Preview All Upcoming PS Vita Releases For March 2015

Every month leads way to great new titles for gamers to explore and enjoy on their PS Vita systems. Everyone looks forward to all the new possibilities that the next month can hold. However it isn't always easy finding all the titles that will release for your Playstation Vita each month. Well we made it easy for you, take a look right here at every game releasing on the PS Vita next month, March 2015!

Why is the PS Vita Failing, and is it Dead?

The PS Vita has just recently passed its third birthday without too much buzz. Will the system be able to last another three years? So many people continue to say the PS Vita is failing, well how and why is the system failing. The VitaBoys look into the talk about the PS Vita failing, and address whether or not the PS Vita is dead. You don't want to miss this one, so take a look at the video below.

Where is Sims PS Vita?

The PS Vita has so many great games, however that doesn't mean the system isn't lacking in certain titles. In his now weekly rants, TheAuburnMan goes off on why The Sims must come to the PS Vita. Take a look and let us know what you think, does The Sims have to come to the PS Vita?

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The 5 Best Free To Play PS Vita Titles

The PS Vita is full of great titles, and has a great arsenal of free to play games as well. The only thing is, with so many boring freemium games always releasing, who has time to play through the free to play titles to see if they are enjoyable. Well we decided to cut out the boring middle man and tell you which titles you jus must absolutley have on the PS Vita system. Check out our top 5 Free to Play PS Vita titles.

Oreshika Tainted Bloodlines Gets an Official PS Vita Release Date

Oreshika Tainted Bloodlines is one of the most anticipated games coming to the PS Vita in 2015 and it finally has gotten a release date. A producer at SCEA took to the Official Playstation Blog to announce that the release is barely a few months away on March 3rd. Fans can finally rest easy knowing they have less than a month until Oreshika Tainted Bloodlines is playable on their PS Vita systems.

Oreshika Tainted Bloodlines is a game set in ancient Japan where players take on the role of a clan whose bloodlines are cursed. The curse causes your clan to age extremely fast, thus you have in game clock to where you must beat the game in a certain amount of time. This means you must find time to defeat your monsters, explore the village, and find treasures in dungeons before your time has expired. It certainly is a unique game for sure.

Oreshika Tainted Bloodlines will hit the PS Vita store on March 3rd with an affordable price of only $20. If you enjoy JRPGs then this is certainly a game you fans do not want to miss.

Danganronpa Another Episode: Ultra Despair Girls is Coming To The PS Vita This Fall!

One of the Vitas greatest series is getting another title this fall. That's right, Danganronpa will be getting yet another amazing title on the PS Vita system sometime later this year. This news comes straight from Playstation's official twitter page.

Danganronpa Another Episode: Ultra Despair Girls is said to bridge the gap between Danganronpa 1 and 2. Many fans had been left somewhat confused on what had happened between those two titles and the answers should lie within this title. Other than this tad bit of information, not much else is known about the newest Danganronpa title soon to join the ranks of the PS Vita's greatest games.

Danganronpa Another Episode is said to launch this fall, presumably with a small ticket price of $40. Like we said though, not much information has been released on this title so we will all have to wait and see. 

5 Mobile Games That Belong on the PS Vita

There are thousands of absolutley amazing games on mobile devices. Some of the titles could potentially be seen as AAA titles, the only thing holding them back is the device that they are run on. Imagine adding an OLED screen to the games and some analog sticks. Well if some of these huge titles just came over to the PS Vita you could solve that problem. The VitaBoys list 5 Mobile Games that the PS Vita should have.

The Top 5 Worst PS Vita Games of All Time

The PS Vita may be full of amazing games, however that doesn't mean it doesn't have its terrible games as well. Whether they just play terrible, don't really play at all, or are just another ploy to get money, these games are the worst of the worst on the PS Vita system. Take a look and let us know if we missed something.

Kick & Fennick PS Vita Review

Kick & Fennick may be the latest game named after a protagonist pair, but it is not another Ratchet & Clank or Jak and Daxter. By that, I mean that neither Kick nor Fennick is developed enough to leave much of an impression on players as characters, and the game probably will not spawn any sequels as a result. However, that does not mean Kick & Fennick is forgettable. What it lacks in plot and character development, it more than makes up for in its gameplay, which helps to create a challenging and engaging platformer unlike anything else on the Vita.

