I admit I stopped buying DVDs and Blu-rays when Crunchyroll entered the scene.
I recall back in the 90s, spending HUNDREDS of dollars on VHS boxsets of anime. Does anyone remember Suncoast Video? I’d go there all the time on birthdays with money from my grandparents or friends and family and buy anime box sets. I also would get catalogs in the mail from a company… I think it was called Funco? They sold anime by mail. I can’t remember if that was their name – but yep I’d order a TON of anime – VHS – through them. read more
By now one thing is clear. The launch of PS5 preorders was complete chaos. Sony has promised plenty of advanced notice and that preorders would not be a surprise. They even had a secret mailing list where they would pick and choose people to preorder the console before anyone else. Then in a live event Sony announced preorders would begin the next day. Retailers didn’t get the memo.
I believe it was Walmart who started the chaos. They took to Twitter immediately after the Sony press conference with a tweet something like “Make you wait for a PS5? Naw that’s not us. Order your PS5 now.”read more
Hi, Welcome to my Review of Pokemon Shield. I know the title says Pokemon Sword and Shield, but I only have Pokemon Shield. I figure the games are similar enough that I can use this review to help people thinking about purchasing either version.
Pokemon Sword is similar to Pokemon Shield, but Shield is the version I chose to buy. Pokemon Sword’s Legendary is better overall, focusing on attack, while Shield’s Legendary focuses on defense.
And let’s be honest Pokemon Sword’s Legendary has a better overall design – a Pokemon that carries a sword in its mouth looks way cooler than a Pokemon whose neck scruff is vaguely shaped like a shield lol. So why did I buy Pokemon Shield instead of Sword? read more
I recently started playing Dragon Raja, a full featured MMORPG on smart mobile devices.
Overall Score: 75/90 83% B “Very Good Game For Girls”
Overview: 10/10 Dragon Raja is a beautiful game with amazing character customization and open world environment. Play as one of four starting classes and three “races” (male human, female human, or a kawaii lolita race (all of my characters are loli because they’re sooo cute!!) The character customization is the highlight of this game to me. Story, Gameplay, and Music are all pretty great though really.read more
The sequel to KLab’s smash hit Love Live School Idol Festival, Love Live All Stars takes it to the next level with fully animated Live2D characters that dance around on the screen.
Like its predecessor, Love Live School Idol Festival, Love Live All Stars is a card collecting rhythm game with cute anime girls to collect.
The new installment in Love Live has a few key differences from the original, most notably is the animation. There’s also costumes you can unlock for your girls to wear and a new voltage gameplay system that allows you to score more points.read more
I recently received Starlight Stage A Pop Idol Card Game from RightStuf. RightStuf is one of the oldest and largest distributors of Otaku merchandise in the US. Check out their website at www.RightStuf.com for everything from anime, manga, action figures, Japanese candy, games, and more.
I decided to purchase Starlight Stage because I’m a fan of mobile idol games and idol anime such as Love Live, Utapri, Bang Dream, Ensemble Stars, and yes, Idol M@ster.
I do not know for sure if this board game is based on Idol M@ster but I suspect it is, since one of the early and most popular Idol M@ster mobile games is titled Idol M@ster Starlight Stage. For whatever reason though, if it is in fact at all related, they stripped it of the Idol M@ster title and just dubbed it Starlight Stage. Either way, related or not, if you love the mobile games or anime idol games, you’ll love Starlight Stage Card Game by Japanime Games.read more
I just started playing Sweet Dance, a pretty cute mobile game with a variety of music hits from around the world. Songs include English hits from the US and Europe as well as Chinese, Korean, and Japanese tracks.
