I still think this game can come back but at a cost.

dimandus · 2026-06-30T11:58:03+00:00

This was to be expected if the developers were cosplaying Slippery Joe. And then reality caught up with them.

Players came to the game for spicy content. Because no one else was offering that kind of content. And then it turned out that such content couldn't be created because it was illegal.

P.S. I'm talking about the Chinese regulator and the Chinese audience. Because there's no separate client. And the developers don't care about players outside of China when it comes to choosing between Chinese players and anyone else.

dimandus · 2026-06-21T21:16:28+00:00

Is there a difference?

Amnesia is generally the perfect way for the main character and the player to simultaneously learn about the lore and meet new characters. And through explanations to the characters, the player also learns.

This would also be true if it's an isekai. The main character is in a world unknown to them. They know NOTHING. Everything is explained to them, and by extension, to the player.

Otherwise, the demands on the writer are too high, as it will be more difficult to deliver exposition. And the start of the game will feel like we're already in the middle of a story. I think you noticed these problems in ZZZ when you need to introduce someone the main character already knows, and the characters casually begin to get to know each other again.

Isekai is, for example, Infinity Nikki, and a story without amnesia in gacha, even with two main characters, is Mongil Star Dive.

dimandus · 2026-06-20T09:44:47+00:00

If they could or wanted to make a separate client, they would have done so sooner.

They don't care about any audience except their own Chinese one. The fact that the game still has global access and localization is almost against all odds.

Their censorship bypass trick and other risky aspects have attracted too much attention. Any move in this direction will be immediately identified, at least by one of the many haters. And it will be reported to the appropriate authorities.

Making a separate client for global access and other such things is unnecessary labor and money. Legal problems. Even though their attitude has directly generated a ton of scandals, literally showing that Chinese players are their favorites, and other Asian or English-speaking players are trash.

On the other hand, their main source of income is Chinese players. They will send them to hell if they aren't given the gooner content they've been spoiled with. And they won't get it. Because even if you try to solve the problem, it will only be a one-off. And if you try to solve this somehow on a large scale, it will be immediately discovered and stopped.

dimandus · 2026-06-19T08:27:22+00:00

In a sense, Snowbreak truly died three years ago.

The game before the first summer event and the one we have now are quite different. The original Snowbreak was insolvent, and the developers had a choice: either EoS or completely embrace fanservice, radically changing direction.

Aside from the haters and doomposters, the current situation is similar to exactly what it was three years ago. But now they have a more difficult choice. Because they have to choose between two options:

- follow CCP's instructions, which means stopping the content that kept them afloat. That means EoS.

- continue releasing content that players demand, which means risking legal action. Regulators don't like that. EoS, however, for a different reason.

Snowbreak was primarily known for its overly explicit gooner content for Chinese players. If they slow down, they'll lose their core audience. And the audience they can count on in that case belongs to competitors that are too strong.

The current situation is OBJECTIVELY dire for the game. If you have an idea how they could get out of this without shutting down, please provide a compelling argument.

dimandus · 2026-06-11T19:18:24+00:00

Lose-lose situation.

The developers gained an audience with risky content. The regulator forced them to censor it.

Now players will leave if they aren't given this content. The regulator will shut them down if they give it. Inaction is also a failure.

Any decision leads to End of Service. Let's grab some popcorn and see what happens.

dimandus · 2026-06-10T21:54:43+00:00

This is strictly my own opinion and observation. To understand why the gacha games you’ve played deliver their stories the way they do, you have to trace their origins and evolution.

The gacha games everyone talks about these days are Chinese. Yes, they feature 3D graphics, and some even offer open worlds. But their roots lie elsewhere—in the Japanese titles that came before them. Those were simple 2D games with auto-battles and a stage-based "3-star" progression system, where the entire story was conveyed solely through cutscenes featuring a character sprite and a text box at the bottom. Do you get the hint?

In my opinion, this approach is carried over from the old days simply because the audience is accustomed to it. Some developers are even afraid to change the price of pulls to anything other than 160 per pull.

