Vitamag #17

FEATURES! GLITCHED! LIMITED RUN GAMES WITH US! INSIDE! DEVELOPER WIN!WINFIND SPACE OVERLORDS! LICHTSPEER! OUT MORE ON PAGE 39!

The only monthly PSVita magazine and packed with Vita content!

‘s

Vitamag

REVIEWED!

Welcome

Hello Vita Gamers!

ght of games, Summer typically arrives with a drou ry from growing but that hasn't stopped the Vita libra e all been 'v you ess a little over the last month. Unl ring xplo xy-e gala ain pre-occupied with a cert to get your er eag are you sure m I' , PlayStation 4 title Paul Murphy ld! dhe han hands on something new for your PMurphy1978 nder Fou st udes the late This issue of Vitamag once again incl is a that among this month's highlights Vita reviews, and you'll have spotted read can s and action RPG enthusiast review for Attack on Titan. Eager fans 18. That's not all that you'll find on e pag on : Timmy's thoughts on the game also get our opinions on Lumo, AW will you as r, eve the following pages how ers. oth few a t ngs derer - amo Phoenix Festa, and Shiren the Wan t ews, we also have some more grea On top of our collection of new revi , 12 dios Stu se Hou En e hav e around we developer features for you. This tim ng omi upc ir the ut abo ing talk all Studios Hit Combo, Lichtund, and Cat Trap de insi st er professional game journali Vita projects. We also have a form and his ussing both his personal website, disc k this issue, with Tired Old Hac thoughts on the Vita. ve st news, the new releases that we' Closing this issue we have the late ped top dies goo al ition es - all those add heard about, and hot upcoming gam .

Plus ion Stat Play of e ent stat off nicely by my thoughts on the curr m off to find out what's going on with I'll leave you to enjoy this issue - I' ed nately hacked. Some low-life help lt my PSN account, which was unfortu resu a as and r, inte erW Nev d ing calle themselves to a few quid on someth r you into ngly suggest that you all look my account was suspended. I stro rds as needed! swo pas account security and change you e, and of course I also hope to see I really hope that you enjoy this issu ! here again next time on October 10th

WANT TO JOIN OUR AWESOME PSVITA TEAM OF ENTHUSIASTS? WE ARE LOOKING FOR NEW TALENT FOR THE WEBSITE AND THE MAGAZINE! IF YOU ARE INTERESTED, PLEASE VISIT WWW. THEVITALOUNGE.NET/JOBS FOR MORE DETAILS! PLEASE CONSIDER SUPPORTING OUR PATREON – IT WOULD REALLY BE APPRECIATED AND WOULD GO A LONG WAY TO SUPPORTING WHAT WE DO! FOR $9 PER ISSUE YOU WILL GET A PRINT COPY OF THIS MAGAZINE DELIVERED TO YOUR DOOR! YOU CAN FIND OUR PATREON PAGE AT WWW.PATREON.COM/THEVITALOUNGE 11 Re 11 Re 13 Re 10 Re 10 Re views views views views views ! Dev ! Dev ! Dev ! Dev ! Dev elope elope elope elope elope r Fea r Fea r Fea r Fea r Fea tures tures tures tures tures ! Late ! Late ! Late ! Late ! Late st Ne st Ne st Ne st Ne st Ne ws! ws! ws! ws! ws!

T T The V T T ita Lo he Vita Lo he Vita Lo he Vita Lo he Vita Lo unge unge unge unge unge M A G A Z I N E

FEATURES! GLITCHED! LIMITED RUN GAMES WITH US! INSIDE! DEVELOPER WIN!WINFIND SPACE OVERLORDS! LICHTSPEER! OUT MORE ON PAGE 39!

The only monthly PSVita magazine and packed with Vita content!

M A G A Z I N E

M A G A Z I N E

M A G A Z I N E

The Vita Lounge Magazine

REGULARS 04 BITE-SIZED NEWS

BITE-SIZED NEWS

THE LATEST VITA NEWS FROM AROUND THE WORLD!

06 NEW RELEASES THESE GAMES ARE RELEASING THIS MONTH. ANYTHING FOR YOU?

07 HOT TEN THE VITA GAMES COMING SOON THAT WE ARE MOST EXCITED FOR!

08 IS IT TIME TO DROP THAT PLAYSTATION PLUS SUBSCRIPTION? WE ASK THAT VERY QUESTION.

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WE TALK TO GAMING JOURNALIST CHRIS SCULLION ABOUT HIS WEBSITE AND THE VITA

38 THE ARE THE BEST VITA GAMES RELEASED SO FAR THIS YEAR. HOW MANY DO YOU HAVE?

39 PATREON STARS

M A G A Z I N E

Issue 17 | September 2016

THIS MAGAZINE EXISTS BECAUSE OF THE AMAZING PEOPLE. THANK YOU SO MUCH!

@PSVitaMag

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Vitamag 5

EDITORIAL TEAM Executive Editor / Paul Murphy @pmurphy1978 Editor-in-Chief / Kyle Wakeling @teflontactics 8 6 7 Deputy Editor / Charlie Large @CharlieLarge Deputy Editor / Jenny Jones @Kitty_has_Klaws MAGAZINE DESIGN Art Editor / Jhonatan Carneiro @JhoCarneiro

REVIEWED!

WEBSITE TEAM Timmy Garrett @timmygarrett40k Reece 9Heyworth @rheyworth07

CONTRIBUTORS Brandon Crisp @crispyn64 Gareth Smith @spritesnbytes Chris Scullion @Scully88

to your

Magazine!

DEVELOPER FEATURES

EN HOUSE STUDIOS

8

10 HIT COMBO

GLITCHED IS A FOURTH WALL BREAKING RPG WHERE THE HERO LEARNS THAT YOU, THE PLAYER, EXISTS. WE CAUGHT UP WITH THE TEAM TO FIND OUT MORE!

SPACE OVERLORDS IS COMING SOON TO THE VITA. DESCRIBED AS AN "ACTION SMASH-FEST," WE CAUGHT UP WITH THE GAME'S DEVELOPERS TO LEARN WHAT THAT MEANS!

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LICHTUND

14

CAT TRAP STUDIOS

HEARD OF LICHTSPEER? IT'S CASTLE INVASION: THRONE OUT COMING VERY SOON TO THE VITA. WILL BE ARRIVING ON THE VITA DEVELOPERS LICHTUND EXPLAIN THIS MONTH. DAVE WARD FROM MORE ABOUT THEIR "LIGHT-SPEAR CAT TRAP STUDIOS EXPLAINS THROWING SIMULATOR!" MORE ABOUT THE GAME!

REVIEWS 18

21

Attack on Titan: Wings of Freedom

24

Laser Disco Defenders

30

Dungeon Punks

26

Lumo

32

Alone With You

28

Last Wings

34

Shiren the Wanderer: The Tower of Fortune and the Dice of Fate

A.W.: Phoenix Festa

thevitalounge.net SPECIAL THANKS En House Studios @ EnHouseStudios 12 Hit Combo @12HitCombo Excalibur Publishing @Excalpublishing Lichtund @lichtspeer Tom Tomaszewski @tom_tomaszewski Cat Trap Studios @CatTrapStudios Limited Run Games @LimitedRunGames and Play-Asia.com @PlayAisa

@TheVitaLounge COVERAGE Are you a developer? If you are working on PSVita content and want to get it covered for FREE in either the magazine or on the website, then we would love to hear from you! Please send an email to press@thevitalounge.net and add us to your press lists. If you have a game coming out soon and want us to tell other Vita owners, get in touch!

patreon.com/TheVitaLounge DISCLAIMER The Vita Lounge is an independent PlayStation Vita enthusiast website and magazine. All content featured is used with permission, and is used to promote existing and upcoming titles for the PS Vita. We are not endorsed or affiliated with Sony or PlayStation, or any of the companies featured. © 2015-2016 The Vita Lounge

BITE-SIZED NEWS Amadeus version of Steins; Gate 0 announced

Unique World of Final Fantasy Vita models coming to Japan

Did you enjoy Steins;Gate? The original game had many bad endings, and this sequel follows Rintaro Okabe after one of the games less that positive conclusions. Upset by what has happened in this ending, he discovers he may have a second chance thanks to an AI program named Amadeus. In the sequel however, Rintaro uses RINE, a messenger inspired

by Line, to influence the plot by communicating with other characters.

As usual Japan gets the most awesome Vita models! Sony Interactive Entertainment Japan Asia and Square Enix have announced two new World of Final Fantasy Vita models which will be released in October. There will be a white version called the Primero Edition. There will also be a black version called the Oobito Edition.

The online retailer Rice Digital announced they will be exclusively selling the “Amadeus Edition” of Steins;Gate 0 in North America and Europe, and it will cost $79.99 in North America. Steins:Gate 0 Amadeus Edition comes with a collector’s box, soundtrack, pin badge, art book, and replica Fairy Upa.

Both versions will come with an original World of Final Fantasy PSVita theme, as well as World of Final Fantasy themed packaging They will be priced at 20,980 yen (plus tax) and are due to be released at the same time as the game in Japan on October 27th. Will you be importing?

Moon Hunters cancelled Despite covering the game recently, it is our sad duty to tell you that the Vita version of Moon Hunters has been dropped - despite being a Kickstarter project with a Vita target. Blaming the engine (and slating Vita ports in general) Kitfox games are offering alternative platforms or a $15 CAD refund. Did you back the game? Get in touch with Kitfox Games for a refund.

Amnesia: Memories Each month, those with a PlayStation Plus subscription will get at least two titles for their Vita as part of their Instant Game Collection. In September, Vita gamers will be able to download Amnesia: Memories and Badland: Game of the Year Edition.

"Amnesia: Memories was my first foray into Visual Novels and has left me wanting more of from the genre, its unique story and interesting cast will keep you entertained and hooked on the game, with multiple ending and several unlockable bonuses Amnesia: Memories is a worthwhile addition to your Vita collection." - Liam Langan

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thevitalounge.net

PlayStation Plus subscription rising to $59.99/$69.99 in North America

One Way Heroics to get a Limited Run release

Stealthily placed in last month's Plus announcement on the PlayStation Blog, you might not have seen that Sony are putting up the basic cost of a Plus subscription in the US and Canada, to $59.99 in the USA and $69.99 CAD for Canada.

We already knew that Spike Chunsoft’s upcoming title Mystery Chronicle: One Way Heroics was coming to Western shores but today we learned something even better: those fine folks at Limited Run Games have got involved and the game will see a print release through them.

Citing "market valuations", the monthly plan will remain $9.99 in the USA but rise to $11.99 CAD in Canada. What do you make of the news? Do you still think that plus offers value for money? Coincidently we have a feature on PlayStation Plus' value this month on page ##!

Releasing this September and with a print run of 5000 for the Vita version, this latest title in the mystery Dungeon series centres around a kingdom which is being swallowed by a destructive wall of light. By keeping on your toes and moving forward in the procedurally generated world, the rogue-like nature of the game will punish you if you stray too far...

Defenders Quest receiving a Vita port Heard of Defender's Quest? It's a "fun, fast paced tower defence/RPG" title from Level Up Labs, and if you love yourself a little Tower Defence then you could be in luck!

Lars Doucet from the studio tweeted out the above image showing the game running on the Vita, he hopes that the game will be released before the end of the year. We caught up with him recently and you'll be able to find out more next month!

Lichtspeer releasing this month Have you heard of Lichtspeer? It’s a game set in a mythical Germanic space world in AD3069 is an action/arcade “lightspear-throwing simulator” and it will be landing on the Vita (and PS4/PC) this September.