Story- 3/10
Kick, a young blond-haired boy wearing a jumpsuit, awakens in and is ejected from one of several incubation pods located in a chromatic room of a vegetation-infested building in an abandoned, futuristic city. Exploring his surroundings, he trips on a pile of rubble and encounters Fennick, a Y-shaped cycloptic robot, lying next to a rifle that resembles the Super Scope (also known as the Nintendo Scope, it was an accessory for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System). Almost immediately, Kick has to use the rifle to escape from another robot, significantly larger than Fennick, and of which Fennick seems to be frightened. They crash through a nearby wall, and just before Kick is about to fall into an electrical hazard, Fennick teleports him to safety. In the process, Fennick's power core is damaged, and the remainder of the game covers their journey to the Core Tower, the tallest skyscraper in the city, in search of a replacement.

The premise is simple, and there is nothing inherently wrong with a simple premise, especially in platformers, which, in general, aren't known for their storytelling. However, the game tries to establish some sort of a relationship between Kick and Fennick, but it does this without explaining their origins or explaining why the only inhabitants of the city are robots that want Kick dead (or at least want to cause him harm, since they charge toward him on sight). Because of this, moments that otherwise would be impactful, such as Kick and Fennick embracing, just aren't. Similarly, cutscenes that attempt to provide some scope or suspense to the journey fall flat because of the game's lack of dialogue combined with Kick's limited facial expressions and Fennick's lack of a face, thus providing little insight into either character's thoughts or feelings aside from a brief moment at the very end of the game. 

Gameplay- 8/10

Kick moves through the game's five chapters and 45 levels by walking, controlled with the left stick, and using the aforementioned rifle, which is as long as Kick is tall. Fired by using either the Vita's touch screen (i.e. pressing a finger on the screen to aim and releasing it to fire, as in the Vita port of The Swapper, for example) or by a combination of the right stick and R button, it is equipped with a laser sight that allows Kick to accurately dispatch enemies. More importantly, when fired, the gun has significant recoil. This gives Kick the ability to "jump" when the gun is aimed at the ground or other solid surface, and since he can fire the gun twice before touching a solid surface, he can alter his trajectory in mid-air.

Kick uses this ability to cross gaps, reach higher areas, break through walls, and bypass hazards. Fennick moves alongside Kick at all times and acts as his protector and guide. At the top left of the screen is an icon of the broken power core surrounded by a blue meter, which represents Fennick's energy. Should Kick touch an enemy or one of the numerous electrical hazards, Fennick will zap him to the last platform Kick stood on, partially depleting the meter. Touching the icon or pressing the triangle button will cause a blue arrow to briefly appear in front of Fennick, indicating where Kick needs to go to reach a large green terminal that serves as the goal of each level, with the exception of the ends of chapters, which are confrontations with the robot Fennick fears.

This function is occasionally necessary because the levels themselves are somewhat large and mostly non-linear. In addition, they become more complex as the game progresses. Players will encounter red terminals that augment the gun's recoil, doors that are only opened by shooting switches, aquatic and anti-gravity segments, bounce pads that impact Kick's momentum, rails that increase Kick's speed, and one-way portals that transport Kick from one area to another in a similar fashion to those in Valve's Portal games. Introduced to players through simple graphical displays on monitors in certain levels, the combination of these elements results in a game that is much faster paced and more difficult than the appearances of its protagonists make it seem.

That said, the gameplay is not perfect. When using the touch screen to aim, the gun occasionally locks up, forcing players to fire it before they can adjust its position, which can lead to an unwanted collision with a hazard or enemy, depending on how that firing affects Kick's trajectory or position. It could be an issue specific to me, but I'm mentioning it in case it is not. In any case, the issue isn't helped by the camera's tendency to zoom in and out depending on where Kick is located, which can make hazards, enemies, and platforms difficult to see until it is too late for players to do anything about them. Scattered throughout each level are 50 gear-shaped power nodes that refill Fennick's energy when collected. Collecting them is not a problem, but it becomes one if Fennick's energy meter is depleted and Kick touches an enemy or hazard, causing the level to reset, or a level is finished without collecting them all, since players then have to recollect the power nodes upon playing the level again. Depending on the complexity of the level, this can be a minor or major annoyance that might detract from players' enjoyment of the game. 

Replay- 5/10
The game has three levels of difficulty, with the only differences between them being the amount of energy Fennick uses to rescue Kick from danger and how Kick's trajectory is displayed. On the Easy and Normal difficulties, Kick's trajectory is a represented by a dotted line that shows players where Kick will land or otherwise end up when the gun is fired. On the Hard difficulty, this is replaced by a blue arrow that only indicates the general direction in which Kick will travel. At the end of each level, players receive a ranking based on the number of power nodes collected in the form of a star, which ranges in color from bronze to platinum. Each level also has a "Special Gear" that often requires clever use of Kick's rifle and his surroundings to reach. However, the reward for reaching and collecting these gears, alternate outfit colors and designs, isn't really worth the effort, as they don't affect the gameplay, and to non-completionists, neither is collecting more power nodes than are necessary to avoid a level reset, although doing so makes the game slightly more challenging. 

