QCF: 20XX (Switch)

ega Man is a pretty formulaic game. Fight six to eight combat-enabled re-purposed robots by using other robots' weapons against them rock-paper-scissor style, then take on a few extra nefarious machinations before defeating a balding, mad scientist with illusions of grandeur and seriously questionable choices in home decor. There have been 10 of these so far with an 11th on the horizon, so the setup seems to work. So much so, actually, that a parallel, edgier series with an X tacked on that incorporates caped villains, mysterious allies including one with long, flowing blonde hair and a cyberzoo's-worth of crazy mechanical fauna also, itself, saw a solid 8 entries. And an RPG.

20XX, while very obviously inspired by the Rockingest Man of X himself, is not such a game, despite the many mechanics it borrows. If you've ever wondered what Mega Man X would be like if it were a completely differently structured roguelite, well, we might have the answer for you.

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QCF: Cosmic Star Heroine

 thought for sure that Zeboyd Games' Cosmic Star Heroine had been released long before now. I distinctly remember it being shown from day-one in PS4 interactives and advertisement loops all the way back in 2013. Now, granted, the Cosmic Star Heroine from that time looks quite a bit different than it does today, so there has obviously been quite a bit of work done on the game since it was revealed almost half a decade ago. But what is Cosmic Star Heroine? How has it progressed? And is it worth your time?

Successfully kickstarted in 2013, Cosmic Star Heroine was released to the PS4, PS Vita and Steam on April 11, 2017. It’s a traditional turn-based RPG that takes pages - well, no, actually, it takes whole chapters - from another fairly popular game from the mid-90’s. You may have heard of it; a little game called Chrono Trigger. Players take on the role of Alyssa L’salle, a star member of a futuristic interplanetary spy agency that discovers very early on that things aren’t as they seem with her employers. What kind of conspiracy has she uncovered? One thing is for sure, Cosmic Star Heroine’s story is one that’ll keep the player guessing, and keeps things pretty interesting all the way though.

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