy VI which really sets off the plot for our four main protagonists: Tiz, Agnes, Edea, and Ringabel. The main gameplay of Bravely Default comes from it's job system as the story progresses, the team procures what's called "asterisks" which are crystal like items that allow them to transform into said classes and gain their innate stats, and abilities alike. On top of this, comes the ability of learning said skills from these jobs and being able to equip characters with mix and matched skills to be able to accommodate to a play style that is suitable for each player. This combined with the new system of Brave and Default, is the way of the game giving multiple actions through the BP system while balancing a risk and reward style of gameplay. Characters can use BP at any time of their turn to go ahead and take extra actions such as attacking or casting spells, to even using skills multiple times as a maximum of 4 Braves. Defaulting is where the character will defend and gain 1 BP per turn used with this action. It's a system that is built upon either stocking up BP to unleash multiple actions without having to worry about resting to accumulate BP back from over-expenditure and still remain being able to take turns. Now enemies can also use this ability as well, and can do some devastating tricks to destroy parties quite easily so it comes as a strong incentive to think before you act. Along with this comes the new system of BP regeneration and the only downside I have to BD which is the Bravely Second system. An Hourglass like icon, accumulates what is called SP from real-time sleep of the 3DS to give up to 4 extra actions while stopping time within ANY point of a battle to be able to do extra actions within the confines of the player's choice. Bravely Second is an option that can be an absolute life-saver and isn't the main complaint I have for it, but for it being also a system that sells DLC like items called SP drinks which do cost real world money to be able to buy more SP without having to wait the accumulation of SP through 3DS rest mode. It's a game that I absolutely recommend and has much more with features that I could gush about here, but it's long enough as is. Definitely check it out if you're a fan of Final Fantasy or are looking for an RPG that is up to the player's choice on how they proceed. It's a game series that I am glad is spawning more content and I'm definitely excited for the sequel.

Three of a Family, Two Brothers, One Mistake, and Zero left to lose. Fullmetal Alchemist ('03) is one of the most impressive animes of the early Adult Swim launch because of how original it was with concept, and intriguing with lots of emotion not seen in animation since it was still early adopting to the West. It follows some key pieces of the original manga but for the most part takes it's own liberty with plot lines and structures that in itself tell a really compelling story of the Elric Brothers and their quest to atone for their mistake. Many people have a hard time deciding between this and Brotherhood, but I believe that both are great because of how they vary and the animation itself changing. Digital animation is now the norm for most anime but looking back at FMA you can still see the cuts and hand drawn aspects that had to be done to suck people into it without going overboard. It's an anime that really focuses more on telling a story dramatic slowly than it's counterpart because of the limitations back then. FMA focuses on Edward and Alphonse Elric, two brothers who had been seemingly abandoned by their father, and lost their mother at a young age who with desperation try at the science of their world called "Alchemy" to do what say is forbidden not only by God, but by the natural law order in general by bringing their mother back from the dead. This backfires on them intensely, leaving Edward scathed, and Alphonse obliterated; in a final desperation, Edward gives up another limb of his to bring his brother back not by full human form but by soul attachment by placing a blood seal within a suit of armor to host Alphonse to the living world. In the acceleration of events, Edward gains new limbs by auto-mail which are metal prosthetics in which he dedicates his journey with Alphonse to journey through their father's notes on what is called the sacred "Philosopher's Stone" in which they can use to bring their bodies back to normal. To go even further would dishonor FMA, because it's really an anime that deserves to be watched and lures you in with it's emotions, and how real some of the characters feel. I cannot recommend it enough to people, and honestly seeing it back on Adult Swim in early 2000's was one of the greatest bits of my nights growing up.

A story and atmosphere so bleak and shrouded in so much symbolism and mystery; it's no wonder why Silent Hill 2 is considered one of the greatest horror games of all time. Silent Hill 2 is the sequel successor to the first one back on PSX, in which now you play as a new character but the same environment. It's hard to tell people what makes this game so good without spoiling it, because on surface, the game is dark, and combat is clunky, and it has the fixed camera angles as before; but this serves to the game even more when you delve into it. Playing as James Sunderland, you get a letter one day to come to Silent Hill, a place that was special to him at one time of his life, to meet with the sender. Once getting there, James finds that the town is covered in fog and completely deserted all the while he starts to encounter strange phenomenon, and tries to figure out what is going on. That is the most I can give you, and I highly recommend finding out this mystery for yourself, because this game is one that sticks with most people long after the curtains close, and the lights fade.

