The soundtrack files on GOG are currently in compressed MP3 format, the Steam (and Bandcamp) release has lossless WAV files. Considering that this is a soundtrack and a pdf file, I'd recommend just going with the Steam release, Steam DRM only locks application files (and New Blood games released on Steam don't have DRM anyway). It's a great soundtrack, and it's certainly worth getting, I'd just recommend going with a different source.
Psychonauts is a weird game, and not at all in a bad way. The game has an art style reminiscent of Tim Burton/Henry Selick stopmotion. The subject matter dealt can be surprisingly dark and mature, but is tackled in a fairly lighthearted and comedic way without disrespecting the subject matter. The story's more engaging than what you'd expect from other 3D platformers of the era. And most of the main characters are really interesting. The platforming has some mechanics that were new for the time as well, such as grinding, vaulting, levitation, and double jumping. The physic abilities make the combat experience varied, which stops it from getting repetitive. The environments have a good amount of variety as well. Overall, I feel that this game did so much more than it needed to in every back when it was made. And it's still an excellent and unique experience in 2024. Nearly everything that made this game unique when it came out still applies now. There are a couple issues playing it modernly, such as poor keyboard controls, poor telegraphing in some areas, and rare softlocking (you can use the bacon to avoid reloading an old save when this happens). But you can rebind the controls (or just use a controller), and the other issues rarely pop up, so they're not enough of a problem to harm overall player enjoyment.
TNO is one of my favorite shooters out there. While it's gameplay was sometimes frustrating, the story was incredibly well done. It did something no other Wofenstein game dared to do, and actually touched upon the crimes against humanity committed by the Nazi's. It was no Schindler's List, but it was able to provoke powerful emotions from the player when it needed to. Likely due to the success of DOOM, TNC took a more action-oriented approach than TNO. As a result, the story was a lot less powerful, and many of the characters showed little to no development. TNC still has some powerful moments in it, but the narrative is a big step down from TNO. The gameplay however, is much enjoyable as well. The combat's more fast-paced, and the arsenal feels more satisfying to use. Can't guarantee that you'd like this one if you liked TNO,as it's a pretty divisive sequel, but I would say it's worth giving it a shot.
I initially got this game as a joke late at night while laughing about it with a friend of mine. It turned out It's got a lot of variety in level design, and excellent soundtrack, excellent gameplay, and plenty of unique ideas that blended into one of the most creative boomer shooters I've played. I assumed that I would find the jokes to be distasteful and unfunny, but I ended up finding myself laughing at quite a few of them, they were more creative then I assumed they'd be. I've never played a game in this series before before, but I found that this game stood very well as it's own experience. A lot better than I would've expected it to be, 9/10.
New Blood never fails to disappoint. DUSK mixes the style and combat of Quake with the atmosphere and story of Blood, and it pulls it off incredibly well, while keeping itself as its own unique experience. The soundtrack is amazing, it's probably my favourite thing about the game. Andrew Hulshult did an exceptional job making a soundtrack that both sounded amazing, and fit the nature of the game.
It serves as a great love letter to shooters from the late 90s. The weapons all work great with each other, each one is distinct enough that every weapon serves its own unique purpose. The levels feel reminiscent of a 90s shooter. The worlds feel different enough from each other. My only real complaint is that the platforming occasionally overstays its welcome.
The story may be not as well done, but TOB feels more like a Wolfenstein game than TNO. The combat feels better done as well. It feels as long as it needs to be. It's less plot focused than TNO, and I personally feel like that makes it more enjoyable. The atmosphere and levels feel really nice too.
It's amazing how much was done with the low resolution and 5 buttons. Works really great on Linux as well.
It's Hollow Knight, what more do I need to say?
I bought this game along with 2033 and Exodus. I found that 2033 had a couple major issues, including poor introductions to mechanics, and the occasional surface area with little to no filters. The developers seemed to learn from this, as the mechanics are better communicated to the player, and the surface areas have more filters hidden around the place. The story is a lot more engaging as well, but that likely has more to do with how the books were written.
