Kotodama: The 7 Mysteries of the Fujisawa (Switch) Review

Continuing my visual novel kick, I recently picked up Kotodama: 7 Mysteries of the Fujisawa.  It is a unique blend of a visual novel story with some match-3 types puzzles thrown in for good measure.  While this does give it a bigger replay value than most visual novels, it's definitely not without its faults.

The story follows your protagonist after they recently transferred into the Fujisawa Academy.  Oh, and you also have a contract with a demon fox that gives you special powers.  These powers force someone to tell the truth by stripping away the layers of their deceit.  Using your special ability, along with some good old fashioned detective work, will allow you to uncover the titular mysteries of the game.

Events follow a typical visual novel narrative.  There is a lot of dialogue, and appropriate characters appear on the screen as they speak or are spoken to.  There are dialogue choices, but most will not appear during your first time through the game.  Without giving anything away, Kotodama has an interesting take on its story.  It sadly doesn't really have routes as other visual novels do, but for the most part, I appreciate the way the story is handled.

During the story, you will learn several key phrases.  Primarily, these give you experience for each of the elemental pieces in the puzzle mode.  There are even specific ones for each opponent that allow you to do extra damage to them.  For better or worse, all of these are necessary to get the best ending.  To make it harder, some only appear if you go to certain areas when you are allowed to choose from several.  There's usually a list, and some choices disappear if not taken immediately, with no real reason for it.  Even more unfortunately, not having all of the key and power words means you have to repeat the game loop until you get them, if you want the true ending.  A chapter select would have been best to save all the unnecessary time wasted when (not if) you start another playthrough.

The other element of the story is the few times your main character calls upon his or her power to root out the truth.  This manifests as a match 3 like puzzle game.  Unlike a more traditional experience like Bejeweled, you don't swap pieces to match.  Instead, you pick a piece, and it gets sent to the top of the 8x8 grid.  It's different than what I've played before.  While it's not the best, it's pretty fun, and has some decent strategy.  You also get some abilities to use, but...they aren't great.  They aren't even fully explained.  I think you use one, poke the opponent somewhere, and have a percent chance to get some extra turns.  If not, they lock some pieces, making it harder.  While these abilities can be ignored for the most part, they will sometimes help in a pinch.

Oh, did I mention that the main character pictures peeling away the opponent's deceit like layers of clothing?  Well, that's how it plays out.  No, really.  As you fill out each opponent's happy meter, it will reach one of four milestones, removing some of their clothing (not in the "real" world) and giving you more moves to complete the stage.  It's not quite as creepy as it sounds.  No one is ever shown fully naked, just in his or her underwear.  You read that right.  It's not balanced, but there is one guy that you use your power on, compared to the five girls.

Once you have beaten an opponent, save for the near-final boss, they are unlocked in the puzzle mode for you to fight when you want.  Plus, they each have four different sets of undergarments to also unlock.  Most fights are not that hard, save for a few towards the end of the main game.  However, if you acquire the power word for those opponents, they are much easier.  I did have to retry a few fights for the near-final boss the first time through the game.  I say retry, but you basically have to load your game, so make sure to save often and take advantage of the multitude of save slots offered.

Overall, Kotodama: The 7 Mysteries of the Fujisawa was a decent visual novel and puzzle game hybrid.  The story has some nice ideas, but doesn't fully capitalize on its premise, and can easily drag on too long.  Puzzle sections can be pretty fun, though.   My only gripe was the ones at the end were really hard without having the special keywords.  If a sequel does get made and released, I would be interested in playing it for the story continuation.  Though it is not one I would get right when it releases.

The Good:
While mostly a visual novel, the match-3 puzzle aspect gives you a reason to play after the story ends.

The Bad:
Completing the game enough for the true ending can be a pain, and the final fights are difficult the first time through.

The SaHD:
No specific spoilers, but the ending was not fulfilling.

(Kotodama was purchased by the reviewer)

Kamiko (Switch) Review

Kamiko is a downloadable game on the Nintendo Switch's Eshop.  At first glance it may look like an isometric action adventure game similar to the Legend of Zelda.  However, that isn't very accurate.  For one, the emphasis is much more on puzzles than combat, though there is some of that, too.

