Togges isn't platformer at all. Not even stackforming adventure, as the second trailer advertises. I'd say it's a trailblazing puzzler. Something new under the sun. Finally! It's also a collect-a-thon - though not in the sense of Mario and the likes, to which it gets constantly compared. Yes, the aesthetics do remind of Mario Galaxy, and yes - there is some jumping involved. But that's pretty much where the similarities end. Your character is a Roomba ... uh, 'scuseme ... TOOMBA vacuum cleaner. And though it can indeed vacuum, it's primary task is quite opposite: s#itting bricks, called Togges. I kid you not. Your job is to lay a trail of Togges to seemingly unreachable places. Each colour has its own dis/advantages: red survive fire, blue water, black survive everything, green are bigger, yellow conduct electricity, white stack without limit... Trick is, you start each level with one colour and have to unlock others one by one. And you can lay a Togge only next to one with the same colour - meaning you can change to another colour only at some predefined points, which you have to reach first - over different obstacles. Some of these puzzles are simple, some really difficult. Most require observing and thinking, not reflexes. And you don't need to solve them all to finish a level. It's perfectly playable with mouse/keyboard, or with a game controller, but there are some minor issues with controls. Not much, but in those few parts, where where speed and reflexes are indeed needed, such issues (esp. if your moves are a bit imperfect) will require you to repeat the task ad nauseam, causing unnecessary frustration in otherwise relaxed, stress-free game. Because of this and of some other bugs I docked a star. (There were game crashes, getting stuck in the air etc. - fortunately not much progress is lost at each game restart.) Otherwise it's a lovely, quite relaxing, yet addictive time-sink, based on a fresh idea. Suitable for kids just as well as seasoned gamers.
I'll keep this short, because the "Most helpful review" by TigerLord already explains things in detail and I agree with most of it. For me as well, Witcher 2 is definitely the weakest part of the series. Yes, I actually liked the first game better. And, of course, W3 is beyond comparison as the best RPG *ever* (perhaps even best game overall - at least IMHO) and deserves 5+ grade. Now, don't get me wrong: W2 is *still* better than some 80% of RPGs out there. So, if it was a stand-alone game, not part of Witcher series, I'd gladly give him 5 stars. But as things stand, compared to the other two, I have to dock a star. Bottom line: W2 is definitely worth playing and I recommend playing the series in order 1-3. (I played them in order 1, 3, 2 instead and rather regret this decision.) Not just because the proper order makes the most sense story-wise (though if you've read the Witcher books, you know most of the background story already - and if you haven't, what on Earth are you waiting for?), but also because W1 gets you properly introduced to the series and gives you appetite for more. This will make the W2 play through more enjoyable, knowing that the absolute best is yet to come. :)
While FO1 was fun at the lowest (Bronze) level, it got quite grindy and tedious later. FO2 OTOH is tons fun through and through. Though same tracks are reused throughout different racing cups (and I wouldn't mind if there were some more) they still vary enough that I never got bored with them. Also, the absurdly slippery snow tracks from FO1 (where you flew off the track every other turn) are gone. Yay! While it still happens that someone might hit and spin you off just before finish, 90% of the time you'll only crash due to your own mistakes. IMHO the best change is that you don't need to finish among top-three on every single track to unlock the next one. If you earn enough total points in each cup (which consist of a bunch of tracks - usually 3 to 5), you can advance. I actually managed to get gold in *every* cup (not counting the optional silly "events" - destruction derby, ski jump etc.) - even though I didn't win every track. Races were challenging enough to keep it interesting, without ever becoming tedious. Now you can earn monies not only by winning, but also by hitting other cars, shoving them into obstacles, doing fastest laps, damaging the environment etc. All that income suffices for gradual upgrades to your car - not necessarily to beat every opponent in every race, but enough of them to come out on top in every cup totals. Meaning, you don't need to buy each new car you unlock. Actually, if you choose your starting car for each of the three classes well enough, you can finish the whole class with it (if you prioritize stability of your chosen car over its speed - at least this worked for me.) I only bought one extra car in the top (Street) class for the heck of it. (I already had all the upgrades for my Scorpion and still earned enough dough for the Canyon.) FO2 requires somewhat more resources than FO1, but still runs perfectly well on weaker computers. In every possible screen resolution and with improved graphics to boot. Fully recommended!
