Perhaps if the entire season had taken place in Richmond, engrossing me entirely in how things work in the city, I might feel differently. But for now, I'm preparing myself for tons of QTE's, blood, and dramatic character deaths that I'll probably just shrug off as Telltale making sure they do their Telltale things.
The new cast of characters is what keeps A New Frontier going, which is something Telltale should be commended for as it was a much riskier proposition than continuing the story of established characters. It just seems like The Walking Dead as a franchise doesn't have many tricks beyond "we gotta do what it takes to survive," "don't trust anyone," and "something isn't right about this place."
What you are getting with A New Frontier is more of the same, which I imagine just about everyone with a remote interest in the game is expecting. Season 3 isn’t re-writing the book on narratively-driven adventures; it’s just delivering some of the best you can find in the genre.
Headlander is worth the price of admission, just be warned that its combat can lead to a fair share of frustration.
I want to love Moon Hunters, I really do. I know there are a lot of negative points in this review, but I have tried to be as fair as I can. I’m judging the game purely on how well it fulfills its design pillars (Deeds, Combat, and Reputation), but it just falls short on each one. There is vast potential here, but each pillar seems to suffer from some fatal flaw.
Stella Glow is a good Strategy-RPG that doesn't do anything to push the genre forward, partially because the genre is already so forward to begin with. For fans of anime, J-Pop or Strategy role-playing in general, the game is definitely worth checking out. The game packs plenty of content as it can take you between 30-50 hours to finish, depending on how much you like to grind.
Darkest Dungeon is an easy game to recommend to the right gamer. It require patience, persistence and constant attention to detail. For all of the hours I have poured into the game, I'm still not even sure if I'm playing it right, but I think that's the point. We usually expect to (at some point) master the games that we play, but I'm not sure Darkest Dungeon is ever meant to be. Regardless, I can safely say that Darkest Dungeon is one of the best games to release in 2016 and is a testament to masterful game design and art direction. I highly recommend it to anyone who thinks they are up to the challenge.
Final Fantasy X-2 is a fundamentally sound JRPG from a game mechanics perspective, but its cheese factor and lackluster narrative pay off hold it back from being anything more than "the other one." There are interesting ideas at work, and Square's logic of trying to present a different look at the same world makes sense, it just doesn't always work in its favor.
For fans of the series, Legacy of the Void is a no brainer. For fans of strategy games, I say the again, StarCraft II is the best strategy game you can buy on PC. If you've been waiting for any reason at all to jump in, don't. The game is deep, the competition is fierce and anyone of any skill level can jump in and appreciate what the game is all about. There aren't a whole lot of games that can say that.
Sword Coast Legends functions more as a second tier cRPG that scratches the itch, but doesn't do anything to push the genre forward.
Wasteland 2: Director's Cut is the best version of an already very good game. For console players that have missed out on the game over the last year, Director's Cut is a great opportunity to get a taste of a true C-RPG made to work with a controller. For PC players who already own the game, Director's Cut comes as a free upgrade, so everybody will be getting the best possible version of the game.
2Dark bravely portrays themes that most developers lack the guts to touch, but unfortunately, AI, UI, and Level Design problems make this game feel largely unfinished.
A budget-priced experimental title whose success lies in its narrative over its game design.
Asemblance takes inspiration from the likes of PT, The X-Files and The Twilight Zone and brings them together in a package that hints at a franchise with a future that's bigger than what it currently offers.
Coffin Dodgers is a local multiplayer (on consoles) Kart racer that reveres those that came before it, but can't quite match what makes them special.
When it works, Sniper: Ghost Warrior 3 has its moments where it completely engrosses you. But it's not long before it violently and literally shoves you out because of poor optimization, heavy frame stuttering, audio sync issues, and crashes. This game wa
Soul Axiom initially holds promise, but design flaws, a convoluted narrative, and constant guesswork make the puzzles feel arbitrary rather than rewarding.
Battle Chasers: Nightwar features a deep and rewarding battle system that is the crux of the entire experience. Save-erasing crashes, a passive narrative, and balancing issues can't help Nightwar compete in a year where RPGs reign supreme.
Everything more than lives up to its name, though its thinly crafted gameplay raises the question if it's even a "game." This one is for niche fans only.
Diehard fans will enjoy the atmosphere, but the rough gameplay and level design ultimately bring down Syndrome.