Synduality Echo of Ada is a curious game with a post-apocalyptic world, mechs, and idyllic AI companions. It even has its own anime tie-in called Synduality Noir. To be honest, it hadn’t even crossed my radar until recently, but after spending some time with this PvPvE extraction shooter and talking to the developers, I’m intrigued, to say the least.

I played the first hour or so of Synduality Echo of Ada, the same portion that was recently available during the closed network test. The game begins with a condensed history told with comic book-like storyboarding.

Many years ago, the world as we know it was destroyed after a poisonous rain called The Tears of the New Moon not only decimated the population, but spawned vicious monsters called Enders. Now, the last remaining dregs of society run on a rare resource called AO Crystals. It’s up to the Drifters, essentially mech-piloting freelancers, to face the dangers of the surface and collect these crystals. Drifters are never alone, though–they always have their highly customizable Magus (aka Human Duality Cognitive Androids) by their side, helping them manage missions and even pilot their mechs. Mechs, by the way, are called CRADLECOFFINS. No, I don’t know why, and yes, I should have asked.

This intro video is presented by the Drifter Support Association and immediately reeks of propaganda. It’s hosted by an adorable rabbit-looking plushy named Yoshio with a disturbingly deep voice, who says things like, “I heard all the cool kids want to be Drifters. You’re cool, right?”

The video’s goal is, obviously, to recruit (or peer pressure) folks into becoming Drifters, and prefaces the Drifter Support Association’s final section of the Drifter Selection Exam, which acts as a tutorial.

Though the story hook left me curious, especially about the Magus origin and purpose and the potentially nefarious Drifter Support Assocition, it isn’t as important as the core gameplay loop. As a new Drifter, your garage is, to put it as lightly as possible, a complete dump. It needs a lot of repairs if you want to craft freely and live comfortably. To repair the base and craft supplies, you need to collect materials and resources, and to make money, you need to complete missions. Both of these goals can be accomplished by deploying on Sorties out into the world piloting your CRADLECOFFIN and accompanied by your Magus.

Expeditions to the surface can almost be described as methodical and calming, but with bursts of action. Sortie to the map. Scan surroundings with the help of your Magus. Extract AO Crystals and collect materials needed for quests, crafting, or base upgrades, and then get the hell out–all while dealing with hostile Enders, other players that may be friend or foe, and the toxic rain that eats away at your CRADLECOFFIN’s armor.

Avoiding the poisonous rain is more difficult than it looks at first glance–I found myself trying to seek shelter in ruins that looked protected yet were apparently not. Luckily, I was able to recover, and I’m sure I’d learn of safe resting spots if I played more. But I can’t say I wasn’t annoyed by the lack of shelter from what would have blocked the rain for me in real life.

The main enemies, Enders, come in a wide variety, but I only saw three when I played. They ranged from simple nuisances to dangerous foes to be avoided, especially when in numbers. Still, even with scarier Enders about that forced me to retreat at times, the real difficulty of Synduality seems like it could be determined by the other Drifters–real players like you.

As you explore, you can spawn at many different points, and other players will be looking for resources on the same map. They, or you, can choose to hunt other players, ignore them, or help out. You can’t turn off friendly fire, and that applies to things like your Magus’ healing AOE’s, too.

It was nerve-wracking when my Magus told me another Drifter was nearby! Would they be friend or foe? When I did encounter someone, they emoted a friendly wave and said to cease fire… before they immediately turned on me when I let my guard down.

If you’re defeated before making it to an extraction point elevator, you’ll leave behind everything on you, all of which can now be taken by other players. This includes the parts that make up your CRADLECOFFIN and equipment, and even your Magus, who you’ll have to get back by paying a large ransom, the developers told me. So yes, you can kidnap other players’ waifus or husbandos, and have your own kidnapped, too.

You can somewhat prepare for this by getting insurance for different items, or putting something in a Safe Pocket. And, as a last resort, you can hold a series of buttons to bail out with your Magus. You’ll lose everything else, but at least the two of you will escape with your lives.

Encountering hostile players sounds like it could get incredibly frustrating, especially if you encounter players at a much higher skill level than yourself, when playing an otherwise not-too-difficult yet enjoyably challenging game.

The developers assured me that, at least in the beginning, you’ll be grouped more often with players similar to yourself–PK’rs with other PK’rs, and peaceful players with other peaceful players.

As far as difficulty in general, the director of Synduality, Yohei Kataoka, said feedback from players points to Synduality being as at a “good” level of difficulty and they can see from their end that missions have a high clearance rate. The controls are easy to master and the more you play, the more you’ll learn, Kataoka explained. I can definitely corroborate that the controls were very intuitive for anyone who’s played a third-person shooter, and they felt good, too, for simulating piloting a mech.

