Recent reviews by Skriblar

A poem to commit to memory.

One of those games you can feel was made by gamers, thinking about what they'd like to see in a game. One of the only RTS titles where the AI doesn't just "know" when and what you're doing, allowing for actual strategic ambush and counter forces. The only change to difficulty settings effects production/build times.
Makes for good practice against hoomans.
Surprised the Dreadnought/Juggernaut upgrades don't facilitate manual abilities akin to SoaSE, making armies feel a bit like blobs with no micro-finesse. A small gripe for what is one of the best sci-fi RTS titles on the market. Cheers.

After 434 hours I still retain the ability to permadeath within 5 minutes of starting a new game. 9/10 would permadeath an untold amount more.
Also spoopy AF no matter how many hours you've put in.

So good to see Team Ninja return to form.
I'd say keep your guard up, but your stamina doesn't regenerate while doing so.
Become winded and you will stagger. There is essentially no poise.
Nioh is a precision action crawler with layered gameplay mechanics.
The triple stance sytem is fun to learn and adds strategy to an already proven formula across half a dozen main weapon types. There is also a point system accrued through use of equippable armaments to spend on weapon and stance specific combat skills, skills also for use and added to Ninjitsu tools and omnyo magic; there is much to learn and play with.

While I want to refrain from Dark Souls comparisons, upon first glance Nioh is clearly inspired by the Souls series, yet look deeper and this is only on a superficial scale. The UI, leveling system and co-op mechanics are souls-like, however, make an in-depth comparision and you'll find more similarities with Onimusha, Ninja Gaiden, Diablo's loot system or even Soul Caliber. Once I leveled up a bit and felt at all adept it was like running around Sengoku Japan with Mitsurugi.
Nioh is an action RPG taking successful elements from multiple sources while also clearly being it's own entity and standing out from any crowd one could place it in.

The game is not a seamless, continuous world but a series of levels of which replayability is nurtured and encouraged. Environment variety is also a staple here.
I really enjoy the implementation of historical figures, even with one or two innacurately implanted into the Sengoku time period.
A solid PS4 port and on it's core merits a must play for any fan of the modern 3rd person dungeon crawler genre.

Want to turn it on and launch virtually any title on Steam?
-you can do that
Launch a game and it will very likely have a reasonably intuitive default layout.
This device also works outside of steam. From your browser to Origin to Steam, to any application, I'd surmise, the Steam Controller simply works.
CS:GO is the only title I've come across that will not recogniize the Steam Troller, not surprising as you need developer console commands to get an Xbone Troller to function for CS... and a controller for CS is useless anyway.

Want to use Steam Controller as your go-to competitive input device?
-you can't do that
I mean, you can, however, a high performance mouse and keyboard will track circles around it, literally and figuratively, especially for FPS titles.

Want to use it for strategy/point and click games?
-you can most definitely do that
The Steam Troller excels at this, opening up a fresh and surprisingly natural way to control your favorite city builder, RTS, roguelike and miscellaneous titles. This experience is easily compounded by spending a little time mapping your controls.

Don't want to spend time mapping controls?
-you don't have to do that
The default control scheme is usually obvious and intuitive.

Want to spend time perfecting a control layout?
-the options for this are astounding
The controller configuaration interface through big picture mode makes this controller the most adaptable product on the market, imo. Map any key from your qwerty board, mouse or third party gamepad to any input on the device. Assign a second layer of custom controls to any input, activating the second tier by an input of your choosing. For example, I like to set my second tier to a full pull of the dual stage left trigger, leaving a soft pull open to another function or bypass. The directional pad, analog stick and mouse track pad can be set to emulate other types of inputs entirely. For example, set the second tier of the analog stick to act as a scroll wheel, vertical, horizontal, or circular. Export your control schemes to the community or browse other Steam user's control scheme ideas in a game specific manner.
These options enable you to create control schemes for complex, control saturated games such as Evochron Legacy or DayZ.