Graphics/Sound- 6/10
Visually, the game is cartoony and mostly colorful, resembling the Ratchet & Clank games to some degree. Roots, leaves, and branches occasionally provide a nice contrast to levels that consist mainly of metallic rooms and open areas filled with pipes, excluding the prevalent arcs of electricity throughout, though many of the outdoor areas feature glimpses of the city and Core Tower from a distance. The soundtrack is repetitive at times and mostly forgettable because it is either drowned out by other sounds (Kick's grunts, Fennick's beeping, Kick being zapped to safety, etc) or silenced during the few seconds of slow-down that occur when the gun is aimed, reducing it to occasionally audible background noise. To its credit, the music is appropriately tailored to various situations, ambient during easy-going portions and frantic during the game's more suspenseful portions. 

Offered as a PS Plus title at the time of release, Kick & Fennick, currently one of two games developed by Jaywalkers Interactive (the other being Blue Marble, a demo for the Oculus Rift), is, overall, a charming and decent platforming game best played in short bursts that ends much better than it begins, so anyone who puts it down after the first chapter or so is going to get the wrong impression of the game. Unfortunately, this means that players who have the wrong impression and keep going, especially if this impression reflects the game they want to play, may wish the game was over long before it is.

Story- 3/10

Gameplay- 9/10

Replay- 5/10

Graphics/Sound-6/10

Overall- 7/10

Is A Naruto Game Coming To The PS Vita?

Fans of the PS Vita system have continuously called for a Naruto game to come over to the Playstation Vita. It has yet to happen, however it has been leaked for the system. In fact it has been leaked twice now. Yeah twice, for two different Naruto games. Take a look what we mean in the video below, and make sure to subscribe to the channel to enter our weekly game giveaway!

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January Arcade Block Review

Hey there VitaBoys and Gals, guess what time of the month it is. Thats right, its that time of the month where our buds over at Arcade Block send us a box chock full of amazing gaming related goodies. Last month we got a box full of amazing craziness that included exclusive items like an aperature labs scarf, and amazing pricey items like a huge pack of Sonic the Hedgehog Sonic magnets. The box was amazing and was a great way to introduce the VitaBoys to Arcade Block, now we are back at you with January's box and we must say it was full of even greater and more exclusive items than last months.

Before we jump into it, for those of you who are unaware of what Arcade Block is let me explain it to you. Arcade Block is an amazing monthly subscription service where you pay an extremely small flat fee and get sent a box chock full of amazing gaming related toys, t-shirts, devices and more. Last months items cost a whopping $78 and all you had to pay for the box was a measly 20 bucks, a saving of over $50. The box is a no brainer for gaming fans and we truly reccomend it. If you are interested click the orange subscribe button below the picture to take a look at what deals you are going to recieve from Arcade Block. Now enough rambling, onto the amazing contents of January's Arcade Block. 

 January Arcade Block

Box Price- $20

Price of Items- $69.31

Savings- $49.31

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Donkey Kong Shirt
Estimated MSRP- $15
First things first, lets take a look at the amazing exclusive t-shirt that was included in this months Arcade Block. For any gaming fan ever, Nintendo, Sony, Xbox it doesn't matter, you probably know who Donkey Kong is. I mean can you get any more classic than this.... I think not. Well Arcade Block gave us one of the funniest Donkey Kong t-shirts I have ever seen. It came in grey, blue, and black, and no matter which one you got the shirt looks amazing. I also have to say that these shirts are always such high-quality. Like seriously high quality. I would easily have paid $30 for this bad boy inside of a store, instead thanks to Arcade Block I have been wearing this around non-stop the last week for such a steal. Every box comes with a shirt, this might be my favorite so far.

Plants VS. Zombies Comic
MSRP- $9.25
The next amazing item we were so ecstatic to see inside the January box was a massive Plants vs. Zombies
comic book. I mean this item was downright amazing to see inside the box. It gives a voice to the massive Plants Versus Zombies franchise, and is so much fun to read through. The standalone tale was absolutely hilarious, and the artwork was downright amazing. This item alone was beyond worth the $20 that the Arcade Block cost. Its items like these that make subscribing to these goes so much fun. I could go on and on about this fun book. 

