Sometimes, a name hides far more than it suggests. Dice Gambit sounds like a modest, digital board game built around simple bets. So imagine my surprise when close inspection uncovered a cleverly designed tactical RPG packed with interlocking dice-based mechanics, sharp class-based combat, and nuanced visual flair. Though the game offers a limited variation in…
The adrenaline-pumping world of first-person shooter games First-person shooter games have taken the gaming world by storm, offering players an exhilarating and thrilling experience like…
On this episode of Random Encounter, we’re chatting about gaming’s biggest night: The Game Awards 2024! After a few rocky years, The Game Awards have finally hit their stride for their 10th anniversary. There were some astonishing reveals, wonderful tributes, and a surprising amount of empathy for those struggling in today’s gaming industry. With announcements…
“If we lived forever, maybe we’d have time to understand things. But as it is, I think the best we can do is try to open our eyes and appreciate how strange and brief all of this is.” – Edith Finch Warning: This article spoils the heck out of this game. Want some spoiler-free coverage?…
Sean Schafianski released Chrono Trigger: Jazz Arrange Version, one of the earliest albums in his jazz arrange series. For those unfamiliar with Schafianski’s previous jazz albums, I want to state that the arrangement and production of these albums are nearly the same quality as Square Enix’s own jazz series. Certainly, Schafianski is working with fewer…
A podcast episode appears! Dragon Quest III was a blockbuster success in Japan in 1988, and its nonlinear progression, fun job system, and spirit of adventure influenced every Dragon Quest game to come. DQ3 also has a shiny new 2024 HD-2D remaster, and today on Retro Encounter different panelists play the NES 1988 and 2024…
Our weirdly active December rolls on in this edition of RPGs Coming This Week, headlined by the latest in Japan’s anime-to-RPG pipeline. Rounding out this diverse collection are two indie releases and a handful of ports as we head into the holidays. Read on to learn where you might spend your hard-earned holiday bonus! Paper…
Can an innocent sin be forgiven, or must its punishment be eternal? Shin Megami Tensei: Persona 2: Eternal Punishment, the follow-up to Shin Megami Tensei: Persona 2: Innocent Sin, asks that thought-provoking question in a compelling narrative. Unfortunately, while the believably written characters and philosophical plot manage to delight beyond the sands of time, Eternal…
SaGa series composer SaGa Emerald Beyond. Released nearly a decade after its predecessor, SaGa Scarlet Grace, was originally published in Japan, Emerald Beyond takes a leap from medieval fantasy to a multi-realm fantasy including sci-fi, modern, gothic, and other settings, very much akin to SaGa Frontier. I note the change in setting as, in many…
Fantasian: Neo Dimension is a game filled with contrasts. Its turn-based gameplay systems are conventional but are nonetheless polished through the encounter design. Its story features intriguing setups but underwhelming payoffs. It echoes classic RPGs of decades past while including innovative features that many similar games would benefit from. And its combat starts out pitifully…
