Overall I had a lot of fun with this game! It has one of the best concepts I have ever seen in a puzzle game - playing with the recursion mechanic is a lot of fun (even ignoring the puzzles and just doing your own thing) and the visual design of the levels is just beautiful. You can tell that the devs had a very strong artistic vision for this game which shines through across all the levels. One of the most unique thing about recursive ruin is that it intentionally bucks the "progression" trend of most puzzle games. In most puzzle games, you get a basic set of mechanics/objectives (i.e. put the box on a pressure pad) and that stays constant, with more puzzle elements being added on as the game progresses. In this game, each level has a brand-new set of inventive puzzles and mechanics, which keeps things fresh. It also serves to constantly cause the player to feel they are in an "alien" world where they aren't quite sure how things work. And I should mention that I never encountered any "mazes" in this game that another review referenced, all the puzzles are quite clever and involve using the environment to your advantage. The one downside to this game is the story. While it's not a "bad" story per se, I don't think it tied super well to the gameplay and wasn't even very clearly told. At the end I understood more but still had a lot of questions. There is a lot of time in the game spent listing to audio logs etc. I understand that the developers were trying to tell a deeper message with the game, but I would have preferred a much shorter game focused primarily on the puzzles and environments. It would also help the replay value - I want to wander around the world again but don't care about the story. I think if the developers had cut most of the "real-world" story, added a bit more/clearer "fantasy" story, and added a few more challenging puzzles this could be my favorite Portal-like of all time. But as it stands it is still very highly recommended!
The game has a very strong start: Mysterious abandoned facility, huge stakes, interesting story ideas that make you think, innovative puzzle mechanic. I thought this had a chance to be one of the best first-person puzzle games on GOG, based on having both a strong story and the potential to build some very cool puzzles. But as the game progresses you begin to realize that the developer didn't have enough content to fill out the game's ~10 hour runtime. Every puzzle feels very "same-y" and the new elements that are introduced are almost all things people have seen 1000x before in puzzle games (conveyor belts, launchpads, lasers, etc.) The biggest flaw with the puzzles is that they never really use the "time" mechanic to it's fullest - while in theory anything could be affected by time, you basically only ever rewind boxes in puzzles. Even FPS games like TimeShift had puzzles in them that used time manipulation more effectively! The puzzles are mostly fairly easy, meaning they must be quick to beat, right? Well, no, largely because of bugs and poor design decisions. Numerous times I had almost reached the end of the puzzle and took one step off the platform, causing instant death and having to restart the puzzle. There was one puzzle which required the user to create a mental model of how physics works, except that when you try to execute the "intended" solution you'd get stuck on a tiny (virtually invisible) outcropping on the wall and fall too early, making you think the solution was wrong. And in terms of the story - I don't want to spoil anything but there aren't a ton of story developments throughout the game. I think most people (even people open to unconventional endings) will end the game disappointed and feeling like developer really dropped the ball on the story side of things. While I had fun with this, I paid full price ($25) which I slightly regret. Other better puzzle games on GOG include Relicta, Talos Principle, and Magrunner.
Overall, I liked Tri a lot and had a lot of fun with it! I finished the entire game (without referring to any guides or walkthroughs). The main mechanic is simple enough and its easy to get a handle on the basics. But in the last half of the game, the puzzles do get quite challenging and really force you to think "out of the box" to win. Many times the solution involves figuring out some element of the game on your own rather than having it explained to you (though there are usually some hints). There is also a lot of trial-and-error involved in placing triangles, especially when reflecting lasers. But as with any good puzzle game, the best part is the reward of figuring out (on your own) how to complete these challenging puzzles. I never found any of the puzzles required to progress to be unfairly difficult (with the possible exception of one puzzle in level 11). They are all very solvable if you take the time to stop and think logically about what the game might be wanting you to do. And if you're stuck, you will probably naturally explore a bit and get some idols as a reward for your efforts! My main criticism of the game is that the story, while cute, isn't well-integrated in the game. Given that the game is so long, the puzzles take so much mental energy, and the monk's utterances so cryptic, the player forgets what they are trying to do and why. The story is mainly told through cutscenes that come between levels, but these don't make much sense unless you remember *all* of the previous cutscenes (which you likely saw days/weeks ago). There isn't much in the levels itself that remind you of the story, nor are there ever really any new developments or surprises that change things in a major way. So the *only* reason to keep playing is to see the interesting puzzle designs that the devs come up with. Overall, it's a very good first person puzzle game, but GOG also has some slightly better options like Magrunner: Dark Pulse and Relicta.
