I got Mortal Kombat X + all the DLC for $6 when I got my PS4 3 years ago. MKX and Salt & Sanctuary are the PS4 games I have put the most time into. Wish they had went with something else like Fist of the North Star, Ni no Kuni, I am Setsuna, Disaster Report 4, Devil May Cry 5
@bejitasan: Then can you please recommend some anime or manga that US audiences might have missed? You are right that anime did not really take off in the US mainstream until the late 90s/early 2000s with Cartoon Network/Toonami, but there was definitely a subculture of people who watched anime before that. Early dubs of Sailor Moon & Dragonball Z, Tekkaman Blade, and the magazine Mixxzine are mid 90s examples, but some people go back further with stuff like Speed Racer, Astro Boy, Gigantor, fansubs of Mazinger Z, Cutie Honey. My first anime were Mysterious Cities of Gold, Belle and Sebastian, Superbook. Though admittedly, I think many people back then just thought stuff like Speed Racer & Gigantor were cartoons and did not know about anime.
BTW, lots of us did play the super butoden games in the late 90s/early 2000s even though these did not get an official release, either through importing, or less legitimate means.
@TrueLink: The PS5 version will be $10 more than the PS4 version. But say you buy the PS4 version, use the 1-time digital upgrade to play on PS5, then go to resell it. Someone who wants to play it on PS5 cannot play it without also purchasing the $10 upgrade.
Kill La Kill. Outfits made from sentient alien threads, powered by the wearer's blood, give people super strength & super speed. Main character wants revenge for her father's mysterious death, and everyone at the academy she attends is her enemy. Has some revealing outfits, but this show is all about style & attitude. Hard rock soundtrack, over-the-top action, dynamic angles, this one really stands out. Super cool show, very memorable. DON'T LOSE YOUR WAAAAAY
Darling in the Franxx. Super robot show featuring extended teenage cast, lots of sexual tension & drama. Dystopian future world, teenagers duo pilot robots to fight strange creatures emerging from underground. Interesting worldbuilding mysteries where humanity solved aging, so people no longer die of old age, except the teenage pilots who cannot have children & die before reaching adulthood. Story kind of went off the rails at the end but I found this one super addictive. I loved the character writing in this show. It keeps you coming back; you'll really want to see what happens next.
One Punch Man. The strongest hero in history, who wins every fight with one punch. Seems like a dumb premise but the writing & action is top notch, this actually turned out to be one of the best action shows ever.
Mob Psycho 100. Same author as One Punch Man. A student with the strongest psychic power, surpresses his emotions until he snaps. Great character writing & decent surreal visuals. Well-coreographed action.
Steins;Gate. An anime based on the John Titor posts from the 2000s about a time traveler trying to stop a future war. When it gets going it gets very good, but I really didn't like the first 8 or 9 episodes until they figure out how to send messages to the past and the show starts getting into branching timelines. If you can get through the beginning, this show winds up being totally worth it.
Madoka Magica. Magical girl genre subversion. Take a typical magical girl concept like Sailor Moon, with girls given magic powers to fight evil. Now put a dark twist on it. This is not a happy show, and by the end of episode 3, you'll realize it's not for kids at all. I didn't get hooked until around episode 7, and the last stretch of episodes wound up making it one of the best shows I've ever seen. Probably the most surreal visuals I've even seen in an anime, with use of mixed media during the fight sequences. Get through the beginning & you'll find it worthwhile.
Osomatsu-San. Over the top comedy show. Loser septuplet brothers still living with their parents in their mid 20s, don't have jobs, don't do anything worthwhile. This show is crazy & will literally do anything for a laugh, like killing characters, nuking cities, poo & drug jokes.
Haven't You Heard? I'm Sakamoto. Comedy series about the coolest guy around, who can solve any problem. Strange, wacky, memorable.
I also want to mention, for the big name shonen shows, when they are good, it is exhilarating. But they tend to suffer from pacing issues where just as often as something exciting is happening, something mundane or slow-paced could be happening. This is why, while selling really well & being very popular, you won't see too many recommendations for shows like Dragonball Z, One Piece, Naruto, Bleach. These shows all feature fantastic fight coreography & action sequences, but sometimes you can tell they're padding it out & stalling to give the manga more time for new material. Yet they remain popular enough to spawn hundreds of episodes.
I think the newer big-name shonen shows are better about this, though they still sometimes drag. Like Boku no Hero Academia is fantastic but I want to see these guys fight supervillains, not put on a school concert or have a dinner party. But I guess it beats trash talking & powering up (Dragonball Z), another flashback episode (Naruto), or a 7-minute intro/recap (One Piece).
@YukoAsho: I think it's easier to find stuff to watch now due to the advent of online streaming (back then there was no online streaming), and aggregators like myanimelist. The problem is saturation: there is now just way more stuff, both good and bad, so I get pretty bad decision fatigue. Rather than have to pick from 3 titles, now it's more like distilling between 30. And they all seem like good titles that fit my criteria.
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