The game has several different dance modes. In the first dance mode, bubble mode, you must simply tap the bubbles on the screen. In Trail mode you must tap left, right, or both sides of your screen depending on the colors of the bubbles. Pink is Right. Blue is left. Yellow is both. The beginning mandatory tutorial only makes you play Bubble mode so I was confused when I played Trail mode but eventually figured it out. There’s also a beat mode which is like DDR for your fingers. In beat mode you must quickly punch in a sequence of arrow movements and then lock in your sequence at the right time with the beat button (The right time is when the red dot is near the white line). read more
I just recently purchased the Fairy Pink Tamagotchi On from Barnes and Noble. Here’s my thoughts after the first 24 hours. I did a lot of research prior to purchasing Tamagotchi On. Tamagotchi On is also known as Tamagotchi Meets in Japan and Tamagotchi Some in Korea. The Tamagotchi Meets has a lot of bugs which were all fixed for the English Tamagotchi On. The bugs included things such as draining the batteries in just a day or Tamagotchis getting glitched when they evolved.
I also read that a lot of people received used looking Tamagotchi On from amazon who had badly scratched screens despite being brand new. Luckily mine was in perfect condition. I don’t know if the scratched screens were just from Amazon, or maybe a bad batch, afterall it’s been out for about 2 months now so my tama is from a different manufacturing batch.
I chose to purchase from Barnes and Noble because you can get 30% off your first toy order when you join the free kid’s club. Tamagotchi On are pretty pricey around $50-60 so saving 30% is a big deal.
I also prepared for my Tamagotchi’s arrival by buying a “case” which as far as I can tell is just a decorative touch. It might offer some protection but not much. When it comes to Tamagotchi “cases” there’s 3 basic types. Silicone which is what I bought – I picked out a pink Pusheen case which still isn’t here. Crochet cases from places like Etsy – many of which have cat or rabbit ears. And Bath and Body Works Hand Sanitizer holders which people are using mostly as wrist straps. Unlike the original Tamagotchis of the 90s, the new ones are not keychains. They do have a place you could attach a chain, wrist strap, or lanyard though. Or just pop your tamagotchi into the Bath and Bodyworks hand sanitizer.
The other ways I prepared for my Tama’s arrival include buying a tiny screwdriver and some rechargeable batteries. The battery door is secured with a tiny screw. I bought an eyeglass repair kit. If you live in the united states you can buy these at the dollar tree store. It comes with 2 screw drivers that fit the tiny screw and a cleaning cloth that you can use on the screen. And it only costs a dollar.
I dunno about you, but I am a 90s kid. I grew up with the original Tamagotchi. The new Tamagotchi On is very similar to its 90s counterpart. The basic concept of the game remains the same, you navigate the menus with 3 buttons. The first button toggles through the menus, the 2nd button confirms your selection, and the third button cancels and goes to the previous screen.
The gameplay also has not changed much on the surface. You feed, play with, and clean up after your virtual pet. The big differences between Tamagotchi On and the 90s version are that the Tamagotchi On is in full color and has a backlit screen. The Tamagotchi On also features some new gameplay elements, the biggest of which is the ability to connect to the Tamagotchi On app and play minigames to earn coins, or meet other players from around the world. Once your Tamagotchi is an adult, you can even marry another player’s Tamagotchi and have babies, including twins. The genetics of the parents pass down and there are over 1 million different combinations and ways that your Tamagotchi can look. You can use the coins from the minigames to dressup your tama, decorate your room, buy toys or food for your tama, or put your Tama in a daycare so you can take time away, perfect if you have to leave your tama when you go to work or school.
If you have 2 Tamagotchi they can have playdates or communicate when you connect via infrared. You may want 2 Tama anyways because there are 2 versions *and more in Japan* with exclusive places you can unlock and a few Tamagotchi exclusive to each version. And in some cases (in Japan) there are rare genes in the special versions. The two places you can visit right now are Magic Land in the Purple or Green Magic Tamagotchi On US versions, or Fairy Land in Pink or Blue Fairy versions. The fairy version has more cute type Tamagotchi while the Magic version has more cool type tamagotchi. So which version you get may be influenced by what type of Tamagotchi you like best. If you like cute things like unicorns, or cool things like bats, vampires, witches, etc. But in the end it really doesn’t matter since you can marry and have babies and get the genes from all of the versions, even the Japanese exclusive versions, so you should just go for the shell color you like best. The white Magic one was limited in Japan but it’s now going to be an amazon exclusive in the US and Canada.
