Operation Backlog Completion 2026
Feb 202026
 

A Pokémon Presents will be held on February 27, which is pretty typical – that’s Pokémon Day, and they usually hold a showcase then.

But there was a bigger surprise waiting, as I woke up to the announcement that Pokémon FireRed and LeafGreen are coming to the Nintendo Switch.

They’ll be available on February 27 for $19.99 each.

Unfortunately, different language versions are all separate, with no way to change the language of your game, because they’ve chosen to present them exactly the way they were originally released.

Some people are upset about that, and about the price, but I think it’s nice to have them available to buy like this. It’s a little strange that they were announced right ahead of Pokémon Day, so my theory is that they were intended to be announced as a shadow-drop, but since the news leaked ahead of time, they decided to just go ahead and announce them today.

Anyway, the Pokémon Presents will be on February 27 at 6 AM PT / 9 AM ET. What else do we think will be shown?

I think they’ll officially reveal the Gen 10 games, probably as Switch 2 exclusives. Getting a new Pokémon Pokopia trailer ahead of its upcoming release also feels likely. And will this finally be the time they announce a new Pokémon Mystery Dungeon?

(Yes, I know I still haven’t finished even one Pokémon Mystery Dungeon. I actually started one, you know, but I got sidetracked. My Pokémon playing has really fallen behind, so if they announce something exciting, I should use that as motivation!)

Of course, there will probably be some time spent on their mobile games, as usual.

What do you think will be announced at the Pokémon Presents next week?

Feb 182026
 

Switch box art for Cupid Parasite: Sweet & Spicy DarlingFor Valentine’s Day last Saturday, I finally pulled Cupid Parasite: Sweet & Spicy Darling out of my backlog.

Back in 2022, I played and absolutely loved Cupid Parasite, an otome game in which the main character is literally Cupid and takes human form to prove she can help humans find love without her powers.

It is one of the funniest otome games I’ve ever played, and I loved the characters. I was thrilled when the fandisc, Sweet & Spicy Darling, was confirmed for localization.

(As a reminder, a fandisc is sort of like a sequel, but with lower stakes. I usually view it as a game to let the characters enjoy their happy endings.)

So, how does the fandisc hold up?

It’s not as funny as the main Cupid Parasite, but it’s still a wild ride with a lot of amusing and outrageous moments. Each of the six love interests has a story that takes place after his route from the original game, with various new conflicts the couples experience now that they’re together. Meanwhile, instead of standard good/bad endings, this fandisc uses a gimmick that’s in the title: each character has a sweet ending, a spicy ending, and a sweet & spicy ending, along with a couple others for certain characters.

The sweet & spicy endings are basically the best endings, the sweet endings are self-explanatory from the name (with the exception of Allan’s, whose sweet ending I found to be pretty sad), and the spicy endings are… insane.

Some were tamer than others, but most of the spicy endings had me once again asking, just like I did with the original Cupid Parasite, “Are you allowed to do this in a T-rated game?” One character even had an additional “bad spicy end” that’s actually locked behind multiple warnings before you’re allowed to see it. I’ve gotten the impression that some fans dislike how wild the spicy endings can get, but I found it to be fun. You really never know what might happen.

In addition to these six routes, there’s also a new love interest with a route of his own, one mini-route for a supporting character, and a small tease of what a route with the first game’s main antagonist could be like.

I found the new love interest to be quite likeable, a fine addition to the cast, and the mini-routes just left me hoping we actually do get a second fandisc that expands them into full routes. The biggest surprise for me was that I didn’t enjoy Allan’s route as much as I expected it to, mainly because it had more angst than I usually expect from a fandisc but also because Lynette’s attitude felt a little weird in this route at times.

Click for Sweet & Spicy Darling Allan Route spoilers
Lynette has become a demon so she can be with her incubus husband… and this is the route where she’s going to worry that sex doesn’t have value if they can’t have children? I understand the idea coming up because they’re not human, but it felt bizarrely out of place with the incubus context.

Overall, however, I enjoyed all the routes, even those of my less-preferred characters.

Some parts of Cupid Parasite: Sweet & Spicy Darling are pretty wild, but I enjoyed playing it, and I’d love to see a second fandisc someday. It was a perfect game for Valentine’s Day.

If you’ve played Cupid Parasite: Sweet & Spicy Darling, what did you think of it?

Feb 162026
 

I thought we’d be talking about a Valentine’s Day game today, but that will have to wait for next time, because we have some exciting news to discuss.

A new .hack game has finally been announced!

That’s right, it’s really happening this time.

After the past few times we got our hopes up for .hack news only to be disappointed, I barely even considered it when I saw CyberConnect2 was going to announce a new game… and then I woke up to the announcement of .hack//Z.E.R.O.

.hack//Z.E.R.O. is a brand-new action RPG being fully developed and self-published by CyberConnect2 (instead of being published by Bandai Namco).

In an interview with Famitsu, translated here by Gematsu, CyberConnect2 CEO Hiroshi Matsuyama clarified that despite the similar title, this game is not connected to the light novel series .hack//ZERO.

He also said that the new game will more elements of real-world drama than previous entries did, despite still being focused on the in-game MMORPG “The World.”

This is exciting news. 2017’s .hack//G.U. remaster hinted at potentially a new game, but it’s been so long since then that I assumed remasters of the original 4 games were all we could expect, and even that felt increasingly unlikely. Now, with the revelation that .hack//Z.E.R.O. has been in the making for 10 years, it might have been a clue after all.

Either way, I’m looking forward to learning more about .hack//Z.E.R.O.! I’d still love for the original four to get remastered sometime, but a whole new game is even better.

What are your thoughts on the new .hack game?