Recent reviews by The vintage feeling

General info

~Genre: First-person fantasy shooter, Dungeon crawler, Rogue-like
~Number of players: 1
~Replay value: high
~Steam achievements: available
~Trading cards: available

Strong points

+Overload of nostalgia
Ziggurat combines the action elements of a modern shooter with the fantasy characteristics of classic first-person titles such as Hexen and Heretic. Who needs modern warfare when you can obliterate your opponents with cryo wands, electric staves, death magic, and porcupine bombs?

+Isaac, is that you?
Much like any other decent rogue-like game, Ziggurat features permanent death, requires clever thinking, demands adaptability, and rewards patience. If you relish playing games like Binding of Isaac or Don't Starve, then Ziggurat is for you.

+Intricate labyrinth
The games features a progression system similar to dungeon-crawlers or -to be more accurate- to corridor gamers. You advance from one floor to the other by clearing rooms full of enemies, facing various challenges, and finally by defeating each floor's boss. The gathering of experience orbs from fallen enemies leads players to a rewarding levelling up system of tactical approach in the form of perk selection instead of a simple statistical improvement.

+Infinite replay value
Ziggurat's architectural pattern changes with each playthrough as do the bosses, enemies, and challenges faced in each room. Therefore, no two players play the same game. In addition to that, Ziggurat features almost 200 unlockables (including characters, weapons, spells, perks, etc.) Even when you fail to complete the game, you still get to unlock new things for your inventory. Do you want even more? There's an automatically assigned daily challenge that changes every 24 hours. Can you beat the game when you are not the one setting the rules or picking the character of your choice?

+Controls and enemy AI
Smooth, easy to master keyboard controls. Are you a gamepad gamer? No biggie. Ziggurat comes with full controller support. Nevertheless, do not expect to beat the game just by mashing a few buttons for a couple of hours. You have to learn and memorise each enemy's pattern. Some are fast and accurate with homing projectile weapons, others prefer aerial combat, a few of them spawn minions, while some attack in packs. Yet, all of them want you dead.

+Graphics, HUD, optimization
Exquisite colour palette, splendorous monster and character design. There's an option that turns the HUD completely off thus offering a better, more “realistic” experience. Even on low-end PCs the game will run smoothly -provided that the player toggles certain graphic options on and off.

+Soundtrack
Very fitting to the game's fastasy setting. I found the wand and spell's casting sounds to be very enjoyable. During action moments the soundtrack strenghtens the overall feeling of adrenaline rush and shooting pandemonium.

+Take that AAA titles!
2 years since the game's release and the developing team keeps updating their product by adding free content and by fixing any existing bugs.

+Price, Achievement hunting, card availability
During a Steam sale this game receives a significant price reduction. “Achievo” hunters will satiate their hunger for game completion with some very challenging achievements while badge collectors can gather up to twelve cards.

Weaknesses

-Steam and your wallet
The steam version of Ziggurat is the most expensive I've found among the popular gaming platforms. You can grab the title for less on GOG, for instance.

-Minor bugs

Neutral ground

±Casually speaking
This game is not designed for casual gamers. Death is frequent and -in most instances- comes in a very humiliating way. Failure is a common outcome in Ziggurat. Ever heard of Dark Souls or Darkest dungeon?

General info

~Genre: Action game with survival horror elements
~Number of players: 1-2
~Completion time: 8-30 hours
~Multiplayer cooperation mode
~Originally a Nintendo 3DS title
~Downloadable content: available

Strong points

+Atmosphere: Resident Evil: Revelations (RE:R)offers a combination of survival horror elements and action sequences. Explore an abandoned ship, read memos of former events, examine corpses, solve puzzles along the way, but be ready to survive a relentless undead assault at any moment.

