Nick Mangiaracina
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Writing For
MonsterVine
KeenGamerLatest Reviews
Mysteries, individual cases, and the overarching story are both exciting and satisfying. I was pretty upset by where the story went but the more I thought about it, the more it made sense. Even just replaying the opening scene, I was immediately shown the breadcrumbs for what the story would...
And if you’re like me and you decide to think too much about what’s happening on screen, one of the objectives in every single level is to simply do nothing. In fact, you can just leave the game running if you prefer and our protagonist will simply wait, as they’re...
Now, I’m conflicted. I dig Tales of Graces f and the Remastered version offers some very nice quality-of-life features. And truthfully, if we go back to the original Wii release and then look at the Remastered version, it’s a night and day difference. I refuse to be a fence sitter,...
Unfortunately, there’s not much for me to add. I consider The Oath in Felghana one of the best, if not the best, Ys games in the line-up. Ys Memoire: The Oath in Felghana is that game. I think it’s a little disappointing there aren’t more extras added in, I’d love...
Fairy Tail 2 looks about as great as an anime game can look but with the gameplay, it was death by a thousand cuts. No one thing Fairy Tail 2 does is bad, but there are a bunch of little things that really ruined the experience for me. I really...
I’m not sure if my initial impressions are the reason why or if we’re witnessing greatness initially locked away on a non-gaming platform but Fantasian is a surprisingly great experience. Between the characters and their growth, the interesting and winding narrative, and the fun combat, Fantasian is one of the...
Dragon Age: The Veilguard isn’t a perfect game but, hot damn, it’s a great one. I feel at home in Thedas, I like the people that live there and the care that Bioware puts into writing these characters. Imperfect companions and story beats that help us understand not just what’s...
Unfortunately, the greatest looking characters in the world couldn’t cover up for the low-stakes narrative. While mechanically Life is Strange: Double Exposure is very cool and aesthetically a beautiful beast, I just walked away from the story feeling let down. Maxine Caulfield is a favorite character of mine and I...
Black Tabby Games had a vision and executed it with great aplomb. Often you’ll play a visual novel that has other gameplay elements placed in as if the designers had no confidence in the narrative presented, unsure that they can keep the player engaged. Slay the Princess – The Pristine...
I like the improvements Yuke’s made to the first game. While they could have phoned in the development of World Brothers 2, I was greeted instead with a completely new story, lots of new brothers, and enough enemy variety to keep me entertained through the end. I was pretty impressed...
For all its faults, I think Visions of Mana is a pretty good game. It went down easy and there was a lot to do. Likewise, the visuals and music make it the modern Mana game that’s precisely what’s required to become invested in the series. Unfortunately, especially in a...
Bloomtown: A Different Story was a great playthrough and I’m really glad I got the chance to play it. Some of the pitfalls in its design are very apparent and while some of the puzzle design and moment-to-moment combat wasn’t stellar, I think it’s overall a very worthwhile experience.