There are also many special events that happen. Like right now it is fall time and sometimes a tamagotchi will visit mine and they will go harvest fall food from the trees. Sometimes my tamagotchi will play hide n seek, or play with bubbles, or try to talk to me to get my attention.
It is a simple cute game with the object being to reach adulthood and breed and aim either for genes you like, or for rare genes that you want to collect.
Is it worth the high price? It faces a tough market, saturated with apps on the phone, some including other virtual pets, or even more complex games, all for free. each day new apps release, and kids have cell phones these days. But maybe Bandai never intended to target kids in the first place; perhaps they’re banking on people like me who collected the first tamagotchi to be willing to pay for the new Tamagotchi On.
What I like about Tamagotchi On is the feeling of nostalgia, the cuteness, both of the graphics, and the outer shell, and the ability to breed and see genes pass down to the babies. I also like that I only need to spend a few minutes a couple times a day checking in on the Tamagotchi. It doesn’t require much time, effort, or thought. It’s just a simple cute game. I like the feel of the egg in my hand, and the buttons are comfortably placed. This Tamagotchi is larger than the 90s version and seems a perfect fit for my hands. The color backlit screen is also a big improvement over the 90s version.
What I don’t like about Tamagotchi On is no built in keychain/wrist strap/lanyard mechanism, and sadly, I think I’ll enjoy the game for a few weeks and then bore/tire of it quickly because it’s just too simplistic. But on the plus side I do think I will revisit the Tamagotchi from time to time, whenever I feel like playing a cute and carefree game.
I attended Replay FX, a retro gaming convention in Pittsburgh PA. I really enjoyed my time there, and definitely plan to return next year as well. The convention includes hundreds of arcade games, console games, and board games. All of the electronic games are from the 80s-90s with no modern games in sight so it’s definitely aimed at Retro gamers.
They had tournaments for Dr Mario, Tecmo Bowl, and Smash Brothers, to name a few. They also had a cosplay competition. There are large cash prizes for all of the competitions. We didn’t enter any competitions this time, but I did cosplay, just for fun. I brought out my Love Live School Idol Festival Kotori Cosplay Costume again – I’ve been wearing it a lot lately, and also plan to wear it again soon for Animu at the Zoo also in Pittsburgh, PA.
Some popular games that we saw other than the ones mentioned above, included Pac-Man, Zelda, Animal Crossing, Paper Boy, Soul Calibur, Mr. Do, Dig Dug, Maniac Mansion. Mario, Sonic, Battle Toads, Zookeeper, Tetris, Xandu, Centipede, Metroid, Dark Stalkers, Virtua Tennis, Tekken, Donkey Kong, lots of racing games, and tons of different Dance Dance Revolution and Beatmani style arcade games. There were also hundreds of pinball games.
All of the games are free of course, because you’re paying for admittance to the convention. There are lots of vendors too selling stuff – some of the things they’re selling may be questionable – like rom/emulator things that come preloaded with thousands of games – pretty sure that’s illegal to sell lol. I almost bought one though, because it is pretty cool – I’ve seen similar on wish and aliexpress. Or you can of course get your own roms online for free – which is illegal if you don’t own the actual games – but in my case, I do own like 80% of the games still I have all my consoles, from 80s, 90s, 2k, etc. But of course I can’t have them all hooked up all the time, too many wires, not enough space, etc, which makes having the roms very handy.
The board games were out in a separate more quiet space and provide a nice break from the flashing lights and sounds of all of the electronic games.
Back in the main hall they also had a giant ferris wheel that lit up later in the evening. I didn’t ride it, because it was a very unique ferris wheel – it flipped upside down…. It looked scary as heck to be honest lol. Each car rocked and shook back and forth and occasionally turned completely upside down. The cars are all enclosed of course so you don’t fall out, but still uhm no thanks lol.
