At their core, video games are an expression of humanity. They are an expression of fun. And for the health of the industry, I think we need to return to projects that unrelentingly cognizant of that.
Ghost of Yōtei: An Easy Game to Love but a Hard Game to Praise (Review)
I’ve had difficulty praising Ghost of Yōtei ever since completing it, mostly because its positive qualities are clearly self-evident to anyone that’s already gotten a taste of this series with Tsushima. Ghost of Yōtei doesn’t add many new reasons to like this style of game nor does it create new positive qualities about it that were completely absent in what came before.
Kingdom Hearts Retrospective: My Complicated Journey to Learn that Joy is Enough
I played Kingdom Hearts because doing so gave me joy, and it reminds me that I want to write stories and make games to bring joy to others. There doesn’t have to be more to it than that. It may not be possible to be normal about Kingdom Hearts, but I think remembering the value of finding joy during our limited time in this world is the most normal, natural thing that we can possibly strive for.
Octopath Traveler 0 Review: Great Strides Despite Mechanical Retreads
Although Octopath Traveler 0 recycles content from both the original Octopath Traveler via settings and characters as well as Champions of the Continent via story and party members, it ultimately takes familiar elements to carve a new path forward. I think such an approach is deeply admirable, especially because it does so in the pursuit of ensuring that all the content produced in CotC will now permanently live on.
The Pleasures and Pitfalls of Fan Service (and How We're the Problem and the Solution)
How much fan service is too much? At what point does fan service cause the broader experience to deteriorate? Does having fan service necessarily make something worse, and how so? We’re certainly part of the reason why fan service exists in the modern media landscape to the degree that it does. But we are also the reason that it can be kept in check.
Dragon Quest I & II HD-2D Remake Review: Beauty in Simplicity
Dragon Quest I & II HD-2D Remake walks a fine line between respecting the mission of the original games while making them more mechanically and narratively satisfying to play.
Xenosaga Episode I, II & III Review: The Growing Pains of Independent Ambition
Xenosaga is as interesting of a series to talk about as it is because it’s impossible to blanket hate or love the series. Anyone that plays Xenosaga is going to have a complicated relationship with it because, well, Xenosaga itself is complicated. The inherent complexity to everything about the series is what makes it so fascinating to play, to discuss, and to remember.
Xenogears: How Ambition and Heart Outshine Compromise
Xenogears proves to us all that compromise is not a scary word. It’s something that we should embrace and allow us to get creative with how we tell our stories and present our ideas to the world. So let’s do just that.
Top 15 Movies of 2025
If 2025 was an indicator of anything, it’s that we all deserve to continue allowing art to surprise us, and open our hearts enough for new, unexpected stories to reshape how we think about the world. Here are the 2025 films that did just that for me.
Top 5 Games of 2025
Between the domination of indie developers throughout the year to the sheer variety of ideas posited in many of the year’s best games, 2025 was, in my eyes, a net gain for the overall direction that the games industry is headed on. Here are my top five games of 2025!
Shin Megami Tensei V: Vengeance Review: Netherworldly Bliss with a Story that Still Underwhelms
I truly hold my gameplay experience of Shin Megami Tensei V: Vengeance with extremely high regard. This game offers some of the best turn-based combat I’ve ever experienced in a game. The game delivers excellent atmosphere that keeps the uniquely SMT twist of grunginess alive and fresh. There’s so much to like in Shin Megami Tensei V: Vengeance that it makes its few shortcomings stick out even more.
Hundreds of Beavers is a Reminder that We Should Just Make Cool Shit
I had fun while watching Hundreds of Beavers - but more crucially, I felt alive. Getting to engage with something alongside others in such a visceral way was the precise experience I needed at this moment in my life.
Hyrule Warriors: Age of Imprisonment Review: Musou Action Without Fan Service is Still Good Fun
Age of Imprisonment is a game that is itself imprisoned. Its commitment to tell a canon story and inherit the best (and worst) of Tears of the Kingdom’s mechanics and identity limits its overall potential. That isn’t enough to make the game a disappointment, but it is enough to bring into view the chasm that separates the game that Age of Imprisonment is versus the game it could have been.
Little Amélie or the Character of Rain Review: Memories Last, As Does Emotional Spectacle
Little Amélie or the Character of Rain is a sweet, tender exploration of the humanistic value of sentimentality and companionship. It’s a remarkably human film, despite its protagonist consistently trying to convince herself otherwise
Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 Review: A Turn-Based Marvel Punches Above its Weight, Flaws and All
Not only is Expedition 33 a fun RPG, it’s an unflinchingly courageous one. It tackles ambitious narrative themes, has tantalizingly deep mechanics that lead to boundless customization and player expression, and boasts the production value of a game that has ten times its budget. Expedition 33 punches above its weight in pursuit of a more idyllic landscape for games.
Spirited Away and How its Thematic Density Leads it to Masterpiece Quality
Spirited Away’s thematic density and depth are precisely what elevate it to greatness. Even I, as someone that takes issue with some major elements of the film, can comfortably call Spirited Away a masterpiece because it’s a film that begets looking at the world in so many different ways.
Tron: Ares is Exhilaratingly Cool and Stylish and That's Enough (Review)
Tron: Ares provides comfort through its immersion, and the coolness embedded into the very essence of this movie only further drenches the film in style. It’s enough for Tron: Ares to be a cool film above all else, because such an emotion and style is one that we don’t see much of as a primary emotion elicited in blockbuster films such as this.
Trials of Mana's 2020 Remake Salvages One of My Least Favorite JRPGs (Review)
Cracks of the original game’s shortcomings still manage to reveal themselves in this 2020 update, but Trials of Mana’s remake manages to at least surround those cracks with an armor that’s as pretty as it is promising. Trials of Mana is a promise about the potential of simplicity and how much of a place there is for games that meld simplicity and complexity.
Ninja Gaiden 3: Razor's Edge and the Power of Difference
Ninja Gaiden 3: Razor’s Edge’s commitment to being different is an act of creative bravery - the kind of which we deserve to see more of in video games and beyond. Being different is an essential part of making art and we need to reward and celebrate the instances of game developers choosing to embrace making their games different from what’s come before.
Donkey Kong Bananza Represents the Apex of Creativity that the Games Industry Needs and Deserves More Of
Don’t let the gorilla on the box art fool you - Donkey Kong Bananza is one of the most human games in this moment. Bananza is a shining beacon of what the environment of the games industry can and should be: a fun-filled exploration of new ideas packed to the brim with charm, polish, and clear love from the developers.