To start, the game title is one of my favorites of recent memory. Heretics? Check. Inquisition? Check. Heretic Kingdoms? Double check. It's the little things, you know? The game itself however, is all over the place. I can only begin at the beginning, with intriguing lore that leads to a beginning that's ridiculously tough. It's literally a cliff, where sometimes the rocks you grab just crumble off or the entire thing you're hanging on from just falls. It is brutal, ruthless and you gotta use some cheese tactics with the Dream World (It in itslf is pretty neat) to get out of the beginning, let alone the hours that follow. Plenty of saves and loading needed. It takes a while before your character becomes competent but it's flexible in how you become competent, thanks to the neat skill system. Each equippable item has it's own "attunement", or skill(s) attached to it, where using it enough times allows you to master it and learn something new. It's really neat and offers some creativity in character building. Once that comes around in full swing, the difficulty begins to even out and that cliff becomes a hill, then a downward slope, then you're just sliding down with no breaks as you break the difficulty that broke you before. You become a God, and stroll to the late game tearing everything a new one. It's also kinda... sloppy, or messy. The game would pause whenever a cutscene plays or whenever you equip a different weapon upon starting it up in each session, but that could be just me. It's also derivative, being a total Diablo-esque game. But it hits that niche well eventually. And I enjoyed the writing, even gets past chuckleworthy at times. Probably a 3.5/5. Nice hidden gem that I wouldn't have given a look if not for the title. Not even close to perfect, but I'm glad I tried it out.
One of the old guard, but like Barristan Selmy, he can still kick some serious butt. It's as old-school as they come, focusing on constantly being on the move, emphasizing twitch shooting over cover firing in most occasions, and just being alert as all heck as you never know where the next enemy will come from. But that does mean that it can get exhausting if played for hours at a time. Had to play it a bit at a time for how frantic it got, sometimes you just need a break from always being on edge. But that's the point of it; fast, frantic, furious action! And it does it damn well. Arena-like locations, wide, outside warzones, cramped quarters; a bit of everything and backed up by solid controls. If the controls weren't good, then there would be no saving it. If anything, it's my fault that I couldn't remember the pause button for whenever I ALT-TAB out of it, but that's what quick save/load is for, which is definitely needed. It's not an easy game. The ambushes can be unfair at times and it will plant hitscan chaingun scorpions at the worst possible locations and sometimes that kamikaze will spawn right behind you. I saved countless times, quick-save and regular saves, and had to reload almost just as many times. But it's the kind of difficulty that makes you want to try again, if not at the time of death then later. It got me coming back to try again and eventually reach the end. Pretty satisfying overall, and some nice set pieces along the way. For a twitch shooter, I can ask for nothing more. It being pretty funny at times certainly helps, and it runs hella well. Minor puzzles, barely there, and just so much carnage and action.
I remember playing the first episode as a kid and having fun with it. Present day, I still had fun with it. It's really good for what it is, offering solid platforming action, a bit of thinking in map progression and some challenges. Getting all the loot is another bag of worms but if you're just going through it, collecting what's in your path and aiming for the end, then it wouldn't take you too long to beat. No bugs that I can recall, and while some jumps are tricky or need serious precision to get on that one block or moving platform, the controls felt solid. It feels good, which is half the battle in games like this. On sale, it's well worth checking out but definitely play it in bursts. I tried to blaze through it and I could feel myself burning out on it.
I played the shareware version in the past but that’s irrelevant. The game itself is solid, like an action-y Clyde’s Revenge. Main story segments are at the beginning and end of the episode, amusing and a passage or two reminded me of Monty Python which makes it a step above generic, and some more amusing explanations and notes within. The gameplay is classic platforming; floating platforms, lifts, secret rooms and collectathons. It throws a curveball or two with some special enemies but certainly feels of its time. It’s not overly hard, emphasizes exploration and has a nice difficulty where the main challenge is a self-imposed “beat the clock” to score points (No time limit that I know of) or to find all the treasures. It’s easy to find them all in the first episode but progressing through lends to more and more labyrinthine levels where finding the treasures is a monumental task in and of itself. You can create an unwinnable scenario concerning lifts mainly or getting stuck in a floor damaging spot but fortunately you can save and load up a level at the start, or just restart the level in general. You wouldn’t be set back far which is always a perk. It’s best in short bursts as a long session will make the game feel repetitive, and it is. Soon it’ll reveal all its tricks and enemies get reskinned, power-ups remain the same and the main changes would be the background and level design/aesthetic. It’s to be expected and the replay value is pretty low. It’s not hard to beat the high scores and there’s no real incentive to get everything apart from self-accomplishment. It wouldn’t take you long to beat it, a quick weekend game but it’s a nice trip through a bygone era of more simplistic platformers. Hardly essential, but a nice diversion if you’re in the mood for such a thing.
From the golden age of Lucasarts and adventure gaming in general. Well worth checking out for newbies or a refreshing blast from the past. + Absolutely top-notch writing. It’s hilarious, quotable, excessively charming, witty, snarky- it’s just excellent. Sometimes long-winded at parts but given who was speaking, it’s within character. Memorable and a half with references to not just Lucasarts or Lucasfilm things but to other media, including an Easter Egg or two. Also continuity, even if it’s for a gag or two. + Graphics, excellent across the board. The opening cutscene makes me doubt it was made in the early 90s for how good it is and the in-game ones don’t slack in details. From the fluid charm of Flint blowing holes in the wall, to Sam and Max performing actions, and how seamless it is between characters, background and interactable objects. + Surprisingly good sound work, specifically voices. It’s clear, crisp, diverse and you wouldn’t even need the subs. It’s optional, as you can just put on subs and turn off the voices but for some areas, they really enhance what’s going on. Music is great as a whole but the theme is a highlight. + The Hintbook gives you a selection of how much of a hint you want, from clues to an outright walkthrough. I needed to use it a time or two and it’s easy to use, the comics within it are quite nice too. - Some moon-logic puzzles, where you just can’t understand what the designers were thinking. Sometimes it's literal, other times you need a specific mindset but it can be frustrating all the same. - A small nitpick but some pixel hunting. It’s not a glaring example but it can not only impede your progress, but have you running around in circles because you didn’t check every single thing in a room. A bit of nostalgia for sure, but the game stands well on its own merits. It's not perfect, but it's high up there and worth a look. And the final plus? No way to create an unwinnable scenario.
