I'm enjoying Chorus. I don't have any flight accessories so a sci fi space action game with mouse and KB is perfect for me. I find the main character whispering (I'm assuming it is her thoughts being shown to the player) sort of annoying. Visually really good. Fun once you get the drift maneuver. And some really great music. The horn section when you are in frantic space combat... awesome!
I love Frictional Games. The Bunker was a bit of a letdown. It's a good game. I enjoyed my time with it. It's spooky, great atmosphere and sound as usual. The inclusion of a few weapons was cool. Unfortunately there is essentially zero story. Sure, there are notes you find throughout. Maybe it's because I adore SOMA and really enjoyed Rebirth. Between those games I really liked the story and the characters. The Bunker doesn't have either but it does have more gameplay. So that is a bonus. I suppose the ultimate reason I thought it was just OK was because I played Alien Isolation. That game is the benchmark for a survival horror where you are being hunted by a monster. The Bunker just can't compete with that masterpiece.
This is really an average RPG with horribly low budget/lack of polish issues. I am at 10 hrs, the story is ok, visuals... well it's Unity engine lol but they are good for an isometric RPG. I am having fun with it but also struggling to put up with the negatives, and there are a LOT. Camera angle is brutal, you can zoom in/out but it's always too overhead, it needed to be at a lesser angle. Also, walls don't become transparent near them. So you always need to rotate the camera to get a clear view. Sometimes selecting something doesn't work, or you have to move your cursor. I commonly can't attack an enemy and need to move the cursor past them just to highlight them. Tons of systems are not explained well enough or at all. The writing... JFC it is BAD. Case in point: "Isley, P. This woman has a forest of herbs growing out of her skin. You're suprised no one has rolled her up and smoked her like a joint." WTF?? Really? I'm down with the herb but the writing is so pathetically terrible. Difficulty makes no sense. Most enemies are easy enough. Then I come across a character who has initiative to attack first, he fires like 6 times, takes down 3 of my party in his first go. I kill him but the characters who had the ability to stop the (now 4) bleeding/revive are all on the floor. No choice but to load a previous save. It's instances like that that really ruin the fun because it is just bad design. Up to that point every enemy could attack once ore twice per turn. Then without any indication, superman lays waste to most of my team lol. I don't know if I can handle 80hrs of poorly designed, bad writing, janky systems but it is average enough I'll put up with it for now. I understand the reviews that bring up the painful experience this is due to the low budget or lack of design/testing/GAF factor from the developer.
Put this one off for a long time. Mediocre at best. This is essentially a walking sim. The gameplay is so bare bones and the hand holding creates an experience that you are basically riding along. Visually it looks really good. In 2019 it was probably quite awesome. Unfortunately everything is curtained off. Amazing open areas? Nope. Limited paths/tunnels/hallways through the forest really hinder the visuals. For a game that looks so good it is too bad you can't actually explore or see much of it. You are essentially funneled through every area. The rats are hilariously goofy. There are thousands when they come out but they move around like rats from a South Park episode. Do a comparison, it is hilarious. I find the characters incredibly annoying. I figured Hugo's illness was brain damage. And the gameplay. This is dumbed down, walking sim stuff. I am fine with that but there needs to be a great story and interesting world and characters. This doesn't have that so you get: throwing stones to make noise, hit people in the head and some super basic stealth. The AI of the enemies is reminicsent of poor 1999 stealth games. They stand like scarecrows, staring at nothing. You simply avoid them and throw a few stones, then you get a chase sequence where you are funneled/held by the hand to escape to the next medicore area. I wasn't a fan of Hellblade either and this game reminds me of it. Nice visuals, super boring gameplay. If you want a really simple experience this is a good fit. If you are looking for gameplay I'd avoid it.
This is one of the greatest games ever made. Played the physical copy version when it released. Do yourself a favour and play this. SS1 and SS2 are on another level still to this day.
