The enormous popularity of Puyo Puyo in Japan caused many, many competitors to try their hand at creating a falling-block puzzle franchise, and there weren’t many to find as much success in gameplay and domestic longevity as Taisen Puzzle Dama, Konami’s attempt in the genre. Let’s take a look at a signature entry — one tied to another Konami franchise that found a lot of fans in its home country!
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What do you know about Hamtaro? There is a very good chance that the response could be, “Not a whole lot.” But, if you owned a Game Boy Color or Game Boy Advance in 2002 and 2003, you might be one of the few who knows a surprising secret. That is, there were two Hamtaro games that were absolutely awesome. Hamtaro: Ham-Hams Unite! and Hamtaro: Ham-Ham Heartbreak were both adventure games that actually required you to learn a new language and explore towns to help hamster-kind. Both of these games are surprisingly good, and that’s before Mario & Luigi developer AlphaDream took over the series with Hamtaro: Rainbow Rescue.
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Before Style Savvy let DS and 3DS owners play dress up and run a shop, finding dress up games could be rather difficult. The titles would be geared toward younger audiences. Some would even be very rudimentary and only focus on the dressing up and clothing collection elements. There was one title that stood out, and that was Angel Collection: Mezase! Gakuen no Fashion Leader on the Game Boy Advance. Instead of focusing on fashion, this series offered an opportunity to do more.
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Octopath Traveler really blew up, didn’t it? The Nintendo Switch exclusive became a top eShop seller after launch and physical copies were so rare, Square Enix was issuing apologies and asking people to please consider a digital copy if they could not wait. It is a fun RPG to spend 40 to 60 hours playing. But, what if you already finished the game? What if you are ready to follow some new stories? Well, let’s help you find something similar to enjoy!
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Sushi Striker: The Way of Sushido released earlier this month! We say that because E3 makes June a busy time, and also because, if early reports are accurate, not a lot of players picked it up. This is not new for developer indieszero, making its decades-long mission delivering interesting, quirky games that may slip your notice! Let’s look at the team’s history and break down what you may have missed.
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Sometimes, first-party Nintendo games do not manage to get a worldwide release. Sakura Momoko no Ukiuki Carnival is one of those games. An adventure game with input from Sakura Momoko, the mangaka behind Chibi Maruko-chan, Shigeru Miyamoto, Indieszero and Nintendo, it tasked people with throwing a carnival using the power of the internet. It was unquestionably charming and odd, offering an aesthetic not often seen in the medium. It is also to the rest of the world’s detriment that it never appeared outside of Japan.
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Sakura Momoko no Ukiuki Carnival is an unusual Game Boy Advance game. Players end up being befriended by a carnival fairy, which means they are required to join the committee, convince residents of Colortown to attend and wake the eight guardian gods so they will decorate their respective boroughs. What is interesting is that even though this was a game made in 2002, it understood how important the internet is in connecting with people. Players can only progress when they participate in the “real” and “virtual” worlds present within the game.
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The Dragon Quest Heroes: Rocket Slime series is pretty great. It might be difficult for people outside of Japan to understand, because we have sadly only seen one game localized. Only the second installment, which appeared on the Nintendo DS in 2005 in Japan and 2006 in other regions, came and showed us the joy of careening around a world as a slime, goorabbing allies and enemies as you go. But, when placed alongside its contemporaries, it is easy to see the sense of progression and how a good thing gets even greater over the years.
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Otome games are only just starting to find their place worldwide, but these dating sims for women have been around for quite some time in Japan. If you start enjoying these titles, you will eventually find yourself hearing about Ruby Party. You may even hear laments about how no Ruby Party games have been localized yet! Who is this developer? Why should you care about its titles? Let’s learn a little more about this studio!
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