Lichtspeer’s world is filled with all sorts of creatures, like Penguin Vikings, Wurst Zombies and even Hipster Ice Giants and survival is an art form. Luckily, a champion blessed with an extremely elegant weapon has been summoned to please the gods, and it’s down to you to restore order to the universe.

Badland: Game of the Year Edition

Polls Apart!

"In bringing Badland to consoles, Clony and co. make a flap for the big time but unfortunately fall a little short. Frogmind saw great success on smartphones with this title, unfortunately this does not translate as well to the PlayStation Vita." - Charlie Large

We asked on Twitter if you were happy with these titles for the IGC. The results are:

2.9 @PSVitaMag

Yes 51% Both 25%

No 19% Source: Twitter 758 votes.

One 26%

Not sure 30% The Vita Lounge Magazine

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The Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel II

September 6th NA

MeiQ: Labyrinth of Death

September 13th NA / September 16th EU

WE KNOW THAT VITA GAMES CAN APPEAR WITHOUT MUCH NOTICE, BUT HERE ARE SOME OF THE GAMES WE SHOULD BE SEEING THIS MONTH!

Psycho-Pass: Mandatory Happiness September 13th NA / September 16th

Valkyrie Drive: Bhikkhuni September 16th NA & EU

September 20th NA / September 23rd EU

Tokyo Twilight Ghost Hunters Daybreak: Special Gigs

Darkest Dungeon

Space Overlords

Mystery Chronicle: One Way Heroics

Hue

Lichtspeer

September 20th NA

TBC NA & EU (Also LRG)

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The Vita Lounge Magazine

September 27th NA & EU

TBC NA & EU

Criminal Girls 2: Party Favors

TBC NA & EU

TBC NA & EU

thevitalounge.net

Ho eN THE VITA GAMES WE ARE MOST EXCITED FOR!

NEW DANGANRONPA V3

DRAGON QUEST BUILDERS

dragonquest-game.com @DragonQuest

@spikechunsoft

WORLD OF FINAL FANTASY

worldoffinalfantasy.square-enix.com @square_enix_eu

HYPER LIGHT DRIFTER

heart-machine.com @HeartMachineZ

YIIK

ackkstudios.wordpress.com @ackkstudios

STEINS;GATE 0

@PQubeGames

DARKEST DUNGEON

darkestdungeon.com @RedHookStudios

SALT AND SANCTUARY

ska-studios.com/salt @skastudios @PSVitaMag

DRIFTER

celsiusgs.com/drifter @celsiusgs

COSMIC STAR HEROINE

zeboyd.com @ZeboydGames The Vita Lounge Magazine

7

Paul Murphy Founder The Vita Lounge PMurphy1978 PMurphy1978

IS IT TIME TO GIVE UP ON YOUR PLAYSTATION PLUS SUBSCRIPTION?

Since it first arrived on the PlayStation Vita in November 2012, the Instant Game Collection (IGC) has provided many great experiences for Vita owners to enjoy, with over 100 different titles being available for those with an active subscription. For as long as it has been around, you have been granted access to at least two games each month as well as discounts on many other games, including new releases.

Not every game has been well received on the service, but there have been some truly spectacular experiences over the years, with many stand-out titles such as Killzone Mercenary, Olli Olli (and it's even more fabulous sequel), Velocity 2X and many of the better launch titles being available too. It has always provided Vita owners with a steady flow of games to enjoy on the system and in my opinion as a subscriber from day one, the service has more than paid for itself over the years and provided great value for money. Well, that's what I thought until this year.

For many, the service has been steadily decreasing in quality for Vita (and PS3) owners since the arrival of the PS4. The advent of paid-for multiplayer being the primary purpose for the service, as well as Sony's priorities transitioning towards their newest product means that the quality has dropped, and to date in 2016 the line up for the Vita has been its worst yet; and to make it worse the Vita titles are now being replaced with PSP titles.

It could be said that I am being unfair to the PSP, as it has been populated with many great titles of its own and the more recent IGC PSP offerings aren't bad games themselves: but I didn't buy a Vita to play PSP games - I'd have kept my PSP if I wanted to do that. Therefore, I don't subscribe to a Vita game service to receive PSP games.

I'm not sure what my issue with PSP titles is - I'm not a gaming snob so the visuals aren't necessarily important to me or the resolution, I suppose the lack of trophies irks me somewhat although I think that's a separate editorial entirely. I think it boils down to the principle of the matter.

It's also important to mention that the service itself in principle does represent tremendous value, especially if you own all three systems. Six games each month and access to that online infrastructure for what boils down to mere pounds/dollars or euros is ridiculous, but does that mean that we should just take whatever is given to us?

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There are many hundreds of Vita titles available, and over 200 still in development (don't believe the detractors!) so a lack of Vita games being available isn't the factor as the pool is there.

Sure, not all of the games are good enough to offer as "free" titles, although Sony have recently stated that the Metacritic requirement for a Plus title was a myth. That was actually around about the time we started getting poorly reviewed games.

In addition to the last few months of PSP titles, we have gained Little Deviants and Reality Fighters to our IGC; two of the WORST Vita titles that exist. I'm a massive fan of indie games, and will champion quality developers and their games until TVL isn't a thing anymore, but it doesn't mean I'll accept every single game thrown at me. They aren't all good, and don't even get me started on the whole Dragon Fin Soup disaster...

I know it isn't just me either - aside from death and taxes, the other guarantee that you can have in life is the monthly reaction to the latest PS Plus news, with many a customer making their feelings known on the PlayStation Blog. Often with very little interaction from the powers that be. It's not right that one, low-end of the food chain employee bears the brunt of the negativity of course, but Sony really couldn't care about how this affects Vita owners, otherwise we'd have seen an improvement.

Throwing Oreshika: Tainted Bloodlines - which is arguably the stand out title on the service this year - as a bone to stave off the pitchforks only to revert to type afterwards only infuriates us more. Don't just take my word for it, look at the polls we have been running in this magazine and on Twitter, as well as the general negativity from the comments on announcement day.

Yes 40%

Yes 41% Both 18% One 23%

No 39%

Not sure 20%

JUNE

JULY Yes 64%

Both 24%

One 40%

No 17%

Not sure 19%

Both 16% One 24%

No 36%

Not sure 36%

AUGUST

Where is Tearaway? Where are the Danganronpa titles?

Hell, where is Minecraft? Something from Bandai Namco or Koei Tecmo wouldn't go amiss, and I'm sure even Persona 4, assuming everyone hasn't already played it (which of course, you should) would go down a treat and show that you care, not so much about the Vita - we know they don't - but the owners, that splashed out money on the system and the service. This level of disinterest towards Vita owners is evident on the PlayStation Blog itself, with absolutely no effort made to explain the upcoming offers in more detail. They really cannot be bothered.

Of course, the service is a choice. You don't have to pay for it (although being a PS4-owning multiplaying gamer sort of means you have no choice), but then you'll lose access to everything that you already "bought" before, highlighting the fact that you are essentially only renting these games.

There are other factors too with the subscription, such as the cloud storage and the discounts - at times Plus subscribers can get some healthy launch discounts on new titles too. Is it worth it though?

On the whole I would say just about, but only just. For the price of the service (if you have an annual one) you will probably get a couple of games that cover the cost of that subscription, even if you are just a Vita owner. Those discounts can be worthwhile and through the IGC you'll gain access to some games that you may never have given a chance otherwise, which belies the true beauty that PlayStation Plus has offered in the past.

Sony have maintained for the last few years that they are "For the Players". Much more of this would suggest that they are just "for the money" and I'll be taking mine away from Plus.

@PSVitaMag

The Vita Lounge Magazine

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En House Studios

kickstarter.com/projects/ enhousestudios/glitched @EnHouseStudios

Hello En House Studios, thanks for talking with us! Can you tell us a little bit about your studio and how you got into developing games?

The three of us met during our first year at university. We were instant friends.

At the time, I was a game development student. We eventually moved into an apartment together during our sophomore year. I was editing some really early concepts for GLITCHED and we began discussing different aspects about the game. It wasn’t long until we decided to give it a real shot at developing. We had our fair share of failures, but now almost three years later we are here now.

We are talking today to find out more about your upcoming title, GLITCHED. Can you explain what it's about?

GLITCHED is an RPG game where the hero slowly realizes he is in a video game. The hero, Gus, will talk directly to the player as he attempts make sense of what is going on. It’s a turn based RPG, with retro pixel 10

The Vita Lounge Magazine

GLITCHED IS A FOURTH WALL BREAKING RPG IN WHICH THE MAIN CHARACTER REALISES THAT YOU, THE PLAYER, EXISTS. AFTER SUCCESSFULLY REACHING ITS VITA STRETCH GOAL, WE CAUGHT UP WITH DEVELOPERS EN HOUSE STUDIOS TO FIND OUT MORE! graphics inspired by the Mother series.

There will be a ton of fourth wall breaking shenanigans. The ESSENCE SYSTEM is a mechanic in the game where the choices the player makes for Gus will have an impact on his personality. There will be lots of situation that aren’t quite good or evil where you’ll be forced to make decisions.

What gameplay will gamers encounter as they play GLITCHED? At its core, it’s a story driven game where you’ll be making tough choices that will heavily alter your experience. The combat is old school turn based but with a lot of the annoying parts trimmed off. There is no random encounters or leveling.

Instead, every fight has story implications.

You’ll get the chance to befriend tons of different characters. There will be tons of collectibles and things to do.

What games have inspired GLITCHED? The Mother series and Undertale were original inspirations, but we want to make sure that GLITCHED is GLITCHED and nothing besides that. The way Dark Souls packed so much lore into every detail of the game is something that inspires us to try and do the same. Classic RPG series like Final Fantasy and Dragon Quest definitely brought us into the RPG world.

We are definitely going to be messing with some of the tropes though.

How far into development are you?

There is currently a two hour demo (For Windows/Mac) which you can download and play right now. There is still a good amount left to do. If I had to estimated, perhaps we are at about 5%?

Can you tell us anything new about the game?

I’ll talk about the player hub, which we haven’t detailed anywhere else yet. Using a smart phone like device called the thevitalounge.net

M.U.D, Gus will be able to befriend NPCs and invite them to his virtual hub town.

Here you’ll be able to design a town and assign different NPCs to create shops and do other things. There will be a ton of collectibles, items, and secrets to find in the hub town. Some NPCs might become your friend right away, but others you may need to complete quests and help them out before they decide to be your friend.

What made you want to develop the Vita version? Will there be a significant delay before we will get our hands on it?

We really wanted to see GLITCHED on a handheld system. We didn’t want to work around the restrictions of smart phone devices and once we saw that Game Maker worked well with the Sony consoles the PS Vita seemed like a natural fit for GLITCHED. We love the Vita community already! @PSVitaMag

Why Kickstarter?

We put a lot of thought into choosing to go to Kickstarter. We actually failed a campaign once before in 2014. Ultimately we decided that if we wanted GLITCHED to be the game we knew it could be then we needed to have the funds to back that up. We set the goal for the bare minimum under the notion that we would struggle during the dev cycle but be able to at least finish the project in a timely manner.

We’ve have some amazing support so far, so it looks like we will really be able to bring a good game to the Vita.

Have any games impressed you on the Vita?

I actually first played Persona 4 on the PS Vita. I fell in love instantly. It was the first game I played on the Vita and really got me into the system. I am a big sucker good JRPGs and I had been putting off playing Persona 4 for way to long.

