Recent reviews by [AReV]Nomed

(TLDR? This review is also available in video format below for your convenience.)

Developer Spiders is a small studio that isn’t lacking ambition, after what was considered a major disappointment with Mars War Logs, they’ve tried yet again to craft a title whose quality is equal to its ambition with their new fantasy action RPG; Bound By Flame.

Set in the kingdom of Vertiel, a region besieged by a massive undead army that’s invading from the north. A group of mages known as the Red Scribes think they’ve found a way to combat this threat and are fast at work performing a ritual. You assume the role of Vulcan, a member of the Freeborn Blades, a mercenary group that has been hired to protect the Red Scribes while they conduct their research. Things are quickly interrupted as a Deadwalker army attacks their position and amidst the carnage, something goes wrong with the ritual resulting in Vulcan becoming possessed by a Fire Demon. The Demon talks to you throughout the game, offering advice or seeking to manipulate Vulcan; ultimately playing a part in the game’s moral choices as listening to the Demon can make your character appear more demonic, bolstering magical prowess at the expense of your character’s well-being or you can choose to ignore the Demon and preserve Vulcan’s humanity. Regardless of your decision, it’s clear that Vulcan is the only one able to stand up to the Ice Lords, a group of warmongering necromancers that control the vast undead armies.

Upon starting the game, you’re greeted with a brief character creation screen which only gives you a few very limited options in terms of designing your character before being awkwardly thrust into an awful tutorial section. This tutorial simply acts to highlight all of the flaws of Bound by Flame along with constant interruptions explaining the game’s various mechanics. You’ll immediately notice a lack of pacing, awkward dialogue and voice acting as well as an unmatched feeling of linearity. This leads to a very poor first impression, however gritting your teeth and pushing through this period of misery has its rewards as the game shows signs of competency later on.

After completing the tutorial, the half-baked writing immediately improves giving rise to an interesting narrative with surprisingly strong character development. Similar to The Witcher 2 and other titles, you’re faced with moral decisions that can have an effect on the game however these changes are fairly minor comparatively but still add some elements of re-playability. The decisions aren’t cleverly thought out or morally ambiguous like The Witcher 2, instead there’s generally a clear good and evil answer. This still did well to hold my interest and watching Vulcan gradually lose his humanity in favor of becoming more demonic and powerful was a welcomed addition to the game.

Along with Vulcan, there are several companions that accompany him on his journey. These characters have been greatly improved from Mars War Logs, each having their own developed story however their proficiency in combat remains the same, often dying very quickly and doing very little to aid Vulcan. The option to romance these characters also exists depending on which gender you made Vulcan however there is little development between characters and much less chemistry making romance seem like it was only added to cover all of the features offered by superior RPGs like Mass Effect and Dragon Age.

Not content to simply borrow the moral choices featured in The Witcher 2, the combat is more or less identical, with two different primary melee attacks along with traps and magic. Parrying and dodging also plays a vital role. The combat while simple is quite satisfying and requires a bit of skill and timing to master. While nowhere near on the level of Dark Souls, it’s still quite solid for an RPG. The RPG elements are surprisingly deep as well, offering three different talent trees along with an in-depth crafting system. There’s a warrior stance that has Vulcan don a 2 hand sword which boosts his parrying and defensive abilities while his ranger stance equips 2 daggers, drastically increasing his speed and stealth capabilities. The third talent tree is directly related to the Demon inside of him, which consists of boosting his magical prowess and fire abilities. Playing on the normal hawk difficulty will provide a reasonable challenge and despite being simple, the combat is definitely the highlight of the game. It isn’t without flaw though as parrying or dodging an attack perfectly will result in Vulcan performing a counter-attack which can sometimes be a detriment to dodging or running away in general. Despite this, the combat is still satisfying and I never felt bored throughout its brief campaign.

The soundtrack is quite unusual, focusing on a lot of vocal chants mixed with percussion. It still fits the game well and adds to the overall experience. The rest of the audio is hit or miss though, particularly the voice acting. Some characters play the part well, while others are abysmal. It’s hard to tell whether it’s the actor’s fault or just the writing in general as the dialogue can be laughably bad at times. It’s inconsistent in general, particularly the tutorial which almost made me stop playing the game entirely while at other times, I found the narrative, setting, and characters to be engaging. This inconsistency is even apparent in Vulcan’s personality as he can sometimes act like a jerk with no rhyme or reasoning behind it. It leads me to believe that Spiders suffers from having one or two incompetent writers or maybe it’s just a case of poor translation. If this wasn’t enough, the audio can glitch out at times, often causing characters to repeat the same line over and over again.

