Nick Herber's Reviews
The original 88 Heroes has been out for some time, but we've gotten a newer, shinier version of the game out for the Nintendo Switch now. 88 Heroes: 98 Heroes Edition is fun for short sessions of arcade fun, but does not have enough depth to keep me coming back for more, despite a pretty cool premise.
Ogre is a classic tabletop strategy game by Steve Jackson Games, and while it is fantastic to see a game like this get the digital treatment, the end result is generally solid, if not great. Ogre hits many of the necessary notes needed to make it a success, though there are better strategy video games out there.
All in all, Road Redemption is a solid enough experience that is pretty fun in small doses. The combat is the highlight here, but I also appreciate it when games drop in some light RPG elements to give some sense of progression along the way. Road Redemption is not going to blow anyone away with its technical presentation, but there is some good, fun arcade action that bubbles right to the surface and helps - at least for a time - to hide its relatively shallow story, modes and number of tracks.
Our latest chapter opens with an intense scene, which bodes well for Batman: The Enemy Within - Episode 2: The Pact. Unfortunately, the rest of the episode just never manages to maintain that momentum and left me hoping that Episode 3 can right the ship as too many characters are crammed into this episode with too little payout for decisions that are made during the chapter.
While I have long been a fan of the Telltale video games, Minecraft: Story Mode was probably my least favorite of their full season offerings to date. It got off to a slow start with a property that seemed somewhat ill-fitting to a narrative-heavy game. However, to its credit, I thought Story Mode got stronger near the end, finding some solid footing during the final chapter. I was hoping that momentum would carry over to Season Two, but Minecraft: Story Mode Season Two - Episode 1: Hero in Residence reminds me a lot of the first episode in the initial season's installment.
Chaos Code: New Sign of Catastrophe is something of a throwback fighting game. While Ark System Works is well-known for their fast, slick, polished fighting games like Guilty Gear and BlazBlue, this is a simpler title made by FK Digital. It is a solid enough outing, with gameplay that is easy to pick up, but if you were hoping for the level of polish found in the aforementioned Ark System Works series, you will likely be disappointed.
It was actually kind of nice to see a full simulation title like this on the Nintendo Switch, and it all works just fine, even if the content is not going to be for everyone. With loads of text and a somewhat distanced, managerial perspective that keeps quests and combat accessible while at the same time not being all that exciting, this is what Neo ATLAS 1469.
Chase: Cold Case Investigations - Distant Memories has nice visuals and sound to compliment a good mystery tale. However, the puzzles are pretty dull and the game is light on content with a short playtime and an ending that did its job - leaving me wanting more - but without knowing if more will ever actually be forthcoming.
Mount Wingsuit is one of those games that is fun in short spurts, but feels more like a tech demo for what VR can do than a full fledged game. I enjoyed it, and the price is budget and matches the content pretty well. With the proper expectations set, I found this to be a positive experience more often than not.
Quirky. Entertaining. Challenging. These are all words I would use to describe Namazu Studios' release Nebulous. It is a lightweight game that reminds me of the mobile hit Cut the Rope, but with more sophistication. The end result is a decent game that will chew up a few hours of your time here and there, but is never what I would consider a great or memorable experience either.
Touhou Genso Rondo: Bullet Ballet is an interesting mashup between two genres I had never really considered mixing before - bullet hell and fighters. The idea is certainly interesting, and some of the concepts work well while some other mechanics are less effective.
New Retro Arcade: Neon is a cool experience, but like any software that serves as a framework, you're going to get out of it what you put in. The interface is not terribly user-friendly and it will require some research to get the hang of customizing your own personal arcade, but the end results are pretty satisfying. If you're not comfortable with this modification aspect of the title or don't want to sink some time into it, then New Retro Arcade: Neon is probably not for you since as a plug-and-play game it is rather lacking overall.
By and large, I really enjoyed Hood: Outlaws & Legends. The game’s setting and structure are interesting and an expertly executed heist is very rewarding, especially when you get to unlock some new progression items for your characters during the early levels of gameplay. Unfortunately there are still plenty of rough edges, from questionable enemy AI, class imbalances and uneven matchmaking that combine with relatively shallow content that could give Hood: Outlaws & Legends a somewhat short shelf-life if the developers don’t address those concerns.
Chronos: Before the Ashes will draw comparisons to the Souls series, but its unique aging concept Is one area where it stands out. Unfortunately there are other areas such as combat, where the comparison is less favorable. It doesn’t quite measure up to its successor, Remnant: Before the Ashes – but the connected plot points were certainly welcome.
Sylvio puts an emphasis on atmosphere, creating horror more through storytelling and exploration than a true sense of danger. It is one of those titles that makes great use of sound and as such is best experienced in a dark room with an ideal audio situation (headset or surround sound). When the game is played this way, it is an interesting, creepy experience that horror fans should enjoy despite some of the game's limitations.
If you played the game originally, there might not be much reason to come back to Dear Esther, though the most loyal of fans may get enough mileage out of the Director's commentary I mentioned earlier. In this case, you play through the game with the narrator being swapped out with those of the artist, composer and writer as they discuss various decisions that went into the design. It is a nice touch for a game that has a lot of artistic value and it is interesting to see some of the thought that went into some of the game's more memorable moments and scenes. All in all Dear Esther: Landmark Edition is still an interesting experience, though its release around four years later does show the game's age a little. There are better examples of the genre out there now (including The Chinese Room's own later release Everybody's Gone to the Rapture), but Dear Esther still deserves a look if you haven't seen it yet.
Brut@l has a striking aesthetic that tries to brush up on the ASCII dungeon roguelikes of old and modernize the formula some in the process. In the end, Stormcloud Games gets more right than wrong, though a few frustrating quirks turn the title into a niche title that will not appeal to everyone.
Dreadhalls is an example of just how immersive Virtual Reality gaming has the potential to be, and with its bevy of jump scares and combination of atmospheric visuals and sound effects, there is a lot to like, especially at first. However, at its heart Dreadhalls is actually a shallow experience that likely will fail to encourage gamers to come back after besting its challenges once.
Destroy All Humans! 2 – Reprobed is the very definition of dumb fun, but the key there is that it is still fun. It’s received a very significant visual upgrade, there is a lot to do, and I found it funny far more often than not. That being said, it does show its age through a somewhat rigid quest system that at times doesn’t feel like it makes full use of the toolbox of skills you learn along the way, and there is some stereotyping that occurs that makes the humor sometimes feel somewhat dated. There is plenty to do, but there is a lot of repetition to those tasks so your gameplay mileage may vary.
In all, the Fallen Legion: Rise to Glory / Fallen Legion Revenants packed is a well-made one that should provide north of a couple dozen hours of gameplay. The action / strategy mix is unique and can create for some rewarding experiences, even if the combat and character progression didn’t always have quite as much depth as I like from my more traditional RPGs. The presentation is a solid one and the world that these games are set in is interesting, if perhaps not as deeply explored as I would have liked in the end. Still, the overall experience is worth having for those looking for a different take on the strategy genre.