I like everything about this game except one thing, which I'll get to in a bit. The environments are varied, and beautiful. A real treat. The character design is absolutely exceptional. Every character, good, bad, enemy, boss, they're all unique and appropriate in appearance. Voice acting is terrific, with each actor carrying their weight and every voice matching each face. The progression system is satisfying and what you would expect from the series. Now the issue. The combat is very obviously inspired by Dark Souls -- no issue there. For the most part, it's fine. It's visceral, with bone crushing animations and sound effects, satisfying moves and weapons to play with. But then there's this one little mechanic: dodging. See, in Dark Souls, you can dodge, parry or block. In Darksiders you can... dodge. That's it. You either tank hits, or you dodge hits. There is no other option. It is extremely exhausting to rely on the same mechanic over and over, with no other alternative. At least for me. Note that many people don't even notice this as an issue. You may not notice or care. I did not notice this issue until I was 20 hours in. I'm not even a fanboy of Dark Souls, as a matter of fact the only Soulsborne title I like is Dark Souls 2, which is universally the least liked of the series. My point is I don't care enough about Dark Souls to compare Darksiders 3 with Dark Souls. But this game's combat forced the thought into my mind because it is simply so dull to me in comparison. Dodge, hit, dodge, hit, repeat.
In general the game is very satisfying and rewarding to play. Unlocks trickle on to the player throughout the game in a consistent enough fashion to have kept me playing; the driving is fun and very fluid (arcade over simulation style); combat is satisfying with decent controls, a cover system that actually works, stealth that makes sense, guns that are balanced and have oomph; the voice acting is terrific -- all the pillars of a good open world GTA-clone. There's just one issue: you're doing the same things over and over again throughout the duration of the game. Over. And over. And over again. Not everyone will get into it because of this, but I had a lot of fun. Will likely never play through it again or pick up the DLC's (which allegedly break up the monotony), but my first and only playthrough was a lot of fun.
Ignore the 'most helpful' review; this version of Saints Row 2 is not fixed nor superior to other versions. It's still a broken mess on PC and newer versions of Windows. Saints Row 2 is objectively the best in the series. This was Saints Row before it turned into a parody of the open-world-crime genre.
Gremlins is a fairytale spin on Monopoly, sort of, and I use the term 'fairytale' very liberally. Gremlins has no fairies in it, though it does perhaps tell a tale. A tale of gremlins and dastardly deeds, politics and rivalries. But mostly gremlins. Gremlins is nigh-strictly a multiplayer game, with the option to play single player or the limited challenges, though these are not what you want to play Gremlins, Inc. for. You want to play Gremlins for the multiplayer, plain and simple. Explaining Gremlins, Inc. is complicated. Like most good board games, you really need to play it YOURSELF than instead have someone or a video relay to you what you might need to know before purchasing. The game is easy to learn, but difficult to master, and with each match playing out extraordinarily different from those you've played prior as the dynamic between players constantly shifts and changes, you'll want to keep playing. Over and over. The artstyle is original and clean. It is very well done. The developers frequently update the game, and all gameplay-affecting content is FREE. The three current DLC's are purely cosmetic, and act as a way of showing the developers your appreciation. The playercount is not 'big', though it is healthy for a niche game such as this. On Steam Charts roughly 150-200 people play daily, and these are almost, if not all, participating in multiplayer matches. It is never hard to find a game at any time of the day (or night!). The community is friendly and helpful. There is no in-game chat (opting instead for the Hearthstone approach of strictly emotes and quips) but you can interact with the community primarily on the Steam forums (and hopefully now on the GoG forums as well). In conclusion: if you like group boardgames that involve social dynamics, you'll enjoy Gremlins, Inc. If you like Monopoly, you'll enjoy Gremlins, Inc.
They finally added it. Everything there is to say about this wonderful game has already been said here, on the Steam discussion boards, in magazines, websites in all languages and from critics over a decade ago. This is one of the best there is. Buy it. Patch it. Play it. Love it. I don't care if you're a fan of Troika, a fan of Vampire, a fan of RPG's, or none of the above; play this masterpiece.