+That music made my day: The soundtrack, (mostly consisted of zombie growls, victim screams and background music) being atmospheric and experimental, transforms RE:R into an unforgettable experience. Headphone use strongly recommended. The soundtrack on Youtube by Canal de Redblogij: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l850aJb0JY8&list=PLC3E70FFEF4BC3FD6

+Cast of characters: The original duet (Jill Valentine-Chris Redfield) has returned for a new dance with the undead. At the same time, some of the newest cast entries are quite interesting (Parker, Cadet, Jessica, etc.) and would definitely benefit future RE titles with their appearance.

+Enemies: Instead of your ordinary, slow, rotting zombies, RE:R features a wide array of enemies, each with its own strength and weaknesses. Since the title revolves around an aquatic environment, your opponents were designed accordingly. Their forms are some of the best the series has ever presented.

+Chapter separation: RE:R is divided into chapters. Each chapter offers new challenges and gives the player the opportunity to control different characters. Before each new chapter a summary of the previous one is shown, thus preventing the players from forgetting what has happened, in case they decide to play the game sporadically.

+Scanning system: “Genesis” is a unique equipment which scans your surroundings for hidden ammo, herbs and items. Also, scanning enemies has its benefits.

+Inventory system:RE:R demands clever use of herbs (only 5 can be carried at a time), bullets and grenades. Inventory is at first limited but can be expanded by finding certain inventory parts or weapon mods. Such limitation not only rewards the conservative and clever combatants but enhances the feeling of survival horror throughout the game.

+Raid mode: The highlight of the game and the main reason you will be spending hundreds of hours on RE:R. Similar to the infamous Mercenaries mode of previous RE titles, Raid presents a new challenge: Enemies with special abilities and different levels swarm various locations from the single player campaign and the player must kill them all or advance to the end of the stage. As if the ordinary Hunter weren't enough, how about facing a Hunter boss or a sneaky Hunter baby with increased attack rating and tiny frame? Don't forget to spend your Battle points in the store after each raid for new weapons, mods and unlockable characters. Raid also features online or local cooperation for whole family entertainment!

+Difficulty levels: Three difficulty levels to master. Having played almost all RE titles, I can assure you that Revelations can be hard and punishing to reckless players (during boss fights, for instance). Completing the game on the hardest difficulty is a great achievement, especially for hardcore gamers.

+Weapon customization: Scattered around the map are special modification parts which can be attached to your weapons. Searching for them adds to the exploration and motivates the player to search remote or dangerous areas. The combinations are limitless and you can always change equipped mods at the iconic storage boxes from previous RE games.

Weaknesses

-Voice acting: It was always an issue with RE titles but that doesn't mean it should be considered a tradition. Dear voice actors, show some enthusiasm during the recording sessions!

-Finishing/melee moves feel coarse and restricting. The dodging mechanism, albeit crucial for the latest parts of the game, seems deferred and difficult to master.

-Respect the elderly: RE:R aged somewhat badly. In all honesty, I didn't get the feeling Capcom paid any attention to graphically upgrading the PC port.

-Downloadable content of minor (or cosmetic) value.

-The not so legendary Chris Redfield: The single player campaign lacks the cooperation mode of RE 6 and the AI controlled companions are rather weak.

Neutral ground

±Comparison to Nintendo 3DS :Albeit close to its older brother, I found the online matching search in Raid mode cooperation faster than that of the 3DS version. Other than that, the two versions are almost identical.

General info

~Genre: Japanese roleplaying game (JRPG), belongs to Final Fantasy series
~Number of players: 1
~Completion time: 45-100 hours
~Partially enhanced (HD) version of already existing title

Strong points

+Story: A tale about the coming of age, the fear of loss, the acceptance of responsibilities, the need of expression, the importance of friendship and the warmth of love. Younger gamers might find the aforementioned topics quite boring, as I did back in the day, but as I grew up I understood why the developers chose to enrich their product with such thematology.

+Content: A game suitable for both young and mature audiences.

+Music: Don't take my word for it; just listen to the complete soundtrack
(uploaded on youtube by TantrisOST)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X6kAwpgW29M

+Tradition: Many well known figures and themes of the Final Fantasy universe make their appearance in Final Fantasy VIII: Prepare to fight Malboros and Tonberries, summon Shiva and Ifrit, cast Reflect and Ultima and ride chocobos. Also, many artists already involved in previous installments are back: Yusuke Naora, Kazushige Nojima, and composer Nobuo Uematsu.

