Shadowrun Returns was a great surprise—I finished it in just two sittings. The game hooked me quickly and kept me engaged thanks to its strong writing and enjoyable tactical combat. Even without voice acting, the dialogue is well-written, and the characters feel distinct and believable. The story is decent, but the writing elevates it and keeps you invested. Combat is simple but very fun. It’s turn-based, quick to learn, and satisfying to execute. I often advanced the story just to get into the next fight. That said, one issue I had was how the game keeps you in turn-based mode even when enemies are far away, which can make moving through larger environments tedious. I played a Street Samurai with a rifle and consistently felt much stronger than any companions I hired, regardless of their archetype or weapon. It may not be fully unbalanced, but my character clearly outperformed the rest, which made the combat feel one-sided at times. The game is quite linear, with only a few small side quests. For newcomers, this works well—it’s a great introduction to the Shadowrun universe—but it may feel limiting for players who prefer branching paths. Also, this is a dialogue-heavy RPG. If you don’t enjoy reading, this game probably isn’t for you. It also follows an old-school design approach: little handholding, minimal tutorials, and some systems you’ll need to figure out yourself. Personally, I enjoyed the experience a lot and highly recommend it to fans of turn-based tactics, cyberpunk, or classic RPGs.
Throughout my entire playthrough of Pools, I couldn’t shake the feeling that something was missing from the experience. What kept me going wasn’t enjoyment, but rather a morbid curiosity to see what the next piece of liminal horror the game would present. Everything in this game, apart from its intriguing art direction and environment design, feels flat. I expected a certain atmosphere, but a vibe cannot be carried by visuals alone—not in this game, at least. Pools feels empty, but not in the oppressive way it seems to aim for. Instead, it resembles the emptiness of an unfinished game. That’s what this game ultimately feels like—unfinished and unpolished, with nothing beyond the visuals standing out. There are many remarkable gaming experiences from the PS1/PS2 era that, despite lacking advanced visual fidelity, deliver vibes far more memorable than what Pools manages to evoke. In terms of gameplay, the game offers very little, and what it does offer is entirely unremarkable. The movement feels neither good nor bad—just bland. In a way, that’s what makes it worse; the lack of any emotional impact leaves it feeling hollow. In the end, Pools is a short, unremarkable experience that seems to be riding the trend of liminal spaces. While it has artistic value in terms of visuals, that’s about all it has to offer.