There have been two Vita models. Which would you say is the best - the OLED or the Slim?

Personally I would say the Slim. I tested out the OLED screen before I bought one and it looked amazing. But I was a bit more inclined for the longer battery and slimness. I don’t tend to play it much at home so for me it made more sense to go with the Slim.

We would like to thank Nikko and the team at En House Studios for their time. What do you make of GLITCHED? Will you be picking it up? There's still time to support the team with the project via this link! www.glitchedpresskit.com/p/ glitchredpreorder.html The Vita Lounge Magazine

11

12 Hit Combo

spaceoverlords.com 12hitcombo.com @12HitCombo

Thanks for taking the time to talk to us!

Can you tell us a little bit about 12 Hit Combo?

The 12 Hit Combo team has 10 years’ experience in video games development with projects across multiple platforms including mobile, web, Facebook and PC. They received a nomination for Best App award at the Mobile Premiere Awards and have been recognised by CREA and Games for Change. They are proud of the fact that they are the first Colombian company with a worldwide IP publishing deal with an original IP. We are talking to you today about Space Overlords, an action "shoot-fest" which is out this month. Can you tell us a little bit about the game?

Space Overlords is a planetary destruction action game where you control an Overlord, an ancient life form of immeasurable power in his quest to seek revenge and destroy the evil Kesedihan by wiping out any trace of his kin.

Seven galaxies feature in the SinglePlayer Story mode, each galaxy will have eight planets and each section feature atmospheric cut scenes to advance the epic tale of the Overlords. The multiplayer portion of the game has four game modes and focuses on pitting the players against each other.

Additionally there is a built-in level editor offering the player a chance to be creative – design your own planets and share them with the community and then have fun attacking other players’ planets.

Character power-ups also add to the fast pace and high action atmosphere of the game.

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SPACE OVERLORDS IS AN UPCOMING "ACTION SMASH FEST" FROM COLUMBIAN DEVELOPERS 12 HIT COMBO. IT SOUNDED VERY INTERESTING, SO WE SIMPLY HAD TO FIND OUT MORE. Which games would you say are the main sources of inspiration for Space Overlords?

When creating the game we looked at a classic N64 game called blast corps, we liked the idea of destroying environments as the main gameplay element that was our main inspiration, we also looked at resogun for its fast paced combat and many mecha animes, so we combined all three elements to make Space Overlords!

The game features four different playable characters. Are there many differences between them and do they affect how you play the game?

Each of the four characters has their own identity and their own signature moves which will affect how you play the game in the role of that character.

For example Kebak ‘Aran shows true warrior attributes in his strength and enormous firepower that can reduce anything in his path to rubble and ash.

However his strength and sheer size can make him slow and vulnerable.

Tebang is the only female Overlord and has the unique ability to defy gravity and float over water as well as having ranged attacks. Whilst she is the fastest overlord her attacks are not the strongest so she will be careful to stay at a safe range to barrage enemies.

Phemus is the strongest of the overlords but his massive frame inhibits his speed.

However with four arms to smash and destroy everything in his path he’s a hard one to defeat. His harsh temper is equal only to his sense of righteousness.

Beruk Jahat is the wild card thunder beast; a hulking walking armour with two massive arms and tentacle-like protrusions as hair that can inflict the most devastating attack. He also has the ability to attack at wide ranges making him particularly dangerous.

Additionally there are two more unlockable characters which the player’s will get to play if they beat the main campaign and two more characters with an extended story and more abilities!

What gameplay mechanics will gamers experience in Space Overlords?

At its core Space Overlords has simple but effective arcade style gameplay.

The mechanics are mostly centred on destruction.

The more you destroy and the faster you do it, the higher your score. Each Overlord has a special attack that can only be used once they have gained enough energy, they draw their energy from destruction so to use these special attacks the players will have to lay waste to the planets’ infrastructure. Destroying a number of buildings will also unlock power-ups that the player is able to use to improve their Overlord for a short time, for example you could give your Overlord a speed boost to escape a tricky situation or give your Overlord a shield to tank some incoming damage.

The game also features multiplayer on the console but this was removed for the Vita version. Can you explain a little more about that?

As we developed the multiplayer on PS4 and PC game we wanted it to be more thevitalounge.net

of a Couch based gameplay where you could sit with your friends and have quick matches and also play other user generated content. On Vita we took into account technical constraints and decided on making the game single player only specifically for that platform.

The game is also coming to PS3 and PS4, will there be any notable differences between the three versions?

The core game and the campaign are the same, our goal was to keep the game consistent across all platforms on that end. But due to technical constraints and managing different platforms at the same time we came up with different versions for different platforms, so the Vita Version has no multiplayer capabilities, and the PS3 version has reduced local multiplayer while the PC and PS4 versions feature more enemies and objects per planet and planet deformation when an overlord does his special attack.

@PSVitaMag

How difficult was it managing the Vita version compared to the others?

The greatest challenge in vita was to have only 200MB RAM and a screen which is almost HD, so to optimize the load of memory was not necessarily just reduce the size of textures since with the Vita’s screen players would notice that, We also had to look at loading times and a way to speed up loading assets, also we had to tweak the lighting and do some tricks to save up resources! So in the end the Vita and PS3 versions of the game are based on the same “root” version.

What made you want to bring the game to the Vita?

Since we created the company we wanted to do console games and we were very proud of the fact that we had the opportunity to work with Sony to bring our game worlds to it´s platforms. We had the opportunity to develop the game to all current Sony’s platforms and we really liked the challenge and the idea of releasing the game also on PSVita as we think the platform has a lot of potential and we could find a underserved niche of players wanting a different kind of game.

Do you play the Vita yourself? Which Vita games stand out for you?

Well, we are all gamers and we do play a lot!. We all have different favourites, like child of light, persona 4,teraway but we also like games like Danganronpa and Gravity Rush.

Of the two Vita models which do you prefer, the OLED or the Slim?

That´s a difficult choice, but I think the OLED colors stand out for us over the portability of the Vita Slim

We would like to thank 12 Hit Combo for their time with this interview, and also Robert Stallibrass from Excalibur Publishing for squeezing in the time to arrange it!

Space Overlords should be out later this month!

The Vita Lounge Magazine

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Lichtund

lichtspeer.com @Lichtspeer

Rafal Zaremba

@RafalZaremba

Bako Pieczonka

LICHTSPEER IS AN UPCOMING ACTION/ARCADE LIGHTSPEAR-THROWING SIMULATOR SET IN AN ANCIENT GERMANIC FUTURE FROM POLISH DEVELOPERS LICHTUND. WE CAUGHT UP WITH RAFAL ZAREMBA AND BARTEK PIECZONKA FROM THE STUDIO TO FIND OUT MORE ABOUT THE GAME.

@bakobakula

Hi Rafa, Bartek! Thanks for taking the time to talk with us. Can you tell us a little bit about yourselves and how you got into developing games?

B: Hi! No problem we're always happy to have a chat. Rafal and i met about 3 years back during a weekend game dev course.

We quickly decided to team up and create our first game, Rafal took on the technical part I was in charge of the visuals. At the time we were both working serious desk jobs in big international corporations you know grown-ups stuff. That change the day we decided to showcase an early prototype of our game, and to our surprise, people loved it. That game was, of course Lichtspeer - 2 years later we're realising it on PC, PS4 and Vita, still can't really believe it.

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The Vita Lounge Magazine

We are here to find out more about Lichtspeer. What exactly is the game about?

B: in Lictspeer you take a role of a germanic warrior from the future, forced by the all-mighty Lichtgods to fight a horde of strange creatures, for their amusement. It's kind of a twist on the ancient view of gods being assholes and using mankind to kill boredom.

What is there in the game to keep people playing?

We worked hard so that the player is constantly challenged , I personally hate repetition in action games, so we put extra effort to make every stage unique, be it level design, enemies or some subtle gameplay changes. Not mentioning the boss fights which are often a complete twist on the normal mechanics we use. A skilled player will need around 6 hours for the first play through, but we encourage,

grinding and replaying, especially on the harder difficulties, you won't be able to max out all your powers otherwise. We have 2 difficulty modes, normal and rage quit. The difference between them is much more than just the spawn rates, in Rage Quit mode for instance once you die you need to restart the level from the beginning.

What games acted as inspiration to Lichtspeer?

Honestly it's impossible to tell, I've been playing games since I was 5and to be fair I feel like inspiration is coming from so many different sides I couldn't in all fairness point out to just a bunch of games, but if a really had to I would mention Hotline Miami - I loved the kind of music video vibe that game had, the speed, the soundtrack, it all just clicked for me, also Nidhogg for it's simple but perfect mechanics. thevitalounge.net

What was the motivation for bringing the game to the Vita?

I love the Vita! I wanted to see Lichtspeer on that screen.

Has Vita development been difficult? Are there any differences between the PC/ PS4 and console versions?

The Vita definitely requires more optimisation work. As awesome as it is, it's still a handheld hence the hardware has its limits. @PSVitaMag

Have any Vita games impressed you?

Tearaway, Luftrausers and Guacamelee.

What's next for your studio?

Hopefully, some rest, can't remember the last time I had a weekend for myself, after that more games!

Finally, of the two released Vita systems which do you think is best? The OLED or the Slim?

OLED only because I love that screen.

We would like to thank Rafa and Bartek for their time with this interview, and also Tomasz Tomaszewski for making it possible. Lichtspeer will be published for the PSVita by Crunching Koalas very soon.

Will you be picking it up?

The Vita Lounge Magazine

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Cat Trap Studios

cattrapstudios.com @CatTrapStudios

Hi Cat Trap Studios! Thanks for taking the time to talk with us. Can you tell us a little bit about yourselves and how you got into developing games?

Hey there! Cat Trap Studios is a small company based in the north of England.

The studio was started by myself, Dave, in 2014. I’m a programmer who worked for other game developers before diving into making my own creations. From time to time I team up with Adam, architect by day, artist by night. We’ve been friends for over 10 years, both of us sharing an addiction to gaming. We just saw the opportunity to apply our skills, branch off and concoct some cool little adventures.

We are here to find out more about Castle Invasion: Throne Out. What exactly is the game about?

Castle Invasion opens to you buying your first home, a medieval castle! Not long after you’ve moved in, the king appears demanding the castle for himself. As you can imagine, he’s not a nice chap, he’s 16

The Vita Lounge Magazine

CASTLE INVASION: THRONE OUT IS AN UPCOMING GAME FROM CAT TRAP STUDIOS WHICH SEES YOU DEFENDING YOUR CASTLE FROM NUMEROUS ATTACKS. COMING SOON TO THE VITA, WE CAUGHT UP WITH DAVE WARD FROM THE STUDIO TO FIND OUT MORE. lazy, greedy and takes anything he wants.

You’re not about to give up your new castle that easily, you grab the first thing to hand, a battered old bow, and jump on the wall ready to defend yourself.

What can gamers expect to see and do in Castle Invasion?

At it’s core Castle Invasion is the fast paced fight against wave after wave of invaders. There’s 10 different enemy types to keep you on your toes, each with their own unique way of attacking. But you’re not defenceless, for every enemy you defeat you amass coins, and coins mean upgrades! With over 40 to buy you’ll constantly be getting faster, shooting further and hitting harder. There’s 50 levels in Castle Invasion, most take place during the day but when the sun sets the enemies don’t stop. They just get harder to see. Flame arrows and torches are the only sources of light you have. Use them to discover invaders before they get too close. Just when you think you’ve got the

hang of things a boss will rear its mighty head, resulting in some epic fights. Expect dragons, trolls, trebuchet and for some reason the odd bit of fried chicken. And of course there’s some really awful jokes and puns. If it's enough to make the average person cringe slightly then it's good enough for Castle invasion!

