I decided to play Solo before my bf leaves for a deployment, hoping for guidance and insight and I think I got a bit of that, but mostly my experience was just...miserable I guess? the main puzzle mechanic, which is moving boxes with a wand was super unreliable and at the end of the game, it started to get really boring as the puzzles remained basically the same as the only addition was the introduction of different kind of boxes. in addition, I really hated the uber negative and passive aggressive "ghosts" of your partner that are scattered around the island. I guess they were there to make you think about your relationship, but at some point they just got really annoying with their "what if" questions. thank you, but I picked my partner with these questions in mind (which I think most people do), so it felt unnecessary to listen to them constantly. shame this game was the 50th game I finished this year :/

Redfall is such a weird game to review. I think it has gotten unnecessary hate and I've played games worse than this, but at the same time, it is one of the blandest "I'm going to listen to a podcast while I play this game" game that there is. I think it has such a great foundation, some of the story beats are interesting and the world seems cool and I enjoying just taking the sights in, but then again, the combat kind of sucks (almost all the boss fights were horrible and I considered quitting the game lol) the side activities are repetitive and the world just feels really empty. The saddest thing is just the fact that this game could have been really good with (a lot of) tweaks and sometimes the great and cool moments really shine through the bland mass, giving glimpses what could have been.

Escape Dead Island left me with conflicted feelings. It is definitely much more hated that it actually deserves to be; it has some good ideas, but the execution is just lacking in so many ways. I thought the story was interesting and I just had fun smashing zombies to bits in the colorful (this time with comic book style graphics) areas of the island, but it started to get a bit tedious towards the end, mainly because of the clunky combat and horrible checkpoints (no checkpoints if you pick up collectibles, so have fun picking up shit over and over again if you die) and awful controls. Despite its flaws, I still enjoyed this quick detour back in the Dead Island universe and the lore it offered.

Zombie Army Trilogy isn't necessarily the most memorable game, but it sure is pure dumb fun. The first two chapters of the game are kind of bland, but last chapter really improves and adds side quests and makes the game feel a bit more fleshed out. The story sucks and some of the areas where you have to fight zombies are little too compact to my own liking, but this game has just phenomenal design (I loved seeing all the occult stuff, as it's not something you often see in wwii games, despite being part of wwii Germany), pretty good soundtrack and the environments are awesome! (The portrayal of war torn areas are pretty well done and actually is one of my favorites). I played this game alone and it is 100% doable, but if you are planning on playing this game, get yourself a buddy, I promise you're going to have much better time.

Jusant is a hard game to give a score to, because it is simply a game about climbing, but at the same time it's about so much more. It frustrated me, but it also made me feel so many things. I loved the music and the environments and the little clues that were left everywhere; dried out farms, seashells giving a glimpse to life before and notes explaining the daily life of the people that were once inhabiting the area. The climbing, which is the main gameplay, was simple enough, but kept me engaged throughout the game, it feeling like a giant puzzle. I also enjoyed the rather simple, but gorgeous graphics; once in a while I would just stand at the edge of a cliff, looking at the sprawling desert before me.

I did have some gripes with the game though. The game isn't always great at explaining where it wants you to go, sometimes I had to run around for a while just to see a little rock somewhere I could grab and sometimes the climbing wasn't great either, your character flailing his hands everywhere just trying to grab something. It kind of reminded me of some of the issues I've had with Assassin's Creed before; not being able to grab a ledge that's right there, physics getting wild and things like that. I did also have some stuttering in places, but it never lasted too long and didn't hamper the experience.

It was all worth it in the end though, the ending made me actually cry a bit, it was just really beautiful. I just wished something a bit more from the story (other than the documents and notes) itself, but I'm still happy I played it through. If you're looking for a cozy game with no combat, but you want some challenge once in a while, this is probably a perfect game for you.

I picked up Signalis wanting to see what it was all about before it leaves game pass and I gotta say, it starts off really strong! I was hooked from the get-go, but the further I got into the game, all the little things started to really get to me. only having 6 slots for your items (all the items, also including the quest items that there are several of in many areas. even the flashlight takes one spot from your inventory, like really?) started to really annoy me. I felt like the game was mostly just me running back and forth between items and the safe room where you can stash whatever you pick up. also not having a map in one area at the latter half of the game was annoying because the enemies get off the floor after a while and I would have to go back and forth just to find the right room, which meant that I had to go through some unnecessary fights. I do understand why the design choice, but still.

I did really like the puzzles, the story, world and the atmosphere especially! I like the kind of cosmic horror mixed with gore aesthetic they're were going for, but unfortunately it wasn't enough for me to go through the rest of the game and I gave up at around 70% :(

basically a cuter power wash simulator. I really enjoyed fresh start, I like the idea of cleaning nature and restoring it while in different environments; basically a perfect game to play when chatting with my friends late at night over on xbox. unfortunately this game is really buggy, which brings the rating down (objects you can't clean because they're inside other objects, one achievement glitching out on me and not being able to complete the llama level because one of the objectives glitched out on me which meant I would have had to restart the entire level). still worth playing though if you want to just chill, clean and help some animals.

far cry primal left me feeling a bit weird. while I enjoyed lot of things in it (sabertooth riding, the unga bunga setting and some of the story beats), it is still a far cry game and a very grindy one. I feel like the story could have been improved (the game just ends after the last boss fight? there's literally no follow up quest or anything) and maybe by dropping far cry from the title, it could have been made more unique. I'm glad I finished it, but I think it was a bit of a missed opportunity. worth of trying at least and way too overhated for what it is.

just a cute and cozy game about a frog who needs to find items for her tea party. a perfect game if you don't have much time to play, since the game can be completed quickly, my own playthrough taking around one hour. the art style is cute and the music is nice enough, but despite being a fan of walking simulators, the walking/running speed is too slow, especially if you have to explore around to find the right person to speak to. puzzles could have been a bit more difficult. 3/5, super cute, but nothing too special.