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Man, that last case is some bullshit. I pieced together the story events and understood what was going on easily enough, but putting the right words in the right spaces proved troublesome. I don't think the game is succeeding in the intended way if the real challenge is found in using trial and error to get the exact wording down when formulating a sentence. There were just too many potential variations with the noun selections. It didn't feel fair to me. And the hint system was useless because it was telling me things I already knew, so in the end I had to resort to an online guide. Yes, my pride took a major beating as a result.
Otherwise, business as usual. A really intriguing story told via only brief cutscene snippets and dialogue exchanges. Golden Idol does so much with so little. Analysing a scene, taking note of character interactions/visual cues and paying attention to all the minute details makes one feel like a true detective. I think the main game comfortably surpasses the DLC though, because it has plenty of those "Eureka!" moments, and when they come, piecing together the sentences in the Thinking screen usually goes smoothly. Also, I prefer the smaller-scale cases of the main campaign compared to the fewer-in-quantity-but-much-broader-in-scope cases of the DLC.
Otherwise, business as usual. A really intriguing story told via only brief cutscene snippets and dialogue exchanges. Golden Idol does so much with so little. Analysing a scene, taking note of character interactions/visual cues and paying attention to all the minute details makes one feel like a true detective. I think the main game comfortably surpasses the DLC though, because it has plenty of those "Eureka!" moments, and when they come, piecing together the sentences in the Thinking screen usually goes smoothly. Also, I prefer the smaller-scale cases of the main campaign compared to the fewer-in-quantity-but-much-broader-in-scope cases of the DLC.
Baldur's Gate 3
2020
It feels like there's a rare breed of games that catch the gaming community slightly off guard, games that are both popular and very well received, for all the good reasons. The Baldur's Gate series and Larian studio certainly had an impressive track record and history, so maybe that level of success shouldn't be a surprise, but honestly, I never expected in such a strong year, Baldur's Gate 3 would be one of the top contenders, not just for me but for a lot of people as well.
From an RPG standpoint, BG3 is honestly a masterpiece. There's a degree of freedom you rarely see in most games, and it's not just the freedom you have in how you tackle a problem. The story of the game complements your decisions really well, creating a very cohesive narrative, and the end result is a game with very competent writing that is also personal and tailor made based on the way the players chose to act. I think the emphasis on the companions, their stories and their relationships, is also an extension of the above, and I'm surprised with how much I ended up caring about my teammates, even though I kind of lost the plot concerning the ones I didn't travel with. Something that really surprised me is how much even small decisions affected events way later, and how seemingly filler side quests actually mattered for the main plot a lot. The game has three acts, with the first one serving as an introduction to many characters and plot points, but a lot of the meat of the game doesn't really become apparent until way later. I kind of felt that the two final acts were a bit more uneven, with some conclusions not feeling satisfactory, but they also had some really high highs that really won me over. Regardless, it's pretty clear this is an extremely ambitious game that for the most part actually accomplishes those ambitions and it becomes an unforgettable experience as a result. And something else to note is, while I'm rarely someone that replays games, the re-playability of this one certainly feels unparalleled for an RPG, with future runs certainly bound to be way different just based on having a different set of companions or a different play style. It is simply astonishing that this game has so much content of great quality, that people are bound to miss, wantint it or not, in one playthrough.
A big asset of BG3, that really bolsters the game's pathing outcomes, is the Dungeons and Dragons ruleset. The game features tons of passive and active skill checks, and you roll a lot of dice during your adventuring time, so based on how you might build your character and the party, the story is almost certainly already going to feel personalized. The decision to also include the DnD classing and race system is a brilliant one, as other than mattering for the gameplay, they also matter quite a bit for those checks as well, and offer their own roleplay options as well. Obviously, that level of choice is nothing new for an RPG, but every system basically just builts upon each other, and that only manages to work as intended due to the huge amount of effort behind the game, taking into account so many different success and failure scenarios for the vast amount of options BG3 provides.
And while you can always solve a lot of situations with just words, fighting is still a pretty big part of the game. A lot of elements from Divinity OS 2 are present, like the importance of the terrain and how it's affected by the characters' actions, but for the most part it has been revamped to be in line with DnD's ruleset. This has its merits, with a lot of really neat and time tested mechanics, spells and skills present, but the level 12 cap also feels like it limits a lot of the true potential of this system. And considering that you get exp pretty easily while exploring, and you're bound to do a lot of exploration, you reach that cap rather quickly, which halts the feeling of progression that the game very nicely built at first.
Last but not least, I really have to mention how impressed I am from the overall production values of the game. The dialogues are all voiced, with tons of unique voice actors, there are some really neat cinematics, the characters have a lot of unique animations, and the models feel very detailed despite the view you usually will have during your playthough. A lot of those might feel like a given to an AAA game with linear progression or a more homogenized world, but not to something as meticulously crafted as BG3. There's a big variety in the locales, from the gloomy Underdark to the huge city of Baldur's Gate, and the majority of the encounters you'll have are unique, either it's friends or enemies. The music is also worth noting too, with some especially good tracks, and some that might really surprise you once you listen to them. What I didn't really enjoy though was the amount of bugs the game had at launch, from small graphical glitches, to more serious issues like crashes and save corruptions, but at least, by the point of the 4th hotfix patch, my experience was already way better compared to my first few days with it, but still worth pointing out as some of them were rather frustrating.
All in all, Baldur's Gate 3 is the very definition of an RPG, and it really feels that there isn't a game out there like it, with that level of attention at least. It took me 100+ hours to reach its conclusion, after lots of exploration and many tough decisions, and really enjoyed it from start to finish a lot. I can't really understate how unique of an experience it is, and how great it feels to see all the different decisions you make coming to fruition. I'm a fan of the world of DnD as well, so despite having never played a Baldur's Gate game before, I really loved seeing that world realized in a game, with all those small details and references. However, I feel even someone that isn't into tabletop games (yet), will really appreciate a game as well made as this. Baldur's Gate 3 is definitely an important milestone for not only the genre, but the medium in general as well, and it's really going to be one of those games that will monopolize discussions for a long time. Highly recommended!
