Recent reviews by h4k3

Animal Well is a game for the curious explorers, the ones that have no problem walking the same path over and over again, in hope to find something new each time. The game does not stop delivering rewards for your thoroughness. It's also almost combatless, except for a few boss encounters, that rather play like puzzles, similar to the rest of the game. Death is not a punishment for those who love to repeat the same beautiful path over and over anyway. If that's enough to spark your interest and you are one with the 2D aesthetics, give it a try immediately.

A Blast to the Past!

Minishoot assembles the most fun parts of various genres while reducing the diffulty of each of these. There's the discovery of Zelda, but if you don't like exploring by yourself you can get guidance upgrade. There's bullethell shooting, but if you're not too good at it, you can reduce the difficulty or grind upgrades. The whole presentation is very lighthearted but charmful, but the tight controls and various missions make this game a throughout enjoyable game.

Highly recommended little gem that draws from nostalgic elements but are accessible and lovable to everyone!

In Talos 1 I came for the puzzles but stayed for the story.

Talos 2 met all these expectations but weaved in a compelling world with realistic characters in one of the finest narratives you could wish for in such a game.

Just how can Talos 3 top this one off - I hope we'll find out :)

You are thrown into an otherworldly living breathing world full of wonder, danger, suprise and beauty.
You have no clue, you stumble, you barely make it - and many times not.
You learn with every second, every jump, every death, every survival.
You are on a journey with no expectations - the reward being able to live in this world, understanding how it came to be and finding a solution.

<Intermission>
If you like Ecco the Dolphin, you'll like Rain World.
And if you like Rain World, you'll like Ecco the Dolphin.
Just remember. It can take X time until you get this matter.
<Intermission End>

Rain World is now in my Top 10 List of Game of All Time

Breaks my heart to put a "No" on this, because visually I'm in love with this game. More reason to warn those interested in buying this game that beyond its appearance, Planet of Lana leaves a lot to be desired.

What's iffy:
- The game is overstays its welcome with repetitive puzzles, area layouts, story elements
- The puzzles are way too easy, which adds even more annoyance when they constantly repeat (e.g. one specicific puzzle repeats literally like 10 times)
- Occasional quick time events. This really isn't the kinda game demanding you to button mash or press at the right moment. It just ruins the atmosphere.
- The story is foreseeable and adds nothing new to the formula. It was hard for me to connect with the characters or dive into the world's atmosphere, as it was all very shallow.

If you desire a game like Limbo/INSIDE, you'll be disappointed with this one as in comparison it falls short on all fronts. At a huge discount, with low expectations to gameplay, looking forward to a very long moving picture of beautiful but quite monotonous landscapes, you may still find some enjoyment.

Bramble is a great new entry in the cinematic platformer genre, becoming a natural successor to games like Limbo, INSIDE, Unravel, Little Nightmares (etc.) and their fathers ICO and Shadow of the Colossus. This time though, the game takes a step in the 3rd dimension again, making it a full fledged 3D platformer.

All of the above mentioned games play a role in being sources of inspiration for Bramble, some more directly than others. Often times you'll think "Hey, I've seen this scene in <insert game from above list>". But the game does also enough of its own things to stand out from the others:
- the well executed cinematic tracking shots as you walk through the insanely beautifully designed nature of sweden
- a greatly told story referencing nordic myths and fairy tales narrated through voice acting
- some of the most detailled gorey nightmare scenes we've yet seen

All of this is embedded in very lighthearted puzzle platforming, very easy and thus not distracting so your eyes can enjoy the many details of this world. The 3D gameplay doesn't involve many unfair jumps, and the checkpoints are very briefly seperated. There are also surprisingly many boss fight, but they are also not very difficult, so the frustration factor is very low. Also the boss phases do have checkpoints.

Thus this also comes with a warning: If you seek a challenge in games and get bored easiely with shallow gameplay, Bramble might underwhelm you. For the rest of us, the path of cinematic platformers could not have a better entry today. Bramble foreshadows what's possible with games becoming a playable piece of artwork.

I'll gladly return to the world of Bramble often, like the other games in my list above. If you feel the same, this game is definitely for you!

(Time after first credit roll: 4.9 hours)

Scorn puts lightweight game elements inside one of the most incredible art installations I've ever seen. This makes it a niché title that should be approached with caution, as expectations arise aplenty by looking at amazing image footage, which often cannot be fulfilled and may lead to disappointment.

Here's what you'll get:
- amazing detailled architecture of a dying world with lots of gore, obscure monster designs, HR Giger style
- light survival horror elements with limited combat and resources (health, weapon ammo)
- light puzzle elements which don't offer too much challenge
- huge areas, mostly labyrinth-like passages with open areas mixed in
- a story told through gameplay

Here's what you won't get:
- a DOOM-like action shooter
- a map, you have to learn to get your way around by memorizing the environment, which can be tough in larger map parts
- a story that gets openly explained, you'll need to interprete it on your own

Overall a great experience for all those who love to explore a beautifully crafted gore world that speaks a story by its design.

Amazing experience. Transports the feeling of being a survivor in an alien invasion very well. It feels very personal on many levels and is thus relatable, catching your attention and sucking you in its world and story. This definitely feels like another entry in the Playdead series (INSIDE, Limbo) but with a fresh breath of air by the different team.

The technical issues I experienced did not ruin the game for me. At the least, it shows that the game is good enough that I can look past them. I do hope they get fixed though, especially for people who struggle to play, and for an overall better experience. All in all already it's a game worth loving and I will revisit it often!

A big map with 132 mini puzzles where you need to draw a line in each. Rules are communicated to the player via small examples, leading to more and more complex puzzles which never feel too overwhelming. Solutions come mostly quick enough, frustration is kept at minimum. There are a few twists that lead to Aha-moments that made me happy.

Full recommendation if you like puzzle games!

It is hard to recommend this game in the state it is in, but if you're interested and can cope with its flaws, you may get something out of it.

- it is a walking simulator. It may look like it plays like INSIDE/Little Nightmares or the likes, but it's quite different. To begin with, there is no jump button. Instead actions are VERY limited to pressing a button when you're close to certain objects. Much worse, there are many quick time events with occasional button mashing sequences mixed in.
- there are some puzzles, but they are very simple and/or very tedious, and often repetetive.
- there are explanations through symbols but they are vague and misleading, which can result in wrong decisions for story progression which cannot be undone.
- there are bugs, which may not even be obvious. In one situation I was chased by a bug-like enemy that went a faster than it should (10% more than usual). I was not able to judge if it's my fault or not, so I had to look it up in a walkthrough - the enemy was indeed slower in the video. Exiting the game and restarting the checkpoint fixed the problem - but this was highly annoying.
-the graphics are obviously the main draw of this game, but be aware that some animations look quite raw still

Now that you've come this far, the question is, why is this still a recommendation? It's quite rare for me that I finish a game with so many flaws, but the world still has an atmosphere, that made me keep going. There went a lot of effort into the audio and visual design to create a believable world with nice characters, and I appreciate that. If you are looking for this kind of thing, and can look beyond the flaws I mentioned above, I'd say try it.

But you have been warned! :)