2019 Best

2019 Best Switch 

Susume! Mamotte Knight: Hime no Totsugeki Serenade keeps the nostalgic spirit alive

By Graham Russell //

There’s a good reason that we here at Michibiku are fans of the Gotta Protectors series enough to keep up with its often-hard-to-follow information flow. It’s not that the games are ever particularly impressive in size or mechanical depth. It’s not that they tell interesting stories, or that they’re just so polished that they can’t be ignored.

It’s this: they’re always a heck of a lot of fun to play with friends in a way few games can match.

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2019 Best 3DS 

Etrian Odyssey Nexus looks back at the best Etrian Odyssey has to offer

By Jenni Lada //

Etrian Odyssey is was born into the world once Atlus had the opportunity to experiment with what the Nintendo DS could do. First-person dungeon crawlers where players completely customize parties aren’t terribly uncommon, and they all tend to have a map that fills in as you explore environments. Etrian Odyssey always kicked things up by making mapping feel as important as adventuring. With the end of the 3DS lifespan and journey into new frontiers, Etrian Odyssey Nexus acts as a celebration of everything the series did in its first eleven years.

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2019 Best Switch 

Groove Coaster: Wai Wai Party! gets the party going

By Jenni Lada //

We don’t always get every great rhythm release in every region. Things like licensing disputes, distribution issues and concern about brand familiarity are a few of the problems that can get in the way of a good game. When Groove Coaster: Wai Wai Party! was announced for Japan, it seemed like it could have been a victim of such complications. I mean, it has licensed music, is handled by Taito and one of its main selling points is how it uses virtual YouTubers. It seemed like the sort of game where you would be thankful its Japanese release has an English language option, then you eventually import it when you could afford it.

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2019 Best Switch 

Fire Emblem: Three Houses shows what makes teaching worthwhile

By Jenni Lada //

I do not know how these kids get by without me.

Every Saturday, I wake up. I put on the exact same uniform, complete with lace tights. (Do you know how difficult it is to be a respected professor and take student soldiers out onto a battlefield without getting runs in lace tights?) I see how much time I have to spare for myself to prepare for the week. Then, I start my walk around Garreg Mach.

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2019 Best Switch 

Picross S3’s innovation is underrated

By Graham Russell //

When Picross S3 released sporting color puzzles for the first time, it wasn’t exactly a new thing in the world of nonograms. Multi-shade picture puzzles have been around for decades, and they’ve even made their way into HAL’s 3D spinoff series.

But it’s a big deal for them to finally show up in the genre’s flagship games, and there are a few reasons why.

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2019 Best SNES Switch 

Trials of Mana proves that anything can happen

By Jenni Lada //

The Mana series hasn’t had the best track record for localizations. Square Enix released the first outside of Japan as a Final Fantasy game. The mobile games never had a chance outside the region. The greatest tragedy was Seiken Densetsu 3, an entry with a customizable party, cooperative multiplayer and storylines that changed depending on who you followed. While Secret of Mana, its predecessor, and Dawn of Mana, its successor, both received localizations, that one didn’t.

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