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Construction Simulator 2015 is the game you never knew you wanted to play that simulates the job you never really wanted to have. Ok, apologies to construction workers worldwide. But seriously, Construction Simulator makes the hard work of the construction world fun. The games weaknesses - spotty optimization and too much early focus on transporting materials - are overshadowed by its generally solid gameplay.
It's a charming, lighthearted game of resource gathering and production. Unfortunately, it's only really fun when things work smoothly and easily. Figuring out mistakes and solving problems - which should be the core of a good strategy game - are built around solving pathfinding issues, and Valhalla Hills doesn't do much to make those problems more palatable.
In many ways, Prison Architect feels like the 'Theme Prison' game from Bullfrog's golden years that we never actually got. Certainly, if Prison Architect's extended stint in Early Access was any indication, developer Introversion, much like the aforementioned legendary British developer, had no shortage of ambition and this is certainly something that has translated into the final product because minor niggles aside, Prison Architect is a one-of-a-kind prison building experience rife with emergent stories the caliber of which we haven't seen in some time.
The final episode of Telltale's Game of Thrones story is the strongest since the first, with everything coming to a head, all your terrible choices coming back to haunt you, and a few major excruciating ones left to finish things off. However the lack of any real resolution robs the season of feeling like a complete game. Moreover it still shares a lot of the weaknesses of the season as a whole, including the now decidedly unimpressive game engine and the absence of any witty character conversations (that are the hallmark of the show and books). Telltale still tell a good tale, but I think Game of Thrones will go down as the moment they bit off more than they can chew - or at least a licence they can't quite replicate. Still, cracking final episode chums.
Darksiders II has satisfying combat, a terrific variety of puzzles, and great, consistent art design. It starts to wear out its welcome deep into its lengthy runtime, and its story fails to deliver on the original game's promises, but it's still an exciting adventure well worth embarking on. Unfortunately, this edition on PC is full of minor technical issues that prevent it from realizing its full potential. Darksiders II is worth playing, but Deathinitive Edition is not worth the upgrade.
A Return To The Open-World RPG Well That Has Run Dry
But it's so difficult to access that depth behind the poor tutorials, terrible interface and lack of feedback. You've got to work for hours upon hours to reach anything approaching competence, and it's tough to recommend that investment to any but the most hardcore of space strategy tactical RPG simulation enthusiasts.
Fallout 4 is an amazing game that I doubt anyone will be disappointed by, but it's not unique. And I still prefer New Vegas.
Rebel Galaxy has a ton of style and an incredible atmosphere that captures the weird little subgenre of space western to wonderful effect. But its repetitive combat and focus on trucking across the galaxy means that it's not as exciting as it could be. There's a lot to like, but you've got to work for it.
The graphical bugs seemed to get worse the farther along the game progressed as well, leaving me with the impression that the game was released too soon. Overall, Coast Guard is a good game, it just needed some more polish.
Anno 2205 has so much going on and makes all of your tasking varied and interesting. One game is three different building sims with real-time strategy naval battles peppered in and everything moves in a way that makes it compelling and addictive instead of overwhelming. It's an ambitious improvement in a lot of ways over Anno 2070. Unfortunately, the technical issues keep it from being the perfect entry in the series that it wants to be.
The Witcher 3: Hearts of Stone may skirt the line between DLC and Expansion Pack by merely adding more of what was already in Wild Hunt, but gets away with it by being sizeable and awesome. The story, quests, characters, choices, twists, gameplay and wild adventures on offer are well worth the extra money, and the return of Shani is a neat bonus for fans who have been with the series since the first game. If you're not completely sick of The Witcher 3 then it's well worth getting Hearts of Stone since the content here is some of the best and most memorable in the entire series.
Arkham Knight isn't perfect, and it's not messing with our Game of the Year awards after all, but it's still a very enjoyable Batman game - and at the end of the day, as night falls, isn't that the main thing?.
Jump into an online game and you'll have a great time, but with one or two friends at your side, Vermintide is a serious contender for the best multiplayer experience of the year. This one's going to stick around for a good, long while.
While the game never abandons its forgiving approach, increasingly ambitious and interesting level design and a steady drip of new items and skills continue to provide a satisfying new challenge throughout the game's accomplished story campaign. Crookz is a very enjoyable crime caper, and one of the most pleasant surprises of the year.
The Park has solid atmosphere and pretty good scares, but it also has an unremarkable heroine and an inconsequential plot. It might be a decent curiosity if you're looking purely for the video game equivalent of a haunted house, but its high price and short length make it difficult to recommend.
Sword Coast Legends fails to deliver on its promises both as a solid RPG in it's own right and as a digital Dungeon Master toolset. The limited options available to creators are unlikely to yield anything memorable and the single player story section is marred by poor pathfinding, limited scope and shoddy writing. Overall an immense disappointment.
WRC 5 is a completely competent, inoffensive racing game, but it lacks the features that have become standard in the genre. Whether you're a fan of simulation or arcade-style racers, there are many better alternatives out there.
I appreciate what I saw in my time with Ancestory, but I can't help but think that with how much it appears to use other popular card games for its foundation, it could have stood to have a bit more variety in key places. It is nonetheless a rather enjoyable time.
A great improvement over its humble origins, Deathwatch's engaging tactical systems and great progression elements also serve to highlight the odd fact that the next essential Warhammer 40K strategy title isn't a homegrown PC effort at all but rather, one born in the often reviled realm of ultra-casual games and microtransaction misery. If you have any prejudices about mobile games, look past them and get stuck in – Warhammer 40,000: Deathwatch Enhanced Edition is the real deal.