Masterfully executed narrative and gameplay, fun from the first minute to the last, with a very gentle progression curve and plenty of variety and challenges on the way. On top of it, for those of us with wrist problems, this game is very accessible. You have options to automatically pick and sell items, drink potions and apply skill powerups. Lady Katarina's behaviour is also fully customizable and can help you performing any kind of role you need. I can only wish more companies follow Neocore's steps so we can see more games like Van Helsing!
I was a Faeria player when this game was announced. I waited long months until I was allowed to test alpha. Since then, I knew Roguebook would be good, but now it's even better than what I expected. Graphics are beautiful, characters are well designed, cards feel pretty balanced with all the interesting mechanics, and plenty of strategies are viable. Soundtrack is good, though I wish they took this chance to reuse some music from Faeria too (specially the ambient ones, they would fit perfectly here). If you played Slay the Spire, or something similar from the genre, you already know what to expect: start with basic cards, explore map, defeat enemies, unlock more cards, earn gold & artifacts, defeat tougher enemies, repeat. Among other cool things, Roguebook incorporates roguelite elements (through obtaining 'pages' you'll be able to activate permanent perks at the end of each run), the Faeria-style hexagonal map which makes exploration very engaging, and a two character system that makes positioning an important factor in combat. It sounds more complicated than it is ; combats are very intuitive and the map, even though it forces you to make choices, is easy to navigate. Every victory is meaningful and satisfactory - if you like deckbuilders, I strongly recommend you to try it.
DD surpassed my expectations wildly. The gameplay is really fun, the character developement, skill progression and itemization is varied with plenty to choose from, the world is big and open filled with different enemies and interesting quests, the graphic style is amazingly beautiful, the soundtrack is *excellent* (RIP Kirill Pokrovsky)... Lastly, the story is engaging and the dialogs/voice acting are the funniest thing I've heard in a videogame. For all these reasons I consider Divine Divinity one of the greatest action RPGs!
Street Fighter Alpha 2 has the best you can expect from the genre: Three modes (Arcade, Versus & Training) which you can play using a wide cast of interesting characters with tons of different combos and techniques. Even with this variety, all characters share the same core fundamentals, so it's pretty easy to learn and get into, though hard to master. Each one of the characters has an exclusive ending you can see if you manage to finish Arcade Mode. Losing a match won't reset your progress, you can retry as many times as you want, though there is certainly a challenge in pursuing a high score. The scenarios are based on real world locations, the graphics and animations are beautiful and the soundtrack shines by itself, providing a perfect accompaniment. Using Windows 10, I didn't experience a single trouble with the port. Both video and sound play flawlessly. Also, it recognized my controller right away, even if Gog's store page doesn't mention controller support. The buttons were already configured and no setup at all was necessary from my part. Overall, a great experience for a great price. Can only recommend it!
The perfect turn-based RPG/Deckbuilder ! I wish I could give 6 stars to this game. Everything in Steamworld Quest just clicks in the right place. The ease of control is marvelous (you can play using m+kb, mouse or keyboard only, or controller). The gameplay is easy to learn, simple to play, yet deep and engaging, favoring skill and planification over mere chance. You can customize your party and decks in plenty of ways. Each encounter is interesting and every boss is challenging, with different difficulty modes to attune your experience. The pace and progression just feels natural. The graphics and the music are gorgeous, the maps invite you to be explored. The character design is brilliant, every single one of them is unique and enormously endearing. The story is awesome, very original and well structured, the dialogs are charming, witty and comical... If you like card games and rpgs, no doubt about this one ! You'll love Steamworld Quest !