What is there in the game to keep people playing?

The biggest challenge is in achieving all 150 stars. Some of them can be a bit devilsh and require a few attempts.

There's a nice trophy waiting for you at the end of your struggles though.

What games acted as inspiration to Castle Invasion?

Adam is a big fan of Rayman Origins and Legends. The colourful, cartoony style of Rayman has been more than a little bit influential to Castle Invasion. I think a solid sense of humour can really make a game stand out, the dialog in Castle thevitalounge.net

What's next for your studio?

For the next couple of months we’re fully booked with some exciting external projects. As a small team of two we’re so proud of what we’ve created with Castle Invasion. Still, we’re always keen to be looking for the next challenge so who knows what the future holds?

Invasion is a mix of the innocent silliness of Ratchet and Clank and my own brand of stupidity.

What was the motivation for bringing the game to the Vita?

From a development point of view, we're using the Unity engine, the Vita is well supported by it so it just made sense. On a more personal level I'm a big fan of the Vita. It wouldn't have felt right if I ignored it while releasing for other consoles.

Has Vita development been difficult?

Are there any differences between other versions of the game?

Never difficult but sometimes a touch challenging. I had to rethink and overhaul parts of the game to reduce load times and experiment with different ways of rendering to reduce strain on the GPU. Overall, it’s been worth it, the Vita version can stand toe to toe with the other console and PC versions. The only difference in the Vita version is I had to @PSVitaMag

reduce the number of torches at night time to makes lighting the level less demanding. You probably wouldn’t have noticed if I didn’t point it out.

Have any Vita games impressed you?

So many! Wipeout sold the Vita to me. I couldn’t miss it after all the hours I’d put into Wipeout HD on PS3. If anything the Vita version looked event better. I bought Persona 4 based on reviews and that definitely didn’t disappoint. Uncharted, Gravity Rush,Killzone. Not to mention all the rereleases I played on Vita. So...there have been a few, yes..

Finally, of the two released Vita systems which do you think is best? The OLED or the Slim?

I’ve still got my good old reliable OLED from launch day so I’ve never had any real time with the slim. So my vote goes full fat OLED.

We would like to thank Dave for his time with this interview.

We will have an review for Castle Invasion: Throne Out soon!

The Vita Lounge Magazine

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Written by Timmy Garrett

@timmygarrett40k fitzfarseer

2 12 28 PSTV 2.9 GB Publisher

koeitecmoamerica.com

@KoeiTecmoUS

Developer

Omega Force

Released

NA: August 30th EU: August 26th

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The Vita Lounge Magazine

"And just like that, everything changed. At that terrible moment, in our hearts, we knew. Home was a pen.

Humanity, cattle."

Attack on Titan: Wings of Freedom manages to perfectly capture all the flair, action and emotion that make both the original Manga and the worldwide phenomenon that is the anime such a compelling world to absorb and be a part of. And apart from a few technical hiccups Wings of Freedom also acts as a shining example of what a console quality game can achieve on Sony’s portable handheld!

In a nutshell Attack on Titan is a mixture of Evangelion and Band of Brothers with a dash of Spiderman thrown in for good measure. To bring you up to speed AoT is set in a world where humans have been hunted to near extinction by terrifying, naked, grinning behemoths known as Titans. Now cornered and caged like birds, humanity is confined to living in a huge city separated by three huge concentric walls erected to keep the Titans at bay. And apart from the walls the only other thing standing between mankind and total annihilation is the military, categorised into three distinct regiments and armed with powerful aerial combat gear, which allows them to zip around and tether themselves to enemies and parts of the environment.

This is the main element that sets AoT apart from the rest of the crowd, as it is the fast paced, heart in your mouth, edge of your seat aerial combat that makes AoT such an exciting series to watch. And for many it is how well the Omni-Directional Mobility Gear is handled that will make or break the game. Well I am pleased to announce that for the most part zipping across battlefields such as Trost and the Forest of Giant Trees works a treat, but before I get too far into how the game plays lets have a quick look at what form the structure of the game takes.

The main campaign follows the story of season one of the AoT anime and as such serves as a perfect jumping on point for both old school fans and people new to the franchise. The in-game cinematics, which bookmark the majority of the story missions, are choreographed with all the high production and pulse pounding action seen in the show and manage to convey great amounts of story without piling on heaps of tedious exposition.

One of the things I admired most about the anime when I first saw it was how it would dedicate multiple episodes to one battle at a time, often from different character’s perspectives. I was reminded of epic war television shows such as Band of Brothers and The Pacific and felt that this technique lent a certain weight and gravitas to whatever was happening on screen. I am glad to report that the same narrative style has been used in Wings of Freedom.

Each chapter in Attack mode is dedicated to a certain event in the AoT chronology and is seen through the eyes of many of the franchises’ protagonists. This not only thevitalounge.net

serves to keep each chapter interesting and fresh throughout, but also means you get ample opportunity to experiment with each character’s slightly different style of play.

intervals and completion of these (most of which consist of guard the NPC or kill the enemies in the vicinity) will fill your special attack gauge which upon activation not only unleashes a devastating attack but also partly refills your gas and blade meters. Apart from a couple of missions which deviate from the regular path, most of your time spent on the battlefield will be dedicated to doing a few similar objectives over and over again. In other words killing Titans.

You begin each mission at your base and it is here where you will be able to buy new gear, weapons and even horses. Not only does your base act as an important place to procure new items, but it also gives you the chance to talk to your other comrades, which helps to further flesh out the characters we have come to know and Now this isn’t a bad thing as the combat in <em>AoT</em> and the movement love from the anime. bestowed upon your character is great Once you are fully prepared for your next fun and perfectly captures the spirit of the show. Holding down the square button mission it’s off into the field of battle you go! There are a few things that keep propels your character forward using their Omni-Directional Mobility Gear and sees the pace of battle interesting - you have them instantly zipping across rooftops to keep an eye on your gas levels and with all the speed and grace of a certain blade sharpness as you eliminate titans, however its never really an issue as there web-slinger. The game is designed for your character to automatically swerve are always recruitable comrades around and avoid obstacles to give you that ‘free who can help you stock up on supplies. flow’ feel, however you will occasionally Side missions also appear at random

@PSVitaMag

smack straight into a wall or cliff face and although this causes no damage it does sometimes take a few seconds for your character to reorientate themselves before shooting off again. This can sometimes be annoying as it can ruin the flow of a mission and make your Mobility Gear feel more like a hindrance rather than the natural extension of yourself it is intended to be.

But how good does the aerial manoeuvring handle when locked in a battle with a Titan? Well it handles very satisfyingly indeed. Upon approaching a Titan a quick click of the R button will tether you to a certain part of your foe as you circle around them. Fans of the series will already know that the nape of the neck is your best chance for a quick kill, however you can flick the analogue stick around to tether yourself to different parts (legs and arms for example) and slicing these appendages off before dispatching your giant enemy will often reward you with rare materials which

The Vita Lounge Magazine

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are needed in order to upgrade and buy better weapons and equipment. But be warned – doing this will leave your defences open and give your enemy a bigger window in which to attack you! It was this risk/reward material grinding mechanic that has kept me coming back and, in my opinion, staves of the repetitive nature of the mission structure as there is such a vast array of gear to acquire and then upgrade that I always felt hungry for more.

feel I would be remiss in not mentioning that it does happen often.

Playing through and completing the game’s Attack Mode is only the beginning as there is a wealth of post game content for you to sink your teeth into. During the game you will unlock the ability to go out on survey missions and although you can undertake these during the campaign you will definitely be spending a lot of time here after the credits role in order to acquire new materials and money!

And upon completion of Attack Mode you However the combat isn’t all roses and unlock not only a nice sizable epilogue it’s when the heat of the battle starts to get really hot that my only real complaint that introduces a whole about the game rears its ugly head - The host of new missions and enemy types, but also frame rate. As expected when porting over a console game to the Vita (especially new weapons, gear, side missions and requests one of this calibre) the frame rate dips for you to lose yourself in. frequently throughout the campaign.

The replay value and bang However it’s when you are engaged against multiple enemies at once that the for your buck that Wings frame rate falls faster than a Titan with a of Freedom offers is truly machete lodged into the back of its neck! staggering yet never feels It never ruined the experience for me, like an insurmountable nor did it ever grind the game down to a challenge and promises to complete halt, but it sometimes made it keep you coming back for hard to focus on what I was doing and I more time after time as

VERDICT Attack on Titan: Wings of Freedom is a truly exceptional Vita game. It gets so much right and, apart from the technical limitations that come as a result of porting such an ambitious PlayStation 4 title over to a handheld, it truly shines as a stellar example of what the system is capable of. Fans can breath a sigh of relief – this is the Attack on Titan game the world deserves!

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The Vita Lounge Magazine

you grind for new gear, weapons, horses and Titan Models to adorn your base with.

Attack on Titan: Wings of Freedom is not only a fantastic videogame but also one of those rarities – a licenced game that gets it right! A love letter to fans of the original source material and bolstered by a wealth of interesting and worthwhile content the likes of which I have not seen since Metal Gear Solid Peace Walker on the PSP. I say forgive it its flaws as they do little to ruin the overall experience of this jam-packed and absorbing title.

4.3 thevitalounge.net

HP gauge), or by the breaking of a school badge (which requires you to repeatedly hit your opponent as they attempt to hit you) – participants fighting it out with luxes (life energy enforced weapons made out of crystalized mana) in a closed ring.

Written by

Kyle Wakeling

@teflontactics teflontactics

5 12 16 PSTV 1.5 GB Publisher

bandainamcogames.com

@BandaiNamcoUS

Developer

bandainamcogames.com

@BandaiNamcoUS

Released

NA: July 26th EU: July 27th

@PSVitaMag

If you’re like me, maybe you’ve come to read this review as a fan of the anime; if you’re not, maybe you’ve come to read this review through sheer curiosity.

Whatever your reasoning however, you’re likely to be a little disappointed – ’cause while this game tries its best to have something for everyone, most of what it offers is a little sub-par. That’s not to say there isn’t enjoyment to be had here, but there are also quite a few caveats to go with it. … and with that, it’s time to learn about A.W.: Phoenix Festa – and find out why pandering isn’t always a good thing. Let’s start with an explanation of what it offers, shall we?

A.W.: Phoenix Festa – or The Asterisk War: The Academy City on the Water – Phoenix Festa as it’s known in Japan – is first and foremost a title that focuses on the titular Phoenix Festa; an elimination tournament held once every three years. The first of a three tournament cycle, Phoenix is a pairs event, and requires both members of the pair to come from the same school.

This pair then takes on other qualifying students, whittling down the field of participants from over 200 teams down to two-versus-two for the final match.

Matches themselves are decided by either knockout (completely depleting the enemy’s

The Phoenix Festa itself however is a short piece of the actual game, and serves mostly as something for you to work up to – the bulk of your time spent training, working, shopping, upgrading your equipment, dueling, dating, and otherwise occupying yourself with school life. These things all take time and energy away from the protagonist, with the time coming out of an AM/PM schedule (two events per calendar day) and the energy coming out of your HP gauge (and your status gauge).

Thankfully the gauged resources can be renewed through rest, however time is nonrenewable and will need to be planned out well in order to succeed.

