Played a few times on Xbox 360, PS3 and well as PC back in the day! - Can't recommend enough! While it had less realistic graphics than the original - which had fantastic scenes in the jungle - it ran better than the original Crysis at the time it released and was more story focussed with quite a few memorable moments! It plays smoother than the original and is a game that stands on its own - Quite happy to be able to play it again DRM-Free in its remastered version! I cannot compare it to Crysis 3 story wise as I only played chunks of that other one but the graphics are great either case!
Can't wait to play Crysis 2 and Crysis 3 again after all these years - finally DRM FREE! I already had the original version of Crysis (1) but wouldn't have purchased that particular one if it were on its own - but at 20$ for the trilogy, it is a no-brainer! I still have "PTSD" from the game breaking bug that wasn't apparently fixed in the (Steam) Remastered version according to some reviews... So while I can't know if that particular bug is there or not in the GOG version of it (and not sure I want to play it again to find our honestly - as I lost so much time back then on that issue) and along with the disjointed gameplay that was that game - which felt like what it was: a tech demo - I have better memories with the next iterations!
Played 8 hours -non-stop- so far and I like what I see! Except maybe the leveling system where you don't know where you are headed with your choices, not sure if you will end up regretting them. Lot of different stats to chose from will have you replay it but its quite a large game so maybe not twice in a row! Be prepared for the map to imprint in your head really slowly as you unlock regions and open bridges between section. It is easy to get lost going one direction their to map the whole game in your head to go from one place to another. It is -REALLY- an open dungeon crawler as well! I played the original Demo unlocking -everything- with the 3 archetypes (no longer a thing in the retail version) and had a blast! Except for the FOV -- which can be changed in the release version. The full game (still early access) is, so far, a fantastic dungeon crawler with a bit of jank in the controls and off visuals -- but you get used to it. Visuals are good but not great -- but again, you get used to the charm! At 4K I am getting a minimum of 60ish FPS all maxed out on a 6900XT. There are not a lot of particle effects and the place feels a bit empty at times. It feels like Ultima Underworld, and like it, enemies do not respawn - However these it way less lore and you feel a bit of emptiness in a game that will take quite some time to complete. Talking about being empty -- there are not a lot of items in these barrels overall -- and it is random so there are items so rare that I got them one moment, died and started over from an earlier save and proceeded to never encounter the item again for the next 4 hours... But if you do everything everywhere you will have too much stuff anyway so balance wise its not bad. Initially I feel like the amount of arrows is not enough in the world - but I figured after playing that adding more points into the corresponding skill would make you use less so it is balanced for that. Overall great game and no regrets buying!
Games seemed great from the intro of the Demo alone and videos online but - like the Steam Demo of this game does - the game crashes at the start if you don't allow Internet access. Example of other game that uses the same game engine and does the same (only on Steam): Ardenfall (Demo as of writing). Will update review once/if this gets addressed.
I don’t understand why people complain or downrate the HD Texture pack that much - the difference in the visuals is SO obvious - in particular in 4K - HOWEVER some textures take a lot of time (30 seconds) to come up. There are better alternative for sure but this is a free official package that just works!
Thanks Bethesda / GOG - if you want the rest of my money, release Starfield on GOG ASAP! TLDR review: Each time I play it I find minor hidden details items left and right - quite the experience! Bought Fallout 4 day one on PS4 - Nice FPS features versus previous installments. Other than the 30 FPS cap on PS4 it was actually more enjoyable as a console game with controllers than on PC for some reason. I have hundreds and hundreds of hours logged with at least 15 -proper- character builds (tons more to test and fool around) and I never completed the main quest for any of my characters – too bland - but the game is still great overall! 5800x3D + 6900 XT (unlocked @4K 120FPS) and still see FPS dips in Boston - quite sad to see this was never fully fixed... - Preston with his radiant quests can get quite annoying... Sad that these cannot be controlled via game options or via in-game dialogue! - Also, forcing a Charisma of 6 to get workshops is one of my majoor pet peeves with this game! - No native widescreen support and no FPS / FOV control make no sense for a recent game! P.S. I don’t understand why people complain about the HD Texture pack - the difference is SO obvious - in particular in 4K - HOWEVER some textures take around 30 seconds to come up - hope this gets fixed eventually!
Superb remake - a great translation of the original game in a more modern feel! For new players the game doesn't take you by the hand but the enhancements to the gameplay make it ten times more user friendly than the original game. Everything loads smoothly and quickly - no crashes and crystal clear visuals at 4K for the art style with no apparent stutter or texture issues. They translated the art style from the original game quite nicely and you get a better sense of what the original game tried to accomplish - it is staggering! PC hardware is fully utilized with up to 99% GPU usage and the game feels well optimized and the install size is relatively small! Great experience so far after "completing" the first 3-4 levels (there is back and forth between levels over the course of the game). The scale of things and the FOV even after adjustments is a bit off but translates how the original game felt. Tips: - Make sure to note down all the codes you find (there is randomization)! - Recharge stations are your second best friends! - Game is a bit rough with low amount of healing resources (unless you know the game mechanics well) if you plan on doing a no death playthrough or trying a harder difficulty or you are a first time player. Make sure to figure out how to handle healing before attacking a new level or bunch of enemies! - Don't stress about the map layout it all makes sense once you complete a portion of the map / once you start getting how the level is structured! Technical detail: - I am getting 85-110 FPS with -everything- maxed out @4K on a 6900 XT. I suggest using the game config files to lock down your max FPS if you want to control the heat of your GPU unless you want it to reach out 97|106+ degrees all the time :) - If you can set a custom resolution you can play this game in ultrawide mode without issue on a regular screen. By example I am getting 120 FPS @ 3840x1440. Hope you get to enjoy the game as much as I did!
Recommending this game - in particular for the price! Plus there is a printable free "DLC" that you can get here on GOG (it is a PDF with printable puzzles and empty sheets). The game consists of 27 main (3 levels of complexity) + 12 Extra Sudoku puzzles with either cat icons or numbers (you can switch visuals). There is also an additional daily puzzle (not tested that last one yet). Note that there are apparently no achievements unlike the Steam version. Misc. info: Took me under 6 hours in one sitting to complete the first 38 out of the 39 main "static" puzzles (I have not completed the last puzzle as of writing this review) - only the last two extra levels (#11 & #12) seemed to require taking notes to be completed (without even having to use the tips - which are unlocked progressively when playing).
