Take the gunplay and slowmo from FEAR, add in Mirror's Edge parkour, set it in Red Faction destructible levels, give it all a neon bright cyberpunk coat, crank it up to 11 with the synth soundtrack and you get Severed Steel. An absolute blast of a game
Right off the bat, the game nails the presentation! Graphics look just as good as the original pre-rendered screenshots. All the sounds, like the levers and door openings, it all sounds exactly as the original. Don't go into this expecting a 1 to 1 translation however. There have been changes to the puzzles, not just to accomodate the freeform movement, but also changes to the exploration flow of the game and new expansions of the gameworld. None of the changes are for the worst thankfully. The game updates just enough for new players and just enough to give a new experience to returning veterans, all while retaining the essence of what made the original so great
This remains my favorite of the Tomb Raider games. I enjoyed the "Indiana Jones meets James Bond" vibe. Going from ancient ruins to crime boss skyscrapers. It's a fun style that I wish the series would go back to. Gameplay, it's a good mix of combat and platforming. The QTEs are annoying however. Overall, if you need a break from the more grim recent games, this one is good one to try out.
My appreciation of this game improved when I learned to view it not as a sequel to Riven, but as a re-iteration of the original Myst. Similar level structure: a hub world that links to self contained puzzle worlds, each with their own distinctive style. Plot elements from the first game return as well. Difference is that Myst 3 has much better graphics and larger levels. One big quality of life update is the 360 degree view. Suprising how freeing that is. All in all, if you like the original Myst, this is the prettier and bigger version of that.
As far as 3D remakes of Myst go (quite a few funny enough) I prefer this one over RealMyst. If for no other reason than the movement controls are just plain better. Pros: Environments look nice and it has decent movement controls. I definitely appreciated the gameplay subtitles options. I always had trouble with the sound cue puzzles so that was a welcome addition. Didn't try the 'randomize puzzle' option but that's a neat option. Cons: The 3D character models are really lacking. That got partially mitigated with the option to have the original FMV though (an option not available at launch it seems). Also not a fan of some of the color palette changes such as on Stoneship Age, but that's subjective on my part. As far as whether to get this if you have the original? If you don't have VR, then the value is an excuse to revist an old classic, so I recommend getting it on discount.
The core "one more turn" addiction loop of Civ games is as strong as ever here. The thing that brings me back to this one over the others is the story and aesthetic. Simply put this game oozes personality. There's this dark weird vibe to the whole thing that you can feel right from the menu screen. I continue to be amazed at how much story this game manages to weave throughout itself. The Faction Leaders are a prime example of this. Usually in strategy games, leaders aren't much more than stats and gameplay bonuses. But in Alpha Centauri, they are actual characters with quirks, beliefs, and motivations. On top of that alot of intriguing sci-fi ideas and concepts that build a truly immersive world. No other Civ game has 'wormed' its way into my brain like this game.
