Summit Reviews's Reviews
But I won't remember False Hero for its slightly mismatched combat, nor for its inconsistent pacing. I'll remember it for its surprisingly great voice acting, and the way the ambient soundtrack swells when you pick a fight with something. I'll remember it for the drama of its world, and each boss's intro cutscene and bespoke second phase. I'll remember it for its killer title theme and the unfathomable aura of its final battle (you have NO idea). Sure, these are some of the most FromSoft flourishes to ever FromSoft, but that's the gig, and precious few replicate that care for the little details quite as earnestly and remarkably as False Hero.
If you think about it, boomer shooters are a bit like sonnets, in a way—this specific art form repeating through history, with each new movement or artist adding its own touches every once in a while. At the end of the day, a sonnet is still a sonnet, even if one written by Shakespeare is distinct from one written by Petrarch. Here, it’s the same; you can anticipate exactly how Brazilian Drug Dealer Before 4 will play, but it’s worth it for its little idiosyncrasies. In this grandiose analogy, maybe John Romero can be Petrarch, and Joeveno can be Claudio Manuel da Costa. Could Mit Aia be his dead beloved? After all, romantic love and discharging a shotgun into an enemy sprite are universal feelings we can all relate to, even if we all experience them in our own way. The pellets, how they pierce them so, till they feel it and weep. And I wander around, searching for more ammo, like a creature that often shies and kicks. In that sense, Brazilian Drug Dealer Before 4 didn’t exactly tug at my heartstrings, but I could at least tell that its feelings were sincere.
Ultimately, the Gothic 1 Remake is a masterclass in how to resurrect a cult classic without sanding down the very rough edges that made it special in the first place. It can be frustrating to get into, until you realize that the fundamental philosophy of the unfriendly design is that it respects the player's intelligence.
Fantastically fresh, Kernel Hearts combines many tried-and-true elements of previously acclaimed roguelike titles alongside strong bullet-hell elements, creating a great but sometimes slightly unfocused experience.
Way of the Sword was destined for greatness either way. Its combat is gorgeous both in how it looks and how it plays, its boss encounters are electric, I don't remember the last time I spent time with a cast as magnetic and memorable, and genuinely, I struggle to imagine a game more deserving of its moniker. But the early Onimusha titles were short and sweet. They had backtracking and puzzles and exploration, yet they were tight-knit experiences that still hold up 25 years later because they weren't wasteful. Playing through Way of the Sword's filler, seeing how it pads its runtime, I have to wonder what an absolute juggernaut it would have been had Capcom thought to trim the fat.
Foundationally, Mortal Shell II is a very well-put-together videogame, its combat brings so much to love, and the reality is that, had it featured literally anything other than an open world, it very well could have become one of the best soulslikes out there. Instead, all that promise is marred by aspirations comically outside of its scope, and at risk of sounding like some cynical old stick-in-the-mud with Anor Londo as his lock screen, I think it's time we start treating Elden Ring as the cautionary tale it clearly is.
For those interested in First Light in the here and now, however, all this makes it a hard sell. Both Hitman fans and stealth-game aficionados will most likely find it lacking, and everyone else looking for something different that’s equally worthwhile won’t find much more than half-measures in all directions. But, if you’re looking for the latest blockbuster to tide you over until the next one, then I don’t think you’ll be able to do better for a while to come.
All this is not so much the absence of complexity as it is the space for creativity. Every animation is so detailed and fluid, the pixel art is always stunning, there are these dramatic title cards at the start of each boss, and gnarly, bespoke executions at the end. This isn't some less-is-more, shoestring-budget thing cobbled together and forced to make the best of what it's got. It's intentional; it's more because it's less, and while it might not be riddled with X factors and buzzwords and seventeen more interlaced genres, Rubinite is a much better game without them.
The reality of Dinoblade is that the second you find something not to like, you find something equally neat sitting right beside it—something that doesn't make the bad thing go away, but something that obscures it just enough. I'll be the first to admit that there's a lot Dinoblade drops the ball with, but counterpoint: there's a button that basically just grows you a mohawk and turns every second attack into a backflip
Echoes of Aincrad is the roughest gem there ever was. Despite all of the criticism I have levied, I have had a great amount of fun with the title, and I will continue to play it to finish my completion of its achievements, perhaps even take another shot at DGM when its expansion releases. However, the issues that it does have range from glaring in the case of quality of life, such as the inability to freely traverse the gorgeous open world outside of mission boundaries, to outright crippling, as is the case for the game's encounter design and balancing. What EoA desperately needs to do is to communicate what kind of game it is: it is not an emulation of the experience of a VRMMO but an action title that aims to simply pay homage to the atmosphere of its source material, to be immersive first and foremost via its presentation while offering the experience of an entirely different genre.
