SOMA is quite an experience. I didn't play that many walking-simulators, but feel like this one stroke a very good balance between the passive walking and looking around, and interactive gameplay as in pulling switches and solving very easy and intuitive puzzles. Everything here is expertly realized. The graphics, though not very artistic, are well made and technically sound. It could be a bit more optimized, but I rarely saw a drastic dive in the frame-rates and the game proved fairly playable even in 4K at 15-20 fps (the sluggishness even added something to the atmosphere, like moving in a dream). The sound is very good - something is constantly cracking somewhere and the water dampening effect worked great. The screams of the monsters are really freaky and literally haunt you, while wondering the creepy empty halls. The general atmosphere of the game is outstanding. This could be a fantastic VR experience game. Everything really pulls you in. And the story... Wow! The game smartly gives you the plot in small doses scattered all along the game to the very end. Every time you think you know the plot and feel it's going to be a mechanical travel from point A to point B - the game throws you a twist and hammers it home with a dramatic scene or a reveal, you didn't quite expect. And it will make you think! A lot! It made quite a water-cooler discussion maker at my workplace, between my colleagues. Nobody who played it, remained indifferent. The ideas this game raises are very disquieting and though it doesn't let you hanging and everything is sealed and processed by the end - it will remain with you for a long time after you finish playing. The only thing that spoils this from becoming a masterpiece, are the monsters. They feel like an unnecessary afterthought, not well realized and disrupt the flow of the game. There's now an option to make them harmless, but I would probably put them in the background or removed them altogether. So the game is highly recommended.
A TellTale game, you know... First of all, the story and the characters are great, but considering the source material - it's a given. TellTale really made the comic come to life in the best way possible. Besides the Borderlands game, this is also a first time the graphic engine and the style is a perfect fit. However, the gameplay is just as frustrating as the rest of them. The game constantly makes you feel that you make some very heavy and fate-deciding choices, all the while knowing TellTale's games, none of it matters. Replay it all you want - nothing will change, except for a dialoge line here and there. At times, you see it even without replaying, where a seemingly important choice gets ignored by the characters right there in the scene, continuing the script regardless. Still, I can't say I didn't enjoy it. I did. Very much. So, if you can stomach the very limited interactivity and appretiate the story - this game is probably the best TellTale made so far.
Gameplay-wise, this is a simple point-n-click fare, classic in every sense. You pick up objects, combine them and use them in certain places in the scene. When you encounter other characters - you talk with them by choosing lines. It's all very linear and plain. The graphics are way too pixelated while the pixels are huge and few. It's too retro for its own good. This has already became a meme. Sometimes, without reading the description of the object - you can't figure out what it is. The characters and scenes are well animated, which saves the situation quite a bit. A few scenes do manage to evoke a very nice gothic atmosphere, but those could be done even better with more pixels. The sound is really good. The music is a fantastic fit, carrying most of the burden of creating a proper atmosphere and mood. The ambient soundscape is very nice in a few places and most scare sounds serve their purpose good enough. The story is somewhat a dissapointment. It's more gothic than horror and more Poe than Lovecraft, no matter how much it tries to be otherwise. It won't shock or be very interesting to anyone who read any real Lovecraftian novels or any classic gothic literature. But it's not bad. Just bland and cliche. I understand that season two of this game is much better in this regard. In summary, it was a great free game (I think it still is if you go to their website), but compared to any other games of this kind out there for a price, it's just disappointingly underwhelming and unexciting.
I don't know who didn't first and it doesn't really matter, but the tactical combat here is the same as in the modern X-Com, perhaps simpler and easier. So let's get that out of the way. This is a very nice adventure game with turn-based tactical combat and RPG elements. It's not really an RPG, as it is very linear and ultimately the role-playing parts work only in combat. They don't impact the plot, nor do they matter much during the progression of the game itself. Or so it seemed to me during the two playthroughs I did. What makes it special is the Shadowrun setting, of course, that really wows you at first, but you soon realize how little it is actually being utilized both plot-wise and inside of game mechanics. Again, it is best felt in combat. The plot itself is ok, though nothing special. There are very few side-missions and they are not very interesting. The background graphics are very good, but the 3D models are simplistic and a bit jarring in it crudeness, contrasted with the very detailed background art. The music and the sound are ok, but that's about it. The combat is fun, if you're a fan of turn-based tactics, though again, lots of times it is more puzzle-like with only a certain way to get through. Considering it is a first Kickstarter game for the company and the first proper Shadowrun game on PC - it's fine. Just don't expect much and you'll enjoy it for what it is. The sequel "Dragonfall" is a huge improvement, however.
