Recent reviews by Secular

It's odd that the more you play the less fun the game becomes.

Imagine you’re playing an fps game. It has all the normal elements of an fps, multiple weapons, interesting environments, good enemy selection etc. Now imagine that the controls to this fps were the function keys and you had no way to remap them. You’re going to fire with f5, turn with f9, reload with f3. All the ways you know how to play an fps have been changed for no reason or gain, but it’s still an fps. That is the best way I can describe Cultist simulator.

It’s an interesting adventure game that for unknown reasons pretends to be a card game. The cards are how you control everything and advance the story but it’s so obtuse and pointlessly convoluted a control scheme that the challenge isn’t in the gameplay, but rather in just playing the game itself.

The fact that nothing is explained is cute and quirky but mostly exists to add mystery and a false sense of achievement in just figuring out how to play the damn thing. Every act is trial and error. “Can I drag that card onto that timer and… no. Ok but that one can be dragged... but I have no idea what it’s going to do. Hey that timer just snatched a card.” Everything is opaque until you do it. At which point it becomes known (kinda). And that’s the game.

Moving cards around your board until the timer you’re dragging it over lights up to let you know you can do something. That is the entirety of the game. You don’t have any real agency because the outcomes are unknown and unknowable until you do it. You can’t try to figure it out with logic before an action because other than the very rare instance, such as dragging a location to the explore timer explores the location, cause and effect are not really linked in anyway that makes sense. You just drag and wait for the glow to tell you did something right. Which is less of a game than it is a check on eyesight.

In the background you have a semblance of a narrative that could probably be pretty cool if it was front and center. But instead, you have timers and cards with the story being drip fed to you as you put the cards in the right slots, so you can open up more slots so you can keep doing it.

I can forgive ugly graphics, uninteresting sound, even a terrible control scheme if the reward in gameplay was there. Simply put, it’s not. I played a flash game years ago called alchemy, where the whole game was dragging sprites on top of other sprites so that they would merge and create a new, third sprite. That wasn’t a good game either, but they didn’t have the balls to charge for it.

Gladius review.

So let's get the obvious out the way. This is a 4x strategy game using the 40k universe. The question anyone who'd be interested in this title immediately asks themselves is how does it compare to other 4x's they've played in the past?

- The first obvious difference is zero diplomacy. It makes sense for the context of the game but also means there's a very large aspect of most 4x's missing. It also changes how the game plays dramatically from any other game in the genre. It's a lot closer to old SSI titles from the general series, (Panzer general, fantasy general etc..) This is not a bad thing, just something to be aware of when looking to purchase this.

- The factions are "sort of" asymmetrical. Which it to say they all have their own unit rosters, buildings, and bonuses. However they are not that radically different from one another. Each faction has roughly the same unit type at the same tech tier. The scout sentinel for the imperial guard serves the same purpose as the skimmer for the space marines for instance. They are different units with different stats/model but the role is the same. Likewise with city buildings and play in general. They each have a flavor without being really unique. End game they differentiate themselves somewhat with units like the Baneblade and Gargant playing obviously different. It's a middle ground between Civ's near identical factions and Endless Legends true asymmetry.

- Barbarians in this game are the local wildlife. I would strongly suggest turning it up to max as well. It does a lot to keep the game exciting through early and mid-game while the players are still expanding and growing. They insure you very rarely are spamming the "end turn" button waiting for things to happen, A La Civ. It's also fodder to level your troops on as well a s a real threat to expansion and small groups of units. Proxy really improved this aspect over their previous title Pandorum, in which the local fauna was mostly just annoying without being fun.

- Graphically it's attractive. Nothing mind blowing in the looks department but it's more than functional for what it is and some the the unit designs and animations are really nice. I find this less important than some when playing a strategy a game so keep that in mind. My criteria is generally, "If it's not eye searingly ugly, it's fine." Gladius more than passes.

- The sound is a mix between average and good. The bolters sound great while lasguns have an odd thump that I'm not a huge fan of. Again, functional without being outstanding. I found myself surprised by how much i liked the music though. It's somewhat generic but fits the the theme of what you're doing and has the occasional epic swell that is just a joy to listen to.