Tetris Notebook
MSRP- $11.08
On to the next item which originally appeared inside a Nerd Block but was requested so many times that Arcade Block placed it inside this months Arcade Block. Another example of how Arcade Block is such a great company, which is why we chose to work with them. Anyways the Tetris Notebook is once again, such a unique and fun item. I wouldn't suggest using it at school, its not exactly college ruled. However the notebook is perfect for classic video game fans. It definitely brings back some memories of how even little blocks have the ability to cause gamers to want to break their controllers. 

Sega Buttons
MSRP- $4.99
Sega Genesis buttons, oh how this item took me on a trip down memory lane. Specifically with the Earth Worm Jim button, this game took countless hours out of my life...... I seriously mean countless. Also included in the little 4 pack of buttons is a Sonic The Hedgehog button, a Ninja Gaiden button, and a Battle Toads button. No matter what kind of gamer you are, one of these definitely has the power to make you just go crawling back to your Sega Genesis to delve back into these gaming classics.

Gorilla Stickers
MSRP- $8.99
Sticking with the theme of the Donkey Kong t-shirt we have the next item of Gorilla Stickers. No not stickers of Gorillas, stickers of gaming characters restyled to look like Gorillas. We know pretty weird, or so we thought at first too, then we saw the bad boys. These are some of the most well designed pieces of gaming art we have seen in a while. These bad boys take characters like Link, Starfox, Sackboy, Nathan Drake and so many more and turn them into disgusting blood thirty creature lookalikes. Its pretty amazing actually, and they have joined the collection of stickers upon our podcasting studio. 

Mega Bloks Halo Ghost
MSRP- $20
Finally the last item of the box and the Arcade Certified Product of the Month goes to a Mega Bloks Halo Ghost set. More specifically the set is the Rapid Attack Covenant Ghost Set. This item is once again a classic for any gaming fans, I don't care for Halo and I was excited to see this in the box. It did teach me how terrible I am at building Legos/Mega Bloks though so yeah there's that. Also I should mention that this bad boy alone paid for your entire box. Yeah! So you bought a Halo Ghost and got a t-shirt, Tetris Notebook, Plants VS Zombies Comic Book, Sega Buttons, and Gorilla Stickers completely free. INSANE!

So fans another month down and I highly recommend subscribing before next month. Take a look at this picture and see the massive amount of items that will pack next months box, and no these are not exact. It wouldn't be much of a mystery then would it. So go take a look at what Arcade Block has to offer through this SUBSCRIBE link. You won't regret it. Until next month VitaBoys out.

Grim Fandango Remastered PS Vita Review

The year 1998 saw the release of several video games now considered by many to be among the best or most iconic that the industry has produced to date, including The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time, Metal Gear Solid, Pokémon Red and Blue, and Half-Life. Released before some of these and after others was Grim Fandango. One of the last adventure titles released by LucasArts, it received several awards but was deemed a failure commercially, contributing to a decline in popularity of the adventure genre. Over the years, the game faded into obscurity as hardware improved and developers went their separate ways, and it became inaccessible and unplayable by all but the most devoted.

That changed at last year’s Electronic Entertainment Expo in June, when it was announced during Sony’s press conference that a remastered version of Grim Fandango, appropriately titled Grim Fandango Remastered, was in development for the PS4 and the Vita. Seven months later, the game was released on these platforms as well as on Windows, Mac OS X, and Linux, introducing the game to audiences new and old. For the most part, it has been worth the wait, though certain elements might have people used to modern games wishing this adventure in the Land of the Dead had stayed there.


Story- 9/10
When a person dies, eternal rest is not a given. He or she must earn it by embarking upon the “Four-Year Journey of the Soul” to reach the Ninth Underworld. However, depending on how good of a life one lived, he or she may shorten that journey by qualifying for and purchasing travel packages from agents of the Department of Death (DOD). Manuel “Manny” Calavera is one such agent. Unable to benefit from these packages himself, his job is to sell enough “premium” packages (i.e. tickets on the Number Nine, a bullet train that transports someone to the Ninth Underworld in four minutes) to earn the right to leave the DOD. Unfortunately, most of the clients that qualify for these packages get assigned to another employee, Domino Hurley. To make matters worse, the clients Manny does receive do not seem to qualify for the packages their files indicate they should.

