Deadlight is an action platformer set in an alternate timeline wherein a zombie apocalypse utterly decimates Earth in the late 80s. It's a short, but memorable adventure chock full of fantastic level design, impeccable atmosphere and just fun overall gameplay. In my review title, I said it's Prince of Persia meets The Walking Dead and really, I can't think of a better way to describe this. While it's a side scrolling platformer more akin to the original Prince of Persia, its gameplay has more in common with the Sands of Time trilogy that most people know the franchise for. As for the Walking Dead aspect, that's not just in terms of the zombies but also in terms of the overall atmosphere. It shares a similar depressive atmosphere to that of Telltale's Walking Dead adventure games. The atmosphere is majorly impacted by fantastic art direction, in particular. This game's art makes such beautiful use of a limited color palette to create a very bleak, but intriguing ambiance. Its overall gameplay is very refined, making it very smooth to traverse the levels and switching to weapons and other maneuvers feels quite intuitive. Furthermore, the storytelling in this game is perfect for a platformer, giving most of the narrative through the environment and the way that Randall interacts with the world; however, there are notes and hints toward other plot points that are quick and easy to read so that you're not spending ages reading text like you do in an RPG. The only real criticism I have is shared with many others here: the game is quite short for its price. To be fair, for what it is, it shouldn't be much longer than it is but still, $12 for a 5-ish hour platformer does feel a bit hefty. Nonetheless, I've gotten this for free twice (once thanks to Humble, the second time thanks to GOG) and thus I have no real reason to complain at a personal level because otherwise, Deadlight is a great platformer that I've thoroughly enjoyed throughout the entire time I've played it.
DISCLAIMER: I have the GOTY Edition, thus why my review is missing the "Verified Owner" badge. --- Blood and Wine is quite dichotomous. Its environment is beautiful and dreamy, like something straight from the fairytales that inspired Sapkowski's work in the first place, but unlike the way Sapkowski used those fairytales (adding a realistic/dark twist), this expansion just shows us the idealism of said legends. Its story involves knights and chivalry but also vampires and deep-cutting family squabbles. Its music reflects the beauty of the environment while simultaneously giving the player the sensation of melancholy because they realize this is Geralt's final adventure. Toussaint is EASILY as intriguing as the other environments in the game. Oh, and did I mention that it's gorgeous? The color palette is bright and ethereal, both night and day. The buildings, inspired by Tuscan architecture, create fantastical skylines. The armor of the region's knights is appropriately opulent, plated with shimmering gold and silver. The list goes on, it really does feel like something straight from a fairytale or a dream. On top of all of that, it adds new gameplay mechanics, including an endgame skill progression system that offers powerful perks that you can freely switch around as per your need. It balances out, though, because you can only have one of them active at a time. Fortunately, this mechanic DOES carry over into New Game+, so don't feel like you need to grind to make it worth your time before you finish this expansion. To sum it up, Blood and Wine is a masterpiece of an expansion. It brings Geralt's story to a satisfying end and, well, it made me want to read the books and play the previous games that much more. This expansion has played its part in my ever-growing love for the Witcher franchise and I really cannot wait to finish my NG+ playthrough so I can go through this expansion again!
Obsidian Entertainment is one of my favorite companies in the industry, simply because they make some of the most well-written and well-designed narrative RPGs ever. The Outer Worlds is arguably their most ambitious release and it was well worth the wait to get it on GOG. Where Mass Effect was Bioware's own version of a KOTOR sequel, The Outer Worlds is like Obsidian's own version of a KOTOR 2 sequel with some Fallout and Borderlands thrown into the mix and that mix is glorious. Let's get this straight: do not go into this expecting New Vegas 2. Don't go into it expecting a full, open world, either. However, you CAN go into it expecting a deep, narrative-driven roleplaying sandbox full of interesting characters, a unique plot, great humor, a phenomenal art style, fantastic world building and a deep-seated sense of space frontier gunslinging goodness. Let's get the weakest stuff out of the way: first off, the shooting mechanics, while serviceable, certainly aren't the best I've ever seen. This is an RPG, though, so that's hardly a major issue. I also feel like some of the companion features could have been more fleshed out. However, other than those two issues, I'd say The Outer Worlds excels in every other way, especially in the ways that truly matter. From the ability to influence dialogue based upon your character build to the sheer level of freedom you have when playing through the game's story, this game is a true roleplaying experience. I never once felt like I was artificially limited in the way I pursue my objectives. Blend that with excellent writing and you get a narrative-driven RPG that should be a modern classic, on par with the greatest of its peers. If you've ever wanted to just explore distant star systems, running around with a Han Solo-like swagger as you make your way through your stellar surroundings, this is literally the game for you. Obsidian did it again and this game absolutely gives me high hopes for the future of RPGs.
