LukasAri
Gameplay itself is nice, clean fun. Super Shotgun is OP, I love it, and I liked the new enemies that were introduced as well (hearing an idle Archvile (or even worse, an alert one) definitely had me going "!!!!"). I went back to Doom 1 to trawl through the secret levels, which I'd missed on my first playthrough, and found myself missing the Super Shotty and the monster variety. Doom 2's worth it for that alone.
My favourite vanilla levels were probably MAP08 (Tricks and Traps) and MAP23 (Barrels O' Fun), oh and MAP31+MAP32, the Wolfenstein easter egg secret levels. But for the most part I actually do agree with a lot of gripes expressed in other reviews regarding the level design, which is where it loses half a star for me compared to Doom 1. As most of us know the development of this game was a little rushed - and it shows in places. I felt myself getting a little burnt out towards the end - not that I wanted to stop playing the game necessarily, more that I was wanting Doom 2's vanilla campaign specifically to just end soon. I think the lack of actual episodes like there were in Doom 1, rather just one big protracted thing with small intermissions but no explicit delineation between "episodes", also didn't help.
I like a good modding scene, and Classic Doom (1 and 2)'s is still going strong 30+ years on. I'm probably still gonna play Doom 2 to delve into some mods I have lined up and am excited to explore.
My favourite vanilla levels were probably MAP08 (Tricks and Traps) and MAP23 (Barrels O' Fun), oh and MAP31+MAP32, the Wolfenstein easter egg secret levels. But for the most part I actually do agree with a lot of gripes expressed in other reviews regarding the level design, which is where it loses half a star for me compared to Doom 1. As most of us know the development of this game was a little rushed - and it shows in places. I felt myself getting a little burnt out towards the end - not that I wanted to stop playing the game necessarily, more that I was wanting Doom 2's vanilla campaign specifically to just end soon. I think the lack of actual episodes like there were in Doom 1, rather just one big protracted thing with small intermissions but no explicit delineation between "episodes", also didn't help.
I like a good modding scene, and Classic Doom (1 and 2)'s is still going strong 30+ years on. I'm probably still gonna play Doom 2 to delve into some mods I have lined up and am excited to explore.
1995
First 3 episodes are good, clean fun
I figured by E4M2 the fourth episode was just having a lend of me so I just skipped the rest and moved on to Doom II (and therefore can't speak to the quality of the rest of Thy Flesh Consumed)
I figured by E4M2 the fourth episode was just having a lend of me so I just skipped the rest and moved on to Doom II (and therefore can't speak to the quality of the rest of Thy Flesh Consumed)
2005
good source port for modability
not vanilla-faithful however, but i don't care and neither does my boomer dad
not vanilla-faithful however, but i don't care and neither does my boomer dad
2008
Ok so first thing's first: Unreal Engine 3 still looks absolutely fantastic in 2023, especially this game. Just goes to show the longevity of strong art direction :)
Coming back from Catalyst this game does feel slower by comparison at first, and I definitely had some Catalyst-muscle memory which caused issues in the beginning (due to the fact I had to use slightly different keybindings to what I would've preferred), but it doesn't take long to get back into the groove of things anyway. The story is pretty straightforward, especially compared to Catalyst's... thing. It's simple, it's nothing special on its own, but at least it's not bad. You're here for the parkour movement system anyway, which: it's good. I like it. Not gonna lie tho, it can get a bit clunky and almost trial-and-error at times, but 99.99% of the time it works the way it should and is heaps of fun. I will say Catalyst at least improved to some extent in this regard compared to the original Mirror's Edge. But I've never thought this was an outright "bad" game.
Now, I'm no speedrunner by any means and hold no delusions to the contrary, but every time I can keep a momentum, or even get from one point to another even slightly faster than the beaten path would've gotten me, I get to feel a fraction of the pride that many speedrunners no doubt live for, which is nice. Genuinely. I don't strive to be the best and fastest but the adrenaline and sense of accomplishment is real.
And, I'd be remiss not to mention the stellar soundtrack by Solar Fields, which I actually still listen to semi-regularly! None of it is bad. All of it is good. Fits the atmosphere and mood perfectly. Even my least favourite level has an absolute banger of an accompanying score (which is almost evocative in my head of certain Unreal Tournament tracks?? Probably coincidence, but cool nonetheless).