Later in the evening, they also had live music, but it was hard to hear over the sounds of all the people and all the games.
There are food concessions on site, including alcohol, but it’s over priced, and most of the food is terrible. You can bring your own food – even if it’s against their rules, no one checks bags there.
Which brings to the next point, with all the crazy things happening in our country, you’d think they would have SOME type of security there…. There were no metal detectors, no one checking bags, and I didn’t see a single guard or any kind of personnel…. With thousands of loud chaotic games and thousands of people…… this is just a recipe for disaster… And it would be hard to contain or control the chaos, there’s 2 escalators, 1 up/1 down, and maybe some stairs somewhere but I didn’t see/know where. And the escalators and halls and everywhere were super crowded. It’s billed as the largest retro gaming convention in the US.
I didn’t really think about that at all while I was there though, and felt perfectly safe, but in retrospect, looking back, I wish they had more security in place. You just can’t trust crazy people these days. I don’t want to get into politics of it… But I will say video games are not to blame. Think about it… They have the exact same games in dozens of other countries, Europe, Asia, Japan, South Korea, Canada, even South America – and you know what they don’t have? Mass Shootings… you know why? Because they have gun control laws and mental health care (or any kind of health care for that matter).
Games are not to blame… I don’t play super violent games like shooting games, call of duty, rainbow six, and whatever else, they just aren’t fun or interesting to me (no story, no cute graphics, snoozeville lol) … So I could care less about if people sell them or play them… But I just think it’s ridiculous that they think banning them will do any good to stop these events from happening. United States needs to look at the rest of the world and “get it together” when it comes to these 2 things, gun control, and health care including mental health care, before it is too late.
We also are more diverse than most other nations. And for some reason, a large number of Americans don’t like other Americans who are different from themselves, and it’s not just white people either. My hispanic boyfried told me that he and his friends consisting of another hispanic and 2 asians and 1 white person, were rejected/kicked off a soccer field by some indian people the other day. All this hatred and racism towards each other is at the heart of all this violence, and until we address those issues, these problems are only going to escalate. Even if we do get reasonable gun control laws and better health care, we still need to find a way to stomp out racism.
Anyways I diverted a little bit from the topic here… but yeah… the only complaint I REALLY have with Replay FX is that it might be highly unsafe due to lack of security measures especially in midst of current events in our country right now. I would like to see metal detectors, guards checking bags at the gates – even if that means I can’t bring my own food/drink next year, and guards walking around up and down inside the convention also. We have to be smart and be safe. That whole convention center really needs to step up security. I was there 2 weeks ago for my boyfriend’s sporting tournament and again no security, no bag checking, etc.
I’ll still go next year, and still have a good time. I won’t live life in fear of what could happen. That’s what terrorists want. Live each day to the fullest with no regrets. If I were to die at a gaming convention, at least I would die doing what I love lol.
But in all honesty, Replay FX is great. For $35 for an adult day pass, or $100 to go all 4 days… And unlimited gameplay once you’re inside…. it can’t be beat. We spend more than $35 at Dave and Busters and it’s gone in an hour or two. Replay FX is also open late into the night, midnight this year, and opens at 9am, which is great. For 35 bucks you can play unlimited games for over 12 hours. Like I said, it can’t be beat for great value and more bang for your buck! Highly recommend this event for all gamers, especially those who grew up with retro games like Colecovision, Atari, and old school Nintendo. They had them all, plus Dreamcast and more rare retro finds. Very nostalgic – but I think young kids would enjoy this event too! It’s fun for the whole family.
Where to Get: I got Sonic Mania and a buncha other Sonic games in a humble bundle, but if that bundle is over you can find the games on amazon or steam.