The visuals and environments are well done. It’s just a shame that the game is extremely linear as the many sidequests are usually confined to a small area, leaving very little room for exploration. There’s also the odd graphical glitch, such as disappearing textures and pop-in. Despite the graphical overhaul, the facial animations are on-par with Mars War Logs as characters will simply move their lips while giving a blank expressionless stare.

Borrowing from The Witcher again, the game tries to separate itself into acts. Upon arriving at a new location, Vulcan will be given a host of sidequests to complete while simultaneously progressing the main story until he completes the area and moves on. Unfortunately, the game is rather short for an action RPG, running around 15 hours if you complete all of the sidequests. The poor writing rears its ugly head once more before the game's credits roll, as there’s quite a bit of buildup, and without spoiling anything, the game ends rather abruptly when there easily could have been room for another 10-20 hours of content.

Ultimately, Bound By Flame is greater than the sum of its parts and certainly an improvement over Mars War Logs as it features a solid narrative, refined combat system and deep RPG elements. It’s a step in the right direction, although once again a bit too ambitious a project for Spiders to handle. Although it has many flaws, it is still an enjoyable experience but let’s just hope they hire some better writers next time.

This review is also available in video format if you don’t feel like reading all of this:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cVo2Oc0fRGY

Pros
+ Interesting Narrative & Setting
+ Deep RPG Elements
+ Enjoyable Combat
+ Watching Vulcan become more demonic is great

+/- Dialogue is so bad at times it’s laughable

Cons
- Terrible Introduction
- Linear & Short Length in general for an Action RPG
- Poor Facial Animations & Voice Acting
- Audio bugs, texture pop-in and various glitches
- Abrupt conclusion
- Does nothing original

If you enjoyed this review, feel free to follow me as a Steam Curator: http://steamproxy.com/steamstore/curator/4886473/

Having played Dark Souls 2 on Xbox 360 and PS3, I can say that the PC version now is definitely an improvement graphically, running at 60FPS opposed to 30. The textures are a bit more crisp and the game feels a lot smoother. I strongly recommend using a controller though as the game still doesn't feel very keyboard/mouse friendly.

It also seems like some people are unable to start the game and have been experiencing crashes. I haven't encountered either of these problems. If it helps, I'm running an I5 3570K, 16GB ram, and a GTX 560TI at 1920 x 1200 resolution.

Now here's my original review of Dark Souls 2, if it's too long to read, I've made a video version for your convenience:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sj_JnGHlfzA

While the narrative still unfolds in the nuanced manner that characterized past Souls tales, players will notice Dark Souls 2 features a more refined story. There is still much to be left up to player's interpretations with many details to be found in item descriptions and conversations with the various denizens of Drangleic. Series veterans will find allusions to the first Dark Souls with many subtle tie-ins. As is customary in the Souls series, cut scenes are limited, mainly used to introduce the lethal bosses that players will encounter, thereby never interrupting the pace and flow of the game.

Dark Souls 2 attempts to make itself a bit more accessible by offering an early tutorial section that walks players through its combat and mechanics. While this easy tutorial feels out of place, it is wholly optional allowing veterans to skip it. After a brief introduction, players are left to explore the world where they will encounter an old woman who enables them to utilize an in-depth character creator to customize their avatar and select a class. Like Dark Souls, class determines the players starting attributes, items and spells but has little influence in the long run since the flexible leveling system allows players to specialize however they wish.

While Dark Souls 2 does try to draw players in by being a bit more accessible, it would be foolish to think that the series has gone soft in an effort to sell more copies. Drangleic is quite a bit more difficult and unforgiving than Lordran or Boletaria from Demon's Souls and those looking for a challenge will be more than satisfied. As someone who has personally beaten both Dark Souls and Demon's Souls numerous times, I'm not ashamed to say that I died on more than one occasion in Dark Souls 2. Deaths can feel a bit cheaper and sometimes unavoidable; but the game manages to get away with it by offering an unmatched sense of reward, compelling players to continue even after the most egregious deaths occur.

Upon reaching Majula, which serves as the game's hub area, (similar to Demon's Souls Nexus) players are given minimal guidelines and are left to their own devices; being simply told to seek the king and gather four powerful souls. The NPCs you encounter in your travels will congregate in Majula offering goods and services for sale as well as other means of upgrading your character. You're also forced to level up in Majula, as the option to level at bonfires has been removed. On one hand, this might feel a bit tedious as you're faced with an extra load screen every time you want to level, on the other hand, this makes the game feel more structured, and having a constant safezone to visit allows for a much needed reprieve from the harsh world.

