cublikefoot
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YouTuber and content creator - reviewing games since 2013! Also loves anime, film, manga/LNs, and soundtracks. Visit my YouTube channel for reviews and such.
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Full video review: https://youtu.be/B2E3EX64xfE
ALPHA-NIGHTHAWK kinda came out of nowhere and I’m surprised it hasn’t received much attention given it's by Liar-soft. Having now played it... Well, let’s just say there is a good reason this one hasn’t got much attention.
Art and Visuals
Starting with the good: the art style. The characters are full of color, have some solid linework, and just generally have great designs all around. I liked the kind of “splatter” color design that you can see in each character’s hair and elements of their clothing - it’s a distinct way of giving the game its own style and this is something that Liar-soft generally does a good job at. The color choices too, they are both vivid, yet match the sort of dark sci-fi setting that the story goes for.
Starting with the good: the art style. The characters are full of color, have some solid linework, and just generally have great designs all around. I liked the kind of “splatter” color design that you can see in each character’s hair and elements of their clothing - it’s a distinct way of giving the game its own style and this is something that Liar-soft generally does a good job at. The color choices too, they are both vivid, yet match the sort of dark sci-fi setting that the story goes for.
That said, the style comes with one severe flaw: it’s mismatching with other styles. You get these absolutely gorgeous and colorful 2D sprites and then they are slapped next to these mechs that look straight out of another game with a different art style entirely.
Story and Writing
The writing and overall story here is all over the place - starting off with some minor info dumping before rapidly changing scenes and introducing characters without hardly giving the time to really learn about these characters or the world they find themselves in. The pacing in general is probably my main issue. It goes from stupidly fast during scenes that are actually important for the main story and then these scenes are followed up with something incredibly slow and oftentimes straight up unnecessary, like the numerous random cooking and eating scenes just kinda thrown in there.
The writing and overall story here is all over the place - starting off with some minor info dumping before rapidly changing scenes and introducing characters without hardly giving the time to really learn about these characters or the world they find themselves in. The pacing in general is probably my main issue. It goes from stupidly fast during scenes that are actually important for the main story and then these scenes are followed up with something incredibly slow and oftentimes straight up unnecessary, like the numerous random cooking and eating scenes just kinda thrown in there.
Not to mention the insane tone shifts. There was literally a scene where a character goes from scraping gore out of a cockpit to another scene where important plot info is being given while a character projectile vomits, followed up with an entirely too lengthy scene where the two main characters enjoy ice cream at a local shop and it’s all fluffy and happy.
Which is a disappointment really. The setting here is actually somewhat interesting - being this near future sci-fi with mechs, weird creatures roaming about, and some absolutely wild societal structure - it just doesn’t utilize it to its full extent. And even then, a lot of the info that you do learn about this setting comes from info dumping scenes instead of naturally learning it like a properly paced visual novel.
Characters
This is one of those shorter VNs that tries to bank a lot of the experience on its characters and the climax, but they are simply not given the time to properly flesh out and allow me to form a connection with them, leading to an unsatisfying climax and an ending that hardly made me feel anything but relief that the experience was finally over. The romance between the two main characters, for example, comes out of nowhere around halfway through and after that point it felt like I was watching a relationship speedrun that existed more out of obligation than actually wanting to tell a proper romance story.
This is one of those shorter VNs that tries to bank a lot of the experience on its characters and the climax, but they are simply not given the time to properly flesh out and allow me to form a connection with them, leading to an unsatisfying climax and an ending that hardly made me feel anything but relief that the experience was finally over. The romance between the two main characters, for example, comes out of nowhere around halfway through and after that point it felt like I was watching a relationship speedrun that existed more out of obligation than actually wanting to tell a proper romance story.
Technical Issues
I don’t know what it is, but I had this constant freezing issue, where I would be reading and then suddenly my inputs would do nothing and all I could hear was the music - forcing a game restart to continue where I left off. At first I thought this was an issue with alt+tabbing out of the game, but it started happening when I was straight up just reading normally. It happened like 20 times throughout the entire reading experience and was just a pain to deal with.
I don’t know what it is, but I had this constant freezing issue, where I would be reading and then suddenly my inputs would do nothing and all I could hear was the music - forcing a game restart to continue where I left off. At first I thought this was an issue with alt+tabbing out of the game, but it started happening when I was straight up just reading normally. It happened like 20 times throughout the entire reading experience and was just a pain to deal with.
Overall
ALPHA-NIGHTHAWK may have some solid artwork, but the rest of the experience is an absolute slog to get through and a disappointment given the interesting setting it starts off with. The pacing, constant tone shifts, and lackluster character development killed any impact the story was going for and left me feeling practically nothing by the end of it.
ALPHA-NIGHTHAWK may have some solid artwork, but the rest of the experience is an absolute slog to get through and a disappointment given the interesting setting it starts off with. The pacing, constant tone shifts, and lackluster character development killed any impact the story was going for and left me feeling practically nothing by the end of it.