+Team spirit: Create teams of three characters (from a total of six) and face challenging foes in a turn based battle-system. Experienced Final Fantasy players will tread on familiar ground while newcomers will adapt gradually thanks to the game's instructional early stages.

+Not another grinding fest: Final Fantasy VIII introduced the juctioning system with which you may team up with various summoning entities and enhance your stats, abilities and defences. Thus, instead of killing enemies for hours and hours in order to level up, you are able to apply various combinations of spells to enhance your characters. You can actually finish the game with your initial level (steam achievement) thanks to this innovative progress system.

+Road to the riches: You don't have to worry about buying your expensive equipment in FFVIII. Most items will be dropped from slained monsters or they can be crafted by collecting various ingredients with the help of your summoned creatures.

+Along came Behemoth: Enemies level up as you do. It's your choice where and when to increase your level of experience as well as how to fortify your team in order to overcome enemies who change attack pattern as your levels go up.

+Characters, NPCs, companions with interesting background and distinctive personalities. Most of them answer to the principles of japanese manga and anime culture; if you have played any other Final Fantasy game you know what to expect; and that's not necessarily a bad thing.

+Environment: Both urban and rural. You can visit cities, ports, schools as well as beaches, deserts and the infamous chocobo forests; by renting a car, riding a chocobo or exploring on foot!

+Chicobo: The famous pocketstation game Chocobo World which accompanied the original title is back! Train your little chocobo to the highest level, slain enemies and transfer all acquired loot to your main saved game in order to aid your team with powerful items.

+Rich background: Despite starting the game "in medias res", the complex background of the game will be revealead to players piece by piece as they progress. Visit the in-game Information section often to learn new things about the world you are exploring.

+Controls: Customizable in-game settings, controller support.

+For seasoned adventurers and newcomers: You can level your characters up to the maximum or stay at a low level and depend on your juctions and individual skills only.

Weaknesses

-Problematic PC port: This port suffers from a few issues which can be fixed with various mods or community unofficial patches. The two major problems can be found on the sound and graphics department:

1. Despite the fact that characters, spells, summons and vehicles are graphically enhanced , the background remains in low resolution. Click here for an example.
   
   
2. As for the sound, the main issue is its bad quality. You can fix this problem by downloading a mod called Roses and Wine. Consult the Steam guide section for links.

SquareEnix could have spent more time improving their product.

-Juctioning: Ironically, one of Final Fantasy VIII's best features is at the same time one of its flaws. Juctioning can make your team almost invincible and it's quite simple to comprehend as long as you have spent time on the tutorial understanding how the system works. Unfortunately, while the game extricates the players from many hours of useless killing, they must still draw spells from various enemies at large quantities for maximum junctioning effect. This can be time consuming as well.

-Spam this sword: Although the juctioning system gives a lot of choises as to how you wish to develop your team, in the end you might end up saving your acquired spells and magic for stat enhancement only and just spam the attack command to dispatch your enemies. This issue might frustrate or disappoint some players who prefer to play with mixed teams (fighters and mages) or the older fans of the series who prefer variety and strategies during boss fights.

-Smithing: Final Fantasy VIII features limited character costumization. Your characters' appearance cannot be changed since you do not have access to armor or other protective equipment. The only item you can actually costumize is each character's weapon. Ironically, weapon enhancement is not advisable until the latest stages of the game due to the the fact that enhanced weapons feature negligible upgrades compared to the initial weapons equipped on each character. Long story short, upgrade your weapon to their ultimate forms only.

Neutral ground

±Price: Preferably buy it during a sale.

±Permanently missable content: Meticulous players who enjoy searching every nook and cranny of the world, won't have serious problems finding most items in the game. But for the rest of you, it might be a good idea to consult a detailed guide if you want a perfect run with all the achievements unlocked on one playthrough.

