little_lagomorph
17 reviews liked by little_lagomorph
Jumping into this game without playing the first so take this all with a grain of salt. Let me first say, I think the game is good overall! I think the art is stunning, the atmosphere is thick, and the performances are exhausting and intense (in a good way!). There is a lot to love here, and I think there's some really great storytelling going on too!
But for a narratively-driven game, I just think the writing is a mess. Without going into spoilery territory, I was unbelievably frustrated watching these characters make the decisions they made, literally screaming at my monitor because the intent behind their choices was so baffling, and not in a good, "morally complicated" way, but in a "this is such nonsense that it's pulling me out of the experience" way. Entire plothooks are completely dropped by the end of the game, characters are unfairly rewarded or punished in ungratifying ways, and in general I don't think the game has a real grasp on what it's trying to express. And I'd like to reiterate, there's definitely a lot of good here, A Plague Tale: Requiem touches on so many interesting ethical conundrums and relationship dynamics that are really compelling, but often times the way a character reacts in those moments is either wholly underwhelming or just plain bizarre.
That said, I think I'm more of a stickler about this kind of thing than most, so if you're interested I'd still give it a shot! If nothing else, the visuals and music will absolutely sweep you off your feet.
But for a narratively-driven game, I just think the writing is a mess. Without going into spoilery territory, I was unbelievably frustrated watching these characters make the decisions they made, literally screaming at my monitor because the intent behind their choices was so baffling, and not in a good, "morally complicated" way, but in a "this is such nonsense that it's pulling me out of the experience" way. Entire plothooks are completely dropped by the end of the game, characters are unfairly rewarded or punished in ungratifying ways, and in general I don't think the game has a real grasp on what it's trying to express. And I'd like to reiterate, there's definitely a lot of good here, A Plague Tale: Requiem touches on so many interesting ethical conundrums and relationship dynamics that are really compelling, but often times the way a character reacts in those moments is either wholly underwhelming or just plain bizarre.
That said, I think I'm more of a stickler about this kind of thing than most, so if you're interested I'd still give it a shot! If nothing else, the visuals and music will absolutely sweep you off your feet.
It's a slight improvement gameplay-wise, but a massive "been there, done that" in everything else. The story threads similar themes, character motivations and twists that the first one already made. The gameplay is still the same linear-as-hell style that stifles any and all player creativity (and stealth is broken this time around). And it's riddled with bugs on top of all that.
But I think the "defining" feature of the game is consistently and constantly having people be the absolute worst scumbags possible and having every single misery possible thrown at the protagonists only to then try and pull a moment of "but the world is good isn't it?". That's not to say you can't have this dichotomy of dark fantasy and hope, hell I absolutely can't claim that in a world where Berserk exists. But Requiem absolutely does not pull it off gracefully. It's like someone bringing a sledgehammer to your leg only to point out "but hey, medicine has gotten really far and you can get that fixed right?" while you're still writhing in pain. It's a stark contrast that requires you to shut off your brain and not think too much about it to enjoy.
But I think the "defining" feature of the game is consistently and constantly having people be the absolute worst scumbags possible and having every single misery possible thrown at the protagonists only to then try and pull a moment of "but the world is good isn't it?". That's not to say you can't have this dichotomy of dark fantasy and hope, hell I absolutely can't claim that in a world where Berserk exists. But Requiem absolutely does not pull it off gracefully. It's like someone bringing a sledgehammer to your leg only to point out "but hey, medicine has gotten really far and you can get that fixed right?" while you're still writhing in pain. It's a stark contrast that requires you to shut off your brain and not think too much about it to enjoy.
Breathtakingly stupid story. While I could probably pick it apart for multiple paragraphs, let's just say there is absolutely nothing to take away from this. It exists purely to give "emotional moments." There is no meaning to be gathered whatsoever that is not contradicted 100 times over by the game itself. The facial capture is extremely dry, and ruins what are some decent voice performances from the cast.
