The action gets up and running in 1853, near the end of Japan’s Edo period—when the power of the fearful Shogunate is beginning to wane. And with that gap, Western influence is slipping into the feudal Japanese way of life. But in spite of the benefits of inflowing trade and advanced weaponry, some factions—such as the Veiled Edge assassin clan—that are pushing back against the Black Ship Westerners.

Gamers play as a male or female samurai-like assassin. This skilled sword-handler initially works with a “Blade Twin” partner until a horrible event appears to kill that trusted comrade. The player’s initial quest is to leave the clan and seek revenge, or at least discover if there’s any chance of their friend’s survival. And as the game proceeds, the assassin comes to realize that his or her choices may actually impact this changing world. 

Through a long-running series of side quests, dialogue choices and sword battles, gamers have the option of supporting the Shogunate or bolstering the efforts of the rebellious opposition. The historically based core story asks players to make decisions that affect the overall timeline and outcome.

For all of that background story, however, it’s the swordfights that keep gamers invested in Rise of the Ronin. Those clashing battles require skill and patience.

Players progressively gain different weapons and combat techniques, and they must switch among those varied elements to best matchup against the skillsets of their foes. Switching combat styles; incorporating items such as throwing stars and a grapple hook; and mastering the games combos in the midst of frantic fights are a must.

Rise of the Ronin lets gamers team up with AI companions in-game and offers multiplayer co-op play with up to two friends. There are no player-versus-player battle options at this point.

POSITIVE CONTENT

This is an open-world game that immerses players in an expansive rendition of feudal Japan and its political struggles. So gamers can glean a bit of history (seen through the lens of a fictional story) and info about real historical figures.

Though Rise of the Ronin’s hero starts as a revenge-seeking assassin, he can choose to help others during the journey. The game also offers easy, normal and difficult settings in case players want to tweak the rather tough combat one way or the other. In-game training is offered (though, frankly, some of the gaming aspects aren’t always well explained).

CONTENT CONCERNS

Gamers do quite a bit of adventuring here, but this is primarily a very violent combat game. Players use swords, spears, knives, grapplehooks, throwing stars, pistols, and flamethrowers to battle their enemies in abundantly bloody fights. They can also slip silently behind a foe to knife them in the back. Gory gushing, decapitations and dismemberments are all common.   

In-game characters drink saké, and some get drunk. The dialogue contains uses of the s-word and “b–tard.” And while there’s nothing overtly sexual in the story—other than some lustful gazing at a pretty geisha—players can adjust the underwear-clad breast size of their avatars in the initial character-customization menu.

GAME SUMMARY

Hacking and slashing is the major, uh, point of this actioner. And it’s an exceedingly gushing point indeed.

The post Rise of the Ronin appeared first on Plugged In.

But while gamers may rave about its innovations, Stellar Blade tells a fairly well-worn future sci-fi story.

When the game starts out, our Earth is something of a post-apocalyptic wasteland. Mankind hasn’t totally disappeared from the planet’s surface, but most humans have long-since zipped off to a colony in space. And the remnants left behind are dealing with horrible, mutated monstrosities, called Naytiba, that generally look like mixed masses of limbs, muscle, sharp extremities, and grotesquely bulbous flesh. 

Gamers play as Eve, a member of the 7^th Airborne Squad that’s sent down to take action against that Naytiba scourge. Most of Eve’s female warrior companions were killed during the explosive space drop, so she teams up with a tech-focused male pilot named Adam and an Airborne engineer named Lily to fulfill the planet’s needs and battle its dangers.

Along with a wide variety of quests that benefit the last human city of Xion, Eve also sets off to seek out four massive Alpha Naytibas and slash out their heart-like hypercores. These combined cores could well open the door to a resolution of the Neytiba problem. Along the way, Eve also finds out what really happened to Earth and its inhabitants: She uncovers a secret, long-ago war that no one remembers, and she discovers what created those dreadful monsters to begin with. 

There’s platforming action here combined with exploration, but Stellar Blade’s fast, dynamic, Soulslike combat is what fills up most of this 20- to 30-hour game’s playtime. And that brutal battling is pretty complicated.

This is a very defense-driven battler. Massive enemies launch long, powerful, combo-peppered attacks that can only be dealt with through perfectly timed parries and dodges. Every parry you land deducts a point from the enemy’s “balance” number. And once that balance is broken, then Eve can deliver some killing blows.

Attacks that can’t be parried come fast and furious, too. And that’s where gamers must quickly note the game’s flashes of color that telegraph which kind of unblockable attack is aimed at them, before making the proper dodge move to expose an enemy’s weak points. Then there are special attacks that Eve can layer on from there. So, the whole combat process becomes a complex series of split-second, button-mashing choices and bombastic, dance-like moves.