From an RPG standpoint, BG3 is honestly a masterpiece. There's a degree of freedom you rarely see in most games, and it's not just the freedom you have in how you tackle a problem. The story of the game complements your decisions really well, creating a very cohesive narrative, and the end result is a game with very competent writing that is also personal and tailor made based on the way the players chose to act. I think the emphasis on the companions, their stories and their relationships, is also an extension of the above, and I'm surprised with how much I ended up caring about my teammates, even though I kind of lost the plot concerning the ones I didn't travel with. Something that really surprised me is how much even small decisions affected events way later, and how seemingly filler side quests actually mattered for the main plot a lot. The game has three acts, with the first one serving as an introduction to many characters and plot points, but a lot of the meat of the game doesn't really become apparent until way later. I kind of felt that the two final acts were a bit more uneven, with some conclusions not feeling satisfactory, but they also had some really high highs that really won me over. Regardless, it's pretty clear this is an extremely ambitious game that for the most part actually accomplishes those ambitions and it becomes an unforgettable experience as a result. And something else to note is, while I'm rarely someone that replays games, the re-playability of this one certainly feels unparalleled for an RPG, with future runs certainly bound to be way different just based on having a different set of companions or a different play style. It is simply astonishing that this game has so much content of great quality, that people are bound to miss, wantint it or not, in one playthrough.
A big asset of BG3, that really bolsters the game's pathing outcomes, is the Dungeons and Dragons ruleset. The game features tons of passive and active skill checks, and you roll a lot of dice during your adventuring time, so based on how you might build your character and the party, the story is almost certainly already going to feel personalized. The decision to also include the DnD classing and race system is a brilliant one, as other than mattering for the gameplay, they also matter quite a bit for those checks as well, and offer their own roleplay options as well. Obviously, that level of choice is nothing new for an RPG, but every system basically just builts upon each other, and that only manages to work as intended due to the huge amount of effort behind the game, taking into account so many different success and failure scenarios for the vast amount of options BG3 provides.
And while you can always solve a lot of situations with just words, fighting is still a pretty big part of the game. A lot of elements from Divinity OS 2 are present, like the importance of the terrain and how it's affected by the characters' actions, but for the most part it has been revamped to be in line with DnD's ruleset. This has its merits, with a lot of really neat and time tested mechanics, spells and skills present, but the level 12 cap also feels like it limits a lot of the true potential of this system. And considering that you get exp pretty easily while exploring, and you're bound to do a lot of exploration, you reach that cap rather quickly, which halts the feeling of progression that the game very nicely built at first.
Last but not least, I really have to mention how impressed I am from the overall production values of the game. The dialogues are all voiced, with tons of unique voice actors, there are some really neat cinematics, the characters have a lot of unique animations, and the models feel very detailed despite the view you usually will have during your playthough. A lot of those might feel like a given to an AAA game with linear progression or a more homogenized world, but not to something as meticulously crafted as BG3. There's a big variety in the locales, from the gloomy Underdark to the huge city of Baldur's Gate, and the majority of the encounters you'll have are unique, either it's friends or enemies. The music is also worth noting too, with some especially good tracks, and some that might really surprise you once you listen to them. What I didn't really enjoy though was the amount of bugs the game had at launch, from small graphical glitches, to more serious issues like crashes and save corruptions, but at least, by the point of the 4th hotfix patch, my experience was already way better compared to my first few days with it, but still worth pointing out as some of them were rather frustrating.
All in all, Baldur's Gate 3 is the very definition of an RPG, and it really feels that there isn't a game out there like it, with that level of attention at least. It took me 100+ hours to reach its conclusion, after lots of exploration and many tough decisions, and really enjoyed it from start to finish a lot. I can't really understate how unique of an experience it is, and how great it feels to see all the different decisions you make coming to fruition. I'm a fan of the world of DnD as well, so despite having never played a Baldur's Gate game before, I really loved seeing that world realized in a game, with all those small details and references. However, I feel even someone that isn't into tabletop games (yet), will really appreciate a game as well made as this. Baldur's Gate 3 is definitely an important milestone for not only the genre, but the medium in general as well, and it's really going to be one of those games that will monopolize discussions for a long time. Highly recommended!
Although short, this was a very lovely game.
An absolutely wonderful little game. Deconstructeam have become some of my favourite game devs, with their focus on unconventional narrative experiences with a heavy queer and left leaning focus. From their small game jam projects to full releases like this, I always get something out of it and walk away with a lot to think about
Honestly, my main hangup (and I recognize this absolutely might be own my feelings of insecurity and invisibilty in queer spaces) is that it feels a bit alienating towards transmasc people, like another review mentioned. The game explicitly mentions that witches can only be women and non binary, and there's a plotline about a trans woman being a witch that I thought was sweet but also recognize that it's not my place to judge since I know some negative reviews weren't happy with it - but the game skirts around the idea of transmasc people existing, while it's awkwardly sitting in my mind and it just felt a bit cruddy. I guess in a way it can't mention them? I could go into the way "women and non binary only" spaces exist in real life, and usually serve as a way to alienate certain groups, but that may be reading too deep into things. Either way, there were only a few scenes where I felt this got in the way of enjoyment and am mostly able to push it aside
The writing here is so fun and powerful. Some might say it's cheesy but for me, it really works. Although it will often give you small glimpses and vignettes into its world, rather than super in depth looks, but I kinda love that because it feels like poetry
I think it's worth noting that the second half of the game is more of a political campaign sim, where you allocate people to tasks and try to influence others, which I did not expect. It isn't bad or anything, but I do think I preferred the first half of the game. Simply talking to witches, creating cards and reading fortunes were strong enough mechanics by themselves that they would have worked for the full game thanks to the high quality/intriguing enough writing
Honestly, my main hangup (and I recognize this absolutely might be own my feelings of insecurity and invisibilty in queer spaces) is that it feels a bit alienating towards transmasc people, like another review mentioned. The game explicitly mentions that witches can only be women and non binary, and there's a plotline about a trans woman being a witch that I thought was sweet but also recognize that it's not my place to judge since I know some negative reviews weren't happy with it - but the game skirts around the idea of transmasc people existing, while it's awkwardly sitting in my mind and it just felt a bit cruddy. I guess in a way it can't mention them? I could go into the way "women and non binary only" spaces exist in real life, and usually serve as a way to alienate certain groups, but that may be reading too deep into things. Either way, there were only a few scenes where I felt this got in the way of enjoyment and am mostly able to push it aside
The writing here is so fun and powerful. Some might say it's cheesy but for me, it really works. Although it will often give you small glimpses and vignettes into its world, rather than super in depth looks, but I kinda love that because it feels like poetry
I think it's worth noting that the second half of the game is more of a political campaign sim, where you allocate people to tasks and try to influence others, which I did not expect. It isn't bad or anything, but I do think I preferred the first half of the game. Simply talking to witches, creating cards and reading fortunes were strong enough mechanics by themselves that they would have worked for the full game thanks to the high quality/intriguing enough writing
A self-fulfilling prophecy is a prediction that comes true at least in part as a result of a person's belief or expectation that said prediction would come true.
