VDGMS's Reviews
While Blue Prince might masquerade as a puzzle game, it’s infinitely more than that. Blue Prince is more than one of the best puzzle games ever, it’s possibly one of the best games ever. Blue Prince combines elements of rogue-lites, point and click, mystery, deck builder, extraction, walking simulator and many other genres in an experience that has no analog. What’s magical about Blue Prince is how failure is almost as rewarding as success. There is always something that will propel you into the next day in one of the most addicting games thanks to its rich atmosphere, interesting premise, and unique genre fusion. Magically, Blue Prince is able to provide a different experience for everyone. Although the departure and the arrival will be the same, the journey will be vastly different.
The common thread with South of Midnight isn’t that there is something wrong, it’s more what is missing and what isn’t right, which can be equally as damaging. The combat is great, but it never evolves. Exploring the world is fun, but trust is never given. The traversal is satisfyingly fast and fluid, but it becomes rote. Most detrimental to the experience is that the ending is fine, but absent is the ending that this incredible adventure deserved. If you have the right expectations, you will be delightfully please and if you are on Game Pass, South of Midnight is a must. South of Midnight delivers a powerful story with unmatched atmosphere that easily overshadows the simplicity of the gameplay.
I’m an easy mark for a good alternate history game and I thoroughly enjoy a good roguelite. Grit and Valor 1949 perfectly finds itself in the middle of this Venn diagram, but what I didn’t expect was for it to reignite my nostalgia for classic RTS as it feels like a distilled version minus the hours spent base building and collecting resources. Essentially an all killer, no filler RTS. Instead, you are constantly in the middle of a very satisfying, wave based gameplay loop that emphasizes strong strategy and quick thinking. Unfortunately, it missing the addictive hook and run variation that the best roguelites offer.
If you don’t like Assassin’s Creed, Shadows won’t be the pivotal moment in the franchise that changes your mind. Due to dual protagonists, experiences of Assassin’s Creed Shadows are going to vary drastically, but when the game is at it’s best it allows the player to take full advantage of the satisfying combat, parkour, and stealth systems through the eyes of a young shinobi requiring a more methodical approach The biggest downfall with Assassin’s Creed Shadows is indecision. At times between shinobi and samurai, between stealth or action, between drama and comedy, between instant kills and sword sponges, between series cliches and fresh ideas. At times Assassin’s Creed Shadows feels like a six, but at other times it’s almost a ten and where it ends up is somewhere in the middle. When everything clicks together, Assassin’s Creed Shadows was worth the wait.
Precision platformers don’t necessarily need stories, but once you have experienced them with deeply engaging plots, it’s hard to fully enjoy them without. What MainFrames lacks in story and cohesion, it certainly makes up for in other areas though. On a precision platformer level, Mainframes was challenging, unique and competes with the best in the genre. The controls were spot on, the pixel aesthetic was very nice, the score was charming and there was hints of a relevant story about corporate downsizing, but unfortunately remained largely unexplored. If you are just looking for a demanding precision platformer, MainFrames is only about ten bucks and will give you those endorphins you are looking for. Unfortunately, living in a post Celeste world, just being a hard as nails precision platformer isn’t enough anymore.
Knights In Tight Spaces adds plenty of variety and strategy to the already solid turn based, tactical gameplay of Fights in Tight Spaces. Repetition is still an issue for the franchise and a few QOL changes would go a long way in providing a more well rounded experience, but with a massive visual overhaul, great performance on Steam Deck and many major gameplay changes, Knights In Tight Spaces now positions the franchise in the upper echelons of deck-builders
Split Fiction is a game that gets better as it progresses. At the beginning, sections bordered on overstaying their welcome, but as the journey unfolded, I quickly found myself not wanting to leave these worlds. Split Fiction was a perpetual flow of variety, challenge and pure fun accented by resonant story. Hazelight have solidified themselves as masters of the co-op adventure and Split Fiction is best in class.
Two Point Museum is a lot of what you already know and love about the series. However, the changes made to the existing formula elevate Two Point Museum from just another entry in the franchise, to the new standard moving forward. The expanded gameplay and improved variety means that not only is there a lot more to manage, but it also means that the lighthearted tone isn’t doing the heavy lifting anymore, instead it accentuates the experience, which is now equal parts addicting, strategy and fun.
Avowed isn’t doing anything revolutionary, but it just does everything a little bit better. Avowed is dense, everything has purpose and most importantly, it gives the player freedom to approach the adventure how they want. Avowed is a game that has all the ingredients to be a cult classic and an RPG that people will bring up when discussing Obsidian's best games.
Citizen Sleeper 2: Starward Vector is a fantastic and addicting narrative sci-fi adventure that does one important thing the first game didn’t, which is offer the player more freedom. The beloved core experience returns with a few new mechanics that added depth to the gameplay, freedom to explore, and a story that over twice as big, but didn’t take any risks or innovate in a way that would have opened the game up to a much broader audience.
The new order is Raiders of The Lost Ark, The Last Crusade, The Great Circle, Temple of Doom, Dial of Destiny and finally, The Kingdom of The Crystal Skull. MachineGames have carefully crafted one of the best Indiana Jones entries of all time featuring nearly four hours of cinema quality cutscenes, on par with Spielbergs masterpieces. The Great Circle transcends the gaming medium. Not only does Indiana Jones and The Great Circle find itself nestled among the greatest in the franchise, but it’s easily our game of the year. There are a few minor imperfection, but nothing that affects the experience in any meaningful way. The Great Circle is a quintessential Indiana Jones experience and when everything is firing on all cylinders, it’s hard not to get swept up in the magic and feel like a kid again.