Stellar Blade is a single player game.And while you can technically play the game without an internet connection (if you have the hardcopy disc version of the game), it will repeatedly ask that gamers connect online for downloads and updates.

POSITIVE CONTENT

If you’re drawn to the challenge of a game filled with well-designed but punishing combat and split-second timing, Stellar Blade offers a lot of tight, daunting conflicts.

As mentioned above, this game is also very appealing graphically. The visuals are detailed and present a very AI-like sense of polish.

CONTENT CONCERNS

That said, some of the third-person, flipping and jumping female characters are also designed to grab and hold the “male gaze” throughout the game. Eve, for instance has over 70 different generally sensual outfits that players can discover or create.

The outfits range from panty-peaking schoolgirl-like attire to mini-skirt-garter-stocking-and-crop-top getups to skintight, latex-like unisuits. One suit looks nearly transparent but for a few small patches of cover. And each outfit is designed to not only showcase each female character’s curves, but also spotlight the game’s very noticeable breast-and-backside jiggle physics.

On the other end of the spectrum, the polished graphics also highlight the horrific-looking Naytibas and the bloody gore that splatters throughout battle. Eve uses blades, a gun-like drone, a laser blaster and explosions to rip away at the beasties. And the sliced-open, artery-gushing, gutted and dismembered result is consistently messy.

Game dialogue also sports uses of the s-word and words such as “d–n,” “d–mit” and “h—.” God’s name is misused.

GAME SUMMARY

Stellar Blade offers challenging combat and impressive graphics. But those polished plusses come packing some not-so-stellar negatives, too.

The post Stellar Blade appeared first on Plugged In.

The game follows Prince Alain, a young lord leading a ragtag rebel army in the hopes of regaining the throne of Cornia. He also would like to free the other four kingdoms of Fevrith—now in control of the dastardly general Galerius. Years before, the turncoat general killed Alain’s mother, took over her kingdom and spread his Zenoiran Empire throughout the lands.

That’s all you need to really know. The narrative strength of the game actually grows from venturing to towns, fortresses, ports and cities across the kingdoms; liberating them through strategic battles; and then recruiting new battle-worthy characters to populate your two-to-five character squads.

There are some 70 different fighters to recruit in all. Those ranks include knights, lords, archers, hoplites, swordsmen and the like. You can also choose from a variety of magical characters such as healing clerics and spell-casting witches.

The challenge of the game then is to figure out which combination of fighters works best to support one another and face off with the many varieties of foes they’ll face. Players can also adjust individual character tactics in battle so that they can better defend and accent their teammates.

The characters exhibit more skill sets, abilities and teammate bonds as they level up through battle together. And they also gain access to better weapons and armor. Players designate a leader in each squad, which then gives the troops unique movement and battle advantages. For instance, a squad gains a massive speed boost if a cavalry unit takes charge and gallops to the fore. And a gryphon-riding leader allows the squad to fly over ground-based obstacles and rough terrain.

Unicorn Overlord is primarily a single-player, offline game. But at a certain point, players can access a Coliseum area that offers online, multiplayer contests that are separate from the main storyline.

POSITIVE CONTENT

Unicorn Overlord is an incredibly well designed and crafted strategic RPG. The character-teaming and tactics-tweaking aspects of play are very involving. And the overall story is fun and inviting.

The game is stylistically animated and classically voiced. It all feels apiece with its fantasy setting. And the tale itself is one of heroes freeing the oppressed.

CONTENT CONCERNS

Besides the heroic story, Unicorn Overlord’s focus is an ongoing series of RPG battles. The character attacks and defenses are all fully animated, and when they slash swords, swing massive hammers, shoot arrows, zap with spells and the like there can be small blood splashes and cries of pain.

There’s a bit of rough language that pops up on occasion in the form of the words “b–tard,” “d–n,” and “h—.” And some characters wear flesh-baring outfits. For instance, there are heavily-muscled and shirtless male characters and female characters in low-cut and bikini-like garb. (Some females are a bit buxom and bouncy.)

There’s also magic in this fantasy land. Characters (witches, shamans, sibyls) cast spells during combat to attack offensively or deplete opponent’s defenses. We encounter a temple dedicated to a god-like entity called the Unicorn. (Alain also has a Unicorn ring imbued with power that breaks evil mesmerizing spells.) And characters speak of praying to “the Father.” One magic-focused evil wizard specializes in raising corpses back to life. These undead must be fought in battle.

