I originally saw Crying Suns on Kickstarter but unfortunately could not back it. I'm glad to see that it made it! Graphics/Art: The game definitely has a distinct style to it. Very dystopian/dark aesthetics but still feels very cohesive to the world they were trying to depict. At first I thought it was going to be purely 2D sprites from the initial screen shots but the way they melded 2D-esque pixel art sprites into 3D models was definitely interesting and refreshing. What really drew me to the game was the general aesthetic and graphics, but everything else made me stay. Sound/Music: The sound design for the game is definitely spot on. And the music is definitely great and fits the mood of the story. My only wish was that perhaps there could have been a few more battle tracks, maybe unique ones for the Sector bosses. Gameplay: If you're familiar with the game FTL then the main gameplay loop will be familiar but with enough new/different mechanics it's a new experience. As you go to each sector you have to explore different solar systems to gather resources, finish quests and engage in battles. In battles you command your battleship weapons, different squadrons of ships and very basic officer assignments. The battlefield is a hex grid scattered with various obstacles like Asteroids, EMP towers and Turrets. It definitely scratches the strategy/RTS itch. Story: The story overall was pretty interesting and discovering all of the secrets and twists along your journey. I don't want to say too much as to spoil anything. Although my only complaint is that it can be very dialogue heavy so bring your reading eyeballs. Overall I enjoyed the game. There's definitely room for improvement (can get repetitive quickly) but overall it's definitely worth a play if strategy games are your thing.
During my 300ish hours of this game I've played there have been multiple nights of looking at the clock and saying "Oh man, it's 3AM already?" The premise of the game is you have crash landed on an alien planet and most of your tools and technology have been destroyed. Armed with your pickaxe and some simple machines you need to create a sprawling automated factory to launch a satellite to contact someone for help. The main gameplay loop is focused around the logistics, design and operation of your factory. Starting from simple machines and reasearching more automation as you progress. However there are alien creatures on the planet that hate the pollution your machines produce an will try to smash them. The wiki for the game is pretty solid but I highly recommend checking out YouTube channels for some in depth guidance as some aspects of the game can be a little confusing. I can't speak to the tutorial all that much as my first time playing was a multiplayer game with a friend who already played and showed me the ropes. tl/dr: fun highly addictive game about designing factories and defending it from alien bugs. Also those claiming the game has DRM it definitely does not. It is completely playable without the need of creating a Factorio website Account as you can get updates through GOG Galaxy or by downloading the installer from the GOG website. Multiplayer takes a little more setup by finding your public IP and setting up port forwarding but it is not difficult. For mods yes you have to create an account on their website to download them but it is in no way tied to the ability to play the game if you don't have an account. It's really no different than setting up a NexusMods account.
There's not much I can say about this game aside that it is absolutely fantastic. The action platformer is remiscent of the old days of Castlevania, Mega Man and the like but brought to the modern era. Tight controls, great pixelart visuals, genuinely satifying difficulty curve, insanely good soundtrack, it's all here. If you're a lover of action platformers this game is definitely worth picking up. The different Knights you can play as create a lot of different and varied gameplay as long as different perspectives on the story and world.