This game is a captivating, wonderfully written story. It has something to tell about fate, about ethics, about friendship, about identity, about politics (because, whether you like it or not, everything is politics). And it does it through conversations. A tea and a chat with an old friend. Or with a new acquaintance. Through their struggles and their successes. Their hopes and their fears. Every character is unique, is relatable. Every line of dialog is delightful and real.
And on top of that, Fortuna's ability to see the future. To read and create her own cards. At first, you start building a deck, wanting to make the right prediction. Then the game subverts that in a subtle way, but that changes how you approach the readings completely. And so, the cards become another way to interact with the narrative, making every decision count.
This game makes you reflect on your own political ideas and your values. How do you want the world to be if you had the chance to shape it. And, for me, it's about writing your own future rather than hoping for the designs of destiny. Like making a self-fulfilling prophecy.
This is going to be my favorite indie game of the year by far.
This game is a captivating, wonderfully written story. It has something to tell about fate, about ethics, about friendship, about identity, about politics (because, whether you like it or not, everything is politics). And it does it through conversations. A tea and a chat with an old friend. Or with a new acquaintance. Through their struggles and their successes. Their hopes and their fears. Every character is unique, is relatable. Every line of dialog is delightful and real.
And on top of that, Fortuna's ability to see the future. To read and create her own cards. At first, you start building a deck, wanting to make the right prediction. Then the game subverts that in a subtle way, but that changes how you approach the readings completely. And so, the cards become another way to interact with the narrative, making every decision count.
This game makes you reflect on your own political ideas and your values. How do you want the world to be if you had the chance to shape it. And, for me, it's about writing your own future rather than hoping for the designs of destiny. Like making a self-fulfilling prophecy.
This is going to be my favorite indie game of the year by far.
Holy fxxk.
I knew I would like this game because everything it sells on paper is up my alley. Cardbuilding game mixed with Visual Novel where choices matter? That was right in my field of interest. However, not only did this game succeed on those fronts, but it surpassed all of my expectations rocketing it to what would be a pretty standard 3.5 or 4 to a solid 5/5 and I have a lot of strong feelings why.
Firstly, I want to start by saying, this game is not the same all the way through, it throws some curveballs, both in narrative and gameplay senses, now it just so happens those oddballs (resource management and political sim) are both in my wheelhouse. I say this because I think this could turn away quite a few potential players. However, this is the only major issue I can find in the game, everything else is subjectively-based (such as gameplay and art-style) and just are good for my preferences (even this "knack" in itself is something I actively seek in my games).
This game impresses me in a few ways, to not expose too much about the game I just want to talk about the aspects I think made me come to my rating.
The Story is fxxking great. It's nothing too absurd or outlandish, but it is quite unique among VNs for telling it's story through a combination of flashbacks between two "realms" of reality, all while playing out the story of the game, with a few unique twists and fun reveals that are not all crazy insane or anything, but gratifying, albeit sometimes predictable. The Writing is similar in this aspect in both being a very unique style of writing that focuses on characters and interactions over exposition, which is a quite positive thing for me. At no time did I feel overwhelmed by text, but it also was super prevalent (hence the genre) in a way that was very engaging and endearing to the story and choices made. This also applies to the entourage of Characters that make up the game, you have unique interactions with each that fuel the story, none of them feel secondary or wasteful placements, there are even some that my run didn't pertain to, but look to have far more engaging moments and unique interactions if quarreled with beyond the scope of my run. This is all-wrapped in a mature (but not overly-so) story that encapsulates some really dark and light themes in a way that wasn't too jarring in my time with the title and really helped it be unique in how it approached difficulty topics. As a person of the LGBTQ+ variety, I also found representation in this game incredibly tasteful and refreshing opposed to the very cookie-cutter representations in other games. Overall, story has a lot, and I mean a LOT, of great moments for its 7-to-8 hour run that really had me engaged the entire time. I will note that one future playthroughs I'm unsure if I will have the same experience as the first run, but there is enough content and decisions you can take to vary the story.
The Gameplay will be mostly subjective. The game consists around a resource-managment deck-creating (or deckbuilding card-crafting) basis that sprinkles in relationship management and political sim. It's really weird to try and define all that the game does, but think about it as a choices-matter visual novel with lite resource-managment and a sprinkle of political strategy sim in the secondary half. The systems here are simple but effective with a lot of variety in how you approach them, from crafting cards that let you pick unique dialogue-choices to literally digging up dirt on people to then harass them with in a political race to become a leader, it does a lot of odd quirky things and I only really felt it disconnected at a few chapter intros, but not enough to dissuade the new or old mechanics. It is clearly thought-out and while not "balanced", it offers a unique way to approach each run in a unique way, until your 3-4 runs in, but honestly for what this game is, I'm shocked it can do more than one and have and uniqueness between runs in the first place. Note I say this after only one run, so I'm not certain on that case, however, even if it were only a one-run game, it's still a 5/5 on that basis as the gameplay and story speaks for itself.
TLDR: All of this is to say, it's a really refreshing take on a Visual-Novel game, and if your looking to try the genre but might not like the simplicity of a majority of the titles this might pique your interest. Overall an amazingly, lovingly-crafted title with a fantastic story and an amazing experience through and through.
I knew I would like this game because everything it sells on paper is up my alley. Cardbuilding game mixed with Visual Novel where choices matter? That was right in my field of interest. However, not only did this game succeed on those fronts, but it surpassed all of my expectations rocketing it to what would be a pretty standard 3.5 or 4 to a solid 5/5 and I have a lot of strong feelings why.