GAME SUMMARY

Unicorn Overlord is fun. It’s well-crafted and offers gamers balanced strategic challenges without ever feeling either overwhelming or slow. There are a few T-rated issues, but nothing bad enough to knock most families with teens off a unicorn.

The post Unicorn Overlord appeared first on Plugged In.

In 2020, gamemaker Square Enix decided to begin the process of modernizing that single-player role-playing-game classic into something with real-time gameplay mechanics, some story changes and polished 3-D graphics. But instead of a single title to represent the original FF fav, they decided to create a three-game trilogy.

The 2020 installment, Final Fantasy VII Remake, covers the initial portion of the original game in the neon-lit city of Midgar, and the newly released Final Fantasy VII Rebirth picks up the embellished story from there.

What is that story? Oh, it’s a doozy. Not to mention, something rather difficult to wrap one’s brain around and explain. In a way, it’s a story about a story that already happened in some other dimension. Or perhaps its more of a multiverse tale with many different realities that are all running at the same time.

No matter how you see it, it’s clear that the game covers pivotal moments of the original narrative involving a world called The Planet; a power source called the Lifestream, that flows in and around The Planet; and a group of eclectic heroes battling against a company that’s attempting to weaponize that power source. The stakes? No less than either the salvation or the destruction of the world.

Those powered-up heroes—some who have weapons replacing missing limbs, some who have an extra boost of Lifestream in their bodies, etc.—are led by a mercenary named Cloud Strife and his childhood friend Tifa Lockhart. (Those two are an almost item.) These good guys also battle against a sorta-hero-turned-crazy-villain named Sephiroth who was given incredible power by being injected with a piece of an ancient 2,000-year-old entity that looks like a naked woman in a large glass container.

If you know nothing about Final Fantasy, then those bare-bones basics of the narrative probably don’t make much sense. But that’s the kind of dense and broadly narrated, multi-dimensional story this is.

Rebirth is a large and incredibly expansive RPG that’s divided into segmented world sections. And over the game’s 90-to-100 hours of play, gamers are called upon to explore; follow objectives; climb towers; battle monsters; talk with many characters and creatures; play through a large number of minigames (such as deck-building card games and combat-strategy simulators); cast spells; and cross swords with enemies and big bosses.

Rebirth can be played with or without an internet connection (DLCs and extra content require one). The game is single-player only, but it offers access to nine playable characters, each with their own unique playstyle (ie: Cloud’s fast-paced sword swipes, Tifa’s martial-arts fighting skills and teammate Aerith’s potent spells and character buffs.)

POSITIVE CONTENT

Final Fantasy VII Rebirth is very impressive to look at and play. The story quests are well laid out and the game mechanics are relatively easy to pick up. It’s fantasy landscapes and the hero’s sacrificial actions are highlights.

The Yu-Gi-Oh-like deck-building minigame is excellent, and could almost be a separate game all its own. Players might find some of the other minigames—such as being part of an interactive onstage play or racing Ostrich-like creatures called Chocobo—to be quite entertaining as well.

One improvement of Rebirth over its original centers on combat. Players take control of a party of characters that can be freely switched between for more expansive play. …

CONTENT CONCERNS

… That said, you’ll find quite a lot of frenetic melee and spell-casting combat in the game’s action. Explosions, gun blasts, plumes of flame, sword and staff slashes, spinning blades and impalements and screams of pain are all part of the mix. It’s not a gory spectacle, but there are splashes of blood. And characters die.

Language can get a little heated at times as well with uses of s-words, and other crudities such as “d–mit,” “a–hole,” “pr-ck” and “h—.”

We also find a bit of sensual content here, too, including some obvious sexual tension between Cloud and Tifa. The two kiss. And some female characters (including Tifa) bare midriffs and cleavage in outfits and bikinis that the camera takes time to leer at. Some characters smoke and drink, and players can go to a bar and get drunk.

The story contains plenty of spirituality, too. It’s all fantasy focused, but the game states that the spirits of the dead are what make up The Planet’s Lifestream—part of an exotic spiritual backstory that explains many of the powers, beasts and entities we meet. The central villain, Sephiroth keeps growing more powerful in an attempt to ascend to godhood.  

GAME SUMMARY

Final Fantasy fans will likely cheer all the ways that this Rebirth updates and embellishes the story and play of the 1997 original. But younger, unfamiliar players could easily be left scratching their heads over the dense, lightly problematic, and difficult-to-follow story.

The post Final Fantasy VII: Rebirth appeared first on Plugged In.

As modern game consoles become more technologically advanced, and their games grow more graphically spectacular, many still love good ol’ retro, throwback fare. Fans and indie gamemakers alike yearn to see titles that evoke the 16-bit charm of yesteryear.

