Recent reviews by Nex

how do I hide this game from my parents help

So I just finished the main questline, explored all the locations and killed all the enemies. Looking back at it, it wasn't a lot of time but I had an incredible blast throughout. Let me try and collect my thoughts and then summarize them in a quick TL;DR below:

Pros:
+ Enjoyable gameplay loop that requires careful planning and a stealthy approach
+ Enemy variety from two factions
+ Beautiful visual design with an intriguing world that keeps you curious
+ Soothing ambience/cyberpunk soundtrack
+ Well voice-acted banter between squad members

Cons:
- Picking off enemies one by one might be repetitive for some
- Lack of endgame: Going back to missed areas with a leveled and geared up squad often overpowers the enemy, whose level doesn't scale at all
- Boss fight is just a named enemy with no unique mechanics
- The abrupt end of the story



Looking at the screenshots I can understand why somebody would get this game under the pretense of getting another XCOM game but this couldn't be further from the truth. First of all you have the ability to control one of the 3 party members and roam around the map finding resources and equipment. This phase is real time and gives you the ability to set up some ambushes. Once you initiate an ambush or get detected by the enemy, you will enter the classic turn-based cover strategy game. Your core gameplay loop is going to be roaming around in real time, identifying a lone patrolling enemy, positioning the team into cover and taking the enemy out with your silenced weapons before taking on the weakened core of the opposition force. This game puts a huge emphasis on stealth and if you take the enemies head on as soon as you enter the map you will have a bad time. I am a pretty bad XCOM player, but the learning curve was fair enough and I managed to beat the game on Hard difficulty. Upgrade your weapons wisely and if you find yourself getting outmatched you can explore other locations on the map for better gear and leveling up.

There isn't much of a story and I could easily sum it up in a sentence, but without spoiling the little bit of plot there is let me tell that it won't matter. The level design and world is so interesting and charming, you should stop for a moment and look around. The post apocalyptic wastelands have been done to death in gaming and yet this game still stands out in my opinion. The vistas you get walking around the world tell a subtle story and if you only focus on the gameplay you might miss it.
The characters are charming, but ordinary. You get various tidbits of their personality when they comment on their surroundings, but the lines they deliver when finishing off a foe might get repetitive. The characters in the hub area however are very well designed and serve their purpose well.
There are some beautiful comic art style cutscenes that further the plot and it worked pretty well, but in the ending is very abrupt (underlined by the underwhelming final boss) and feels more like a middle of the game that had to be cut short because of budget constraints. I literally walked into the ending, realizing only after the credits rolled. I also had some unexplored areas at that point, so I had to reload a save to go back.

Overall I liked the main campaign. I played the game in very long sessions throughout the week and I was hooked. I didn't repetitiveness, focusing solely on getting better gear and more powerful mutations to beat the enemies in the next zone was the only thing I kept in mind. I haven't played a game this intensely in a long time, much less finish one. I am quite saddened by the sudden ending of the game, but the journey was so satisfying I can't help but just appreciate the game for what it is and hopefully look forward to a sequel.

Yo, shout-out to my ♥♥♥ Nippu

Cutscenes stutter and lag if you don't have a gamepad plugged in. After all these years it's still not been fixed. Can't recommend for keyboard/mouse only users at this time.

Waste of time, stuck on a splash screen.

Always Remember me is the sequel to the ground-breaking AAA title Remember Me from Dontnod Entertainment published by Capcom...

Actually, Always Remember Me was made by Winter Wolves, a studio known for making exclusively Visual Novels.
I let you know my experience with VNs is rather thin, so your opinion may vary. Again, this is a fresh VNoob review, so keep that in mind.

So let's start.

The story. If this game was a first-person shooter or casual hack and slash, we wouldn't have to comment on that. However, this is a Visual NOVEL, so we definitely have to focus on this aspect. You play as Amy, a girl who has gone through despair after her boyfriend was diagnosed with amnesia, not remembering anything from their past relationship. As Amy you will be working part time, visiting Aaron, the aforementioned boyfriend, and trying to make him remember or worst case scenario: make him fall in love with you again. But is that really the best for both of you... ? Overall I found the story being full of cliches, however enjoyable nonetheless. With characters being well written and surprisingly deep.

The gameplay. You will be also doing various activities expanding one of four of your traits: Culture, Creativity, Romance and Discipline. These are also gained by interacting with one of your four potential love interests. Having maxed out the particular stat needed for the certain partner unlocks the 'special ending'. As you grow familiar with your partner more special events are unlocked, in which you are forced to make a choice that will either advance your relationship or do the opposite. You will find yourself awaiting these events with curiosity and excitement, partly because your daily routine will get boring eventually. The first playthrough may not wield results and you will probably do a second one. And that's okay, the replayability value here is surprisingly high. You may want to turn text and animation speed up, but you will still have fun exploring the other optio... I mean guys.

The visuals.
The artstyle is your typical anime stylization. However the proportions belong to the more realistic half of this particular artstyle. Overflowing with vibrant colors and interesting character choices your eyes will definitely not go dry. The animation and city map is nothing particularly impressive, but it fullfils it's purpose. All the work certainly went into the characters and backgrounds. The font is annoying, but typical for VNs, however there are many well stylized VNs out there. Overall, I wouldn't have played it for +5 hours if I was bothered by the visuals, so this is definitely a plus for the game.

