Recent reviews by 「PyNe」

- There are 230+ songs from all kinds of genres, one of the most varied song lists I've seen in a rhythm game. Also, we're getting 4~ new songs each month for free.

- I get over 500 fps on a slightly dated setup, making the gameplay smooth and input-lag free.

- The difficulty distribution covers all skill levels, so both beginners and veterans can enjoy most of the content (except for the 8-keys mode, which only has 1 difficulty per song for now.)

- The patterns are quite varied and complements the songs very well, there's also modifiers to randomize the charts in multiple ways, so you can enjoy the same charts in different flavors



- Pressing wrong notes along with the correct notes won't give you a miss, but playing off beat or missing kills you pretty fast so you can't mash your way into a clear.

- The timing window is much stricter than other rhythm games on Steam. If you come from Musynx or other games that have a rather lenient judgement, you might struggle getting accuracy at first.

- Patterns were made with keyboard play in mind. That means if you want to play the game on a rhythm game controller, it won't feel as comfortable as playing on keyboard.


- It's online only. Even though the multiplayer modes aren't out yet, the game will freeze if you lose connection to the servers. Also, sometimes they'll have maintenances and you can't play the game which is a bit frustrating.

If online only isn't too much of a deal-breaker for you, and you're looking for a challenging rhythm game with a good amount of content, then I'm happy to give EZ2ON my strongest recommendation.

I'll keep this review short and spoiler-free.
I've played all games on the strange man series and I really enjoyed every single one of them.
If you are looking for a horror game with a good story, look no further. This is a game that you absolutely can't miss.
The Crooked Man utilizes the dark atmosphere to tell the story, and does so masterfully. I'd be hard pressed to find an horror game with better atmosphere and story than this series.
If you're unsure on whether or not to grab this game, you can download the free version on vgperson's website and test it before buying it here (though let's be honest, it's 3 dollars for a truly excellent horror game).
The steam version has achievements and allows you to support the developer creating these incredible stories.
I've always felt that this series was something truly special and too good to be free, it's great that I can finally show my support and appreciation and I encourage everyone who has played and enjoyed it to do the same.

EDIT: The patch that adds voice acting and PS3 graphics is finally out! Go get it here[github.com]


Don’t let my play time fool you, I’ve already read the entire thing through the old fan patch, apparently the translation on the steam release greatly improves on that already excellent translation, so I’m looking forward to rereading it all. In this review I will be covering mostly the technical aspects of Umineko, so I’ll avoid talking about the story – it is best to go in without knowing what you’re getting into.


Sound:

Originally this work was a sound novel and not a visual novel, so you can guess the sound has an extra layer of attention given to it, and it shows.

There are almost 200 songs in the entire soundtrack composed by 5+ different artists. The genres spam all the way from instrumental piano to psychedelic trance. The range is amazing and somehow it manages to deliver the most fitting song for each scene, regardless of the musical genre.
Notable songs on the question arc include Dreamenddischarger and Hope.

It’s a shame the steam version did not include voice acting, presumably because of licensing issues, as it is one of the best in the entire visual novel medium. The patch I linked will restore the voices along with the PS3 sprites and backgrounds which in my opinion look way better than the steam version.


Characters:

The cast is absolutely huge, by the end of the eight episode there were over 50 characters in total, but never at any point did it feel like there were more than it could handle, all of the characters had their own goals and motivations driving them forward and almost all of them had a significant impact on the story.
The characters are also well developed and become people you actually care about, each with their flaws and distinct personalities. This novel is exceptionally good on characterization, out of the 18 main characters there is not a single one that is bland, generic or reliant on character tropes and that in itself is an achievement.


Content:

This is the first four episodes of a series of eight episodes. It takes roughly 50 hours to read through the first four episodes (question arc), and another 50 hours to go through the final four (answer arc), one of the longest visual novels out there. It is very acclaimed by the western visual novel community as a whole, ranking up top 5 in rating on vndb[vndb.org]. There is no sexual content on Umineko and nothing on the steam version was cut out or censored, making it the definitive version of one of the greatest visual novels to date.


Final thoughts:

This novel is a finely crafted masterpiece and a truly unforgettable experience. I urge everyone to give it a try, especially if you are a fan of visual novels, this is one you absolutely can’t miss.
There are reasons Umineko no Naku Koro ni is ranked #5 on vndb, and while I wrote a couple of them here, the rest is for you to enjoy.