Firstly, I want to start by saying, this game is not the same all the way through, it throws some curveballs, both in narrative and gameplay senses, now it just so happens those oddballs (resource management and political sim) are both in my wheelhouse. I say this because I think this could turn away quite a few potential players. However, this is the only major issue I can find in the game, everything else is subjectively-based (such as gameplay and art-style) and just are good for my preferences (even this "knack" in itself is something I actively seek in my games).
This game impresses me in a few ways, to not expose too much about the game I just want to talk about the aspects I think made me come to my rating.
The Story is fxxking great. It's nothing too absurd or outlandish, but it is quite unique among VNs for telling it's story through a combination of flashbacks between two "realms" of reality, all while playing out the story of the game, with a few unique twists and fun reveals that are not all crazy insane or anything, but gratifying, albeit sometimes predictable. The Writing is similar in this aspect in both being a very unique style of writing that focuses on characters and interactions over exposition, which is a quite positive thing for me. At no time did I feel overwhelmed by text, but it also was super prevalent (hence the genre) in a way that was very engaging and endearing to the story and choices made. This also applies to the entourage of Characters that make up the game, you have unique interactions with each that fuel the story, none of them feel secondary or wasteful placements, there are even some that my run didn't pertain to, but look to have far more engaging moments and unique interactions if quarreled with beyond the scope of my run. This is all-wrapped in a mature (but not overly-so) story that encapsulates some really dark and light themes in a way that wasn't too jarring in my time with the title and really helped it be unique in how it approached difficulty topics. As a person of the LGBTQ+ variety, I also found representation in this game incredibly tasteful and refreshing opposed to the very cookie-cutter representations in other games. Overall, story has a lot, and I mean a LOT, of great moments for its 7-to-8 hour run that really had me engaged the entire time. I will note that one future playthroughs I'm unsure if I will have the same experience as the first run, but there is enough content and decisions you can take to vary the story.
The Gameplay will be mostly subjective. The game consists around a resource-managment deck-creating (or deckbuilding card-crafting) basis that sprinkles in relationship management and political sim. It's really weird to try and define all that the game does, but think about it as a choices-matter visual novel with lite resource-managment and a sprinkle of political strategy sim in the secondary half. The systems here are simple but effective with a lot of variety in how you approach them, from crafting cards that let you pick unique dialogue-choices to literally digging up dirt on people to then harass them with in a political race to become a leader, it does a lot of odd quirky things and I only really felt it disconnected at a few chapter intros, but not enough to dissuade the new or old mechanics. It is clearly thought-out and while not "balanced", it offers a unique way to approach each run in a unique way, until your 3-4 runs in, but honestly for what this game is, I'm shocked it can do more than one and have and uniqueness between runs in the first place. Note I say this after only one run, so I'm not certain on that case, however, even if it were only a one-run game, it's still a 5/5 on that basis as the gameplay and story speaks for itself.
TLDR: All of this is to say, it's a really refreshing take on a Visual-Novel game, and if your looking to try the genre but might not like the simplicity of a majority of the titles this might pique your interest. Overall an amazingly, lovingly-crafted title with a fantastic story and an amazing experience through and through.
Wow.
This game is far from perfect, the middle to end part of the game wasn't very interesting, there are too many interesting characters that you barely interact with and the worldbuilding is in some ways pretty bad, there's some frankly weird gender stuff going on with who can or can't become a witch and describing the home planet of the only major black character as more primitive was certainly a choice that could have been entirely avoided.
But when this game works, it works really well. I was hooked for most of it (except during the aforementioned middle to end part) and especially the final chapter had me glued to the game like very few other games have managed.
It really made me feel like an incredibly powerful witch, a level of power fantasy I have never felt in any other game.
The game never really explains how its core mechanic works and I think that is a brilliant move to make the magic feel more magical. And i intend to keep that mystery up by not replaying the game, at least not for a while, even though there are so many possibilities I wish to explore.
I'd even go so far as to say that it's one of those games that managed to broaden my horizon of what a game can be.
This game is far from perfect, the middle to end part of the game wasn't very interesting, there are too many interesting characters that you barely interact with and the worldbuilding is in some ways pretty bad, there's some frankly weird gender stuff going on with who can or can't become a witch and describing the home planet of the only major black character as more primitive was certainly a choice that could have been entirely avoided.
But when this game works, it works really well. I was hooked for most of it (except during the aforementioned middle to end part) and especially the final chapter had me glued to the game like very few other games have managed.
It really made me feel like an incredibly powerful witch, a level of power fantasy I have never felt in any other game.
The game never really explains how its core mechanic works and I think that is a brilliant move to make the magic feel more magical. And i intend to keep that mystery up by not replaying the game, at least not for a while, even though there are so many possibilities I wish to explore.
I'd even go so far as to say that it's one of those games that managed to broaden my horizon of what a game can be.
Has it aged poorly? Sure has.
Is it objectively a 6/10? Of course.
Does it still hold enough nostalgic power over me to be my favourite game of all time? Absolutely!
Is it objectively a 6/10? Of course.
Does it still hold enough nostalgic power over me to be my favourite game of all time? Absolutely!
Death's Door
2021
This review contains spoilers
Acid Nerve's Death's Door is a game that I found myself immediately taken with the moment of its reveal but unfortunately it was a timed Xbox exclusive and as such, it had a staggered release schedule and arrived to PlayStation platforms in November 2021.
After purchasing the game some time after its eventual release due to work, the sheer breadth of anticipated releases and the time it took to make my way through them, I finally got around to playing Death's Door…
…And then Tunic released and Death's Door was once again put on the backburner. However, after recently completing Final Fantasy 16, I felt that I needed a palette cleanser and something that wouldn't occupy 100+hrs of my time and so I erased my previous save of Death Stranding and started anew.
And I'm glad that I did.
Though the game seems like senseless fun, it presents the player with some powerful existential questions, ones that I wouldn't expect to find in a game with its cute and simplistic aesthetic.
Death's Door sees a little crow working in the employ of the Lord of Doors, as an overworked retriever of souls that need to be culled. In his journey, he encounters all manner of characters and creatures, many of which he befriends and assists during his quest to retrieve 3 large souls to open the titular Death's Door.
He is mentored by the Grey Crow, a beleaguered crow who has been trapped within The Lost Cemetery, in search of a soul that lies behind Death's Door and due to his old age, asks our protag to help him open the door by retrieving the souls of three beings - The Urn Witch, The Frog King, and Betty the Yeti.