Threatened with the loss of his job if he does not make a premium sale, Manny decides to steal one of Domino’s clients, Mercedes “Meche” Colomar, whose record is spotless. Despite this, she does not qualify for a ticket on the Number Nine, and when a dejected Manny tries to “straighten this mess out,” he is reprimanded and then locked in a mechanic's workshop in the garage beneath his office as Meche leaves to journey to the Ninth Underworld on her own. Manny soon meets Salvador “Sal” Limones, a former DOD agent turned revolutionary who tells him that the DOD is corrupt, and that clients are intentionally being deprived of the packages they deserve. With his help and with the help of an overweight demon mechanic named Glottis, Manny escapes from the DOD and embarks on a four-year journey of his own to find the source of the corruption and, more importantly, to find Meche, who he sees as his only chance of reaching paradise.

This journey is humorous at times and serious at others, but it is always engaging. Combining elements from film noir classics such as Casablanca with a motif based on the Day of the Dead, a Mexican holiday focusing on the celebration and remembrance of the deceased, the world of Grim Fandango is home to a varied cast of characters ranging from secretaries to mob bosses to disgruntled workers, each with unique voices and personalities, and Manny’s conversations and interactions with them drive the plot forward. Some characters are more complex than others, but they are all developed to the point that players will remember them long after the game is over.

Gameplay- 7/10
Adventure games are based around puzzle-solving and exploration of the game environment, and Grim Fandango has both in abundance. During any given year, players move between several areas, pick up and interact with several objects, and talk to several characters in order to solve puzzles. Movement is handled either by the Vita’s left stick or the D-pad, and there are two different control schemes: tank controls and camera-relative. Using tank controls (the game’s original controls), Manny is unable to move and turn simultaneously. Pushing the stick up and down moves him forward and backward, while pushing the stick left and right turns him to the left and right, respectively. Using camera-relative controls, Manny moves in the direction in which the stick is pushed, as is done in most modern games.

The tank controls are, by nature, clunkier than the other control scheme and thus can be difficult to use at times, but unless players are concerned with getting all trophies (one requires using tank controls for the entire game), they are not an issue. However, players frustrated with them can tap areas of the screen to make Manny walk to them automatically, effectively making the game point-and-click, though this is not explicitly mentioned.

As Manny moves, he will tilt his head to look at objects of interest. Pressing the square button will make him comment on them, and pressing either the circle button or the X button will make him pick the object up. The X button also initiates conversations with characters and makes Manny use something he has picked up on a character or object. All objects are stored inside of his suit jacket and/or robe, and this serves as his inventory, opened with the triangle button and closed with the circle button. All of these also have touch-based equivalents, though these also are not explicitly mentioned. Manny only has access to a certain number of objects at any point during the game, with the scythe being the only object he has at all times.

Puzzles are solved by using objects on other objects in the environment or by incorporating them into interactions with characters. These puzzles often consist of sequences of events, and while the objective is made clear by context (it’s either mentioned in a cutscene or in a conversation), the sequence of events required to reach that objective is not always clear. For example, early in the game, Manny needs to get to a poisoning in the Land of the Living, but he has no transportation. Getting new transportation requires getting a special work order signed. In order to get the work order signed, he has to climb up the side of the building, climb into the open window of his boss’s empty office, and change the automatic answering system on his boss’s computer so that when the person at the front desk tries to reach the boss via intercom (which she only does after Manny tells her he needs the work order signed), she is told to sign it herself.

If that sounds unintuitive, it is. The game has no hint system beyond what little players can glean from talking to characters (there is a complete dialogue transcript should players forget what was said) and interacting with objects, and there is no tutorial. This is not a fault of Grim Fandango in particular, as this design is common in adventure games of the time, but just because it is not a fault does not mean that it is not occasionally frustrating. Playing this game without constantly referring to a guide requires a lot of patience the first time around, but because of Manny's aforementioned limited access to objects, the occasional frustration associated with solving most of the puzzles is more bearable than it would be if the game gave Manny access to every needed object in the game from the get-go.


Replay - 6/10
There are no difficulty settings, there are no modes, and there is no New Game Plus, so what reasons do players have to replay the game after finishing it? Aside from experiencing the story again or trying out a different control scheme, the answer to this depends on how diligent players are while playing the game. Grim Fandango Remastered has 48 trophies, 42 of which are hidden. Of these 42, 14 are associated with Year 1, 15 with Year 2, six with Year 3, and seven with Year 4. This means that if players haven’t done everything in a given year before the game progresses to the next one, then those trophies are unobtainable in that playthrough unless an earlier save is loaded (saving the game must be done manually because there is no autosave). Some of these are obtainable by simply selecting certain dialogue options in conversations with characters. Others are like puzzles in themselves, only obtainable if players do things in a certain order or revisit areas after certain events, for example.