--
Favourite level(s): Flight, Heat, Kate, The Shard
Least favourite level: The Boat (edit: also FUCK that one section in Pirandello Kruger. If you know you know)
Coming back from Catalyst this game does feel slower by comparison at first, and I definitely had some Catalyst-muscle memory which caused issues in the beginning (due to the fact I had to use slightly different keybindings to what I would've preferred), but it doesn't take long to get back into the groove of things anyway. The story is pretty straightforward, especially compared to Catalyst's... thing. It's simple, it's nothing special on its own, but at least it's not bad. You're here for the parkour movement system anyway, which: it's good. I like it. Not gonna lie tho, it can get a bit clunky and almost trial-and-error at times, but 99.99% of the time it works the way it should and is heaps of fun. I will say Catalyst at least improved to some extent in this regard compared to the original Mirror's Edge. But I've never thought this was an outright "bad" game.
Now, I'm no speedrunner by any means and hold no delusions to the contrary, but every time I can keep a momentum, or even get from one point to another even slightly faster than the beaten path would've gotten me, I get to feel a fraction of the pride that many speedrunners no doubt live for, which is nice. Genuinely. I don't strive to be the best and fastest but the adrenaline and sense of accomplishment is real.
And, I'd be remiss not to mention the stellar soundtrack by Solar Fields, which I actually still listen to semi-regularly! None of it is bad. All of it is good. Fits the atmosphere and mood perfectly. Even my least favourite level has an absolute banger of an accompanying score (which is almost evocative in my head of certain Unreal Tournament tracks?? Probably coincidence, but cool nonetheless).
--
Favourite level(s): Flight, Heat, Kate, The Shard
Least favourite level: The Boat (edit: also FUCK that one section in Pirandello Kruger. If you know you know)
This review contains spoilers
The story of even the first game was never a massive driving factor to begin with, so I won't dwell on it too much here, except to say that Catalyst's story certainly has "more" in it, but that doesn't necessarily mean it's "better" - in fact, I think certain specific changes actually made it worse than the original, one example being (SPOILER) the central antagonist's daughter turning out to be, very predictably I might add, Faith's long-lost sister. Insert sarcastic Kirk meme, yawwwn.(/SPOILER)
Thankfully, the game part of the game is still pretty decent. I'd say it feels overall better than the original, but not by much, really. I acknowledge a good deal of this for me personally is just due to the fact I could actually play with the keybindings I like, and didn't need external software to adjust the FOV to my liking, two factors the first game was sorely lacking.
Catalyst feels speedier but also less weighty than the original, so that sense of building up to full momentum you got from the first game is kinda gone; the movement in the end feels more obviously video game-y. While this doesn't personally bother me too much tbh, it's something I noticed and felt worth mentioning.
The skill-tree was poorly implemented imo, and the choice to lock certain moves behind an upgrade wall that the player had available to them from the get-go in the first game was certainly... a choice. Yes, it'd bother me more if it weren't for the fact that all of Faith's cool moves from the original (and most of the ones I wound up using) are unlockable early on, but it's still annoying and I recognise the half-baked illusion of progression for what it is.
I like the idea of the Mag-rope (a grappling hook in my insane parkour game? YES PLEASE!) but one thing that makes it... not as cool as it could've been is the fact that use of the Magrope's three functions are restricted to very specific areas on the world map. Part of the fun with grappling hooks in video games for me is the ability to literally just grapple wherever, on my terms. The way it's implemented in practice is restrictive and doesn't really allow for emergent gameplay, which I think ultimately works against what an open-world parkour game is aiming to be, conceptually.
Finally, to end this on some positive notes:
Breezing through Catalyst's open world is great fun, and I genuinely enjoyed some of the setpieces the story mode had to offer (e.g. Elysium was cool, and I enjoyed the less-daunting callback to the Ropeburn-esque riding on top of a moving train in a tunnel near the endgame). The Frostbite Engine is beautiful, smooth (this is the only Frostbite game I've played aaaaaaa) and lends itself well to the Mirror's Edge aesthetic.
Despite my misgivings regarding the story itself (which is very easily ignorable so I don't care), and what I think are gameplay flaws or at least foibles, or things I'd prefer were different but it's fine, I think I could see myself returning to this one from time to time, rather than writing it off completely and leaving it to collect dust somewhere.
Thankfully, the game part of the game is still pretty decent. I'd say it feels overall better than the original, but not by much, really. I acknowledge a good deal of this for me personally is just due to the fact I could actually play with the keybindings I like, and didn't need external software to adjust the FOV to my liking, two factors the first game was sorely lacking.
