Qualbert.com's Reviews
Despite the small amount of content at launch, Dreamcore has potential if the remaining levels are of the same quality. I can’t understate how positively huge each level is, and even though they’re not devoid of tedium, they are still worth pushing through to the exits. If you have a keen interest in the backrooms or liminal spaces, this is worth a shot.
After just two games (well, 16 hours in), I can already see myself playing routinely and obsessively, trying different strategies and exploring new civilizations. While a few quality-of-life changes are still needed, this is just the beginning. With multiple planned DLCs (possibly even a futuristic era?) and a vibrant modding community, I expect these minor issues to be addressed soon. Overall, Civilization VII truly is a strategy game for the ages.
I love Donkey Kong Country 1, 2 and 3. I wish I could say the same about Donkey Kong Country Returns HD. Don’t get me wrong, this is still a very good game. I couldn’t help but feel that this was a major step down from the SNES titles. The level design in Returns isn’t quite as amazing as the originals, but it is still very good. The game does occasionally feel a little monotonous due to only having DK and Rambi for use in the standard platforming levels. The mine cart and barrel rocket levels provide much needed variety, but are often the cause of frustration.
Over the 30 hours spent in this game, not many of them felt like a chore, with exploration and tackling huge foes the bulk of my enjoyment. The story is good but it does get dragged down by exposition way too much even though the characters feel fully fleshed out and are even funny at times. The amalgamation of crafting and exploring is probably the best gameplay loop I’ve experienced for a while, even if it seems to drag on a little towards the end. All in all, for a first outing for a new developer, Yellow Brick Studios has created something magical that may not be for everyone but I’m sure it will be enjoyed thoroughly by many.
I have incredibly conflicted feelings about it, moving from joy to disappointment hourly. If you’re a lapsed DW fan, this might be the game for you. I miss playing as the cool heroes, but I don’t miss levelling them all up. I miss the variety in weapons. I miss the weirdness. This is (a bit) more grounded, fake sorcery aside, yet also only barely touches the big battles that are expected. This is a new direction for the series, and I don’t necessarily think it’s a bad direction. Dynasty Warriors is dead, long live Dynasty Warriors.
Be prepared to sink a lot of hours into Fantasian. At minimum you will need to play for about 50 hours to get to the end of the main story. There are plenty of side-quests and post-game content to significantly extend the experience if you are that way inclined. If you pick up this game, I assume you have completionist tendencies – this is a JRPG after all. Simply said – this is one of those games that every JRPG fan must experience.
If you can’t get enough of the 3D platformer/collect-a-thon subset of games, Hop ‘n’ Marty is undoubtedly going to be more of what you love. It’s a great time, albeit done quicker than you might hope. For a studio as small and young as Evilkookey Games, though, it’s quite an achievement.
Among Ashes plays upon the fears of being home alone as a teen, and also leans into a time when creepypastas were in their infancy. I like the game-related creepypastas like Lavender Town Syndrome or Ben Drowned, so having a game in the same genre is awesome to me. Of course, as with all horror, if you boil it down to the individual parts it’ll either resonate with you or it won’t. If you’re fine with being home alone and creepypastas don’t spook you out, then maybe this isn’t for you. A short game that leaves a lasting impression is all the more powerful, in my eyes.
Dragon Age: The Veilguard is fantastic. It feels great to play, the length of the story is perfect and doesn’t break the pacing. It may not 100% capitalise on the darkness of previous games but it feels like this more positive angle was deliberate with the game and how the story is designed around it. Additionally, the way the game handles consequences for choices is great and really made the main decisions hit where it mattered so that the endgame was all the more worthy and emotional. Recommended to anyone wanting a fun action RPG that follows up Dragon Age’s existing story.
There you have it folks, a barebones RTS with gorgeous graphics and clunky controls. Even with all the negatives, I would say I had fun with it for the most part. It was a change of pace from the usual games that I play and it wasn’t so bad that I had to walk away from it. It’s an alright time waster, not much more than that. It looks like it was supposed to have some longevity to it as it does have crossplay multiplayer but I didn’t touch on this before for the simple fact that I couldn’t actually play it. There are so few people picking the game up that I wasn’t able to get into any multiplayer matches. In short, it was fun for a couple hours, but I probably won’t come back to it.
