Underrated Games

[Phoenix]

Oh, we do have a PS3 but .. don't really use it for anything aside from blu-ray. Got only one remote for it, and one game. I always preferred the 360. Debating whether to send it in for repairs for 100 dollars, which will likely get us a completely different machine back, or simply buy a new one. Gosh, we've had that thing since.. 2007 maybe, and never had a single issue until hubby got addicted to the latest assassin's creed and skyrim immediately after each other.. I got through half of skyrim in a couple of months and he zoomed through the whole game in a matter of days before the graphics card broke.. No rings of death for us, just no graphics!

Anyways, to get to the point, I think I'd rather get either xbox repaired or replaced since I had bought Mass Effect 3 for the 360 and never got a chance to even open it. The latest Assassin's Creed I never got a chance to play either, since I was waiting until I worked my way through Skyrim (which I never got a chance to finish either!) So if anything I'd rather get a 360 since a vast majority of our games are on that. We don't really have any particular 'owners' of the different gaming systems. Ironically I was the one who bought both the 360, the PS3, and the Wii (poor neglected thing), but I'm a very casual gamer so it'll be ages between each time I play anything.

[Safeguard]

Super Robot Wars. Most people in the west have no idea what I'm talking about when I mention these. The franchise is mostly known in Asia, and the fandom is kind of small in Europe and the Americas. I got into the franchise in 2013 thanks to its amazing soundtracks - nearly every SRW pilot gets their own personal battle theme which makes over 100 unique bgms. The crossover games also get great music since their arrangers are incredibly competent, and make perfect instrumental remixes of mecha anime themes. Since the games were in Japanese, I couldn't play any of them (can't read the language) for three years.

And then Banpresto/Bandai decided to release Super Robot Wars OG: Moon Dwellers with English subs. I was SO excited I immediately got myself a PS4 and pre-ordered the game, and started playing it the moment it arrived. It actually felt a little boring/tedious at first (OG games are somewhat difficult), but I eventually grew to like it thanks to the characters. My favorite character Tetsuya is friggin' adorable, same with Touya; Gilliam and Elzam are mysterious and charismatic (Gilliam also has the brightest smile in the entire story), Shu is the Troll Overlord, Masaki keeps getting lost, Kyosuke can break a mic with a scream, Axel turns into Silly Axel every time he gets amnesia... honestly, Masaki is hilarious. His sense of direction is so bad, he once crossed dimensions without noticing and ended up in a different game.

A year later, they released Super Robot Wars V. Again with English subs, and this time it wasn't an OG (Original Generation) game, but another of the crossovers the franchise is famous for. I bought that too. ...And fell in love with it. It was much easier than Moon Dwellers and amazingly fun, and I ended up getting interested in Getter Robo Armageddon, Shin Mazinger Z, Cross Ange, Brave Express Might Gaine and a few other series. The Gundam shows didn't really catch my attention (least of all SEED since you could only use Kira, Athrun, Shinn and Lunamaria), but I swear, Kincade from Crossbone Gundam is a one-man army. He was my favorite Gundam character in the entire game (unless you count "emo" Riddhe from Unicorn).

I ended up thinking "That's it. They won't make any more games with English subs." ...Only for them to announce Super Robot Wars X for March-April 2018. With confirmed English subs. ._. I checked the roster of crossover series, and pre-ordered the game immediately (I still have to wait a month to get my copy, but it's worth it). The new entries they picked for X are awesome - they finally brought in Mashin Eiyuuden Wataru (OLD SCHOOL VOICES), along with Buddy Complex, Gundam: Reconquista in G and Umi no Nadia (battleship entry). Returning entries that weren't present in V include Gundam Wing, Gurren Lagann and Code Geass. ...Holy Primus, that roster was just AMAZING. And they're using Masaki (a Banpresto original) in the game too! (My headcanon says he got lost and crossed dimensions again.) I'm just disappointed there's no Getter Robo this time (Ryoma and Hayato are so cool! And noisy. "GETTEEEER BEEEAAAAAAM!").

EDIT (April 2022): There have been two more Super Robot Wars games since I posted this, and both were released with subs. It seems this may be a continuing trend... I'm definitely not complaining! Super Robot Wars T was incredibly fun and it finally let me see Captain Harlock, Gun x Sword and the Rayearth cast, and gave us a protagonist with my favorite voice actor (Takeshi Kusao as Saizo). The most recent entry, Super Robot Wars 30, has a different plot structure than the previous games (going from linear chapters to non-linear missions)... it's not as fun as T was, but I like a ton of the new characters (and the music, oh gosh, Didarion's bgm Dezarm is so cool). Zoltan from Gundam Narrative is one of the best villains in the game and incredibly entertaining to watch; I've also developed a soft spot for the cast of Majestic Prince.