Catalyst feels speedier but also less weighty than the original, so that sense of building up to full momentum you got from the first game is kinda gone; the movement in the end feels more obviously video game-y. While this doesn't personally bother me too much tbh, it's something I noticed and felt worth mentioning.
The skill-tree was poorly implemented imo, and the choice to lock certain moves behind an upgrade wall that the player had available to them from the get-go in the first game was certainly... a choice. Yes, it'd bother me more if it weren't for the fact that all of Faith's cool moves from the original (and most of the ones I wound up using) are unlockable early on, but it's still annoying and I recognise the half-baked illusion of progression for what it is.
I like the idea of the Mag-rope (a grappling hook in my insane parkour game? YES PLEASE!) but one thing that makes it... not as cool as it could've been is the fact that use of the Magrope's three functions are restricted to very specific areas on the world map. Part of the fun with grappling hooks in video games for me is the ability to literally just grapple wherever, on my terms. The way it's implemented in practice is restrictive and doesn't really allow for emergent gameplay, which I think ultimately works against what an open-world parkour game is aiming to be, conceptually.
Finally, to end this on some positive notes:
Breezing through Catalyst's open world is great fun, and I genuinely enjoyed some of the setpieces the story mode had to offer (e.g. Elysium was cool, and I enjoyed the less-daunting callback to the Ropeburn-esque riding on top of a moving train in a tunnel near the endgame). The Frostbite Engine is beautiful, smooth (this is the only Frostbite game I've played aaaaaaa) and lends itself well to the Mirror's Edge aesthetic.
Despite my misgivings regarding the story itself (which is very easily ignorable so I don't care), and what I think are gameplay flaws or at least foibles, or things I'd prefer were different but it's fine, I think I could see myself returning to this one from time to time, rather than writing it off completely and leaving it to collect dust somewhere.
2019
Very fun, veeeery trippy little puzzler! If you're like me you'll need to play in bite-size session chunks, just to give your brain some time to recover from the optical illusions and perspective fuckery.
Needed to consult Google a few times for some walkthroughs to a few tougher puzzles, especially nearer to the end, but for the most part the game soared on by pretty smoothly. Was actually proud of myself for one particular moment near the end where I was on the verge of looking up a walkthrough but then I'd worked the solution out on my own seconds before I'd have tabbed out to my browser lol
I've been slowly replaying chapter by chapter for the developer commentary. It's been interesting hearing the team behind Superliminal talk about the development process and how certain effects were achieved, and discovering hidden easter eggs I'd missed on my first playthrough.
Needed to consult Google a few times for some walkthroughs to a few tougher puzzles, especially nearer to the end, but for the most part the game soared on by pretty smoothly. Was actually proud of myself for one particular moment near the end where I was on the verge of looking up a walkthrough but then I'd worked the solution out on my own seconds before I'd have tabbed out to my browser lol
I've been slowly replaying chapter by chapter for the developer commentary. It's been interesting hearing the team behind Superliminal talk about the development process and how certain effects were achieved, and discovering hidden easter eggs I'd missed on my first playthrough.
Currently replaying (again) so I can experience CQM for the first time, see what all the fuss is about.
I will go ahead and say this is an excellent, immersive game brimming with moody, gothic, creepy (and often darkly comedic) atmosphere and strong writing (well... for the most part anyway), bogged down somewhat by its obviously unfinished vanilla state and alpha!Source Engine/wonky physics jank. The absolute necessity of the Unofficial Patch prevents me from rating this a 5/5, but the hard work and lengths the Bloodlines community have gone to to fix glaring bugs, restore cut content and breathe new life (or "unlife" I suppose) into this flawed gem cannot be overstated.
If you like vampires, good RPGs, compelling characters (not to mention some of the excellent voice talent behind them!), and don't mind gameplay that's a little rough around the edges, I can't recommend this game enough. Pick it up on a sale, install the Unofficial Patch (I prefer UP+ but Basic is good enough if all you want is just a vanilla experience with all the bug fixes), and have yourself a time.