General info

~Genre: Open world, action, school simulator, third person
~Number of players: 1
~Completion time: 15-35 hours
~Adolescent protagonist
~Rockstar Vancouver product

Strong points

+Detention vs Prison: Bully: Scholarship Edition isn't just a GTA (Grand Theft Auto) with younger felons. Rockstar Vancouver created a unique world where attending classes and spending time with your roommates and girlfriends is more important than owning a city or harassing opposing operations. By playing Bully you will have the chance to reminisce stories from your own childhood / school years. Of course, there are strong similarities to other Rockstar titles, but give the game a chance before judging it too harshly.

+Narrative: From zero to school's most recognizable figure, our hero will rise to success through a clever script filled with some bold ideas. The game is divided into chapters with different events, weather conditions and rising adversaries.

+Characters: A believable protagonist, an elite school, a carnival full of freaks, a drunk homeless Santa, Bullworth has them all. In addition to the town, Bullworth Academy is a bustling community housing different factions: from the dorky nerds and perverted teachers to the strict prefects and snooty cheerleaders. Some of them serve as companions, possible love interests or even chapter bosses! Many of the characters will affect Jimmy's road to the riches in numerous ways. Feel free to run the rest over with yourscooter.

+Rock around the clock: Bully features a time-based world. Different quests or characters may appear depending on the time so stay alert at all times. Just remember to return at your dormitory before 2:00 am lest you fall asleep on the pavement!

+I own you: Feel free to expand around town and own different places. These save spots function aptly as bases for sleeping or hiding from the authorities.

+I'm out of powder: Unique weaponry that suits Bully's atmosphere. Itching powder with a notorious stun effect, slingshot for taking care of business from afar, even a bottle rocket launcher for throwing... ehh... deadly glass at your enemies!

+Know your body: Throughout the game you will have the opportunity of attending classes. They are not mandatory but passing them will grant you useful skills such as secret revelation on map or persuasion of girlfriends in order to... increase your overall vitality by 100% . Feel the power of love, baby.

+Watch the trilby, boy: Many clothes to customize Jimmy with. Dress him like an elf, Christopher Columbus or mafia leader. Afterwards, pay a visit to the barber shop for taking care of that big head of yours.

+Those yellow spots: Except for classes and random mayhem you will also have to complete quests in order to advance the game. I found the majority of them entertaining, novel and of normal difficulty. In addition to the main challenges, Bully features side quests and secrets scattered around town offering unique prizes: Lawn mowing, protecting nerds harassed by bullies, even cart racing.

+Murder on the dance floor: Instead of songs or radio stations, Bully features different instrumental themes fitting for each occasion. Example: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R7Rtrxf22ls
+Length: Neither to long for gamers who get bored easily nor too short for those who cherish free roaming and secret hunting.

+Full controller support

Weaknesses

-Jimmy is a beast: He possesses unlimited stamina, accuracy prowess and herculean strength. Kidding aside, you can run without having to stop to take a breath. I do not find it as a major weakness but certainly drops the difficulty a bit for some gamers.

-”Adrian, I did it!”: You can still finish the game without passing any classes. This takes one of the strongest parts of Bully away, so invest some time on them just to fill more of a student and less of a petty criminal.

-You missed a spot: I found out that a few quests are permanently lost if end-chapter missions are finished prior to them. Always make at least two save spots if you are a completionist.

-Problematic adaptation: Before publishing this review, I played the original Bully on my PS2 to compare it to this version. Although Scholarship edition is an accurate port, many players complain about the frame rate being locked at 30 frames per second. I finished the game with no mods installed, on Windows 8.1 and I did not experience a single crash. Nevertheless, whether you experience any bugs or you just want to unlock the frame rate, there are mods to aid you.

General info

~Genre: Role playing game
~Number of players: 1
~Star Wars related product
~Completion time: 30-45 hours
~High replay value

Strong points

+Variety: Visit places with different geological maps, inhabitants, natural characteristics. Even the “tutorial” planet (Taris) is distinct from the others. You won't find repeatable patterns in this game. Each place has its own story to tell. My advice: Don't rush; take your time and explore.

