This Week in Games

Leonardo Leads, Donatello Does Machines

Welcome to 2023! I hope your pets didn't suffer too badly with the New Years' fireworks people kept firing off. My landlady's dog had to curl up on my bed for a bit, he was so anxious—poor thing. I also wrote ANN's Best Games of 2022 list. This is the first time I've ever made a list like that, but it was fun to do—even if I have extremely narrow tastes. The New Year's holiday was also good to me in that I was finally able to play through Chapter 3 of Xenoblade Chronicles 3! And, uh, I've hit a huge obstacle in keeping you all up-to-date with my Xenoblade Chronicles 3 playthrough. Particularly, uh...

...Yeah. I have a ton of respect for Xenoblade's fandom keeping certain things like "Seven" or "Coffee with Milk" secret, even when it comes to some fan art. And I've already hit something in Chapter 3 that I feel really, really peels away some of the nails on the bottom of the barrel. So from here on out, I will have to get vague about what I do in the games. It's also making me wonder if I should make a write-up of the game once I'm done. That aside, the recent cutscenes are making me wonder why Möbius and Ouroboros are the symbols they are in Xenoblade 3. Möbius strips are strips of paper that, due to a weird bit of chicanery with the laws of physics, only have one side—draw a line on one side of the paper, and it'll somehow naturally end up on the opposite side of the strip. And their "symbol" is the sideways "8"—infinity. But the Ouroboros is the snake eating its tail. In its own way, it's also an infinite loop.

I don't know where this game is going, but it's starting to hook the nails in. My poor heart is about to be ripped out—also, Taion. Taion is a good boy. He's warming up to Eunie. He's settling into his place as the malewife to her girlboss real nice.

This is...

Last year, Square Enix stepped on a whole bunch of rakes with their inaugural letter claiming they were leaning in on NFTs, cryptocurrency, and "Play-To-Earn" models for their games. Indeed, many players everywhere were disappointed when Square Enix revealed their "Symbiogenesis" NFT project, which many had hoped would have been a Parasite Eve revival. Then there was the failure of not one, but three "Live Service" titles in the form of Babylon's Fall, Chocobo GP, and Final Fantasy VII: The First SOLDIER—none of those games made it to a whole year of "service." (And in the case of Chocobo GP, it's a tragedy—if it wasn't such a nickel-grabber, it'd have been a perfectly cute cart racer with cute chibi versions of beloved Final Fantasy characters.)

Well, it looks like Square Enix is ready to go through that whole song-and-dance all over again because their new 2023 letter confirms they haven't learned their lesson and they're still gonna lean in on NFTs when the market has crashed and burned. Convinced that "Web 3.0" had become "more popular than ever" in 2022 (and framing the collapse of FTX as simply an event that "spread confusion"), Square Enix confirms they're as dedicated as ever to pushing a "decentralized" future of entertainment incorporating Web 3.0.

"2022 was a year of great volatility in the blockchain-related space," says Square Enix president Yosuke Matsuda. "However, if this proves to have been a step in a process that leads to the creation of rules and a more transparent business environment, it will definitely have been for the good of the growth of blockchain entertainment."

I don't know what I'm supposed to say. We can point out how much the market for NFTs and cryptocurrency has collapsed. We can point to the failures of other attempts at game studios at curbing the market on NFTs based on their own games. We can point to the success and demand from gamers for non-"Web 3.0" games given the demand for titles like Triangle Strategy, the Live-A-Live remake's nomination for RPG of the Year at the Game Awards (the only time I'll ever give that clown show any legitimacy), or Final Fantasy XIV's continued domination of the MMORPG market. We can point to the countless cases of studios being shamed out of incorporating crypto elements in their game. It's like Square Enix wants to put itself back into the position it was in when Final Fantasy XIV 1.0 was released, and it almost killed them as a company.

President Matsuda also pointed out it was the 20th anniversary of the merger between Squaresoft and Enix (which itself followed from another one of Square's hare-brained schemes, the failure of Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within. It seems the legacy Square wants is one of snatching failure from the jaws of success.

Dude, we just want to play Bahamut Lagoon.

