TL;DR: If you want to get out of the comfort zone of every other space 4X, this is the game to buy! I bought this on Steam in Early Access; I wish GOG would consider at least a few more stellar Early Access games like Armello (hint, hint) and I would buy them from GOG. Anyhow, enough babbling! Star Ruler 2 is a behemoth 4X in many ways: 1. Galaxies can THEORETICALLY be the size of actual galaxies! This is the first 4X to implement this. That said, I don't think there is a rig that could actually handle a 200 billion star galaxy but, who knows? 2. Fleets are gargantuan. Space battles even in the early game are epic and almost cinematic in look and later in the game there can be tens of thousands of units engaged in intense battles. Yes, tens of thousands IF your rig can handle it. It's clear that the developers set out to create a 4X that will be playable decades from now. 3. Modding support out of the gate and custom ship design means that in time there will be the usual Star Trek, Babylon 5, Farscape, Star Wars, and BSG mods. Ship design is intuitive AND you can upload your creations and download the creations of others. The UI is quite nicely done and if you're comfortable with modern browsers - which of course you ARE - you'll love the UI. The game has an interesting and complex colonizing and economic mechanic that is quite unlike anything I've ever seen before even from the venerable Master of Orion II. First off there are no colony ships to build. Rather, you select planets to colonize and colony fleets set to work. However, the key to success in Star Ruler 2 is leveling up your planets. Unlike virtually all other space 4X games, you need to pay very close attention to imports and exports. Leveling a planet requires different resources and as such, you have to choose what to level. Do you level a planet to tier 5 in an inner system at the cost of leaving border planets weak? Paradigms of space 4X are challenged in this game and it feels oh so right!
Deadnaut is a brutal roguelike that wonderfully conveys that same sense of what's around the corner that the first Alien movie depicted so masterfully. Let's get the negative out of the way first. There is no real tutorial for the game and there is a LOT of information to deal with so your first few run s will end in disaster until you get your bearings. That is not to say your squad won't waltz through the game once you understand what's going on. This game is old school brutal and that is NOT a negative. The lack of a tutorial can be problematic because much of the game, i.e, what you see on screen is abstracted into symbols. That mechanic works well with the game's gritty atmosphere, but, the inclusion of a tutorial would go far in alleviating initial frustration. Now to the good stuff! The atmosphere of the game is gritty, claustrophobic, and death looms everywhere. The aesthetic of the game works well in this respect. This isn't high tech clean and shiny Star Trek. The main interface - your ship's interior - looks like a Second World War sub that was somehow thrown into a dystopian future. You manage your squad remotely and watch it through a view screen that isn't quite clear due to radiation interference and other factors such as weak signals from your squad. The interiors of the derelicts your squad explores look like primitive holograms which adds to the sense of barely having control over the doomed fate of your squad. Character creation is surprisingly deep and satisfying. Each character has a "history" and each has her/his own quirks and phobias. For me at least, what makes this game special is a sense of attachment to your squad even though you don't really "see" it. This is not a game you should play to relieve stress. I know it may seem strange that abstracted graphics would induce tension but it does and does it VERY well in this game. The bottom line is that if you love old school punishing roguelikes that beat you fairly, Deadnaut is a MUST buy.
I first ran into Hand of Fate on Early Access on "that other digital distribution platform." Its premise caught me as I am both an avid PC game player and a board game geek. This game captures both. The replayability is off the charts and you can, to a certain extent, customize your gaming experience. It's a combination of Diablo, a deckbuilder like Thunderstone, and a rogue-lite. In addition to combat, which by the way, feels nice and solid, there are encounters in which you must pay attention to the cards as they mix - a sort of Death playing Three Card Monte. The game's aesthetic is wonderful and it's one of the few games that could easily be translated into a physical boardgame. The developer is attentive and it's clear that Hand of Fate is a labor of love. [Note to MST3K fans: This game has NOTHING to do with Manos: Hands of Fate ;)]. There WILL be times when you will get your face punched but the game is never unfair. This is fresh idea that deserves a space on your hard drive!
I'm not going to repeat the glowing reviews already given to this classic because they are accurate and eloquent. What I want to talk about is the value added beauty of this game that makes it and its successor possible the greatest bargains in CRPG history. The Aurora Toolset - included- allows you to craft your very own adventure and share them. Where the value comes in is the staggering amount of adventures freely available at Neverwinter Valult. There are literally tens of thousands of adventures, characters, and scads of other add-ons waiting for you. Fancy revisiting a classic PnP adventure from the ancient days? Chances are you'll find it there. Want to play Diablo I again? That mod is there as well an is quite well done. Of special note are the modules created by Adam Miller. Believe it or not, one of his modules is actually a CCG type game that is a blast to play. The game is a diamond mind and if you are a true CRPG addict, you owe yourself the opportunity to plumb the depths of its riches. Twelve years later and the community is still very active for this and NWN II. It is truly one of Bioware's finest moments.
Yes Disciples is dark and delicious and HOMM is heavenly and habit forming. But, the Age of Wonders series is the true spiritual successor to Master of Magic - also available at GOG. Age of Wonders Shadow Magic is the best of the series. The ability to customize your game is simply breathtaking in scope. The replayability factor of this title is off the charts with a robust map editor plus a random map generator that actually works! In addition, Age of Wonders (all titles) still has a very large and active community. I STILL play this game and bought when it was released back in the day. The A.I. is simply excellent and the graphics have a nice Lord of the Rings feel to them. Buy this game if you are into many hours of high fantasy goodness.