The gameplay is the same as the first, and while I do get people thinking there wasn't enough for another game, I don't think it's that bad as someone who hasn't touched the original game since I beat it years ago.
The gameplay is the same as the first, and while I do get people thinking there wasn't enough for another game, I don't think it's that bad as someone who hasn't touched the original game since I beat it years ago.
This review contains spoilers
I'm already not a fan of walking sims, but I give them a chance from time to time. This has its moments as far as immersion and gameplay go, but the game basically justifies a relationship between a middle aged man and an underage teenager and that's it, that's the story. It's terrible and disgusting.
This has to be one of the most astonishingly stupid stories I've come across. The majority of the game is a piss poor Firewatch rip off, but then it decides to take a sharp turn into WEIRDO CITY. It's an exercise in how not to handle sensitive subjects, and the twists/revelations are complete and utter bullshit. It's beyond me that actual human beings wrote this nonsense and thought "Yea this is it". Even if it wasn't filled with weird pedo shit, the story just makes absolutely zero logical sense. What a waste of some good atmosphere.
This review contains spoilers
This is like one of the craziest games I've ever played
This game has atmosphere like a motherfucker, genuinely when it started off I loved exploring the hotel, it was a lot of fun and very cozy, then when the game wants the exact same hotel to be terrifying it is. The slow arduous journey from the chapel to your bedroom was the most tense I've felt in a long time. The game's sound design is also on point. Except for the weird end credits song. That kinda sucked.
Anyways, all that comes at odds with this game's baffling story which, as the rest of these reviews will tell you, is hilariously bizarre and also mostly about how cool pedophiles are. This game fucking SENT ME.
The voice acting is honestly so perfect for the dialogue. It's awkward and stilted and also somehow brimming with emotion. Like everyone voice acting was constantly on the verge of laughing while recording, or having a mental breakdown.
So right, you start thinking pretty soon into the game that the father is actually gonna be a misunderstood good guy, like everyone thought he was having sex with a 16 year old (or as this game keeps saying a 16 years-old), but he was just a genuinely understanding man who actually understood Rachel when nobody else did, and that relationship made say her dad or little brother jealous and so they started a rumor about the whole pedophile thing when in reality he was just the only one in the small town kind enough and smart enough to understand her and they had like a parental child bond, or like even a mutual friendship or something, but no, the dad is actually just an ethical pedophile and his dumb idiot prude wife just couldn't handle him experiencing so much love.
Also say that you're a woman and you find out your near-50 year old husband has impregnated a 16 year old girl. I'd say that the more rational response would be to kill your husband, not the 16 year old, but that's the game's final twist, and it's hilarious.
Most of this game's story is setting up a romance between the main character, Nicole, the daughter of the aforementioned ethical pedophile, and Irving, a character who is supposedly a FEMA worker, but in a reveal that was all too telegraphed turns out to be the little brother of the 16 year old, the titular Rachel. By the way there's a moment before the reveal where Irving pretends to be talking to someone else, but it's so incredibly obvious that it's just him doing the voice of an old lady so like, for a really long time I knew some shit was happening with him, and Nicole just doesn't realize that it was obviously him pitching his voice up a little bit. Once again, this game could absolutely send me. Also, that romance was actually kinda charming because of how awkward and bizarre the voice performance is, and genuinely I wish this game's ending was just them unraveling the mystery and then just like shrugging to each other and then leaving to go on the date they sorta set up. Like, man this sure was fucked up, but like idk at least we have each other. I don't know, I know there's some dialogue relating to their romance I missed so maybe I wouldn't like it so much if I had experienced it fully. Maybe it was because at that point their relationship was the only part of the game's story that wasn't a total dumpster fire and would've ended the game on at least something I liked.
The puzzles in this game are all basic and I never got lost, except for when I wanted to, like it's all there for a basic simple walking sim, and that's what it is. But everything else around it goes fucking crazy by the latter half, it's amazing.