A massive problem in game and hardware design is accessibility. Look at how long it took subtitles in cutscenes to become industry-standard (which massively helps people with auditory issues or who struggle with English). Things like accessible fonts for people with Dyslexia or other reading disorders, better color use for people who suffer from color blindness, or Bayonetta's "tourist"-modes for people who struggle with inputs are things that still see tons of pushback from the greater gaming community even though they'd make games playable to an entire population of people that... can't enjoy them. And for anyone who thinks controls aren't an issue: try playing a game when you've got a papercut on a finger. Bam. SSS+-ing Vergil from the Devil May Cry series isn't so easy all of a sudden. Nintendo has made inroads with things like the Wii's motion controls and the DS's touchpad, but while these mechanics persist with the Switch, they're not quite the standard. And Sony and Microsoft only used motion controls as a cheap bandwagon to jump onto, failing to capitalize upon them in any way that would be meaningful or helpful.

Thankfully, Sony's starting to look outside the box a little. Enter Project Leonardo: a new controller that can either compliment or even replaces the DualShock. Its unique form factor and modular components are designed to allow people with limited mobility to control games or folks who just struggle with small clusters of buttons. The new controller can be used in tandem with the Dual Shock, on its own, or in a pair with another Project Leonardo controller—or you can use all three at once. An example Sony offered was the controller being used with another player to help. Up to three controller profiles can be saved onto the controller. Plus, you can swap and rearrange the buttons however you like! This last bit is something that I'd like to see more of in controllers. Never mind how convenient this would be to replace analog sticks suffering from drifts, it would also help people customize their inputs for their games. (On the other, hoo boy, if a kid sticks one of those things in their mouth...)

Hopefully, this inspires other publishers to consider new methods of accessibility for their consoles. My only issue: the name is "Project Leonardo." Everyone knows Da Vinci was an inventor, but dangit, Donatello was the tech-head! Give Donnie his due!

In our ongoing coverage of news coming from the house Bill Gates built, Microsoft's game testers have successfully unionized within the company. This forms the largest union in the video game industry (clocking in at approximately 300 workers) and Microsoft's first labor union in the United States. Based out of Hunt Valley, Maryland, and Austin and Dallas in Texas, the union has been embraced with open arms by Microsoft's leadership, who by all accounts have presented absolutely no obstacle to its formation.

This, of course, cannot be taken on its face. After all, Microsoft is still trying to present a good look for the Federal Trade Commission and its ongoing complaints and investigations pertaining to Microsoft's attempt at acquiring Activision-Blizzard. The case has seen its first trial just this past week, so obviously Microsoft will clutch at any crumb of goodwill it can get its hands on.

Looking past the cynicism towards large multinational conglomerates desperately attempting to consolidate their power in a bid to corner the market, this is nevertheless a vital move: game testers are routinely some of the worst-treated employees in the video game industry. Many are only contractors, and while the position is routinely propped up as a key way to get your foot in the door to the greater video game development industry, only some manage to actually rise through the ranks in any meaningful capacity. (Also, for folks who think game testing is a 'dream job,' I hope you enjoy playing crossword sims for hours on end because you sure won't be playing Phantasy Star Online 2.)

More importantly, this also addresses major concerns developers and consumers within the video game industry have had regarding workers' rights and quality of life in game development. With testers for such a visible distributor unionizing, it could potentially open the door to more and more unionization within the industry, which in turn could curtail a ton of the abuse that goes on behind the scenes. "EA Spouse" was over a decade ago, but it's entirely up in the air as to whether or not things are any better for developers (and given the horror stories involving 100-hour work weeks that came about from Rockstar Games programming horse testicles into Red Dead Redemption 2, they probably aren't). For now, it's good to know folks are getting the chance to unionize. I hope 2023 is the year we see more unionization and less monopolization from the video game industry.

With how massive Pokémon is, it's easy to forget Game Freak has made other games—stuff like Pulseman, Rhythm Knight, and Little Town Hero. One of their many cult-hits on the 3DS was Pocket Card Jockey: a curious combination of a horse racing sim and solitaire. Players would raise horses and try to match sequences of numbers as quickly as possible to ensure their horse wins the race in the hopes of earning winnings they can use to raise more horses. It's a fun little game, sadly one that got inelegantly tossed out the window and forgotten just as quickly, but it is worth looking into. It's a sign that Game Freak is at its best when making small, bite-sized experiences: it's a simple concept with rock-solid execution and fun for quick little bursts. Unfortunately, Pocket Card Jockey is landlocked on the 3DS, and that console's online offerings are set to go dark later this year. Thankfully, Game Freak has us covered with a new port for the game coming to Apple Arcade!

Titled Pocket Card Jockey: Ride On!, the biggest update to the game appears to be that it's all on one screen. This concerns me; I'm not entirely sure how the game expects to balance charting your horse's course, stacking cards and displaying the race all in one go. But that's for Game Freak to figure out. For now, Pocket Card Jockey: Ride On! is due for release on January 20th.

