It’s the end of February and the good times keep rolling on here at The Pixels. If there’s one thing our writers love to do most, it’s share our thoughts on the games we’ve played this past month. But first, let’s recap what’s been happening lately:
Holy rusted metal, Batman! We got ourselves a new writer in… Holyrustedmetal! He covered Romancing SaGa 2: Revenge of the Seven, for the PlayStation 5. Originally released in 1993 for the SNES, this 3D remake of the generation-spanning RPG boasts plenty of quality-of-life improvements, including, but not limited to, a modernized soundtrack, fast travel and multiple difficulty options. Next, Red breaks up the RPG monotony with a look at LEGO DC Super-Villains for the PlayStation 4. While not groundbreaking, this title boasts plenty of villains to play as, along with a stellar voice cast.
Matt Lotti had his treasure-filled mitts on Wario Land: Super Mario Land 3 for the Game Boy. Fresh off his defeat in Super Mario Land 2, Wario embarks on a quest to amass loads of treasure. If you’re on the hunt for a different kind of Mario game, you should check this one out. Returning to RPGs, Mystraker took a crack at Fantasian: Neo Dimension for the PlayStation 5. Brought to life by two of the genre’s greatest contributors, Fantasian evokes nostalgia for classic Final Fantasy; however, that very same nostalgia prevents the game from standing on its own. Still, Myst had an enjoyable time with the title, praising it for its turn-based combat and character depth.
Speaking of nostalgia, Josh, AKA Agent Clarke reviewed the latest in the Mana series: Visions of Mana for the PlayStation 5. Representing a return to form for the series, Visions of Mana provides an experience that’s more style over substance, which is not necessarily a bad thing. It’s a marked improvement in a much-lauded ARPG series that had been dormant for quite some time. Definitely check out his thoughts on the game if you’re a Mana fan. Slotting in next is Sommerfeldt with a look at the rogue-like deck builder, Luck Be a Landlord, for the PlayStation 5. The simplistic pixel art style, lack of solid and immersive mechanics and the repetitive nature of the rounds overshadows a great soundtrack, a multitude of slot symbols and play style customization options. A good effort, but the odds were stacked against it compared to others in the genre.
Coming in at the final stretch, Holyrustedmetal returns with a look at Jeanne d’Arc for the PlayStation 5. Originally released for the PSP, Jeanne d’Arc is a tactical RPG based on the legend of Joan of Arc. Featuring some great writing melded with familiar mechanics, Jeanne d’Arc is a solid SRPG entry, even if it suffers a bit in the audio department. Finally, Agent Clarke drop-kicks his way into the end of February with a look at Like a Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name. A spin off of the Like a Dragon series – which was formerly known outside of Japan as Yakuza – Like a Dragon Gaiden returns to its action-focused roots and marks the return of series protagonist, Kazuma Kiryu. Though it’s chock-full of things to do, Agent Clarke describes it as “comfort food” – a game that doesn’t move the needle forward, per se, but the game’s familiar and fun formula is a soothing balm for fans of the series.
With the wrap-up wrapped up, let’s find out what our amazing writers were up to in this short month:
Well well well, look who gets to go first this time!
I dove right into Monster Hunter Wilds at launch as this is typically a series that is gameplay-oriented and doesn’t disappoint for that reason. Things may be a bit less gameplay-oriented this time, though. Whenever you aren’t sitting through an on-rails cutscene with characters reciting fluff about how nice the landscapes look, you’re combating some of the most fearsome dragons, wyverns, dinosaurs, some kind of mosquito-leech inflatable velociraptor and… what oh man is that an octopus? Sign me up. It’s odd when a game interrupts itself with something so dull before getting to something so good, but I hear the late game is where the real, classic Monster Hunter experience begins. Pele Honuamea is ready.
Other than that, I took a long break from gaming recently due to personal events. It was refreshing really. Sometimes it helps with perspective to get one’s head out from whatever it’s buried in and see the world’s context surrounding it. That reminds me that I need to get back on my 2025 RPG challenge! I believe I left off with… *shudder* Live A Live.
Happy March, everyone! Hope you had a good February, or at least an interesting one. With late January and February hosting a grand total of four birthdays in my husband’s family, including his own, I don’t tend to have a lot of free time in the month. Add in a busy period at work and my gaming time was put a bit on the backburner. That’s not to say I didn’t get anything done. I certainly didn’t get a LOT done, but there’s a few more games marked off the A-Z list.
Steam
L is for Lost Ember, an adventure game where you discover the stories of the dead as a wolf with the ability to possess other animals. While the story was weaker than I’d like, I absolutely adored just trundling around as one of the many wombats in the game. They’re too cute, and wombats don’t get enough video game representation.
M is for Minami Lane, a very small Japanese-themed city builder. Less city, more a single street, you put in houses and buildings to accomplish goals like making everyone happy with a boba shop or two. Each street has a different mission, but there’s not too many to get bored.