I haven't laughed at a videogame this hard in so long, and I will say, even though this game is basically just 3 hours of defending the honor of a fictional pedophile, it really isn't that gross of a game. Maybe it's just because of how silly it all is, or maybe it is the voice work which made me laugh at all the big emotional scenes, but it plays out more like the devs being like "Oh, you fool, you thought the pedophile was a bad guy? He was actually the good guy and you were the bad guy for being mean to your classmate when you were a teenager!" Then some creepy person telling you about why age of consent laws are tyranny, like they only made the dad, once again, have sex with a high schooler, just so you'd be surprised when it turns out he was actually the good guy, and that's just kinda funny.
So this game hints constantly at the fact that Rachel is still alive or like is a ghost, but it never confirms it, like it should have, until near the end when it's revealed that yes, she is in fact a spooky ghost and can do spooky ghost things like possess people and write stuff on chalkboards. This is very very funny, and also is so stupid and ends anything this game could've done that was remotely good. Like they would talk a lot about how love stays within the hotel's walls, or like Rachel is still with us, and you think it's metaphorical, but no it's all literal and the game ends with Rachel possessing Nicole and trying to kill herself, because she thinks Nicole killed her? Rachel calls Nicole her murderer near the end even though she isn't. Thinking about it, you do get the keys to your mom's car, who was the killer, right before that, so you think that her writing "murderer" on a chalk board was referencing your mom, but no she does try to kill Nicole at the end. I don't get it, but the game demonizes Nicole for being mean to Rachel when she was 16 and also for paying more attention to her Hockey Finales then to if her mom was present during parts of that game, which is hilarious, like most of this game's plot, but man does it really suck how this game had the potential to be unironically good, but now can only be enjoyed entirely ironically.
The setup is decent, the characters are poorly acted and poorly written, but incredibly charming mostly because of those two things, but then the game had to go and defend pedophilia. You don't ever come back from that.
All in all this is the most insane game ever made, and I think it may be the most perfect fit for "so bad it's good" or whatever you want to call it, but of course I completely understand how subjective art is and that this game surely isn't for anyone.
Never after finishing a game has my head been full of so many thoughts, it's like a shotgun just went off in my brain. Like, why is this game? Why would you make this game? Who would make this game? How did this game develop into what it currently is?
I'm not tagging this review as spoilers because it honestly doesn't matter and I think that already knowing how silly and awful this game is before going in will only enhance your experience. Play at your own risk. Seriously. What the FUCK is this game.
This game has atmosphere like a motherfucker, genuinely when it started off I loved exploring the hotel, it was a lot of fun and very cozy, then when the game wants the exact same hotel to be terrifying it is. The slow arduous journey from the chapel to your bedroom was the most tense I've felt in a long time. The game's sound design is also on point. Except for the weird end credits song. That kinda sucked.
Anyways, all that comes at odds with this game's baffling story which, as the rest of these reviews will tell you, is hilariously bizarre and also mostly about how cool pedophiles are. This game fucking SENT ME.
The voice acting is honestly so perfect for the dialogue. It's awkward and stilted and also somehow brimming with emotion. Like everyone voice acting was constantly on the verge of laughing while recording, or having a mental breakdown.
So right, you start thinking pretty soon into the game that the father is actually gonna be a misunderstood good guy, like everyone thought he was having sex with a 16 year old (or as this game keeps saying a 16 years-old), but he was just a genuinely understanding man who actually understood Rachel when nobody else did, and that relationship made say her dad or little brother jealous and so they started a rumor about the whole pedophile thing when in reality he was just the only one in the small town kind enough and smart enough to understand her and they had like a parental child bond, or like even a mutual friendship or something, but no, the dad is actually just an ethical pedophile and his dumb idiot prude wife just couldn't handle him experiencing so much love.
Also say that you're a woman and you find out your near-50 year old husband has impregnated a 16 year old girl. I'd say that the more rational response would be to kill your husband, not the 16 year old, but that's the game's final twist, and it's hilarious.
