12 new and old games I want to play in 2022

I did a pretty good job of spreading the love around last year in terms of playing a variety of games on a variety of systems. Sure, the majority of the games I played were played on my Switch, but four were played on my Vita, one was played on my 3DS, and three were played on my DS.

I'm going to try my best to keep that up this year, as the following list of old and new games I want to play in 2022 should make clear.

7th Dragon (DS)

I've wanted to play this Imageepoch-made DS RPG since it was first announced due, mostly, to its adorable character designs and Yuzo Koshiro-composed soundtrack. Hopefully they'll be enough to overcome 7th Dragon's annoying components, of which I've heard there are a few. I'm no stranger to old, frustrating RPGs, of course, so fingers crossed that experience helps me out a bit, too.

Bravely Second (3DS)

I've started this Bravely Default sequel twice since I got my hands on a copy in early 2016. On both occasions, I walked away after just a few hours of play, feeling decidedly disinterested. Will this third attempt be the charm? I have my doubts, but after thoroughly enjoying Bravely Default II (and having a similarly positive experience with the original release), I'm willing to give it a try. If things don't click this time, though...

For the Frog the Bell Tolls (GameBoy)

Oh, look, another game I've tried a couple of times. I don't remember ditching For the Frog the Bell Tolls, or Kaeru no Tame ni Kane wa Naru, because a lack of interest, though; rather, I think my previous attempts simply began at the wrong time. That said, I do recall finding this GameBoy title's battles a bit curious, so here's hoping they--as well as the rest of this retro adventure--strike me as appealingly curious during my next go-round.

Fuga: Melodies of Steel (Switch)

I've yet to play the other two games in the Little Tail Bronx series, so why am I champing at the bit to play this one? For starters, I'm intrigued by its tank-centric gameplay. I also rather like how it looks. That's it, really. Now I just need the game to (finally) go on sale, as its $40 asking price is a little too steep for me.

Katamari Damacy no-Vita (Vita)

Truth be told, I'd rather We Love Katamari be ported to the Switch so I can play that game portably. With that being an impossibility (for the moment, at least), I'll settle for giving this Vita entry in the series a go. Don't worry, I'm well aware it pales in comparison to earlier releases. It's still Katamari Damacy, though, right?

NEO: The World Ends with You (Switch)

Being the serious TWEWY fan that I am (though I only finished it for the first time last year), I was beyond excited when this sequel was announced in late 2020. NEO: TWEWY released at a weird time for me, though, and so instead of playing it right away, as planned, it was unceremoniously ushered into a closet to be played at some future date. That future date is going to be sometime in 2022, if I have anything to say about it.

Okaeri! Chibi-Robo! Happy Richie Oosouji (DS)

Chibi-Robo! totally is a "me" kind of series--and yet I've only ever played a bit of its very first entry, released for the GameCube. I'm going to attempt to rectify matters by diving into this direct follow-up (I think?) in 2022 thanks the English fan translation that's been available for the last five or so years.

SaGa 2 (DS)

I was enamored with this game, known as Final Fantasy Legend II in my neck of the woods, as a kid. Mind you, I was enamored with reading about it, not playing it. Oh, I bought and played it, and of course enjoyed it, but I never quite got into it like I did its predecessor, which I played for hours on end. Hopefully a second attempt in 2022, via this DS remake from 2009, will prove more compelling.

Undernauts: Labyrinth of Yomi (Switch)

Here's another game that I eagerly anticipated playing last year as soon as I got my hands on a copy, only to drop the ball when that happened due to the timing of the release. I continue to think this dungeon-crawler looks masterful, especially its intriguing, near-modern-day setting, so don't expect me to ignore it for much longer. 

Voice of Cards: The Isle Dragon Roars (Switch)

I can't muster much interest in Square Enix's major productions these days, but the company's smaller efforts? I nearly always adore them. I suspect that trend will continue with this card-themed RPG, especially since its demo impressed me to a surprising degree. In particular, I appreciated its slow pace and mysterious vibe. I can't wait to find out if I feel the same way about the full, final product.

Weapon Shop de Omasse (3DS)

I adored what I played of Level-5's inventive Guild series games back when they released here in 2012 and 2013. Attack of the Friday Monsters! and Crimson Shroud were my favorites, but I also enjoyed The Starship Damrey and Aero Porter. One Guild release I've yet to experience is this "rhythm fantasy RPG" that has players forge weapons for would-be heroes to rent for upcoming quests. 

Yomawari: Midnight Shadows (Vita)

Although it occasionally irritated me, the original Yomawari impressed me overall when I played through it last year. I especially liked its compact setting and its cute-but-also-plenty-unsettling aesthetic. I've been meaning to take a stab at this follow-up ever since, but the timing's never been right. I'm going to force the issue soon, though, due to the fact that a third Yomawari game is releasing in Japan this April.

See also: my favorite games of 2021 and my favorite games of 2021 that weren't actually released in 2021

Manual Stimulation: Kaeru no Tame ni Kane wa Naru (GameBoy)

In the "Another Year of the GameBoy" post I published about this Japan-only GameBoy title a couple of days ago, I spent a sentence or two gushing about its lovely instruction manual.

It didn't feel right to do that and then show off just two of its pages, so I scanned the whole she-bang yesterday with the intention of sharing the resulting images in another installment of my "Manual Stimulation" series as soon as possible.

Well, it seems "as soon as possible" is today, which is pretty amazing considering the amount of time that usually passes between when I decide to write such a post and when I actually publish it.



