It's worth it, the expansions are neat but not really necessary. The only one I didn't like was royalty, but Biotech is pretty cool and the new anomaly one adds some challenge. I've sunk days worth of hours into this game and it's always fun and interesting.
Good: - Unique comic book style detective brought to life. - Fully voiced dialog throughout - Great murder mystery story that isn't overly cliche or predictable. - Native Xbox controller support - QTE's are forgiving in the sense that if you mess up and die, you start over at the QTE to retry it until you get it. - Deductions: a neat mode where you link up different clues you've collected into a larger concept. The game actually shows you an indicator if there is a "new deduction" so you're not constantly trying to brute force clues together until you get a winning combo. - Music and "direction" does a really good job of setting the scenery. Turn up your speakers and enjoy! - Speaking of direction: the scenes/interactions are done really well. Bad: - Blacksad's voice actor wasn't my favorite choice; It's probably how it's supposed to sound from like the comics/source material, but I was kind of hoping he would be a little less laid back sounding, it's like he doesn't have a ton of passion/emotion. Again, probably intentional, but it didn't pull me in. - No "run" option, you have to walk blacksad around to find clues, objects, etc. So if it's a larger room you may get frustrated not being able to traverse it quicker. I realize sprinting makes the game less immersive but it's a nice quality of life option. - Some glitches, not horrible, but I've had to restart the game once or twice in my first playthrough. Summary: You know, it's worth buying if you liked the tell tale games, or enjoy the noire style detective work post world war. The world of Colt M1911's, rounded classic cars, and a good old fashion murder mystery. I'm not disappointed with my purchase, actually for the price of $45 CDN I do feel I got my moneys worth.
Like scary stuff? No? Me either. But I love adventure games and there hasn't been one that knocked my socks off in a while. This game was a real gem from an indie company. Puzzles are logical to solve, and hints are scattered throughout the ship. I had to use a walkthrough for two puzzles. The rest I was happy to put my adventure game skills to good use and solve without much trouble. The game was scary but not totally reliant on jump scares. If you like getting your heart rate up, put on some headphones and get immersed in it. The ambient sounds range from quiet to loud, whispering to screaming. Combined with the gory visuals of a ship torn apart by it's own horrible experimentation, the game made me take it seriously. The writing was great and story played out really well. I won't spoil anything but I *liked* it when I finished it and look forward to it's sequel Cayne to continue the story. It was cheap, well designed, and while it took about 4-5 hours to beat I have to say I loved it from start to finish (it was hard to take a break!) There was just so much I needed to know, so much I needed to see-- and so much I instantly regretted as the deeper I went, the more horrific it got. Seriously, if you like adventure games- do yourself a favor and get it. It is totally worth your time and at a low cost, money well spent!
I'm really enjoying this game, it's reminiscent of Baldur's Gate without being too much like Pillars of Eternity. Graphic wise it looks a lot like Tyranny. The rule set is different from Pillars, a little more D&D like, but applies the whole disengagement rules that Pillars had. Characters are interesting enough, the art stylings are good. There are a few half-asseries, namely the number of character portraits and design options, however, you can add your own if you want more variety than stock. The combat is difficult for those unfamiliar with this kind of "true CRPG" that follows a tabletop rule set. There is a lot of behind the scene dice rolling (RNG) that simulates a player rolling a die. As a result, don't expect your characters to have consistent damage like some other RPGs. So far it is a really fun game, I was apprehensive about the kingdom simulation portion on it, but it doesn't detract from the dungeon crawl gameplay. The story hasn't developped enough for me to really comment on good/bad, from the way the dialog is crafted I'm thinking there should be an interesting one with some twists. I got in on sale, give it a go if you are looking for some modern day CRPG gameplay that has that true old school feeling, and isn't another PoE even with the same engine.
CDPR does it again with this new title from the critically acclaimed Witcher series. While not focusing on our usual protagonist of Geralt, we instead play the game as Meve, the fearless queen of Lyria and Rivia. Explore the lands of the Witcher solving quests, puzzles, and card-based combat in the very board-game like PC game that is Thronebreaker. With an excellent musical score, clever puzzle solving system, and graphic novel-like graphics: Thronebreaker takes game play up a notch, and really hits it home for what is sure to be a highly memorable and story-rich game. Before you know it, you'll find yourself immersed in the world of the Witcher, dealing with strifes of locals and monster attacks as queen. For those familiar with Gwent, your skills will be beneficial. However, Thronebreake's Gwent based combat system is a little different than traditional gwent. Veterans of the card game will find it adequate, and newer players (or simply those who weren't very good at gwent as a standalone game) will find it easy to pick up and fun. The game also incorporates these cards to solve particular puzzles, challenging players to explore different thought processes ultimately leading to a very satisfying victory when you solve that ever-so-challenging puzzle you were stuck on. if you enjoyed board games, medieval settings, and card based games like Gwent or Magic: The Gathering, this game will appeal to you. I highly recommend it, and it's even priced well from the start. It's a bargain and a gem, seriously, if you liked the witcher world or the books, you need this in your game library.