Regardless of how the trophies are obtained, fulfilling their requirements adds charm to the game that players might otherwise miss. Whether it’s hearing Glottis sing a special song or learning why a skeletal ship captain wears an eyepatch, none of the trophies feels like a waste of time, and neither does listening to the included developer commentary. Once turned on, at certain points of the game, an icon will appear in the top left of the screen. The presence of this icon means that there is commentary about that part of the game that can be heard by pressing the L button. Covering topics ranging from the game’s inspiration to the thought process behind certain puzzles, it is better appreciated after the first playthrough.

Graphics/Sound- 8/10

Compared to the original, the game features improved lighting effects, high-resolution character textures, and a fully orchestrated soundtrack. There is also an option to toggle the aspect ratio between the original 4:3 (with or without themed borders) and 16:9 widescreen (this is what has been “remastered” in Grim Fandango Remastered). All of the characters are 3D models and move in 3D space, but the backgrounds are pre-rendered 2D images. Cutscenes are also pre-rendered, and neither they nor the backgrounds have been updated. This might be a problem for some players, since remastered versions of other games have included updated backgrounds, but people new to the game most likely will not be bothered. The backgrounds don’t feel two-dimensional, and the cutscenes are far from ugly. The character models themselves, mostly skeletons, are somewhat blocky, but this is slightly excusable because of their cartoony designs. However, the contrast between the remastered textures on the models and the backgrounds can be jarring, so there is an option to use the original assets and effects. In any case, there are certainly better looking games on the Vita, but this isn’t a terrible looking one. Regarding sound, the soundtrack combines several different instruments and musical styles, including band instruments, jazz, and charango folk music. It doesn’t get stuck in the player’s head like, say, the Tearaway soundtrack, but it does a good job of setting the mood throughout the game.

It goes without saying that fans of adventure games will enjoy Grim Fandango Remastered, as will people who played and enjoyed the original game (who may better appreciate the collection of used and unused concept art, some of which is admittedly hard to see on the Vita’s screen). People new to adventure games or to Grim Fandango may not, but it is worth at least one playthrough for its art, characters, plot, and writing, if not for its potentially divisive gameplay.

Story- 9/10

Gameplay - 7/10

Replay - 6/10

Graphics/Sound- 8/10

Overall - 8/10

Senran Kagura Bon Appetit! PS Vita Review

The Vita has, more than once, been said to cater to a “niche” audience. What that means changes depending on how one defines “niche,” but the popularity of titles like Hatsune Miku DIVA F 2nd in the West makes it clear that fans of the rhythm genre are a part of that audience, and they are among the many Vita owners that enjoy games from overseas. November’s Senran Kagura: Bon Appétit is a recent addition to this category. As a cooking-based spin-off of the relatively well-received and largely combat-oriented Senran Kagura: Shinovi Versus (the series’ first Vita game), it’s also a peculiar one. Is combining the rhythm genre with food preparation a recipe for success? Perhaps, but to rhythm fans unfamiliar with the Senran Kagura series, Bon Appétit’s presentation might be unappetizing.

Story- 5/10 Bon Appétit, like its predecessor, centers around all-female squads of teenage shinobi-in-training. These shinobi-in-training attend schools and receive instruction in order to become either “good” shinobi, employed by the Japanese government, or “evil” shinobi, who live outside of the law. Because Senran Kagura is an ecchi series (i.e. it contains subtle sexual themes but does not portray genitalia, distinguishing it from hentai’s more prominent themes and lack of censorship), the characters, their interactions with one another, and their approaches to the conflict between squads fluctuate between solemnity and ridiculousness. Here, each of the 22 playable characters, 12 of which are separate downloadable content, has an individual story (told through conversations with other characters and introspective textual portions) in which she competes in a series of five cooking battles in order to obtain a “Super Ninja Art Scroll” said to be able to grant her greatest wish, which can be anything from wanting to provide for one’s family to creating a harem, depending on the character. Some are more entertaining than others, but ultimately, they’re nothing special.

Gameplay- 6/10 Cooking battles have three rounds and are one-on-one matches.  In each round, the player prepares a dish based around their opponent’s favorite food by pressing, holding, and mashing the directional and face buttons as indicated by colored icons that scroll from right to left across the bottom of the screen in two rows toward a shuriken icon. Above these rows, the player’s character and the opponent are shown making the dish. Depending on how close the colored icons are to the shuriken icon, players receive a ranking of either “bad,” “fine,” “great,” or “perfect.”