Developer Fred Brown has produced a homage to those games of yore with Crystal Story: Dawn of Dusk, a game that feels a bit like a blending of an old Super Nintendo Zelda game with something like the überpopular indie title Undertale.

In this Crystal Story entry, gamers take on the role of a fiery-haired young girl named Mina. But Mina has more than just blazing red hair going for her. She also has the ability to wield and shoot balls of flame. And after having some frightening dreams about an encounter with a fierce beast in the woods, she finds herself setting off on a quest.

Mina lives in a sunny world known as Dawnside. But years ago, her brother was mysteriously kidnapped by an evil force. She’s wished for her brother’s return for many a year. But this year, she’s determined to rescue him. And to do so, young Mina ventures into the parallel world of Duskside, a shattered-nighttime dimension that’s threatened by a mucky blight and a foul creature called Termina.

Gamers guide Mina through her journey after she discovers and charges up her fiery ability at “crystal nexus” points hidden in the woods. She then uses flames and a found sword and lance to battle dark slimes, hovering ghosties and fearsome monsters. Mina also develops special magical “Arts”—bomb-like large attacks—that she uses to best the dark world’s crumbling mansions and soggy marshes and solve its puzzles.

Crystal Story: Dawn of Dusk is a point-and-click adventure that challenges players to switch back and forth between different weapons and magical attacks as foes move in from various angles. Players also gather items; run, jump and navigate through varied terrains; solve environmental puzzles; and take on big bosses in turn-based RPG battles.

It should also be noted that this is only the first chapter of a story that is being released episodically. And though this indie title does not have an official ESRB rating, it feels very much like an E 10+, or at worst, a T-rated game. (See content details below.)

POSITIVE CONTENT

The graphics, action and turn-based battles feel heavily inspired by 16-bit classics. That results in pleasant images and musical underscores reminiscent of older games. Those pixelated visuals also mean that there’s no gore or mess during the slash and magic-blast battles. The game’s puzzles and RPG battles are enjoyable without ever being overly difficult. …

CONTENT CONCERNS

That said, there are some regularly attacking foes that require a quick weapon change and that can become irritating, which detracts from the enjoyment factor. And there is a dark feel to some of this game’s magic-laced story. We’re told for instance, that the major monster threat, Termina, was a mystical manifestation of “the centuries of bloodshed and suffering that prior wars had caused.”

Some occasional light language is in the gaming mix. Gamers will encounter a use of “d–n it” and “h—,” along with uses of the words “crap,” “heck” and “geez.”

GAME SUMMARY

Crystal Story: Dawn of Dusk offers gamers a very nice taste of throwback gaming feel. But you’ll have to wait for future episodes to get your full games worth.

The post Crystal Story: Dawn of Dusk appeared first on Plugged In.

The Lamplighters League is a turn-based tactics game that feels much like a blending of gaming action reminiscent of the XCOM franchise with an Indiana Jones-like story. And like many Indy tales, this game also leans pretty heavily into the supernatural realm. Gamers send out their ragtag team to stop evil baddies and dark forces from ending the world.

With pulpy character designs and stylish panache, The Lamplighters League plops gamers down somewhere in an alternate version of the 1930s. Some powerful forces—three rival houses collectively known as the Banished Court—all want to wield power in the world by using dark supernatural powers.

A mysterious explorer named Locke discovers the families’ schemes and decides to stand in their way. He recruits a gaggle of gifted scoundrels and criminals to form a group called the Lamplighters League, a collection of daredevils who are willing to do just about anything for the hope of a decent payday. And you have the job of guiding their movements toward that baddie-thwarting victory.

Lamplighters is all about recruiting and managing new teammates, taking on missions and doing everything possible to slow down the Banished Court. Each Banished Court family has its own Doomsday Clock gauge that Lamplighter missions can strategically slow or temporarily stop. If, however, one of those family gauges fills to the top, the game ends.

Missions are spread across the globe and cover a wide variety of objectives. Some are infiltration and recon jobs, recruitment quests or sabotage and assassination attempts. Others involve larger heists or attempts to take out a bigwig leading one of the three families. But all eventually evolve into turn-based battles.

There are 11 different possible agents to recruit. These agents can only be enlisted if sought out during special missions. Each agent comes with his or her own passive and active abilities, but those abilities are generally split into three categories. Saboteurs can pick locks and lay shock traps for the enemy; Sneaks move quietly and can perform instant takedowns; and Bruisers are melee-focused and can even knock down crumbling walls.

You move your team of three chosen agents (four for larger missions) around a field with varying levels of protection. Battles take into account the line of sight, the cover agents are hiding behind, and the kind of attacks being used as determining factors of the success or failure of a melee or ranged attack.