Once players decide to leave Majula, they can tackle the available areas in any order they wish, though clever design choices ensure that players are on the intended path without feeling as though they’re sheep to be corralled by the game's level design. Unfortunately, while the world in Dark Souls 2 is larger than its predecessor, it suffers from a sprawling design that leaves it feeling less interconnected and forces players to be more reliant on the fast-travel system. You won't find as many of the clever short cuts as there were in Lordran and as such, Dark Souls 2 provides players with the ability to fast travel from the onset. There are some positives that come from this design choice however, the larger world makes exploration more exhilarating and there is much greater variety in the game's areas. The secret areas and items are more obscure than ever and require plenty of searching to find.

The combat is fundamentally unchanged but is far more refined. Changes to various weapons and equipment provide more viable play styles than ever before. Shields are far less powerful than they were in previous games making dodging and rolling more important as well as making the temptation to dual wield or two-hand a weapon all the more appealing. These changes wouldn't mean much without a cast of dangerous and disgusting enemies to test your sword and board or casting skills against. Fighting even the lowliest enemy involves a bit of strategy and care, while groups of enemies provide the greatest challenge. Torches have also been added which are held in your left hand in place of a shield. They can be lit by any bonfire helping illuminate your way through dangerous areas. Lamps lit by your torch stay lit for the duration of the game, and certain enemies will react differently to light as well. The boss fights are more intense than ever. While a lot of the bosses felt similar in past games, each of them feels unique and different from one another in this installment. The optional bosses add another degree of difficulty as they’re quite a bit harder than the final boss of the game.

New Game + has also been changed, typically in the other Souls titles, once you complete the game, you’re given the option to start all over where all of the enemies health and damage have been adjusted to provide a greater challenge. New Game + in Dark Souls 2 has all of this but also includes new enemies that cannot even be seen on the first playthrough. The inclusion of additional items and souls means that you’ll be playing Dark Souls 2 for a very long time. That combined with the fact that the world and game in general is quite a bit longer than the first, makes this all the more welcomed. The average playthrough will run you around 60 hours, without including pvp and leveling the various covenants.

The innovative multiplayer makes a return as well. You can once again leave and read messages, allowing you to interact with other players. You’re also able to summon players to aid you in difficult situations, as well as be invaded by enemy players. This is no longer limited to being a human, as you can be invaded by hostile players at anytime with the only safe spot being Majula.

The art direction has been improved from the other Souls games, relying less on the gloomy interiors we're accustomed to as the environments offer greater variety and feel more distinct from one another. Some areas are absolutely stunning though the tech powering Dark Souls 2 is still rather disappointing. Textures can have horrendously low resolutions in some areas and some really poor tiling is noticeable on certain structures. We don't play Dark Souls for the graphics though.

By improving on the near-flawless combat system, adding new playing styles, more variety, and tons of content Dark Souls 2 manages to improve the legacy of its predecessors despite its quirks. It manages to be even more difficult than its forbearers and the changes to New Game+ as well as the covenants add more re-playability than ever before. Dark Souls 2 is one of the best games I’ve played in years, and one that I strongly recommend.

Pros
+ Incredible Combat
+ Caters to different playing styles
+ Challenging Gameplay
+ Tons of Content & Re-playability
+ Unique Multiplayer Component
+ Great Art Direction & Soundtrack

Cons
- Graphics aren't on-par with 2014
- Minor Bugs
- Latency Issues can ruin PvP
- World lacks the clever interconnected feel of Dark Souls 1

Castlevania: Lords of Shadow 2 continues the story of Gabriel Belmont and his transformation into the dark lord; Dracula.

Upon starting the game you'll immediately be plunged into an epic battle as Dracula's castle is besieged by the Brotherhood of Light. During this time you'll be trained in the art of combat, mastering Dracula's three weapons as well as evasive maneuvers. The weapons vary and each of them fill a specialized role.

After the initial opening, you'll be unleashed into an open world with two dimensions to travel between, Dracula's Castle and a modern Gothic city built upon its ruins. The art direction and audio is phenomenal, featuring an amazing cast of voice actors; Robert Carlyle, Sir Patrick Stewart, and Jason Isaacs to name a few. The soundtrack is also really well done, fitting the mood of the game flawlessly. The environments are absolutely beautiful, allowing plenty of room for exploration while searching for the various upgrades, lore and abilities.

The story, when combined with the previous two entries is engaging and helps propel you through the 15 hour game, although the ending is a bit abrupt as well as disappointing. Veterans of the Hack n' Slash genre will want to begin on the harder difficulty as it's a bit simple when compared to games like Devil May Cry and Bayonetta. Between, fighting, exploring, puzzle solving, and platforming there's a lot of fun to be had.

While the stealth segments seem to be a major complaint for a lot of reviewers, they don’t detract from the overall game. I’ll admit that I was skeptical at first since stealth really has no business being in a Castlevania title, but they play out similarly to puzzles opposed to traditional stealth missions. They’re also few and far between.

