TheBarrylad
2023
Another wee gem Netflix have sewed up on their gaming platform. While there is a lot of licensed garbage on there, they are definitely putting the work in to get some respectable indie titles along the way.
Storyteller has a great premise and a fun central mechanic, but the puzzles can feel slightly obtuse at times.
Storyteller has a great premise and a fun central mechanic, but the puzzles can feel slightly obtuse at times.
This review contains spoilers
An excellent follow up in almost every way, enhancing everything that was great about the first game. The traversal is insane. Tonnes of options, incredible speed, but also tremendously responsive and never out of your control.
The story is hugely improved over the original, with a tale of multiple villains and your key protagonists interwoven almost perfectly. Everything flows so well from one story beat to another with no real filler - and a laundry list of excellent set pieces. Yes, this is perfectly paced, I have absolutely no clue how anyone could be dissatisfied with the length of this game. To pad it would be to hinder it.
It is probably the best adaptation of the Venom story to date, I would say eclipsing the 90s animated show. But I had some minor problems. In general, I always hate the idea of symbiotes reproducing and there being ten million of them running around - it just sort of cheapens the Venom character to me. But so often that is where these stories go.
Oh and the Mary Jane missions are still bad. I get doing a cute little thing where you make her OP to address criticism from the last game but they are still very bad stealth action sequences.
The story is hugely improved over the original, with a tale of multiple villains and your key protagonists interwoven almost perfectly. Everything flows so well from one story beat to another with no real filler - and a laundry list of excellent set pieces. Yes, this is perfectly paced, I have absolutely no clue how anyone could be dissatisfied with the length of this game. To pad it would be to hinder it.
It is probably the best adaptation of the Venom story to date, I would say eclipsing the 90s animated show. But I had some minor problems. In general, I always hate the idea of symbiotes reproducing and there being ten million of them running around - it just sort of cheapens the Venom character to me. But so often that is where these stories go.
Oh and the Mary Jane missions are still bad. I get doing a cute little thing where you make her OP to address criticism from the last game but they are still very bad stealth action sequences.
Roughly half-way through the story, this game feels enhanced over the original in almost every way - but I am kind of shocked at how badly optimised it is on PS5 (and seemingly everywhere). Very frustrating, but it doesn't derail the game too much.
Can't quite settle on a rating for this. Will certainly revisit later, and wrap up the main quest.
Can't quite settle on a rating for this. Will certainly revisit later, and wrap up the main quest.
2022
A top notch Steam Deck time killer, with tonnes of charm in its presentation and characters. Initially, I was enamoured with how many new things Dave kept throwing at me. New mechanics, new areas, new metas. But at a certain point, it felt like diminishing returns. I was less and less interested in the latest thing, and kind of wished it spent more time fleshing out the restaurant aspect.
Unfinished currently, but will likely go back to it. (17 hours logged)
Unfinished currently, but will likely go back to it. (17 hours logged)
2007
After mastering the 2D and 3D environment, Nintendo somehow turned their attention to a game where you go upside down, inside out, switch between different gravities AND do it with motion controls -- and they made that feel natural and intuitive too.
There are a handful of times in Galaxy where you are fighting the camera. A HANDFUL! In a ten-ish hour playthrough of the core story. While briefly grating, that is actually a remarkable achievement given how ambitious and totally unique the level design is in this game. A real gem, that still feels fresh and inventive today.
[Steam Deck emulation notes: GREAT, for the most part. Mapping general motion controls to the right stick was no problem, but mapping 'tilt' controls (such as you'd use in the surfing level) was a bit of a nightmare. I was eventually able to map them to the right stick when I was using a wired 8bitdo controller -- but I have still, as of this writing, not been able to successfully map them to the Deck's own native controls, and I only found a bunch of Reddit threads where people had the exact same issue. So, to play this game to completion on the Deck, I would say it's mandatory to play it docked, with a wired controller - as sections where 'tilting' the wiimote to steer objects are unavoidable.]
There are a handful of times in Galaxy where you are fighting the camera. A HANDFUL! In a ten-ish hour playthrough of the core story. While briefly grating, that is actually a remarkable achievement given how ambitious and totally unique the level design is in this game. A real gem, that still feels fresh and inventive today.
[Steam Deck emulation notes: GREAT, for the most part. Mapping general motion controls to the right stick was no problem, but mapping 'tilt' controls (such as you'd use in the surfing level) was a bit of a nightmare. I was eventually able to map them to the right stick when I was using a wired 8bitdo controller -- but I have still, as of this writing, not been able to successfully map them to the Deck's own native controls, and I only found a bunch of Reddit threads where people had the exact same issue. So, to play this game to completion on the Deck, I would say it's mandatory to play it docked, with a wired controller - as sections where 'tilting' the wiimote to steer objects are unavoidable.]