Full video review: https://youtu.be/HIOOQts-hEw
What if you took Portal and swapped the portal mechanics with time manipulation? Well, you’d end up with The Entropy Centre and I know a lot of people are going to be making that comparison, but there’s really no escaping it here. This game has similar storytelling, similar environments, and straight up takes several mechanics from that series. That said, it can stand on its own.
Gameplay
The main thing here is time manipulation. You pick up objects, move them around, and reverse them through time. The game is divided into 15 chapters and each has a sequence of puzzle chambers to complete. New mechanics are introduced throughout, starting small with simple cubes and switches to eventually jump pads, lasers, and even light bridges.
The main thing here is time manipulation. You pick up objects, move them around, and reverse them through time. The game is divided into 15 chapters and each has a sequence of puzzle chambers to complete. New mechanics are introduced throughout, starting small with simple cubes and switches to eventually jump pads, lasers, and even light bridges.
The pacing is pretty good here, giving you ample time to get used to each new mechanic before adding the next. That said, I feel like the game could have done a better job combining these mechanics. A lot of the time, a puzzle will revolve around one key element and the rest are just kind of tacked on and it isn’t until really late game that you get more than maybe four of them in a single puzzle.
Level Design
It takes a note from Portal, starting you out in simple test chambers before moving into large, expansive environments, shifting between sci-fi industrial to bright and tropical. It’s honestly really cool and the fact that these tropical areas make use of the same bright white test objects from the lab provides for a neat contrast.
It takes a note from Portal, starting you out in simple test chambers before moving into large, expansive environments, shifting between sci-fi industrial to bright and tropical. It’s honestly really cool and the fact that these tropical areas make use of the same bright white test objects from the lab provides for a neat contrast.
Graphics
The game may not be pushing any graphical boundaries, but it looks absolutely solid for what it is and the studio has done a great job with the textures, models, animation, and really bringing the game world to life with all the little details.
The game may not be pushing any graphical boundaries, but it looks absolutely solid for what it is and the studio has done a great job with the textures, models, animation, and really bringing the game world to life with all the little details.
PC Performance
On my 3080 Ti I played maxed out at 4k and my fps hovered around 100 for the vast majority of my playthrough. I had no crashing or other technical issues outside of getting stuck in a door once - so the overall polish is pretty good.
On my 3080 Ti I played maxed out at 4k and my fps hovered around 100 for the vast majority of my playthrough. I had no crashing or other technical issues outside of getting stuck in a door once - so the overall polish is pretty good.
Puzzle Design
If you’re going into this game expecting something along the quality of Portal you will likely be disappointed. Not to say that the puzzles are bad - in fact, I would say most are good - it just lacks that depth to really elevate it beyond just being “good”. Most puzzles are very linear in their design. There’s less “thinking outside the box” and it’s more like - okay, these are the cubes and buttons I have to interact with, I just need to place this here, this here, this here, and sequence them in reverse for the time manipulation. There was hardly a moment where I was surprised by a solution because a lot of the time that solution is apparent from the start and I just needed to go through the steps.
If you’re going into this game expecting something along the quality of Portal you will likely be disappointed. Not to say that the puzzles are bad - in fact, I would say most are good - it just lacks that depth to really elevate it beyond just being “good”. Most puzzles are very linear in their design. There’s less “thinking outside the box” and it’s more like - okay, these are the cubes and buttons I have to interact with, I just need to place this here, this here, this here, and sequence them in reverse for the time manipulation. There was hardly a moment where I was surprised by a solution because a lot of the time that solution is apparent from the start and I just needed to go through the steps.
Length
Or maybe it’s just me. I looked at other reviews for this game and they seem to be suggesting the length to be around 12-15 hours or so. I have no idea what took all these other people so long, as it took me just over five hours to clear. Maybe it’s my experience with puzzle games or something else entirely but most of the puzzles can be completed in mere minutes, even some of the ones late game.
Or maybe it’s just me. I looked at other reviews for this game and they seem to be suggesting the length to be around 12-15 hours or so. I have no idea what took all these other people so long, as it took me just over five hours to clear. Maybe it’s my experience with puzzle games or something else entirely but most of the puzzles can be completed in mere minutes, even some of the ones late game.
As such, I pretty much cruised through the game. The length wasn’t even a problem for me, I just feel like it's important to note that my experience appears to be vastly different from the norm.
Story and Writing
The story kinda goes that Portal route where you wake up with no idea as to what is going on and slowly piece together the outside world through dialogue with your robot companion, the environment, and computer logs scattered about. The banter between the protagonist and the robot companion ranges from genuinely interesting to just awful, but its overall charming in its own way.
The story kinda goes that Portal route where you wake up with no idea as to what is going on and slowly piece together the outside world through dialogue with your robot companion, the environment, and computer logs scattered about. The banter between the protagonist and the robot companion ranges from genuinely interesting to just awful, but its overall charming in its own way.