Speaking of using your time wisely, the events that you can spend that limited time on are varied – and each produces its own benefit path to the player. While some options may simply enable a future benefit (like buying a gift to give), some are immediate (like training). Just like watching your time is important, it’s important to know what your options are, and how they can be used to get you closer to your goal.

In that train of thought, let’s run them down.

Training works across three levels, with level one requiring ten sessions to upgrade, and level two requiring thirty – a total of twenty full days needed to reach level three. There are six training categories, and The Vita Lounge Magazine

21

usually only around fifty days to work with, so choosing what to train for is a big part of getting yourself ready for the Festa. Training takes a half a day for each session, consumes a chunk of your HP, and will drop your status down one level for every few sessions – but in return will up your abilities by one level for level one training, two levels for level two training, and three levels for level three training.

The higher the training level, the greater the reward, and the more it takes out of you. Keep that in mind.

Working a job (there are several types) will net you money to spend on upgrades, consumables, and gifts – with each successful job completed unlocking the next level of that particular job (up to level ten). The money also increases as the job gets harder, meaning you’ll want to get at those level 10 jobs to maximize your cash flow. Jobs generally have you taking on an enemy of sorts, be it one or many, trying to defeat them with a given set of rules. There are six job types in total, and some of them are unlocked through play (therefore not always available).

Looking to upgrades, they come in two varieties; reduce your prana usage, or up your base attack modifier. Ogre Luxes (special luxes like Ayato’s) can only have their prana usage reduced, while regular luxes can be upgraded in both ways. It’s worth noting however that upgrading the base attack modifier will require manadite (a mineral earned through winning partner-initiated duels, or a million bucks at the store) and therefore isn’t as easy to utilize.

Duels come in a few different varieties, with the main ones you’ll encounter in the story or via the duel option being either one-on-one or two-on-two. Story duels are unmissable and more often than not require you to win to proceed, while nonstory duels only effect your school ranking (which earns you bonus cash every week in-game) and can be lost or won. Duels initiated via the duel appointment option aren’t always accepted however, so don’t think that other students are simply at your beck and call.

Dating is an event type tied into the main story as well as the appointment option Shopping is done in the business district, (much like duels). You can get to dates and the things that can be bought include through following a path in the main storyline, or via using the date option in medicine, luxes, and gifts. Medicine restores your HP or status without taking appointments to request one (though again, they’re not guaranteed to be up time (like the rest function will), new luxes will change your base attack power accepted). Going on dates will send you to one of three places with the lady you’re (as well as your attack style and your taking out, and will up your intimacy reach), and gifts will up your intimacy with the ladies if used correctly. Basically, level – leading to a better experience as partners in duels, and a more friendly shopping cuts corners to get you the things you’d normally have to pay for with attitude towards your requests. currencies other than money – just like in real life!

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The Vita Lounge Magazine

School life is the last piece of the puzzle, and will see you interacting via visual novel style scenes and dialogue options.

It’ll take you from day one at the academy, right up to the end of the Phoenix Festa (and maybe beyond); feeding you event scenes and options to pick from along the way. Your choices will help shape the story path you’re on, and will hopefully help you get close enough to someone that they’ll partner up with you – ’cause if not, it’s back to the beginning of the story for you!

As for who you are playing as in game, that depends on which route you’re going for. There’s a set of routes that follow the idea that you’re a new character who started school early in the year, or a set of routes where you step into anime protagonist Ayato’s shoes and start school late. Whichever route of those you pick, you then have to navigate the five paths (one for each girl you can pair with, and a true ending) available to you in that state and make it through the Phoenix Festa as a winner.

Unfortunately, the hardest part about this game is simply learning how best to use your time and committing your options to memory – the gameplay itself is not very difficult at all. I’ve only ever lost two battles I can recall, and both were due to me going into the fight with less than perfect health – not a lack of ability. You can – for the most part – button mash your way through any fight, which isn’t a good thing in my opinion.

thevitalounge.net

Okay, so the active gameplay is easy, but the rest is enjoyable though right? Err, not so much. Training is monotonous, shopping and upgrading luxes take too much time to be useful more than once a game, and both duels and dates are often refused. When you can get a date however, there are literally only three places to go with each girl – and all three are pretty much single use. Once you’ve taken a single girl on her three dates, you know exactly how all the dates are going to be with all the girls. Bummer.

Thankfully, while the game has a lot of caveats, the graphics aren’t really one of them. You see a little jagged edge here and there, and there are some reused elements, but overall the game looks pretty damn good on the Vita (the screenshots don’t do it justice). It’s colourful, there aren’t any slow-downs, and all the characters look like their anime counterparts. They’ve done a decent job making it look good at least.

your partner can be done by tapping their face on-screen, and your Meteor Arts can be unleashed using square and the left trigger (any link elements requiring you to press triangle as well).

As for any sort of lasting appeal, that seems to come from the fact that you need to complete the game with each of the heroines to unlock the final “true route” – but beyond that, there’s only trophy grinds and Battle Mode (a nonstory based mode where you simply fight using unlocked characters). There’s

The audio is decent as well, though I’ll let you know right off the bat there’s no English voice option. That’s generally how I like my localizations though (text only), so I enjoyed what they offered – but I can see how those looking for pure spoken English could end up a little disappointed.

As for the other sounds (background, music, etc) they seemed to be well chosen as well. I never felt that the sound didn’t fit the scene, which is a good sign if you ask me.

Y’know, it’s really too bad all of this doesn’t add up to a good game, ’cause if you take away my notes and simply leave the explanations there it seems like it could be more than decent – right? While the elements that make up the whole are all pretty well thought-out in and of themselves, they simply aren’t meshed well in A.W.: Phoenix Festa, and that’s what messes with your enjoyment. It’s hard to enjoy getting stronger when you just mash “X” at the menu to train. It’s hard to enjoy dates when aside from the three basic molds they’re all the same. It’s hard to enjoy battle when for the most part you can just mash square ’til their badge breaks or they get knocked out.

These things take the “life” out of the game and make it feel more like a chore, which isn’t a good word to have to use when talking about gaming.

Its redeeming bits are few and far between, but include the little twists on scenes you see while in the original character’s shoes, and the true ending’s never before seen bits. Aside from that however, most of this game is a bit of a chore (if mildly fun) and you should definitely know what you’re getting into before getting into it.

The controls to this one were easy to master, with in game battle elements taking on the usual setup. To jump you use “x,” to attack you use square, to dash you use the right trigger, and to lock onto enemies you use circle. Locking on to

I didn’t, and now I’m slightly disappointed in myself (and the developers).

VERDICT A.W.: Phoenix Festa is a title that doesn't know what it wants to be; offering something for everyone, but failing to make all the bits work together in harmony. If tuned properly, this could be an enjoyable title, but as-is it's so easy and/or monotonous at times that it's only slightly better than doing nothing at all. Only slightly.

@PSVitaMag

not a lot of reason to come back to A.W.: Phoenix Festa when you’re done, though I think that becomes obvious once you learn just how little effort they put into generating new content (stuff that wasn’t present in the anime or main storyline).

When you can’t even make dates unique, post-game is probably the last thing on your mind.

2.9 The Vita Lounge Magazine

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Written by Timmy Garrett

myself. I had spent all in all the better part of a day repeating the same process over and over again and there came a point where, like Vaas, I felt I was going a little insane.

1 4 7 PSTV

I am still bringing you the review, but please do not take this as a ‘definitive’ verdict. I can only review what I have played and due to the games unforgiving nature – that unfortunately doesn’t amount to much (For example I haven’t been able to play the game’s Endless Mode as I assume that’s unlocked upon completion of the game’s main story). However I still feel I can more than adequately talk about other aspects of the game such as aesthetic, controls and sound design. So please don’t take the final score too seriously, I will try to be as fair as possible with what I have experienced.

@timmygarrett40k fitzfarseer

280 MB Publisher

excalibur-publishing.com

@Excalpublishing

Developer

outofboundsgames.com

@AlexanderBirke

Released

NA: August 2nd EU: August 3rd

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The Vita Lounge Magazine

‘Did I ever tell you what the definition of insanity is? Insanity is doing the exact… same […] thing… over and over again expecting… shit to change… That. Is. Crazy.’ – Vaas, Far Cry 3 Time. Time is an incredibly valuable commodity and, unless you’re a Highlander, you have an extremely limited amount of it to spend on this rollercoaster we call life.

So with that in mind I’m going to start this review a little differently.

Let me ask you a question – how much time can you dedicate to a videogame? Or more specifically how much time can you dedicate to a videogame doing the same thing again and again whilst feeling you’re getting nowhere fast? Before you have to take a step back and admit defeat? Admit you’ve been beaten?

You see this is a question I had to ask myself a few days into Laser Disco Defenders. I have spent hours and hours with this game this week and I have not beaten it. As far as I’m aware I’m not even close. In fact I have progressed no further than Cave 8 of the opening Crystal Caves level. It was at around this point I was starting to have this internal debate with

So get on your dancing shoes, you sexy little swine, and join me as we enter the orbit of Laser Disco Defenders…

The first thing that hits you with LDD is its drop-dead gorgeous style. The art aesthetic that perfectly evokes the neon lit, fur draped disco decade that was the 70’s bursts forth with bombastic colours and vibrant sounds.

In LDD you play as a member of the Titular Laser Disco Defenders – A group of super groovy cats (not literally, that’s disco slang for ‘cool people’) whose mission is to take on the Evil Lord Monotone and defeat not only him, but also his terrible taste in music! There are four members of the LDD crew you can take control of and all of them offer something slightly different in play style. For example Mr Baker, the captain of thevitalounge.net

the ship and lover of pink Afros, has the most amount of health but is the slowest of all the characters on offer. Whilst at the opposite end of the spectrum you have Liz – the energetic roller disco champion who handles the quickest out of them all but only starts with one hit point.

There are also some customisation options on offer. Whilst playing LDD you are issued challenges similar to that of Downwell or Jet Pack Joyride. Completion of these challenges will then reward the team with new equipment that can be swapped about until you find your optimum combination. For example the Chrome Suit allows you to shoot smaller lasers with quicker succession and, when equipped alongside the Visor, you are then also afforded pinpoint accuracy to compliment this skill.

And the lasers are really where the meat of the game lies and are also LDD’s main gimmick. You see each cavern you traverse is a small, claustrophobic, self-contained level. In low gravity you have to pilot whichever character you are controlling around the stage whilst avoiding hazards such as jagged crystal spikes and vicious laser spewing foes. And here’s the thing – every laser, be it one of your own or an enemies, remains in the stage. And regardless of whether the beam of death is yours or not it will do you damage! This is where you very quickly realise that the biggest threat in the game isn’t Monotone, but rather YOU! Shoot off too many neon strips and you will quickly find yourself encased in a cage of pure neon suffering!

unloading as small a payload as possible.

Sounds simple enough however in later caverns where you are being literally surrounded and bombarded with enemies (some of which take multiple shots to kill) sense often takes flight as you hold down the R button and shoot with all the grace and accuracy of Stallone behind a rail-gun.

It is in situations such as this where the huge difficulty spike can rear its ugly head.

Two important issues also exacerbate this. Firstly – it can be a little tough keeping an eye in everything going on on the Vita’s small screen, not having played the PS4 version of LDD I cant say whether or not it remains a problem when playing on a larger screen. Secondly – whenever you get hit the camera tends to spasm.

