Recent reviews by Kelthan (Gunnar)

I didn't expect much, since I usually play other types of games, but it's very soothing to just pick apart, fix and put together the cars while listening to music or podcast. So I open it when I want to chill and was surprised when I was suddenly +100 hours into the game.

This game isn't really a game, but a visual representation of the short horror story Dagon, by H.P. Lovecraft. It's short (about 30 mins), but the original story is short too. I have read the story and listen to an audiobook version, and the actor reading in this game delivers the lines very well. The atmosphere really capture the essence of what you might expect the story to look like. The gameplay doesn't really exist and isn't really needed anyway for this short story. You control the pace, and you can really enjoy the beautifully (horrible) created environments before continuing the story. The developers didn't add anything to make the original short story more than it is, except in the form of optional "secrets" you can find if you want to learn more about H.P. Lovecraft and his writings.

TL:DR - I would want to play more in Dagon, but in reality, this is perfect. Also, it's free and that's double awesome.
If you've never read H.P. Lovecraft stories, let this be a visual introduction to one of his famous short stories and if you like it, pick up other stories and let your imagination run wild.

Pros:
You get to play as a cat... what more do you need.
The cat mechanics are just really fun to play.
Game optimization is insane. Runs beautifully on my crappy desktop with just built-in Intel graphics.
World building is great and story pacing is just right.
Just a really heartwarming game to play.

Cons:
It's not purrrrfect (see what I did there), but honestly I can't remember why. Finished the game a few weeks ago and the game just leaves a fuzzy warmness behind.
Maybe I got a little annoyed when I had to backtrack to look for missing items or occasional puzzles didn't have a obvious solutions.

I'm not much for speedrunning games, but this one is done just right. I was hooked from the 1st level. I love the concept and the game mechanics.
Pros:

• The game shines with the fast paced adrenaline rush (I found myself holding my breath while finishing some levels)
  
• Level design is great (short levels, but they are many) and offers different little shortcuts you can discover when trying to get better times or optimizing your runs.
  
• The little nudges to motivate you to get better times, i.e.if you get gold in a level you can see shortcut hints in the level. Seeing your ghost for the fastest time so you are basically competing to yourself and can determine how your run is going. And other little nudges like that.
  
• One dedicated button to instantly restart your level. I wouldn't have tried so many times if I had to press Esc -> click restart level every time.

Cons:

• Story is pretty basic and the twist is not really surprising
  
• The voices and conversations are a bit childish but still add to that anime vibe

I really missed out on Splinter Cell. Played it for the first time and finished it without problems and while this is a 15 year old compute game, it ages really well. There is some guides on the Steam forums for editing the configuration files so you could use modern higher resolution monitors, worked really well for my gaming laptop. Still a really relevant game for new players. Recommend it.

I played Tormentum 3 times in a row. It's a short game and a bit linear, but the art style and aesthetics is well worth it. A unique, dark journey with amazing visuals. It's not perfect and the puzzles are fairly easy, but I was satisfied with my experience. 8/10

Just finished The Room Two, going to play it again right away. If you liked The Room, you're going to love this sequal. A unique and satisfying puzzle experience. I can only hope they make he third installation available on Steam as well.

Short, but totally worth it. The Beginner's Guide is a game that will stay on your mind long after you played it. Actually, to say that The Beginner's Guide is a game is not accurate. It may even be to meta for some people, but for me, it was a journey. I can't say any more, but I'll recommend it :)

Baught it and played it on my iPad and baught it and played it when it came on PC. Great remake from mobile. Love the puzzles, love the game. Going to buy and play part 2 and 3 when they come on Steam.

Gone Home is an explorational short story. The story is good, the voice acting is great, the house looks amazing and you are truly immersed in the 90s enviroment.

Where Gone Home falls short is that it's expensive (I got it on sale, so I don't mind the pricetag) for such a short game (3-4 hours for me) and not much replay value unless you like exploring and the story is not what you'd consider a story designed for games. It's not a game for everybody since it's technically more of a story than a game :)

All in all, I like Gone Home and can relate it to an evolved version of games like Dear Esther. It's a unique experience.

--== POSSIBLE SPOILERS BELOW ==--

I did expect a twist in the story or something to happen that I didn't expect (i.e. the uncle arrives), but it's a bit linear that I would have hoped. Still good, IMO, but has the opportunity to do more.