Company of Heroes 3 is a fantastic strategy game regarding the basics. Playing with friends and mining the mechanics will be where most will spend their time, but it is a huge disappointment to see the campaigns fall so flat. The Italian campaign was the place where I expected huge innovations from Relic, but it feels like a paper tiger.
Wild Hearts is a blast from beginning to end, and the combination of Karakuri with streamlined, snappy combat, makes it a joy to pick up and play. Newcomers to the genre or those who have always been intimidated by Monster Hunter should start here. But there is a very real possibility you may just stick with Wild Hearts for its unique aesthetic and streamlined mechanics, on top of the incredible Karakuri system.
Clash pulls much inspiration from the 2018 God of War. The basic premise of protecting The Boy as Pseudo and some of the significant beats mirror Sony’s Epic, so some character progression and twists felt predictable. To Clash’s credit, I was still invested, and the world is so weird and the characters are so much fun that I quickly forgot the world of Kratos and got lost in Zenozoik all over again.
Atomic Heart has flashes of brilliance but generally disappoints regarding the basics. Combat is occasionally satisfying but incredibly repetitive, and the balance of encounters is all over the place. The story is predictable and slog to work through, especially because of the terrible dialogue. While the visuals stand out, they never really are anything more than set dressing, and as you progress into the open world, the poor shadow quality can destroy the look of the game. Even visually, Atomic Heart is as uneven as it is with its story and gameplay.
Wanted Dead is a hard game to recommend: it is truly bad in most areas, but it also has the opportunity to click with you depending on your tolerance for jank and of old-school character action games. If you really need a dose of nostalgia, or you love movies like The Room, Wanted Dead could be a hit.
On the most basic level, there is an appeal to Bleak Faith. The enemies have creepy, science-fiction-inspired designs, the world is intriguing, and some truly inspired ideas from Archangel Studios support the whole thing. But every element feels half-baked or borderline broken. Movement and combat are floaty and clunky, exploration is unsatisfying, the visuals are hit or miss, music tracks repeat too often, and the story is indecipherable.