Having been a fan of Wadjet Eye adventure games, I decided to hop on this when I saw it on sale. I'm not disappointed with it at all, it was a good game, and had a great premise. There was something really lackluster though about the main story, it had it's twists and turns and great characters, but feeled a bit forced. I was hoping for more backstory from the characters but they were more of a minor role. The game is similar to Blackwell except you choose up to 2 of the 4 supporting characters to help you. Your main character is generated at the intro and can be male or female and has various roles. From there on you chase after a demon that left his footprint on the world in the year he was active. I've beaten it once and am working through a second playthrough to see if being a different starting character makes a difference. It's not expensive and it delivered so I can recommend it. But if you enjoyed blackwell, you'll also notice that the story suffered as a result of having to script so many different variables (e.g - dialog and different puzzle solutions if you brought different NPCs to help on a particular mission.) Whereas with blackwell it was just Joey, Rosa, and the NPCs. This one they almost seemed to cram too much than they could handle into a game. Again, they didn't break it, and I still liked it, but get it for $15 or less.
Much like Piranha Bytes' others games such as Gothic, the controls are unsurprisingly clunky in this one. If you can tolerate the basic combat, there is an incredibly lore to be found in this game. Lots of quests, multiple playthrough opportunities with different factions, and a cool blend of medieval/sci-fi/mad max. I couldn't push myself to get through it, tired of the combat and the grind. If you can tolerate it, you'll love the game for all it has to offer.
I haven't had a feeling about an A-RPG like this in a long time, and boy have I tried. At first there was Diablo, then Diablo 2 (OMG!) then Diablo 3 (hey... who watered down my game?) then there was Titan's Quest (ehh clunky), Torchlight 1 + 2 (perfection! but I kind of want more gritty less cartoony) so then I get Van Helsing 1 + 2 (Oh wow, just as gritty as I needed, but why is it so freaking unbalanced difficulty wise?)... Now, I pick up Grim Dawn. Good god! What a great game. It's got the grittiness I wanted from Diablo days, the RPG elements I missed, and all the smoothness and features of modern A-RPG's like item enhancement, etc. You will seriously not regret this game, it's just downright fun and all in all a great purchase. What are you waiting for? Get it for yourself with it's Ashes expansion, and get yourself some clicky-clicky and bring back that nostalgic Diablo gameplay you enjoyed as a youth!
I wouldn't call the game flawless but it delivers battletech back to us after many many years of silence. The combat is well designed and has a good feeling to it. While it can feel a little slow as far as turn based goes, it isn't nearly as painful as Tides of Numenera; The combat mechanics are well thought out and easy to learn, and the missions themselves begin easy and progressively get more difficult without any speed bumps. As a result, it's fun enough to play even though it's predominantly mech combat - but hey that's what we wanted right? HBS has done their typical writing, which I like considering they're a small outfit. The interface is similar to the one we've seen in their Shadowrun series. While I consider the interface amateurish, it does have all the bells and whistles to customize your mechs and character effectively and isn't totally ugly. Story is alright, I wouldn't say it's amazingly original but it does fit the BattleTech universe and includes several lore additions to make the game in-depth enough for any lore snob. Between combat, you remain on your ship. This allows you to travel between missions, rebuild and refit your mechs, sell items, recruit pilots, handle finances, and level up your pilots. The mechanic isn't fun but fits perfectly. It is important to note that the clock/money is against you; You have to pay upkeep costs and creditor dues all while waiting for travel times and mech repairs before you can even think about starting a new mission to make cash and cover your bills. While I just started into the game, I'm struggling with this mechanic, I haven't gone bankrupt, but it's basically like driving a crap box car to work and having to pay some large unexpected bills for repairs on it because you can't afford a new one. All in all as a fan of HBS I do like the game, but perhaps I'm a bit biased. Either way, nobody is going to make BattleTech and this is good enough for me.
I wouldn't call the game flawless but it delivers battletech back to us after many many years of silence. The combat is well designed and has a good feeling to it. While it can feel a little slow as far as turn based goes, it isn't nearly as painful as Tides of Numenera; The combat mechanics are well thought out and easy to learn, and the missions themselves begin easy and progressively get more difficult without any speed bumps. As a result, it's fun enough to play even though it's predominantly mech combat - but hey that's what we wanted right? HBS has done their typical writing, which I like considering they're a small outfit. The interface is similar to the one we've seen in their Shadowrun series. While I consider the interface amateurish, it does have all the bells and whistles to customize your mechs and character effectively and isn't totally ugly. Story is alright, I wouldn't say it's amazingly original but it does fit the BattleTech universe and includes several lore additions to make the game in-depth enough for any lore snob. Between combat, you remain on your ship. This allows you to travel between missions, rebuild and refit your mechs, sell items, recruit pilots, handle finances, and level up your pilots. The mechanic isn't fun but fits perfectly. It is important to note that the clock/money is against you; You have to pay upkeep costs and creditor dues all while waiting for travel times and mech repairs before you can even think about starting a new mission to make cash and cover your bills. While I just started into the game, I'm struggling with this mechanic, I haven't gone bankrupt, but it's basically like driving a crap box car to work and having to pay some large unexpected bills for repairs on it because you can't afford a new one. All in all as a fan of HBS I do like the game, but perhaps I'm a bit biased. Either way, nobody is going to make BattleTech and this is good enough for me.
