I started playing Yo-Kai Watch around the begining of 2024, I still haven't played through all the games; I've barely started YKW 3. Currently, I'm still chewing through Yo-Kai Watch Blasters, I got to the post-game and still have to finish the Moon Rabbit Crew storyline.

I actually liked Yo-Kai Watch as a kid, but one time I was watching the show and I got a werid look from my grandma's friends and decided it was gay and bad, as kids do.(I have matured since then lol)

Why?

I decided to get back into the series because I rememebered liking it alot as a kid. I can retroactively see why I did enjoy the series, the whole thing had this sarcastic tone that sometimes felt like a cartoon. I also liked the cute little designs of the creatures.

I actually still own some of the old merch that I had as a kid, which I will 100% show when I get access to it.

I started with Yo-Kai Watch 1 (obviously lol). I had a great time playing it, I was almost addicted to it at some points. I clocked in nearly 41 hours when I decided to move onto Yo-Kai Watch 2. I haven't 100%'d it, nowhere close, and I probably won't anytime soon. A real criticism I have is that the games are kinda grindey and time-consuming. Some of the rare yokai that only spawn in specific, small areas are nearly impossible to capture (or maybe I just have bad luck).

The team that I ended the game with is Baddinyan, Komane, Badude, Elder Bloom, Dromp, and Shogunyan. I don't really play games with the thought proccess of what is most optimal, I usually go with who I like.

One thing that's not really a critisim of the game, but something that did cause me greif is that there isn't that much documentation of the game on any wiki. This game is the most well documented and I could find most of the stuff I needed, however I had to jump between different sites to get certain info, and I had to deal with Fandom's shitty format.

There is no one true main reason I decided to get into the series. One was the factor of me liking it as a kid, a way of revisiting the series and getting to experience the things I couldn't as a kid. Another was just convinence, I already had Yo-Kai Watch installed on my 3ds so it was just a matter of time until I loaded it up an played.

This is the second game I played, obviously. I think this is the superior game, it is way more polished than the first, adding lots of quality of life features and way more content. However, it still is as grindey as the first, even having stuff with limits to one attempt a day. But I still put down 53 hours and had lots of fun.

I also think I made the mistake of rushing the main game too much, becuase I ended up losing a bunch to the final boss and getting stuck for a while. Or I could been because I did this stupid little challenge were I only used cat yokai (tbh, I don't really know why I did that I just did). My 'final' team was Baddinyan, Sailornyan, Robonyan, Hovernyan, Darknyan, and Shogunnyan. However, I will probably pick up the game here and there to complete the quests and medallium. I here theres mods out there that will allow someone to be able to get 100% without the use of trading and such, I'll have to investigate that later on.

The story wasn't anything special, but I never expected it to be, afterall its a game rated 'everyone 10+'; this games story is better than the first game, adding more vibrant and zany cut scenes. It is kinda funny how the game acts like jibanyan was an important character in the first game, but in the actual game he had like a single cutscene and was promptly forgotten.