This can, and often will, disorientate you for a few seconds and will most likely kick off a chain reaction of you getting tagged with lasers and ending your game. This was how most of my games in the later stages of the Crystal Caves ended.

screens and a results screen (even more if you want to change your load-out). This may not sound like a big deal, but one of the reasons why games like Super Meat Boy are so addicting is that you don’t have time to sit and reflect on your failings, you are back to the start of the level that is kicking your ass in an instant and back in the action.

There is a fun game here and like I have mentioned the music and visual aspects of the game are top notch. But after repeated sessions of seeing the game over screen, trying different characters, outfits and strategies all to no avail, Laser Disco Defenders eventually started to lose its appeal as it started to make me feel a way that no game ever should – that I was wasting my time.

Did I ever tell you what the definition of insanity is?

You see there was never a point in Laser Disco Defenders where the difficulty clicked with me. No point where, like the Souls games for instance, I suddenly realised how I was supposed adapting my play style and this became quite frustrating for me quite early on. The immediacy with which you can also get back into the game after dying is So how does one cope in such a situation? also lacking – you Well the easy answer would simply be have to sit through to shoot as accurately as possible whilst two short loading

VERDICT Laser Disco Defenders is a very visually appealing game with a great toe-tapping soundtrack. However the difficulty barrier is set so high and feels so much more unforgiving when compared to its contemporaries that it feels like it may have done itself a slight disservice by only allowing players with the absolute highest levels of skill and patience to sample most of what it has to offer.

@PSVitaMag

3.4 The Vita Lounge Magazine

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Written by spritesnbytes

@spritesnbytes

3 11 28 PSTV 777 GB Publisher

risingstargames.com

@RisingStarGames

Developer triple-eh.net

@korruptor

Released

NA: April 5th EU: April 14th

26

The Vita Lounge Magazine

The Playstation Vita has been home to some surprising titles over the years, with many – such as Putty Squad and SuperFrog HD – managing to reignite nostalgia from the olden days of gaming.

Lumo is a prime example of a game that rediscovers the forgotten era of isometric adventure classics we used to love, like Cadaver for the Commodore Amiga or, more importantly, Alien 8 for the ZX Spectrum.

First of all, don’t expect Lumo to shower you with a plot enriched with grandiose twist and turns. The story itself is as simple as they used to be during the olden days of gaming. You play the role of a teenage student who inadvertently gets sucked into a video game through the malfunctioning SpecEye device in the back room. An interesting fact is that SpecEye is a derivative of the ZX Spectrum’s shortened name, Speccy.

Once you arrive in the game, all you have to do is find your way back out and it is from here where the real mayhem and fun begins…

The game has two modes of play; Adventure and Old school, with the latter being the more difficult option. Adventure mode is for beginners as it gives you infinite lives as well as the use of the map and save options. Old school mode however

removes all of that, making the mode a challenge even for veteran players. Lumo begins by slowly easing you in – making it come across as a simple game to complete; however, don’t let that fool you! Regardless of which mode you choose to battle through you may find the game daunting and difficult as the stages progress.

Thankfully Adventure mode provides ample opportunity to retry if you succumb to death on a regular basis.

One good thing about this game, which might help some players, is the option to choose which direction to play the game in. For my playthrough I used the control option which allowed for vertical and horizontal movement of the protagonist, but if you’re already familiar with isometric games, then the option to enjoy Lumo using diagonal controls is also available. You’re also given the ability to rotate the game’s camera by using the L and R buttons – although complete rotation isn’t possible.

The more you progress through the game, the more you’re introduced to various different level designs. These provided ample visual diversity that helped to maintain my attention. The icy portions in particular help to break the monotony of hopping from one stage to the next. If you’ve never before experienced icy levels in a platformer then it might be a good idea to sneak some practice in before you charge full steam ahead as they can be a serious undertaking!

As mentioned earlier on, Lumo provides hits of nostalgia and gives nods to classic games. For example some of the stages take inspiration from great classics like thevitalounge.net

Pac-Man whereby you have to catch each myself having a difficult time absorbing the games atmosphere due to the roomof the four “ghosts” in order to progress to-room audio pause you get when further. loading between stages.

While Lumo is not the most aesthetically Developer Gareth Noyce has spoken about pleasing game to look at it does have his appreciation for isometric adventure plenty of charm. Its respect towards games in his director’s commentary classic gaming makes the whole videos on YouTube, and this really is experience one worth trying but it’s not noticeable when you play through his an experience that’s completely without creation. Few video games these days issues. really use isometric views and angular control mechanics and though this might One of the issues I experienced was deter some gamers I do recommend you regarding the stage designs; it can be give it a go. Some might dismiss the game tricky to find your footing. There will be as just another small indie title but in many sections where you have to jump over hazardous objects and pits of spikes reality it is far from it. Lumo is actually or fire streams and unless you’re good at an extremely lengthy and vast game; judging distance, it might be difficult to there are 400 individual rooms to journey tackle even the simplest of obstacles. The through which should keep you busy for a isometric viewpoint can make the game while. more difficult due to having to get used to the angular gameplay.

Gareth Noyce has created what many would consider an ode to classic gaming While playing through the game another and rightly so. Despite its flaws, Lumo one of the negatives that I experienced provides a wonderful experience into was to do with the music. While I a classic genre. It purposefully fails thoroughly enjoyed the soundtrack to handhold the player through the (composed by DopeDemand) I found puzzling challenges that await and while

VERDICT Lumo is a very challenging and difficult game that harks back to the earlier days of isometric gameplay. Even with its nostalgia fuelled frustration it will have you going back for more.

@PSVitaMag

the gameplay is likely to test player’s patience, it is still a very addictive and fun experience. The fact that Lumo offers little in terms of a story doesn’t really matter, because it does so well in ensuring the player is captivated throughout with wonderful sounding music, difficult and tense puzzle sections and most importantly, an entertaining experience that is a joy to play on the Playstation Vita.

3.5 The Vita Lounge Magazine

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up before I slammed into the ground, but hopefully not before taking out a few of my opponents along the way.

Written by

Brad Gruetzmacher @vongruetz vongruetz

6 9 10 PSTV 64 MB Publisher

verticegames.com

@verticegames

Developer

verticegames.com

@verticegames

Released

NA: July 12th EU: July 13th

28

The Vita Lounge Magazine

It was the sounds of rattling machine gun fire that first drew me in to Last Wings. Sometimes it’s little things like that which first catch my attention. The simple sound of an ancient war plane firing off its cannons burrowed its way into my ear and had me hooked. That was my introduction to the game, but after spending many, many hours with Last Wings, would there be more to it than just that one hook or would that first impression be the best I ever got?

Last Wings is a 2-D aerial dogfighting game that provides round after round of quick action. Players select from one of four different game modes, customize the loadout of their plane, and engage in combat across four separate locales. You earn points for shooting down enemy planes and completing certain objectives.

These points help you to level up which unlocks more powerful planes and new weapons or features to add to your load out.

My first impressions were very positive. The controls were extremely easy to figure out.

Flying is done by either turning left or right while the face buttons control the primary and secondary attacks. The shoulder buttons are used to speed up or slow down.

This allowed me to do my favorite tactic which was to shut off the engines, stall, and spin in circles as I concentrated my fire on whatever poor sap decided to get too close.

Of course I’d have to fire the engines back

The first mode I went into was Score Attack.

This pits ten planes against each other and the first one to 20 kills wins. These battle can get pretty intense as everyone inevitably gets bunched up in one spot and bullets are flying everywhere. This mode proved to be my favorite, and the one that I would find myself going back to time and again. Maybe it’s because of my lone-wolf nature, or maybe it’s that things are a bit more exciting when every plane is the enemy.

Next up is Team Fight. Here you’re put on a team of five and battle it out against another team of five. The first team to 30 kills wins the round (and the points). A more interesting version of this is the mode called Team Fight Rounds. TF Rounds puts two teams of five against each other, but the difference is once you’re killed, you’re out for the round. If you die too early, you’re stuck watching your teammates finish the fight without you.

Lastly, there’s a mode called Base Attack.

And yes, just as the name implies, you go out and attack your opponents’ base. Again, you’re put into a team of five and have to balance the strategy between attacking the other base and defending your own.

This balancing act was probably my biggest problem with this mode since there is no way to coordinate with my teammates to decide who will attack and who will defend.

I often found that everyone would either decide to stay back and protect the home base or else we were all off attacking as our thevitalounge.net

And rolling from one match to the next also makes your realize that the amount At its core, Last Wings is a very competent of content really feels lacking. After that first hour, it felt like I had seen all there and fun arcade dogfighting game. The was to see. Those four different locales matches require some skill, but not so you can choose from all start to feel the much as to be overly frustrating. The exact same but with minor color changes. graphics are simple, colorful, and pretty.

There are only three different planes to And the sound design is minimalistic, choose from, and that’s only after you’ve which makes the rattling of the guns put in the time to unlock them. I had to and the roar of the engines even more grind a lot just so I could unlock that third pronounced. plane to add a little more variety to each match.

The problem is, after an hour or so, the charm wears off and the flaws become I also encountered a number of technical more and more glaring. issues where the game would slow down One of the first annoyances that I noticed to crawl for several seconds. Eventually it would catch back up, but it was still is that immediately following a match, aggravating. You’ve heard of Frames the game automatically rolls your right Per Second? Well, I actually encountered into a new one. There’s no way to cancel Seconds Per Frame. or to say, “No thanks. I’m done for now.”

Instead, I have to go through the process of selecting a plane, starting a match, and then have to abandon it. base was getting blown to smithereens.

VERDICT Last Wings is a good 2D aerial dogfighting game that quickly loses its charm after an hour or two. While the gameplay is solid, the lack of content starts to make things feel very repetitive in no time. In the end, the game just feels like it isn't finished yet. It could use a bit more polish for this gem to truly shine.

@PSVitaMag

Perhaps my biggest disappointment was with the multiplayer. I was actually really impressed the first time I started up a multiplayer game as I was put into a match right away. I was even more impressed with how well I did and ended up winning the whole thing. That rarely happens for me, and I was patting myself on the back for being a bit of a Last Wings pro. Then as I went into another match (because you can’t cancel and say “I’m done”) I noticed something odd. All the players I was up against all had names that were too… clean. It was apparently obvious that I was not playing against actual people but rather the game’s AI. My ego was quickly deflated.

Last Wings is a really fun game that is marred with a number of small problems.

It’s one or two updates away from being really good, but as it stands right now, the frustration and lack of content means it wears out its welcome rather fast.

2.9 The Vita Lounge Magazine

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Written by Reece Heyworth @rheyworth07 CHEAT07

6 9 13 PSTV 282 MB Publisher

hyperawesome.com

@dungeonpunks

Developer

hyperawesome.com

@dungeonpunks

Released

NA: August 16th EU: August 17th

30

The Vita Lounge Magazine

Dungeon Punks is the latest attempt at side-scrolling brawlers on the PS Vita and on the whole the game is a fun addition to the genre. You take a team of three to six fighters to tackle dungeons filled with all kinds of nasties, complete side quests and beat the dungeon boss, rinse and repeat.

At the beginning of the game you select one of six characters, each with their own specialities and skills; for example the red dwarf favours strong melee attacks whereas the tempest knight favours more magical attacks. Don’t worry too much about your starting character as you’ll quickly unlock the rest and can freely switch between them throughout the game. This isn’t a game about meaningful decisions so don’t expect to lose any sleep over how to upgrade your characters or which ones to unlock first.

