Recent reviews by bronch

I've lost control of my life

We're gonna need a bigger epilepsy warning

The trailers and screenshots don't do this game justice. Unique setting, great atmosphere, and some of the best level design ever seen in any game.

Probably the best and certainly most innovative modern roguelike. Great for new players unfamiliar with traditional roguelikes and yet still a challenging, wildly unique experience for veterans.

Unique roguelike-adjacent game in which you eke out a living as a penniless vagabond in iron age Finland. Hunt, trap, fish, farm, try not to freeze to death.

A bit on the easy side if you are at all experienced with the genre. Play with mods to add long-term goals and challenges beyond basic survival.

It's a game about life!

Spells in other video games:

Lightning Bolt
Zap a foe with a bolt of lightning dealing 20-25 lightning damage.

Fire Bolt
Launch a bolt of flame causing 10-16 fire damage. Also inflicts burning damage over time for the next three turns.


Spells in Dominions 5:

Second Sun
The caster creates a huge ball of fire in the sky. This Second Sun will always shine, day and night, resulting in severe effects across the entire world. Provinces will become hotter and drier every turn until the Second Sun is destroyed.

Rejuvenate
The mage drenches himself in the blood of ten young girls in an attempt to become younger. Each offered girl will make the caster one year younger.

Magic Duel
By use of this spell, one Astral mage challenges another Astral mage to a mental duel. At most one of the mages can survive this duel. The most powerful Astral mage is also the most likely winner. This spell cannot be used by or against mindless beings and it can only be used against Astral mages.

Watcher
The mage creates a stone statue and gives it awareness and magical powers. The Watcher is placed on a tower or at a place with a view over the surrounding landscape and given the task of guarding a province from prying eyes. Watchers have incredible vision and will easily detect enemy scouts and spies. They are charged with air magic and can blast enemies with lightning.

Astral Tempest
The caster unleashes an astral storm upon the battlefield. The storm is physically undetectable, but every unit that is not mindless takes damage as the storm rips the very souls from their bodies.

Burden of Time
This evil enchantment will make everyone in the world age at a highly accelerated rate. Unrest will increase in the entire world and soldiers will soon become crippled and useless. While this enchantment is active, the world will become more and more desolate until everyone dies.

Considered as a game, Playne's $10 price tag is not justified. Playne contains less content than most walking simulators and no true gameplay mechanics at all. Do not buy this expecting some "unique" game experience, unless that experience involves sitting down for fifteen or twenty minutes at a time and meditating. There is technically a story to be found in here, but the story is about the moment. There is no plot. You are the story.

I do recommend Playne, but as a clever and well-presented meditation guide, not a game. If you are not looking to improve your focus and mindfulness, don't bother with Playne. If that sounds appealing, though, you have spent $10 on some dumber ♥♥♥♥ than this.

A must play for fans of Myst-style adventure games. Be warned, though: this game is very hard.

Pros:
- Great, genuinely challenging puzzle design.
- Puzzles require the player to re-use and re-purpose tools from previous challenges, keeping the entire game world in play throughout most of the experience.
- Looks great.
- Interesting story concept.

Cons:
- Runs like garbage, even on powerful systems.
- Lacks the detailed setting found in classic Myst games.

A cool concept executed in a cool way. Probably the best piece of fiction about alien abductions ever produced.

Tough to review without giving too much away. If you like Myst-style adventure games, play it.