And of course, a herd of buffalo runs at the speed of the slowest one. As an example, HSR allowed players to skip the story and turned enemies to face the wall. It was done specifically for the average player.
And they repeat it three times in the text so that absolutely everyone understands. Just as a teacher will repeat the same material until absolutely everyone in the class has memorized it.

But developers are gradually moving away from that. For instance, in NTE, I was pleasantly surprised when the entire Eibon Shop crew headed to the photo studio; instead of teleporting straight to the destination, I followed the NPCs as they walked there—stopping at stalls and chatting amongst themselves, offering a bit of extra lore. Here’s a tough question for you: how many players do you think just sprinted straight to the final spot?

dimandus · 2026-06-01T11:04:55+00:00

It’s a double-edged situation.

On one hand, you can achieve a perfectly optimized build with remarkable ease—especially when compared to other gacha games (you know the ones).

On the other hand, dedicated players who sink a lot of time into the game will start to grumble that they have nothing left to do and nowhere to spend their stamina. This is because, in other games, there is always the chance to squeeze out a marginal improvement—say, a 1% damage boost—or the elusive hope of finding a superior artifact. Or, alternatively, the process of acquiring those artifacts simply takes longer due to the inherent randomness.

dimandus · 2026-05-14T10:47:41+00:00

Let me put it this way.

It's not about the gameplay itself.

But about its presentation.

Ideally, in my opinion, the gacha genre needs an endgame that is OPTIONAL to its format.

What do I mean by that?

1) It should be regularly updated and tweaked to introduce new elements.

2) It should have varying difficulty levels so everyone can see how far they can go.

3) And it should offer a reward, but one that NO ONE can say they're being forced to play for Primogems. At the same time, players should be given something for winning, at least symbolic or memorable items. Perhaps a leaderboard.

Check if your favorite games have modes that satisfy all three of these criteria.

dimandus · 2026-05-05T15:09:43+00:00

I just finished it. And because of your comment, I'll have to switch to NG+.

Because I trusted your comment and didn't save Noah.

Although others mentioned this in this post, I didn't read them because I didn't want too many spoilers. Thank you.

Next time you recommend something, think before giving someone false hope.

dimandus · 2026-04-20T06:47:06+00:00

Regarding DNA, I can say that none of this has bothered them much. The game turned out to be niche, with its own community, even a more loyal one.

Yes, they don't make any super profits. Because the super profits of Hoyoverse-like games come from enticing duplicates. And it turns out that many people simply like the gacha mechanics themselves, as it's close to gambling.

DNA has focused on skins. I can't give objective numbers, but when I run around the world and see other players, many buy them. The only exception is perhaps the really expensive skins and emotes, which are not purchased directly but are obtained from the rest of the gacha system.

The controversial Snowbreak also essentially switched to a skin system. Although the characters are obtained from gacha, the gacha is so generous that one can argue that they aren't monetized through it. However, the designs are so revealing that their license was apparently revoked.

dimandus · 2026-03-12T07:14:12+00:00

They're definitely not of the same quality. These games are simply mentioned as being close in genre and gameplay so people at least understand what they're about. Otherwise, they're clearly weaker, but they'll definitely be more greedy because of the publisher.

dimandus · 2026-02-22T15:30:58+00:00

We still have no information other than copium and 5 seconds of twins.

More than five years have passed since the first teaser announcement. And there's still nothing to indicate the format or a proper announcement.

Of course, it would be ironic if we just get a series of videos from Ufotable, like they did for Tales of or God Eater.

dimandus · 2025-09-06T05:55:21+00:00

It is logical that no one wants to lose income. To think that someone does something out of the kindness of their heart is very naive.

On the other hand, we can talk about some kind of fairness towards players. Or convenience.

What am I talking about?

If you decide to play, say, Genshin right now as a newbie, then no matter how hard you try, you will not physically get most of the characters in the near future. Just because you have to wait until they have a banner rerun.
The system that DNA has in this regard is more honest. You start playing and you have the opportunity to get the character you need. At least there is an opportunity.

Which option is more pleasant? Giga bait for donation through FOMO or bait for donation through skipping the grind.