I asked them to compare Synduality to the notoriously difficult extraction shooter Escape from Tarkov, and Kataoka said: “If you’re comparing [Synduality] to Tarkov, this game’s easy.”
Though the rewards seem disproportionately high for being a player killer, there are also some consequences to going after fellow Drifters. The Drifter Support Association looks down on hunting other Drifters, and will stop issuing quests to adamant player killers, among other consequences that are yet unrevealed. The developers also told me your Magus would even start offering different advice if you’re a player killer, like if someone on the map is an easy target. Interesting!

Usually, your Magus will dish out advice as it learns by going out on expeditions with you. It will remember things like where you found a rare resource, so it can automatically mark those points on your map if you have a quest for it or wishlist something that requires it. It will also warn you if you enter an area you previously died, among other things.
The devs easily landed on “Magus” when asked what the most difficult part of development was. Not only was it difficult to determine how much information the Magus should relay to the player (they are quite chatty as they are, currently), but from the production side, it makes for a lot of different dialogue lines that need to be recorded by many different voice actors.

“There is no other title that has something quite like this, you know, a Magus, a helper, side-by-side with the player,” Futami explained. “Maybe it’s because it’s difficult, a hassle, to do… So having Magus itself is one of the stronger points of Synduality.”

Magus also provide moral support, another unique benefit. Futami explained that AI in Synduality will be together with you at good times and bad. Usually, in extraction games, you lose everything, which can be very demoralizing. But in Synduality, Futami said your AI will be by your side to support and encourage you to try again.

I can already tell you some people would probably get annoyed by their Magus constantly confirming hits or telling you where to go or what to do, but universally I think players will enjoy their Magus between Sorties. They greet you when you return and are seen puttering about in the base. When I upgraded an area, my Magus cleared the area of weeds and cooked me dinner with them–it was cute! They’re fun touches that break up the monotony of menus and any potential repetitive expedition-going.

I’m told there’s a lot more to the Magus, too, but we’ll just have to find that out as we play. Synduality’s theme that “you’re never alone” is entirely made possible by the existence of the Magus. Though you’ll technically be playing with other people, they won’t necessarily be helpful, and you won’t be able to team up with any particular person online.

Futami explained that they chose to not include co-op because not only would it entirely throw off the balance of the game, but because losing a human partner can be difficult to deal with. Magus is a better substitute, and is always available to play with, unlike adults with sporadic free time.

Synduality is a full-price, full-experience standalone game, but there will be season battle passes with different missions, goals, and rewards, and some monetization that includes cosmetics, like for the Magus, that won’t affect gameplay. I didn’t get a good look at this system myself, unfortunately, but I was told the first season focuses on rising up from zero–out of the starting hub covered in vegetation.

It’s hard to say if the gameplay loop might become repetitive sooner rather than later after such a short amount of time with it, but Synduality’s hook definitely left me wanting more. The structure lends itself to a mindset of, “I have time for one Sortie” that would easily lead into “but just one more.” I had fun exploring and fighting, and I wanted to learn more about the customization options I could unlock for my CRADLECOFFIN and Magus–it looks like there are plenty.

Synduality Echo of Ada will be released on January 23, 2025 for PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X|S.

Tales of Graces f is often heralded as having the best combat of the long-running action-RPG series, and it’s unfortunately been “stuck” on the PS3 - at least over in the West, since its initial release here in 2012. Bandai Namco only just announced Tales of Graces f Remastered, and it’s being released on pretty much all platforms–Nintendo Switch, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series S|X, and PC. I had the chance to go hands-on with Tales of Graces f Remastered and talk to the game’s producer, Yuki Ishikawa.

In Tales of Graces f Remastered, Asbel Lhant makes many lifelong friends as a child. There’s Hubert Lhant, his brother; Sophie, an amnesiac; Cheria Barnes; a girl from his village; and Richard, a prince from a neighboring kingdom. Drama and trauma send Asbel astray from his would-be life of a lord to a knight academy, and after seven years, he reconnects with many of his childhood friends. There’s plenty of political drama, transformative character growth, and the power of friendship to be had in Graces’ story.

Ishikawa emphasized that the core concept or core value of Tales of is storytelling, specifically focusing on character drama. “So even though it’s a very straightforward kind of story (in Tales of Graces f)–do you choose friendship or do you choose to save the world–...it’s something that resonates strongly with me,” Ishikawa explained.

Ishikawa pointed out Graces f’s battle system is its other best feature, as many series fans call out as well. Though it’s different from the praised combat in the most recent Tales of Arise, Graces f’s battle system is highlighted as the feature that “powers the whole experience, pumping constant action and rewards to the forefront” in IGN’s review.