This is a single-player-only game. Some cutscenes draw the camera in close to characters, but the majority of the action is seen from a three-quarter bird’s eye, third-person view.

POSITIVE CONTENT

The Lamplighters League is a very good-looking game filled with stylish 1930s flair. The music and settings help support that natty design. And the game offers a nice blend of action-adventure quests and turn-based battles, without getting overly messy in its action.

The strategic battle scenarios are well-designed and challenging.

CONTENT CONCERNS

The game is filled with dark sneaking and fighting sequences. For the most part, the bloodletting is kept at a distance and the combat is relatively cartoonish. But characters are shot, stabbed, set on fire and electrocuted. Characters are also mind-controlled and blinded by other’s special abilities.

For that matter, though the Lamplighter group is the heroic force in this game, the group members aren’t always the nicest people. You can recruit a rage-fueled gangster, a morally dubious physicist, an elite sniper assassin, a magic-tossing mage and/or a hard-hitting femme fatale, for instance. And while none of them seem like terrible people, criminal activity and death-dealing is second nature to them all.

We hear uses of the word “d–n” in the dialogue. And there are discussions about special bloody rituals involving the entrails of animals. (Including a threat to spill human guts.) We hear about mystic drugs acquired from the black market. In addition, a general atmosphere of dark spirituality swirls around the game. We see witch-like characters and a raised-to-life ancient god.

GAME SUMMARY

There’s much more to the stylish Lamplighters League than you might expect. But that includes some less than savory bits, too.

The post The Lamplighters League appeared first on Plugged In.

Lies of P is the latest in that Soulslike lineage, but it takes the concept in new directions by positioning the story of Pinocchio as its battling centerpiece.

Now, granted, Carlo Collodi’s fantasy novel about a magically enlivened, lie-telling puppet has its own dark, perilous moments. But Lies of P weaves together a much gorier and more depressing fairytale.

Things begin without much exposition. Your protagonist, P, is touched by a blue, glowing butterfly and brought to life in an abandoned train car in the city of Krat. In time, you piece together that this is a world filled with robotic puppets and animated by a revolutionary power source called Ergo.

The puppets were meant to serve mankind through menial tasks. And each was inscribed with a Grand Covenant of four laws: All puppets must obey their creator’s commands. A puppet may not harm a human. A puppet must protect and serve humans and the city of Krat. A puppet cannot lie.

However, that covenant has been broken and the puppets have slaughtered much of Krat’s human population.

You eventually make your way to Hotel Krat, where some human survivors have taken shelter. And a mysterious woman named Sophia—who sent the blue butterfly—informs you that you must find and rescue Geppetto, the puppets’ original creator and the only person who knows how to stop the revolt.

There are many references to characters and concepts plucked from the Pinocchio story—including the Puppet Master, Fox and Rabbit and a sidekick cricket named Gemini. And P has the option of telling lies or the truth with characters he meets and in quests he takes.

For instance, he meets a mother who’s dying from a spreading disease and losing her sight. P sets off to rescue her kidnapped child, but he discovers the child has been killed. He can either tell her the truth, or he can lie and give her a doll that she can embrace in her dying moments. Those lies or truths shape the end of the tale.

For all of the game’s dark and stylish imagery and its story-focused elements, however, it’s the merciless combat and boss battles that are at the core of play. The combat is a precise dance of attacks and parries designed with difficulty in mind. Melee weapons are assigned to a player’s right hand, while their mechanical left arm can be transformed to incorporate shields, a grappling hook, a cannon and the like.

Lies of P is a single-player game.

POSITIVE CONTENT

Lies of P has a very stylish and appealing look to it. The game takes advantage of the latest-gen consoles’ graphic horsepower and creates some very immersive visuals.

Because P’s opponents are often machines and not flesh and blood, he can be more oil-smeared than gore covered at times. And ultimately P is fighting to save humanity. There are lots of mysterious questlines to pursue.

Throughout the game, P has multiple chances to make choices. By doing so he helps or hurts others. And those choices potentially lead P closer to becoming human and thereby alter the game’s ending.

CONTENT CONCERNS

The above-mentioned gaming graphics also make this moody hack-and-slash fantasy world all the creepier to wade through. And though robotic characters don’t bleed, others do—and players must still contend with goopy mess and blood. Some environments depict realistic bloody corpses and large blood stains or pools on the ground.

This is a game that focuses on murderous mechanical marionettes and macabre monsters. And while some foes you can lop through without a great deal of difficulty, other huge battlers are soul-crushingly difficult. P uses everything from fiery daggers and rapiers to hammers, greatswords, axes, pipe wrenches and enormous saw blades in his smashing, slashing battles.