And that really is the crux of Elden Ring Nightreign. There are a billion oddities you can point your finger at, even more features included seemingly without thought or care, and it's hard to say for sure how many of its merits are simply the virtues of gaming with friends; yet, at the end of the day, it's a sharing platter based upon one of the most acclaimed games of this generation—jolly co-op in a game that needn't necessarily be much more to succeed.
Zero Parades: For Dead Spies may not be Disco Elysium 2 on paper, but it certainly might be in spirit. ZA/UM delivered a stellar narrative-driven RPG, building on the foundations of their critically acclaimed masterpiece, and making something new and exciting. Sure, it might not have the same level of raw weirdness or nonsense that Disco Elysium had, but there’s still quite a lot of that around, too.
So, who is Sudden Strike 5 made for, really? It’s a competent game, to be sure, but it doesn’t exactly scream must-play, nor does it do anything particularly revolutionary. You are sure to enjoy the craftsmanship of the models and how intentional and rewarding your decisions feel, but you'd better have a high tolerance for clunky unit behavior and movement, abysmal enemy AI and uneven visual presentation. That said, urban tank battles, sieges and assaults can be a lot of fun, and if you’re looking for a few days in newly dug trenches of a familiar war, there might be something for you here. Perhaps not the most complete or well-rounded title in a crowded genre, Sudden Strike 5 still manages to be occasionally captivating, if not foundational.
Is Mouse: P.I. for Hire a masterpiece? Probably not, but it is definitely a product of love and labor, something that probably started out as a modest proof of concept and bloomed into an experience that is visually arresting and unique. I’d venture to say it's a fine use of your time if you enjoy old-school animation and boomer shooters in equal measure.
The first Industria is, by all means, a stellar title, able to jump into the fray made of countless FPS already on the market and carve its own niche. From developer Bleakmill, the expectations on this sequel were high, especially for fans of the series. Unfortunately, Industria 2 released in an unacceptably broken state: between severe performance issues, bugs of all kinds that range from game-breaking to annoying, and clearly unfinished visual, design and gameplay components, anything good that could come out of it is overwhelmed by its negative aspects. Calling this a finished, release-ready game would be preposterous for any studio, Indie or otherwise.
Lay of the Land isn’t a long game; in fact, it took me about 18 hours to fully explore the map and defeat all bosses, but it’s nonetheless a solid open-world survival, with some caveats, that manages to stand out from a very thick crowd. In some aspects, it’s as generic as they come, but in many others, it’s very much unique and surprising. If you like titles like Minecraft and Terraria, and have a knack for customizing every little bit of your home base or building monumental masterpieces, this is definitely a solid pick.
Replaced lived up to the expectations I had for it. It’s a compelling cinematic platformer most of the way through, boasting surprisingly effective Arkham-style combat, an incredible variety of locations and scenarios, and one of the most standout art styles the industry has seen in a hot minute. I have grievances about certain encounters, the controls can be clunky even when you get used to them, and the finale is a letdown compared to the quality of the package leading up to that point. But, I can nonetheless easily recommend it if it caught your eye in the past. Just know that it won’t make the best first impression, but as soon as you hit Chapter 3, it will rarely let its foot off the gas and send you on a journey you’ll likely remember more for its many strengths than for the notable areas where it stumbles. Sad Cat Studios delivered a great debut effort, and I can’t wait to see what they cook up in the future.
One can only speculate, but what’s certain is that on its own, Legacy of Kain: Defiance Remastered is a generous throwback title that bridges the feeling of the PS2 era with the modern expectation for lore and mise-en-scene in a way that surpasses the Soul Reaver remasters and feeds our collective need to conserve and occasionally converse about the classics. While the combat can get repetitive sometimes and is generally just a little too clunky for today’s expectations, the relatively short runtime combined with small playstyle differences between the two antiheroes and a decent arsenal of powers and effects ensures it doesn’t get overly tedious before it’s all over.
I realise this isn't the most forthcoming review, and as tempting as it may be to go find someone a little more loose-lipped, I implore that you don't. Titanium Court isn't exactly the most 'stop reading and play immediately' affair, nor would I claim that it's ruined by learning the occasional narrative beat before it's appropriate, but everything from its recurring gags to its choice reveals is predicated on surprise and subversion. To give you examples is to rob you of them. To disclose any more of what you'll find is to consume the magic on your behalf.
Despite some surprising drawbacks, Death Stranding 2 remains an exceptional game, as its overhauls, novelties, and additions to an already excellent formula take it a step further when compared to its predecessor, in almost every aspect.