Play These Games After Metaphor: ReFantazio (And More Of This Week’s Tips And Recs)

Image: The Pokémon Company / Kotaku, Square Enix, Nintendo, Square Enix, poncle, Screenshot: BeskInfinity / Rockstar Games / Kotaku, Atlus / Kotaku, The Pokémon Company / Kotaku, BioWare / Kotaku, BioWare / Kotaku

From the best decks in Pokémon TCG Pocket to a ludicrously expensive card in the original game—and a bunch of other updates, guides, and recommendations in between—here are the most helpful tips we published this week.

Image: The Pokémon Company / Kotaku

As Pokémon TCG Pocket completes its second week since launch, players have found the game’s grooves and solid patterns have begun to develop. Core to these are four specific decks that are dominating in online battles, forming a meta that looks unlikely to shift until January’s delivery of a whole new set of cards. We’ve put together our best versions of all four decks. – Ethan Gach, John Walker

Rockstar Games has released updates for each of the remastered Grand Theft Auto games included in the GTA Trilogy Definitive Edition collection that make these maligned versions play better, as well as making them look more like the original games released on PS2 back in the early 2000s. – Zack Zwiezen

Screenshot: Atlus / Kotaku

Metaphor: ReFantazio is a stunning RPG that exemplifies almost everything that makes Atlus-developed games great. With the social elements of Persona, battle mechanics from Shin Megami Tensei, a mix of real-time and turn-based combat, and a traditional RPG class system, there is an enormous amount to love about Metaphor. Admittedly, if you are the target demographic for this kind of game, you did not need me to explain all this to you. But in the bizarre chance this is your first time ever hearing about Metaphor, please play this spectacular game. Kotaku’s Kenneth Sheppard can explain to you why you should. – Timothy Monbleau

Screenshot: The Pokémon Company / Kotaku

Every now and then, there’s a specific card in a specific set of the Pokémon TCG that absolutely blows up beyond all sense. Recent examples include last year’s Iono full-art trainer card, part of Japan’s Clay Burst set, which proved so popular that Japan sold out of all Pokémon cards! We’re not quite there yet with Surging Spark’s Pikachu ex, but the card is seeing prices unheard of in the interim. – John Walker

Screenshot: BioWare / Kotaku

Dragon Age: The Veilguard is a game about choice and consequence. One of the decisions that has the most immediate impact happens at the beginning of the game’s final quest. The effect this decision has on the remainder of the game and, presumably, any future Dragon Age games, has devastated fans in the kind of “hurts so good” way hard choices in video games do. But some fans are not so sure things are as they seem at the end of the game. Is it cope, or is there reason to believe an affected character could still appear in a future Dragon Age? – Kenneth Shepard

Image: Square Enix

Dragon Quest III HD-2D Remake is the epitome of a new twist on an old classic. At its core, this HD-2D remake plays like an NES or SNES game with a fresh coat of paint. Yet, by the same token, it injects several new features and quality-of-life adjustments that will make this version of Dragon Quest III feel new for even longtime fans. I should know, as I played Dragon Quest III just a few years ago and was shocked by how long it took me to get my bearings. Fighters and Martial Artists start with MP bars? Is this even Dragon Quest III!? – Timothy Monbleau

Image: Nintendo

With Thanksgiving just a couple of weeks away, Nintendo has announced its Black Friday 2024 highlights. While there aren’t any standout deals among them, there’s still some decent discounts for anyone who was planning on buying a new Switch or a critically acclaimed game from the console’s back catalog. – Ethan Gach

Image: Square Enix

Dragon Quest III HD-2D Remake may have beautiful, updated graphics, but the soul of this adventure is as old-school as ever. As one of the first tasks of your adventure, you’ll need to make your way over to Patty’s Party Planning Place to recruit three companions. Whether you choose to take along the premade characters or create your own allies, you’ll see that each character can assume one of eight classes. With no frame of reference for how each class performs, how on earth are you supposed to choose? – Timothy Monbleau

Image: poncle

Vampire Survivors draws tons of inspiration from Castlevania, so it is no surprise that the new Ode To Castlevania DLC is fantastic. I’m here to guide you through unlocking each Hero and evolving each weapon, because that’s how you’ll end up accessing everything the Ode To Castlevania level has to offer. After all, What is Vampire Survivors but a delightful little pile of characters and weapons? – Brian Barnett

Screenshot: BioWare / Kotaku

Dragon Age: The Veilguard has a lot of choices for you to make, especially surrounding its seven companions. But one of the most significant happens in the game’s final stretch and involves the dwarven rogue Harding and Grey Warden warrior Davrin. If you’re reading this, you’ve likely encountered the consequences of it and are looking to see if that’s how it had to go down. So here’s your guide to that big decision. Spoilers ahead! – Kenneth Shepard