A new year, and a new Game of the Month list. Is it just me, or was it a bit of a quiet month in gaming? Sure, the end of the month saw some interesting releases: Final Fantasy Explorers is released in America ánd Europe, as is Atelier Escha and Logy Plus for the Vita. But other then that, I guess we are waiting for Nintendo to release their first mobile game and launch the successor to Club Nintendo in the West.
I had decided to focus on my backlog of games, so I didn’t buy any new ones. Still on the fence about Final Fantasy Explorers to be honest, I like my RPG turn-based ( mainly I’m awful at action battles) but I do admit the exploring part really appeals to me. And Atelier Escha and Logy will eventually be added to my collection, but not just yet: I’ve got enough Atelier games to keep me busy.
I started the first weeks of January like I ended December, playing Atelier Ayesha, my game of the Month December. And then I decided to check out Persona 4 Golden, because I felt I had had it in my possession for so long, I at least owed it a peek. Easy to guess what my game of the Month January is, right? Persona 4 Golden on the Vita is such a surprise to me. I like Persona Q on the 3DS, but Persona 4 Golden is clearly how the game is supposed to play. What an adventure! I’m 30 hours in the game at the moment, and I’m nowhere near done yet. As promised, I’ll make a review in the next few weeks.
My three 3DS’s are in hibernation: I didn’t use them at all, focusing instead on my Vita. I did give a new app game a try, Star Trek Timelines, which was released at the beginning of the month. I had hoped it would be the ultimate Star Trek game I’ve been waiting for for years, but so far, the game baffles me. Maybe I haven’t invested enough time in it yet, or I didn’t play enough attention, but for now it feels like clicking a lot of buttons while I’ve no idea what I’m doing. I did enjoy all the familiar sounds though…but that’s not what the game is for. For now it will stay on my iPad, I’ll check back from time to time to see if new updates add more depth.
I’m glad you are enjoying your Vita. If you enjoy Persona 4 Golden, definitely try Persona 3 portable. I personally prefer P3’s cast over P4’s, but whichever one you end preferring I promise you that that game is worthwhile. I should it, I spent more than 130 hours on it at the end of last year. I seriously hope more megami tensei games come to the vita, maybe Persona 5 after its initial console release.
My 3DS has been in hibernation since I bought my Vita in late July :p It got out of it early this year so I could play Moco Moco friends and Harvest Moon ANB. And ditto on being doubtful about FFE, especially since its combat is similar to Monster Hunter and I hate that game. On the other hand, they also say Toukiden is similar to Monster Hunter and I utterly love it, so I don’t know in which direction to go. I need to know how lengthy (AKA boring) the exploration is and how smart the partner AI is, but I haven’t seen any trustworthy reviews on youtube yet.
When I saw the post you made about you being a fan of Persona 4, I expected this to be your game of the month! Heh, I’m also bad at action RPG’s, no matter how much I like them. (Xenoblade Chronicles, love the game, but whooo boy, the combat’s hard to get used to.) Anyways, hope you get into Persona 3 as well as Persona 2 and 1 (The gameplay’s crazily different in Persona 1 and 2, it’s pretty weak, but at least it has a nice story.) Speaking of games I’m looking forward to, Persona 5 is one of them! (I also see that you really like Chie and Yukiko.)
Glad I’m not the only one that can’t really make an action RPG work, haha! Always made me feel a bit inadequate in gaming, but I’m over that. Let’s just play the tons of other great games out there.
Yeah, I love the Golden Dragon move Chie and Yukio can do!
OOOO looks like you’re having a great start to the year! I really need to play P4 but tbh, I was a little annoyed that they give you the option to be a girl in 3 but not in any other games…I mean, I really don’t care what gender my character is, but when there are romance options, I’d much rather be a girl to play that.
I’ll never understand why in this day and age they don’t make you choose the gender. But I don’t let it bother me much, if I can say so I’m a pretty cool and at the same time sensitive dude in Persona 4!
Haha thanks for not getting mad. A lot of ppl think I “hate men” because I don’t want to play P4 because I can’t choose my gender.
I’d love to but I’m worried there’d be too much fanservice.
No of course not mad, actually, I totally agree with you. They should have left the choice to us!
^^
Your poor 3DSes. 🙁 Mine never leaves my side.
Final Fantasy Explorers looks interesting but I have seen way too many poor reviews for it. They say there really is no exploring and that it gets boring quickly. I am passing.
Again, if you like turn-based RPGs, I urge you to try The Legend of Legacy. There is a free demo. 🙂
I might give that Star Trek game a go. Downloading it now.
Take care.
Shh, Marc, let’s not let my 3DS’s hear that yours is always by your side. Mine have to share me on my travels anyway, they can’t know there are 3DS devices that have a much better life!!
I think your 3DS will awaken from its slumber soon. There are loads of good titles due out soon. I am enjoying Final Fantasy Explorers by the way, although based on what you have written I don’t think it will appeal to you. There isn’t much exploration. It’s pretty much an easy Monster Hunter.
Not much exploration? That’s a pity, given the title, isn’t it? I’m thinking about Bravely Second, and realising I should really get on with Bravely Default..