+Music score: A plethora of modern games advertise the “quality” of their music. Mostly it's just a marketing trick. Knights of the Old Republic (KotOR) is an exception. The developers put a lot of effort to capture their product's atmosphere in a music sheet. Example: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pD4YUEd18R0

+Story: “Memorable characters” is a cliché. Numerous titles brand the term in their case cover but only a few actually deserve it. KotOR does. Don't take my word for it. Just try the game and see if Juhani, Jolee or Canderous won't leave a mark on you. This will be a tale about partnership, trust, love, hatred, grief, revenge, anger, maturity, and reckoning.

+Liberating experience: This is a game of more actions that words. Albeit a role playing game, KotOR pushes players to be responsible and pick their own path. Every character has a background and follows a moral code. Your protagonist's choices will reflect upon your companions in more than one ways. Aid them and they will aid you back. Betray their trust and see what happens in the course of the story. The game allows you to be whoever you want to.

+Grey: Despite being a Star Wars game, KotOR isn't a monotony of light and dark side choices. You can pick grey as easily as you can pick black or white. In that aspect it surpasses even the films in some instances. Are the Jedi the just order and Sith their everlasting evil counterbalance? Are the terms good and bad viable in such context?

+Micro-management: Pause the action anytime and give your commands to any member of your team. Sometimes, such management is the difference between success or… reloading the game. Just press “Space” (by default) during combat.

+Working bench: Forge weapons, enhance armor efficiency and even craft your own lightsaber piece by piece.

+Blend in: Not a Star Wars fan? No problem, neither am I. The story takes you 4,000 years before the events of the first film trilogy. You will meet individuals never seen before and you shall witness how certain groups became infamous in after years. Even if you have never heard of Star Wars before, you will still be able to enjoy the game to the fullest.

+Living in the parallel: Fan of Star Wars? This game is for you. You will recognise many familiar patterns. Be alert though: Darth Vader and Darth Malak despite playing a similar role in the two stories they don't necessarily serve the same purpose.

+Side questing: Tired of mundane sidequests which involve killing massive amount of weak enemies, fetching items from borings NPCs and ultimately rewarding the player with useless items and questionable currency? From saving a captive spy to playing the attorney for the shake of an old friend, KotOR will make you remember each completed side quest.

+Narration: KotOR is one of those games that utilizes your imagination to some extent instead of showing you everything through a cut-scene or an FMV. Listen to your teammates stories, close your eyes and imagine being there with them; in their old tales of youth and inexperience. Gaming as it should be.

+Price: Even if you can't wait for a sale, buying it at full price worths it.

Weaknesses

-Old school dice: KotOR utilizes some mechanics which younger gamers won't recognize or are too lazy to study them for a few hours, such as invisible dice and hidden statistical factors. As a result, if you don't plan your character carefully you might be unable to finish the game. It is advisable to consult some guides before starting a new game.

-Graphical issues: This game might be unplayable in Windows 7 or later versions. One common solution is to turn off the grass on graphic options and disable movies. If that doesn't fix the issue (as it did for me on Windows 8.1) consult the helping and friendly community here on Steam.

-Limited customization: Unfortunately, the only body part that you are given a choice to meddle with (at the character selection section) is the face; not even the head generally. NPCs suffer from the same banality as well.

General info

~Genre: Action game with roleplaying elements
~Number of players: 1
~Downloadable content: available (not on Steam)
~First part of a trilogy
~Completion time: 20-45 hours
~High replay value

Strong points

+Rich story: Explore the Milky Way occupied by many alien species, each with its own detailed history and culture. Narration is fluid and players won't have any issues following the story as it expands and reach its climax.

+Cast: A customizable protagonist (face, gender), ruthless villains and unforgettable companions (with different armour exclusive to their race). Expect to gain more enemies and allies as you clear the galaxy of terrorists and drug warlords.