Want to engage in PC gaming on the couch in a cozy blanket with your laptop?
-this is an essential piece of hardware
Anyone not exclusively gaming from a workstation should own a Steam Troller.

Want the same materials quality of an Xbone Elite Troller?
-you won't quite find that here
While the Steam Troller is not of poor design or build material, I would like to have felt a more rubberized, industrial grade material other products contain. Most of this product is constructed of classic hard black plastic.

Want to know my absolute favorite feature?
-oh, I'll feed you, baby birds
You can dim and even turn off the effing power indicator light! The last thing I want to see during vidya time is the glaring effing light from my input device stabbing me in the brain.

Verdict
+ exceptional software, interface, versatility
+ ease of use, yet boundless options adapt to even the most complex niche
+ essential hardware for the evolving integration of living room PC gaming
+ feels familiar yet fresh and unique

- not going to replace your performance gaming mouse for competitive play
- build materials could have been more heavy duty
+/- larger than average design

They've added a new mechanic called make the game run terribly. Must be to add a layer of that classic x-com difficulty.
Guess Firaxis thought people wouldn't be annoyed enough watching their squad get wiped in an over ambitious advance to beat the turn limit.

10/10 would watch turn limit run out at 12 FPS like 50 more times.

Beggars are operating on this level. Please do not encourage these professional beggars. If you have spare credits, please donate them to a registered charity.

Shipboard computer ready to receive new command.

I'm always amazed how Bethesda, and especially Obsidian for New Vegas, interpret their locations. Fictitious yet based in actuality, lived in, outlandish, and inspiring me to believe I'm looking at moving art just waltzing my character around... shooting things. War. War never changes.

Once again I am proud to participate in and support this Franchise. The art direction, atmosphere, and scope is nothing less than we've come to expect... and the same could be said for the bugs as well. Those bizarre bugs that make one say; "how is that even possible?"
A small and often entertaining inconvenience in a game such as this.

Most remains true to what Fallout is(to me). Once again this enrty has somehow kept a light heart in it's ironies while navigating complex moral dilemas and the darkest themes of man's existense. There is something deeply unnerving yet serene about systematically beheading a dozen raiders with.50 caliber rounds to Skeeter Davis's "Don't They Know it's the End of the World?" A love song of longing becomes a fitting anthem to my kill or be killed existence; though I read someone beat Fallout 4 without killing anything...

Yet, there is a trend in many of my favorite games to streamline... I don't play something like Fallout for simplicity. I get that perks are fun, but where are my skills? I enjoy a numbered representation of my character's abilities, moreover, I want to see my VATS accuracy go up as my respective weapon skill rises,,, I miss landing a 100 yard VATS head shot with my 10mm. I see that Bethesda is trying to weed out anything that could be deemed tedious, but this is Fallout, not Call of Duty.

Which brings me to my biggest gripe... Where is hardcore mode!? At it's core this franchise is about surviving in an outlandish post nucllear annihilated wasteland, so where are my survival mechanics!? Why do I have to heal crippled limbs with only a stimpack? And why with all this cooking material do I not have the option to be required to eat and drink?
They prepared me for the aftermath of WWIII then gave me the healing abilities of a doctor on the Enterprise.
Thank goodness for mods and the astounding modding communuty that follows Bethesda.

But... it's still Fallout and I adore it.
I think the direction they've gone with crafting, armor(power or otherwise), weapons and chems and whole settlements is great, albeit a bit out of place and/or cozy for the Fallout universe. Bethesda has made me want to use these new mechanics. Tinkering with my power armor in my just how I like it garage before I set out with my just so suited laser rifle is simply thought provoking. Assigning my custom made chems to quick slots before my next adventure is a necessity, as it is inevitable that I"ll be running into that legendary glowing deathclaw when I least expect him. As I walk away and have a look at my impressively decorated wooden shanty, I remember I need more cryo ammo, as it only seems to drop from fire fighting protectrons... Thank the atom for that craftable ammo mod.