Most of this game's story is setting up a romance between the main character, Nicole, the daughter of the aforementioned ethical pedophile, and Irving, a character who is supposedly a FEMA worker, but in a reveal that was all too telegraphed turns out to be the little brother of the 16 year old, the titular Rachel. By the way there's a moment before the reveal where Irving pretends to be talking to someone else, but it's so incredibly obvious that it's just him doing the voice of an old lady so like, for a really long time I knew some shit was happening with him, and Nicole just doesn't realize that it was obviously him pitching his voice up a little bit. Once again, this game could absolutely send me. Also, that romance was actually kinda charming because of how awkward and bizarre the voice performance is, and genuinely I wish this game's ending was just them unraveling the mystery and then just like shrugging to each other and then leaving to go on the date they sorta set up. Like, man this sure was fucked up, but like idk at least we have each other. I don't know, I know there's some dialogue relating to their romance I missed so maybe I wouldn't like it so much if I had experienced it fully. Maybe it was because at that point their relationship was the only part of the game's story that wasn't a total dumpster fire and would've ended the game on at least something I liked.
The puzzles in this game are all basic and I never got lost, except for when I wanted to, like it's all there for a basic simple walking sim, and that's what it is. But everything else around it goes fucking crazy by the latter half, it's amazing.
I haven't laughed at a videogame this hard in so long, and I will say, even though this game is basically just 3 hours of defending the honor of a fictional pedophile, it really isn't that gross of a game. Maybe it's just because of how silly it all is, or maybe it is the voice work which made me laugh at all the big emotional scenes, but it plays out more like the devs being like "Oh, you fool, you thought the pedophile was a bad guy? He was actually the good guy and you were the bad guy for being mean to your classmate when you were a teenager!" Then some creepy person telling you about why age of consent laws are tyranny, like they only made the dad, once again, have sex with a high schooler, just so you'd be surprised when it turns out he was actually the good guy, and that's just kinda funny.
So this game hints constantly at the fact that Rachel is still alive or like is a ghost, but it never confirms it, like it should have, until near the end when it's revealed that yes, she is in fact a spooky ghost and can do spooky ghost things like possess people and write stuff on chalkboards. This is very very funny, and also is so stupid and ends anything this game could've done that was remotely good. Like they would talk a lot about how love stays within the hotel's walls, or like Rachel is still with us, and you think it's metaphorical, but no it's all literal and the game ends with Rachel possessing Nicole and trying to kill herself, because she thinks Nicole killed her? Rachel calls Nicole her murderer near the end even though she isn't. Thinking about it, you do get the keys to your mom's car, who was the killer, right before that, so you think that her writing "murderer" on a chalk board was referencing your mom, but no she does try to kill Nicole at the end. I don't get it, but the game demonizes Nicole for being mean to Rachel when she was 16 and also for paying more attention to her Hockey Finales then to if her mom was present during parts of that game, which is hilarious, like most of this game's plot, but man does it really suck how this game had the potential to be unironically good, but now can only be enjoyed entirely ironically.
The setup is decent, the characters are poorly acted and poorly written, but incredibly charming mostly because of those two things, but then the game had to go and defend pedophilia. You don't ever come back from that.
All in all this is the most insane game ever made, and I think it may be the most perfect fit for "so bad it's good" or whatever you want to call it, but of course I completely understand how subjective art is and that this game surely isn't for anyone.
Never after finishing a game has my head been full of so many thoughts, it's like a shotgun just went off in my brain. Like, why is this game? Why would you make this game? Who would make this game? How did this game develop into what it currently is?
I'm not tagging this review as spoilers because it honestly doesn't matter and I think that already knowing how silly and awful this game is before going in will only enhance your experience. Play at your own risk. Seriously. What the FUCK is this game.
GreedFall
2019
Risen 2 with more budget and less racism, but it compensates it by having more colonialism.