2023
Let me just say right up front; I put about 12-ish hours into this game. So obviously this is not a comment on the whole experience, beginning-to-end.
But I have to say; I have had no fun with this. And I mean that literally, not in any kind of hyperbolic sense. I have had zero actual enjoyment with this game, for a dozen hours. It is an ugly, grey, lifeless RPG with mediocre action and not a single interesting conversation to be had with any of the people I've met so far. And the UI might as well have been designed by an alien. I have no clue how Bethesda can be this deep in the game and still be making menus and inventories like this.
Miss me with any "well it takes 85 hours to get good" shit. I don't watch two seasons of a TV show to get to the goods stuff, so I certainly won't tolerate that kind of thing in games. You can make a compelling intro, even if your game is generally a slow burn - I'm fine with that. But aesthetically, narratively, and gameplay-wise this thing offers almost nothing in its opening act.
But I have to say; I have had no fun with this. And I mean that literally, not in any kind of hyperbolic sense. I have had zero actual enjoyment with this game, for a dozen hours. It is an ugly, grey, lifeless RPG with mediocre action and not a single interesting conversation to be had with any of the people I've met so far. And the UI might as well have been designed by an alien. I have no clue how Bethesda can be this deep in the game and still be making menus and inventories like this.
Miss me with any "well it takes 85 hours to get good" shit. I don't watch two seasons of a TV show to get to the goods stuff, so I certainly won't tolerate that kind of thing in games. You can make a compelling intro, even if your game is generally a slow burn - I'm fine with that. But aesthetically, narratively, and gameplay-wise this thing offers almost nothing in its opening act.
It is so hard to meet expectations as high as people set for Silent Hill 2, and for that game to meet them in 2023. Video games evolve so rapidly, especially in terms of aesthetics and storytelling, that a game from 2001 that leans heavily on those will inherently have an uphill battle.
Silent Hill 2 takes all that in its stride to deliver what is still a peerless, often imitated horror experience -- even in 2023. It's PS2 era vibe and feel have aged gracefully and almost enhance the atmosphere. The music is incredible; haunting and ethereal at times, mechanical and menacing at others. The story is fascinating and doesn't whiff with the ending like many.
The combat is stiff which in turn makes the boss fights feel mechanically basic, but that's thematically appropriate at least, and to knock points off this as some kind of box ticking exercise would miss the point.
A note on the Enhanced Edition; it is excellent. A superb way to play this classic game. The PS2 version has its emulation woes, the HD collection is a legendary fumble, and physical copies are extortionately priced - but thankfully the folks behind this project did some incredible work to the PC version. And it ran like a dream on Steam Deck. HD, widescreen, 60 fps.
Silent Hill 2 takes all that in its stride to deliver what is still a peerless, often imitated horror experience -- even in 2023. It's PS2 era vibe and feel have aged gracefully and almost enhance the atmosphere. The music is incredible; haunting and ethereal at times, mechanical and menacing at others. The story is fascinating and doesn't whiff with the ending like many.
The combat is stiff which in turn makes the boss fights feel mechanically basic, but that's thematically appropriate at least, and to knock points off this as some kind of box ticking exercise would miss the point.
A note on the Enhanced Edition; it is excellent. A superb way to play this classic game. The PS2 version has its emulation woes, the HD collection is a legendary fumble, and physical copies are extortionately priced - but thankfully the folks behind this project did some incredible work to the PC version. And it ran like a dream on Steam Deck. HD, widescreen, 60 fps.
2023
Mortal Kombat 1 makes an incredible first impression; a gorgeous next-gen looking and feeling game with some fresh takes on classic characters, and what initially felt like their best story mode yet. Cutscenes were beautifully animated and well written, fleshing out characters and establishing power dynamics in the new MK world in a way the series really hadn't before.
But the more time I spent with it, the more the cracks started to appear. The grounded writing of the story's first half descended into extremely familiar territory in the second, as well as indulging in some pop culture trends that I won't spoil here but that I rolled my eyes at.
Outside of the story, the game is perhaps the buggiest (at launch) of any recent NRS game I can recall. It's not top five Most On Fire Launch of 2023, but it's definitely in need of some TLC and a few significant patches.
Invasion mode is also... okay, and a bit of a time killer - but it lacks the wackiness or big hooks of some of the franchise's more ambitious adventure modes.
I'll keep playing. The core is there, and it is great, but as of this writing, before any major updates, there is a sense of lacking here.
But the more time I spent with it, the more the cracks started to appear. The grounded writing of the story's first half descended into extremely familiar territory in the second, as well as indulging in some pop culture trends that I won't spoil here but that I rolled my eyes at.
Outside of the story, the game is perhaps the buggiest (at launch) of any recent NRS game I can recall. It's not top five Most On Fire Launch of 2023, but it's definitely in need of some TLC and a few significant patches.
