Recent reviews by Nesune

Animal Crossing: Sanrio Edition but without being in crippling debt to Tom Nook.

Don't expect:

• Deep gameplay/robust game systems like survival crafters
  
• Not having quests timegated
  
• MLG-level challenges

Do expect:

• Delightful humor (and Badtz-maru's puns)
  
• Great exploration of the islands
  
• Your favorite Sanrio characters
  
• How hard it is to settle on a single avatar design when you have six species, different fur patterns, dozens of color pallates, and too many clothes to list
  
• My beloved Retsuko <3

You know you've wanted this game since Butters mentioned it back in 2006.

It truly is a better Overwatch with Marvel characters.

Hexakill on Hela - can I get a Hela yeah?

I sank dozens of hours into Hades 1 getting Zag to escape. Now I'm killing time with Hades 2 in early access.

And it feels like a wonderful evolution.

The cast mechanic is incredibly fleshed out compared to the first game. Rather than just a simple projectile, it's an AoE circle laid down to augment with Arcana and boons for some serious hurt and buffs. The Omega moves are fantasic and feel like a meaty upgrade for all of Mel's abilities. Sprinting after dashing is peak quality of life improvement from the first game.

Just as Hades 1, Supergiant's storytelling skills and characterization are phenomenal. Mel, Hecate, Odysseus, Nemesis, the Olympians, Grandpa are all absolute 10/10, no notes and makes me deeply feel that "just one more run" to see how the story continues - along with seeing what cracked out boon and hammer combos I can get this time.

The game is already worth the price even in early access. It's got double the content of Hades 1 and they're not finished. This little witch needs just one more run before bed, promise...

Death to Chronos!

Incredible new weapons including the Vampire Killer. Superb characters like Trevor, Simon, Sypha, Alucard, Soma. A sprawling, labyrinthine castle containing a miserable pile of secrets. But enough talk - have at this DLC.

Ode to Castlevania is absolutely worth it at twice the price. Get it now.

Managed Democracy, Helldiver. The freedom to make the right choice.

What if Minecraft or Terraria and Diablo or Path of Exile had a baby and that baby was hugely into Vampire: the Masquerade?

I caught a shiny Gumoss and he's enormous and derpy looking and I'm in love with him already.

17/10 game and is not even 24 hours in.

It's a charming little city-builder still in early access. Grow your kingdom, romance other leaders, sit back and enjoy the aesthetic.

Short answer: Stardew Valley but you're playing as Gus instead of the farmer.

Longer answer: it's a pretty quaint slice of life sim where you run a tavern (and rent out inn rooms as you progress). Fix food, make drinks, calm unruly patrons or whack them with your mop, it allows you to live that medieval innkeeper life. The alcohol crafting is superb starting with simple ales and lagers, unlocking more as you progress down the tech tree. Soon you'll be making pilsners, bocks, stouts and other beers, wines, and liquors, along with growing your own fruits and vegetables to serve in food or drink. You'll definitely feel like you've earned your first gold piece with the amount of work you put into running the inn.

The crafting system in general seems solid, though having to mine for your ore takes away from that tavernkeeper fantasy - but on the roadmap, the mining system is supposed to be overhauled, so we'll see how it changes in time. Protip: stone and iron are valuable resources. Stock up when you can because you'll need a lot of them for general crafting or eventually renovating/expanding your tavern and adding additional rooms. One of the most recent updates added traditional farm animals to the game, so you can milk cows and sheep, feed pigs, and obtain their meats.

Aesthetically, it's a love letter to Stardew Valley and Harvest Moon. Pixelated graphics gives that 8/16-bit nostalgia that Stardew Valley rekindled so well. While the game feels good so far, it's still incomplete and embodies Early Access - major systems like the social and magic tech trees are yet to be implemented, and there's no socialization like there is in Stardew Valley or Harvest Moon. There's not much of a central story or quest to speak of right now, like your grandfather's spirit or the other villagers' stories. These all should change in the future as more features are added, but just know you're not getting a finished product for a while yet.

If you enjoy Stardew Valley, this game should be a familiar taste in your mug. Right now, I'd say it's definitely worth the sale price to scratch that living sim itch in a different way than just being a farmer can.

How would I best describe Against the Storm? Banished meets Slay the Spire seems pretty close to the target.

In a world ravaged by magical storms, the Smouldering City is the last bastion of true civilization. As a viceroy of the Scorched Queen, it's your duty to set out into the lands and set up settlements to harvest resources for the Smouldering City. With your citizens consisting of humans, sentient beavers, lizardfolk, and harpies, the challenge awaits you to balance your citizens' needs, tame the land, and fulfill the Queen's orders - before the hostility of the forest or the Queen's impatience claims you.

Roguelite elements give each settlement a unique playthrough, from different maps, card-like building selections, citizen races, to opening the forest glades to find incredible resources and overwhelming dangers. With each success or failure, collect currencies for the Citadel in the Smouldering City to unlock bonuses and additional features like new buildings or starting resources for new settlements. Most recipes in the game also have multiple ingredients to choose, so you have several paths to creating your finished goods and providing for your citizens or completing the Queen's missions. After several settlements, the Blightstorm will come to ravage the map, wiping out existing towns and setting the stage for new runs with a completely altered environment.

The world building and lore of the game is catchy and fun, the music is wonderful, and the devs are happy to heed suggestions as they introduce changes and additional features. While the game is still in Early Access for now, it already feels like a complete work - and a rather fantastic one to boot.

May the storms ever be gentle for you, Viceroy.