Farmer's Dynasty
2019
It's good enough at what it is, but that what is just too dry and dull for me. It is certainly more fun and videogamey than a lot of its even more dry and often very german competitors, but it's still quite repetitive, slow and boring. I gave up and just uninstalled when I almost fell asleep plowing a field. I made that up, but really, this game is definitely on the boring side of work simulators and not the bridge game I was hoping for.
Farmer's Dynasty
2019
This game is currently in the Humble Choice for January 2022. If you are interested in the game and it's before February 1st, 2022, consider picking up the game as part of the current monthly bundle.
90 minutes of asking. Where’s the farming?
I’m sure Farmer’s Dynasty has some interesting farming gameplay, but the first hour and a half of this game involved walking through a slow tutorial with awful stock animations and then trying to fix up my house on a quest system. However, with one indicator in the center of the entire area, there was no clue what still had to be fixed up or where I had to go. Well, I could use my super sense to tell me what was broken, but that’s only if it’s visible.
I kept finding little pieces, but with poor UI, poor information, and awful gameplay, I became rather annoyed by this game. What should be a ten-minute task dragged on so long I had to overplay the game and hope I could find the next scene, and even then I had to use a guide because it was a bit obtuse, and yet it still wasn’t done. If this is how the game starts, I can only imagine what hell waits if players continue playing. I’ll admit, I didn’t see much beyond the repairs that took entirely too long, but that’s giving this game 50 percent longer than almost every other game I’ve reviewed over the last year. I gave this game a shot.
Pick this up if you want a bad simulator? I mean listen, I heard about this bundle, I was excited because I wanted to play a farming game, and Humble provided. However, the section I played was like a really bad version of House Flipper, and now that I’m done playing I’m pricing out what I could get Farming Simulator for. This game made me want to buy another game, rather than continue to play what’s on my hard drive. I wish I could enjoy this one.
And before someone says “It’s a life simulator” then I’d probably just play My Time At Portia or Stardew Valley instead. And similarly forcing the player to spend so long repairing the farm was a poor use of my time.
If you enjoyed this review or want to know what I think of other games in the bundle, check out the full review on or subscribe to my Youtube channel: https://youtu.be/j3gs3-4WiQI
90 minutes of asking. Where’s the farming?
I’m sure Farmer’s Dynasty has some interesting farming gameplay, but the first hour and a half of this game involved walking through a slow tutorial with awful stock animations and then trying to fix up my house on a quest system. However, with one indicator in the center of the entire area, there was no clue what still had to be fixed up or where I had to go. Well, I could use my super sense to tell me what was broken, but that’s only if it’s visible.
I kept finding little pieces, but with poor UI, poor information, and awful gameplay, I became rather annoyed by this game. What should be a ten-minute task dragged on so long I had to overplay the game and hope I could find the next scene, and even then I had to use a guide because it was a bit obtuse, and yet it still wasn’t done. If this is how the game starts, I can only imagine what hell waits if players continue playing. I’ll admit, I didn’t see much beyond the repairs that took entirely too long, but that’s giving this game 50 percent longer than almost every other game I’ve reviewed over the last year. I gave this game a shot.
Pick this up if you want a bad simulator? I mean listen, I heard about this bundle, I was excited because I wanted to play a farming game, and Humble provided. However, the section I played was like a really bad version of House Flipper, and now that I’m done playing I’m pricing out what I could get Farming Simulator for. This game made me want to buy another game, rather than continue to play what’s on my hard drive. I wish I could enjoy this one.
And before someone says “It’s a life simulator” then I’d probably just play My Time At Portia or Stardew Valley instead. And similarly forcing the player to spend so long repairing the farm was a poor use of my time.
If you enjoyed this review or want to know what I think of other games in the bundle, check out the full review on or subscribe to my Youtube channel: https://youtu.be/j3gs3-4WiQI
I wonder how many gay people actually worked on this. It's rare you see a work that makes such a big show of being LGBT themed yet is so uncomfortable with its own sexuality.