Recent reviews by HunterZeWolf

Everybody wins with this game, the solo developer gets to make a ton of money, those interested in a fun action-RPG-MMO-lite type game get to enjoy themselves, and those that are WAY too into the shapely anthropomorphic characters get to enjoy eye candy. For those that don't and wish to turn it off can do so as well.

There's a charm and aesthetic here that's very early 2000s in it's design philosophy that I enjoy, but the true selling point is it's combat. It's completely real time, engaging, tough at times too but simple and rewarding. It's especially fun when you're charging into a dungeon with friends, synergizing your skills and it all comes together. For ten bucks this is honestly a steal considering this review is as of it's first beta release, there's still much more to come.

I just finished my first playthrough after nearly 100 hours as of this review, along with doing some co-op on the side with a few friends in their campaigns. I'm not an expert when it comes to Dungeons & Dragons but know the vague rules of 5e, but I am a huge fan of games that prioritize interactivity and player freedom when it comes how they want to express themselves. Be it through the narrative or the gameplay. This is a game which will very rarely ever tell you no, and there's multiple solutions to almost every problem. This is one of those games where you'll constantly be saying, "Wait, you can do that?!" After a playthrough as a dragonborn paladin whom took the oath of ancients, (whom also broke the oath a few times and had to pay for it) I feel like I've barely scratched the surface of this game.

I want to make more characters, go through it again, see what I can accomplish, be it with the incredibly charming characters and the outcomes, that or experiment in combat. There's times where I've used solutions I've felt weren't exactly intended for incredibly tough fights but I felt like a genius doing it. The story itself has an incredible balance of charm and personality that is overflowing from the characters as well as stakes to keep you engaged, I think it's balanced incredibly well.

Even with those combat encounters, there'll always be something fresh each one, very rarely will you be seeing the same enemy types each time, you'll need to think of something new nearly each time. Although, as they say in D&D, use fireball, only fireball, I don't care if the room is tiny USE FIREBALL. That aside it's genuinely difficult for me to think of criticisms for this game. The only real one I can think of is that it's a bit slow to get going, and the pacing at Act 1 can feel a bit sluggish? But that really feels like nitpicking.

You know what's the cherry on top of all of this? Co-op, so you can experience this incredible adventure with your friends or a loved one, and this package I am describing is from the LAUNCH VERSION. Larian's still planning to add more, and it's already an incredible full package to me. Depth, emotion, great story, fun gameplay mechanics, player freedom, it's all here. Come on, pick this game up, a game like this is rare and comes around every 10 or 20 years, people sucked this game off on metacritic for a reason.

I am one of those people that has always been intrigued by the original System Shock, fascinated by what it has accomplished for games following it in 1994. It was so incredibly forward-thinking, but difficult to get into given it's control scheme, but I had a massive amount of respect for it. I'm well aware that this remake makes some design changes but it's all for the better, to a point where I think the original is genuinely obsolete compared to this remake and that's not something I say lightly. Compare something like Resident Evil 4 to it's remake, you can have an amazing time with the original still. The original System Shock seems like a novelty, a curiosity in comparison to this remake, but it's rather obtuse compared to playing a modern game, not to say it's impenetrable it's just difficult to get into.

Now, THIS remake, wow. The fact that it sticks so close to the level design and the mechanics while leaning harder into the horror aspect makes it so immersive given how much attention to detail was put into citadel station. It's funny that I say horror considering how bright, colorful and retrofuturistic the artstyle of this game is, and it has plenty of goofy stuff going on in it. It's a very tongue-in-cheek kind of game tone-wise while balancing tense moments with blatant videogamey design, but it carries everything with pride.

Even though it's been streamlined, this is still a difficult game compared modern games in general. I wouldn't recommend it unless you're specifically looking for an experience like this. For me, I crave more experiences like this. Hey, at least you can specifically tweak the difficulty of everything so it's to your preferences! I did everything 2/2/2/2, so on normal before writing this review. You need to be slow and methodical, you need to pay attention to what you're doing, which in turn draws you into the world further. You are not held by the hand whatsoever and are left to your own devices to figure things out on your own and it's extremely refreshing to play something like this. Frustrating at times, but those ah-ha moments are incredibly rewarding! I love how mechanically dense this game is. The journey through the first immersive sim in the polished up light of 2023 was extremely magical.