These beings have lived well beyond their natural lifespan and have grown corrupt in the absence of death.
Retrieving the three souls will take players across a vast array of biomes ranging from cemeteries, snow-capped mountaintops, flooded ruins, dense forests, a labyrinthine mansion, and more. Players will also come to know the history of the game's world, the Lord of Doors, and the disappearance of Death.
The game has simple mechanics that both seasoned and casual players will have little growing comfortable with. Attacks are basic, with a standard three hit combo, a plunging attack while falling, a more powerful charged attack, and a rolling overhead strike.
In addition with the basic sword attacks, there are a number of other sub attacks like casting fireballs, conjuring a bow that shoots magic arrows, a magic bomb that can also destroy environmental obstacles, and a tether that can be used to quickly traverse areas or snag enemies. The tether can also be used in conjunction with the sword to deliver a devasting lunge.
The game also makes use of invincibility frames when rolling, so anyone who has played a Soulsbourne game will feel right at home. Enemy attack are well telegraphed. If you take a moment to understand enemy patterns and behavior and avoid simply rushing into a confrontation, you'll never be overwhelmed. Difficulty never feels unfair and death is generally the fault of the player.
Aside from these things, the game is very much structured like a Metroidvania in the sense that progress and optional are gated, and you must acquire a skill or tool to access those aforementioned places or fully explore them.
Level design is very reminiscent of Dark Souls. I really enjoy how the levels fed into one another in sensible ways that help you intuit your location in the world and central landmarks would help if you couldn't orient yourself.
While initially an annoyance, the absence of a map helps players gradually memorize the world and understand what path leads to where. This helps the game retain its sense of discovery and considering that narratively, our protag has never explored the locations they've now found themselves in, it makes sense that there's no map.
As mentioned previously, the game has simple yet attractive visuals. The visuals shine due to how distinctive the artstyle is. Environments are readable; it's clear what can be explored or interacted with. Colors are muted but pop due to the contrasting nature of how they're paired, so if something catches your eye it's likely intentional. The game never feels busy visually so there's no worry of visual effects occluding you from seeing what happening on-screen.
Likewise, the sound design in the game is phenomenal as well. The music is pleasant and complements the environments and battles well. As great as that sounds, I think the highest complement that I can pay the sound design is that attacks can be avoided purely based on audible cues. Many games struggle with conveying danger to the player visually, for Death's Door to achieve that both visually and sonically is a true feat.
Death's Door is full of secrets, whether it be shrines that increase the player's health and magic capacity, hidden weapons, documents that clue you into more of the game's backstory, combat arenas that empower your magics, or an entirely hidden true ending. There's a lot to do in this game but it never outstays its welcome.
Beyond the cute aesthetic lies a story that's relatable to most everyone. Death's Door takes aim at the hustle culture that we find ourselves caught in; how we spend most of our lives doing work that we don't necessarily like and to what cost?
If you were told the exact moment of when your death, would you live your life differently? Would you try to lengthen the time you'd been given somehow or would you enjoy the remaining time you had left to its fullest? What if you spent most of your life in pursuit of something, only to learn that you'd never be able to achieve the goal of that pursuit, how would you respond to that truth?
These are some of the questions that characters within the game grapple with and are realities many of us find ourselves living - doing a job we actively hate or that brings unnecessary stress and pressure to our lives solely for money versus pursuing what really matters to us and that brings happiness and a sense of fulfillment.
Death's Door tells us that we'll all die someday and there's nothing to fear of death, it's a natural conclusion to life but maybe the one's who do not go gentle into that good night are those who were regretfully too afraid to live life on their own terms.
Congrats to Acid Nerve's Mark Foster and David Fenn (and anyone else who had a hand in building this game). Death's Door is one my favorite releases in recent memory. I can't wait to see what the team imagines next.
9/10
After purchasing the game some time after its eventual release due to work, the sheer breadth of anticipated releases and the time it took to make my way through them, I finally got around to playing Death's Door…
…And then Tunic released and Death's Door was once again put on the backburner. However, after recently completing Final Fantasy 16, I felt that I needed a palette cleanser and something that wouldn't occupy 100+hrs of my time and so I erased my previous save of Death Stranding and started anew.
And I'm glad that I did.
Though the game seems like senseless fun, it presents the player with some powerful existential questions, ones that I wouldn't expect to find in a game with its cute and simplistic aesthetic.
Death's Door sees a little crow working in the employ of the Lord of Doors, as an overworked retriever of souls that need to be culled. In his journey, he encounters all manner of characters and creatures, many of which he befriends and assists during his quest to retrieve 3 large souls to open the titular Death's Door.
He is mentored by the Grey Crow, a beleaguered crow who has been trapped within The Lost Cemetery, in search of a soul that lies behind Death's Door and due to his old age, asks our protag to help him open the door by retrieving the souls of three beings - The Urn Witch, The Frog King, and Betty the Yeti.
These beings have lived well beyond their natural lifespan and have grown corrupt in the absence of death.
Retrieving the three souls will take players across a vast array of biomes ranging from cemeteries, snow-capped mountaintops, flooded ruins, dense forests, a labyrinthine mansion, and more. Players will also come to know the history of the game's world, the Lord of Doors, and the disappearance of Death.
The game has simple mechanics that both seasoned and casual players will have little growing comfortable with. Attacks are basic, with a standard three hit combo, a plunging attack while falling, a more powerful charged attack, and a rolling overhead strike.
In addition with the basic sword attacks, there are a number of other sub attacks like casting fireballs, conjuring a bow that shoots magic arrows, a magic bomb that can also destroy environmental obstacles, and a tether that can be used to quickly traverse areas or snag enemies. The tether can also be used in conjunction with the sword to deliver a devasting lunge.
The game also makes use of invincibility frames when rolling, so anyone who has played a Soulsbourne game will feel right at home. Enemy attack are well telegraphed. If you take a moment to understand enemy patterns and behavior and avoid simply rushing into a confrontation, you'll never be overwhelmed. Difficulty never feels unfair and death is generally the fault of the player.
Aside from these things, the game is very much structured like a Metroidvania in the sense that progress and optional are gated, and you must acquire a skill or tool to access those aforementioned places or fully explore them.
Level design is very reminiscent of Dark Souls. I really enjoy how the levels fed into one another in sensible ways that help you intuit your location in the world and central landmarks would help if you couldn't orient yourself.