The menu system is highly polished and will document every type of creature you fight against. It also acts to manage your upgrades and abilities as you level. Plenty of Lore and backstory is provided along the way from diaries as well.

While it'd be nice to have a triple A classic Symphony of the Night experience, LoS2 is great in its own way and playing as “The Dragon” with this new take on the legend is a blast. Don’t believe some of the critics, Lords of Shadow 2 is a must-play.

For a longer and more detailed review, here’s a video my friend and I put together:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iUW5McQYaCE

Pros:
+ Excellent Art Direction
+ Great Soundtrack
+ All-star Voice Acting
+ Balanced Gameplay
+ Large open world to explore

Cons:
- Dracula doesn’t feel evil enough
- Disappointing Finale


If you enjoyed this review, feel free to follow me as a Steam Curator: http://steamproxy.com/steamstore/curator/4886473/

(TLDR? This review is also available in video format if you scroll down.)

Since 1997, South Park has graced television with its profane, unabashed, and satiric humor. With its success it has managed to become a part of American culture and spawn a full length movie and several video games along the way but none are quite up to level as South Park: The Stick of Truth.

With the help of Obsidian Entertainment, Matt Stone and Trey Parker have created the most accurate transfer of an intellectual property to games ever made. That being said, this is a game made with longtime fans of the series in mind. If you're not a fan of the show, or don't appreciate its style of humor your experience may differ drastically from the intended audiences.

The Stick of Truth picks up shortly after the trilogy events of Season 17. After an initial character creation screen you wake up as “the new kid” in South Park. Upon leaving your house, you'll befriend your neighbor, Butters, and venture on over to Cartman's house where he and Kenny, along with an ensemble of South Park regulars, are role-playing as a warring fantasy faction of humans that guard a sacred relic known as the Stick of Truth. After a brief introduction and Cartman honoring you with a chosen name his kingdom is assaulted by a band of elves who manage to steal the holy object. As in typical South Park fashion, the small and insignificant somehow manages to eventually involve the whole town and powers beyond as the story snowballs you through the town's workings, aliens, government interference, and of course... Nazi zombies.

One thing that's blatantly obvious from early on is that this isn't cable television's South Park. This is a humor much more akin to the 1999 South Park: Bigger Longer and Uncut, except on steroids and about 15 hours long, which is relatively short for a game of this genre. Much of the humor is crude and meant to be insulting, but fans of the show will find it quite satisfying. The South Park writers were really on their A game and the show makes constant references to its own history, from every single piece of junk you pick up to who or what is in each of the boy's closets. The amount of detail and respect this game has for the source material is really quite amazing. Its visual style makes you feel like you're actually playing the show and people walking by may not know the difference.

The game play involves you picking one of four classes, each with their own unique playing-styles. The combat plays out similarly to most JRPGs with a turn-based system that rewards timed button presses similar to Super Mario RPG. You’re also able to choose one of six companions to follow you at different points of the game each with their own distinct abilities. It's a streamlined but fun system that forces you to pay attention while you play, although its simplicity doesn't offer much in the way of a challenge. Occasionally you'll also be presented opportunities in which combat can be avoided or reduced by taking advantage of the environment around the foe. It's a great feature to have, as with most turn-based RPGs, combat isn't the high point and creates a nice rewarding dynamic when you see an opportunity to kill an enemy without direct confrontation.

To offset the impressively accurate paper cut out visuals, Stick of Truth employs a very serious orchestral soundtrack. You'll frequently be reminded of Game of Thrones and Skyrim while listening. Its contrast to the material creates a great comedic effect. The voice acting remains true to the show, with Matt and Trey supplying most of the voice work, often with the same voices for different characters, with the Nazi's having an effectively hilarious voice track.

While the content provided is an impressive representation of South Park, its accuracy raises the expectations enough so that when something from the series doesn't show up, it can be a bit disappointing. Some characters and locations are missing and one can’t help but think they were deliberately left out to allow for DLC and/or a sequel.

South Park: The Stick of Truth is a great game for people who appreciate the show or have a similar taste in humor. It can be a bit polarizing but that's to be expected with a title such as this. The writing is rich and full of references that fans will truly appreciate, but sometimes, as with the show some of the jokes can get old at times. Luckily however, there are enough jokes in this game to be thoroughly enjoyable throughout its somewhat brief duration. A relatively easy difficulty, and lack of post-game content and a somewhat questionable quest reward system, where you'll frequently get items well after they've had any use to you can cause a bit of tedium to set in. The gameplay holds its own, it doesn't do anything new or amazing but the charm that saturates every aspect of it makes it feel special. This is, hands down, the best South Park game ever made. If you're looking for the definitive South Park experience, waiting for season 18 or just want to laugh, this is the game for you.