Invasion mode is also... okay, and a bit of a time killer - but it lacks the wackiness or big hooks of some of the franchise's more ambitious adventure modes.
I'll keep playing. The core is there, and it is great, but as of this writing, before any major updates, there is a sense of lacking here.
2023
For about three-ish hours; I felt like this was a game of the year contender. It has some of the best, most viscerally satisfying shooting of any FPS I've played in a decade. The guns look and sound incredible, the feedback you get as enemies flail backwards because you've slide-tackled them before unloading dual pistols into their chest -- incredible. The bullet time, the cloak, the slick enemy A.I. - it all rocks.
While the story and nuts-and-bolts of the campaign aren't super important; I really can't overstate how bad the third act of this game is. It deviates from everything great in the first half, and indulges in some really terrible impulses.
There's an incredibly hokey, shoe-horned level that I won't spoil here, that basically tries to play off a popular internet horror trend, then there's two poor boss fights, followed by a cringey cutscene, and one more insane boss fight where half of the game's cool abilities are taken from you. It's a real shame, but it sapped my desire to replay the many many replayable sections.
While the story and nuts-and-bolts of the campaign aren't super important; I really can't overstate how bad the third act of this game is. It deviates from everything great in the first half, and indulges in some really terrible impulses.
There's an incredibly hokey, shoe-horned level that I won't spoil here, that basically tries to play off a popular internet horror trend, then there's two poor boss fights, followed by a cringey cutscene, and one more insane boss fight where half of the game's cool abilities are taken from you. It's a real shame, but it sapped my desire to replay the many many replayable sections.
Now that the dust has settled after launch, and most players have figured out the basic layout of the levels; the real game has begun.
It was very overwhelming at first because you have to dodge your enemies, while also trying to figure out what the hell you're doing. With the core mechanics down, the real game of cat and mouse is revealed, and I found the game somehow even more thrilling after getting to grips with the maps. The balance between killer and victim is pretty dang great; and I had numerous close calls as both, which I was actually able to recover from. Hiding in tall grass is shockingly effective, as killers have more to do than simply hunt, many don't take the time to comb an entire area - they don't have the luxury. So a well timed hiding can change the time of the game.
I can't wait to see how this continues over time. It's a bit light on content now, and sadly some cosmetics are already locked behind real money, but hopefully there will be a steady flow of updates.
It was very overwhelming at first because you have to dodge your enemies, while also trying to figure out what the hell you're doing. With the core mechanics down, the real game of cat and mouse is revealed, and I found the game somehow even more thrilling after getting to grips with the maps. The balance between killer and victim is pretty dang great; and I had numerous close calls as both, which I was actually able to recover from. Hiding in tall grass is shockingly effective, as killers have more to do than simply hunt, many don't take the time to comb an entire area - they don't have the luxury. So a well timed hiding can change the time of the game.
I can't wait to see how this continues over time. It's a bit light on content now, and sadly some cosmetics are already locked behind real money, but hopefully there will be a steady flow of updates.
2023
Having a lazy Saturday, so I decided to work through my Game Pass backlog; including finally giving Redfall a spin.
Not going to slap a rating on this based off two hours of play, but as someone who loves Arkane's style of game this was kind of soul destroying. A current-gen only experience that looks this bad, runs at 30 fps, and has awful, storyboard animatics for cutscenes -- it doesn't put its best foot forward with presentation. The gameplay is just a ho-hum version of their infinitely better games which you can also play on Game Pass or grab on Steam with change from a tenner. When I died during the second mission and it sent me all the way back to the starting safehouse, I had my 'IM GOOD!' moment and uninstalled it. What a terrible bummer.
Not going to slap a rating on this based off two hours of play, but as someone who loves Arkane's style of game this was kind of soul destroying. A current-gen only experience that looks this bad, runs at 30 fps, and has awful, storyboard animatics for cutscenes -- it doesn't put its best foot forward with presentation. The gameplay is just a ho-hum version of their infinitely better games which you can also play on Game Pass or grab on Steam with change from a tenner. When I died during the second mission and it sent me all the way back to the starting safehouse, I had my 'IM GOOD!' moment and uninstalled it. What a terrible bummer.
2007
Better than Hit and Run, and also one of the funniest comedy games ever. This is MAJORLY slept on.
[emulated for PS3 on Steam Deck, where it runs perfectly with only minor, rare graphical issues. A controller disconnected error will pop up at first launch, but you can fix it via a patch]
[emulated for PS3 on Steam Deck, where it runs perfectly with only minor, rare graphical issues. A controller disconnected error will pop up at first launch, but you can fix it via a patch]
2023
What I love about Dredge is that its little bag of tricks is a lot deeper than you might think. The sanity effects, which you'll see more of if you sail at night or use too many special abilities, are varied and unpredictable - removing the sense that they're just a set of enemies and visual effects on a rotation. Two hours into the game I was accosted by a GHOST SHARK but I never saw one again for the rest of the playthrough. It's constantly surprising you positively and negatively.