Combat is pretty simple.  Each of the three characters has a unique weapon, which they will use to attack.  I like that they do feel different from each other, as I though at least two would be similar.  This will effect how you deal with some enemies, since the ranges are different.  Enemies tend to die very quickly.  This is good, since they can respawn very quickly too.

The puzzles are the main thing keeping you from progressing.  They are usually either hitting a switch, or bringing an orb or key to a certain spot in order to open a door.  They are not overly complicated, but there is a time or two where I didn't know where to go.  While carrying an orb or key, you cannot attack.  Also, getting hit will have you drop the item, forcing you to go back to its starting location and grab it again.  It can be a bit frustrating.  However it is easier to just not kill everything in a room, which will not trigger the enemy respawn.  That makes it much easier to navigate around them and not get hit.

Boss fights are mostly combat based, but they do have some tricks to them.  Dying just sets you back to the last time it saved.  For boss fights, this means you have to do the whole thing over again.  It's not that bad, since the boss fights aren't hard.  The game tracks how long you have played, but time since the last save doesn't seem to count against you if you die.

Kamiko is a short game.  My first run took me just under an hour.  Using the second girl, I completed it much quicker, since I had a much better idea what I was doing.  It's also a very linear game.  The areas do have a few secrets, which reward you with extra health or magic meter.  It's not really necessary to find them all, but it gives you something to do in a replay.  Even going through with all three girls only sets you back a few hours at best.  The game is made for speed running, which is not my thing.  Still, it was pretty fun, just very short.  I think it's worth trying, but I definitely suggest getting it on sale.


The Good:
A interesting puzzle/action game that is made for speed running.  Each character plays different from each other.

The Bad:
Extremely short.

The SaHD:
There's actually another hidden secret, but it's not really worth doing if you miss it.

(Kamiko was purchased by the reviewer)

VESTA (Switch) Review

VESTA (the game) stars Vesta (the character) and her robot friend Droid as they make their way from the bottom of the facility to the surface.  Along they way they will both use their unique abilities to make it through each stage, carrying enough energy to power their way to the next.

Both characters have different functions to get through the levels.  Vesta can drain energy from generators and robots, and then give that energy to other generators.  This allows doors to open, platforms to move, and conveyor belts to turn on.  She is also small enough to fit in tunnels strewn about the various levels.  Droid, being much bigger and stronger, can move boxes, block some environmental traps, and throw Vesta across gaps.  It can also shoot out missiles, which can incapacitate enemy robots, allowing Vesta to drain their energy.

As mentioned before, both characters have to reach the end area to complete the stage.  For most of the stages, Vesta will also need to have full energy in her pack.  This is usually the trickiest part of the game, but once you realize that, it is much easier to plan for.  Levels don't have a time limit, so it's not an issue to backtrack for the energy, or look around when you don't know where to go.  The story is separated into 4 chapters, each with 8 levels and 1 boss fight.  Several stages have a checkpoint that you will start over at if one of your characters dies.  Droid can take 3 hits, but Vesta can only take one...and can't fall down very far.  Also, later stages have floor panels that fall after you walk on them, which can strand you.  Thankfully, you will always be able to complete the stage from the checkpoint state if and when you die or have to restart a stage.

While the game is mostly charming and fun, there are some drawbacks.  The puzzles aren't overly difficult, but occasionally it can be hard to tell where you are supposed to go.  I had a major obstruction on a level in chapter 2, where I needed to have both characters go through a door at the same time.  I had tried to have them both go in the door separately, and the level didn't end.  For some reason, this is also one of maybe two stages that doesn't end with both characters reaching an elevator.  I've also missed a platform or two if it is from the bottom of the screen.

Hit detection isn't always that accurate, either.  When trying to hit an enemy with one of Droid's missiles, they sometimes brush the target, leaving it unaffected.  However, environmental obstructions must be given a wide berth, or your missile will hit it and explode.  If you pass by an enemy with Vesta, they will sometimes attack a different direction completely, and still hit and kill her.  If hit detection were consistent, I could at least plan for it better.  Lastly, I did run into some bugs when falling into pits.  Most times it is just being stuck below the ledge, but not fully in the pit.  One time I was able to run around under the stage.

VESTA isn't a very long game, only lasting a few hours, but it is pretty fun.  There isn't much replay value, though.  Each non-boss stage has secret items to find, but as far as I can tell, they don't actually do anything.  Maybe the PS4 version has trophies for them?  Anyway, the game has some problems, but they are relatively minor.  It's an interesting puzzle game that is worth trying for even casual puzzle fans.