The gameplay is straightforward enough, you move your characters through the 2D environment utilising basic attacks and skills to kill the enemies in your way. There are three of your party in battle at any one time and you can switch between any of the characters at any time. Each character has access to basic melee attacks and a small selection of spells that are specific to each character. Thankfully each character is pretty unique which helps with the

variety in combat, one party member may be able to summon apparitions which freeze the enemy in place whilst another can summon forth pillars of flame in front of them. Each move has its own effects though you’ll never really feel the need to strategize which moves to utilise which is disappointing.

One of the touted features of this game is the ability to tag in your other party members to build up combos, it works easily enough a simple tap of the circle button switches in your off-screen party member, all the time a character is off screen they build up magic so they can unleash spells etc. when they jump back into action. Again there never really felt a time that switching in another character strategically benefitted me over continuing to use my current character other than for the sake of mixing it up.

Part of this comes down to how the combat feels, with only one basic attack button you won’t find yourself stringing together any fancy combos, and each attack feels slow in an almost clunky way. As such the combat just doesn’t feel as satisfying as it could, not helping this is the control scheme, not awful by any means but a little unorthodox.

Movement by default is mapped to the d-pad with the left stick disabled (You can enable it in the options), attacks are on the X button and square is used to utilise magic attacks alongside a directional input. To pick items up on the battlefield you have to press the attack button which causes all kinds of frustration when you desperately need that health potion that dropped mid fight. It’s workable but definitely required adjustment. thevitalounge.net

Onto the game flow, as you start each dungeon you’ll organise your party into three groups of up to two characters per group. Then you’ll fight your way through the various rooms of the dungeon filled with enemies and traps, often finding an NPC part way through that will give you a side quest – these are optional but can give you some much needed experience and gold so there’s no reason to miss them. Each dungeon will have exits throughout where you can escape if you begin running low on health, these will be used often as having your party wipeout means less experience earned, thankfully they were placed frequently enough that dungeons were not too punishing but also the game never became risk free. A dungeon is complete once you beat the boss of said dungeon, once finished you get sent back to the ship where you can buy more gear, upgrade your characters and so on. Don’t expect to clear every dungeon first time, it is expected that you’ll need to retry a dungeon with more experience and better gear so don’t be afraid to explore the level and retreat when you’re running low on health.

Upgrading your characters is relatively shallow with only a small pool of spells to unlock and upgrade in a very linear fashion. Gearing your character up offers slightly more variety in how you want your character to play though even this is limited to a few stats such as trading off attack power for speed etc. Though the RPG elements are perhaps disappointingly light they certainly help elevate the gameplay from a standard brawler.

I’m also going to take this chance to mention the games writing, one of my favourite parts of this game is that it doesn’t take itself seriously at all. The story is mostly humorous poking fun at these “couriers” (definitely mercenaries) who just can’t catch a break. It’s a nice break to have a game that just wants to be fun and light-hearted not getting too bogged down in trying to tell a meaningful story.

The games visuals hold up really well on the Vita, thanks in part to the colourful palette on display here. The enemy design is varied and interesting from giant birds to weird frowny mushrooms and the environments were more than able to back it all up. My only gripes with the presentation were to do with the UI, when going through the shop text is small and it’s difficult to decipher much at a glance, mid combat UI such as the magic bar is difficult to see how close you are to being able to use a spell, again nothing major and it’s definitely workable.

There is plenty of content for you to get through with over twelve dungeons with side-quests plus a new game plus mode for when you finish the campaign – so you’ll have plenty to get through! As a bonus for PSTV owners you can also plug in extra controllers and play co-op or even enjoy some PvP in arenas unlocked for clearing dungeons.

VERDICT Dungeon Punks is a well rounded, competent entry in the 2D action brawler genre, while lacking depth in certain areas, its easy to grasp gameplay and lighthearted tone make this definitely worth a look.

@PSVitaMag

So in summary Dungeon Punks is a respectable entry to the RPG brawler genre. The story is fun and light hearted, with simple gameplay. While not quite excelling in depth or intriguing mechanics the game is more than competent and definitely worth your time.

3.6 The Vita Lounge Magazine

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allowing emotional attachment to really sink in when interacting with objects and individuals.

Written by spritesnbytes

@spritesnbytes

7 9 8 PSTV 461 MB Publisher

benjaminrivers.com

@BenjaminRivers

Developer

benjaminrivers.com

@BenjaminRivers

Released

NA: April 5th EU: April 14th

32

The Vita Lounge Magazine

As a Vita fan you’ll no doubt have been excited by the very diverse range of games that have continually arrived for the system, and one of the system’s recent strengths has been visual novels.

Now, while I do enjoy visual novel games, I am more prone to picking up and playing point & click adventure games with some of my personal favourite titles being Terry Pratchett’s Discworld and Day of the Tentacle. When I learned that Benjamin Rivers was releasing an independent point & click adventure, I couldn’t wait to get my hands on it.

Alone With You takes place on a desolate space colony located on a doomed planet.

The plot of the game pits you as the only remaining survivor left, and it is your job to find a means of fixing the last working escape ship available so you can depart before the planet explodes. The story is layered with tragedy and uncertainty that will have you hunting for objects and artefacts to aid you in uncovering what truly happened.

While collecting and discovery is the main aim of the game, you also get to meet with five companions; one AI and four holo-sim recreations that progressively expand on their tragic back stories, whilst giving you the opportunity to develop relationships the more you continue through. The game really sets a depressive tone from start to finish,

Alone With You really captures the beauty of an adventure title, which to me is finding objects and solving puzzles, which is then married together with a driven visual novel narrative to give the genre a refreshed play style. The concept of blending two genres was a great idea as it allowed for the gameplay to feel less monotonous the further I continued on, and as I persisted through the game for many hours I was pleasantly surprised at the length of time it took to finish. Thankfully, I was captivated by the visual and audio throughout, which kept my attention all the way through the story.

Alone With You takes full advantage of the sprite work previously seen in the developer’s previous title, Home, although by adding a much colder colour palette it helps to enrich the bleak narrative presented from beginning to end. Ivor Stines, the creator behind the music and sound design has produced some fantastic music for the game and it really expands on the emotion and feeling when uncovering the horrors that lay waste in the colony – right through to the discovery of the tragedy the befell each companion.

The sections I thoroughly enjoyed hearing most were the holo-sim segments. The music somehow managed to fit well with each character giving them each a sense of uniqueness to one another.

While many point and click adventures grant a one playthrough experience, Alone With You delivers multiple choice options thevitalounge.net

throughout. The most notable section to witness different experiences is the holosim chamber portions. During sections of the story, you will be prompted to select one of the three answers provided that will change the way in which the companions feel about you. The more interaction you make with each of the characters, the more you will learn about their feeling towards you. This added a nice break away from the consistent bleak tones already present. Not to mention, there are multiple endings to reach too, which adds a nice level of replay value.

One of the best things about Alone With You is the puzzle sections, and it completely delivers in providing enough balance in ratio to the narrative. While hardened adventure fans may find the puzzles lacking in difficulty, it does provide the right difficulty enough to appease older fans and new players just experiencing adventure games for the first time. One of the cleverest bits of the game is the way the puzzles share relevance to the story. When conversing with the

companions, you will find certain items to present to each of them, unfolding more sections of the main story. This was a great idea as it helped to keep the gameplay continuous and the narrative at centre stage, giving both mechanics room to work side by side.

Benjamin Rivers has delivered to fans a rarely seen genre with a wonderfully touching experience that sits on par with many other adventure games of its kind, such as the efforts from Telltale Games.

Now, while I admire the work Telltale

VERDICT Alone With You delivers a wonderful but bleak tale of tragedy, while combining both classic and newer gameplay styles that demonstrates a phenomenal experience.

@PSVitaMag

Games has provided with the delivery of excellent storytelling gameplay in The Wolf Among Us and The Walking Dead, Alone With You truly respects the foundation with great story telling and wonderful addictive puzzle elements, all founded on a text based narrative and immense art direction. This is definitely one of the finest point & click adventure games created in recent years that many developers could learn from.

4.1 The Vita Lounge Magazine

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Written by crispyn64

@crispyn64 crispyn64

2 6 46 PSTV 396 MB Publisher

aksysgames.com

@aksysgames

Developer

spike-chunsoft.co.jp

@spikechunsoft

Released

NA: July 26th EU: July 27th

34

The Vita Lounge Magazine

Some games can do almost everything right. Starting with a simple but engaging narrative, a game can hook you in with mere story progression. It pushes you to work your way through floor after floor, all in a valiant effort to reach that next cutscene. The easy-to-grasp combat and the ever evolving strategies that can stem from it only aid in this process, as it keeps your mind active and your attention gripped. Another thing that helps your eyes stay tied to the screen are the visuals. A game that looks good is (almost) as important as a game that plays good. Finely detailed and diverse environments filled with unique and varied sprites are a great thing to have. So too is a deep variety of gameplay, items, and features, to give the feeling that there’s always plenty to do.

Certain types of games manage to combine both of these aspects and execute them in such a way that can make for a truly memorable experience. For some, Shiren the Wanderer: The Tower of Fortune and the Dice of Fate is that kind of game. For others however, a certain design choice may overshadow everything that makes it enjoyable and leave you with nothing but an overwhelming sense of exasperation for this truly bothersome and unfair chore of a game.

But before we get there, let’s run through what makes this game great! Starting with the story, Shiren the Wanderer begins with Shiren (a.k.a. the wanderer) walking up to a cliff side overlooking a village which pokes out of the surrounding forest. Alongside him is his partner, Koppa. Koppa briefly explains that what they do is “travel the world in search of mysteries of all kinds”,

and then alludes to a previous adventure in the series before setting up the one they’re about to stumble into. Also, Koppa is a talking ferret.

So they stroll into town and the player finally gains control. After going through the age old JRPG tradition of exploring stranger’s homes without any expressed permission, you’ll eventually find yourself in the room of a bedridden girl. Oyu has a terminal illness, and her friend Jirokichi decides he’ll do whatever it takes to reverse her fate. He brashly rushes out of the room to go take on the Tower of Fortune and retrieve the Dice of Fate, which should be able to cure her…for some reason. Shiren follows in hopes to catch up and help Jirokichi. It’s a pretty basic plot, but nonetheless a solid foundation for the game to build upon. And of course, more complications and party members will be thrown into mix further down the road.

Pretty soon Shiren reaches Nekomaneki Village, the main hub world that seems to be full of wonderful things to do! There’s shops, storage, banks, and more to be unlocked later in the game. Two particularly notable buildings within the village are the Dungeon Center and Hotel Nekomaneki.

The Dungeon Center is like a training dojo where you can try out an assortment of dungeons and play fun little minigames.

You can take your prizes from the Dungeon Center back to Hotel Nekomaneki, where you can place them in storage or sell them for gildan (money) to deposit in the bank.

Inside the hotel there are even more renovations to come with a group of cute little raccoon dogs working on some kind of store in the basement. thevitalounge.net

Aside from that is the rescue desk, where you can go to setup rescue quests of other players. Sadly, the system is a bit convoluted and the player base doesn’t seem large enough, or at least engaged enough with this part of the game to consider it worthwhile. When you die in a dungeon you have the option to either wait for someone to rescue you or just go back to Nekomaneki Village and lose all of your inventory. In concept it may seem like an interesting way to build camaraderie within the player base, and perhaps affect positivity in the community overall. In practice, you’ll be waiting days if not an eternity for a savior, so all it really does is take away, time that could’ve been spent actually playing the game.

enemies will randomly have stat buffs, making them even harder to defeat or get away from. It’s especially frustrating when an already high attack monster gets an attack boost, forcing you to run because it’ll wipe you out in 1-2 hits.

have this simple solution…or at least, it’s a hell of a lot harder.