Getting anything other than “bad” creates or continues a combo, and combos of “perfect” ratings fill up a meter on the left side of the screen that, when full, allows players to perform a “Secret Ninja Art” by pressing the L button. This turns the rows gold and acts as a score multiplier that increases as long as the combo is not broken, and “perfect” ratings are earned. Maintaining a combo during the first two rounds fills up to half of a heart-shaped meter. If it is full by the third round, then a heart appears among the scrolling icons. Triggered by pressing any button, it briefly changes the background from the two characters cooking to close-up shots of the opponent’s body.  

At the end of a round, the player’s dish is judged by the length of their longest combo and the types of ratings they received. They are then given a score between zero and 100 and a percentage score between -100 and 100. If the percentage score is less than 51, then an article of clothing becomes ripped. If it is higher, the opponent’s clothing becomes ripped. If the player wins all three rounds, then the opponent is stripped nude, and the player views the opponent’s “special,” which consists of the opponent posing on a plate on top of fruit, her body adorned with chocolate syrup and whipped cream (completing a character’s story allows the player to see that character’s “special”). This is only possible if the aforementioned heart meter is filled, and its corresponding icon is triggered. It is considered a “perfect victory” but is by no means required.

While there is nothing particularly bad about the gameplay in theory, in practice, it has significant problems. First, the result of the third round determines whether or not the player wins the cooking battle. If the player wins the first two rounds but loses the third, then the entire three rounds have to be repeated, which makes getting through songs (opponents’ theme songs), and thus characters’ individual stories, more frustrating at times than necessary, as it contradicts the “best two out of three” approach players expect. Second, there is a high difficulty curve for new players. There are three modes of difficulty, Easy, Normal, and Hard, but these only change the number of icons that appear during a song. The speed and relative complexity of each character’s song remain constant. That would normally not be a complaint, but in story mode and arcade mode (a series of five battles with no story), the first, fourth, and fifth opponents are determined by the player’s character, while the other two are randomized based on the difficulty selected. This means that a simple or slow song can be followed by a fast or complex song with no warning (unless the player has competed against that opponent before). Third, there are occasional drops in framerate during certain portions of certain songs, which can cause icons to be missed and potentially affect the result of a round.

This is alleviated somewhat by playing in free mode, where players can pick any character and have a cooking battle against any other. Since there is no tutorial, this mode is best used for practice. However, one cannot freely switch between modes. For example, if a player completes three out of five battles in a character’s story in story mode and then wants to play in arcade mode, they can’t start arcade mode without losing their progress in that story (so they would have to do those battles again).

Replay- 4/10 Beyond the three modes and difficulties, the game does not have much content appealing to people outside of Senran Kagura’s fanbase. Aside from the settings menu and a list of statistics, there is a dressing room that allows players to view and interact with character models (I won’t go into detail, but this interaction uses the touchscreen), customize their appearance by changing their hairstyles, clothing, lingerie, and accessories, all of which are unlocked by winning battles, and viewing their “specials” if they are unlocked, while the library allows players to view pictures, listen to the game’s music, and hear character voice clips. Downloading the additional characters doubles the game’s length and includes the soundtrack as a free download, but at the same price as the base game, they may not be worth it to everyone.

Graphics/Sound- 7/10 Graphically, the game is identical to Shinovi Versus, with the characters and backgrounds resembling an anime while being mostly smooth in texture (some lingerie pieces are pixelated when viewed from close-up) and sharp in color. The audio is Japanese only, though there are English subtitles in what few cutscenes there are. The soundtrack is decent but not particularly memorable, though a number of character themes include vocals by the voice actresses. It would be nice if all of the songs had vocals, though, since the majority of them are instrumental.

I do not know if Senran Kagura: Bon Appétit is the worst rhythm game on Vita, but I feel confident in saying it is not the best. People who are comfortable with ecchi games may like the humor and certain other aspects of the game, but that’s a niche within the niche audience to which the Vita supposedly caters. The rhythm component, while not boring to play, is not the most original aside from the visual distractions, and is marred by the fact that two-thirds of every song are technically meaningless. If the dressing room is counted as a mode along with story mode, arcade mode, and free mode, since it involves players doing things, then that means three-fourths of the game are technically meaningless, which is a shame.

Story- 5/10

Gameplay- 6/10

Replay- 4/10

Graphics/Sound- 7/10

Overall- 6/10

January Geek Fuel Review

Woo! Its that time again. The time where our lovely friends over at GeekFuel once again provide us with our highlight of the month, and we must say they definitely delivered this month.....pun intended. For those of who may have missed our last review, GeekFuel is one of the greatest monthly subscription boxes that has ever existed for gamers and geeks alike. Last month's box was the first we had ever received here at the VitaBoys and we instantly fell in love with GeekFuel. Each month an extremely well designed box full of gaming goodies and toys arrives at your door for a small fee. Its so much fun to having that feeling of Christmas morning every single month, and offers so much excitement to gamers and fans of geekdom.