Release Date: 2017
Overview: Sonic Mania is one of the newest Sonic Games, however, it pays homage to 90s oldschool Sonic and is very well received by 30+ year old Sonic fans, as well as a whole new generation of gamers.
Gameplay: 10/10 – Sonic is back in a new game, with levels re-designed from the original Sonic games as well as all new levels created for Sonic Mania. You can play as Sonic, Tails, or several “new” characters first appearing in Knuckles Chaotix or Arcade exclusive sonic games. To play the game as other characters you will have to select the characters at the starting screen – you cannot switch characters within the game.
The levels are fun and fast and action packed. You run, jump, spin, and dash through the levels. There are many different paths in each level and many hidden objects, including entrances to bonus stages to capture chaos diamonds. Overall the gameplay is fun and full of nostalgia
Story: 1/10 Sonic isn’t a story-centric game, and it doesn’t really need a story. Timeline wise, it is said to take place after the events in Sonic and Knuckles. Lack of story does not hurt this game, but if you’re looking for a game with a great story, this is not it.
Characters: 5/10 – I enjoyed seeing Sonic and his friends return in an all new game, and it definitely brought back nostalgia and my childhood, but without a story, there’s no real personality or character development here. Once again though, games like this do not really need character development to be central to the player’s enjoyment of the game.
Graphics: 7/10 – The graphics are done in a bright colorful oldschool pixel style. This is not for everyone. Clearly this game is wanting to appeal to old school gamers who grew up with the original Sonic. Me? I liked it. But your opinion may be different. I did see some anti-aliasing and rough edges as to be expected in pixel style games, mostly especially when playing in fullscreen mode. There are different filters and options you can enable in settings to try to minimize this jagged-edginess.
Music: 10/10 – The music is definitely old school too and a great homage to the Sega Genesis Sonic games, which always had some pretty fun music.
Replay Value: 10/10 – The replay value is high because there are different characters that you can play as, each with their own unique abilities that make taking different paths through the same levels very unique experiences. No two characters play exactly alike. There are also different gameplay modes such as time attack and multiplayer competitions.
Nostalgia: 10/10 – This game set out to be a tribute game to the 90’s Sonic games, and it succeeds at this in an unprecedented way, welcoming back into the fold Sega fans who felt disappointed with the past several Sonic games.
Geeky: 5/5 – Nostalgia and pixel graphics and great soundtrack that 90s kids will love, make Sonic Mania chock full of nostalgia.
Sweetie: 2/5 – Lack of story and lack of character dialogue make this a game that is definitely outside the norm of what I normally enjoy or normally review here. However I think the nostalgia and cute/colorful graphics and anthropomorphic animal characters will appeal to most of my readers, who are already probably familiar with the Sonic franchise.
3 Important Tips to Record High Quality Gameplay Videos
Recording gameplay videos has become much easier nowadays with many different tools making it possible. However the quality of the gameplay videos that you’re able to record can differ greatly, with some looking smooth and crisp while others look blurry and stutter a lot.
To start recording high quality gameplay videos, there are a few tips in particular that you should try to use:read more
I picked up the NVIDIA Shield TV Gaming Edition on sale for $159 at Best Buy on Black Friday, regularly $199. I also had a $100 gift card to bestbuy from previous sponsored posts I’ve done for them. This is not a sponsored post. This is me providing my initial feedback of the device as I’ve now had it for five days. My end cost was $59.99
Earlier this year I purchased a Roku Express for I believe it was $29.99. It is the most basic cheapest Roku device, in hindsight I wish I’d purchased one with voice controls which I believe start around $49.99. I’ve had my Roku for about six months.
I thought I’d be “replacing” my Roku with the NVIDIA Shield TV Gaming Edition… but that’s not the case… Roku is superior in almost every single way. NVIDIA Shield is only for very technical people, with very fast internet connections, and the only real reason I will keep and not return the product is because of GeForce Now their cloud gaming Streaming service that lets you play games you already own such as from Steam or Battlenet on your tv and on lightweight non gaming PCs without linking to another PC a direct contrast to solutions such as how steamlink works letting you mirror your screen from your gaming pc, in the case of GeForce Now you do not need an expensive gaming pc or any pc at all.