I only briefly looked at the many, many things you can do to customize your party in Tales of Graces f Remastered, which included massive skill trees and loads of equipment, and I felt as if I barely scratched the surface of the battle system during the hour I played. There’s a lot to learn here, and though I picked the combat up easily enough, I felt far from mastering the real-time action battles that allowed me to swap between up to four distinct characters.

When I wasn’t battling, I was traversing the charming overworld and finding people to interact with and items to discover around every corner, helped by quality-of-life improvements.

Tales of Graces f Remastered is enhanced while staying completely true to the original. Ishikawa said the team’s priority with the remaster was making Tales of Graces f accessible to a wider audience and, specs-wise, improving the framerate to fit current standards. They appear to have succeeded on both fronts, the first obviously so considering the laundry list of platforms Tales of Graces f Remastered was announced for and the expanded language options. As for performance, it looked sharp and ran smoothly at 60 FPS on the PS5 when I played (and should run at 60 fps on every system but the Nintendo Switch, which I didn’t get to experience). It retains every element of the original and fans can experience it as it was by toggling off or ignoring the quality-of-life additions, but they’re a pretty enticing bunch of features.

Some of the most important additions, in my opinion, are destination icons that point you in the right direction as you explore; an overworld dash that makes getting around and backtracking much faster; and an enemy encounter toggle function that lets you avoid battles entirely.

For me, these features keep Tales of Graces f Remastered from feeling like an outdated JRPG, and bring it closer to modern standards.

You can also skip cutscenes and skits, there’s auto-save, and “certain skits in the original version’s DLC that were only available in Japanese will now be available in other languages and with English voice-over in the remastered version.”

Speaking of language options, subtitles will now be displayed in battle and post-battle, an especially useful update for those who prefer to play with Japanese voiceover. I played with the English voiceover, and to be honest, it sounded a bit dated when I’m so used to modern-day’s often excellent anime dubs, so being able to switch between English and Japanese voiceover in the options is a welcome feature, too.

There really is a lot that was added to Tales of Graces f Remastered (which you can read a full list of here), but I’ll leave it with the news that DLC from the original game will be included – although this sadly does not include the licensed content. (Sorry, no Hatsune Miku Sophie or Lelouch from Code Geass Richard.)

“Unfortunately, we are restricted by legal concerns,” explained Ishikawa. “Then of course there is certain content that is exclusive to platforms; obviously we can’t bring something that is a PlayStation-licensed item to Nintendo, for example.”

A lot of the DLC that is included, though, like costumes and item packs, are conveniently available from the start. To unlock the costumes, you’ll have to accept the DLC, equip the Title it’s attached to, then level that Title up so you can change into the costume. It’s potentially an arduous task if you want to equip every costume available, but there’s a fun reward at the end.

Overall, it looks like Tales of Graces f Remastered was made with both veteran fans and newcomers in mind.

At first glance, RetroRealms Halloween & Ash vs. Evil Dead might seem like just another typical licensed platformer, complete with nostalgic graphics, over-the-top violence, and two beloved, recognizable characters. But after playing, it became obvious to me that this was something more special, thanks to a world full of nostalgia and Easter eggs from the Halloween and Evil Dead franchises, and gameplay that is so fun and intuitive I had a hard time putting it down. In fact, I frequently found myself booting it up on my Steam Deck just so I could play it a little more.

While Halloween and Ash vs. Evil Dead are two separate games, they share the same overworld arcade, feature similar playstyles, and allow you to play as both characters in each other's titles. They’re still distinct experiences, and I found myself having a hard time deciding which one I preferred playing over the other. That's not to say both were perfect experiences since both fell into the usual action-platformer trappings of occasionally having too many enemies on screen at once during particularly tricky platforming sections and offering additional weapons and skills that didn't seem to help much when compared to the default kitchen knife and chainsaw arm, respectively.

Getting deeper into the gameplay, the dark realm mechanic is one of the better aspects here. By activating it, you can see the world as a demonic representation of itself, which not only features its own unique enemies but also helps unlock secret pathways and shortcuts. It not only made the world more interesting to look at, but also encouraged me to explore and keep an eye out for hidden collectible Necronomicon pages and Halloween Jack-o-Lanterns.

Halloween, of course, has you assume the role of Michael Myers as you rip and tear your way through an assortment of levels resembling locations from the movies. He uses his signature kitchen knife and has an imposing playstyle that requires you to get in close to your enemies and helpless victims to kill them in the most cartoonishly hyper-violent way possible. Boss battles in Halloween are similar to Mega Man, where you need to figure out your enemies' patterns and exploit any weaknesses to get in close enough to finish the job. While Myers has a limited number of ranged attacks, I never felt like I wasn't able to quickly get within range of my enemies to fill the levels with copious amounts of blood.