The Good:
An interesting puzzle game that doesn't overstay its welcome.

The Bad:
Enemy hit detection feels off.

The SaHD:
The story is pretty interesting, but easy to miss.  I think I've got it down for the most part, but it would have been nice to unlock the back story messages in the menu so I would know if I was missing anything.

(Review code for VESTA was received from the publisher)

Zero Escape: Zero Time Dilemma (PS4) Review

Zero Escape: Zero Time Dilemma is the third in the Nonary Games trilogy, following 9 Persons, 9 Doors, 9 Hours and Zero Escape: Virtue's Last Reward.  I tried Virtue's Last Reward when it became a Playstation Plus title.  I only played it for an hour.  It's a puzzle game, and playing that game was what cemented my feelings on puzzle games...mainly that I don't like them.

So why review this?  Well, if I'm given a code/copy, I will do my best to play and review it.  So, I booted it up, watched the opening cut scene, and then had a choice...which side of the coin landed up?  I guessed, and it was correct!  Game over, credits rolled, review over!

Just kidding.

I do like that such a thing can happen, but later found out that it's supposed to.  No matter what you choose the first time, this is the outcome.  Ugh.  Well, at least it's better than the 0.05~% "choice".

That aside, Zero Time Dilemma, like the first two Nonary Games, has a great premise.  Nine people are trapped in a location by a mysterious madman, and forced to solve puzzles to survive.  Well, only some of them.  To actually escape, several of the others must die.  This time, the story is presented differently than the others.  Well, at least different from the previous game, as I have not played the first.

There are three groups of three people that work together and escape the different rooms, while finding clues as to what is going on and who is behind the deadly game.  I like that you can switch between all three groups at many points in the story.  It's cool to see all of the struggles each group goes through.  Plus, you can also sabotage certain groups, which lets you see all of the branching story paths.  There is a fairly helpful chart that shows the paths and outcomes that you have done, making finding the alternates very easy.

However, there is a huge downside to the story.  Each story block and subsequent choice or puzzle is a fragment of what happens to a group.  After the starting hour or so, many of these finally open for all surviving groups.  Once you complete a section, you see where it fits into the timeline, but not before.  This makes the story told in a disjointed and jumbled manner.  Since half of the game is like a visual novel, the story is important.  Having it told in random order is just a bad idea.  Yes, they explain it in the story, but I don't like it.  Would you like reading random chapters of a book, or in the correct order so it can be followed and understood?

As a puzzle game, the playtime is variable.  Some people will quickly solve some puzzles, which will stump other players.  Those first people will then be stuck on some problem that others figure out immediately.  That's just the way it goes.  If you know the solutions, it will be a much faster game, but it will likely take newer players 30 or more hours to finish.  Thankfully, there are solutions online in case you when you get stuck.  Some solutions seemed way too convoluted to me, or the clues weren't even available.  As such, I got very frustrated at several points.

If you like puzzle games with story, or played and enjoyed the other Nonary Games, then I'm sure you will enjoy Zero Time Dilemma.  If you are not a fan of puzzle games, or like coherent and well-told stories, then I'd recommend skipping it.


The Good:
A competent puzzle game that fans of the first two games should enjoy.

The Bad:
Telling the story of a story-based game in a random order is a bad idea.

The SaHD:
Seriously, the 3 snakes eyes thing is crazy, luckily you only have to try 3 times.

(Review code for Zero Time Dilemma was provided by the publisher)

Yomawari: Night Alone (PS Vita) Review

After abruptly losing her dog, a little girl goes home and her sister goes to look for it.  As it gets darker, the little girl ventures out to find her sister.  However, you will soon learn that scary monster lurk around every corner.  It is up to you to guide the girl to safety and locate her sister in one of the Vita's scariest and creepiest offering, Yomawari: Night Alone.

At first glance, the game looks like a horror game, and it that is fairly accurate.  You play as a little girl, who has no weapons against the evil shadows that roam the town.  Therefore, it is a lot like a survival horror game.  You quickly get a flashlight that can show you where most monsters are, and you have to either avoid them, run away from them, or sneak by.  It took me way too long to realize the right stick can aim the flashlight.  It's really useful, but I do find myself swinging it around from side to side like a paranoid horror movie extra.  And just like them, if the girl gets caught, she gets killed.

