I have played all three of the games in this collection, and they are all pretty great. The first two (Call Of Juarez" (2006) and "Call Of Juarez: Bound In Blood" (2009)) are fairly standard FPS games as far as design goes, but very nicely done. The quick-draw feature is extremely entertaining. The only negative I can think of is that the stealth section in the original game has a horrible insta-fail condition, which was very frustrating. The third game in the series is actually not included in this collection, as there are four games in total in this series. The missing game is called "Call Of Juarez: The Cartel" (2011). It tries to connect the previous games to present-day. The action is fine, however most folks wanted another Old West setting, not present-day, and I didn't enjoy it nearly as much because of this major change. Even so, I'd like to see it appear on GOG someday. The fourth game in the series, "Call Of Juarez: Gunslinger" (2013), is included however, and is probably overall the highest-rated game in the series. It is still an FPS, but it's all about fast action and it scores like an arcade game. While I personally enjoyed the first two games more, I do have to admit that the addictive quality to this game makes it hard to put down, and I can't really criticize it for anything, as it does what it does perfectly. So even at full price, this is a great collection if you are an FPS or Old West enthusiast. And if you are not an enthusiast, maybe wait for a sale, but either way, if you like great games, I do recommend this collection.
I can't help it: I simply adore eurojank, and Gothic is a prime reason why. I love this game because it's unpredictable. Most modern games lead you around by the nose, telling you exactly what to do, where to go, and how to get there. And after a while, those modern games all start to put me to sleep. Not Gothic. What happens in this game doesn't always make sense, but it holds my interest and keeps me playing long past my bedtime. Gothic, along with Gothic 2, are among my favorite RPGs. Combat and controls really try my patience, but with dedication, these things can be mastered. The graphics, given their age, really hold up quite well and are sharp and clear. I love these graphics. Difficulty can be high, but again, with perseverance, you can push through! However, if what you want is a smooth triple-A experience, this game is not for you. For me however, playing this game again takes me back to my early days of gaming, when you never really knew what to expect from PC games, and when a new game came out, half the fun was installing it and figuring out what kind of game you just bought by actually experimenting with it and getting drawn into its world. My most enjoyable gaming years were between 1993 and 2004. Those were exciting and unpredictable times. After that, games began to really become a lot more standardized and less interesting to me, in part because bigger companies began to get involved, making profit the top priority rather than interesting worlds and interesting gameplay. Gothic 1 and 2 represented for me the end of an era. I recommend these games.
Yes, this is a relatively linear game with super AI that knows where you are the moment you take your shot. Yes, Sniper Elite 3, 4 and 5 are better in many ways. So there are the problems in a nutshell. So why am I not docking this game any points? Because when this game was released, I had more fun with it than any other game at that time. But listen, you've got to take this game on its own terms. Once you become accustomed to its quirks, it totally plays fair by those rules, and thus became my game of the year for 2012. Because this game is fun. Really fun. But it's fun in its own way. It plays kind of like an arcade shooter in that the path is quite linear, and your targets will appear in the same places every time. But I can dig that. That said, it's absolutely not on rails, and the game does allow you to take alternate paths in many places. And the pathways that are there are wide paths, with various places you can use for cover, so no two people will be playing this game the same way. If you can accept this game for what it is, I think you'll find that it's a great game. But if anything I've mentioned triggers a bad reaction in you, then yeah it's probably best to avoid.
And yes I know they've changed the name to CI Games, but as a long time player of their games, I'll always have a soft spot for the City Interactive name. I just think it's a better name, dammit. I've actually enjoyed every sniper game that City Interactive has put out going back many years now. And while the Sniper Elite games by Rebellion are arguably better games overall, I've never really enjoyed playing games like this in third person, and so the Ghost Warrior games just appeal to me more on that level, and that is a big plus in my book. Others will not agree, and that's okay. I enjoyed the first Ghost Warrior game from 2010, even though they were still finding their footing there. It had some problems, but they were small problems, and I had enough fun that I finished it twice. And every sniper game they've released since then has only gotten better, bit by bit. They've learned from their mistakes and keep refining the formula, and Sniper Ghost Warrior Contracts 2 is in my opinion the best one yet. The new aiming system took a bit of getting used to for me, but once I had it figured out, I actually like it the best. Controls are smooth, as is the gameplay. I've never had a crash yet. I'd actually give this game 4.5 stars, but this system won't allow that, so 4 stars it is. It's a good, solid sniper game, and I hope the series continues.
