Conger_Conger
This is my favorite Bioshock game because of how fun it's to play. There are multiple, unlockable melee attacks, plasmid upgrades matter, you have to pick and choose weapon upgrades and passive tonics all go in the same slots so it's possible to specialize, unlike the first entry.
The story is also very good, the focus on collectivism is a good foil to the last entry and the moral choices this time around are less white and black which is a welcome change because murdering children is too on the nose to allow for any nuance.
On a different note, I'm a sucker for the soundtrack. It's mostly licensed music from the era and I love it. It's even used in diegetic ways I wasn't expecting when I first played the game.
Sadly, this remaster is not free from technical problems in PC, but neither was the original release. Thankfully, these days it's easier to find fixes online thanks to the Steam forums and the PCGamingWiki.
To conclude, Bioshock 2 doesn't reinvent the wheel, but it expands the universe in interesting ways and improves on the gameplay in pretty much every single way.
The story is also very good, the focus on collectivism is a good foil to the last entry and the moral choices this time around are less white and black which is a welcome change because murdering children is too on the nose to allow for any nuance.
On a different note, I'm a sucker for the soundtrack. It's mostly licensed music from the era and I love it. It's even used in diegetic ways I wasn't expecting when I first played the game.
Sadly, this remaster is not free from technical problems in PC, but neither was the original release. Thankfully, these days it's easier to find fixes online thanks to the Steam forums and the PCGamingWiki.
To conclude, Bioshock 2 doesn't reinvent the wheel, but it expands the universe in interesting ways and improves on the gameplay in pretty much every single way.
2014
Lichdom feels like the project was abandoned. It's buggy, 90% of drops are useless and most of the game consists on fighting the same enemies over and over again. There's a story too, but it doesn't matter.
A nostalgic throwback to NES action sidescrollers, specially Castlevania. The presentation and gameplay are great for what it tries to accomplish, but it's unlikely to change the opinion of anyone who didn't like these games to begin with.
It's also very hard if you don't find all the secret upgrades.
It's also very hard if you don't find all the secret upgrades.
It's hard to recommend this game because the PC port is absolute garbage that requires sorcery to work, an even then some mechanics such as driving and combat are questionable.
The reason why you would want to endure all of this is for the atmosphere and writing, specially the side stories that flesh out the people in the town. I found this aspect of the game very compelling and is what pushed me to spend several in-game days sleeping in a graveyard and subsisting on canned pickles just so I could complete all the sidequests.
If that means anything to you then maybe you'll enjoy Deadly Premonition too.
The reason why you would want to endure all of this is for the atmosphere and writing, specially the side stories that flesh out the people in the town. I found this aspect of the game very compelling and is what pushed me to spend several in-game days sleeping in a graveyard and subsisting on canned pickles just so I could complete all the sidequests.
If that means anything to you then maybe you'll enjoy Deadly Premonition too.
2016
Punch Club features beautiful presentation and an interesting premise, but sadly the game is clearly designed for mobile platforms first and foremost, grinding included.
I don't know why I even finished this, the game is exactly the same from start to finish. All you get from grinding through it are new pop culture references.
I don't know why I even finished this, the game is exactly the same from start to finish. All you get from grinding through it are new pop culture references.
2014
The shortcomings of RPG Maker are somewhat alleviated by the 2D perspective, exploration and abundance of recruitable party members. There are no random battles in the game either save for a few, very limited instances so encounters are largely unique.
The story is really good, but it's hard to explain why without spoiling it. It deals with themes of addiction, redemption, masculinity and trauma. It also contains some of the best (and darkest) humor I've ever seen in a video game.
The music is another highlight of the game, my favorite theme is "Boy Oh Boy", but almost the entire OST has this pleasant, but odd feeling to it that perfectly represents the experience.
I've beaten the game 3 times (1 in painful mode) just to see all the endings and try different party compositions. Highly recommended, my life is better because I played LISA.
The story is really good, but it's hard to explain why without spoiling it. It deals with themes of addiction, redemption, masculinity and trauma. It also contains some of the best (and darkest) humor I've ever seen in a video game.
The music is another highlight of the game, my favorite theme is "Boy Oh Boy", but almost the entire OST has this pleasant, but odd feeling to it that perfectly represents the experience.
I've beaten the game 3 times (1 in painful mode) just to see all the endings and try different party compositions. Highly recommended, my life is better because I played LISA.
2015
A good effort to try and modernize the look of an old classic, but sadly its biggest contributions are worse performance and clutter.
For a purely visual mod, I would recommend New Vision or Kentie's launcher instead for extra 3D renderer options.
For a purely visual mod, I would recommend New Vision or Kentie's launcher instead for extra 3D renderer options.