Richard Costa
- System Shock
- Subnautica
- Disco Elysium
Even if you can get past the countless technical issues, Underworld Ascendant is a poorly designed abomination that ruins the Underworld series even to those who've never heard of it. This is the final nail in the Immersive Sim™ coffin. Bury it and salt the earth.
Beyond: Two Souls is an interactive drama action-adventure with painfully inept writing. Ellen Page's top-notch acting can only carry it so far until it falls apart in a terminally inane climax.
There was a lot of potential in Kingmaker, but also a lot of wasted potential. The developers might still be able to salvage this potential if they listen to criticism and are willing to overhaul the game in every possible way.
Seeker, Slayer, Survivor plays like filler DLC. It's below average and lukewarm at best, with very little of what makes an Obsidian RPG in the mix.
If you don't mind silly and over-the-top action scenes that make most people roll their eyes, A Way Out will provide some decent mindless entertainment to you and a co-op buddy for a few hours. Otherwise, this is one to avoid.
Band of Bastards is essentially a short side quest consisting of five combat-driven missions and an extremely unsatisfying conclusion.
A short and mystical experience marred by several flaws, Gray Dawn falls short of its great potential.
Shadows: Awakening doesn't do much that is new or interesting, but it does achieve a mostly enjoyable ARPG experience that will appeal to diehard fans of the genre.
From the Ashes meshes well with the base game, and it might help you discover some overlooked side quests. The village building and management is interesting, but ultimately superficial. The conclusion feels somewhat anticlimactic.
Draugen is a short exploration game with not a whole lot to explore, but its majestic Norwegian vistas and its amusing companion engagement make it worth the trip.
Mutant Year Zero: Road to Eden is a competent albeit narratively underwhelming tactical RPG with novel stealth mechanics and solid turn-based combat.
The Amorous Adventures of Bold Sir Hans Capon is a bundle of glorified side quests that you might enjoy if you already enjoyed the base game quests featuring Hans Capon and the Charlatan of Sasau.
Though tainted by a broken difficulty mode, Thronebreaker stands on the shoulders of The Witcher as a morally complex and often harrowing Macbethian tale of royal revenge and revolt.
If you've already played Heavy Rain on PS3, you won't miss anything. If you're totally new to it as a PC gamer, it might surprise you with its branching narrative and raw drama, even if the writing occasionally misses the mark.
A Woman's Lot is a rewarding coda for Kingdom Come: Deliverance that might make you itch for a new playthrough. It features two tense questlines where you'll survive the Sack of Skalitz as Henry's love interest Theresa, and help the devout nurse Johanka in her complex theological conundrum.
Eastshade is an immersive and contemplative adventure set in a quirky fantasy universe. In spite of some performance issues and underdeveloped mechanics, it achieves a memorable gaming experience.
Unavowed succeeds as a mature point-and-click adventure set in an urban fantasy world, though it falters in some of the fine print.
What Beast of Winter lacks in content it makes up for in depth with an intriguing plunge into the history of Eora.
Red Faction Guerrilla was a frantic open world romp and mayhem simulator. This remaster is a total recall of the original with a fresh coat of paint.
While it doesn't offer much in the way of closure, The Forgotten Sanctum is a satisfyingly eccentric expansion with Cronenbergian elements and an atmosphere vaguely reminiscent of Planescape: Torment.