The overall plot is interesting, but it feels like the game ignores its own rules at times just to push the story further. There were instances where a major problem arises only for it to be fixed just as quickly by the time manipulation from this small weapon, yet that same weapon just doesn’t work the same elsewhere. There are plenty of holes like this, but I wouldn’t say this is a game to be played for the story anyways.
Overall
The Entropy Centre, although clearly inspired by Portal, does a pretty good job standing on its own. The puzzles are generally good, the level design is even better, and the overall aesthetic is some absolutely solid stuff for the genre. That said, I wasn’t the biggest fan of the lack of depth in the puzzle design and the game could have done a better job synergizing all of its mechanics together. Still a fun one though for the five hours it took to clear and worth a look for puzzle fans.
The Entropy Centre, although clearly inspired by Portal, does a pretty good job standing on its own. The puzzles are generally good, the level design is even better, and the overall aesthetic is some absolutely solid stuff for the genre. That said, I wasn’t the biggest fan of the lack of depth in the puzzle design and the game could have done a better job synergizing all of its mechanics together. Still a fun one though for the five hours it took to clear and worth a look for puzzle fans.
Full video version: https://youtu.be/cuzB2UBxf0w
So I know some consider it a sin to play this game without playing the others in the series, but that is exactly what I did and you know what - it was actually pretty fun.
Gameplay
Return to Monkey Island brings out some of the best of the point & click genre and as someone that used to play this genre religiously, it has been fun to get back into it. The game opens with a quick tutorial and then throws you right into it. And by right into it - I am not saying this lightly. I don’t know if it’s just the fact that I haven’t played one of these in a while or if maybe I should have gone with the easier difficulty, but this is a VERY difficult game.
Return to Monkey Island brings out some of the best of the point & click genre and as someone that used to play this genre religiously, it has been fun to get back into it. The game opens with a quick tutorial and then throws you right into it. And by right into it - I am not saying this lightly. I don’t know if it’s just the fact that I haven’t played one of these in a while or if maybe I should have gone with the easier difficulty, but this is a VERY difficult game.
The puzzle design here is so abstract that if there wasn’t a hint feature, I would probably not have made it far at all. It’s not the type of point & click that requires pixel hunting - and there’s even a highlight interactables feature to remove that tedium - but the environments are so large and there’s just so many possible item combinations that it can feel quite overwhelming. The game does a decent job in guiding you through its dialogue, but I’d also be lying if I said I didn’t get stuck a few - or rather, several - times.
For example, for one puzzle I had to apologize to a character in order to borrow one of their books. Of course, to do that, you have to find an apology frog. And then you have to write an apology on that frog. And to do that, you need to select the correct dialogue choices in sequence. I spent so long trying all the possible dialogue sequences only to find out that I was actually outright missing some because I had yet to interact with a plaque on a statue way out in town on the other side of the map.
Story
It’s honestly a bit ridiculous at times, but I guess that’s what I get for not playing on casual difficulty. Really though, this game just encourages you to interact with every single object you can. It’s impressive too because practically every object, character, location, etc. all has some expansive, voiced dialogue to match. The main character is constantly cracking jokes, breaking the fourth wall, and the story in general is fairly engaging in spite of its overall simplicity. This is definitely one of those narrative games carried by its dialogue over anything else.
It’s honestly a bit ridiculous at times, but I guess that’s what I get for not playing on casual difficulty. Really though, this game just encourages you to interact with every single object you can. It’s impressive too because practically every object, character, location, etc. all has some expansive, voiced dialogue to match. The main character is constantly cracking jokes, breaking the fourth wall, and the story in general is fairly engaging in spite of its overall simplicity. This is definitely one of those narrative games carried by its dialogue over anything else.
And as someone that never played this series before, I had no problems getting into it. There is a “scrapbook” feature on the main menu which provides an extensive, voiced summary of the previous games, but honestly I didn’t even need that.
Art and Music
I also remember a bit of controversy surrounding the art style, but that too was fine. It’s definitely stylized, but the studio has done a great job with all the little details in the world and the animation too. The music is also fine, but I’d be lying if I said it was memorable enough to listen to outside of the game.
I also remember a bit of controversy surrounding the art style, but that too was fine. It’s definitely stylized, but the studio has done a great job with all the little details in the world and the animation too. The music is also fine, but I’d be lying if I said it was memorable enough to listen to outside of the game.
Overall
So yeah, Return to Monkey Island has been pretty good for me, although not without its missteps. The puzzle design is generally good and I love the interactivity, but it can feel obtuse at times. The story is also good - even if simple - although it does take a while to get going. A decent play all around though, worth a look for point & click fans.
So yeah, Return to Monkey Island has been pretty good for me, although not without its missteps. The puzzle design is generally good and I love the interactivity, but it can feel obtuse at times. The story is also good - even if simple - although it does take a while to get going. A decent play all around though, worth a look for point & click fans.