Timothy "Urthdigger" Hyldahl
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Gamer EscapeLatest Reviews
At the end of the day, I have to follow my heart. I absolutely had a blast, even as a fan of the genre who wishes that things had been done differently in a number of areas. Whether you’re a long time fan or new to the series, I have to recommend checking this out.
Nostalgia can be a tricky line to walk. On the one hand there’s plenty of people who liked Max’s story from the first game and will be drawn back, but there’s also a risk of winding up like a few other series that are just remaking the same game over and over. I feel Deck Nine Games have successfully pulled off that tightrope trick, and have left the series in a place where it can only grow and thrive. I look forward to the next adventure.
Still, at the end of the day this is an approachable and enjoyable entry into a genre that doesn’t really get a lot of love these days. If they manage to optimize things enough to fix the performance issues you could probably consider it a 9 from me, but as it is I can only mostly recommend it.
Now, that’s not to say there’s nothing to enjoy, far from it! I really enjoyed the writing and performances, but it likely says something that I had a lot more fun just rushing through on a second playthrough on easy to see the story differences than I did on my initial go on normal where I actually had to explore.
Bahnsen Knights is something I’ve said I’ve wanted, I just wish it did it better. Short and cheap games seem like the ultimate cure for folks burned out by the current gaming landscape… but a single hour is perhaps too short, even most folks I know who appreciate shorter games would probably feel cheated, and that hour could definitely do with some improvements. They definitely tried and succeeded at having a unique and memorable voice, but this also means wearing its flaws on its sleeve.
I came away from this with the impression that I really didn’t miss out on much. Turok 3 is a game that lost its identity, and it now comes as no surprise that the next game was a reboot where Turok was changed into a space marine. In trying so hard to be like the other big name franchises, it became little more than another copy and sadly faded into obscurity. That all said, it’s only just mediocre at its worst, and you still get to shoot grenades at dinosaurs, so at least it has that go...
In short, fans of atmospheric horror owe it to themselves to pick this up. This is absolutely one of the best horror games I’ve played, and while there are a few little issues here and there, this isn’t even the end of development. There’s a more tailored scenario gameplay mode already on the horizon for a later update, and I expect things will only go up from there.
That’s not to say it’s completely perfect. There is a little bit of that indie game jank, it’s not terribly long, and there are a few bugs here and there ranging from minor graphical ones to more major ones that halted my progress temporarily. Thankfully the devs are already hard at work on a patch, and while the main story may be short, I’ve managed to sink 20 hours in so far and I’m nowhere close to stopping.
For all my complaints, Aragami 2 does pull off making you feel like a ninja rather well. Planning just the perfect route to ambush everyone one by one or slip in and out without disturbing anyone felt really satisfying. It manages to tread that fine line of letting you get away with more than is realistic while still making a perfect run challenging that makes a great stealth game. I just can’t help but feel they took a few gambles with changing things up from the original, and took a step ...
Fuga: Melodies of Steel is perhaps one of the most impactful games I’ve ever played. The story and gameplay both serve to complement each other, with the story adding so much importance to your decisions, but with the horrible impact of firing the cannon entirely within your power to prevent if you pay attention to all your options.