I loved my time swinging around the Grombi Isles in Completely Stretchy, even if the whole affair only lasted about two hours. There’s certainly some fun to be had in completing the game, but don’t expect it to be an exceedingly-long journey. In fact, you might just beat the whole thing in one sitting. Super Rare Originals still has my full attention, but it might be worth waiting for a sale at the current price point of $18.99 USD/$27.95 AU.
The Sacred Acorn is a unique experience with not much out there that’s similar. I really wished I had enjoyed it more but due to the issues with combat and a lack of direction, I probably wouldn’t have given this as much of a chance if I hadn’t been reviewing it. Do keep in mind that it’s not the sort of game I would normally play and it is still a good game. I would like an option to make it a bit easier as I am getting old and am not as good with my reflexes as I used to be. I have heard that the game will be receiving patches in the next few months to address some of the feedback players have given them, so I look forward to trying again when that drops.
Overall, my play time for Ys X: Nordics was around 45 hours. A decent length for an action JRPG, though I did complete the majority of available side quests, including the Recapture missions which can end up taking almost 20 minutes for the highest difficulty ones. If you wanted to speed run the main story only, you could probably drop the time around to about 30 hours or less. If you are an action-JRPG fan, then I would recommend a play through of Ys X: Nordics. This is unlikely to be on anybody’s game of the year lists, but it is definitely worth your time.
In the two weeks since its release, Marvel Rivals has has over 20 million players and broken several records. Taking this with a grain of salt since this is free to play, but there is no doubt that this is a ton of fun with or without friends. With a huge roster of fan favourite characters, there is an abundance of skins to choose from with even more modes, seasons and rewards to come. This also is great for those quick gaming sessions where you don’t have a lot of time or just want to play something that doesn’t require too many brain cells. All in all Marvel Rivals is a great addition to the F2P universe and hopefully it continues to grow into a worth rival of Fortnite and Apex.
Hitting the slopes in Slopecrashers is a rollicking good time. Past the funny characters, simple premise, and accessible controls is a title that has a solid depth to it. A most welcome challenge to racing fans that want to get all the gold medals and bonuses in the campaign, even if there’s a lot of repetition to it.
My Sims is a faithful re-release of the game that came out in 2008. Both the good and the bad. It would have been nice to see the gameplay and blueprints modernised as the TV blueprints were all chunky TVs that no longer exist. They’ve left bugs in from the original game such as the frame skipping during the fishing mini game in the ocean area. It’s still fun but there’s really nothing new to make returning players want to pick it up aside from nostalgia’s sake.
Entropy Survivors has worked its way to my top 5 bullet heavens ever, alongside greats like Soulstone Survivors and Halls of Torment. It’s one of the best things I’ve played all year and one I will continue to play into the new year, thanks to its polish, addictive nature, and laundry list of challenges I desperately want to tick off. My search for a diamond in the rough was successful here, and I couldn’t recommend this title more for any fans of bullet heavens, Survivors-likes, and/or roguelites.
There’s enough meat on the bone to get lots of enjoyment out of this game, but don’t expect the depth or variety of bigger games. Each character has a play style that you are heavily encouraged to lean into, so there are really only three unique ways to play the game. Don’t let this detract you from trying it, because I enjoyed my time with the game greatly.
STALKER 2 is a hard game to review. On sheer potential, this game is absolutely amazing. Moving around the Zone looks and feels fantastic. The gun play is great plus there’s tonnes of variety, and replayability. Unfortunately, there’s some serious problems with the game, which isn’t uncommon with the STALKER series. Mod support is also limited, but it does fix some of the glaring issues. Over time, much like Skyrim, mods will transform this game into something much better, and more stable. If you can accept its weaknesses, or just want to support the devs and loop back to it in 6-12 months, then I recommend it heartily.
Personally, I am not a fan of turn-based RPGs, usually as they take too long or are too arduous. Dragon Quest 3 Remake has given the classic game, series and myself a fresh look at what potential these genres store. With the pixel art beyond stunning, music filled to the brim with iconic tracks and accessibility for everyone, this is far more than just a shiny remake. If anyone is looking to join this expansive series then now is the time and this is the game! It’s even available on PC and Xbox! To Echo our editors statement, this is how classic RPGs should be remade!