+High replay value: 6 classes that offer different play styles (sentinel, soldier, engineer, etc.), variable companion combinations, New game plus, etc. If you also add the two existing moral paths, the two protagonist genders and end game decisions you might easily spend more than 500 hours on this game.

+Challenging: 5 difficulty levels to choose from; including easy, veteran and hardcore. Each difficulty level affects enemies' weapon damage as well as their skill selection and combat behaviour.

+Hybrid theory: Mass Effect isn't just a space shooter. You will be constantly switching between action sequences and role playing diplomacy. Many of your previously completed quests will affect NPC's and companions' behaviour. Expect different comments depending on your previous decisions.

+Battle tactics: With just a hit of a button you can pause the action and command your team to change positions or targets. You may also, depending on your class, choose different skills which may distract your adversaries (sabotage, lift, synthetic overload, etc.) or obliterate them. As you level up, more skill options become available and it will then rest on your tactical prowess to transform a hellish confrontation into a summer breeze.

+From zero to hero: 60 levels to master (50 are accessible in your first playthrough), 6 companions to recruit (humans, asari, krogan, etc.), numerous skills to learn (you cannot maximize all of your skils in one playthrough, try various combinations and pick the ones you enjoy the most).

+Devil or angel: Two moral paths to choose from; your overall attitude affects the NPCs' behaviour towards you as well as your appearance. Paragon attitude depicts a forgiving, humane Shepard while the Renegade path is suited for all of you psychos and vigilantes! I've tried them both and they are both rewarding and fun to play as.

+Pass the legacy: After finishing the game you can a)export your saved game to Mass effect 2 and keep your key-choices and/or b)start a New game plus with your skills/characteristics intact)

+Soundtrack: for a great tale to be told, a music score of equivalent value is needed. Check the whole OST uploaded by TantrisOST in youtube:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uhesDs6FWpo

+View: with your own spaceship land on imaginary planets, each with its own atmosphere, flora and fauna. You can also visit our Sol system for some funny comments from the crew and codex entry system. Also, on Luna...

+Price: significantly low during sales.

Weaknesses

-Full pockets: In many instances, your inventory will overflow with useless weapons, redundant armour portions and obsolete ammo mods. Do not forget to visit periodically your inventory in order to clean it up or you might end up wasting half an hour during the last chapter making room for some new weapons and armour.

-Choices ungiven: despite being abundant, only a few choices actually matter for the game's finale. A few other choices might end up affecting characters shown on the two sequels, but their significance is negligible for everyone who plans to play the first Mass Effect only.

-The missing chapter: Unless played as part of a trilogy, Mass effect 1 seems like an unresolved tale. Also, I must add that the third game is not available on Steam and everyone interested must create an account at EA's Origin in order to buy and play the game there.

-Not so challenging after all: Mass effect targets a wide audience. Experienced players may find its simplicity frustrating and its regeneration system debatable. As an old school gamer myself, I never paid too much attention to those mechanics since Mass Effect finds a few plot tricks to justify them. Play for yourselves and form an opinion based on your own experience.

Neutral ground

±KotOR clone: Players will identify strong resemblances to Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic, mainly found at the morale system and plot structure. Bioware never hide the fact that they wanted to create their own space game and their involvement with KotOR affected Mass Effect alot.

General info

~Genre: Survival horror (first person view)
~Number of players: 1
~Downloadable content: available
~Achievements: available
~Completion time: 15-25 hours

Strong points

+True to the principles of Alien universe (films, video games, H.R. Giger's Art)

+Breath taking exterior locations (space walking, orbiting gas giants, etc.)

+Interesting characters (meet Amanda Ripley, Company executives and, of course, androids)

+Survival of the fittest (sharpen your senses to avoid death, adapt in a harsh environment or die)

+Ambience (malfunctioning engines, agonizing people, lurking monsters and that distant bass)

+High replay value (ingredients/items change spawn location with each new playthrough)

+Rewarding exploration (Collect ingredients and craft devices to heal yourself, distract enemies, etc.)