TLDR? Here's a video my friend and I put together:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=14c4uo2bQA8

Pros:

+ Honors the source material
+ Great writing
+ Looks exactly like the show
+ Always present personality
+ Best South Park Game Ever Made

Cons:

- Combat is a bit easy and simple
- Short length when compared to most RPGs (Around 15 hours)
- Need to be a fan of the show to fully appreciate it


If you enjoyed this review, feel free to follow me as a Steam Curator: http://steamproxy.com/steamstore/curator/4886473/

(TLDR? This review is also available in video format if you scroll down.)

Nine years have passed since Resident Evil 4’s initial release on the GameCube and it still holds up quite well. It’s a massively influential game that helped pioneer the third person shooter genre as well as completely changed the face of survival horror.

You’ll once again fill the shoes of Leon Kennedy as he searches for the President's missing daughter, Ashley, in a remote area of Spain. She’s being held by a mysterious cult, known as the Los Illuminados who are utilizing a mind-controlling parasite called Las Plagas in order to gain power. The village that Leon first comes across is filled with infected townsfolk aptly named Ganado or “herd” in English, who are hell-bent on stopping Leon.

Resident Evil 4 continues the tradition of offering an eccentric and ridiculous narrative that successfully links some of the franchise's biggest characters to its events but also stands well enough on its own that newcomers are not left scratching their heads.

The controls are solid and responsive but may feel somewhat strange to those that are accustomed to modern third person shooters. Leon is unable to move and shoot at the same time and must remain stationary when aiming. The camera also obscures a lot of your surroundings, adding to the overall tension and horror.

When it comes to the gameplay and combat, the Plagas-infected enemies present a satisfying challenge. They will relentlessly pursue Leon, often trying to flank him. Removing an enemies’ head will often just allow the Plagas themselves to emerge and engage Leon directly or swing around from the host’s neck. The enemies react appropriately to each wound, dropping their weapons or stumbling rewarding your aim with purpose and control. Shield bearing cult members and blind mutants with massive claws that must be dispatched by killing the parasites on their backs also refresh the enemy roster. Several satisfying boss fights provide the cherry on top of the Resident Evil 4 gameplay experience. It also features a great inventory management and upgrade system, allowing you to customize various weapons to suit your play style.

The greater focus on action does mean that scares are less frequent than they were in previous entries. Wandering around a hedge maze with Plagas infested wolves waiting to jump out of bushes and seeking keys whilst being pursued by wheezing, seemingly unstoppable regenerators are some of Resident Evil 4's few terrifying highlights during its three acts. While the first two acts are brilliantly executed, the third act loses a bit of momentum at parts, focusing more on action opposed to horror. This handful of minor grimace worthy moments is largely lost amidst the rest of the experience which will take most players fifteen or more hours on their first playthrough.

As if the main campaign wasn't long enough, Assignment Ada offers additional content as a mini game through the third act where you collect five samples of the Las Plagas parasite. Mercenaries mode challenges players to survive and kill as many enemies as possible. It's an addictive mode that would go on to become a staple of the franchise by enticing players with a risk/reward system, stringing together kills gives players a multiplier and breaking hourglasses extends the time of the session, providing a greater opportunity to post a high score. It’s a challenging variant on the gameplay that requires mastery of each stage to unlock further content and rewards. With these additional modes, it's really easy to get thirty hours of entertainment from Resident Evil 4. If that’s not enough, there’s also a Separate Ways campaign which acts as a mini scenario B filling in Ada’s perspective of the story with new bosses, viewpoints and a new area to complete substantially fleshing out the story.

The muted, earth tone rich Spanish village that serves as Resident Evil 4's setting is a massive departure from the dark, claustrophobic and sinister mansion from the first game and the post-apocalyptic city scape of the second and third games. When it was first released, Resident Evil 4 was one of the most impressive graphical showcases of the Playstation 2 and Gamecube. With a 1080p resolution, a frame rate of 60 FPS and some rescaled textures, Resident Evil 4 looks better than ever. It still looks its age but is still capable of impressing. The atmosphere is as rich in 2014 as it was in 2005 but it's still the same game and some low-res textures can be found.

Resident Evil 4 is a bittersweet experience, along with Half-Life 2, it helped foreshadow what was to come with new hardware as well as perfectly reinvigorating and updating a franchise that was in danger of losing its appeal as new hardware changed gamers expectations. In doing so however, Resident Evil 4 shifted the franchise's inertia toward action and with the next couple installments; Resident Evil would almost entirely forsake its horror roots. With the death of Resident Evil as a horror game, much of the survival horror genre fell into mediocrity with Dead Space being one of the few titles to successfully straddle the line between action and horror before becoming a victim of the same fate.