The biggest “problem” with this game is that it doesn’t allow for overarching level progression. You start every dungeon at level 1, and you can level up as many And while running away may seem like an times as you want, but once the quest is easy solution, your stupid allies will not over you’ll revert back to level 1. It doesn’t feel the same way. As soon as a monster matter if you failed, escaped, or completed is in contact with one of your teammates, the quest, you’ll just return to the same they will fight to the death regardless of starting point. And that same starting what you actually want them to do. There point has the same low health bar with is no changing their battle style nor is the same low damage. The only way to there any way of controlling their actions reliably build up your strength is through manually. Having to cope with poorly upgrading your weaponry, but you have to programmed AI is just part of the game. keep in mind that if you die in a dungeon, Luckily, they don’t set off traps or pick up you lose everything. A sword you spent items, so you don’t have to worry about countless hours building up could be lost extra inventory management or waiting The dungeons are what you’d probably in an instant thanks to the harsh expect: random floor layouts, lots of traps, for an ally to awake from a sleep trap. It’s conditions of a randomized dungeon. also worth mentioning that while it’s okay Monsters can literally rain on your parade legions of monsters roaming around, a to let some of your allies die (because decent amount of loot, and a surprising if you step into an ambush, and there they’ll just return to the village), story amount of sometimes helpful NPCs. aren’t many ways to ensure you, your specific characters like Jirokichi need to Occasionally villagers will find you in the items, or your party are safe. middle of a dungeon and talk to you about make it through the floor otherwise you will not be able to advance. He can be a range of things, but mostly they’re just I put “problem” in quotations because this revived by herbs, but if you don’t have one isn’t really a problem, but perhaps more of begging for money. There’s always a choice to indulge them or not, but it never in your limited inventory you’ll have to an “acquired taste”. When stakes are seems to do anything, or at least not right start all over again. raised in video games, in such a punitive away. Shiren the Wanderer is full and arbitrary manner such as this, some So far Shiren the Wanderer seems like a (like me) can’t help but feel anxious and decisions with consequences that aren’t annoyed. Not only that, it’s incredibly time immediately apparent, but they’re not too pretty enjoyable experience. Sure, it can consuming to try again and again, only to substantial either. be a little annoying sometimes with its get smacked down AGAIN and AGAIN. For abundance of ways to indiscriminately those with patience (not like me), the Enemies come in all different shapes and screw you over. It might feel a bit too many adversities Shiren the Wanderer sizes, with a variety of abilities and reliant on chance, as if skill isn’t going to offers might make the accomplishment of fighting tactics. Some will fly through be quite enough to progress your way beating it feel even grander. However, for walls when hunting you down, others through. In typical RPGs, if you feel like someone who already has a busy might pick you up and throw you into you’ve hit a brick wall that’s usually another ally for a hefty amount of because your level isn’t quite high enough schedule and many other games to play, damage. Then there’s monsters with yet. The simple solution here is to grind The Tower of Fortune and the Dice of Fate ranged attacks and multiple forms, until you reach the appropriate amount of just isn’t worth the effort. opponents that can teleport you, and a strength to knock over the next obstacle whole lot more. Sometimes these in your way. Shiren the Wanderer doesn’t

VERDICT Shiren the Wanderer: The Tower of Fortune and the Dice of Fate is a beautiful game with solid combat and a myriad of items and features to find along the way. It's too bad that its punishing nature makes it less enjoyable the longer you play it.

@PSVitaMag

3.4 The Vita Lounge Magazine

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Chris Scullion

patreon.com/chrisscullion @scully1888

CHRIS SCULLION HAS BEEN A GAMES JOURNALIST FOR THE LAST TEN YEARS, WORKING ON NUMEROUS HIGH PROFILE MAGAZINES AND WEBSITES. AFTER LEAVING CVG, HE MOVED BACK TO HIS NATIVE SCOTLAND AND SET UP HIS OWN GAMING WEBSITE WHERE HE IS FREE TO DISCUSS GAMES IN HIS OWN WAY. SO WE CAUGHT UP WITH HIM TO FIND OUT WHAT HE THOUGHT ABOUT THE VITA.

Hi Chris, Thanks for talking to us! Can you tell us a little bit about yourself and your gaming history?

No problem! I've been playing games ever since the mid '80s, when I discovered the NES at the age of four.

Over the years I've owned pretty much every major console and handheld that's been released (except the Sega Saturn for some reason), and this led to me studying journalism at uni so I could write for a games magazine.

After getting my degree I ended up becoming a staff writer on Official Nintendo Magazine (RIP) back in 2006, and in the decade since I've written for the likes of CVG (RIP), Nintendo Gamer (RIP), Official Xbox Magazine, Official PlayStation Magazine, GamesTM, Vice, GamesMaster and PSW (RIP).

reviewing Triple-A games and the like I can focus on writing about older stuff, which is what I prefer.

As someone that enjoys gaming over multiple systems, can you tell us what you think of the Vita?

I've loved the Vita since day one. It may not be the graphically impressive beast it was these days thanks to the increases in mobile technology over the past few years but when it comes to console quality experiences on the move, it's undoubtedly fantastic.

Why do you think the Vita has struggled?

I think it's pretty much the same reasons the PSP struggled in the west. The demographics of handheld gamers aren't exactly the same as the demographics for console gamers, so though you've got many tens of millions of people who are happy to buy a PS3 or PS4, these people aren't necessarily likely to drop You are now running your own blog, called Tired Old Hack. Can a lot of money on a powerful handheld too (especially with you give us a little background behind it? mobile gaming more popular than ever). The reason the 3DS has After CVG was closed down (not my fault, I promise!) I decided succeeded is that it has the likes of Pokemon and Mario, games to move back to my native Scotland and become a freelancer.

At about the same time I got an abusive email (part of the job!) that are not only big enough names to encourage some adults from some guy saying that while he was sad CVG was closing he to buy a handheld for, but also safe enough names to encourage was happy I was losing my job, because I'm just a "tired old hack" parents to buy them for their children. and my time was over. So I decided to steal his idea and use it to Not much is known about Nintendo's upcoming NX, but it is make a website where I'm in full control of what I write. strongly rumoured to be a console/handheld hybrid, or at least feature handheld features. Do you think that Sony will persevere What content can readers find on Tired Old Hack? with a third handheld device, especially if Nintendo do?

Anything I feel like, really. Most of my articles tend to be longer stuff and full of bad jokes, because after a decade of word limits I think Sony's done with handheld now, sadly. Nintendo's in a and editors I'm having fun writing whatever I want and making it different situation in that its handhelds traditionally outsell its consoles each generation: the Game Boy outsold the NES/ as long as I want.

SNES, the GBA outsold the GameCube, DS outsold the Wii and 3DS outsold the Wii U. Although Sony never managed this with So one day you could get a list of my 30 favourite Vita games, its own handhelds, it would have been happy with the 80-odd the next you could get a video of me playing the Olsen Twins million PSPs it sold. Sadly, with the Vita not even reaching game on the GameCube.

GameCube levels of sales I'd imagine Sony will cut its losses and ditch portable gaming, focusing on its more profitable console One thing you should expect is more of a focus on retro than division and its upcoming VR headset. you'd get on bigger sites. Because I don't have to worry about 36

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Your list is published alphabetically, so you don't actually state which is your favourite Vita game. So what is?

Sneaky! Probably either Sound Shapes or Spelunky. Sound Shapes completely blew me away when I first played it: probably because the lack of coverage meant I wasn't expecting it. And Spelunky's my automatic go-to game when I'm travelling.

What would be your dream game on Vita?

I'm a big fan of 2K Sports' games so I was always disappointed that there was never a WWE 2K or NBA 2K game on the Vita.

Their lengthy career modes can feel like a bit of a grind when you're playing on a console, but playing a match a day on the train to work would have been a perfect fit.

Have you really not played P4G? Why not?

Haha! I'm afraid not. I think a decade of games journalism has caused me to develop a slight fear of JRPGs because my mind CHRIS RECENTLY EVALUATED THE BEST automatically associates them with tight deadlines and late THIRTY VITA GAMES THAT HE HAS PLAYED. nights. Imagine if you were given a copy of P4G and told you only VISIT TIRED OLD HACK TO FIND OUT MORE! had a week to play through it and write up a full review. So don't get me wrong, I do intend to play it one day: I actually bought it a fortnight ago because it's so cheap. I just haven't gotten around You have recently published a gargantuan feature on your website detailing your favourite Vita experiences, encompassing to it yet because the idea of a JRPG taking up all my free time again is giving me bad flashbacks of staying up to 3am every many different genres. Why do you think that 4 years after launch, people still don't know how diverse the Vita's library is? night for a week trying to beat The World Ends With You before deadline!

Because much of the games industry is dictated by the games media, in particular a handful of bigger websites. The games the likes of IGN, Eurogamer, Kotaku and the like talk about become Finally, of the OLED and the Slim which do you think is best? the ones the gaming public end up talking about, but the Vita's The OLED. I'm a bit of a graphics nerd so I don't think the Slim is slim enough to justify ditching that gorgeous screen. poor sales have left it in a catch-22 situation. Websites won't waste their resources writing about a game that most people won't care about (because they don't own a Vita), but the Vita suffers as a result because no coverage implies no games. It's We would like to thank Chris for his time on this the same with the Wii U: it has some fantastic games on it but feature. Let us know what you think about Tired Old it doesn't gain traction because many of these great games Hack! If you like what Chris does, please consider are quickly acknowledged in a review then ditched in favour of supporting his Patreon! patreon.com/chrisscullion continuous Destiny or Overwatch coverage. @PSVitaMag

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DIRECTORY A RECAP OF THE BEST GAMES THIS YEAR

ZERO TIME DILEMMA

4.9

4 1216 987 MB

RISK OF RAIN

4.6

0 6 9 81 MB

38

2 1326 142 MB

4.5

3 8 35 1.5 GB

CRYPT OF THE NECRODANCER

6 12 6 225 MB

DIGIMON STORY: CYBER SLEUTH

4.5

4.8

LEGO STAR WARS: THE FORCE AWAKENS

SEVERED

4.5

STEAMWORLD HEIST

1 7 48 1.5 GB

The Vita Lounge Magazine

4.5

7 5 16 1.0 GB

ODDWORLD: NEW 'N' TASTY

4.5

5 9 22 1.2 GB

AXIOM VERGE

4.8

8 0 21 372 MB

DOWNWELL

4.5

7 10 5 41.1 MB

VOLUME

4.5

8 6 10 904 MB

NEVERENDING NIGHTMARES

4.5

3 1 0 274 MB thevitalounge.net

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My PSN isn't related to Harry Potter, honest.

It was the name of my first D&D character way back in 1976. I'd meant to use "muddledmind", but wrote it wrong (I was only 11, so that's my excuse). Vitawise, I play mine every day, usually travelling to and from work.

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The game that made me buy a Vita was Tales of Hearts R. WhenREVIEWED! I saw it at the store I could not believe my eyes. I came back home 9with a brand new Vita, Tales of Hearts R and Muramasa Rebirth. Those are my 2 favorite games in the system. Since then I have been buying almost every game in the system.

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Thanks for your generous support and belief!

Also, a big thanks for all you who supported us and made this issue possible!

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