+Danger on every turn (hack doors, open locks, craft objects while being exposed and defenceless)

+Price justifiable when compared to the quality of the final product (including voice acting, level design, study of H.R. Giger's artistic aesthetics)

Weaknesses

-Minor bugs (none of them fatal to gameplay)

-Lip motion not always synchronized with sound

-Minimal support from the developers concerning various bugs and performance issues

Neutral ground

±DLCs of minor value (mainly for time attack mode fans)

±A scenario based on already utilized formulae (in Alien films)

General info

~Genre: Japanese roleplaying game, belongs to Final Fantasy series
~Number of players: 1
~Completion time: 35-50 hours
~Remastered version of already existing title

Strong points

+Story: A tale about maturity, friendship, love, hatred and dignity.

+Content: A game suitable for both young and mature audiences.

+Music: Don't take my word for it; just listen to the complete soundtrack
(uploaded on youtube by TantrisOST)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sMpzODudeks

+Tradition: Create teams of five characters and face challenging foes in a turn based battle-system. Experienced Final Fantasy players will tread on familiar ground while newcomers will adapt gradually thanks to the game's instructional early stages.

+Not another grinding fest: Bosses require strategic planning not just level superiority.

+Length: Neither too short for gamers who enjoy secrets, nor too long for those who get bored easily.

+Characters, NPCs, companions with interesting background and distinctive personalities.

+Remade: Enjoy one of the best Final Fantasy games with remade graphics, remastered music score and optional bosses/rewards.

+Replay value: Keep certain key items and abilities, fight bosses exclusively to NG+, etc.

+Controls: Customizable in-game settings, controller support.

+For seasoned adventurers and newcomers: Normal and Hard difficulty modes.

Weaknesses

-Good old days: Fans of the original may find that this 3D version lacks the artistic depth of the original in sections such as boss modeling or spell casting presentation.

-Price: Preferably buy it during a sale.

-A few key items (e.g. Adamant armor) have an extremely low drop rate which makes the related to them achievements quite frustrating to obtain.

-Comparison to Nintendo DS: Basically the same port; developers could have spent more time editing certain sections of the game such as battle speed, visual effects, etc.

-Auto-level up: Every time you level up, your stats are automatically allocated with no option to customize your character's attributes as you wish, making each character locked to a specific class.

Neutral ground

±Tread carefully: In opposition to later entries, which tend to be forgiving, FFIV demands adaptability and cleverness; always plan ahead and choose your moves carefully.

General info

~Genre: Adventure game, point and click, noir
~Episodic game: all episodes available
~Number of players: 1
~Completion time: 8-12 hours

Strong points

+Neo-noir at its finest

+Characters with rich background and interesting personalities

+Action and narration are well balanced

+Music fitting to each circumstance

+Professional voice acting

+The game targets a wide audience; not just comic book readers

+Suspence escalates with each episode

Weakness

-Player choices are plenty, albeit somewhat negligible to the plot's outcome

General info

~Genre: Survival horror/Action
~Number of players: 1
~Completion time: 5-10 hours
~Not compatible with all computers without installation of a graphic patch

Strong points

+Atmospheric: screams, growls, whispers, groans

+Ambient music: (uploaded by BimberMistrz on Youtube)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GAdRmSaoox0

+Challenging: including time limit and nighmare difficulty

+In-game clock: save your friends and family before Evil awakens or lose them forever

+Rewarding valour: for each person saved a nice gift awaits you to help you in your struggle against the powers of Darkness

+Nosferatu dead and loving it: fight vampires with traditional means, such as garlic and holy water

+High replay value : the castle's architecture is rearranged everytime you start a new game

+Inspired by F.W. Murnau's Nosferatu, eine Symphonie des Grauens

Weaknesses

-Bugs: including NPCs and monsters' behaviour

-Outdated graphics and limited resolution options: partially fixed with this patch [www.wsgf.org]

-The constant race against time might stress some players and ruin their gaming experience

-Price: considering the overall quality, it could have been cheaper