Recent reviews by a1_death

Unoptimized - over 50% load on my i7 4710 CPU and heat generating computer.
No response from the dev for over a month.
Idled for cards in 3*30 min. sessions and uninstalled

I liked the atmosphere, and how the music contributed to achieving it, especially at the start.
I was going to say that the writing is fanfiction-tier, and it is in a few places, but it came along just too nicely in the end, definitely on the better side of the things.
This made me relive the moments when I was reading some short VN translations by insani group. It is nice short VN that will be well worth reading, if you have the time, and do not expect too much from the writing.
The only small complaint is about the translation, which is a bit rough, and, at times, unnatural-sounding. It could also use a few more sprites, expressions and event CGI.

Saw the first twist, but not the second one

The Piranha's finest and maybe their best title. Despite a rather small size of the island, every location brims with love and effort spent into creating it. The world feels complete, no unnecessary detail, no location out of place. The combat is engaging and the progression keeps this going well into the endgame, where you might get tired a bit from the final enemy types, particularly if you want all experience.

Why a thumbs down, then?

The game is abandoned and unoptimized for newer versions of OS. This becomes particularly evident on the second playthrough, when you can run out of memory. The only way to fix it is to patch the executable with a program, which will bring it's virtual memory use potential up to 4 GB, in line with 64-bit systems. And guess what, you can't do that with a Steam Risen executable. People on the forums tried to contact the devs/publishers about the issue without success. There are still some very annoying issues in the game, that could be easily addressed by the devs, but never were. I highly suggest you get the unofficial patch from the World of Risen website. A lot of users on the forums report being unable to start the game due to gfx-related problem. I had it too, I think you manually have to change the resolution in the ini file to match your monitor's to make it work, but I'm not completely sure. No support, no Steam cloud, existing in-game achievements never mirrored. You get the picture.

So, would I recommend you play Risen, especially if you're Gothic fan - oh God, yes, absolutely.
There is no need to get Steam version for that, though.

Nice oldie.
A beautiful mansion to explore with relaxing music and comfy atmosphere.
Ran like a charm on my toaster, and than I managed to get it working on a new machine by looking through community suggestions, which I'd also recommend you do.
A game like this is better enjoyed in moderation, just keep coming back to it time after time.
I had to look up 2 puzzles, the phone and a switch, which had me facepalmed at my stupidity, and the snooker puzzle, which was moderately confusing. Some might have been harder actually, but maybe I lucked out on them.
The feeling when the puzzle is solved is always rewarding.

Wrapping up, nice puzzles and atmosphere, but take a look at required specs and the forums first.

Don't know if I was more entertained by reading this, or by the fact that I read it on Steam.
Nonetheless, it provided nearly an hour of chuckles.

I usually don't buy into all this "games are art" nonsense.
But this little gem comes very close to that definition.
Travel through bizarre worlds, with a creature guiding a factory worker, a girl, and a loli.
Only what is illuminated exists - a very novel and well executed concept.
The game's not a horror in the slightest, but its unsettling theme may repel some, while drawing others, who will, like moths to the light, flock to taste the gloomy beauty.

Okay, this definetely evens out the impression from the base game. Whether they beat up their writer or applied some other method of persuasion, but he actually started to write better. The levels are still linear, but are still very well crafted with some new locations to travel through. You'll encounter new enemies, as well as old "friends".
A honorary mention to Gluskin's arc - it was everything I wanted from the main game: the background, the lead-up, the reasoning. Even the chase game seemed a bit more than that.
The ending concluded the story nicely. So, if you didn't outright dislike Outlast and felt like there could have been a bit more to it, get this dlc. It was discounted nicely in the past. In fact, I do not recommend the main game without this dlc. At all.

Way overhyped for unknown reasons.

I was really scared for 30 or so minutes into it, but then the impression wore off quickly and towards the endgame I was more worried about finding all journal scraps ( :( ) than getting spooked. Not to mention the ending is ridiculous and defiles the whole build-up leading to it.

First off, it's extremely linear, you could call it a corridor runner. The levels are well designed, that's a plus, but most of time you'll be walking or running on a pre-defined path, occasionally pressing a button to jump or climnb over an obstacle. The quality is cinematic and the video and sound quality are good. If you're after that type of experience, you will enjoy it better than me.

Next, about what makes a game scary. As I mentioned, it was fairly scary for the first 30 minutes or so, mostly because your fear is fueled by your imagination and fear of unknown. Good ambience, eery sounds, doors closing on their own and the magnificent library walkthrough. It is really scary and unexpected when Chris Walker grabs you from behind the first time and then you see disturbing glimpses with priest as you come to. Afterwards, you move forward by collecting two things and activating the third one, while evading monster of the week. As you realize that and that you can respawn immediately at the convenient safespot even when caught, all tension goes out of the window. The main character is even scarier than the mutants, surely he must have some lizard genes. Not only can you take quite a few hits from formidable enemies, you regenerate almost immediately. Fingers cut off? Not a problem. The "cat and mouse" game, mentioned by some other reviewers, would be more properly described as avoid the annoying guard game, because the cat is not really looking for you. If you sit still and observe their path for a while, you could evade them completely without any fear. If you start early, you can outrun anyone in the game. And they don't chase you beyond a particular point, also into the holes and vents. This is for normal difficulty, but likely true for others.

Now, a bit about the characters. In the trading cards, you don't see many. That's because that's all there is to them. They can't show the last couple of guys, because spoilers - the Pyro is just an ordinary patient, who happened to burn a room. The guy I mentioned, Chris Walker is huge, but not particularly scary and moves slow when not chasing you. You see him in the first half an hour, which destroys the scare of further encounters and it is bad, because he is the one you'll be meeting the most throughout the game. The game throws some patients at you, who aren't scary at all, even the first time. The doctor's level was a bit refreshing, as you didn't have to collect two things to unlock the third and actually had to think how to progress. It also had a bit more of the story. I really enjoyed my encounters with the twins, their dialogues and was looking forward to an eventual confrontation, which, to my disappointment, never came. It is as thougn the devs designed very good villains with potentially good background stories, but then scrapped them due to lack of time or budget. The main character is alright, and it is apparent that a lot of effort went into designing his animations.

All in all, Outlast could be considered a B-grade cinematic, consolised experience with lots of gore. The levels are well crafted, but linear. The tension wears off really early due to how game works. Some enemies are good, but there aren't many. It gets repetetive and boring, especially with the tasks you have to perform. The ending is something else. It is not a bad game, but is strangely overhyped. That is what got my hopes up, and eventually led to disappointment.

A simple to dismiss game, due to its bundle-game like feeling, it's surprisingly addictive in its simplicity. You wander through mansion rooms, looking for note sheet parts, completing music mosaics when you have gathered enough of the former and learn some history behind the music pieces. Plus, like myself, you might get to know names of some melodies, which you knew since childhood, but didn't know where they come from.
Play a room per day after work/uni/school, and it will provide just a bit of comfort and relaxation you may need.