After a nine-year wait, Styx: Blades of Greed sees the sarcastic goblin hunt for a new power source called Quartz, navigating three sprawling sandbox environments to stay ahead of the mighty Inquisition. It's a game that truly shines in its focus on stealth and vertical exploration. The switch to Unreal Engine 5 and the increased freedom of choice offer a welcome refresh to the series. The satisfaction of stealthy elimination is long-lasting, and the addition of crafting and strategic Quartz powers offers enough depth to keep you constantly intrigued.
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The Campaign in Black Ops 7 is now designed as an 'always online' co-op experience, meaning you can't pause while playing the story alone. In addition, you are immediately thrown into an unrealistic action bomb, full of super jumps, mutated enemies and bosses that seemingly eat every bullet. However, the Zombies mode goes big with 'Ashes of the Damned', the largest map in the history of the franchise. To traverse this gigantic playing field, the 'Ol' Tessie' truck is essential, as it serves both transport and weapon upgrades (Pack-A-Punch). However, this map is extremely unforgiving, with a successful run taking hours and failure losing all progress and items due to the lack of checkpoints. This is made worse by the Gobblegum system, where rare, powerful bonuses can be purchased with real money, creating a distinct 'pay-to-win' feel. Frustration reaches a peak when technical bugs wipe out your hours of effort and your potentially precious items in an instant.
Review in Dutch | Read full review