January's box was certainly something downright special. The theme this month was space and time travel, and for fans of Doctor Who, you all certainly made out this month. A close friend of the VitaBoys was nearby to witness the opening of the GeekFuel and let out a blood curdling shriek of pure fan fueled joy when she saw the amazing contents of January's GeekFuel. So Much Doctor Who! Even for those like myself who don't care for Doctor Who, the box was certainly a treat. The t-shirt is easily the best shirt in a subscription box I have received thus far and the Full Mojo Rampage game is one amazingly fun time. Overall January's GeekFuel was one excitement after another as we pillaged our way through this month's box. Read on to see every item we received this month, but first take a look at how much money GeekFuel saved subscribers this month.

January GeekFuel 

Price- $13.90

Price of Items- $61.43

Savings- $47.53

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Exclusive T-Shirt

MSRP- $20

The First Item we ran into when unboxing January's GeekFuel is so exclusive that we couldn't even find a single picture of the amazing thing on the internet. You know if Google cant find the bad boy that it is certainly as exclusive as exclusive can be. Anyways that is why I was so lazy and just cropped the shirt out of the photo above. This shirt is so amazing, I have been wearing it everywhere. Seriously, I dont think I have even washed it since the box arrived...... a week ago. The shirt shows "A Brief History of Time Travel." It includes the Tardis from Doctor Who, the teleportation scene from The Terminator, and even the Hot Tub Time Machine. This shirt is seriously just so cool, and I can't quit getting comments on it. As always, GeekFuel throws in high quality products as well, because the shirt isn't just cool looking it seriously is so comfortable. I expect to see many more great exclusive shirts from GeekFuel in the near future.  

Dalek Bobble Head

MSRP- $13.99

 The next item sitting atop the box to greet us as we dug through was one of the coolest little Dalek bobble heads I have seen. (if you don't know what a Dalek is, join the club with everybody else) The Doctor Who baddie is a very well made monitor mate that you are supposed to stick up on your television set. He just joined the rest of our gang on the shelf of awesome action figures (working on a better name.) For fans of Doctor Who, this item definitley brings back great memories and is certainly an amazing addition to your home.

Iron-Ant Mash Up Magnet
MSRP- $3.99
Oh magnets how we love you. You keep unimportant junk and terribly drawn family portraits hung to our fridge. You help us get that lid out of the can of corn when we accidentally drop it in. You help distract us for hours on end with your beautiful designs. What? Is that only me? You'd be lost in the beauty of this superhero mash up magnet too if you had one. A simple little gift sure, but to fans its an item you just cannot get rid of once you have it. This magnet mashes together Iron Man and Ant-Man into...... the Iron Ant or Man-Man, your choice. Either way, its a pretty cool item we are glad to have seen in the box this month.

Star Trek Coaster
MSRP- $6.95
Ok, so this item is really cool. We were digging through the box this month and felt something glass, only to
find that it is one of the highest quality, coolest looking Star Trek coasters ever. No, we aren't really Star Trek fans, (I know weird, whatever) but who can't appreciate an item like this. I actually like the design so much that I refuse to put any drinks on the thing. Each box got one of four different designs, each one has a ship of some sort on it (sorry.)

Ocarina of Time Mints
MSRP: $3.50
The next item up is something Marc Anthony really needs, and was happily given the second we saw it in the box. A pack of breath mints, neatly placed into one awesome Ocarina of Time shield. This item perfectly matches the months theme for sure and we can assure you this item definitely went to use. What more can we say.... its a pack of mints people. Geesh, what do you want from us. 

Full Mojo Rampage Game and Sticker 
MSRP: $13.00
Finally, one of the coolest items in the box was a huge vinyl sticker of a Full Mojo Rampage character as well as a code for the entire game on Steam. This is certainly something we love about GeekFuel. They always try to put in an entire video game packed into each month's box. Its a really cool thing to see, and obviously we all certainly appreciate it. The game is extradorinarily fun, and I would have missed out on it if it weren't for my amazing friends at GeekFuel.

 

Thats it for this months GeekFuel. Make sure to subscribe to the box, its a really small fee and amazing content. If you use the link geekfuel.com/vitaboys you can get an amazing free item. Until next month guys, we will see you later.

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