They Say ”We Love Katamari”, But Turns Out I Don’t

Playing Katamari Damacy for the first time through its remastered Reroll release was nothing short of pure bliss from start to finish. It is a quirky and nonsensical game about you playing a cute and tiny green-colored prince sent out to roll up everything you see into a ball – a katamari – which is then turned into a star to be put into the night sky as King of All Cosmos had accidentally destroyed them all. Everything from the unique dual-stick control scheme, the absurd cutscenes, to the wacky music turns it into joyous experience that is unlike any other. I had long been aware of the franchise, but actually playing it was something else. There is a natural escalation from a miniscule to gargantuan ball as you play. It’s unique, it’s funny and it’s a game that I wholeheartedly recommend anyone to play if they get the chance to. So, color me surprised when I played its equally beloved sequel We Love Katamari and found it to be a far departure from what I loved about the first game.

Thoughts and Worries Before Playing the Arknights: Endfield – Technical Test

As of writing, we are merely hours away from the launch of the global Arknights Endfield – Technical Test. I have been selected, through nothing but sheer luck much to the dismay of those around me, as one of the participating testers. This is incredibly limited technical test should not be confused with a beta test as its intent is to gather feedback and squash technical issues, but I am nonetheless stoked to be able to play Arknights: Endfield early and find out what it is like.

Finding Comfort and Longing in Harvestella

Not long ago there was one particular video game that gave me a lasting impression. That title was Harvestella, and it was surprisingly its demo that gave me a sense of comfort.

Embracing the Beautiful Chaos of WIXOSS

WIXOSS was an anime I remember hearing a lot about when it aired in 2014. What I heard was not positive in the slightest, with comments often going as far as to ridicule its scriptwriter Mari Okada who – particularly at the time – had become known creating scripts for series that wore their hearts on their sleeves for better or worse. In the case of WIXOSS, it seemed to fall into the latter category. WIXOSS was jokingly called an unintentionally edgy and grimdark comedy with exaggerated and unrealistic emotional outbursts where not much made narrative sense, which culminated in card battles that did not appear to follow any rules in the slightest. For two anime adaptations, Selector Infected WIXOSS and Selector Spread WIXOSS, meant to promote a card game and later multimedia franchise, it was definitely not what I would have expected to become the face of it.

Why I Prefer Pinch-out: Experimental Operation over Contingency Contract in Arknights

It was about a week ago when the new game mode Pinch-out: Experimental Operation released in the international version of Arknights. Given the impressions I had come across online I was anxiously preparing for a bad time. Yet, I find it to be largely an improvement over its predecessor called Contingency Contract.

OVERЯOID – When You Win the Battle With This Card, You Win the Game

Earlier this month, I was metaphorically dragged kicking and screaming into a few rounds of a card game called OVERЯOID (Overroid). Never having heard of it before, as expected given only someone as quirky the perpetrator – known for finding obscure card and board games like it is their job – could discover this particular game that has close to no presence in the English-speaking parts of the world. In fact, it would not surprise me if this is the only long-form text written available in English, as when searched on Google the results are so sparse that a Twitter post from me appears. This is a shame, because despite my initial apprehension, OVERЯOID turned out to be an absolute blast that was hard to put down.

Discovering the Thrills of Ace Combat 7: Skies Unknown

Ace Combat is a franchise I have long been aware of, but never once paid close attention to. Growing up, I remember reading about some entries in gaming magazines and receiving fine reviews, but that was about it. So, to say that Ace Combat 7: Skies Unknown has turned my world upside down would be an understatement.

How Dossoles Holiday Solved the Biggest Issue With Events in Arknights

As much as I love Arknights, there has been one aspect of it has that started to bother me the more I play. For a mobile gacha game that surprisingly tends to respect the player, it has always confused me as to why its events are the one thing that do the complete opposite. This especially came to light during the recent re-run of Dossoles Holiday, which is the only event that to my knowledge has had a system that completely solved the issue at hand.

Romantic Killer – The Overlooked Anime of 2022, and a Critique of Societal Expectations

Romantic Killer is a scathing critique of the notion that women cannot be self-reliant without the involvement of a man in their lives, while surprisingly also briefly touching upon some other heavy social themes such as toxic masculinity or victim-blaming.

My History With Dragon Ball, and Why I Want to Watch Dragon Ball GT

Hold my hand.