But the service is not without flaws. Everywhere I’ve read the hype, how there’s no lag, and everything is smooth, yeah sure maybe if you have a good internet connection. I do have cable internet but I live in extremely rural areas where I have no choice who my provider is. I don’t think my internet is terrible. It gets around 15mbps, but let me tell you… GeForce Now is almost unplayable for me… don’t believe the hype! It’s not any different for me than PlayStation Now, another Streaming service I use, in fact, PlayStation Now has far less lag for me than GeForce Now. I had to disable my steam authentication token because it was physically impossible to use the controller and onscreen keyboard to type the code before it refreshed and changed. Games stutter, lag, jerk, and freeze… and I wasn’t even playing super new AAA graphically intense games. The first game I tried was Battle Chef Brigade, a 2d simple indie game.
Ok lag aside, there’s some other flaws:
I thought I could play games from the google play store… I can… sort of… but very very few of my favorites are available for “android tv”. Here’s where being a tech wizard comes in, you can sideload apps from a usb stick. Not included of course. They didn’t even include an HDMI cable. I’m using the HDMI cable from my Roku, cost $250 less and provides me everything I need out of the box.
I’m not tech illiterate but the NVIDIA Shield is ridiculously needlessly overly complicated… every other Streaming Media player on the market just works out of the box in minutes… it took me three hours to set up and troubleshoot my Shield. Mostly due to generic unknown errors and series of reboots and updates…
Games aren’t the only thing missing, several of my favorite tv channel apps are not compatible with android tv, such as TLCGo. Roku has far more apps and a much more intuitive user interface and setup takes only seconds even when needing updating not hours…
Hell google themselves don’t even seem to want to support their crappy Android TV as Google Chrome isn’t even compatible with it!
If you want to spend $200 for hours of updates, then have to find or buy your own hdmi cables and usb sticks, then fart around side loading apps from your pc to the stick to your Shield, and have a laggy choppy gaming streaming experience well that’s up to you…. keep in mind NVIDIA will begin charging for this service soon too and has not released any pricing details. From what I’ve seen, I won’t subscribe.
I would take my Roku any any any day of the week. GeForce Now is an exciting and interesting concept. I became excited and interested reading reviews of how it had no lag and performed perfectly as if you were playing it right on a pc gaming rig, but my experience left much to be desired.
I haven’t tried side loading anything yet. My instincts and speculations tell me that Apple TV has far more compatible apps and a better interface than Android TV.
I tried watching kissanime and TLC on my Shield using Puffin.TV, TLC had audio but no picture, kissanime would play about ten minutes then tell me filetype is unsupportable. I’m now watching the same anime on my Roku using a mirror from my iPad and iWeb TV (to be fair this probably exists on Shield too I didn’t check) and having zero issues, TLCGo and other apps are all at my fingertips the interface looks more pleasing intuitive less cluttered and just works. For a tenth of the cost…
For me, the answer is clear, love my Roku, and shockingly disappointed in my NVIDIA Shield TV.
A gaming chair is an essential part of the life of any gamer. Other than being a source of comfort and pleasure, to some players, a gaming chair is an indicator of how seriously they take their gaming experience, which is essential for social validation.
Accordingly, there is a lot of specificities that goes into choosing the right gaming chair, and the preferences differ from one gamer to another. However different the preferences are, there are a couple of critical tips that one must consider for the perfect gaming chair.
Adjustability of the chair
The uniqueness with gaming chairs over most chairs is the fact that they are highly adjustable. The flexibility of the chair you opt for will affect your comfort level over time. If you are a tall person, for instance, a chair that cannot adjust for height will not suit you right.
Consider the adjusting mechanism of the backrest, the recline function, tilt and swivel mechanism, adjustments for height, among others. Check if the armrests of the seat can also be fine-tuned. The more adjustable a chair is, the more likely it is for you to enjoy ultimate comfort.