The opponents in the game range from enormous robotics with huge and deadly blades and hammers (such as a large furnace robot that also spews waves of flames) to body-horror malformed creatures (such as a disfigured fallen human Archbishop). Some of the foes attack in groups, creating frenetic and difficult battles.

That Archbishop character mentioned above is part of a small element in this game that injects a twisted, unexplained spirituality in the mix. The Archbishop is a creature with one wing and he insists that “I am the one-winged angel. I can sense the presence of God! … It’s proof that God chose me.”

GAME SUMMARY

There is a stylish appeal to Lies of P. But this dark, moody, funeral of a fairytale is also a difficult hack-and-slash nightmare.

The post Lies of P appeared first on Plugged In.

This three-quarters-overhead-perspective, 2-D game drops players off in an expansive fantasy world where they can choose to play as either the Lunar Monk, Valere, or the Solar Blade Dancer, Zale. In the early stages of play, these two youngsters think of themselves as a fairly average girl and boy who long to someday become Solstice Warriors and give battle to evil. But little do they realize that they are actually legendary Children of the Solstice, delivered by a mystical eagle instead of traditional childbirth. And they can control the power of the moon and the sun.

With the help of their supportive warrior/cook friend Garl (and others later on), this adventuring duo must eventually utilize the lunar eclipse to defeat a group called the Dwellers, minions of the mighty Fleshmancer. Of course, all those labels and names mean nothing to you now, but those are baddies who use the power of dark magic to terrorize the world.

That quest amounts to some 25-to-30 hours of gameplay split among exploring exotic towns; making your way through forests and wilds packed with leap-from-the-shadows enemies; and working through puzzle-heavy dungeons. Oh, and of course, it includes lots and lots of turn-based RPG battles with monsters, magicians and various other powerful villains and god-like monstrosities.

Fans of old ‘90s RPGs, such as the very popular Chrono Trigger, will feel at home with Sea of Stars battling gameplay. It features time-based attacks and parries. And its combat scenarios encourage players to lean on gained special abilities and combos so that they’re not just doing the same attack every time.

One notable addition here is this game’s “lock system.” Essentially, that means that an enemy (most frequently one of the game’s bosses) “locks in,” or takes the time to charge up a devastating attack, over the course of several turns. And the only way to thwart that zap is to hit it with a specific combination of damage and break the lock before it gets its attack off. This battling style motivates players to be constantly thinking a few moves ahead with every conflict.

At this point, Sea of Stars is single-player-only game. But the gamemakers did announce that multiplayer and co-op functionality would be added at some time in the future.

POSITIVE CONTENT

Sea of Stars is colorful and inviting. If you enjoy role-play, turn-based battling as it used to be, you’ll likely enjoy this game. The story isn’t necessarily deep, but it’s creatively inviting. And if players take the time to gather artifacts and share them with a historian they meet, they’ll be told whimsical stories filled with magic and lore.

The combat is fun, and the dungeon puzzles and treasure chest bonuses add a nice dimension to play. And the game ultimately asks players to think about the burden of responsibility and the benefits of befriending others (in some cases, even those whom we oppose).

CONTENT CONCERNS

Fantasy magic and fantasy darkness are part of the gaming mix of Sea of Stars. The baddies, sometimes dressed in cloaks and masks and looking ominous in their 2-D pixelated ways, are definitely pursuing evil and destruction.

The battles with monstery ants, wizards, slug-like critters, dragons, the undead, plant beasts, dark magicians, huge god-like creatures and such are thumping and zapping. And those conflicts both drain away, and in some instances replace, your character’s health points and mana. Players must always manage their resources to avoid dying. (They use swords, shields, staffs, knives, fiery magic blasts and bouncing moon-boomerang attacks, among others.)

The E-10+ rated battles are not bloody, however. We hear sounds of battle and the explosions of bombs, as well as see flashes of light and color, and foes disintegrate upon defeat. Early on, a very young Garl is attacked and he loses an eye, sporting a scarred slash on his face from then on. (But again, the animated illustrations are pixel art characters with 32-bit styling.)

The dialogue is all typed out, not spoken. Which might present a challenge for some younger players. And the words “d–n” and “h—” show up on rare occasion.  

GAME SUMMARY

Playing Sea of Stars is kinda like watching an old movie. Its story direction and gaming challenges are fun and comfortable. And its colorful pixel art stylings feel oh-so much more family friendly than current RPG fare.

The post Sea of Stars appeared first on Plugged In.