A game released one console too early in my opinion. Xenoblade Chronicles X is a spin-off of the Xeno series from Monolith Soft which goes back more to the roots of the Xeno series reintroducing technology and more of a Sci-Fi depiction of the world and it's timeline. The story starts off with Earth's destruction by an Unknown Alien Force which tries to eradicate all human life to extinction. Luckily enough, a vessel containing vast amount of human life, knowledge, and it's proof of existence lies within which escapes miraculously at the last moment before Earth fully is destroyed. Fast forward and the ship makes it to a sustainable planet after so many years drifting in space so humanity can repopulate and rebuild. This is the main story, and as you awake from stasis, you figure out the world and mystery around what happened, and if humanity will survive on this new planet. Honestly I really like this story, and think the music and art direction definitely hit home for it, since it's about humanity's last stand and hope against total annihilation, it gives a grim depiction and drastic feel of survival within it's story tone. Xenoblade X basically gives you a blank slate when it comes to the story, and overall arcing plot that grows with it's cast as you project yourself or your character alongside helping humanity. Xenoblade X is actually a bit dramatically different within the gameplay aspect of it's predecessor; where in Xenoblade Chronicles, you had a select main cast, you make your own character this go round and explore the story at your own pace with tons of environment to explore along with a plethora of optional side content to do. The only problem with X's requirements is that the story requires some side-quest work to accomplish, and that giant robot isn't coming for a bit. You have to earn it, but by the time you get it and move about the world? It feels absolutely thrilling. X is also the first game for Xenoblade to incorporate online multiplayer which for it's time on the Wii U actually was pretty fun and added more additional content to enjoy alongside some friends who had the game as well. The combat itself is reminiscent of XB1's by a skill/arte system that by time and mastery, you could create devastating combos of classes to take on gigantic foes. It's more fast paced than Xenoblade given you actually can run in this one, but in combat it tends to be quick and always flowing which helps keep the game pace steady. In the end there are some small nuisances with the game being it's hard to get into because the game doesn't explain everything to you, such as elements and stats, along with how certain functions work so a guide is definitely recommended to help flesh out some information you might need. Definitely worth a play, and honestly it's a game that reminded me so much of Phantasy Star Online but with a different take that I cannot recommend it enough. You can still get the game cheap, and if you have a Wii U still? I definitely recommend playing it and getting lost in the world, along with getting your flying robot. I really hope this game gets a remaster, because the potential for this to be even further expanded upon is there.

It's been a long while since we've received an SMT game, and knowing V is still in development is exciting because for people who aren't familiar with the series, this in my opinion is a great starting point. SMT IV takes the battle system of SMT III: Nocturne as a Press-Turn system that enables players and enemies to take advantage of weaknesses to give more turns to decimating the opposing sides. It's more lenient than III was with it's random encounter system, as you can see the enemies and almost guarantee yourself a first-strike every time battle initiates. The story is kind of confusing at first, but doesn't require any prior knowledge of the previous SMT games to understand. That's what makes SMT really great, is that you can jump almost anywhere in, and enjoy it. There are subtle hints to other games, but for major plot points it's scarce at best. SMT still shares the aspect of being difficult, but most of the time with this game it is entirely fair difficulty given that you can save anywhere, and if you do perish, you have an option to revive prior to battle to try again. Some enemies will get the jump on you and sometimes really destroy your party, but if you're an avid RPG player, you won't lose much progress if any. SMT isn't the kind of game you grind in, but rather learn how to bend the combat to your favor. One big change I really enjoyed with this game's combat is that if the MC dies in battle, it isn't an automatic game-over, as if you finish a battle still with other party members of your main team, you come out with 1 HP remaining so you have a chance to heal up. Overall SMT IV isn't intensely long of a JRPG, and depending on your play style, you have at least about 40 - 50 hours of main story with a great amount of side-content for those who really want more of the game. It isn't super expensive anymore as well to find a copy to play, but if you have a 3DS and want a challenging, fun RPG series that you can take with you, I absolutely recommend SMT IV.