The best part is that there are gaming chairs with an automatic adjustment function like the Herman Miller Embody, which will give you the luxurious ultimate gaming experience.
The chair technology
Different gaming chairs sport different technology, not in the sense of how they are made, but in their ability to do different things. Some gaming chairs have speakers, subwoofers, Bluetooth connectivity, among other features you can learn more at Progamerreview and other tech toy sites about. Such technology can spice up your gaming experience, depending on the type of games you are interested in, for the perfect immersion.
The technology in place should not compromise on other aspects of the chair like comfort, but rather be a compliment to the whole experience. Consider even the compatibility of a chair to different consoles and their wired or wireless connectivity.
The style of the chair
Before you decide on the right gaming chair for your needs and preferences, you need to have a clear picture of which style you like most. A big Joe aloha chair, for instance, has the style that mimics a sofa with a cushy feeling, while others have a racing style bucket seat style.
The style of the chair will go a long way in dictating the comfort you enjoy, particularly if you are looking into long gaming sessions. The style of chair you pick out should not only be conveniently comfortable for you, but also that is blends well with your room décor.
The back support
Usually, the lower part of your back tends to curve as you sit and embrace different sitting positions naturally. Unlike with other types of chairs, gaming chairs are made for comfort, which makes it necessary to be keen on the back support.
If a gaming chair cannot support your back adequately, then it beats the whole essence of getting a gaming chair over ordinary chairs for matters of comfort. No gamer, expert or not, should have to battle with back pains. Check whether the gaming chair you choose is adequately padded at the lumbar region, or better has extra cushions you could use to reinforce the support.
Further, it helps if the backrest is high enough to cover your entire spinal column. Given the long hours of gaming sited in one position, you cannot afford to compromise the support of your spinal column, lest you attract health complications that could affect you long-term.
Materials involved
Sturdiness is paramount for the longevity of a gaming chair. If the material involved in the making of a seat are of low quality, then it speaks volumes about that chair. Consider the materials used in different angles, chiefly, the type of cover as regards softness, breathability, and durability. Consider also the kind of cushion used in padding the seat, as well as the framework.
Price tag
As simple as the concept of budgeting may look, the price tag of a gaming chair is critical for the right choice. Before you go out to shop for a gaming chair, have a strict budget within which to get the perfect one.
Typically, gaming chairs differ in cost from brand to another, but no matter the amount you have, the market is flooded with gaming chair options that could give you the best value for your money.
Manufacturers keep going out of their way to create amazing gaming chair options for you, and therefore, there is no need to strain your back and sacrifice your comfort when there is a solution available for you.
Gameplay: 8/10 This is the last Princess Maker game in the series, aside from some online and mobile spin offs that were released later. As such, you can expect that the gameplay is much more advanced than previous Princess Maker games. Princess Maker 5 brings back the adventure system, previously seen in Princess Maker 2, allowing you to fight in simplistic rpg battles and search for treasure. It does not unlock until later in the game.
It is also the first time that you can select a female character to be the parent – Although if you play as a female, you cannot get the ending where the princess marries you (the parent).
Perhaps more importantly, there are many new activities that your daughter can participate in, compared to previous Princess Maker games. I felt that the gameplay more closely resembled Tokimeki Memorial Girl’s Side (which I reviewed here.)
You select a week’s worth of activities for your daughter. She will attend public school and have club activities but she will also have free time for you to schedule part time jobs or extra lessons to enhance her stats. On the weekends you will take your daughter out to try to reduce her stress or experience special seasonal events.
Like Tokimeki Memorial, you can see which events are happening by reading a paper that lists new events. You can have cube set a reminder on the day of the events so you don’t forget important dates. But the game will not automatically prompt/navigate you to the event so you still have to pay attention and remember when and where to go for the event.
