Was looking for a game to play with my daughter. Rather good game for inexperienced gamers, kind of sweet, didn't bore me and she had fun...but darn its short. Now we didn't find all the easter eggs, but the main quest took us something like 3 hours. Thank god I bought it on sale. I'd give a higher rating if it wasn't for the length of the main game.
I'm not into WH40K. If I were, I would've given this another star as it would fill a certain need. This is basically a very Lite 4X. Forget about diplomacy, commerce and the like, The economic system is very basic and, maybe that's just me, but not being able to stack units makes combat somewhat less interesting, combat that is fairly run of the mill as far as the 4X genre is concerned. Usually, a 4X game will challenge you. Its the kind of game you play not to relax, but to stimulate your brain. Gladius instead offers a relatively relaxing game. You learn all the basics on your first game. As many have said, the base game is very drab...But then, I fail to see how a strategy player who is not a WH40K afficionado would be tempted to invest in the DLCs...in fact, the standard price is far more then I would pay for this, again, for I'm not a WH40K fan. Of course, I'm pretty happy with it seeing as it was on giveaway.
My daughter being addicted to foxes at the moment, I bought this game on sale. Story: rather typical "I didn't spend enouch time with my dad while he was living" type of story Music: relaxing but nothing to write home about Gameplay: What gameplay? You run around, click to dig up old toys and can double jump over cliffs. Graphics: pleasing but nothing extraordinary to look at But you play as a fox. My kid loves it and I can just relax looking at a fox stroll around, which can be better then playing "snakes and ladders" once in a while. Admitedly, I didn't finish it as at some point you're not a fox anymore and didn't manage to catch the riddle since my kid is always talking which might be linked to "not being a fox anymore". But yeah, you're a fox.
The base game is really something. Couldn't recommend it enough even if rpg's often aren't my thing. But this? This DLC feels rushed, it is quite clearly incomplete, your forced into certain paths... I've barely scratched the surface of this DLC, barely made a few questsd, but now I can't even get to the old wall for the choices I have made. Should've just declared the bastards illegall from the start.
First, I must say that I'm not much of a rpg player, Though I did play the hell out of Fallout 1/2, Baldur's gate 1/2 and fallout new vegas (remember Van Buren), all developped by parts of the same team that made Tyranny. This feels every bit like BG. The setting is less epic, but then it fits with its more "bronze age feel". It is refreshing in this sense and the lore is fitting, abundant and quite enjoyable. I've seen many reviews downplaying the sandbox element as far as "freedom of choice" is concerned. But this isn't New Vegas nor should it be. Your PC is basically a roving judge, it is only through the events that he distinguishes himself as a "superior being", able to vanquish all foes. It is also fitting, in this bronze age like setting that his option are more limited, the influence of the setting's "Tyrant" is all encompassing yet relative, as it should be. The whole setting is also ambiguous, you are not a mere puppet of a vilainouss character, you're the voice of an emperor which brings submission but also peace and stability, if only the populace will have it. You are free to choose which legion to favor in their squabble. You are free to aid the rebellious natives...and you are free to simply strike out on your own in a quest of power. Combat is somewhat repetitive but has a few nice twists. The spell system is unique and it is quite enjoyable to build your own. Combat itself is driven by the character abilities, which I find interesting, though it lacks the divrsity offered by BG. You do spend a lot of time waiting for your abilities to cool down. Another interesting concept is that of engagement which simulates the opening created by turning your back on the enemy. You can't run around the battlefield like a headless turkey, which feels appropriate. As I've said, the story is quite well written and I've actually taken the time to read every dialogue, every lore entry. The choices feel meaningfull and you can truely roleplay a free willed being.
Saw this game a while ago, my interest was captured by the fact the story is set in my culture, which is a first to my knowledge. Saw it was frre recently and despite having little time to play video games, this week I figured I'd give it a try. The music at the start of the game (hey, I know that band!) immediately tugged at my heart, and by the time I heard the first french dialogue with all the "Canayen" feel it had, from the choice of words to the accents, a tear started forming in the corner of my eye. The action immediately made me think of the fable series, which i'm not a big fan of but played a bit, and I must say this game uses the formula quite well. This coupled with the "strategic" panel which enables you to plan the night's defense and trap laying works quite well, an interesting take on the tower defence genre. The "buying stuff" part is no non-sense and effective, it kind of harkens back to late 90's games. I gave it 4 stars...and this is an objective rating, I'm not considering the national pride aspect nor the fact it's free. Seriously, try it, at this price, all it costs is you time and it is well worth it.