One of the most fun and endearing games I've played on my Vita. Persona 4 is the spin-off main series fourth entry from Shin Megami Tensei and shares quite a bit with it's counterpart when it comes to gameplay; but this game series focuses much more on the characters and their interactions in a smaller remote location. Persona 4 Golden is a great rendition of a classic PS2 game with quality of life improvements that make it even better for newcomers to the series. It still has the same JRPG gameplay spliced between segments of real-life role-playing which brings a lot of life to the characters and story. In general Persona is mostly about building bonds, and learning how to manage what little time you have to accomplishing monumental tasks. Persona mainly shines in combat as your group of friends including yourself control demons from SMT but in the form of Personas which all have their own and unique strengths and weaknesses, which allows you to build teams appropriately to the situation at hand while still staying challenging due to the mechanics from some encounters and enemies met along the journey. The game itself is actually quite long given how much cutscenes and interaction there is with the freedom of choice on how you choose your time allotted. You can expect roughly for a first playthrough about 100+ hours, and a great amount of replay value given you want to go back and achieve other endings or side-story content. P4G is finally out for PC and I cannot recommend it enough for those who even have a remote thought in playing it. It makes me extremely happy to see Atlus reaching out to people who wanted to enjoy this version for so long since it was a Vita exclusive. P4G is really one of the best JRPGs you can play for a feel-good adventure with wonderful music, and an atmosphere that really sticks with you long after the game is concluded. Definitely give it a shot.

A great game, but blanketed by crashes and issues. Cyberpunk 2077 has been a game I've been waiting for since it was announced as a work in progress years ago. Shadowrun and those types of genres of games I love along with the many ways of gameplay offered. CDPR did really well with this title, and honestly I think it's just the fact so much was put in but refinement was spread thin. CP2077 is a game that is riddled with flaws, but in the heart of it, I love the story and the gameplay to such a degree that I can overlook a lot of the bugs and garbage that happens. I'm playing on PS5, and have had a blast with it over my 40+ hour run so far. The combat is fast paced, sometimes a little too easy with quickhacks, but that's up to how you play. It's a game that really you can get engrossed in and feel the life of the city to such a degree, that it feels fleshed out and see really from the character V's eyes of Night City. I'm looking forward to more of CDPR on what they incorporate into the game, but I believe that this game hits it out of the park in fun, and replayability.

Listen to his story. It may be your last chance. Final Fantasy X is one of the best Final Fantasies of all-time due to it's breakthrough of graphical technology, and it's foray into new combat mechanics and scenic story-telling. It was one of the first games released with the Playstation 2, and honestly it's legacy has lasted quite a long time since then with release upon another. FFX is the story of a young man named Tidus who is taken from his home by a monster called "Sin" that destroys his home and any remnant trace of his story being real from people telling him about his homeland being destroyed a millennium ago. With no other leads back, he begins his journey in the world of Spira to find a way back home. It's honestly one of the most straightforward but fun Final Fantasy games I have ever played; the music is phenomenal as the themes will start to have that resonance of harmony sounding hauntingly familiar to each other with the overall theme of "Faith" being in the story. Gameplay now consists of learning to customize through what is called the Sphere Grid vs. traditional leveling up. Eventually anyone can become everything, but the road there is post-game long. Another feature comes in the form of customization of weapons to become powerhouses of different attributes and abilities, which leads into the Overdrive system being the Limit Breaks of this game. Battles can allow for changing of characters on the fly to get a team you need then and there, along with a plethora of post-game content that can keep you in the world for quite a long time. If you can definitely give it a try I recommend it highly. Get it on sale, or get it for cheap, because honestly you'll get much more than you paid for.

One of my favorite stories in all of Final Fantasy. FFT is one of the best TRPGs of all time in my honest opinion, and is a game that stands the test of time when it comes to a game that you can play again due to it's unique mechanics and how you want to build your team. Taking a new spin to the Final Fantasy series, this one introduces a job system as well from other Final Fantasies which incorporates leveling select jobs to further into advanced job requirements, to power up your team even more. The art style, the story and direction it takes is honestly one that I would recommend to anyone who loves medieval ages like tales with the spin of fantasy on top of it. There's so much that can be said for FFT, that I don't think you can explain without playing it yourself; because there is so many options to team building, and the secrets to this game are absolutely intense along with the choices you can make to pave your own path to the end with Ramza. Honestly this is my favorite Final Fantasy game, and I think that if you want to enjoy a game like Tactics Ogre, or any of the Fire Emblem games, give this a chance. You'll be honestly surprised on how well crafted this game was for it's time, and the soundtrack alone will stick with you long after the game. If you haven't played this yet, and are craving a tactics game, make it this one for that itch.