I’ve had pretty high expectations of DMC V. Capcom have been on a roll recently, initial looks at the game were promising, reviews from everyone into the series were praising the game and what I’ve seen of it played live looked very fun. But I wasn’t in the mood for Devil May Cry most of the year and have only gotten to playing it now. Perhaps I’m still not fully in the mood, perhaps I’m a tad disappointed, but while really good and fun, Devil May Cry V didn’t excite me as much as I expected it to.
Tag: game review
Disapprove: Kentucky Route Zero
Kentucky Route Zero has probably become more known by now not by the praise it’s first Acts received but due to how it took to get the “full” release of it. But here we are, Act 5 is out, those who followed the game since 2013 are finally getting what they wanted. Those who were curious since 2013 but don’t like unfinished products (like me) are getting to finally learn what the game is all about. I can see why 7 years ago Kentucky Route Zero, with its first two Acts out, was an interesting and mysterious journey to look forward to. As a complete game, though, it’s a drag.
Thoughts on: Frog Detective 1 & 2
I like cute little games, we need more of those. But, of course, when the game is super small, mostly cute rather than engaging or involved and at the same time costs money, the question of “is it worth it” becomes somewhat complicated. Case (no pun intended) in point – Frog Detective titles. I enjoyed the first two, but will you?
Disapprove: Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus
I was afraid that Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus would turn out to be more of what The Old Blood was – not bad, but feeling somewhat pointless. But the problem with this game is much more disappointing. Instead of continuing against the grain, it shows the desire to follow the worst trends.
In love with: HITMAN 2 (Gold Edition)
It’s been slightly more than 2 years since I’ve played and thoroughly enjoyed HITMAN (2016) in its GOTY version and since the updates for HITMAN 2 are finally quieting down I decided that it was time to give it a go as well. Originally intended to be a “Season 2” of a grand always updating title, Hitman 2 (I’ll stop using the intended all caps, but I’m not talking about the Silent Assassin from 2002) is a standalone game. Yet, it retained most of what was originally intended since you can add all of the mission content from the 2016 game to it, with some omissions (like Elusive Targets). And in its fullest form, with expansions and the content from the previous title, Hitman 2 is easily the best game in the series to date. But with the same issues as the previous game that need mentioning.
Thoughts on: Vampyr
It’s been not that long since I’ve played Remember me, the first project of Dontnod Entertainment, and was utterly disappointed. Since then, they have impressed the public with their episodic Life is Strange, which I did like in the end and the sequel to that game seems to be getting positive reviews as well. But before LiS 2 they’ve decided to try their hand in action adventure again, except this time going more into action RPG direction, with Vampyr. Have they learned from their first experience in Remember Me?.. Nope. No, they kinda got worse, really. But at least they have more good things to combat the bad things this time.
Happy about: Trine 4 (and a few words on Trine 3)
It’s been a long time since I’ve played a Trine game. I didn’t enjoy the original much, but the second game was really good. Third title had a very bad reception for reasons I’ll explain, and I expected the series to be dead due to it. Yet here we are, Trine 4: The Nightmare Prince was released a few months ago to everyone’s surprise (or at least mine) and I decided to check it. And also 3, while I’m on it. It was a rather pleasant experience.
Read more“Happy about: Trine 4 (and a few words on Trine 3)”
Thoughts on: Heaven’s Vault
Despite never giving 80 Days or Sorcery series a proper playthrough, I’ve been curious about Heaven’s Vault, a new game from the same developers at inkle. Probably mostly due to the fact that the game is all centered around the translation and archaeology, around uncovering history and visiting long forgotten places, which sounded extremely alluring to me. It looked like a potentially interesting, but rather niche game, but what I didn’t suspect was just how niche it can be due to it’s “choose your own adventure” non-linear approach.
In love with: Disco Elysium
I think pretty much anyone I know who loves good stories mentioned Disco Elysium to me at least once since it’s release a few months ago. By the time of me writing this, the game has received several awards for its storytelling and yet, I find it a bit hard to explain what Disco Elysium is. The comparisons with Planescape: Torment are unavoidable, for example, yet this game feels almost completely different to play. What I can say quite easily, however, is that Disco Elysium is a really good game and an unforgettable experience.
Thoughts on: Gears 5 (campaign only)
Occasionally I find myself in a situation when an insanely popular game or a franchise in a genre that I tend to like a lot, something that seems to be loved by most who like similar games, is just not working for me. Gears of War has been such a franchise – despite always having a soft spot for third person action titles, with or without adventure or platforming elements, I never cared about it. I did finish the original, on PC, I did try playing 2 and 3 on a friend’s 360 (personally never owned any Xbox consoles and don’t plan to) and got bored pretty quickly. Games had a certain feel to them, their flair of cinematic was really good and some of the ideas in them were absolutely brilliant, but I had no desire to play them.
I suppose, after so many years of not playing this type of TPS, as they going out of fashion at the start of this decade, and perhaps partially because I enjoyed replaying Mass Effect titles a year ago, I found myself wanting to play Gears 5 (they dropped the “of War” part with this one). And so I have, as usual completely ignoring multiplayer, horde mode and all the rest of the online components, though, unfortunately, coop as well. And overall, my experience with the story campaign of Gears 5, played solo, was quite surprising. Not amazing, but surprising and very much not bad.