Resident Evil 4 is one of the greatest games of the new millennium. It maintained enough of the elements of its predecessors to be identifiable as a Resident Evil game while otherwise reinventing the franchise. Its timeless gameplay, great art direction and mostly excellent bosses make it very playable almost a decade after its original release. If you haven't played Resident Evil 4, now is as good a time as any.


TLDR? This review is also available in video format (I did the editing while my friend Josh handled the voice over):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hv0UuIVS9Nw

We also had a two hour discussion on Resident Evil after playing Resident Evil 6. We cover things like our favorite moments from the franchise as well as what changes we’d like to see in the future:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I243Zqf64bU

Pros:

+ A solid port, Resident Evil 4 looks better than ever at 1080p and 60FPS.
+ Amazing gameplay & enemy reactions
+ Excellent Atmosphere & Environments
+ Fantastic inventory and upgrade system
+ Good balance of horror and action
+ Great additional content

Cons:

- Somewhat weaker third act
- Irritating Ashley AI
- The beginning of the end (The success of Resident Evil 4 lead to the franchise shifting more towards the action side of things.)


Note: A controller is strongly recommended. It also seems that quite a few people with AMD/ATI Processors and video cards have been experiencing some slow-down. I haven't had any technical difficulties running the game but I'm running an Intel I5 3570k and a GTX560TI. I imagine this issue will be patched shortly though for those experiencing it.

Overall, Resident Evil 4 is a solid port and a must play. The 60 FPS is actually extremely noticeable when compared to the Xbox 360 and PS3 HD releases of the game, making it feel smoother than ever.


If you enjoyed this review, feel free to follow me as a Steam Curator: http://steamproxy.com/steamstore/curator/4886473/

Originally released in 2011, The Witcher 2 flew under the radar for a lot of people and was overshadowed by the ever-popular Skyrim. While not as well known, The Witcher 2 offers a much stronger narrative along with solid gameplay, beautiful graphics, and varied areas.

You once again play as the Witcher; Geralt, who finds himself protecting King Foltest of Temaria after an assassination attempt. Ultimately, the second attempt succeeds and Geralt is framed for the murder. After escaping from a Temarian dungeon, Geralt decides to track down the real kingslayer in order to clear his name while trying to piece together his fragmented memory.

The game is separated into three chapters each with their own main area along with a handful of side-quests. These areas are structured and paced well, allowing room for exploration without straying too far from the main storyline. The decisions you make along the way directly influence the narrative and can have a dramatic effect on the rest of the game. For example; decisions made in the first chapter can completely change the second, allowing plenty of room for re-playability. The game also features multiple endings, which vary based on your choices.

The choices are morally ambiguous; there is no clear right or wrong answer in most cases. It’s more about choosing a side and watching the events unfold. While the first Witcher game focused more on slaying monsters, Geralt is trapped in the middle of political turmoil in this installment. These elements of the story add an additional level of complexity and immersion as the game feels almost similar to a season of Game of Thrones. Playing the first game is by no means necessary to enjoying The Witcher 2 as it provides plenty of backstory as well as a solid and cohesive narrative.

The combat is solid as the game will have you balance between swordplay, magic, as well as parrying and dodging. The use of traps can also add an additional level of strategy and planning to most encounters. There is also the inclusion of alchemy, allowing Geralt to drink various potions each with different passive bonuses as well as negative side effects. The potions are generally used on a trial and error basis though, since Geralt isn’t able to use them during combat. The game does provide a reasonable challenge, especially on the harder difficulties, which is refreshing compared to a lot of other titles released these days.

Orens, the main currency in the game is rather scarce, placing a large emphasis on crafting. The crafting system is solid and will have you hoarding as many resources as possible in order to create various armor, traps, weapons, and upgrades.

CD Projekt Red is a company that really loves their fans. While other developers release paid DLC, CDPR released an Enhanced Edition at no additional cost which added multiple cut-scenes, quests, and additional polish.

The soundtrack is fantastic, as it really adds an epic feel to the game. The voice acting for the main characters is top-notch while some of the acting for the additional characters is re-used but that is to be expected considering the overall length of the game.

The graphics are absolutely stunning, as the environments are extremely detailed and varied. The character models and armor look great, although the facial animations can be a bit stiff and lifeless at times. You really have to look hard for low-res textures as even the smallest objects are carefully rendered.

Overall, The Witcher 2 is a game that should be played by anyone that is a fan of the genre. It features benchmark graphics, a top-shelf narrative, and offers plenty of content along with elements of re-playability.

