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There is no question that Grim Dawn moves along familiar lines: Base classes, a tragic world inhabited by monsters in a wide variety of flavors, nearly constant loot drops, action-oriented combat, somewhat "lite" yet interesting story, etc. Somehow, though, Grim Dawn just does it better than any other ARPG in recent memory.
Hats off to Obsidian Entertainment for creating and curating a fantasy world I can care about again, and here's hoping for many more adventures in the future.
If the developers went back to the drawing board and designed a strategy RPG from the ground up and implemented the systems present in PXZ2 they would be off to a great start. However an overly long introduction that becomes boring after a few hours distracts from what is otherwise a decent game. If this game had a tighter story, trimmed up the dialogue, and improved upon its technical performance by reducing slowdown, it would be something special.
I've had fun with my time in Blade & Soul, but my desire to log in is waning as I sit at the cap and realize all that's left to do is more dailies and grinding for better gear… I'm pretty sure I've been here before. I'd be all about the world PVP if it was more meaningful, just as I'd play the arena PVP if I was at all good enough to make a go of it (I am not). In the end, Blade & Soul just feels like a game that's not for me and that's OK. It's still a very good game, quite competent at achieving its goals. It sometimes feels like its big MMO features are just tacked on to give people something to do between the next arena match, and that's OK too. If League of Legends or SMITE had a big open world campaign, I'd wager I'd play them more too. Blade & Soul can be content in having some of the best combat in MMO history, and I'll be content to pop my head in on the game from time to time to see what's new.
What makes Darkest Dungeon a fascinating experience isn't the rich character progression and overarching strategy, but the way it manages to make each character feel like a living, breathing human before asking you how much you'll ruin them to increase your bottom line. There's pockets of subtext that I continually filled with my own moral struggle. Spaces left ingeniously blank where, when I allow myself to reflect on my actions, I realize that the greatest evil isn't waiting at the end of a dimly lit crypt. It is sitting right in this chair, typing these words.
As much as I wanted to love Bombshell, and in some ways do despite its flaws, I cannot recommend the game in its current state.
Overall, if you can get over the "janky"-ness of the visuals, then you will definitely find an engrossing action RPG with some great systems. The story is a bit bland, but can be made up for with strong combat, excellent controls, an interesting class system, and a wide variety of interesting enemies.
All in all, FIVE: Guardians of David is a very solid, well-priced ($24.99 on Steam) ARPG that will give players a lot of satisfaction and many hours of enjoyment. Fans of ARPGs will find a lot to like here as there is no question that it stands alongside the likes of Diablo, Torchlight and Titan Quest in a very favorable way.
Devilian is free to play, and is infinitely better than most other imported MMOARPGs on the market right now. If not having an MMO world isn't a deal breaker, you might be better off with Diablo 3 or Path of Exile. But if you've always wished TERA and Diablo would just make a baby and let you have a Corgi pet, then this is the game for you.
One good thing I can say about the game is that I didn't feel like I was constantly walking around with its hand in my pocket. I was put off by the fact you had to pay in game gold to change the chat font color however. All said I cannot find enough redeemable qualities about the game that would make me want to play it for an extended period of time.
Even with its short falls Xenoblade Chronicles X is a strong candidate for game of the year on the Wii U and is easily the best RPG. While I'll stop short of saying you should run out and buy a Wii U just for this title if you already own a Wii U and are a fan of RPGs this is a must have game for your collection. There is also multiplayer content for X that fans of MMOs might like that I'll talk about in more depth next week after the game's been live. We'll alter our score then if this should change how we feel about the title.
Heart of Thorns may not be a perfect expansion, but it's definitely something I think every fan of the game should check out. Just be prepared to rove about Maguuma in a pack, you're going to need some help to get the most out of the jungle.
Tales of Zestria is a solid addition to the "Tales of" series by Bandai Namco. While this is not an excellent game it is far from being one deserving of being tossed onto the scrap heap. If you are looking for a game with a solid combat system that is not the run of the mill turn based or active time based system then this might be the game for you. However if you are looking for a game that provides a solid and consistent narrative experience you may be put off.
I've put over 30 hours into Fallout 4 already, and I'm nowhere near finished with all the game has to offer. I plan on taking my time and working my way through all of the wasteland beyond the final main story mission, because the game allows that to happen seamlessly. DLC and future content updates are bound to come, and I can't wait to see what the mod community does to this game either. There are bound to be two camps this year. One who loves the Witcher 3 with all of its heart, and one whose love belongs to Fallout 4. For my part, I'm torn between the two. But for what it's worth Fallout 4 has certainly topped its predecessors as my favorite game in the series and sets a new bar for what to expect from a Bethesda RPG in the future.
Is it worth returning if you already played last year's Original Sin? I think so. Even a year on, Divinity is still one of the best roleplaying experiences of the decade, particularly if you enjoy the old school stylings of a pulled back camera and heavy dialogue. There are some strange design "improvements" that will hopefully become optional in future updates, but overall this version of Divinity is a stellar improvement on an already excellent game.
Hearts of Stone has pulled me back into The Witcher Universe with its finely crafted story and menagerie of clever side characters. A cat burglar acrobat, a suicidal Firestarter dwarf, a lifelorn ghost, and more are all people that will stick with you for a while even after you are done playing. While this story may only take you 10 hours to complete make sure to set aside more time than that because you will probably need it.
Sword Coast Legends had the table set for it. The huddled masses had shown their willingness to gobble up isometric cRPGs with abandon. The problem is this holiday season in the consumer should probably stick to gobbling up Turkey instead.
Knights of the Fallen Empire (and game update 4.0) represent the best iteration of SWTOR yet, and the future looks bright for the game if BioWare can keep up with the demanding pace set for itself.
Rebel Galaxy may seem like something deep and hard to grasp, but as soon as you figure out the combat the rest of the game's easy to learn bit difficult to master systems become just layers on a delicious cake. Recommended.
The Taken King might not make up for that first year and all of its shambling about, but it puts Destiny on a path that, as someone who spent all of last year whining endlessly to anyone who would listen, I can finally shut my mouth and just enjoy the game. If that isn't an incredible feat, I don't know what is.