Gameplay feels slow. Especially the first year. It feels repetitive and slow building your stats, and very few random encounters or events. But as I entered my 2nd year, that began to change. Suddenly, classmates/love interests began to invite my daughter out on dates, or suddenly teachers and employers invited my daughter to special events. Now it felt more interesting and exciting.
But still, ultimately, this game is long, and slow, and while this type of gameplay is best enjoyed in small bursts, because of the repetition and monotonous gameplay, it also is a game that doesn’t get interesting until several hours in. I spent over 6 hours in the first year… If like most princess maker games this one goes until the daughter’s 18th birthday, then this game has over 70 hours of gameplay, per playthrough, times 50 endings…. staggering… definitely a highlight of the game — but the gameplay is so monotonous that many people may never reach all 50 endings.
How could I give an 8/10 to a monotonous boring “dull” game? Well because of the added features the game presents, this game is the most realistic child rearing sim, and gives unprecedented freedom and control to the player. Your daughter grows in new ways never present in the previous princess maker games, and she grows more independent with her own hobbies and interests and desires and things become more complicated, it brings back the adventure system, and the new dating/events system seemingly borrowed from Tokimeki Memorial. All of these are an improvement over most of the gameplay features in previous princess maker games.
The game gives you unprecedented freedom to raise any kind of daughter you want, even if you want her to be a cosplaying anime fan who loves going to idol concerts. Seriously, she can become interested in just about anything you can imagine. lol.
Story: 5/10 I think part of the reason the game is so slow is that it has almost no story. You just literally keep clicking and waiting/hoping something changes/happens. Which doesn’t happen for several hours until you’ve been pumping up your stats. The opening movie is not translated or subtitled for the english release on steam. It seems that maybe it may have had at least an interesting introduction. I think from what I can tell, the daughter is a demon maybe. It says it began from bloody events that happened long ago. Seems to hint at a curse, and then from there I haven’t a clue as to what is going on, but you see cube fly away with the girl. The girl also has a special hair clip that lets her communicate with you and allows you to watch the girl while she’s away. Every once in awhile the girl talks about seeing spirits or fairies and other supernatural things. But I’m now about 10 hours into the game and there’s really no overall story, or direction, or plot, it’s basically an open ended sandbox game. Plot isn’t necessary in games like this, but since I play games for their stories, I think that’s why I feel bored while playing this game since it lacks an overarching plot of any kind.
Characters: 10/10 I really do like the characters. They are not strong from a story standpoint, but they feel very real, and their interactions and dialogues with each other are very cute. The independence of your daughter and new complex ways in which she can develop and grow make this the best daughter of all.
Graphics: 7/10 The artwork put me off at first, for years even before this official US release, I would see pictures of this game, compare it to 4 which was my favorite Princess Maker game, and just think YUCK!… But oddly… in the 10 hours I played the game, I now find it cute and charming. I’d played 4 years ago on my nintendo DS, even though I couldn’t read any of it. I loved that art style, and at first found this new art style for 5 to be a huge turn off. But after playing the game, I’ve changed my tune. I suggest if you like me, hate the way Princess Maker 5 looks, just give it a go, it’s a great game, and the artwork is strangely cute once you get used to it!
There’s this little fat boy, which normally would be like a blech, but I dunno there’s something sooo cute about him. He reminds me of the fat lil asian boy from Disney’s “Up” and there’s another little boy that looks like he could be straight outta card captor or some other sugary sweet shojo anime.
The daughter was what I found most unattractive, but watching her study, work, and play, I’ve realized she is the most “real” and endearing of any of the daughters in previous games. I love my little princess.
Music: 3/10 – I really dislike the opening song – it’s awful. blech. But the rest of the music is “OK” I guess. just kinda average to me really.
Voice Acting: 10/10 – the voice acting is very cute 🙂 I’m glad they kept the original Japanese voices in the game.
Replay Value: 10/10 – over 50 different endings and the variety of things to do within this game give it excellent replay value.