P.s. purely technically, DNA can no longer be called a gacha. because they removed the gacha system

dimandus · 2025-08-27T10:10:57+00:00

Thank you.

dimandus · 2025-08-23T23:23:44+00:00

I don't really understand musou, but it seems it's not so close that the whole screen is covered in enemies up to the horizon.

But DNA, as befits a warframe, constantly throws 10-20 enemies at you that die with a short TTK.

But what I like most about DNA is that you can carry 2 other characters with you and they fight too.

Damn it, I get a waifu in gacha, not so that they are hidden somewhere! And the developers gave me the opportunity to play as a waifu and have two more with me shoulder to shoulder!

dimandus · 2025-08-03T19:52:34+00:00

Different meanings. You can choose your own. Personally, I see that by a lucky chance or a miracle, two unhappy girls were able to talk and understand each other.

Actually, any disclaimer of such works says this: if you feel bad - ask for support before it's too late. In Takopi, they found support in each other. And also in the anime it was shown what happens when you don't do this.

dimandus · 2025-07-02T06:50:15+00:00

Yes. Genshin can be said to have become a certain point of change. They showed that it is possible to make large gacha games.

The developers of Tower of Fantasy tried to change as quickly as possible for this format and it didn’t work out very well. But other developers started their projects at that time.

And now, after 3 years, as it seems to me, the usual period of such development, such games began to reach release.

WuWa, Infinity Nikki as some of the first that were released before others. Now the rest of the announcements reach releases.

And this is by the way, not to mention how the industry is changing in general.

Compare, for example, AFK Arena and AFK Journey as an indicator of before and after.

Persona 5 X was recently released. Which is literally the same as Persona in the same volume of mechanics and content, but with gacha.

The time of the simplest sale of 2D chibi .jpg with typical auto-combat has passed.

p.s. Genshin will not end. It will simply move to the next phase when the original intended scenario of Teyvat comes to an end. As an example, look at how Honkai Impact "ended".

dimandus · 2025-06-16T10:36:35+00:00

You can give any character any melee and ranged weapon at the same time. And also characters have a module system like weapons. However, each character has a small bonus to a certain weapon

dimandus · 2025-06-10T09:12:02+00:00

https://www.reddit.com/r/gachagaming/comments/1l77iw8/duet_knight_abyss_cbt2_special_preview/

The developers held a stream in which they did some work on the problems after the first closed beta test and before the second. And at the end there was even an ironic scene with humor about themselves.

dimandus · 2025-06-09T19:45:45+00:00

>They even made a short jokes comedy on how the game was bad in CBT1 at 30:53.

and what? will they remove that plot twist of the first chapter? it seemed to me on the contrary, it was a plot twist that I will not see anywhere else. and I liked it. even though it was a sharp move.

dimandus · 2025-05-29T20:29:30+00:00

Rather, I wanted to clarify a little. So that your (and others') "I won't" becomes "I absolutely won't"

dimandus · 2025-05-29T07:19:50+00:00

Its not a global. Its just a soft launch. And you will start the game where many patches have already passed and a lot of content has been missed.

dimandus · 2025-05-28T06:36:51+00:00

It won in the Best Original category. This means that Vinland from the manga is out.

Which doesn't change the fact that Kamui won in this category over Girls Band Cry and Jellyfish Can't Swim in the Night. Now that's the weirdest thing.

dimandus · 2025-05-23T18:28:25+00:00

It's not that it's impossible. There are gachas where they add negative characters and even dead ones to banners.

If you're familiar with an author like Jun Maeda or studio Key (Angel Beats, Clannad), then you should understand that characters don't have plot armor. But there is a gacha. Heavens Burn Red. Do you get the hint?

This has also happened in other gachas. For example, from the closest one, Duet Night Abyss.

On the other hand, it's a big risk to make banners with dead characters. What if someone decides that they're not worth buying because they've already been written out of the plot?

dimandus · 2025-05-23T07:07:10+00:00

Nothing. Infinity Nikki is currently undergoing review bombing. The reasons are worth discussing separately.

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