There are places around town for you to hide.  While hiding, you can only see the girl, and vague red mist that represents the enemies.  There's also a heartbeat that lets you know how close they are.  It really keeps the adrenaline pumping while you are hiding.  Overall, the game has a great presentation that is unsettling and creepy without being graphic (see Corpse Party if that's what you want).

While on your quest to find your sister, you have various places that you can go to that change during the course of the game.  Some place may not be open when you first wander by it, but you will eventually need to go there.  Along the way, you have some basic puzzles to figure out, like finding items that let you pass areas or unlock doors.  So in addition to dodging various ghosts and monsters, you also need to solve how to get to where you need to go.

The girl can also pic up rocks, coins and fish crackers.  Rocks can distract monsters, fish crackers feed cats, but coins have the best use.  Whenever you go by a Jizo statue, you can offer a coin to make a quick save.  They also act as teleporters, that can move you quickly from one statue to another.  The girl can also return to her house from the map, if you want to full save.  Then, stop by the nearest statue and jump right back in to whatever you were just doing (porting around doesn't cost a coin).  I'm one of those people that saves a lot (Psycho Mantis told me I like to kick my tires before I leave), so this is a very useful function.

It's pretty easy to pass by some of the side stuff in the game if you focus on the story, but you are allowed to go back at the end of the game and other points to get the extra items.  Yomawari is a pretty fun and creepy game that offers a few hours of playtime.  It's part survival horror and part puzzle, and while you will die easily and repeatedly, it's not that frustrating.  Well, unless you can't figure out where to go and what to do.  It's a solid offering on the PS Vita for horror fans, or even puzzle gamers.


The Good:
Great at setting the tone for the game early on.  A very creepy game.

The Bad:
Not always clear where to go/what to do.  Sometimes you can actually go past things that it appears to steer you away from.

The SaHD:
While I'm not a fan of limited saves, like ink ribbons, paying coins to Jizo was a cute and appropriate way to do it, so I can't be too mad.

(Review code for Yomawari: Night Alone was provided by the publisher)

The Magic Circle: Gold Edition (PS4) Review

The Magic Circle: Gold Edition starts with a very interesting premise: you are playing inside a video game that has been stuck in developmental hell for many years, and still isn't finished.  Inside you meet an AI program that will assist you through it and try to find out what's going on.  Maybe you can even finish what was started.

The tale it tells is almost too real for any fans that have followed the outside development of many games, weaving together rabid fanaticism, well meaning but flawed individuals, and outside influences that can bring games to ruin.  I don't want to spoil too much, but the story behind the story is well done, and while it is placed in an extreme light, does feel realistic enough to be a scary social commentary on gaming.  The voice acting for the characters is really well done, too.  There is a fair amount of swearing midway through the game, and I did have to shoo the little ones away while I was playing.

The game world is very unique in style and substance.  Since the game was built upon an earlier, scrapped game, there are two worlds twisted together.  One is a fantasy world that is muted of most colors (save around the creatures and yourself), looking like a black and white manga instead of a fleshed-out game world.  The other is an old-school space adventure, looking very much like the first Doom.  The merging of three dimensional and sprite environments somehow works really well.

The game is played from the first-person perspective.  You can jump (with triangle, which is kind of weird to me) and...well, you can't attack.  At least not directly.  One of the "choices" the developers of the game within the game made.  However, you can use your health to 'trap' a hostile being and then re-write its behavioral code.  Once you get used to how everything works, it's actually really cool.  You can set the creature's allies, enemies, movement and attack type.  In fact, you will need to.  Once you get a few recruits, you can then use them to attack any other hostile entities.  Once an enemy is 'ghosted' (out of HP), you can re-write it as well.  If you want, you can have a whole army follow you around, but I wouldn't recommend it.  It gets really clustered.

The freedom the game allows is pretty good.  That corpse doesn't do much.  If you take the 'ground' movement from another, you can then have a zombie follow you around.  Give him 'melee' so he can defend you, and the game gives him a beam sword.  Give him 'flame attack' and he will have a flame thrower on his chest to use on your foes.  Once you get flying, you can give him a way to take to the skies.  Taking these parameters from objects and defeated foes is key to getting through the game, while giving you lots of room to experiment.