For a much more detailed and thorough review, here’s a video I edited together for my friend Trent:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FEPbEpWHMeo

The Witcher 2 also made our list for the greatest games released over the past 8 years. If you’re curious to see how it stacks up, check out:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DWIHmom_lP4

Pros:
+ Choices actually shape the game adding elements of re-playability
+ Excellent graphics
+ Engaging main quest and side quests
+ Combat massively improved from the first title
+ Solid Voice Acting

Cons
- No potions in combat can lead to trial and error
- Stiff Facial Animations
- I experienced a few bugs and random crashes. (This wasn’t a huge deal though since the game has frequent auto-saves.)


If you enjoyed this review, feel free to follow me as a Steam Curator: http://steamproxy.com/steamstore/curator/4886473/

After an overwhelmingly successful Kickstarter campaign, Tim Schafer and his team at Double Fine have decided to return to their roots with their first point-and-click adventure game in over 15 years. Similar to their past projects like Grim Fandango and The Secret of Monkey Island, Broken Age features unforgettable characters, puzzles, unique themes, and plenty of humor.

The game centers around two characters each from a drastically different walk of life. One half of the narrative follows Vella, a girl who is to be offered as a sacrifice to an enormous monster known as Mog Chothra. While the other half of the story focuses on a boy named Shay who finds himself trapped on a spaceship under the watchful eye of an overly protective computer that holds him prisoner under the pretense of safety. Both of the characters yearn for change and freedom in their own way. While Vella is surrounded by overly zealous villagers that cling to tradition, Shay is completely isolated and patronized by an overbearing computer as he’s forced to endure the same routine day after day.

The puzzles are quite satisfying, they’re not overly complex but they still require some thinking which is a refreshing change from most recent games in the genre. They consist of scouring the environment for various items which can be combined with one another or given to certain characters. The amount of overall polish added to the dialogue is impressive, as you’ll most likely try to use the items in your inventory in clever ways to prompt humorous reactions and responses.

The art style is unique and really sets the game apart. While not being overly impressive on a technical level, Broken Age is brimming with personality and has an undeniable charm. The game feels like a children’s book come to life but the underlying themes and subtle humor make it appealing to players of all ages. The environments are varied and interesting to look at while the characters are all quite memorable.

Sporting an all-star cast, the voice acting is top notch which brings each of the characters to life with standout performances from Elijah Wood as Shay and Jennifer Hale best known for her work on Mass Effect (Femshep) as the megalomaniacal computer. The soundtrack is also well done, fitting the mood and atmosphere of the game perfectly.

Unfortunately, the game is quite linear and doesn’t really offer much in terms of re-playability. The different dialogue options add a bit of humor but have little to no impact on the story. For example: choosing to lie to certain characters won’t change the way they perceive you and will have the same effect as telling the truth.

Act one is also fairly short, lasting around 4 hours and it ends with a bit of a cliffhanger which will leave you anxiously waiting for Act two. Broken Age probably would have benefited from being released all at once but Act two is promised at no additional cost at a later date.

Overall, Broken Age is a charming game with a strong narrative, great humor and memorable characters. It’s proof that there is still room for creativity and innovation amidst the slew of modern action titles. Broken Age not only revives the point and click genre, it helps redefine it.

TLDR? This review is also available in video format:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2kNp4HjhyQY


Pros:

+ Strong Narrative
+ Solid Voice Acting
+ Great Sense of Humor
+ Reasonable Puzzles
+ Fantastic Art Direction
+ Charming and Unique


Cons:

- Cliffhanger Ending
- Short Length (3 - 4 hours long)
- Linear
- Dialogue Options have little influence on the story.


If you enjoyed this review, feel free to follow me as a Steam Curator: http://steamproxy.com/steamstore/curator/4886473/

Ride to Hell: Retribution is garbage Incarnate, the apex of trash, the embodiment of refuse, you get the idea.

If you’re like me, you might be tempted to try this game just to see if it’s as bad as people say, chances are it’s even worse than you’re expecting. RTH features some of the most awkward dialogue ever witnessed, absolutely awful gameplay, incredibly lazy animations and it’s riddled with game-breaking bugs.

The combat consists of either kicking someone in the groin or swinging a couple punches until you’re able to start a quick-time event where you repeatedly headbutt an enemy to death. The gunplay is inconsistent and extremely sluggish. Sometimes it can take a single bullet to down an enemy, and other times it will take about 40 shots to the chest until they react. The motorcycle driving segments are quite possibly the worst I’ve ever encountered. You can’t even drive for 10 seconds without your camera completely flipping out where it will randomly zoom in and out without rhyme or reason. If you crash (or even if you didn’t and just got a little too close to another object) the camera will fade out and assume you died rather than taking the time to animate it.