While initially an annoyance, the absence of a map helps players gradually memorize the world and understand what path leads to where. This helps the game retain its sense of discovery and considering that narratively, our protag has never explored the locations they've now found themselves in, it makes sense that there's no map.
As mentioned previously, the game has simple yet attractive visuals. The visuals shine due to how distinctive the artstyle is. Environments are readable; it's clear what can be explored or interacted with. Colors are muted but pop due to the contrasting nature of how they're paired, so if something catches your eye it's likely intentional. The game never feels busy visually so there's no worry of visual effects occluding you from seeing what happening on-screen.
Likewise, the sound design in the game is phenomenal as well. The music is pleasant and complements the environments and battles well. As great as that sounds, I think the highest complement that I can pay the sound design is that attacks can be avoided purely based on audible cues. Many games struggle with conveying danger to the player visually, for Death's Door to achieve that both visually and sonically is a true feat.
Death's Door is full of secrets, whether it be shrines that increase the player's health and magic capacity, hidden weapons, documents that clue you into more of the game's backstory, combat arenas that empower your magics, or an entirely hidden true ending. There's a lot to do in this game but it never outstays its welcome.
Beyond the cute aesthetic lies a story that's relatable to most everyone. Death's Door takes aim at the hustle culture that we find ourselves caught in; how we spend most of our lives doing work that we don't necessarily like and to what cost?
If you were told the exact moment of when your death, would you live your life differently? Would you try to lengthen the time you'd been given somehow or would you enjoy the remaining time you had left to its fullest? What if you spent most of your life in pursuit of something, only to learn that you'd never be able to achieve the goal of that pursuit, how would you respond to that truth?
These are some of the questions that characters within the game grapple with and are realities many of us find ourselves living - doing a job we actively hate or that brings unnecessary stress and pressure to our lives solely for money versus pursuing what really matters to us and that brings happiness and a sense of fulfillment.
Death's Door tells us that we'll all die someday and there's nothing to fear of death, it's a natural conclusion to life but maybe the one's who do not go gentle into that good night are those who were regretfully too afraid to live life on their own terms.
Congrats to Acid Nerve's Mark Foster and David Fenn (and anyone else who had a hand in building this game). Death's Door is one my favorite releases in recent memory. I can't wait to see what the team imagines next.
9/10
I started this expecting a light-hearted summer game considering the weather here right now is actually windy, rainy and dark. I guess the UK's two weeks of summer are already over. Alba: A Wildlife Adventure despite being a short indie game aimed at all ages kinda hit me in the gut a bit, and though the overall theme is one of education and hope it actually left me feeling a bit down about humanity in general but that is no fault of the game.
Quite the opposite, I think Alba is a lovely little relaxing title. You play the titular character Alba visiting her grandparents on an island. The damaged nature reserve is under threat to be removed in favour of an out of place luxury hotel. Taking it upon yourself with a friend to get a petition signed and stop it. This involves repairing bird houses, photographing wildlife, cleaning litter etc to get the locales on your side, stop the greedy corporation and save the day.
Though short and linear it's a small open world allowing you to explore at your own pace, talk to locals and find various birds and animals for your nature book. The game has a lot of heart and a nice simple visual style with clear cut blocky graphics. The music has this Spanish guitar feel to it and it all comes together nicely as a while as it progresses. The only real issue I had was that sometimes when interacting with objects or people the game would freeze for 3-5 seconds like it had crashed and it happened fairly frequently.
It's fairly short at only a few hours to 100% but that is exactly what I was looking for. I had a long couple of weeks, you see I work in the environmental sector of sorts which is why this game was both lovely and sad at the same time. Humans are destroying the world through both minor and major acts of selfishness. Destroying animal habitats and cruelty. Even just basic acts of spraying graffiti, littering all build up. Please play this and just think about what you do, what you buy and how you treat others, animals, recycle and reuse.
Agent Smith in the Matrix was right.
Quite the opposite, I think Alba is a lovely little relaxing title. You play the titular character Alba visiting her grandparents on an island. The damaged nature reserve is under threat to be removed in favour of an out of place luxury hotel. Taking it upon yourself with a friend to get a petition signed and stop it. This involves repairing bird houses, photographing wildlife, cleaning litter etc to get the locales on your side, stop the greedy corporation and save the day.
Though short and linear it's a small open world allowing you to explore at your own pace, talk to locals and find various birds and animals for your nature book. The game has a lot of heart and a nice simple visual style with clear cut blocky graphics. The music has this Spanish guitar feel to it and it all comes together nicely as a while as it progresses. The only real issue I had was that sometimes when interacting with objects or people the game would freeze for 3-5 seconds like it had crashed and it happened fairly frequently.
It's fairly short at only a few hours to 100% but that is exactly what I was looking for. I had a long couple of weeks, you see I work in the environmental sector of sorts which is why this game was both lovely and sad at the same time. Humans are destroying the world through both minor and major acts of selfishness. Destroying animal habitats and cruelty. Even just basic acts of spraying graffiti, littering all build up. Please play this and just think about what you do, what you buy and how you treat others, animals, recycle and reuse.
Agent Smith in the Matrix was right.
NEEDY STREAMER OVERLOAD is a dark and disturbing visual novel that delves deep into the complexities of mental illness, addiction, and the pursuit of social media fame. The game follows Ame, an aspiring streamer known as Kangel, who grapples with a range of mental health issues such as anxiety, depression, and Borderline Personality Disorder. As Kangel's popularity soars, Ame's mental well-being deteriorates, leading her down a path of erratic and self-destructive behavior.
Playing as P-chan, Ame's boyfriend, you take on the responsibility of navigating her journey. The choices you make directly impact Ame's mental state and determine the game's outcome, with a staggering total of 25 different endings. Each ending offers a unique glimpse into Ame's psyche, some tinged with dark humor while others leave a deeply unsettling impression. As P-chan, you witness Ame's duality from the cheerful and energetic Kangel persona to the vulnerable and tormented girl behind the webcam.
NEEDY STREAMER OVERLOAD presents a nonlinear narrative with multiple endings that are completely up to your decisions, including two arguably definitive endings. Ame's journey as she climbs the ranks of streaming while grappling with her mental health issues is a riveting and intense experience.