It feels like a fever dream to finish and gather my thoughts on this after waiting as long as I have for this game. I played Psychonauts 1 back in the day on my PS2 when I was a kid. The creativity, charm, passion and heart from the first is here and refined as sequels should be. The story took me to places I wasn't expecting and had me sitting in my chair gathering my thoughts for while when the credits rolled. This game exists, and it feels like a loose end has been tied up. It feels like something coming from the same time period as Psychonauts 1, but that's not a bad thing at all. We need more unique games of exceptionally high quality anyway.

I don't have much objective criticism besides the combat being serviceable, I'm not the biggest platformer person either but it does it's job. This a game where you play it for the story, creativity and art, and it delivers more than a few times over in that regard. I'm not sure if this game is worth $60, but it was worth the asking price for me, but hey, this is why gamepass exists if you're skeptical about it.

Amnesia: Rebirth is a big disappointment for me. Of course I am going to compare it to Amnesia: The Dark Descent and Machine for Pigs given that it's in the same series. Especially The Dark Descent, because this game has a massive pacing issue. There's only two instances I can think of when I was frightened, and those are when the game allows you to breathe and explore, while suggesting something off in the distance. That's when the dread sets in and for a second, it works. The darkness is now something that's an annoyance instead of frightening the player. The sanity system has been absolutely butchered and is now a basic health system. Jpegs's flash at you when it's low and once it's low enough and you go insane, or if you are caught, no progress is lost whatsoever. I don't feel like I can get immersed in the setting because it doesn't allow me to. The matches run out too quick, as does the lantern and you can barley stay in the dark at all. It just tells me to move or I'll be punished. The punishment doesn't matter anyway because of plot armor. I'm not scared in the dark, I'm feeling around to get to the next area and I just get annoyed when I get jumpscared by flashing images. The chases are mostly completely scripted and boring and there's a very obvious place you need to run to, which didn't have me feeling frightened at all.

The plot elements failed to grip me too, as the lovecraftian stuff was far too obvious and familiar to human nature for it to feel alien and strange. I found Tasi to be constantly distracting with what she says, and while I see what Frictional was going for, it would've been better suited for a new IP instead of using the Amnesia license to set up expectations. This drama regarding pregnancy could've worked, but regarding it's execution it just did not land with me at all considering the pacing and the fantastical elements, as well as the ridiculous things the protagonist goes through. Gameplay factors into me caring less considering that the pregnancy is treated as a precious thing, a last life to care for and hold onto, a little hope in contrast to past tragedies. That didn't land with me at all, but I see what you were going for.

I'm being very harsh and mean on this game, I'm aware, but I will say the art direction and sound design is pretty solid for what it is, the puzzles are.. fine. I don't have much to say about them really. They don't stand out to me, they aren't brain busters. It's logical and fine mostly.

Just play The Dark Descent, or SOMA. I tried Frictional, I tried and went to the end, but it's not a good sign when I'm annoyed most of my way through a game. The marriage between mechanics and gameplay was a failure in my eyes.

♥♥♥♥ story. Amazing gameplay.

Dude, it's ten bucks for Reach at the moment. You don't have a good excuse to make not to get this. It's a great PC port too.

I forgot to write a positive review for this game.

It's Divinity: Original Sin 2, go buy it.

Okay, goodbye.

If you have any taste, you will buy this game.












No, seriously, I got nothing else to say. Buy it.

Are you a nostalgic-fueled dork who grew up with the original trilogy on the PS1? Buy it.
Are you some outsider looking in who wants a beautiful and charming platformer? Buy it.
Just like what they did for Crash, they did for Spyro. It performs well, it's beautiful, it's exactly what you and I wanted. Buy it.