Dan Roemer
Once the servers for this game inevitably go offline, with no way to obtain loot boxes, earn speed cards or trade tokens, I can't help but wonder if the casual consumer would genuinely ever have the patience to fully complete this game. Need for Speed Payback is another result of EA meddling in the concept of "games as a service" and taking an otherwise mediocre entry in the series and completely butchering it in the process to achieve this goal.
That said, here's hoping Overgrowth may still yet become something special in the long run. But, as of right now, after all these years, the game was only interesting for me for a few hours and felt like more of a fun novelty, or a tech demo, than an actual video game. While the gameplay and mechanics here are solid and the physics engine is impressive, the campaign on the other hand is extremely disjointed, short, and uninteresting in terms of presentation. By the time I had completed both campaigns, twice over, it just left me wishing they made better use of it all.
I think Necrosphere is a solid platformer with an interesting control scheme and mechanics based around them, but I personally don't think the Metroidvania open-ended level design does this form of extremely difficult gameplay any favors. But, if you're another masochist looking for an addictive and challenging platformer for a low price, Necrosphere might be your calling.
If you weren't a fan of the past Senran Kagura games and considered them far too raunchy, Peach Beach Splash isn't going to change your mind. But for me, it manages to balance fan service with fun and engaging gameplay; albeit not very challenging or complex gameplay, thanks in part to some of the worst AI I've experienced in a long while. If large wet anime chests float your boat, you'll be right at home with Senran Kagura: Peach Beach Splash.
In closing, Fishing Planet is a solid fishing simulator with plenty of depth and variety to its gameplay and mechanics that still make me want to come back for more. But the horrendous menu and UI on console, lackluster presentation, and occasional bugs and hiccups bog down the experience.
Nongünz delivers fast action packed platforming with roguelike mechanics and a punishing difficulty.