Sure, this game was running on a highly-modified but outdated engine. Sure, it suffered from lack of features for that era because of that engine. Sure, the 90 degree walls made the all of levels look same-y. But the one thing that ROTT had that no other FPS game of the era had was pure, unadulterated ATTITUDE. And furthermore, despite the limitations of its older engine, it managed to be a lot of fun, partly due to that attitude, but also because of the clever (sometimes too clever) use of environmental puzzles. But those puzzles, while clever, could also be infuriatingly difficult and unintuitive. Thus, while I did finish the shareware episode (The Hunt Begins) multiple times, try as I might, I never finished the proper game (Dark War). The frustration level got to be too great for me, and I bailed out after many, many hours of effort. So how is the "Ludicrous Edition"? It brought back ALL of those wonderful and vivid memories in spades. And it's all here: The shareware episode, the full game, expansion packs, and even a huge new episode with over 20 levels designed by a host of classic and current FPS level designers. And it looks great without going overboard. Widescreen and 4K no problem. But best of all, it FEELS great. It uses modern controls out of the box, with every key re-definable and mouselook enabled. And the gameplay is super-smooth. You've got a choice of four different soundtracks, and the SFX sounds are better than they have ever sounded before. I don't know if I will ever have the patience to finish the game (I'm currently only a few levels into it), because according to my memories, the later-game puzzles could be downright devious at times, but now that it finally looks and plays right on modern equipment, I'm sure gonna give it a try.
Playing this game years ago, it was obvious to me that the developers put a lot of effort into this. I got stuck multiple times on puzzles that stumped me, and yet I still score this game high because of the stellar job they did in creating a Lovecraft-worthy atmosphere. A perfect game to play on a rainy day, or better yet, stormy night. I can easily recommend this, whether it's on sale or not, as the non-sale price is really quite reasonable. One of my favorite Lovecraftian adventure titles.
This game gets 5 stars from me, but ONLY if I'm playing it as a challenge to survive this game until the end. I have never beat this game. I have never even beat the first 10 sewer levels. That's how hard core this game is. If you are playing this game for enjoyment, not challenge, then forget about it. One star. This game apparently had one good level (with the flamethrower), and that was the Demo level. So if it's enjoyment you're looking for, seek out that Demo. It's your only hope. Seriously though, I might have had fun with this very sub-par Wolf 3D clone had they completely done away with the sewer (or basement I guess) levels at the beginning. Those levels will break you. They are too dark to see anything, the map sucks, and they go on forever. If the rest of the game is similar to the Demo level, and you can get that far, it might be okay. Maybe. If you're not at all discriminating. My final advice? Spend your money on GOG's other new arrival instead. Corridor 7 is another Wolf 3D clone, but it has a charm of its own, and can be fun.
I bought this game when it was first released back in 2001 at our local Software Etc. It came in a simple small cardboard box, had decent artwork on the cover (if a little vague), and was published here in the USA as just plain "Codename: Outbreak" by Virgin Interactive as part of their short-lived "Anytime Anywhere 20 Bucks" series. The game came in a cheap (but unique) plastic case inside the box, with nothing else. No paper manual, or warranty card or anything. Just the CD in the case in the box, for $19.99. This was the FPS of that series (which I believe only ever contained three other games from different genres. I had no idea who GSC Game World was at the time, little realizing that they would go on to create quite possibly my favorite FPS series ever. This ran really well, and I had a lot of fun with it. It was nothing groundbreaking, but plenty interesting enough to hold my attention the whole way through. I finished it pretty quickly (in a few sittings), but it was a pretty long game by today's standards. If you go into this expecting modern graphics, you are visiting the wrong website. However, I feel that the graphics hold up pretty well, all things considered. Then again, I am pretty easy to please when it comes to graphics. I am more concerned with atmosphere and level design. The former is great, and the latter is just good. The AI was not stellar, but it got the job done, and I had a blast with this game overall. Accept this game on its own terms, and in the spirit of the times, and I believe that you will have as much fun as I did. But again, if you are in no way nostalgic, you might want to stick with newer games. However, I believe most of us here at gog do have a place in our hearts for games like this. Nostalgia is one of the main reasons I'm here, so this game fits in nicely with my gog collection. I hope you can manage to enjoy it as much as I did.
If you can accept "Kholat" as more of an experience rather than a game, you'll enjoy it. It's not quite a walking simulator, as there are some gaming elements. You'll be avoiding malevolent entities, running from them, piecing together the story by picking up notes, and trying not to get lost by using your compass and map. This map reading is a challenge, as it does not show you where you are. You need to figure it out based on the fact that it does show you where all of the notes you picked up are. From there, you use deduction based on your compass. I'm getting creeped out in this game. Its atmosphere is spot-on. There are certain things you need to do, however you can explore as much as you like, and I got lost a few times. The graphics use Unreal Engine 4, and look spectacular. It runs well, and the controls are tight. Enjoyable and spooky game.