I want to preface by review by saying that I completed the FULL game (with both DLCs) without referring to any guides. And that is no easy feat! I'll review the main game and then the DLCs. Main Game: Pros: + Amazing value for money - it took me MONTHS to complete + Addictive "let's just complete the next puzzle" feeling + Easy to pick up and play a level when you have the time (nothing complex you need to remember) + Puzzles are pretty fun + Nice looking environments + Good story that gives a reason to keep going (You DO get to meet other characters in-person, other reviewers are wrong about this.) Cons: - The levels don't really get much *harder* as the game goes on (aside from a few difficulty spikes) - they just get *longer*. Most, if not all, of the "longer" puzzles are simply several shorter puzzle rooms/sections glued together in one way or another. This is quite frustrating given that there is no way to save within a puzzle, and the "hardest" (really longest) puzzles can easily take 40+ minutes to complete! - Unlike most puzzle games, in this one most "new" elements are just minor tweaks on things that already exist. - The few truly new elements are not well-explained. There is a good tutorial on the basics, but not even one voice line was recorded to introduce the later elements! I was very stuck on one puzzle simply because I didn't have a correct understanding of an element, and figured out how it worked by accident. - Story drags at times, seems "padded" to make the game longer - Main game has a very abrupt ending - seems like they ran out of funds. DLCs: Aegir Gig: 5/10 Simply 12 more, very long, puzzles. Story doesn't really add anything. A few clever tricks are necessary to complete the puzzles, but very skippable. Ice Queen: 10/10 - What the main game should have been. Very exciting story which is integrated at a fast pace, interesting new puzzle mechanics, new environments and artwork, and a much better ending. Highly recommended!
I was totally blown away by this game! In my opinion it's much better than other recent 2.5D shooters like Ion Fury and Project Warlock. It starts great and then keeps getting better as it goes along. Some of what I liked: + Excellent, imaginative non-linear level design with tremendous attention to detail. No hand-holding but it's hard to get lost for long. + Looks great, many special touches here including great use of dynamic lighting. I don't think the screenshots really do it justice. + Detailed story, with a unique fantasy theme + A large and diverse set of enemies, each hand-drawn and animated with unique sound effects + Unique gameplay touches, such as movable friendly turrets + Pacing is beautiful. Wonderful balance between exploring/puzzle solving, and serious-sam-like craziness + Have to think very carefully to overcome certain memorable battles. Strategic management of weapons and items is key. + Tons of different environments (forest, caves, lava, etc.), each well-realized + A great length. Took me 10+ hours to beat! + Excellent battle music + Satisfying final boss and ending I just have two (very minor) criticisms: - When I started the game it was impossible to play because some parts were too dark to see. Light and dark is very important here, it would be nice to have a gamma calibration screen on start up. - Story was sometimes a little hard to keep track of with so many characters and the "amnesia" beginning.
Project Warlock is a fun game with a lot of variety and some great moments. Unfortunately, it is let down by the lack of story & puzzles, as well as poor audio and so-so level design. Pros: * Bosses are really good, they are huge, inventive, and multi-stage. There are 5, one for each episode, which is a lot for this type of game. * Enemy artwork is awesome. Many enemies are multi-stage and it's awesome to see them transform, limbs fall off, etc. All the enemies look very different from each other and they all look cool. * Game is pretty addictive, the levels are short enough that it really gives that "one more level" feeling. * A good diversity of environments. Antarctica and Hell in particular are fairly well done. Cons: * No story whatsoever. Yeah, story isn't the main focus in these games, but most Doom-clones at least had a few lines of lore to motivate the action. Without this the game feels like random stuff thrown at the wall instead of something coherent, and it's hard to feel excited about what is to come. * No puzzles. Most classic Doom-clones at least at a few puzzles to mix things up, like "hit the right combination of switches". In this game it's all shooting everything until it dies and picking up everything you see. Gets dull. * Mediocre level design. Unlike other reviewers, I don't have a problem with the levels being Wolf3D-like. Classics like Catacomb Abyss, H.U.R.L., Thor's hammer, etc. all had levels that were way better designed than this game. They understood that you needed to cultivate a real sense of place rather than just throw random textures and themed objects around. And they had bigger levels that fostered a sense of exploration. Egypt in particular is poorly done. * Sound and Music are awful. Music is just so important to a game like this, but this stuff is just generic metal/ambient that does nothing to set the mood or get the blood pumping. Enemies are always near-silent (even bosses!) which is a huge letdown.