Creepy vibes, a tough but fair economy to grapple with, and tonnes of secrets. Well worth the humble eight hour run time.
Creepy vibes, a tough but fair economy to grapple with, and tonnes of secrets. Well worth the humble eight hour run time.
Was perusing my Steam Deck storage today, looking to do a bit of a clean up. And after giving it a pass for a few weeks -- with no playtime -- I finally accepted that Fight Forever had outstayed its welcome, and simply has not grabbed my attention sufficiently. I have played more Here Comes The Pain in the last fortnight.
The very core of this game is good. They made a fun, accessible wrestling engine. But the embarrassing lack of features beyond that is inexcusable -- and in a roundabout way, that lack of features exposes that the core I mentioned is just that; good... but not great. Before release, I was adamant that a good enough gameplay experience would excuse a lack of other features, and I still believe that. But when a push comes to shove, there simply isn't anything bringing me back to Fight Forever on a regular basis.
The lack of a roadmap EVEN JUST FOR THE CONTENT THEY'VE ALREADY SOLD IN A SEASON PASS - is insane. This is not some plucky start-up company. This is Yukes and (Zombie) THQ. They've been to this dance dozens of times in their respective histories. The marketing and post-release communication for this game has been amateur hour.
The very core of this game is good. They made a fun, accessible wrestling engine. But the embarrassing lack of features beyond that is inexcusable -- and in a roundabout way, that lack of features exposes that the core I mentioned is just that; good... but not great. Before release, I was adamant that a good enough gameplay experience would excuse a lack of other features, and I still believe that. But when a push comes to shove, there simply isn't anything bringing me back to Fight Forever on a regular basis.
The lack of a roadmap EVEN JUST FOR THE CONTENT THEY'VE ALREADY SOLD IN A SEASON PASS - is insane. This is not some plucky start-up company. This is Yukes and (Zombie) THQ. They've been to this dance dozens of times in their respective histories. The marketing and post-release communication for this game has been amateur hour.
2023
Approximately half way through the story, and Dead Island 2 isn't really showing much in terms of changing up the mission design to keep it interesting; so I'll wrap up my time with it now.
To be fair; it's a very fun zombie-mashing simulator. In the spirit of a cool-but-flawed PS2 game, it has a gnarly gimmick but doesn't design an interesting enough game around it.
The gore and zombie mutilation tech on show here is genuinely impressive. Rather than having preset deform points (decapitate, chop arms off at the shoulder etc), every single enemy has a highly responsive, highly specific damage model based on how and where you attack. Blunt items hitting jaws will cause them to unhinged, blades will chop off hands at the exact place you strike, individual organs can be seen wobbling about after you explode a torso. It's a giddy thrill for any old school zombie film nerd, and a super impressive technical feat -- which are getting rarer and rarer in the modern graphical arms race.
There isn't enough of a game stitching it all together though. You walk, you smash enemies, you pick up mcguffins, you get stilted unfunny cutscenes, you repeat the process. The gore and weapon customisation (fire damage butcher knife!) keep you interested for a few hours, but not much beyond that.
Bonus points for having an Irish character who says actual Irish people things like bure, feen, gom, and so on.
Steam Deck notes: can play at a rock solid 30fps on a mix of medium and low settings. Can get to a locked 40 if you want to mess with the settings more, but I never bothered. Will chew through battery, obviously.
To be fair; it's a very fun zombie-mashing simulator. In the spirit of a cool-but-flawed PS2 game, it has a gnarly gimmick but doesn't design an interesting enough game around it.
The gore and zombie mutilation tech on show here is genuinely impressive. Rather than having preset deform points (decapitate, chop arms off at the shoulder etc), every single enemy has a highly responsive, highly specific damage model based on how and where you attack. Blunt items hitting jaws will cause them to unhinged, blades will chop off hands at the exact place you strike, individual organs can be seen wobbling about after you explode a torso. It's a giddy thrill for any old school zombie film nerd, and a super impressive technical feat -- which are getting rarer and rarer in the modern graphical arms race.
There isn't enough of a game stitching it all together though. You walk, you smash enemies, you pick up mcguffins, you get stilted unfunny cutscenes, you repeat the process. The gore and weapon customisation (fire damage butcher knife!) keep you interested for a few hours, but not much beyond that.
Bonus points for having an Irish character who says actual Irish people things like bure, feen, gom, and so on.
Steam Deck notes: can play at a rock solid 30fps on a mix of medium and low settings. Can get to a locked 40 if you want to mess with the settings more, but I never bothered. Will chew through battery, obviously.