Lots of folks compare this (with reason) to Planescape: Torment, I have not played Planescape so I won't be making comparisons. Torment: Tides of Numenera takes place in a strange Sci-fi/Psudo Fantasy world, called the Ninth World, built on the ruins of civilizations past, the titular Numenera are old tech so advanced, it may as well be magic. Now, when it comes to the worldbuilding, while I find many elements interesting, other facets of this setting feel weird, for the sake of being weird. It's a mixed bag. The story follows the Last Castoff, a former shell discarded by the Changing God, who now has to contend with a monster called the Sarrow that seeks their desruction. Your character's a blank slate in many ways, fitting the story, but considering your preestablished past as the body of the guy who made you, the Last Castoff is less 'Blank Slate' and more '50% Blank Slate' I don't consider this a knock against the game, as the story does have some good hooks and turns. I gotta be real here. While the story has a fair bit of intrigue, and you get to learn much about the world, many characters felt, as with the setting, werid for its own sake, but others I found more engaging or felt needed more time in the limelight, honestly the lore surrounding the Changing God and the Castoffs is where it all shines. So, gameplay... honestly you're going to spend most of your time reading, as an avid reader, this wasn't too big an issue, if you want something more action-packed, this isn't the game for you. Speaking of combat, the 'Crisis Events' seem few and far between, and while being turn based allows you to think and plan, what your supposed to do, or how the mechanics even work isn't always clear. I do like how each crisis gives you several ways of resolving them. Often I found using my wits or words pretty satisfying most of the time over fighting. This isn't a bad game, but it feels lacking. It's weird, slowpaced and text heavy, but it's decent.
So, I guess to start, I am a star wars fan, and I've always liked the clone troopers, so this game's premise was a done deal when I was a kid (I played the hell out of this back in the day). So you're apart of Delta Squad, an elite team of clones assigned to covert ops throughout the Clone Wars, in terms of story... I'll be honest, there isn't much, and this game has a very different feel than most star wars media, but unlike say, Kotor II they don't really use this grounded, more gritter tone to tell a unique story, and the linear nature of the levels doesn't help either, but I do like Delta Squad, they don't have tons of depth or moments to delve into their personalities, but what's there is cool. Regarding the gameplay, it's pretty simple, you go through a level, you assign your squad to take certain positions or issue other tactical orders against your enemy with a decent array of weapons to use (My favorites are the Trandoshan shotgun and minigun), the only catch I have with the competent gameplay is that many enemies are tanky, and I feel that Delta Squad is not as durable as they could be, given the growing challenge the game sends your way. In technical areas, on Win10 I found it runs fine, I did notice some textures being messed up (Mainly that the clones' armor has grey patches) and the game shows its age in the visual department, and the mouse can be VERY sensitive. So, all in all Republic Commando is a decent game, if you like star wars or shooters in general, perhaps give it a try, but I'd wait for a discount.
So as someone who isn't a WH40K fan, I heard of this game and opted to give it a shot... I have mixed feelings towards this game, on one hand it's a competent (If simple) shooter/hack and slash game that runs well and still looks decent if aged and Captain Titus is a likeable character... On the other hand though, the game's difficulty SPIKES towards the end, and the power fantasy you experience in the early-mid game fades (And can screw you over) turning into a rage-inducing slog (And the final "Boss" is just a long, dull QTE) As for the story... it does its job, don't expect anything deep. I take no joy writing this review. I wanted to like this, and had fun at first, but by the end of the day the fun got beaten into bloody paste :(
I know this has likely been discovered by now, but the chief reason mods aren't working with the Anniversary update (Which you get regardless if you have this DLC or not) is because a new script extender is required. For example the GOG version has its own script extender you use for that version, Steam has it's own too, that's how I was able to get mods loaded up on the GOG version. Like I said most folks are likely aware of this by now, but I felt it would be good to share this bit of info all the same... So... what about the contents of the Anniversary upgrade? I will admit that a lot of it is kinda clumsily inserted into the game, but I would be lying if I said I didn't enjoy most of the goodies this DLC adds to the game, I don't consider it essential by any means and the price tag is a bit high for what you're buying, but like I said, for half off I don't feel ripped off, also you can find mods that help better integrate this content into the game, making it less jarring. Long story short, wait for a sale and don't worry, this can work with a modded game :)
...And I regret nothing :) Ah, Dragon Age Origins, a game that just knows how to draw me in, one of my personal faves and I think one of Bioware's better games as this game's successors, while fun in their own right, lacked some of the charm this oldie has. As with any game made by Bioware, it's got solid writing and engaging characters, though the visuals and animations show their age they are far from terrible and the gameplay, which is similar to Baldur's Gate or Kotor tends to be unbalanced at times, but in a way that I still feel is fun and has run pretty smooth on my PC (Using Win8 to be exact). One thing I ought to suggest however is a little mod called "Skip the Fade" found on the DA:O Nexus, anyone who has played this game will know what I'm talking about. In the end, Dragon Age Origins is truly an epic, and despite some minor issues has aged like fine wine, a must have for any fan of the genre :)
I'll admit I didn't think I'd buy Skyrim again, but seeing this on GOG on sale just made me wanna say "Oh my yes!" This is one of my favorite games so of course I'd recommend it (Same with any other TES game to be honest) So long story short: If you love Skyrim, you'll still love it. If you hated Skyrim, you'll still hate it. If you thought to yourself after playing for a few hundred hours that "Heh, it's alright" You'll think it's alright. It just works