Baldur’s Gate 3 is a massive role-playing game that’s based on the Dungeons & Dragons tabletop fantasy game. This latest Baldur’s Gate has been in development for six years, in early release for three, and in its first official weekend gamers racked up a whopping 1,225 years of combined play. (You might call that popular.)

It is currently available for play on PC, with a PlayStation 5 release coming out Sept. 6 of 2023.

The game’s opening act finds you abducted, in a sci-fi fantasy world, by a creature called a mindflayer. This tentacle-faced oppressor pulls your character into its ship before infecting you with a parasite that crawls into your eye socket. (Ew!) That sharp-toothed, tadpole-like creature is designed to dig its way into your virtual brain and eventually turn you into a mindflayer.

Before you meet that fate, however, the ship is attacked and crashes. And you then begin a journey to not only find a way to remove that creature burrowing through your cerebrum but to join forces with other similarly infected companions; explore quests and dungeons; and put an end to the mindflayer scourge.

Gamers begin play by choosing a predesigned “Origin” character to play as, or by creating a new character of their own from 11 different races (including elves, dwarves, gnomes, halflings and the like) and some 46 different subclasses. Each of these choices then shape the different abilities, strengths, useable weapons and spells that they can work with.

At its core, that is what Baldur’s Gate 3 is all about: choice-filled adventure. Every decision you make, every character you interact with, every bond you forge will weave together the fabric of your journey. Each encounter can come with consequences—sometimes immediately and sometimes in the future of the game’s overarching story. And like a Dungeons & Dragons game, many of those choices, and how they fare, are connected to the roll of a 20-sided die.

For instance, a gamer’s choice to intimidate or persuade someone, pick a lock, or use a special attack successfully will be assigned a required number. Roll the die and hit that number or above and you succeed. Roll below, you fail. And failure can lead to everything from permanently ruined opportunities to heated battle to … death.

Baldur’s Gate 3 is predominantly a third-person, single-player RPG that lets you choose a group of three non-player characters (NPC) as your questing companions. You can meet up to 10 Origin NPCs who will wait in your camp for you to pick and choose from, based on the strengths, abilities and even personalities you desire for your team.

Each Origin NPC also has his or her own backstory and connected side quests you may choose to fulfill. Romance is a part of that equation, too (more on that below). Gamers can also play a multiplayer version of the game with up to three friends. But in that case, your friends cannot be switched out for an NPC teammate. 

The story is wide and deep and filled with interestingly flawed characters who add a sense of empathy to the fantasy quests you pursue. And the game’s many choices, branching quests and character designs open the game to repeated playthroughs. In fact, the three acts of BG 3 involve hundreds of hours of play (with 174 hours of cinematics alone), and it’s been reported that there are some 17,000 possible story endings!

POSITIVE CONTENT

This game is incredibly immersive. Its characters are interesting. And despite the massive number of character choices and actions, and the layers of possible submenus to access, the gameplay of BG 3 is surprisingly intuitive.

The game also has a female narrator who conveys the protagonist’s thoughts and provides insights that tie the gamer’s actions and choices together. That small-but-important element helps connect this game to its Dungeons & Dragons roots and guide those unfamiliar with a Baldur’s Gate game.

There’s also a great deal of rich color and well-crafted perspective that aid the game’s depth and complexity.

CONTENT CONCERNS

Back in the 1970s, when Dungeons & Dragons was first presented as a tabletop entertainment, there were many concerns that the role-playing game would encourage interest in sorcery and demons. In fact, throughout the history of fantasy RPG video games, those same criticisms have worried parents.

You’ll find nothing directly satanic about Baldur’s Gate 3, but gamers should be aware of the world’s fantasy spirituality. Devilish looking characters called Tieflings have horns on their heads and red skin.

Parents should also note that BG 3 is an M-rated game packed with strong violent and sexual content.

Magic and spells abound in this world. And though there are no incantations, spell work is a constant part of battles and interactions. NPC characters can combine spells to create physical walls of vines and greenery, for example. Destructive attacks launch fire, ice and the like at foes. Some mages can transform into bears and other raging creatures. And gamers can choose magician traits and abilities for themselves.

The attacks and battles can also be extremely bloody. Most group battles feature bloody splashes and pools of gore. But some cinematics showcase ripped-open bodies and spilled entrails. Character’s decapitated heads are lifted up for display. We see people with exposed brains, and the player will rip a brain out of one person’s skull. Eyes are gouged out.

We also see physical instances of torture that focus on extracted toenails and strikes to the groin (though the actual attacks are just offscreen as the victim cries out in pain). A character stabs a victim and licks the blood from the blade. And gamers have the option of playing as a dragon-like character with dark, murderous urges, and the character derives almost sexual excitement over spilled blood.