Oh, and despite what some of the larger community have to say on the matter, just play whatever clan you want first time around. You might find a deeper appreciation for some of the Malk dialogue if you save them for a second or third playthrough, but it's not as big a deal as some folks make it out to be. You're the one playing, not them, so just do what you want ^_^
I will go ahead and say this is an excellent, immersive game brimming with moody, gothic, creepy (and often darkly comedic) atmosphere and strong writing (well... for the most part anyway), bogged down somewhat by its obviously unfinished vanilla state and alpha!Source Engine/wonky physics jank. The absolute necessity of the Unofficial Patch prevents me from rating this a 5/5, but the hard work and lengths the Bloodlines community have gone to to fix glaring bugs, restore cut content and breathe new life (or "unlife" I suppose) into this flawed gem cannot be overstated.
If you like vampires, good RPGs, compelling characters (not to mention some of the excellent voice talent behind them!), and don't mind gameplay that's a little rough around the edges, I can't recommend this game enough. Pick it up on a sale, install the Unofficial Patch (I prefer UP+ but Basic is good enough if all you want is just a vanilla experience with all the bug fixes), and have yourself a time.
Oh, and despite what some of the larger community have to say on the matter, just play whatever clan you want first time around. You might find a deeper appreciation for some of the Malk dialogue if you save them for a second or third playthrough, but it's not as big a deal as some folks make it out to be. You're the one playing, not them, so just do what you want ^_^
2017
Shit writing. Like, actually ass. Apparently I'm "manipulative" for:
- telling one character I didn't drink (a "I only drink occasionally" option was NOT available in the conversation with them) and telling another that, sure enough, I only drink occasionally - why was that not an option in the other convo???? But it was in this one??? Wha.... why?????
- giving my honest opinions about the music the characters sent me, and basically just having diverse music tastes... I guess???
- telling one character that I could see myself MAYBE wanting to settle down and start a family one day way in the future, E V E N T U A L L Y, and telling another that I don't see myself settling down IMMEDIATELY RIGHT after college (I personally don't see how these two things necessarily contradict each other, since most ppl at least within my own age group wouldn't want to start a family RIGHT after secondary education let alone tertiary, but that usually means something along the lines of "i wanna see what life throws at me. if i do settle down, it'll be when I am good and ready" rather than a hard "never". but go off sis)
If I wanted to get yelled at, gaslit and accused of being "manipulative" for things that make zero logical sense to a sane person, I could just hit up my ex that I haven't spoken to in two years. I don't need to be lectured by pixels that wouldn't know what the concept of nuance or competent writing was if it hit them over the head with a brick.
- telling one character I didn't drink (a "I only drink occasionally" option was NOT available in the conversation with them) and telling another that, sure enough, I only drink occasionally - why was that not an option in the other convo???? But it was in this one??? Wha.... why?????
- giving my honest opinions about the music the characters sent me, and basically just having diverse music tastes... I guess???
- telling one character that I could see myself MAYBE wanting to settle down and start a family one day way in the future, E V E N T U A L L Y, and telling another that I don't see myself settling down IMMEDIATELY RIGHT after college (I personally don't see how these two things necessarily contradict each other, since most ppl at least within my own age group wouldn't want to start a family RIGHT after secondary education let alone tertiary, but that usually means something along the lines of "i wanna see what life throws at me. if i do settle down, it'll be when I am good and ready" rather than a hard "never". but go off sis)
If I wanted to get yelled at, gaslit and accused of being "manipulative" for things that make zero logical sense to a sane person, I could just hit up my ex that I haven't spoken to in two years. I don't need to be lectured by pixels that wouldn't know what the concept of nuance or competent writing was if it hit them over the head with a brick.
Cute little interquel (but not actually bc even tho it's set between LiS2 eps 1 and 2 it was released before LiS2... anyway)
Chris is adorable. I revelled in the childlike wonder on display here, as well as the references to Life Is Strange both past and (relative to Captain Spirit) future. Fucking hated his dad, but yknow. Looking forward to seeing Chris again in Life Is Strange 2!
Chris is adorable. I revelled in the childlike wonder on display here, as well as the references to Life Is Strange both past and (relative to Captain Spirit) future. Fucking hated his dad, but yknow. Looking forward to seeing Chris again in Life Is Strange 2!
2014
More fun with friends, just like IRL Monopoly.
2022
I mean the RTX is pretty and all, but I've already played Portal. It's basically just a free tech demo for peeps who already own the original game, plus any of the NVIDIA RTX cards.
2015
Decent tiddy Bejeweled
2008
Been waiting forever-forever for the PC patch smh
2022
Zero-build is fun, however Epic abandoned Unreal Tournament, for this. For this, and everything it represents. Unforgivable tbh
let me sex the dads you cowards