The game's art style is simple yet effective, featuring expressive character sprites and detailed, colorful backgrounds. Complementing the visuals, the game's soundtrack is exceptional, blending upbeat electronic music with haunting ambient tracks. It even incorporates microgenres like Breakcore and heavy DnB, which add a distinct flavor to the experience.
NEEDY STREAMER OVERLOAD is an emotionally taxing game that tackles heavy themes head-on. It is not for the faint of heart, but its impeccable craftsmanship, compelling story, and memorable characters make it a highly recommended experience. Whether you seek a thought-provoking and challenging game or one that forces you to question your own assumptions, NEEDY STREAMER OVERLOAD is an indie gem that demands attention.
Exploring the game's various endings is a deeply personal and dynamic experience, contingent upon managing Ame's Stress, Affection, and Mental Darkness levels. While there are some lighthearted joke endings, such as Ame becoming a nymphomaniac or leaving you forever if you neglect her messages, it is the unsettling and horrifying conclusions that truly leave an impact. One ending in particular, INTERNET OVERDOSE, shook me to the core and left me feeling profoundly uncomfortable. While some other endings left a negative taste, they further reinforced the game's exploration of mental illness themes.
NEEDY STREAMER OVERLOAD is a game that is best experienced without prior knowledge. This game is an indie gem that captivates players with its unique narrative, which has been proven with its recent 1,000,000 units in sales after a year of release. If you get it on sale for the $7.99 that I paid for it, there will be several hours of enjoyment for the bucks. Completing a standard ending typically takes 2-4 hours on the initial run, but to fully explore everything the game has to offer, it took me a breezy 11.5 hours. Ame and Kangel's captivating characters ensure the game never feels dragged out or wasteful of your time. Witnessing Ame's mind deteriorate into despair and darkness is a profoundly unprecedented experience, making NEEDY STREAMER OVERLOAD a must-play for those able to handle its exploration of mental illness themes.
Playing as P-chan, Ame's boyfriend, you take on the responsibility of navigating her journey. The choices you make directly impact Ame's mental state and determine the game's outcome, with a staggering total of 25 different endings. Each ending offers a unique glimpse into Ame's psyche, some tinged with dark humor while others leave a deeply unsettling impression. As P-chan, you witness Ame's duality from the cheerful and energetic Kangel persona to the vulnerable and tormented girl behind the webcam.
NEEDY STREAMER OVERLOAD presents a nonlinear narrative with multiple endings that are completely up to your decisions, including two arguably definitive endings. Ame's journey as she climbs the ranks of streaming while grappling with her mental health issues is a riveting and intense experience.
The game's art style is simple yet effective, featuring expressive character sprites and detailed, colorful backgrounds. Complementing the visuals, the game's soundtrack is exceptional, blending upbeat electronic music with haunting ambient tracks. It even incorporates microgenres like Breakcore and heavy DnB, which add a distinct flavor to the experience.
NEEDY STREAMER OVERLOAD is an emotionally taxing game that tackles heavy themes head-on. It is not for the faint of heart, but its impeccable craftsmanship, compelling story, and memorable characters make it a highly recommended experience. Whether you seek a thought-provoking and challenging game or one that forces you to question your own assumptions, NEEDY STREAMER OVERLOAD is an indie gem that demands attention.
Exploring the game's various endings is a deeply personal and dynamic experience, contingent upon managing Ame's Stress, Affection, and Mental Darkness levels. While there are some lighthearted joke endings, such as Ame becoming a nymphomaniac or leaving you forever if you neglect her messages, it is the unsettling and horrifying conclusions that truly leave an impact. One ending in particular, INTERNET OVERDOSE, shook me to the core and left me feeling profoundly uncomfortable. While some other endings left a negative taste, they further reinforced the game's exploration of mental illness themes.
NEEDY STREAMER OVERLOAD is a game that is best experienced without prior knowledge. This game is an indie gem that captivates players with its unique narrative, which has been proven with its recent 1,000,000 units in sales after a year of release. If you get it on sale for the $7.99 that I paid for it, there will be several hours of enjoyment for the bucks. Completing a standard ending typically takes 2-4 hours on the initial run, but to fully explore everything the game has to offer, it took me a breezy 11.5 hours. Ame and Kangel's captivating characters ensure the game never feels dragged out or wasteful of your time. Witnessing Ame's mind deteriorate into despair and darkness is a profoundly unprecedented experience, making NEEDY STREAMER OVERLOAD a must-play for those able to handle its exploration of mental illness themes.
When They Cry is a series that strives with its sincerity and wishes for nothing more than raising happiness and empathy in the world. Umineko Chiru might just be best example of that.
If you can tolerate (or even enjoy) its amateurish sides, you will find yourself in a beautiful and very inspiring dialogue with the author, questioning yourself on why you're even here reading fictional stories, why are you trying so hard to understand the circumstances of these characters? What is it to you and what is it for the author, trying so desperately hard to craft these stories with the little they have.
Umineko as a whole is what I look forward to the most in fiction and it forever complemented me as a person.
So I can only give a big thank you to everyone creating with the intent of making people smile.
If you can tolerate (or even enjoy) its amateurish sides, you will find yourself in a beautiful and very inspiring dialogue with the author, questioning yourself on why you're even here reading fictional stories, why are you trying so hard to understand the circumstances of these characters? What is it to you and what is it for the author, trying so desperately hard to craft these stories with the little they have.
Umineko as a whole is what I look forward to the most in fiction and it forever complemented me as a person.
So I can only give a big thank you to everyone creating with the intent of making people smile.
Amnesia: The Bunker
2023
Frictional's key strength, for me, has always been their sound design. The prior Amnesia games and Soma aren't particularly scary, but their excellent sound design takes them over the edge and makes them wonderfully nerve-wracking experiences. Unfortunately these games weren't much more than trial and error haunted house sims beyond that, and while Soma had a compelling narrative to keep the player invested the Amnesias often wore thin long before the credits rolled. Rebirth in particular I wouldn't hesitate to call downright bad, a miserable experience that grows more tedious than frightening by the halfway point and only continues to sour from then on.
The Bunker, then, is a revelation. Frictional have decided to combine their strong sound and tense point-to-point gameplay with a classic survival horror focus on resource management and non-linearity and it has paid off in spades. Easily their best game so far, perhaps the most exciting thing about The Bunker is the knowledge that this game only serves as a testbed, a first pillar in some great structure Frictional could build down the line. If their first foray into true survival horror is this good, just imagine what they could do next? The possibilities are enough to make a horror fan salivate.
