Wings of Ruin is awesome, and you should play it. No, really. The first Stories game kind of flew under the radar for me. I had heard of it but never got around to playing it. This game practically called out to me and begged me to play it, and it delivered. This game is not just Monster Hunter fan service, as it might look on the surface. It is a legitimately good RPG with really fun gameplay, tons of polish, and it simply offers an all around good experience.
This game is tricky for me to score. Chivalry II doesn’t really break new ground. That’s not really a bad thing though, as the original was a bit rough but super fun. In most regards, the game is vastly improved and polished over the original. It is just so satisfying and fun to play that I can ALMOST overlook the minor bugs here and there, and the gameplay issue I described. If these things were addressed, this would be darn close to a 10/10 from me.
Overall though, in spite of the snags I hit, Tactical Adventures mostly did a really good job with the story and the combat in Solasta. It succeeds in pumping some life into a genre that hasn’t been catching my attention for a while. Some of my points might come across as a bit harsh, but I want to stress that it was still a very good experience most of the time. It might need a little love that it’s almost certain to get post-release, but I can still recommend this game for fans of D&D style RPGs.
Monster Hunter Rise thus exceeded every expectation I had. It’s just as, if not more fun than World, and that’s saying a lot. Whether you are a veteran hunter or you’ve never laid eyes on the series before, you owe it to yourself to at least try it. It is absolutely among the best games on the Switch. It’s also a technical achievement for the platform and a system seller.
While the experience is epic, even for a total noob at realistic sports games like me, I have to dock points for the rough on-boarding experience in this otherwise excellent title. A persistent beginner will have the game grow on them and potentially make them an even bigger Supercross fan. But if you’re totally new and curious about the sport, the weak tutorial and lack of explanation of terms in the sport is a significant barrier.
It’s the kind of game that just makes you say, “one more round,” in more ways than one, and it has only gotten better for its time spent in early access. Go on, give it a play, roguelike/lite fans. You won’t be disappointed. This game has only gotten better for the time it spent in early access and is a great addition to the library of any retro game fan as well.
If you enjoy action stealth experiences like those found in the early Metal Gear games and games like Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell (except being 2-D) and you like new retro-styled games in the modern era, chances are good you can enjoy this game, even if it doesn’t have the most realistic stealth mechanics.
That said, the game unfortunately feels more like a DLC patch than a sequel title. And in spite of that feeling, they really didn’t improve any of the things that one might have complained about in the original game. Its release also kills off the community for the original game, so if you are a hardcore veteran of the original, it feels even more like you have to pay full price for a patch just to be able to play again, and a patch that doesn’t give you everything you wanted at that.
I, AI really doesn’t push any boundaries or try anything new at all. It’s a budget title and I can cut it some slack for that. But I feel like the only people who could enjoy this are those that spent hours upon hours playing Space Invaders, Galaga, or R-Type back in the 80s, whom might get enough of a nostalgia trip from this to go play those games again. Anyone else will be reaching for the deck of cards pretty quickly.
REKT is a game that has some potential, but ultimately suffers from being very light on content while seemingly missing every chance to realize that potential. If you like the idea of playing a slimmed-down version of Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater meets Rocket League with cars instead of skateboards, you can certainly get some enjoyment out of this. But I think that’s a pretty niche audience for a game in today’s market.
This game is a solid pick-up for beat-’em-up fans, particularly if you can find a friend to play with. Give it a play, and unleash your inner monk.
No Straight Roads is an excellent experience that I encourage any lover of both music and gaming to have a look at. It’s not flawless, but it’s a darned good time.
If you don’t expect too much from it, you’ll definitely get your money’s worth of entertainment. But the game is at times sloppy and unprofessional, even for an indie title, which does harm the experience to a noticeable degree.
It has a number of stumbles, but if you want to take a 25-year blast-to-the-past, Ion Fury doesn’t surpass the FPS games of the age, but it does stand well against them, making it a good choice both for veterans of the age and for those new to the classic shooter style.
If you’re a fan and you haven’t already bought this, it is a worthwhile purchase. If you are more casually interested in Warriors stuff, maybe wait for a sale….but still get it. It won’t disappoint you with many more hours of mook-smooshing fun.
If you want to play a non-serious “simulator,” go play Goat Simulator. As crazy as that game is, you can actually get some entertainment out of it, and it somehow comes closer to simulating what being a goat might be like than this game comes to actually simulating speaking.
First, you’re paying $10 for a story you can finish in a couple hours or less[...]making it a terrible value proposition in my eyes. Second, even if you’re of the mind to see that as worthwhile, you’re buying a mediocre-at-best incomplete experience that, in all likelihood, will remain incomplete indefinitely.
With today’s super elaborate games and complex mechanics, sometimes a little simplicity can be very refreshing. BurgerTime might not be the most famous ’80s arcade game, but I think it’s underrated and deserves a second look today.
I’m very torn with Oninaki. For a studio selling itself as an RPG machine, they did a real poor job with the story aspects of the game. Then we have a super fun and engaging combat system, tempered by a questionably designed interface, but we still have a beautiful audiovisual experience.
A guilty pleasure, for sure, but a pleasure nonetheless. If you are a pinball fan who’s played it all and wants to try something more edgy, this just might be the game for you!