Pathologic 2 is one of those rare games that seems to have a clear vision of what it wants to be, and achieves that perfectly. It is a highly immersive tale about a town that suffers a plague, and your attempts to stop it as one of three doctors. The game is difficult, very difficult, as you have to try and save other people while managing your own health and safety. The game expects this and has interesting cut-scenes and mechanics, as well as endings, that play out only when you die. Players who are used to being gods among mortals will hate this game, as you are just a regular person desperately trying to survive a terrible situation. I think that when I realized I loved this game was when the town first realized there was a plague, on the third day. A deep, tolling bell accompanies deep steppe music, and the town itself seems to show the terror and hopelessness that its citizens feel, as they struggle against a random and cruel fate that they have no way to escape from. The art direction, the music, the style, the story, every part of this game is fantastic. It has become one of my all time favorites and I hope that everyone will consider purchasing it.
If you could only play one Call of Chernobyl game, I would tell you to play Pripyat. I started on Pripyat and it drew me into the rest of the series, so I'll tell you about my first impressions of the game coming into it blind. The game is very difficult. Not as much as the previous two, but difficult. Even with end game equipment it still takes seconds to die if you don't pay attention. This goes a long ways into immersing yourself into the world, as if you aren't living and breathing the zone the horrors and people of it will quickly send you back to a loading screen. The game uniquely manages to blend excellent first person shooting with survival horror in a way I've never seen done properly elsewhere. You can just shoot many of the zones creatures, but ammunition can be hard to come by for an early player. And there are some things in the zone that aren't so easy to take down. Artifiact hunting is unique and incredibly fun. Environmental dangers can either outright kill you or greatly inconvenience you, and artifact hunting gives you a reason to brave them. Your ability to successfully find artificats is greatly dependent on skill. Environmental hazards in the wider world, like emissions, also give you both a challenge and increased immersion. Overall, I highly recommend this game to anyone who likes FPSs at all and doesn't consider jumpscares a dealbreaker. I came into it with a modern eye for graphics and was able to play it without issue, but there's always mods for those who want to pretty it up.
This game is the only game I have ever played that is a true mystery. You are required to use a significant amount of critical thinking in order to determine the identities of the poor souls lost aboard the Obra Dinn. As a long time fan of authors like Patrick O Brian and CS Forester I really enjoyed the attention to detail when it came to nautical knowledge, but a handy glossary would provide more than enough information to even a complete layman. The low quality graphics loop right back around to being charming and unique, and the story that is slowly told is excellent. I highly recommend this game and hope that Lucas Pope will continue to release stellar work like this.