With those points out of the way, I have to say that I am having fun. At the higher difficulty levels the AI puts up a good fight, and you can designate teams to make it even more challenging. My current game is a huge map, playing as necron vs three other teams of 2 AI. The game plays pretty chill and well paced with occasional moments of panic as something goes badly wrong. One of my favorite moments thus far is playing as the imperial guard and running into a massive Ork army with several scouting infantry and a psyker hero. Trying to withdraw them while pounding the enemy advance with basilisk fire felt great, gave a plethora of meaningful tactical choices and really highlighted the games strengths.

It's a 4x for the combat oriented. It's more limited in its scope than civ but a lot tighter in its focus. If you're a fan of both the 40k mythos and enjoy TBS games, this is a good buy.

Kenshi is a glorious mess of a game that ticks a lot of check boxes for a lot of genres. Being complicated and having deep systems isn't necessarily a selling point in games but I feel this one manages bring it all together into one of the most intricate and more importantly, rewarding sandbox experiences I've come across.

It begins as a somewhat ragged rpg. There are no skills, traits, or perks, but plenty of stats and equipment as well as factions and as of the writing of this review a rough version of diplomacy. What you choose to do is completely up to you and your playstyle quirks.
You can wander the wasteland like Caine from Kung Fu and play the game as an open world rpg. You can become a traveling merchant, selling high, buying low and always on the lookout for bandits. You can immediately start plans for making a town of your own and work towards creating an independent city state with you as ruler. Etc etc. All paths are viable and you can switch to a different playstyle whenever the mood takes you.

Just as importantly, all paths are really fleshed out. As an rpg there a tons of characters to interact with, fight, recruit and a massive world to explore. As colony builder there are tons of multi-tiered supply chains and crafting. You can grow your food, set up and staff mining and manufacturing facilities as well as town defenses and a truly startling amount of research options. It’s a game that doesn’t just have a lot minor systems thrown in for variety, everything has depth, in many cases as much or more depth as a game dedicated to any of the one aspects alone.

It’s not without issues. The models and animations look a little dated and a lot clunky. Placing buildings and especially walls can be a chore sometimes on anything other than dead flat land. The difficulty curve is horrendously inverse. Which is to say that you will get your ass kicked by anything in existence for a large portion of the game; until at a certain point you have the right gear and stats and you become the god of slaughter and it takes an army to bring your guys down. It’s like a switch being thrown and could probably be worked out better.

However, the faults really fade to the background when you’re playing simply because sheer array of gameplay options available to you at any given moment. This really is a unique gem of a game and if the reviews or game description interest you even a little bit, you should 100% pick this up.

A very solid TCG for the crowd that wants deeper systems than hearthstone and an interface that doesn't make your eyes bleed like MTGO.

In terms of play it is extremely similar to mtg with the mana streamlined into a much more useable format. It however does things that magic can't do because they have to adhere to a card game that is physical. Effects on cards last through that card going to the graveyard for example. Meaning if you buff a troop you control and it dies, if you have some means of returning to your hand or play it retains the buff. There's a host of similar enhancements that go along with the digital only format.

The game also has a suprisingly large pve portion in the form of character creation and leveling, multiple classes, equipment specific to cards, dungeons and campaign as well as an arena. So if you just feel like playing silly decks or have the urge to farm for in game currency or cards you can do that.

PVP is where the game really lives though and contructed format ladder as well as tournements are fast paced and extemely competitive.

Finally, this is a TCG. I know that seems obvious but with the host of card games coming out constantly it bears repeating. You can trade and sell cards to other players either in personal transactions or using the Auction house, the cards have value, allowing you "cash out" if you feel the urge.

All in all this has become my favorite card game over the last year and i would 100% recommend it to anyone who's into these sorts of games.

For someone unfamailair with the franchise; it's a turnbased, tactical, quasi-football simulation with rpg and progression mechanics using the warhammer universe. Kind of a mouthful right? It works suprisingly well though.