I'm only at 7.5 hrs play time but this is the most fun I have had with a game in quite a while. The gamplay loop is quite small: Board ships, loot items, kill/run/sneak past enemies. Sounds like most FPS huh? There are security systems, environmental hazards and more. But the jist is, loot and kill. With Void Bastards you have to approach it as non completionist. The major learning curve really, is just knowing when to board, when to get every last item or when to retreat and GTFO. I'm on my third character and I have been doing everything I can to keep her alive. She started clumsy, dropping clips when reloading into an ammo strapped, 6th sense ability killer. So, what I liked: -Awesome art style. Like the original XIII (I loved the original PC game, not the remake). -Extremely unique characters/enemies, settings, weapons and upgrades. -Lots of strategy. Deciding if you should do a total sweep of the ship, running head first for your objective, or winging it all come into play. Of course the whole time you are under pressure to make decisions as you have limited O2. ALSO, some ships have no power, no lighting, lots of smoke etc. It makes for a very fun, unpredictable game. The only issues I have are: -You'll see the same rooms early on but different ships. -Also, there is no manual (like almost every modern game) and that was frustrating at first. I don't like using forums, generally sticking to figuring things out myself. But having my first character obliterated because I didn't know how pirates worked, or losing a really good trait because the trait randomizer moved onto my location.. not cool! There is too much game info that isn't relayed to the player IMO. If you want to try something really unique, get this game. One of my characters was 'tall' and it was so ridiculous, towering in the small hallways and being unable to duck behind short walls due to my height. The game reminds me of something wholly unique like the classic MDK when it released.
FEAR 2 is an amazing shooter even today. The sound effects are definitely the weak area. But visually, this game holds up. Of course it is not as detailed as a modern FPS. This is from a time when companies had their own engines and were constantly one upping the other. Now practically everything is made with the Unreal engine but I am amazed at how well the lithtech looks even today. Shooting mechanics are awesome. Much better level design, although it is still very linear, that's what this game is. I thought the story was decent. Voice acting is really bad. The music is definitely lackluster compared to FEAR 1. For some reason the slow mo effects are really weird. The bullet traces look lame, kinda bubbles floating, enemies are highlighted, I didn't like that either. Other than some small negatives, this is one heck of a shooter. They even have some mech sequences so us old Shogo fans can have a bit of a flashback to those days.
As a John Woo fanboy, this game is right up my alley. As a non speed runner/achievement chaser, it is not for me. This is an indie game, which I think $10 is fair for what is offered here. Great visuals, some really basic music but it fits perfectly. The story... who cares! The game is fun with a bunch of nods to asian action cinema. My first task was to upgrade to dual pistols, self explanatory, no? Diving and (you don't really run) walking through the levels is fun, lots of particles and exploding doors. The AI is almost non existent. I might be hard on it but I just played through F.E.A.R. and that game is close to 20 years old and the AI was amazing. The lighting and overall visual style is great. As a mentioned Woo fan, my goal is to shoot as many bullets and destroy as much as possible. After each level you are graded on your accuracy, slow mo used, number of shots, speed etc. It's the opposite of what I want. I'll never replay the game to try and get the highest rank because it's at odds with the whole style/setting. IF you are someone who wants to tick all the boxes and speed run through the levels then this is likely your game. As a Woo fan I appreciated it for the nod to the old action movies but ultimately wasn't my type of game.
Game works perfectly fine on Window 11 (for me). FEAR plays like an 80s/90s action movie. Great music, some hilarious dialogue and over the top action. It also plays like a slow burn horror. There are extended periods in the game where you are walking and exploring before any significantaction happens. It's a good pace of slow gameplay that ramps up then slows again. I love playing through old games from my younger days. I remember the lighting being just amazing and it still brings back memories seeing the light filter through fan louvers and grating. I am really impressed with some of the effects from back then. The water, clouds, particles and of course lighting were really pushing the visuals then. The sound effects are quality as well. The shell casings, zip of bullets as you exit slow mo. There is some really good stuff in here. FEAR definitely isn't as scary as I remember but it is an awesome action game. Highly recommended for gamers looking to go down memory lane or newer ones who are interested in something that was really pushing FPS visuals on PCs when hardware was one up-ing itself daily.
Amazing game. It is borderline walking sim but Frictional knows how to add some meaningful gameplay to make it more than that, I played this years ago on PS4 but the game still holds up and there is nothing quite like the first play through. Some of the enemy interactions show their age/limitations but aside from that, still a top notch sci fi horror.
