Recent reviews by Joker

It's FTL but Dark Souls. I legitimately believe that the game was designed to make it almost impossible on the first run even set to beginner. As you progress you collect points that can only be used at game creation to purchase bonuses. The further you get each run the more bonus points (and bonus types) you unlock. This provides you an incentive to keep going even if you are sure your ship is too crippled to actually get through your run. This game is definitely not for everyone, but sci-fi adventure beating my head against a brick wall until I finally break through is right up my alley. There is one little glitch that I find meaningfully bad. There are special "Marine" type pawns that you can have, and the weapons they come with (because you can't change your pawns weapons) are super important during boardings. If I have to quit the game and reload it, about 85% of the time my Marine pawns will be reskinned and have a different weapon. Their name and skills are all the same, but I lose the weapon, which is like the whole point of having them.

It's obvious why this franchise took off. I never played the original, but the "enhanced" graphics, while being less than a modern AAA cinematic quality, are certainly high quality enough that it's playable in 2020. While you can buff skills and attributes to help yourself, there's still a fair amount of skill involved in timing your attacks, positioning correctly, and selecting which of three combat "styles" to use in a given situation. The world building seems to be at just the right level, not so much to overwhelm but enough to get immersed to some extent.

Free bit of advice: If you're playing on max difficulty, buff up your Aard sign and Endurance stat early. A quick knock down and coup de grace finishes even tough enemies... which will help you with the first two or so in a mob.