Review: The Legendary Starfy

First Impressions: Hmm... quirky Japanese game... plays kinda like Kirby... oh why not?

Gameplay: The Starfy series wasn't originally planned for an English release, being billed as "Too Japanese"(?!) for the Western market. Sure, the fact that you play a starfish prince who lives in the clouds who has to go rescue a rabbit in a space suit who gets amnesia does seem pretty strange but it equals good fun.
In every level, you end up either underwater or on land. You have different controls for either one with Starfy doing a turbo swim underwater and dashing on land. You use your Star Spin to beat up the bad guys as well as collecting pearls and treasure chests along the way. You can exchange these pearls for outfits to dress up Starfy and his sister Starly on the menu screen. Match up an outfit with the right accessories and you unlock a scene.
There are also hidden doors that lead to sidequests which you can complete unlock secret areas for you to visit on the world map between levels.
The world map is where you select levels and is divided into several subworlds with a different theme and a different boss at the end.
At some point in the game, Bunston, the rabbit in a space suit gifts you with different forms like a dragon that breathes fire and a seal that can break through ice. These forms can only be used when Bunston is on screen and the appropriate icon for said form is over his head. Sadly, these forms aren't usually available for big boss fights.
This game also allows for wifi connection with a friend. Your buddy can play as Starfy's sister, Starly and you can explore certain levels together or beat up a boss.
That's one of the unique features Starfy has... but sadly, it's also one of the drawbacks. Starly has different abilities than Starfy and these abilities allow her to reach points Starfy can't. A cluster of pearls right over your head you can't get to can be hella annoying. It's not that big a deal, really. Just a bit frustrating.
Levels are pretty linear and getting from point A to point B is pretty obvious sometimes thanks to an obvious path or a trail of pearls.
Between levels, you can access a special menu with a plethora of choices. There's a shop where you can spend your pearls on clothes, a section where Starfy's sidekick, Moe interviews different characters, a minigame section and a cinema where you can replay all the game's cutscenes.
Speaking of which, the story is told in an adorable comic format with no voiceacting whatsoever... unless you count Starfy's squeaks.

Last Words:
This is fun for a pick up and play session. The storyline is quirky and the characters are enjoyable to say the least. The wifi thing can be a bit frustrating specially if you're used to playing alone but it's nothing to lose sleep over. Levels are still enjoyable even without the wifi.
Personally, I'm playing it for the dragon suit.

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Rating:
Graphics: 4/5
It's a cute, colorful game. The sprites are crisp and clean and the backgrounds are nicely rendered. The bosses are also awesome. My only complaint lies slightly in the 3D models of Starfy and Starly you dress up. Something just doesn't rub me the right way.

Gameplay: 4/5
Controls are responsive but the Star Spin itself can get a little out of hand. Spin too many times and Starfy gets dizzy, leaving you open for attack. Not a good thing just because you tapped Y a little too many times. It's a fun little adventure game with plenty to do and see for the perfectionist collector.

Soundtrack: 4/5
The music's nice and quirky. Fits right in with the game.

The Look and Feel: 4.5/5
Most of the gameplay happens on the top screen while you have an option to pick what you have on the touchscreen during levels. You can pick from a mermaid that gives you advice, to Moe who warns you when you're near a treasure chest, Bunston's collection screen where you see how many forms you have and how many crystal shards you've gathered and Old Man Lobber who gives you stats on how far you've travelled and how many times you spun.
The comic style storytelling works great for the presentation and makes for a fun little game all in all.

Overall Rating: 8/10

Review: Kuroshitsuji Phantom and Ghost

One hell of a butler... and pretty much one hell of a game, too! Alright, maybe I was fishing for a connection to Sebastian's catchphrase there but it's a pretty good description for this game!

First Impressions:
Mhmhmm... Kuroshitsuji as a DS game. Might not be too interesting seeing as it's a Japanese visual novel. Peh. I suck at reading Japanese. But then... it is a rather epic anime an I do like my chibi-centric mini-games... Let's check it out, shall we?

Storyline:
Alright. This is what I garnered from VERY bad Japanese vocabulary and basic knowledge of the anime. Ciel Phantomhive is the young earl of the Phantomhive house. They own a candy/toy company and seem to be pretty influential around England. Ciel needed to strike a deal with a demon in order to avenge his parents' deaths and find the killer. This game has you going off to some manor or something off in the countryside in the company of the Rose family. Somehow, there is a curse and a ghost named Stella who posesses Ciel's rabid fiancee, Elizabeth. There is much lulz to be had somewhere along the way.
Typical Kuroshitsuji fare, I'd like to think but quite enjoyable nontheless!
TL;DR: There's a mystery and Ciel's been called on to investigate for the queen again.