But The Bunker itself is no small feat. After a quick tone setting tutorial, the player is dropped into the titular bunker and given a task that seems simple on paper. You're locked in this bunker with one very angry ghoul. The exit is blocked by debris. Find two items to remove the debris and exit the bunker. Seems simple enough, but the way to those items are locked behind barred doors and broken generators. The game offers you one safe room, in the middle of the bunker, and it's here that you'll manage your inventory, activate or deactivate the power, and save your game. There are no checkpoints in The Bunker. A death will send you back to the last time you saved in the safe room, and deaths come quick to those who aren't careful. The monster reacts to sound, and you're guaranteed to make quite a bit of noise as you deal with the obstacles that stand in between you and escape.
The Bunker's monster is brilliant, and it's here that Frictional's sound design prowess really comes into play. The sounds this thing makes are awful, but even worse are the sounds of it crawling through the walls, honing in on you as explore. One moment you're exploring a room with only one entrance, locked to keep yourself safe. But then you notice a small hole in a wall behind a crate. And then you hear the wheezing breathing coming from it. Moments like this happen all throughout the 4-8 hours it will take you to finish The Bunker (my results screen said 2 hours, but there's no way that's right.) and they are thrilling and terrifying each time. Sometimes artillery will strike the bunker, a randomly generated jump scare that was effective every single time it happened.
Amnesia: The Bunker is Frictional's best work yet, and one of the most stressful games in a famously stressful genre. It doesn't outstay its welcome and the pacing is great, with fun little diversions being thrown your way whenever the core loop threatens to get stale. Plus, the randomization of resources and the imsim elements make for a very replayable experience, a must for any survival horror game. All in all the game is a remarkable first effort by the team at Frictional to expand their style outward. Their great sound and world design combined with classic survival horror resource management and minimal but intense combat has made for something special, and the possibilities before them feel limitless and golden.
The Bunker, then, is a revelation. Frictional have decided to combine their strong sound and tense point-to-point gameplay with a classic survival horror focus on resource management and non-linearity and it has paid off in spades. Easily their best game so far, perhaps the most exciting thing about The Bunker is the knowledge that this game only serves as a testbed, a first pillar in some great structure Frictional could build down the line. If their first foray into true survival horror is this good, just imagine what they could do next? The possibilities are enough to make a horror fan salivate.
But The Bunker itself is no small feat. After a quick tone setting tutorial, the player is dropped into the titular bunker and given a task that seems simple on paper. You're locked in this bunker with one very angry ghoul. The exit is blocked by debris. Find two items to remove the debris and exit the bunker. Seems simple enough, but the way to those items are locked behind barred doors and broken generators. The game offers you one safe room, in the middle of the bunker, and it's here that you'll manage your inventory, activate or deactivate the power, and save your game. There are no checkpoints in The Bunker. A death will send you back to the last time you saved in the safe room, and deaths come quick to those who aren't careful. The monster reacts to sound, and you're guaranteed to make quite a bit of noise as you deal with the obstacles that stand in between you and escape.
The Bunker's monster is brilliant, and it's here that Frictional's sound design prowess really comes into play. The sounds this thing makes are awful, but even worse are the sounds of it crawling through the walls, honing in on you as explore. One moment you're exploring a room with only one entrance, locked to keep yourself safe. But then you notice a small hole in a wall behind a crate. And then you hear the wheezing breathing coming from it. Moments like this happen all throughout the 4-8 hours it will take you to finish The Bunker (my results screen said 2 hours, but there's no way that's right.) and they are thrilling and terrifying each time. Sometimes artillery will strike the bunker, a randomly generated jump scare that was effective every single time it happened.
Amnesia: The Bunker is Frictional's best work yet, and one of the most stressful games in a famously stressful genre. It doesn't outstay its welcome and the pacing is great, with fun little diversions being thrown your way whenever the core loop threatens to get stale. Plus, the randomization of resources and the imsim elements make for a very replayable experience, a must for any survival horror game. All in all the game is a remarkable first effort by the team at Frictional to expand their style outward. Their great sound and world design combined with classic survival horror resource management and minimal but intense combat has made for something special, and the possibilities before them feel limitless and golden.
Inscryption
2021
Having played Pony Island, I knew very well that this game was gonna be far more that it seemed, and even tho it didn't surprise me as much as the former, it's by far a more fun and interesting experience. The game feels alive in a sense, almos like you are playing a ARG made videogame or one of those games that would be on a creepypasta, which may be the feeling that the develover was going for, and my god, it delivers.
The atmosphere, the dialogue, the mistery, even the gameplay, combaning a really complex and fun card system with a puzzle and escape room aspect that makes it stand out, and me want to keep coming back till I beat it.
I loved my time with Inscryption, I recommend it to everyone, even those not fun of card games, and I hope that the surprises that it holds will make you love this game as much as I did.
The atmosphere, the dialogue, the mistery, even the gameplay, combaning a really complex and fun card system with a puzzle and escape room aspect that makes it stand out, and me want to keep coming back till I beat it.
I loved my time with Inscryption, I recommend it to everyone, even those not fun of card games, and I hope that the surprises that it holds will make you love this game as much as I did.
Everhood
2021
This game was great! A very pleasant surprise. The story was interesting and the characters too, theres a twist about halfway through that changes tone of things and it was just awesome. There are some really sick visuals, it was just the right amount of "quirky indie game" and while not all the songs were as boppin as I would of liked, the ones that do bang bang really hard. The gameplay was also really fun, but I think after you get your arm its a little too easy. There is very little negatives I can think of, I only wish I could play more of it!. The only downside that comes into mind is that the graphics happen to be so minimalist at times its really easy to accidentally run into invisible geometry, which can feel a little clunky. There was also an annoying glitch where I was stuck in the menu despite the game continuing near the end that caused me to restart a boss, but it was the only glitch I had happen. Overall, this game was pretty dang cool and I am probably gonna go for those other endings
Time Played - 7 hours 30 minutes
Rating - 93/100
Completion #17 of 2022
Time Played - 7 hours 30 minutes
Rating - 93/100
Completion #17 of 2022