Ash vs Evil Dead, meanwhile, is similar to Halloween in story and how the game is played but is still very much its own unique experience. Unlike Michael Myers, Ash has access to his Boomstick and a plethora of ranged weapons such as a dagger, bombs, and a nail gun. He moves a little quicker than Myers, and his levels and boss fights feel a bit more chaotic and require a more aggressive and faster playstyle. There were multiple times I found myself overwhelmed by several enemies and had to think fast in order to successfully fill the screen with an excessive amount of pixelated blood and gore that wasn’t mine.

Both games feature the ability to play as each character in different worlds, and this adds another layer of playability that very few platformers have successfully managed. While both worlds are very much in tune with their respective properties, playing Evil Dead as the menacing and slower-moving Myers made for an interesting experience that never felt tacked on or gimmicky. It's great how both of these worlds can work interchangeably and not miss a beat. It's even more fun when I get to see story beats play out with the wrong characters. Regardless, it's worth it just to see Michael Myers do a sick burnout in Ash’s car.

The third layer of these two retro games is the overworld that takes place in a seemingly abandoned arcade. Here you’ll be able to play both titles on separate machines and spend in-game currency to purchase various trinkets and items from both respective movies to display in a museum. This extra layer of immersion makes the more mundane aspects of a licensed game a little bit more interesting by letting me physically unlock in-game collectibles such as Michael Meyers’s mask and various weapons he used throughout the films.

With its excellent attention to detail, compelling replayability factor, and hilariously over-the-top gore and cartoon violence, RetroRealms Arcade Halloween & Ash vs Evil Dead is shaping up to be a standout experience for anyone who is a fan of both properties and/or is just looking for a fun, gory, and rewarding action-platformer.

In the trailer for Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii, Yakuza fan-favorite Goro Majima wakes on a beach with his memory wiped. A kid with a tiger cub pal named Noah finds him, and before long, Majima finds himself beating up a pirate captain and taking over his ship (or so it’s implied.) I got my first hands-on with the latest in the Yakuza franchise, and I’d love to tell you about it.

I played a short portion of Pirate Yakuza when Majima, Noah, and friends arrived in Infinite Wealth’s familiar locale of Honolulu, but this was very much constructed as a demo, so I can’t be certain of how similar the next series of events would be to the full game. First, a short combat tutorial on mechanics potentially unfamiliar to Infinite Wealth players: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii isn’t a turn-based RPG like Infinite Wealth, but instead an action beat-em-up like the original Yakuza games. This short tutorial primarily described Majima’s two fighting styles: Majima’s classic Mad Dog Style and the new, aptly pirate-themed Sea Dog Style.

In Sea Dog Style, Majima wields dual cutlasses, a long-range hand cannon, and a wire hook that allows you to pull in close to a targeted enemy. A cutlass can also be thrown as a boomerang if a button is held down. Combat is engaging and fun, and I can see it being varied enough to keep things interesting with just its two different styles.

After the basic tutorial, I could choose whether to go to the fabled Madlantis to continue the story, or do one of a few side activities: Karaoke, Dragon Kart, Crazy Delivery, and fit check (change clothes).

I don’t have quite enough experience with these mini-games in previous Yakuza games, so I couldn’t comment on whether anything substantial had changed about them, but they were all fun and worthy of spending time on for the entertainment factor alone. I can tell you that long-time Yakuza fans will definitely recognize at least some of the songs available in karaoke, though.

Yakuza: Like a Dragon’s mini-game Dragon Kart wasn’t in Infinite Wealth, making it the most far-removed of the side activities available during the demo. This absorbing mini-game is pretty built out in its own right and is basically Yakuza Mario Kart, complete with boosts, drifting, coins, and items. You can also go to a changing room to switch out Majima’s clothes for both his regular and pirate styles.

In between side-activities, I became best friends with a little bird named Joseph and used the new Wire Hook while out exploring to gather a high-up butterfly. Apparently you can swing around Hawaii with it, but I didn’t see any obvious points to trigger this when I played.

Finally, for the main event, I got to see a bit of the brand new location of Madlantis. This grungy yet lively ship-graveyard-turned-mini-city-inside-a-cave-in-the-middle-of-the-ocean looks like a worthy hub. It’s at least home to Pirate Colosseum, where, in the full game, you’ll be able to engage in “intense ship battles” as the Goro Pirates.

Unfortunately, I didn’t get to try out any sort of ship battle in the demo, which was a little disappointing to say the least, but Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii is ship-shaping up to be a seaworthy spin-off with a fin-favorite at its helm. (Sorry, I couldn’t resist.)