Settra
2021
it's a comfy game to be certain, but beyond that I think I've missed the appeal. it's less grindy and annoying than competing survival/craft games but it also feels like it has left to offer, and the combat isn't particularly good or interesting to me. I do like the adventuring aspect and the enemies and procedural world stuff is interesting, but it hasn't really wowed me or struck me as this game that everyone needs to play. if you want a game to just relax to this is definitely good for that, though.
I just wanted a "turn your brain off" game where you watch one army blob unga bunga into another army blob, but this game sucks at doing even that. it's so ugly and boring looking. I dunno what I expected. at least I got it for free???
2012
meh, it's not very subtle nor interesting in its commentary and the gameplay is standard. I'll give it props for trying something but it could've been a lot better.
2019
Wildermyth is basically a more customizable and interactable take on the Banner Saga kind of game. the narrative changes over time and will evolve according to the choices you make, the combat is a pseudo-XCOM style kind of thing with a Paper Mario aesthetic. it's a pretty weird game but it's really cool. there are various different storylines to playthrough, or you can just do a multi-chapter generated story.
your ultimate goal is to complete the objective of whichever storyline you're doing and turn your characters into legendary folk heroes. there is permadeath and multiple difficulty settings, so you can and will lose some people on the way. you can induct your survived heroes into something called your 'Legacy' which will allow you carry them over to other stories if it interests you to do so. it's not the most in-depth thing ever, but every playthrough feels distinct, as do your characters.
the coolest thing I'd say is just how much can change about your character short-term. I had a guy that was a dedicated bowman, but he got his arm caught in a trap and had to amputate. he could only use one hand well after that and replaced the other with a hook, so he started using a one-handed crossbow in his good hand. later on in the game he got charged by this magic mutant boar thing which ripped apart his other good hand, leaving him with two hook hands now, and as a result the characters actually remarked that he wouldn't be able to open doors as efficiently.
so, like I said it's not just oozing with depth but all the things in the game come together to make it pretty interesting and entertaining.
your ultimate goal is to complete the objective of whichever storyline you're doing and turn your characters into legendary folk heroes. there is permadeath and multiple difficulty settings, so you can and will lose some people on the way. you can induct your survived heroes into something called your 'Legacy' which will allow you carry them over to other stories if it interests you to do so. it's not the most in-depth thing ever, but every playthrough feels distinct, as do your characters.
the coolest thing I'd say is just how much can change about your character short-term. I had a guy that was a dedicated bowman, but he got his arm caught in a trap and had to amputate. he could only use one hand well after that and replaced the other with a hook, so he started using a one-handed crossbow in his good hand. later on in the game he got charged by this magic mutant boar thing which ripped apart his other good hand, leaving him with two hook hands now, and as a result the characters actually remarked that he wouldn't be able to open doors as efficiently.
so, like I said it's not just oozing with depth but all the things in the game come together to make it pretty interesting and entertaining.
2017
Mount and Blade except with weird 2D chesspiece-shaped people. it's alright, the gameplay tends to get really unforgiving and samey to the point of tedium the longer you play though. once you've completed one campaign you've done just about everything there is to do.
in short, it's a pretty good game but there's just not a lot of staying power.
in short, it's a pretty good game but there's just not a lot of staying power.
2009
a very sad end to a studio as fine as Pandemic. neat ideas in this game, not much else.
some good 'ol PS2 fantasy jank. held up a lot better than I expected, actually.
far too good for what it is
2020
one of the only decent remakes this entire generation, does pretty much everything it needs to and a little extra.
2010
the combat and movement are solid but there's not a whole lot beyond that, the game is just kinda samey and meh. this style of game applied to something bigger and better could make for a really, REALLY good game though.
way too short and way too much potential squandered. was great and charming fun while it lasted, however.
crazy how a seemingly standard movie tie-in game ends up being better than the actual movie. really fun game too.
1991
one of the laziest game sequels of all time. a lot of stuff is just ripped from the first game and put in worse levels with worse visuals and worse music/SFX. it's just not good.
it's always disappointing when a "great return" to an idle series comes in the form of a mediocre mobile game