Disclaimer: I own the GOTY edition of the game, thus this may not include the "Verified owner" badge. The Witcher 3: Hearts of Stone, the first expansion to the 2015 masterpiece, is a true expansion pack, and a fantastic one at that. Since the rise of the era of DLCs, expansion packs have virtually disappeared except within the context of MMORPGs. CDPR brings them back with The Witcher 3 and shows that there is absolutely zero reason that studios should avoid making them, even in the 2020s. While Blood and Wine is definitely a better execution of the concept of an expansion pack, Hearts of Stone adds a whole new main quest, lots of gameplay additions and adds further detail to the already richly-detailed world present in the base game. Hearts of Stone tells a tragic story that involves love, family, curses and ambition. Geralt gets wrapped up in the story and, just like the base game, you're given the unique opportunity to strongly influence the chain of events that occur. Your choices still have the same level of consequences that the base game created and this ensures that this expansion is just as satisfying to play as the base game is. However, where Hearts of Stone really shines is within its writing. CDPR are absolutely masterful writers, as evidenced by all of their games. This expansion is not any different. The writing here is extremely solid, sometimes eclipsing the immaculate writing present in the base game. Neither the "good guys" nor the "bad guys" are 100% what they seem and you're allowed to place Geralt's morality anywhere between those two extremes. By the end of the story, my preconceived thoughts about all of the characters were changed in some way. The story even got emotional at times, though your mileage may vary since the emotional parts were due to how relatable they were for me. Altogether, Hearts of Stone is absolutely worth a purchase at any price. If you even slightly liked The Witcher 3, you'll definitely enjoy this.
Until now, I didn't realize that these free DLCs have their own page, so I figured I'd add a quick review. These DLCs aren't anything particularly incredible. By that, I mean that they're not huge, not super significant or anything of the like. However, they ARE nice quality-of-life fixes that add further options to an already free, open game. They do a great job of tying the entire game experience together, making The Witcher 3 (particularly the GOTY Edition) truly feel complete. Everything from hair and beard options, to alternative looks for certain characters, to new animations and even a couple new quests, these DLCs are just the sprinkles on top of the cake, if you will. I'd say my favorite part of this entire package are the quests, particularly Where the Cat and Wolf Play. It's an extremely humorous and highly memorable quest that had me rolling throughout. In a rather dark fantasy world like what we see in the Witcher series, having goofy/lighthearted quests here and there just helps to lighten the mood a bit. In summary, this package helps to bring total completion to one of the greatest masterpieces in the history of the games industry and CDPR just absolutely rules.
When it comes to the Jedi Knight games, most people tend to point to Jedi Knight II: Jedi Outcast as their favorite. While I believe every single game in the series is phenomenal (with Academy being my personal favorite), I still believe that the first game is undoubtedly the most underappreciated of the trilogy. Jedi Knight: Dark Forces II is a classic Quake-era shooter in almost every way. Its controls, while running on the WASD setup, are significantly different than modern shooters. For example, by default, the spacebar activates things whereas RMB jumps. Thermal detonators (grenades) have their own number key rather than pushing G. You carry an entire arsenal with you. The list goes on. However, where this game veers from being every other shooter of the era is that it adds hack-n-slash gameplay once the protagonist, Kyle Katarn, obtains a lightsaber and starts building his Force abilities. This game depicts the transition of Kyle from smuggler & part-time Rebel agent into a roguish Jedi Knight, and it does so in a way that feels like a real adventure. Kyle isn't TRAINING to become a Jedi, he simply becomes one by adapting and learning during the course of his mission to hunt Dark Jedi Jerec, who is attempting to take charge of the Imperial Remnant and restart the Empire. As you progress through the story, Kyle learns more about himself and about the Force, making his journey feel so much more organic. The story isn't anything particularly groundbreaking and the FMV cutscenes tend to feel slightly corny, but the gameplay and atmosphere make those complaints a nonissue. Every. single. moment of this game is soaked in Star Wars atmosphere and despite its nostalgic low-poly 90s 3D, it immediately immerses you into the galaxy far, far away and really takes you on a whole new adventure that feels like the films. If you love Star Wars (in any way) and if you enjoy shooters from the Quake era, you absolutely need to play this game and its expansion!
