Operation Backlog Completion 2026

Tales of Arise Release Date, Great Ace Attorney Chronicles Confirmed

 Video Games  3 Responses »  Tagged with: , , , , , , , ,
Apr 212021
 

I’d intended to blog today about Sony reversing its decision to shut down the PS3 and Vita stores, but we have some exciting announcements to discuss instead!

Tales of Arise got a new trailer today, as well as a release date!

Yes, it’s still coming out this year, on September 9 in Japan and September 10 worldwide.

It will be released for PS5, PS4, Xbox Series X/S, Xbox One, and PC (Steam).

The new trailer revealed two of the game’s party members, one of whom is accompanied by an owl that appears to be this game’s mascot character.

(I tend to find mascots annoying, but the owl is cute enough that I might like it. Maybe. We’ll see.)

A Famitsu interview, translated by Gematsu, confirmed that there are still unannounced party members as well. It also confirmed that there is no more victory screen after battles, which means no more victory screen banter, but there will be post-battle party banter on the field.

That’s not all! In addition to the trailer, we also have a 7-minute gameplay footage video!

Some fans were concerned the combat system would be completely different from past Tales games, but the gameplay footage gives a good look at some basic battles and it seems pretty Tales-like after all.

Tales of Arise looks fantastic! I’m so excited to play this on September 10…

…but even as I was still reeling from the thrill of Arise getting a release date at last, what popped up on my Twitter feed but a casual announcement of The Great Ace Attorney Chronicles!

That’s right, it’s really happening!

The Great Ace Attorney Chronicles includes both The Great Ace Attorney and its sequel, and it will be out on July 27 for the Switch, PS4, and PC (Steam) for $39.99.

It also includes bonus content, including 8 mini-episodes, that was originally DLC.

I was worried it would be digital-only, but the Switch version is actually getting a physical release in the west. There is also a $59.99 “Turnabout Collection” that bundles The Great Ace Attorney Chronicles together with the Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney Trilogy. That is digital-only in the west.

(I would have expected it to be the other way around, but okay.)

The official announcement has also introduced many more people to the wonder that is Herlock Sholmes. Please, please stop blaming (or praising) Capcom for that name. As goofy as it is, it’s been a time-honored tradition for avoiding Sherlock Holmes copyright issues for over 100 years.

Since The Great Ace Attorney comes out on the same day as Neo: The World Ends With You, yet another game I’m still stunned about, I’ll need to decide which to play first! If you told me a year ago I’d be trying to decide whether I wanted to play the TWEWY sequel or Dai Gyakuten Saiban in English first, I’d have laughed. And then cried.

I’m ecstatic that we’re finally getting The Great Ace Attorney and its sequel in English! And I can hardly believe we got that announcement and the Tales of Arise release date in the same morning!

Are you excited for either or both of these games? Let me know in the comments!

London Detective Mysteria: Great Otome, Where is the Sequel?

 Video Games  No Responses »  Tagged with: ,
Mar 312021
 

During my big visual novel buying spree a few years back, another otome I picked up was London Detective Mysteria.

London Detective Mysteria follows a young noblewoman named Emily who gets the queen’s blessing to attend an academy for young would-be detectives. There, she meets characters who are largely descendants of famous fictional detectives (and other related characters), like Sherlock Holmes’s son and Miss Marple’s granddaughter.

At first I thought this was just a way to avoid using the actual characters, but that’s not the case at all. Most notably, the relationship between Sherlock Holmes and Herlock (yes, they actually named him Herlock Holmes) is an important part of his story and motivations.

That gives the story a neat “second generation” sort of feel that I didn’t expect when I started.

The common route deals with Emily and her classmates encountering various mysteries, and the game even provides a special journal feature to let you save any line of dialogue to check it later while trying to figure out a case. There’s only a handful of times when that’s actually useful, but it was a nice thought.

Based on your choices, you end up on one of several character routes.

I liked all of the love interests, and each route had a fairly interesting story that ties into the overarching story about a sinister organization and Emily’s personal investigation into her parents’ deaths. Once you see every ending, including the bad endings and non-romance routes, you unlock the “grand ending” that follows up on that.

Unfortunately, the grand ending route feels underwhelming compared to the individual character routes. It’s clearly intended to build up to a sequel – in fact, the grand ending epilogue actually ends with an outright teaser for the next game.

There has been no word about the London Detective Mysteria sequel, but I hope it’s still being made. This was a fun otome and an entertaining mystery story, and I’d really love to see it continue.

So if you like visual novels, romance, and mysteries, London Detective Mysteria is worth checking out… as long as you’re okay with it ending on a cliffhanger that might never be resolved.

The Last Act Launch and a Feedback Survey!

 My Games, Video Games  2 Responses »  Tagged with: , ,
Mar 172021
 

Today I’m excited to announce that the supernatural otome visual novel I wrote the script for, The Last Act, is now available on Steam!

The Last Act follows Sarah, an aspiring actress who thinks her dreams have come true when she lands the lead role in a play… only for dangerous and possibly supernatural incidents to threaten the show’s success.

It features a mystery story, multiple endings, and three possible love interests, so if this is the sort of game that interests you, be sure to check it out!

Meanwhile, there have been a bunch of smaller pieces of game news that have gotten my attention lately – No More Heroes I and II getting a print run through Limited Run Games, El Shaddai set for a mid-April release, Final Fantasy VII: Ever Crisis confirmed to have gacha (boo), and Devotion finally being sold again!

Square Enix also announced a game showcase for tomorrow, although it doesn’t look like there are a lot of games lined up that will particularly interest me. But you never know!

And now, let’s talk about this site! I blog about a variety of topics, and I’m sure you have your favorites. There are probably some things you’d like to see more of and maybe some thoughts you have on our contests and other activities. Well, now’s your chance to tell me!

I’ve opened up an official Feedback Form about this site and its content, so please take a look! It’s pretty short and should only take you a few minutes to complete.

Of course, you’re free to leave your thoughts in the comments here instead, if you prefer.

Thanks!

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