The characters are so terrible that I couldn’t help but break out in laughter whenever a new one was introduced. The dialogue sounds like it was written by someone so disconnected with reality that they’ve never had a proper conversation in their life.

Needless to say, Ride to Hell: Retribution is great for a laugh but that novelty wears thin after about twenty minutes. That’s provided that you can even play it that long without the game crashing on you.

Ride to Hell: Retribution made our list for the worst games of 2013. If you’re looking for more games to avoid, check out our video:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UgO7zMrdjug

Pros
+ So terrible it’s hilarious
+ Has the incredible power to slow down time. 1 hour playing RTH feels like 10!

Cons
- Terrible story
- Awful Characters & Writing
- Worst driving mechanics I’ve ever seen
- Laziness on the developer's part
- Rudimentary combat
- Inconsistent shooting mechanics
- Tons of bugs


If you enjoyed this review, feel free to follow me as a Steam Curator: http://steamproxy.com/steamstore/curator/4886473/

Spec Ops: The Line might be dismissed at first glance for being just another modern military shooter. That assumption couldn’t be more wrong though.

Based loosely on Joseph Conrad's Heart of Darkness, Spec Ops provides one of the strongest and mature narratives in recent memory.

The story revolves around Captain Walker and his two wingmen, Lugo and Adams. Their latest mission sends them to a post-catastrophic Dubai to find Colonel Konrad who was in charge of evacuating the civilian population. Captain Walker is often forced to make difficult decisions and any pretense of him being some badass hero is quickly removed as it's clear that sometimes there's no correct decision to make. The character progression is strong and the voice acting is phenomenal.

The art direction is spectacular as Dubai provides almost a surreal experience. When you’re not avoiding sandstorms, you'll travel through luxury hotels and buildings that have all been submerged in sand. The game also gives you a taste of PTSD as you’re sometimes left wondering whether or not certain things are real.

The combat plays out similarly to other third person shooters. It will have you taking cover, blind firing and issuing commands to your squad mates. The AI is well done, making Lugo and Adams feel very capable while the enemy AI on the other hand could use a bit of work. The combat is solid but it makes no attempt to do anything new or innovative.

The soundtrack is fantastic, including a lot of real songs along with ambient guitar pieces that match the mood perfectly. The inclusion of Jimi Hendrix and other classics really give the game an ‘Apocalypse Now’ type of feel which was another Heart of Darkness adaptation.

Unfortunately, Spec Ops is fairly short (around 5 hours) but the different endings offer some incentive to replay the game. There’s a multiplayer mode that offers a few different game types, weapons, and stages but it feels a bit tacked on. It’s fairly clear that Spec Ops was designed to be experienced as a single player game primarily and it’s one I strongly recommend.

For a more detailed review, here’s a video by my friend and fellow reviewer, Trent:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rnHItiRiBbs

Pros
+ Amazing Narrative
+ Fantastic Soundtrack
+ Beautiful Art Direction & Environments
+ Great Characters & Voice Acting

Cons
- Short length & Linear
- Generic Combat
- Multiplayer isn’t very exciting


If you enjoyed this review, feel free to follow me as a Steam Curator: http://steamproxy.com/steamstore/curator/4886473/

Company of Heroes 2 is a decent RTS but isn't really an improvement over the original.

It offers the same strategic experience as its predecessor, valuing map control above all else. You can win by destroying your opponent’s base but it’s almost always more beneficial to hold specific points.

The campaign is unfortunately a bit forgettable, as it completely betrays COH's micro based gameplay. You're given a constant supply of sacrificial soldiers which remove a lot of the strategic elements of the game. The campaign doesn’t require a whole lot of skill and doesn’t offer much of a sense of accomplishment.

The narrative is somewhat interesting but it isn’t up to par with some other RTS campaigns such as Warcraft 3 or Starcraft 2.

The multiplayer is still challenging and strategic although I think the game would have benefited from having more factions to choose from as you can only play as Russia or Germany. There's also a limited selection of maps available and they aren't quite as interesting or varied as the first Company of Heroes.

The worst issue is the microtransactions, which easily add up to more than the cost of the game itself. Anything from overpowered commanders, vehicle skins, and additional missions can be purchased which should have otherwise been included in the game.

Overall, it's still a fun RTS but it’s simply a shadow of the original. For a more in-depth review, here's a video I made:

http://steamproxy.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=217433209

I’d like to note that Company of Heroes 2 isn’t a terrible game; Steam only has two options, “Recommend and “Don’t Recommend” and I would say COH2 belongs somewhere in the middle.


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