This game is almost less of a sequal than a graphics and UI overhaul of the first game. The game itself is functionally identical in terms of gameplay, but all the peripheral portions have been improved. The UI is now easy to use and mostly intuitive (if you assume that should just be a given, play the first game and weep). The graphics are not just functional as they were in the original, but actually quite good with cutscenes showing the action and giving a visceral thrill when your minotaur curb stomps a dwarf. Full game pad support. The team manager has more depth and it's now easy to almost instantly create custom leagues to play in. You also now have the ability to trade your players online to other people which is just an interesting feature.

One of the largest improvements is the addition of an actual tutorial in the form of the campaign. It's a little slow but actually tells you what does what as opposed to the original blood bowls method of, "Just click around and hope for the best." The campaigns narrative is also charmingly silly which is a plus.

Given the longevity of the previous game the community is going to be extremely active for some time as well, so that's another bonus.

Now this is not a game for everyone. Like any authentic adaptation of a games workshop title, die rolls are king and you will inevitably end up cursing at your screen as what should have been a sure thing somehow turns into disaster. If you've never called the RNG a ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ cheater, then you haven't actually played a games workshop title. With that said though, the opposite can occasionally happen too, and it feels amazing.

The only real downside is that the previous incarnation of blood bowl had 23 races, this has 8 (and doesn't have the undead, which was my favorite you bastards!) The difference will be made up in DLC's which, depending on your preference is either fine or, to use the the langauge of the forum screamers, a bloodsucking scam that even EA would be ashamed of. Personally I'm ok with it, and would rather have the game right now to play than wait however long it would be to get all the other races out simultaneously, but it nevertheless IS a negative. This is a Null issue to new comers to the game but blood bowl 1 vets will probably feel like thier choices have been severely cut back.

On the whole it's a pretty game that is silly fun and a lot more welcoming to new players than the first. Buy it, Play it, cripple a scaven and laugh. It's good times. 8/10

This is a game I didn't know I wanted until I played it.
I recieved this in a pack of games and decided to try it out. It might be because I had no expectations going in, but I found the gameplay absolutly outstanding. It's fast paced, fluid, and difficult.
The simple art aesthetic is generally a big turn off for me in games. My theory having been, "We could pay an artist, or call it retro.. decisions..." But it really works for this game and adds to the charm of the sometimes frenetic experiance.

The fact that it's in early access means it's only going to get better (i HOPE that's what it means). If you're on the fence at all, wait for the actual launch but for me, it's a blast right now.

random-number-implying-I-like-this/10

Nether has a lot things going for it. Great atmosphere both in the sounds and visuals. You're always scared and constantly scanning for either monsters or, far more dangerous, other players. You never have enough supplies, be it food, ammo, or just a decent weapon and that lack always keeps the edge on. The first half hour of play was for me some of the most enjoyable i've ever had.

There are cons though. Once the initial wonder of a new game world and its mechanincs wear off what the game boils down to it searching. 90% of what your doing is looking for glowing items on the ground. Food becomes critical as the games veiw of realilism is that every character is a hypoglycemic diabetic who dies if he doesn't eat a full meal ever half hour. The monsters beomce something to avoid rather than engage because they drop nothing useful. The XP you get from them isn't a good trade off for the ammo your spending. The PVP is tense, visceral and immidiate but again, simply becomes tedious as if both player have guns, the one to see other first wins. Almost zero cooperation exists because no one can trust anyone. I'm not an exception to that. When i was starving i shotgunned 4 different players to death hoping one would drop food. (Game needs a cannabilism option because i would totally eat people.)

However this game is not feature complete and with the ground work they have i expect this to become something truly great. If your on the fence then wait for actual launch to make up your mind. I'm liking the game as it stands but short of some major content increases it's probably not worth your money.

If you liked the previous one you'll like this but there isn't a whole lot that's new about it, just a prettier graphics set. It's basically a city simulator with the added quirks of being a terrible dictator. So you you're not neccessarily trying to make life good for everyone so much as you're trying to not get overthrown my rebels or a military coup.

Fun game.