Operation Backlog Completion 2026

Dairoku: Agents of Sakuratani – Supernatural Slice-of-Life

 Reviews, Video Games  No Responses »  Tagged with: , ,
Jan 172022
 

After I finished The Great Ace Attorney Chronicles, I needed something a bit more… low-key, compared to the emotional highs of that game, so I turned to Dairoku: Agents of Sakuratani.

Dairoku is an otome that saw somewhat of a mixed reception due to not having the most thrilling plot. But I liked the premise, so I got it, and it sounded like just what I wanted.

The story follows a young woman who joins a secret organization in charge of monitoring a special realm where supernatural creatures like oni and kitsune can live in peace without causing trouble for humans.

You might think this lends itself well to some serious conflicts, but it really is much more of a slice-of-life story, especially since the characters are fascinated by the human world. Think less “fighting dangerous yokai wreaking havoc” and more “hanging out with the oni to play video games.”

Each route does have a conflict, but even when the story gets serious, it never stays too serious for long. It’s just a pleasant, relaxing story, and every route has its share of cute moments and humor, although the romance isn’t too prevalent.

I liked it. I ended up getting all of the endings, since the friendship and lost love endings are enjoyable in their own right. I liked all of the characters (but Akuro is far and away the best), and it really was just… pleasant to play.

There’s a decent amount of humor, too. I won’t say it’s an outright comedy, but it had some pretty funny moments, especially from Semi and Hira.

If I have one criticism, it’s that there’s a gameplay element that feels pointless. Early on, you learn how to cast a spell by performing a simple mini-game where you press buttons in the sequence they’re shown in the screen. Now, the common route has several sections where you choose which character you want to spend time with from a map screen. You can alternately choose to fight a battle instead. Picking the battle options will put you on the path for the finale route, but that’s the only time it ever comes up.

It just feels out of place. Until I played the finale, I never saw the “combat” outside of the tutorial, and the fights don’t even come with more story content. I’m really not sure why it’s there at all.

Dairoku: Agents of Sakuratani is not an otome to play if you’re looking for a high-stakes plot, but rather one to go into looking for some cute, laidback character interactions. That’s what I was after, so I got what I wanted.

(Well, almost. If they ever make a fandisc, some of the side characters had better get routes. Being unable to romance Hajun or Orochi is a crime.)

Muv-Luv Unlimited: The Day After – The Darkest Muv-Luv Timeline

 Reviews, Video Games  No Responses »  Tagged with: , ,
Dec 292021
 

Muv-Luv Unlimited: The Day After was translated this year, and after picking up the bundle in a sale, I’ve now finished it.

(It will be impossible to discuss The Day After without alluding to Muv-Luv Unlimited spoilers, so keep that in mind if you haven’t played.)

The Day After is an episodic release currently consisting of Episode 00, which serves as a prologue to the main story, and then a main story split into Episodes 01-03.

Instead of being set in the Alternative timeline, it takes place after Muv-Luv Unlimited, following the aftermath of Alternative V. This plan proves disastrous and results in catastrophic changes to the Earth, leaving the survivors to struggle to adapt to life in this bleak new world.

It is the darkest Muv-Luv timeline. Only four nations have survived, and they begin fighting amongst themselves and vying for power, while everyone suffers from food shortages and uninhabitable land.

Click for The Day After Episode 00 spoilers
And surprise! It didn’t even wipe out the BETA completely. They’re still around!

The main story follows Hibiki, a TSF pilot who survived a trek across the ravaged continent and now finds himself the leader of a new team trying to help Japan (and humanity) survive.

It’s a kinetic novel, so there aren’t any choices to make. Each episode is of moderate length; I’d say the main three episodes are each around 5-10 hours long depending on how fast you read, with Episode 00 being a little shorter. All together, therefore, The Day After ends up being a moderate length.

There are some little oddities (for example, the log wouldn’t work properly the first time I started an episode, only after I quit and reloaded once), but overall I found it to be a fine experience.

And the story is well worth reading.

The premise is bleak as can be, but The Day After isn’t without its lighter moments. Little moments of humor helped me grow to love the new cast of characters as I followed them through traumatic experiences, political scheming, and everything else we expect from a Muv-Luv story. There are some good twists and turns, too.

But it’s not over yet! Episode 03 doesn’t actually conclude the story, even though it’s been 8 years since it first came out in Japan. Muv-Luv Resonative, aka The Day After Episode 04, was announced around the same time they confirmed the localization of Episodes 00-03.

