Despite that glowing praise, I am torn, because I also recognize that it is far from perfect. The environmental art direction gets dull too quickly, the level design is lacking in basic conveniences, and a general sloppiness is present when looking closely. Some of the cool new features like multi-leveled areas and combining weapons could have been enhanced further if the user interface and systems had been updated to play to those strengths. Borderlands: The Pre-Sequel is a solid entry to the series, but I hope that the development team takes some of the failings to heart and delivers excellence in the future.
In the end, Constant C is a solid puzzle platformer that takes a few familiar ideas and mashes them together to create something partially new. The difficulty of the puzzles ranges from trivial to diabolical, with most falling somewhere in between. Its greatest sin is the repetition of certain puzzles, but if that is the worst aspect of Constant C, then it should still please fans of the genre.
The proof of concept is here, and I would certainly look forward to a hypothetical There Came an Echo 2 if it were announced. The groundwork has been laid, and with more content and finer polish it could be great. But knowing Iridium, the studio's next project will be something completely different, taking its science fiction stories into another unusual genre mashup.
Its greatest strength is the surprisingly poignant narrative about the muddy area between good and evil. I almost want to play through again to see how different choices will affect the later battles and the story's conclusion, but at 25-30 hours for one playthrough and combat that wears thin toward the end, it is just long enough for me to shy away from that idea.
Perhaps that is why its shortcomings are so glaring. What is good here is really good, but what is bad detracts enough that the entire package is a bit of a disappointment. A great piece of science fiction may ask a lot of hard questions and make the audience think. Halfway is not a great piece of science fiction, but it is a good strategy game for those willing to put some effort into it.
It's not a must-buy, not even for platformer fans, but it's a cute little game that most people can find some fun with.
Volume is not a bad game. But it still leaves me wanting for something more out of it.
I'm not chomping at the bit to keep playing, but I am curious to delve deeper. Different combinations of explorers can beget different tactics both in and out of battle. That thought alone is enough to keep me from uninstalling it.
Perhaps it's unfair to compare Minecraft: Story Mode to Telltale's more adult-oriented series. This is built for a particular demographic, and it seems like it's really hitting with that audience. The Last Place You Look is more of the same -- and slightly better, if anything -- so those who have enjoyed the series thus will be pleased to just keep on trucking.
Ultimately, Dynetzzle Extended is a decent experience. It starts with a cool idea, but doesn't expand on that idea enough, and once it finally reaches a point where it takes more than just mindlessly following the algorithm, it ends. It's a neat distraction for puzzle enthusiasts, but it won't be setting the world on fire.
It's business as usual in terms of the moment-to-moment happenings, but it benefits from the altered structure that eschews multi-episode arcs in favor of singular experiences. For the first time in the series, I'm looking forward to continuing onward, if only a little.
Blade Ballet can be a lot of fun in the right setting, but even then it won't set the world on fire. It won't supplant Samurai Gunn or TowerFall as a go-to indie party combat game, but it does a fine job supplementing those titles for a raucous evening. Add it to the list of stuff to bust out when friends are around, but don't even bother going in solo.
If you aren't turned off by the sugary sweet aesthetic, Glittermitten Grove is worth a deep look. It can be difficult to start with its intricate economy and barebones explanation, but those who crack the nut can find something special hidden inside.
Like the main character, I'm of two minds about it. Thinking back on it there were pieces I really enjoyed. But it was also the kind of game I couldn't play for more than a half hour at a time. Even when I was enjoying it, I could feel it overstaying its welcome. It's decent in short bursts, but marathoning it would just expose its warts even further.
The strength of Kingdom is in its trial-and-error learning.
All in all, Sleep Tight is a neat little package. It knows what it wants to do and it does most of it well enough, but it might not excite people who don't share the same nostalgia for the specific childhood experience described within it.
Though it is not bad, it is neither great. The basic gameplay concept is fine, and it works as a way to pass time in short bursts. It seems like it could work better if it were a pure skill game rather than the hybrid it is, and it surely would work better on mobile or handheld. The sheer volume of content available for the relatively low price is commendable, but while there is a lot to play in Squids Odyssey, there is not a lot to really love.
Still, Sneaky Sneaky is not a bad game. At five bucks for about two hours of gameplay, I could even recommend it to fans of stealth and/or puzzles. But it is by no means a must-play, even for fans of those genres.
Mario vs. Donkey Kong: Tipping Stars is not bad. It is essentially Mini-Land Mayhem! with visual and technical upgrades. It never instills any sense of wonder or accomplishment, and it often feels more like work than play. It's a very paint-by-numbers affair; for a puzzle game it doesn't actually require much thinking, only doing. It is a game that exists, and that's about as much as there is to say about it.
There is some hope for this series to be great in the future, but The Order of the Stone is just okay. The Minecraft-specific gameplay is a nice way to shake up the usual formula. The blank slate of the universe allows the tale to go wherever it wants. The voice cast is full of actors who can do great work. But the writing needs to be more engaging if Story Mode wants to be taken seriously among Telltale canon.