Gameplay:
As with any Japanese visual novel, this one is CHOCK FULL of dialogue. You have your audio clips every now and then (which... kind of help) but no full motion videos or completely voiced over scenes. In each chapter, you get to choose Ciel or Sebastian's point of view. Picking a certain POV at a certain time will net you key items and mini games. Between scenes, there is also a Tanaka Search mode where you can go looking for the chibified senior citizen in certain rooms of the manor. This can net you other items and sometimes, you'll be able to unlock sound clips and CGs for your collection.
As far as I know, there are around six minigames to unlock: a mouse catching minigame, a dancing minigame, a dish washing one (This one had been revealed before), a battling...kind of first person shooter where you use knives.. and... this:



I... was actually stuck because of this blasted game. Good thing you can actually skip it if you make the right dialogue decision. I'm still trying to figure out how to win. I think you have to get rid of all those red pieces.
Anyway, post game, you unlock the CG gallery, the audio gallery, the minigame gallery and a special chapter. It'll take a few playthroughs to actually unlock everything so there's plenty of replayability there especially if you want to replay your favourite minigames and if you happen to be a fan of the anime.

Last Words: It's a Visual Novel. Expect a lot of text and groping in the dark. You'd probably appreciate this game if you're a fan of the series... or a fan of victorian era costumes at any rate. Wouldn't reccomend it to someone who knows nothing of the series. All in all, the minigames are pretty fun and a good reason to try and unlock em all. After that, though, there's not much else to be done for the non-Japanese reading crowd... but like I said. It's a visual novel.

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Rating:
Graphics: 4/5
Typical graphic novel fare. Characters are static pictures which change every now and then in attire and emotion. The look is close to the anime and the backgrounds are nice and crisp.

Gameplay: 4/5
Stylus clicks through dialogue and is used for the various minigames. Those are pretty fun and are a good reason to play the game.

Soundtrack: 4/5
Fitting for the scenarios. Some lines of dialogue are voiced.

The Look and Feel: 5/5
It's a fun, short VN with sprinklings of minigames. Unlocking the minigames and the CGs are a good reason to keep playing.

Rating: 8/10

Review: Lux Pain

Well, I suppose the visual novel genre isn't for everyone. Fortunately, I rather like it!

First Impressions:If you don't like reading, you probably won't like it either. Well, maybe. Visual novels are a big hit in Japan. Some examples are the infamous H-game and the not-so-innocent dating sim. Thankfully, Lux Pain is neither one. If it was, I doubt there would even be a translation.
So where do I begin with this review...

Gameplay:
Lux Pain starts off at a rather confusing point. You're an agent for this group called Fort which seems to be getting rid of things called Shinen which reside in humans and cause them to have moments of violence. You control a pretty boy named Atsuki who has the powers of Sigma which lets him see these Shinen.
I can see why most of the reviewers were turned off by this game.
It shoves you right into the thick of things with no tutorial, no explanation and no introduction whatsoever. You have to figure out for yourself just what you can do and what happens when you press this button on this here doohickey.
Atsuki ends up enrolling in the local highschool in order to continue his investigation. There, you end up introduced to the rest of the cast who will eventually take part in said case.
Strangely enough, a fortune telling place opens some time by chapter 3 or so and charts how your relationships are going. Hmm.. possible dating sim aspect? Maybe. But a minor and a few males are included in said list.
The mind boggles.
Another charming aspect to the game is a BBS of sorts where people comment on certain things that you uncover during the course of the game. The first thread posted is a rumor about a transfer student. Yes, you. Here, you read about several female students starting to gush about how gorgeous you are and how you made their heart stop.
When interacting with the other characters, at times, you are given the ability to choose your responses, either from a couple of sentences or from a range of emotions, from anger to joy. You also have laughter, sadness and playing it cool. I suppose this sort of thing changes your relationship with them.

Apart from the high school drama you have to endure, there's also the Original and Silent investigation. You go through the usual mess of using your Sigma ability to seek out Shinen which come out as keywords you can use to unconsciously draw information out of your subject. This is timed and you get experience points when you've uncovered all the Shinen. The Shinen reveal to you phrases and fragments of sentences which sometimes make no sense but give you an insight into the character's mind. Some are sad, some are interesting... but there are those that are downright disturbing.
At times, the subject you may have uncovered might be a bit too touchy and you'll be faced with a "boss battle" against a Silent. At the end of the day, you report to your superiors and the chapter ends.
As far as localization goes, I do have a few gripes with the script. There were a few visible typos but nothing so annoying as to distract you from the story. I can't comment much on the voice acting because I had partaken of one option most games have forgotten to give us: the ability to turn off the voice acting.

Last Words:
It seems I have quite a way to go with this game. It's not the sort of thing that turned me away. The story starts off as quite confusing seeing as you start off in the dark but it's half the fun trying to figure out things for yourself. The social aspect of Lux Pain made me wonder if this is the sort of game that ends like a Dating Sim and I'm also rather curious as to who you can end up with.
I fully disagree with what Gamepro and IGN have said about this. With a little patience, I believe Lux Pain is an enjoyable experience for those who prefer to do some thinking and reading rather than mindless carnage.

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Rating:
Graphics: 3.5/5
Typical graphic novel fare. Characters are static pictures which change every now and then in attire and emotion. The colors are nice but there's something a bit off putting about it.

Gameplay: 4/5
Stylus clicks through dialogue, map and used to battle Silent. Pretty sensible and responsive. There was a relationship meter between characters that didn't really do much.

Soundtrack: 3.5/5
Er... ya can't really hear much often but there is some background music during boss battles and some scenarios.

The Look and Feel: 4/5
Fun little VN. Could use some improvement in the translation department. Scratch that. A LOT of improvement. Otherwise, the story is quite interesting..

Rating: 8/10