I didn't expect to get on all that well with Grimrock 2, and I was pleasantly surprised. This does have to be your kind of thing – that's not to say that newcomers can't find anything to enjoy, but lots of what I took away from LoG2 came from nostalgia and references to yesteryear – not exactly in-jokes so much as a firm appreciation of the videogame RPG's tabletop roots.
I sort of liked it, though, despite its idiosyncrasies. Maps were pretty, pickups are used as a source of in-game lore in a way that sort of helps draw you in, and the between-mission powerup system is, while perhaps a little one-dimensional, still capable of providing a few interesting options. I don't think we're going to be talking, or even thinking about Ancient Space for very long, but combat is occasionally tense and engrossing, and I enjoyed my time with it well enough.
Perhaps the point is to highlight the futility of foreign conflicts that fuel endless generations of inter-religious strife. And if they do introduce a 'baby/village idiot' difficulty level in a later patch, I might revisit. Otherwise, the only crusade I'm going to sign up for will be the one against fixed save points in PC FPSes.
It's not cynical to say that Planetary Annihilation was built from the ground up as an e-sports option. As such, it's not really designed for mellow, thoughtful play at home so much as overly frenetic, WMD-laden violence before an army of screaming South Koreans. It has certainly learned the lessons of past MP giants, but whether it is really going to conquer that demanding arena or sputter like a damp squib is hard to predict. As a game in its own right though, a lot of what you're doing is standard RTS stuff, only simultaneously on a series of spherical maps, which adds dramatically to the challenge.
While inXile make a big point on the menu screen about not trying to squeeze players with DLC and other money-making ploys, Wasteland 2 is currently as full-price as it gets. But it feels like something you should be able to pick up for a fraction of the price. For the nostalgia buzz from playing through a bunch of vaguely familiar plot ideas set in a radiation-scoured wilderness, I would counsel waiting until the price drops a little before investing your time and money in this. Sorry Brian - see you in a quarter of a century for the next one.
But such trifling concerns really don't deserve your attention. This is a modern RPG classic that screams for your attention if you have even a passing interest in the genre. Clever, in-depth, engrossing and just utterly wonderful.
It's not a perfect game, and there are a couple of small issues. But they really are small. I had two CTDs, and a few instances of Sniper Elite 3 freezing up for about fifteen seconds during the bullet cam. Once, I seemed to be unable to relocate, with the attention marker stuck on my player, despite the fact that I fled into a series of empty underground tunnels. The game relies perhaps a little too heavily on the 'OMG' tactic of dropping a tank into a level as a mandatory boss fight. But for everything that Rebellion has got right here, these are minor flaws. Sniper Elite III is so enjoyable because it's a stealth game done right.
For those who have never played a Tropico game, I heartily encourage a look at this fine series. For old timers who've always enjoyed the leisurely pace and low difficulty, there's always the opportunity to cheat yourself a little extra money at any time. The graphics are mediocre as usual, but it's more than made up for by the gameplay. I said I'd be pleased with more of the same, and much of the core game remains unchanged, but with just enough that's new and interesting to keep you engaged.
So another lukewarm MMO, then. But occasionally heated up a bit by the rare confluence of scenery, music (the majority of which is excellent) and raw atmosphere that can transport you for a fleeting moment to the Tamriel we've grown to know and love.
While perhaps a little derivative, it's all simple to learn, beautifully presented, and with enough detail and variety to keep fantasy buffs engaged for a long time. Age of Wonders feels like it's back to stay, in all its beardy, D20-throwing glory.
Just as in the previous story, Dragonfall consumed my imagination for the whole time I was playing it. When it was done, I missed the characters and wanted it to continue. That is perhaps the ultimate sign of a well-told story. As a game, it's pretty good – balanced, challenging combat that calls for a variety of tactics to respond to different situations; viable paths for combat fans, mages and even charisma-junkies; plenty of relevant activities to keep the player engaged during non-combat 'downtime'. But as a story – a piece of interactive fiction that takes a substantial corpus of existing source material and spins an engrossing yarn about power, betrayal, revenge, duty, family and loyalty – it is a supreme work.
Overall, Blackguards is a fun, tactical time waster with a throwaway fantasy RPG plot that does nothing new.
Fun to play, certainly, but it's the same fun you'd get from pretty much any game in the series.
Unlike Metal Gear games of yesteryear, the industry is not going to learn anything new from Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance. Nor are gamers, for that matter. Revengeance would rather be an anime than a game in some ways. But the solid swordplay mechanics and the sheer comic craziness is enough to sustain it through the relatively short SP game. But will we still be talking about Metal Gear Rising in three months?
It's such a missed opportunity. The setting and locations are fun, interesting and entirely within the scope of pulp adventure literature. Some of the puzzles (most of which revolve around stepping on some tiles and not on others, or avoiding otherwise Indiana Jones-style set pieces) are fun in a way, and the clever addition of your great-grandfather's notebook as an in-game item that shows you absent-minded sketches of some of the tricks and traps offers a sort of hint system that preserves the suspension of disbelief in an appropriate way. And, I suppose the game is easy enough to rarely become frustrating (except during one particular boss fight where you can be shot and killed through walls). It's not frustration that'll get you, though. It'll be the sheer ennui that sets in when you contemplate the pointlessness of continuing to play this lackluster, lazy and horribly overpriced mess.
But there is plenty of it, and it is delivered to a high standard and it is fun to play. And this should really be the yardstick, right? If you think it should be changing and improving in new ways then you know what to do, but for now you will get more of that CoD formula that the world craves so much. Activision have a billion dollars on day one that says they know what they are doing.