The soundtrack.
A quite rare aspect in reviews, however I always like to mention them, especially in games such as these. They represent a major part of the narrative and usually expand the experience. Not here. More or less. It is catchy, don't get me wrong, it certainly is. I've been listening to the opening the whole time I wrote this review and I had no urge to turn it down whatsoever. The in-game music gives a very casual vibe, something you should grow familiar if watching sitcoms and other family-friendly shows. It just doesn't leave a mark in my memory (guess I will not Always Remember It, haha). Unlike the game itself it is enjoyable while it lasts, but once you're done you won't feel obligated to pick it up again. The bonus 'remix' of the main theme song is a fun gimmick and amusing, but it does not feel particularly memorable as well.

And now we got to the end of this review. The final question: Should you buy it or should you not? Well, strongly depends on your preferences. If you're looking for a dramatic heart-tearing ride, you won't find it here. It's a lighthearted and fairly casual experience and the story is pretty straightforward and linear. I don't think it needs heavy plot-twists anyways. You will enjoy this game as it is if you're looking for something fun to pick up and try. I myself had high expectations and wasn't dissapointed, but again, your mileage may vary.

It is certaily an enjoyable game and immensively fun if you can just ease yourself off after a hard day and want to kill time. I highly recommend this to you as a gateway visual novel if you want to get into this genre.

Dysfunctional Systems could be considered a game by some, but denied as one by others. It's a visual novel and you will be expected to read a lot as the narrative will be presented in such form for the majority of time you spend on this game.

As the first visual novel I ever played, there was something that got me attached to this game. It might have been the beatiful soundtrack (that you receive for free as well), the eyecandy smooth stylization or the intelligent dialogue. You won't really handle everything thats thrown onto you at first, but you can always pause the game, re-read the log or do some research in the Codex. The story is intense and the fact that it is (sadly) very short, strenghtens the impression. Albeit heavily advertised, the decision making had not such a major impact as I came to expect, but you certainly felt relevant in that world. My biggest complaint has to be how the story has been cut out seemingly mid-air. I know, Dischan was working on a budget, but that doesn't justify the heavily inconclusive ending. I know that the series is episodic, but the ending was so sudden and the plotline so thin, I couln't help but desire more. And I hope I will get more.
For merely 5 bucks, you get an unique experience hard to summarise in a few paragraphs. A story line making you feel the burden of responsibility. A immersive soundtrack that easily justifies its spot on your playlist. And last but not least, the gratitude of a small game company, that offered me subjects to think about.

If you'd like to further support the small and humble dev team, you can do so on Kickstarter, but please be advised the video contains Dysfunctional Systems: Learning to Manage Chaos Episode 1 SPOILERS.
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/dischan/dysfunctional-systems/

XCOM: Enemy Unknown is a turn-based squad strategy game. As a commander of an anti-alien unit, you're put in charge of leading a strike team to the frontlines of this interplanetary conflict. You will experience the grief on lost squadmates right from the start and every loss will be significant from that point on. One thing I loved about this game is you'll learn to care for your fellow soldiers. They have no backstory or unique voice over whatsoever. But they feel more human than in any strategy game I played at this point. Every loss will be mentioned in a memorial. They can panic. They are not perfect. What will make them perfect is experience, with every battle hardening them.

Combat is really addicting, requiring you to cover frequently. Expose your units or let them get flanked and you shall receive a K.I.A. report. There's a certain feeling of proggresion, but you might be skillful as much as you want, your first playthrough will still be to figure things out. To get yourself immersed into the experience. And you will probably not save Earth. But that's a good thing: You can do a 2nd playthrough! The high replayability value is certainly a key selling point here. Personally I give it 8 headshots to Mutons out of 10 as it was engaging and fun even for somebody who didn't play strategy games for a decade.

This game that will probably not charm every player out there. The gunplay is precise, effective and unforgiving. Rush into the enemy and you're K.I.A. Fail the objective in front of your supervisors and you will get shouted at. Unforgiving. That's what this game is. And then you get a kill. You check the right top corner, just to be sure. Yep, you got him. Ice cold. Feels good, doesn't it? And then it happens. Your team is dead. You clear the site. You defuse. Seconds fade away as your sweat slowly surrenders to gravity. You did it. YOU DID IT! Your team, the same people who called you thrash minutes earlier, commend you and virtually pat you on the back. You are the MVP. You are the hero of this round.
That's what you get out of Counter Strike: Global Offensive. A gameplay formula that withstood it's fight against time. A diffucult challenge so rewarding, it will keep you coming for more and more. You will struggle, doubt and fail a lot. But your proggression will not remain unnoticed. Every frag you take, every knife you sink deep into your enemy's flesh will get you closer to a cold-blooded killing machine. You will play until you become a murderous husk screaming at your less experienced teammates for every little mistake they make. But hey, you will probably have a ton of fun until then!

Risk of Rain is a combat based action platformer, that has a simple formula and intuitive gameplay. A rather simple, not very stunning, but not particularly bad artstyle will step aside anyway as you realize how addicting the gameplay is. The soundtrack syncs perfectly with the graphics and frenetic shoot' and running. This is one of those easy to learn, hard to master games. You will die. A lot. But the deaths are fair and you will most probably know your cause of death. The difficulty rises over time, so you wont be able to rely on skills completely. The key to this game is having good items and the ability to manage time spent grinding and collecting cash for items as the game is unforgiving, if you start lollygagin'. Approach the boss too soon, and you're collosus food as well. This game is a good quickie as it is a good time-devourrer.