Recent reviews by Brainiac

I'm afraid it's peak.

Still can't play the game thanks to a CTD that's been in the game since the first ACTUAL network test. It's a shame because training simulations all work, I just can't play real matches.

How did you make it worse?

Please stop putting me in the timeout box.

Please play this game.

Ok yeah I get it, funny radical apocalypse hehe.

But honestly, the game needs some work done. Balance is all over the place and a significant amount of the 'positive' mutations are actually just straight up useless.

Game also just rubs me the wrong way. "LOL GODS A WOMAN"

First off, I am incredibly biased towards this game thanks to my reverence towards the games HOVER is inspired by. JSRF remake when?

Putting that aside, should you give HOVER a chance? It depends on what you want out of a game. Yes that's a bit of a cop out and although I am recommending HOVER, there are some issues people might find off-putting. The narrative is very loosely held together, and the world is self-indulgent in what its creators enjoy. There are numerous references littered about on top of face-level jokes about 'sheep' and an unthinking public. I know how easily some people can be turned off of a game for a joke they deem tasteless or too cringe, so think of this as a word of warning.

But when you get down to it, and look at the game itself, HOVER is almost everything I've wanted in a game for the longest time. Hideki Naganuma is of course the headliner for the game's soundtrack, but the good beats don't stop at him, racing through the Sewers while 'Surpassing Oneself' blasted in my head was an almost decadent experience for me, the DARKGAMER's race keeping me up well past midnight as I attempted it with a poorly kitted character. And speaking of characters, you have a nice selection of specialists and all-rounders to choose from, who you can then splash with a bit of colors to make them yours. (Though I will admit, I am very sour about being unable to use certain characters who are locked behind Kickstarter backer exclusivity. But good on Fusty for keeping their promise, and rewarding those who believed in them.)

One caveat is that the game's "chip" system might be a bit strange, or unforgiving for some. Essentially you need to level a character through using them in activities, before plugging in items that you cannot get back. Of course you can replace them, and by the end of the game you should have a vast storage of gleaming red chips, but the initial hike can feel excruciating.

However, once you get past that obstacle, once you have a character fully built, it is an utter treat to fly about the game's world. By grinding, sliding on the ground, and doing tricks, you fill up the "Hoverheat" meter, boosting your character to even greater speeds and heights. A robust parkour system lets you climb anything in sight, not to mention the reset button that saves you from any untimely falls, and the "bounce" mechanic letting you simply fly back up to where you were (though you may need to learn the timing). I've spent hours scouring the city streets, looking for missing items or posters to vandalize. And all of this works beautifully in the games primary activities, races and a frantic "Rocket League"-esque basketball mode called Gameball.

Oh, and another thing. The game works in first person and third person. You can even look down and see your feet. Game of the ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ year. Every year.

AND ANOTHER ANOTHER THING, IT HAS AN ALWAYS ONLINE HUB WORLD WHERE YOU CAN JUST CHILL AND RACE WITH PEOPLE AND EVEN SET UP CUSTOM RACES. HOW ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ COOL IS THAT? LIKE BRUH, ITS MMO JSRF.

Actually unplayable thanks to the most recent patch.

This game is hard.

No, I'm not being epic funnyman here. Haydee is a stupid difficult game. You have a finite amount of saves, and when you die you're dead, time to reload one of those precious few saves you got. Haydee herself doesn't have super robot speed or endurance, fall down too far? Better get some healing items buddy. Oh sorry, those are finite as well. If all of this is sounding familiar to you, the limited saves and healing items, the third person camera angle, and did I mention the constant surprises and traps? Yeah, Haydee is horny AF Resident Evil, with a huge sadist streak.

Not everyone will like the game, and it has no qualms with showcasing Haydee's impressive figure (especially if you decide to wear the armor). But if you crave a third person shooter that makes every bit of progress feel as though it may be snatched away at a moment's notice, if you desire a truly esoteric game with zero explanation as to your goals, location, or what to do next. If you want to find yourself spooked by hordes of cheeky robots popping from holes hidden in walls and ceilings as you carefully traipse across pits of death, examining every corner for a new cubbyhole to explore for precious resources. If you want all of that, then Haydee is the game for you.

For real tho, this game is fun.

I nominated this game for "the Defies Description" award, which makes writing a review a very stupid thing to do, but being stupid isn't going to stop me.

I honestly had no clue what I was getting into with Knock-knock. Even Knock-knock is unsure about itself, the steam store telling you multiple ways to type its name, but that's what makes Knock-Knock! stand out. I didn't get the game through the steam store, instead I had bought it on one of those numerous indie title bundles, attracted by the strange look the protagonist gave me. I expected something horrific, maybe worth a few good laughs at some failed writing, instead I got a truly intriguing game.

Knock-knock does a poor job of explaining itself, the store page spreads some light, but just jumping ingame will confound you at every turn. And that's good. You need to learn to play Knock-knock, much like with a hack n' slash or a survival game, but by looking up tutorials or guides you defeat the purpose of Knock-knock. Knock-knock is a pleasant puzzle that is spread out before you, a sense of unease filling you as you creep through its halls, the protag stopping to speak directly to you in some hurried babble. Every morning you learn some new aspect of the world, but how does it piece together, just what is happening? I'm not really sure myself, and even if I knew I'd loathe to tell you.

Knock-knock is strange, a strange game that could only be made as a passion project. It's obtuse, it's weird, it's unsettling, and it's so very tantalizing. If you can get past all of the strange and esoteric elements, you may find yourself drawn into the Lodger's world.

At $2 on sale right now, why not give this enigma of a game a try? Maybe you will come to see what I see in it.
Thank you for listening.