One of the finest westerns around, that holds up to the test of time while catering to those who want a run and gun or a more careful playstyle. + “Where are you Marshal?” You’ll hear it and a lot of the other taunts plenty of times, but the delivery is tops, voice work is excellent and the music? It’s Ennio Morricone good. Gunfire sounds great too, excellent all around. + Looks really nice for its time. Stylized and smooth, things rotate to your perspective so you’re always facing them which feels good. Cut scenes, those are a treat. Reloading is also nice to look at, and just fanning the hammer has a satisfying look to it. + The gameplay, rock solid. The mainstay revolver feels good, rifle has a height drop off without the scope which lends to some interesting sniping and shotguns feel meaty. Another nice thing is the variety in weapons; multiple shotguns, good number of guns and other weaponry. + Story is simple; revenge. Well told, nice progression. + It’s got legs. DLC adds some stand-alone and bounties and while not story-heavy, it’s still pretty fun and in general more challenging than the main game. +/- The difficulty is… interesting. Good (Easy) is like Doom, running around and gunning everything down as an immortal. Bad (Normal), turns it into a tactical shooter, where a shotgun around a corner you can’t see can be a game over and being out in the open is a death sentence. The enemies are hitscan so it can seem a bit unfair at times. +/- Level designs range from good to bad. The Sawmill is hell itself while you get other maps like the Train that while cramped, are incredibly fun. And more wide-spaced ones, there’s something for everybody. Some of the DLC ones don’t always work but still nice overall. It’s not perfect but it’s still one amazing game, even if it’s your first time going through it. You can play it like Doom or a tactical shooter, some hidden rooms and easter eggs are around and enough action for a John Wayne movie.
A love/hate game, doing both right and wrong all over the place. + The music. Outstanding, and just about perfect. Not just the quality, but the mood. It turns a firefight into a tragic, desperate stand against terrible odds. It turns a shot in space into a grand sweeping one. It turns revelations into emotional affairs. It makes things exciting and engrossing, and elevates all. + Plot, developments and the intro is like a Hollywood movie with the credits in the cutscene, and when you get control, it continues it. Love it! The middle sometimes takes a backseat to action set-pieces, moving you from fight to fight and one reminiscent of the Beach of Normandy. It’s not a happy tale, but it’s an interesting one and well worth playing for, despite the massive cliffhanger. + Fun combat and powers, from the usual gravity manipulation and energy blasts, to time dilation, energy shields and frosty projectiles. You can dual wield guns and powers, bullet time and matrix dive while firing, and level them up enough and they get an alternate fire. Power recharges at a nice rate and ammo is plenty. - Bugs. Generic crashing issues throughout (Critical error), hangar bug near the beginning, and an instance where if you die in a vehicle segment in the first part, you respawn without a vehicle and have to restart and replay a chunk of it. Only a single instance of it freezing up though. It really does hamper your enjoyment and kills any momentum. - Controls, solid in parts, including swapping weapons and powers but flick targeting is a mess and hampers the camera, sometimes requires you to free aim and hope for the best. - Difficulty is all over the place. Pre-powers are tricky, gimmicky bosses, and a particular, short segment late-game where you can get one-shot by mook snipers. Not enough words for this but it’s a flawed, fun game that deserved a sequel and some polishing. The conclusion? Tops, cliffhanger aside. I enjoyed it, I hated it, and I don't regret playing it.
It's been a while since I played an adventure game, but this hit the fix quite nicely. It's not perfect, but it does enough right to be worth a look at. It has that old-school vibe without being ancient, and kicks off with a strong beginning, easing you into it and the plot-relevant comic is truly something else. Speech bubbles are voiced, and it introduces much of the cast, heroes and villains, while setting the tone for the comic world and setting up a good portion of the plot. But while the comic book start is excellent, it doesn't do as much with the hero angle as you'd think. It's more "Adventure" than using your heroic powers and going against the villains is more of a puzzle affair, most of them ending up in a timed mission. The time given is generous at least but multiple saves are warranted, especially with the amount of deaths/game over screens you can get from conversations or scenes. Some aren’t as obvious and may be accidental but they are neat to see. The writing really shines in death scenes and descriptions. It can be funny at times and the general dialogue dips into cheese and full on dives into it with the voice acting, which is hammy overall. FMV pop-ups make it even more so and it lends to the comic atmosphere. YMMV on it though, but I enjoyed it. Another perk is the hint book that comes with the game. You can get hints, or a straight up walkthrough depending on how much help you want. I needed some as some puzzles are a bit obtuse and due to graphical limitations, some objects aren’t that obvious to spot. It becomes a pixel hunt at times to see what you can interact with. But adventure gaming veterans would have no problems with it. If anything, the ending comes a bit too quickly and it’s over almost too soon. And before I forget, the music is incredibly good. Outside Cygnus Construction and inside the lobby of were two noteworthy ones but overall another reason to listen in. Overall, 3.5/5 but felt 4 stars would be better than 3.