For folks wondering how Game Freak is releasing a game on the Apple Arcade, remember: Nintendo doesn't entirely own Game Freak. While Nintendo and Game Freak jointly own The Pokémon Company, Nintendo still only publishes the Pokémon games—Game Freak is otherwise an independent company, free to release their games wherever they choose. Hence the releases of their other titles like Giga Wrecker on Steam. Think of it like what happened with Disney and Pixar before Disney just bought out Pixar. Will Nintendo buy out Game Freak? That's for the future to figure out.

I didn't wanna say anything, but last week my review for TYPE-MOON's Witch on the Holy Night was released! It's a fun kinetic novel, and I'm very grateful folks were excited about my review (and were very patient with the gaps in my TYPE-MOON knowledge). I didn't think we'd have more news from the house of shellfish, planet-unbirthing nuns, and this chair so soon, but here we are: a new action RPG coming soon from the combined forces of TYPE-MOON and Koei-Tecmo! And better yet, one with a worldwide release later this year!

Titled Fate/Samurai Remnant, this game trades the contemporary setting of most Fate works for Feudal Japan. Which, in my opinion, is a very inspired twist on the Fate formula. Mages have existed for as long as human civilization, and I'm glad we're finally getting a glimpse of what magecraft looked like in other eras. The trailer is very sparse on details—we don't even know the name of the samurai servant that gets summoned or the Potato-kun that summoned them. But TYPE-MOON and Koei-Tecmo aren't wasting time—right away, they're smacking us with nostalgia as they re-create the famous "Are you my Master?" scene from the original Fate/Stay Night. I'm down with this kind of call-back. It's like hiding "It's a secret to everyone" in a Zelda game.

Of course, they gotta give fans something to latch onto, so the trailer also teases the Fate version of Miyamoto Musashi, who was (of course) a cute blond woman with a heart-melting smile. (She's not a Saber-face, though—that's Okita Souji, and there's still no word on their appearance.)

"The details we can gather from the trailer are sparse; the mage carries twin katanas, so we can presume they're the main character and can fight. Their ending duel with Musashi implies she'll also be a major player in the story. It also seems that your servant will offer support (if not serve as a tag-team member you can swap into). As for available Servants? Well, your guess is as good as mine! The comments in the YouTube video are abuzz with folks theorizing. We know Musashi is coming; she's front and center (and I hope she joins our party, please). Folks are also crossing their fingers for the Assassin Sasaki Kojiro (who could use the extra love, for sure), Oda Nobunaga (come on, they'd be daft not to!), the aforementioned Okita, and Tomoe Gozen. If Koei-Tecmo wanted to be cute, they could toss in some characters from Samurai Warriors since this is the age of crossovers. Or, y'know, make weird Feudal Japan-era versions of the Fate stand-bys. Rin in a kimono, Sakura in a kimono, Taiga in a kimono, lather-rinse-repeat.

...Crap, now I want Taiga Fujimura as a secret boss...

We have no concrete release date besides 2023, but we do know Fate/Samurai Remnant is coming to PS4, PS5, Steam, and Nintendo Switch. We look forward to bringing you further information on the title as it comes out!

Folks that follow me know that my 🌸tastes🐺 in VTubers lean towards the VShojo-side of things, but we don't discriminate in people's waifus in this house. So I got one for my fellows from hololive! Marinet-themed maid (and total klutz) Minato Aqua received her own visual novel on October 27. Titled Aquarium, the game tells the story of a young heir (the player character) falling in love with a maid assigned to him—the maid being Aqua herself. Originally released on the PS4 and Nintendo Switch, this past Comiket 101 gave hololive fans confirmation that the visual novel is coming to PC later this year!

While there's no word yet on when exactly Aquarium's port will release, the real question is whether this VN will be made available to fans in the US. hololive seems content to let the merch for their Japanese talents stay in Japan, regardless of how many fans Korone or Aqua have in the States. I'd hope that a PC port means they'd be willing to translate the game for American Steam users, but that's still a pie-in-the-sky dream at this point. For now, the best we can do is remind folks (politely and respectfully) that we're here and want to support our favorite streamers from across the ocean.

That's the first week of 2023 down. Another 51 columns to go. Hopefully, it's coming to a great start for you guys and if not, remember, it's always possible for things to turn up. I look forward to being your columnist for this upcoming year, and I am grateful for you guys coming back week after week. Thanks for your input and comments! You guys make me smile. Be good to each other; I'll see you in seven.