Nothing for the RetroAchievements list this time. Outside of the Steam A-Z, I mostly focused on small Steam games I could beat in a few hours to clear out the backlog. Top among those this month was Hoa, a very simple platformer adventure about a tiny gnome returning home and finding the person who saved them as a baby. Only about two hours to complete, very few puzzles and no damage to be taken, it’s a pleasantly casual platformer.
Hopefully things will slow down in March and I’ll have some time for more gaming. I need to get back to the retro games.
Continuing my adventures on the TurboGrafx 16, I picked up what’s considered an essential title: Legendary Axe. Plenty of video games take place in a medieval setting, but few embrace the swords n’ sandals era of the barbarian. Axe revels in that aesthetic, with your loin-cloth clad hero exploring a savage land of cutthroats and monsters. He has only a trusty axe in hand to battle the forces of evil, but if you’ve ever seen a Conan film, you’ll know that’s all this muscle-head needs to save the day.
Gameplay is tight and responsive, key for any game involving platforming. Your weapon has a power-meter that fills up between swings. Attacking while it’s low results in a less potent hit, so you’re encouraged to be patient and let the meter fill before swinging. It reminds me of a similar combat system from NES hidden-gem Astyanax. Tempting as it is to attack non-stop, the meter compels you to plan strikes strategically. As the game progresses, you’ll find power-ups that extend your attack meter, resulting in a longer recharge time to full power, but much stronger damage.
I can totally see why Legendary Axe is considered a staple title for the TurboGrafx 16. Combining a nuanced attack system with iron-age fantasy aesthetic results in one hell of a fun ride. Though Legendary Axe can be tricky, and thus pricey, to find out in the wild, I’d encourage you to give it a try if you cross paths. Keep that axe sharp as your wits!
I’ve been playing a new game this month (that’s right, something different), namely Arma: Reforger. Bohemia Interactive’s Cold War mil-sim shooter is finally in an enjoyable state on the Xbox Series X, so I’ve been joining my brother in trying to capture bases, shoot event soldiers, and learning how to read maps so we don’t end up miles from the action!
Playing as either American or Soviet forces, the goal is to capture enemy bases with small arms, helicopters and vehicles, and then set up and maintain a logistics network to allow your team mates to spawn at the front and carry on the fight. It’s a great game now, but I keep getting shouted at by angry Americans because I’m not very good at it!
Played through Sniper Elite: Resistance (review forthcoming)! Played a few hours of Warhammer: Space Marine II, didn’t enjoy it. I’ve tried multiple Warhammer games, maybe I’m just not the target audience.
Played through Record of Lodoss War: Deedlit in Wonder Labyrinth. Castlevania: Symphony of the Night is my all time favorite game, so anything remotely close to that will always find enjoyment for me. It’s a solid Metroidvania, though I found it a tad on the short side, and a lack of reasons to return. I never watched the anime, so maybe that would’ve bumped it a bit, but outside of a few exceptions, I’ve found very few games to reach those SOTN highs (Hollow Knight being the closest). I will say that I did absolutely enjoy my time with Bloodstained (and would recommend it to fellow SOTN fans!) Also, the Castlevania Dominus Collection is a trio of three of the best games in the entire series. While I also recommend the Advance collection, those games, I think are far more flawed (especially Harmony, which I think may be the worst SOTN-like Vania in the series), I think the Dominus collection doesn’t miss, and the Haunted Castle remake included is a nice bonus!
As I type this, I’m trying out the SaGa Frontier remaster. I played the original a long time ago, but have no real memory. Something to pass the time until Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii comes out. And as a bonus, my son likes me to randomly play older games, so a replay of Mega Man 5.
I knocked off another retro game off of my backlog: Super C for the NES. Beating that one in particular has been a long time coming. I wrote a quick review card for it, so expect that soon. I also completed Shadowrun Returns. I was pleasantly surprised at how it ended – even though the world in Shadowrun Returns is a dark and cynical one filled with magic and cyber technology, there still exists justice and goodness.
I’m still working on Landstalker for the Genesis, but I’ve moved away from playing it on the Switch to my handheld emulator. This is a game that requires a proper D-pad to play it on and the control layout on the Switch’s handheld mode – great as it is normally – isn’t suitable for this title. Could I use a different controller? Maybe. But in my opinion, Landstalker demands that you play it as authentically as possible.
That doesn’t mean my Switch was sitting idly; I borrowed a copy of Kirby and the Forgotten Land from the library and finished it right at the end of February. It’s honestly the best Kirby game thus far! It’s hard to believe it’s taken this long for a proper 3D Kirby to come out. I hope the next game in the series sticks to this format because it works really well.
And so ends February. What have you been playing recently? What did you finish? And what’s next on your backlog? Let us know in the comments below.
Thanks for reading, and we’ll see you all again next month! Same Pixel Time! Same Pixel Channel!
Ryan Cheddi – our friendly, neighbourhood caffeine addict – is a man of many talents: an engineer, a gaming historian, a fiction writer and a streamer. He is also a self-avowed Sonic the Hedgehog fan. You can check out his cool beans at his site – Games with Coffee – or find him on Bluesky as @gameswithcoffee, and Instagram as @games_with_coffee. He streams on Twitch, also as GamesWithCoffee.