Resonative is intended to be the conclusion of The Day After, and there are enough mysteries that I’m looking forward to how it all wraps up – especially when it comes to certain returning characters.

Click for The Day After spoilers
They seem to be strongly implying that Yuuhi is really Meiya. And why is Takeru seemingly on Ikaruga’s side? He’s gotta be doing that for a reason, but what could it be? Is he a spy? Is he being coerced? I need answers!

So the wait for Resonative begins! Muv-Luv news has been announced for December 30, so here’s hoping we get a release date. Meanwhile, if you enjoy the Muv-Luv series and want to see how things play out in the dark timeline following Unlimited’s ending, you definitely should check out Muv-Luv Unlimited: The Day After.

The Great Ace Attorney 2: Resolve is a Truly Epic Conclusion

 Reviews, Video Games  2 Responses »  Tagged with: , , , , ,
Dec 172021
 

I’ve now finished The Great Ace Attorney 2: Resolve, the second half of The Great Ace Attorney Chronicles, and it seems safe to say my GOTY is now set in stone.

When I finished The Great Ace Attorney: Adventures back in August, I suggested Chronicles should be instead viewed as one big Ace Attorney game.

I still feel that way, but what I didn’t expect was how much better Resolve would be.

Not only does it follow up on the numerous loose ends left by the first game, but it had me constantly re-evaluating hints and coming up with new theories.

The pacing and stakes are excellent; if Adventures felt like it had three tutorials, Resolve balances that by making every case important and memorable.

And while it’s a small thing, I greatly missed having multiple investigation days in the first game, so I was thrilled to see multi-day investigations return. I still would have liked more, but that’s only because I wanted this already-long game to last even longer.

I liked the cast when I played the first game, but the second left me wanting to stay in this era with these characters to the point where I dragged out my playthrough solely because I didn’t want to finish.

It has so many incredible moments, and more plot twists than I ever expected. It hit me with so many revelations that shook up what I expected, even once I thought I had everything figured out.

Click for major Great Ace Attorney 2 spoilers
KAZUMA! Everything about Kazuma is wonderful, and he also has one of the best prosecutor themes in the series. Van Zieks was already rising to be one of my favorite prosecutors, but then to give me Kazuma on top of that? And then with van Zieks as the defendant???

Speaking of which, Gregson being a victim stunned me. They’ve never killed a supporting character who was around for multiple cases–and a whole game!–like that. And then, of course, I found out the truth about his involvement with “the Reaper.”

(Oh boy did I keep going over and over those four names from the Morse code message every time I found out something new about them.)

Then there was learning the Professor’s true identity, at which point I needed to take a short walk before I could resume playing.

And these aren’t even all of the plot twists that made me say, “Wait, WHAT?” but I’ll be typing all day if I try to list them all.

(Also, I was quite surprised to see many people dislike Stronghart as a villain. He was obvious, yes, but that enhanced my playthrough instead of detracting from it. When I saw him as the judge, it was way more intimidating because I already suspected him of being up to no good. He’s also pretty much the embodiment of “the ends justify the means.”)

It’s not perfect, of course, but most of my quibbles are minor things. Is it just me, or do these games always have exactly 5 points in each testimony/cross-examination, when the number used to vary more? And one critical moment stretched my suspension of disbelief a bit… but look, I’ll take it in exchange for everything else this game gave me.

There is so much to love, from the characters to the music to the plot twists and the way it brings everything together. I am seriously considering the possibility that it might have dethroned Trials & Tribulations as my favorite Ace Attorney game.

I want another Great Ace Attorney game, be it a Great Ace Attorney 3, a Great Ace Attorney Investigations, or some other spin-off.

Click for major Great Ace Attorney 2 spoilers
An Investigations spin-off set in this era has potential for so many different ideas, too!

Would we play as Barok? Or play as Kazuma? Both?? Gina as the main detective and/or assistant? Or maybe we’d play as Mikotoba working together with Sholmes again?? Flashback case playing as Sholmes and Mikotoba again?? Flashback case playing as Klint before crossing his despair event horizon?????

Or, you know, we could have a Great Ace Attorney 3 starring Ryunosuke and Susato again. I’ll take it!

But whatever it is, please, let Barok van Zieks smile. Please!

In a year filled with incredible games, The Great Ace Attorney Chronicles will most likely end up being my favorite game of the year. While the first game set up a good story, The Great Ace Attorney 2: Resolve went above and beyond and ended up being one of the best – if not the best – games in the series.

 Older Entries  Newer Entries