I'm not sure why the core game gets so much hate. The graphics are amazing even today, with film-quality animation. The plot, sounds, etc. are all amazing as well. I hate QTEs, and so having never played this before I wasn't sure what to expect. But it turns out that the gameplay is one of the best parts of this for me, it actually feels like you are "playing" a cartoon! I mean, just like every other game, the buttons you press control Dirk's character. It's true it's a little more "on rails" than other games, as often (but not always!) there is only one correct thing to do in each setting. But the choices always make sense in context, and if you choose wrong you are shown why that wouldn't have worked. As you play the game, you really feel like you are getting more skilled at anticipating what needs to be done to respond to various threats. Just PLEASE disable the move guide when starting a new game. I'm not sure why that is even an option as it removes basically all of the challenge! I love these games, so why not five stars? Simply put, the current release is riddled with bugs that ruin the experience. There are far too many to list here, but one of the most annoying is a bug that resets almost all your settings after you quit the game. So, want to play as intended, without a move guide? You better be prepared to finish it all in one sitting. Even worse, Space Ace is completely broken. It completely freezes to a black screen halfway through, and neither GOG support or Digital Leisure have been able to help fix this problem. The number of severe bugs this game has is ridiculous given how simple the programming should be, and it's the only reason this version is not at all worth your $20. PS Avoid the "director's cut" in Dragon's Lair II, it is broken and instead of adding to the experience, it removes the climax of the story!
I love exploring caves in real life, it's very exciting, interesting and challenging. From the other reviews I understood that there wasn't much in the way of story or combat, and I was okay with that. But at a bare minimum I expected the game to recreate the awesome experience of exploring a subterranean world in a brand new way. Unfortunately it does not do this. The game is totally unrealistic, and makes exploring a cave seem like a walk in the park. I can think of so many ways they could have made the game a lot more interesting (without involving combat), but they didn't do any of it. Normally games try to be MORE interesting than reality, but I was shocked to find the caves in this game are much LESS interesting than most in the real world! Not to mention the other problems, such as the inexplicably lit-up pickups which seem to negate the game's central premise. I really regret buying this game, there's just nothing to it aside from a cashgrab.
Ion Fury is great fun, and will appeal to anyone who loved BUILD games of old. Yet while the game is competent in every aspect, it never tries to get creative and try anything truly new and different. Positives: + Really fun gunplay. Every gun feels great, and you really need to think carefully about what weapon to use in which situation. Headshots are a nice tweak and feel satisfying. + Complex, non-linear, old school level design + A few moments that really stand stand out (tank, piano, darts, etc.) + Occasional simple puzzles to break up the pace + The centipede is a brilliant and unique enemy + Quite long but mixes things up just enough to feel fresh throughout Negatives: - The enemy design is for the most part very dull. Most enemies you will encounter will be "guys with guns". Besides the aforementioned centipede, there wasn't much creativity put into the enemy design, which is a shame since that was one of the strong points of the Build games. - Very few bosses for the length of the game, and most are not done very well. - Most levels are just generic underground bases or empty streets. There needed to be more creativity in crafting a diverse set of environments. - No story beyond a few hastily-written sentences on the help screen. In old build games story didn't matter much, but at least there was a compelling reason for the action. Here it's not really too clear why you are fighting. - Music is just okay besides a few amazing tracks. Sound is also somewhat lacking, particularly enemy sounds could have been improved. - Too much of the game is by the book. If the game had come out in the late 90s it would have been panned as just another Doom-clone with little new to offer. If you look at games from back then, almost all of them had some really unique stuff to offer. For instance: vehicles in Shadow Warrior, atmosphere in Blood and Powerslave, outer space in Duke, hand-to-hand combat in Witchaven. There's not much like this in Ion Fury.