Anyway, enough about that. On to the Kaeru no Tame ni Kane wa Naru (aka For the Frog the Bell Tolls) instruction manual!



Things definitely get off to a nice start with this one, don't you think? My only complaint is that I'd like to see the illustration included in the page above without a bunch of text covering it up.



Thankfully, most of the rest of the illustrations that appear in this game's manual are not as obstructed, with the pair above being good examples.



Ignoring the muscleman in the spread above, I've got to say that I really like how the designers at Nintendo handled the call-outs (the multi-colored boxes filled with explanatory text) that are included throughout this booklet.

Another Year of the GameBoy: Kaeru no Tame ni Kane wa Naru

I know most folks have known about this early-1990s GameBoy title for ages now, but I was completely unaware of its existence until an English fan translation of it was released a couple of years ago.

In case this is the first you've heard of it, it's a Japan-only game that's often referred to as The Frog For Whom the Bell Tolls or For the Frog the Bell Tolls and that plays (in a way) like a bastardized, black-and-white take on Zelda II: The Adventure of Link.

That's because, like Nintendo's weirdo follow-up to the original Zelda title, Kaeru no Tame ni Kane wa Naru is an adventure that features both overhead and side-scrolling segments.

The main thing that keeps this GameBoy cart from feeling like a lame copy-and-paste job is that battles in the bird's-eye-view portions are hands-off affairs--as in, when the protagonist, Prince Sablé, bumps into an enemy, the fighting begins and ends (behind a cloud of dust, even) without any input from the player.

Don't worry if that sounds about as appealing as watching paint dry, as it's actually pretty adorable--and even kind of enjoyable.

Anyway, with all of that out the way, let's get to the "meat" of this particular post--which is the photos I snapped of my acquired-sometime-ago copy of For the Frog the Bell Tolls.

Boy, that illustration that serves as the centerpiece of this game's box art is a beauty, isn't it? I kind of wish it took up the entirety of the front side of the packaging, though. At least it's still pretty enticing even in its current state.

Moving to Kaeru no Tame's instruction manual, it's quite a looker, too. I love how the page showcased in the snapshot above combines a look at the game's map with a few of its (main?) characters.

The page above, on the other hand, gives me serious Kid Icarus vibes--which, of course, is a very good thing.

I have to say, I'm not entirely sure why I'm sharing this photo of For the Frog the Bell Tolls' cartridge. After all, its label art isn't all that different from what's found on the front of the game's box.

Oh, well, you really can't have too many photos of such lovely Japanese pick-ups, can you?

So, have any of you played this one? If so, what are your thoughts on it? Do you like its odd gameplay, or do you wish it were a bit more interactive (à la the Zelda series)? Also, what do you think of this title's obsession with food-inspired names?

See also: previous 'Year of the GameBoy' posts

If you like The Legend of Zelda, you'll probably like For the Frog the Bell Tolls, too

So, I spent a good part of this past weekend playing Kaeru no Tame ni Kane wa Naru--aka For the Frog the Bell Tolls. What do I think of this amphibian-focused, import-only-until-recently GameBoy RPG thus far? Read on to find out.

It looks a lot like The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening--I don't know why that surprised me, as I knew going into this game that Link's first portable adventure was created using the engine that the folks at Intelligent Systems came up with for Kaeru no Tame ni Kane wa Naru.

The game's story is as charming and cute as its sprites--That's saying a lot, as I'm a total sucker for the art style Nintendo's designers used in so many of the company's GameBoy titles. Anyway, the gist of this one's story: Princess Tiramisu has been kidnapped, and rival princes--Richard, from the Custard Kingdom, and, er, you, from the Sable Kingdom--compete to rescue her from the upper-reaches of Mille-Feuille Castle.

Battling enemies is ... interesting--In most Zelda-esque ARPGs, you fight foes by slashing them with a sword or other weapon (which is accomplished by mashing the A or B button). In For the Frog the Bell Tolls, you simply run into them and then watch as the battle takes place in a cloud of dust. Whichever character is stronger wins. I know it sounds lame in theory, but in practice it works pretty well. It also keeps the game from feeling like little more than a Link's Awakening hack.

The whole package feels like a breath of fresh air--Especially if you've had your fill of everyone's favorite plumber and his friends. Don't get me wrong, I love Mario and Kirby and all of Nintendo's other go-to characters. That said, I miss the days when Miyamoto and his colleagues regularly churned out new IPs like this one.

Are any of you playing through For the Frog the Bell Tolls? If so, what do you think of it so far? If not, no worries--I'll continue to share impressions of the game as I edge ever closer to its finish line.

See also: 'Well, I guess I know what I'll be playing this weekend (and probably next) ...'

Well, I guess I know what I'll be playing this weekend (and probably next) ...

There are two reasons I've been wanting to play the import-only-until-now GameBoy title, Kaeru no Tame ni Kane wa Naru (aka For the Frog the Bell Tolls), for some time: 1) Its protagonist, the Prince of Sable, is tasked with rescuing someone named Princess Tiramisu (she lives in Mille-Feuille Kingdom, by the way) and 2) Its engine was later used to make The Legend of Zelda: Link's Awakening.

Well, it seems I can stop wanting and start playing, as someone calling himself RyanBGSTL (catchy name, I know) has just completed an English translation of this Intelligent Systems-developed title. (Download RyanBGSTL's patch at romhacking.net.)

In case you'd like to know a little more about the game before giving it a go, here's a video of its first nine minutes:



(Via tinycartridge.com)