You will need many modifiers to get through the various puzzles in the game.  Some are just for fun, or alternate ways to solve situations and make your way to the end.  There are many spots to refill your life (or warp to), since you will need it to trap enemies and resurrect any of your allies that fall in combat or to the environment.  Anything that you have at least went into the brain editor of can be summoned to your side from the map.  Again, it takes some getting used to, but it is different from any other game I have played, and it's fun, too.

Even though there is combat, the game isn't really hard.  It's more like a long puzzle or adventure game than an action game.  It can actually be pretty relaxing at times.  Many solutions are open, with several ways to solve it.  That's key to making it better than many puzzle games (to me, at least).  While it in theory would give some replayability, that and collecting trophies is about it.  The game is pretty short, and can be completed in about 5 hours or so.

I liked The Magic Circle and enjoyed playing the game.  It is a bit short and doesn't offer much replayability, but it was very much worth playing.  The world and story it crafts are well done.  The gameplay itself is imaginative and unique.  I'd recommend playing the game to any fans of puzzle or adventure games, or those that enjoy thinly veiled critique of the gaming industry and culture.  It is very much an experience that will not be soon forgotten.

The Good:
Being able to re-write enemies and objects to solve puzzles in a myriad of ways make this game a fun and unique experience.

The Bad:
The game is short (about 5 hours or so) and doesn't offer much replayability except for trophies.

The SaHD:
Without spoiling it, the parts at the end were pretty cool, and this game likes to play around with perceived notions about how a game can work.

(Review code for The Magic Circle: Gold Edition supplied by the publisher)

Slice It! (3DS) Review

Slice It! has made its way to the 3DS E-shop after being available on mobile devices.  It is an interesting puzzle game that tasks you with drawing lines to slice an object into a set number of equally sized sections in order to complete a stage.

The game has two different ways to play, either one of the episodes, or Slice It! Quick.  The two episodes each have 100 puzzles divided evenly over 5 pages.  For each of the puzzles, you have a set number of lines to use and set number of pieces the object has to be divided into.  At first it's pretty simple.  After a few puzzles, it gets harder.  You can't cut the pieces too small, otherwise you will fail.  You also have to use each line, even if the puzzle can be done in less.  It gets pretty challenging as you progress through the game.  Hints are helpful, but they are not per puzzle, so you can quickly run out of them.  You can earn more by playing Slice It! Quick (see below), but that can take awhile as well, especially if you need multiple for one puzzle (don't judge me!).  If you use a hint, do your best to complete the puzzle, since if you exit out, the hint will not show back up, but will have been used.

The second episode is similar to the first, but adds some twists including areas that you cannot draw lines through and ones that reflect the drawn line.  These are pretty interesting ways to add something unique to the mix instead of just harder puzzles.  It is possible to skip any puzzles that you are struggling with, but you do have to complete one full page (by getting at least one star on a puzzle) to move on to the next.  Once you finish the first episode, the other unlocks.  There is also a gift area with 40 more puzzles.

Slice It! Quick is just that: trying to solve a puzzle quickly.  You start with 30 seconds and try to complete as many randomly sequenced puzzles as you can in the time frame.  Thankfully, they puzzles aren't hard in this version, since the emphasis is on speed.  If you fail a puzzle, you lose 3 seconds from your time, but a perfect will give you 3 more.  There are sometimes "challenge" puzzles that stop the clock, but are a little more complicated than the standard ones in this mode.  For every 20 that you are able to do, you are also rewarded with a hint for the episodes.

This mode is a great alternative to the main one.  While I'm not the speediest of people, it's nice to bounce between the two.  After doing some puzzles from the episodes, I like to do a round of Slice It! Quick to kind of cleanse the pallet.  Or if I need to get a hint or two back.  That's probably how it will mostly be used, but I like the dichotomy of one set for thinking and the other for speed.  Just make sure to take the extra quarter second to make sure your are lined up correctly...the penalty is not worth the carelessness!

Slice It! is a pretty fun and quick puzzle game.  Some of the stages were pretty hard for me, but being a puzzle game, that experience will differ from person to person.  It's a bit more linear that I would like, since being stuck on a puzzle can halt your progress to the next page or unlock.  There are a lot of puzzles to solve, so it's easy to get your money's worth.  It's also a good pick up and play game for when you have a few minutes to solve some puzzles.