That’s not the only bit of sexuality in play. Baldur’s Gate 3 pushes romance, nudity and sex in new directions in the gaming world. Players can opt in or out of nudity in their play (but even when opting out, they will encounter naked NPCs having sex). When opting in, gamers not only have the ability to change the shape of their character’s genitals, but they can mix and match their character’s gender and genital choices. (Hermaphrodite character choices are possible.)

Thereafter, players can then remove the clothing of their team of characters and walk about naked. Some questing situations include sexual interaction with story NPCs. And when gamers choose a romantic connection with a teammate, they have sexual interludes that feature kissing, caressing and moaning interplay, including just-off-screen oral sex. (Actual genital contact is kept offscreen in all cases.)

That easygoing sexual contact may be kept just offscreen, but the verbal interactions and after-sex reactions are not. And all that boundary pushing sexuality doesn’t actually move the story forward as much as serve as simply a form of in-game titillation.

Of course, as with everything else in this game, what you experience is all connected to your choices. And that could well be seen as both a positive and a negative. There are a number of evil and potentially dark and deadly paths that players can take in the hundreds of hours of play here.  

Language is also an issue to be aware of. Uses of f- and s-words and other crudities and genital references are mixed in with exclamations of “gods-d–mit.” And some characters are prone to profane exclamations on a regular basis.

GAME SUMMARY

Baldur’s Gate 3 has raised the bar when it comes to memorable quests, extravagant dungeons and rarified RPG adventuring. But it’s pumped up the negative content—especially in the sexual arena—to levels unseen before, too.

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If you’ve never played a Final Fantasy game before, however, you need not worry about being lost. This entry paints its epic story in detail.

It takes place in the world of Valisthea, a realm comprised of two large, island-like continents that are home to a great deal of geopolitical infighting between nations. This is a land of swords and magic. And those magic abilities are powered by five massive Mother Crystals scattered around the islands.

However, a few special individuals don’t require the crystals. They can channel magic power all on their own and summon forth god-like Eikons that blaze, stomp, crush and crumble the battlefield like children bashing small toys in a sandbox.

Gamers play as Clive Rosfield, a depressed mercenary/outlaw who was once a royal from one of the constantly battling kingdoms. We work our way through four periods of his life as he gather’s allies, discovers his own magic-channeling abilities and strives to avenge his young brother’s murder. It’s all part of a Game of Thrones-like sprawling tale filled with huge moments of cinematic bombast and spectacle.

There are quests to pursue and many, very long-winded character interactions to work through here. But Final Fantasy XVI revels in its full-action RPG battles.

The game offers basic combos to master along with precision dodging and parrying moves. But those basics are blended with a wide range of special abilities that are tied to cooldown periods, and those must be more strategically managed in the heat of battle with bosses.

This game is released exclusively for the PS5, PlayStation’s next-gen powerhouse console, and this single-player adventure does not require an online connection to play.

POSITIVE CONTENT

On the plus side of the ledger, Final Fantasy XVI delivers a very cinematic and sweeping visual presentation. It has the feel of a realistic 3-D anime movie that stretches for 50 hours or more. Its voice-over performances are emotional and immersive. The game is also grounded in a compelling power-struggle story. And the combat system is deep without being grueling.

CONTENT CONCERNS

However, all of Final Fantasy XVI’s realism and visual clarity also heighten this game’s M-rated messiness.

I mentioned the Game of Thrones-like tone in the story mix, and indeed, this is a gushingly bloody and profanity-laced entertainment.

F- and s-words are sprinkled throughout the game, joined by words such as “b–tard,” “h—,” “d–n,” “arse” and other crudities.

And along with all the massive death-dealing, fire-bombing and scenery crushing unleashed by the powerful Eikons, we see hand-to-hand battles that massacre villagers; slash throats; rip off limbs; and splash blood liberally with swords and maces. In one attack, for instance, a boy is left covered in his father’s splattered gore as the man is killed in front of him. An interrogation session features a woman being stabbed and tortured with a twisting sword blade. Etc.

There’s also quite a bit of smoking in the mix. And scenes in a brothel feature the sounds of couples moaning. A woman straddles and kisses a man in another scene. Both are apparently naked: we see their bare backs and a glimpse of breast and backside.

The story also features, of course, a broad magical underpinning.  And characters with great magical abilities discuss their god-like powers and dispassionately strive to obliterate any who oppose them.

GAME SUMMARY

Final Fantasy XVI is a game of great bombast and visually stunning spectacle. But it’s a bloody and profane spectacle as well.

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