I'd rate this 4.5 stars but this deserves a boost for the overall rating. The mix of 4X and RPG is very well done and quite interesting, the atmosphere is top notch and using Slavic mythology brings a certain dose of freshness to the RPG part of the genre, somewhat off the beaten paths, a change of pace from the usual orcs and goblins. I'd like to point out, having seen reviews which were not to fond of the system, that having 3 "types" of "challenges" (read battles) was pointless. I disagree. I find it quite interesting that they built this part of the game to reflect the fact that note every battle is one of brawn. Brawn, wit and spirituality, three types of battles which deserve to be considered apart from one another. I'm not too fond of card games, but the way its implemented is quite good and as I said, having three types of battle gives more personnality to it all. It does force you to keep tabs on all your characters so as to know which one is better at ouwitting the ennemy, ducking it out with weapons or scaring away spirits, but the fact that your leading a party and not a whole nation as is customary to 4X games makes it manageable.
This game had caught my attention a little while ago, the feel looked quite interesting and the fact I could possibly play it with my wife made it all the more interesting, but with not enough time to play the games I already have, I passed until it was on (a big) discount. Unfortunately, my wifes first foray into RTS has been a bit of a failure (playing a RTS for the first time must be pretty overwhelming when your used to turn-based strategy) BUT...this game is the real deal. 'Course I'm a sucker for the russian revolution period, loved the redwall animated series as a kid and have always appreciated the short story "the lottery" and the whole atmosphere of Tooth and Tails feels like a big melting pot of those 3 influences...still, the fact is this is a deliciously concocted melting pot with just the right blend of spices... soundtrack is awesome and very fitting to boot. The action is frantic, very fast paced, can be a bit frustrating at times but it offers a light-hearted challenge every time. Losing a battle after 5 minutes is less of a kick in the parts then realising your front is collapsing after playing for 5 hours. Ain't finished the story mode yet but I disagree with the negative reviews, the "old 16bit rpg style" interactions with characters between missions is a very good way of exposing the world and reasons your waging war and while the writing and exposure isn't up to the standards of great classics, this simply ain't that kind of game...for an "indie" game, the quality is quite good. The graphics are cute and fit like a glove with the rest of the atmosphere this game offers...but it feels clunky at times, as any "pixel soup" should. 'Suppose that's part of the charm. And of course...a PC RTS with the option to play with friends on the same computer in split-screen mode? BRILLIANT! Just for this, I'd give it a half star more, but I can't. So yeah, this game has its limits, but its the best 6 bucks or so I've spent this christmas.
I've always been facinated by whaling. I remember fondly my visits to the New Bedford whaling museum and I've read Moby Dick 3 times (big fan of Malville of course). A whaling game has always been a dream of mine and I was delighted to discover the existence of Nantucket a while ago...Well it's not quite what I was wishing for but it does the job. The shantys (which, with the latest version of the game, play on 'till the end of the tune) give the atmosphere by themsleves, the rest being well done makes it so that you do feel like your the captain of a whaler. Unfortunatly, as many have said, the events repeat themselves alot after a while, but this ain't a AAA game after all. The economic side is simple but enough to keep you interested, the leveling and the battles like wise, simple but very satisfying...it's a shame it's nothing like a real whale hunt (The very heart of the struggle is, to me, harpooning the great beast and then managing to get your lancer to the front of the boat to deliver the killing blow...how could they not implement that?), but again, it's a fair shot by an indie studio...this game is alot like "caravan", the old flash game "kind of based" on fallout. Essentially, it's a good but limited game, kind of game you'll play through the end if you have the time, or it can become your "go to game" when you have 15 minutes between putting the kids to bed and your last snack, personnaly, this and FTL are the 2 only games I,ve been using these last 2 years in this role. When on special it's amptly worth it's price, good indie game for experiencing (somewhat) the golden age of whaling or killing a few minutes if a battle of life and death with a leviathan, and it gets you to discover the "Roaring Trowmen" whom sing the shantys...seriously their one of the bands on my playlist driving to and back from work.
This is actually 4.5 stars. So not long ago, this was for free on gog...the shadowrun universe being from the by-gone FASA company (whose other products I love/loved), I figured I'd get it even though I don't have the time to immerse myself in a rpg. 'ts free right? But then a week later I get this urge of playing a good crpg. It's not my favorite genre but I played the hell out of baldur's gate and fallout (remember Van Buren)...so I start looking into the new stuff that's been made since, like pillars of eternity and the new wastelands (Here I must note I hadn't bought a new computer game since 2004). Then I remember about the shadowrun trilogy I just got. What they hey, I don't have to pay for it and it's made by HBS company, which made a great job with battletech... Well, even though I theoretically don't have time for a crpg, It's the only game i've been playing these last few weeks. Mechanics are an interesting change of pace from what i'm used and works well. Graphics amply do the job. Story has good twists. The NPCs are interesting and interactions, while not as marvellous as a fallout or epic as a baldur's gate, are actually worth going through and reading everything. The mood and universe are also a change of pace and well done. I am quite pleasantly surprised, but here's a tip: If you buy this, start with "shadowrun:returns"...not sure of the game I started with dragonfall as it was reviewed as the best of the lot...but it's good enough that you'll want to play the whole trilogy....start with the first one.
