Recent reviews by JustinDaniels

Give me LIBERTY, or give me MORE GUNS!

05/05/2024

On second thought, give me a damn REFUND for this ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥!

05/08/2024

Okay, in all seriousness! They WAITED for the backlash to repair their reputation, and REJECTED my refund request DESPITE HAVING GIVEN PEOPLE REFUNDS WHO HAD HUNDREDS OF HOURS ON THE GAME!

I'm not changing this review, and hope others change theirs back to the thumbs-down these scumbags deserve! ♥♥♥♥ you, Sony! ♥♥♥♥ you, Arrowhead!

I hope you ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ get review bombed again, and stay off the ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ charts for good!

Surprisingly a lot of fun! Just a few hours in, and still haven't walked an entire mile in-game. So much fun to be had for those who enjoy taking their time at a slower pace.

Encountered my first raid, and I believe the NPCs' Levels are scaled to your level, so thankfully, despite guns and such being about Level 30+'ish, they won't be 1-tapping you. Killed them all with just a bow, a few arrows, and an army of sheep dressed as a Shepherd.

Ridiculous Concept. Ridiculously FUN Results! I can definitely see myself sinking plenty of hours into this game! After all this time waiting, I can say things are going to be looking up for these devs, so long as they keep the flow going!

This is definitely a game I find myself coming back to often!

Now, before I begin, I'd like to point out that the hours spent here do not even come CLOSE to the amount of time I've spent on this game overall. I've probably played the game for a little over a thousand hours on my Xbox, but I wanted to switch to PC to test out some of the mods, and to add it to my list of PC Games, since I tend to be on it more these days.

Needless to say, though, after giving it another go, I'm not disappointed at all! The learning curve took a bit of getting used to again, as I had to readjust to the game's core mechanics once more. And even still, I find myself getting caught up in challenges again. I find myself getting beaten down, yet it fills me with determination to get back up and keep moving forward.

I love it. I love this game. I love how it isn't holding your hand every 5 seconds. I love how it actually acknowledges me as a player, and not a rookie. I love how it encourages me to actually think carefully about my next moves, and not take unnecessary risks when they can almost certainly lead to my demise.

Do NOT let the "Mixed" Reviews bring you down. The game is definitely NOT for everyone, and that's really all it boils down to. Lots of people don't understand the game's core concept these days, thus why the negativity is swarming it.

They say the combat is clunky. And it may seem so at first, but the more I thought about it, the more I realized it's not the case at all. And that's because sure, it has combat, but it's also not a game that focuses too hard on the combat because it's, at its core, a "Survival RPG". Not a hack 'n slash, and not Monster Hunter. Each attack holds varying degrees of weight to them. You can't just win a fight by flailing at things aimlessly. Time your attacks, while adjusting to your opponents' attacks. Find the opportune moments, or do the more simpler of options - flee! The game doesn't have levels, so if you're clad in cloth, and see a beast that looks like it can shred you in 1-2 hits, the odds are... it can shred you in 1-2 hits.

You can hear people complaining about how they can't get past this creature because it keeps 2-shotting them. That's because the game's entire foundation is set on you NOT being the "Hero". No matter how hard you want to be the Dragonborn, the Hero of Legends, the Demigod... just, NO. The game, at its core, is putting YOU, the PLAYER, in the same equal spot as a general NPC. You're just an ordinary person in an extraordinary world. As such, in overwhelming odds like that, the BEST course of action would be not to face off against it, but try and sneak your way through it. Find a perfect opening. Or if sneaking isn't your strong suit, wait for the opportune moment to make a break for it!

And also remember that, though YOU aren't the "Chosen Hero", that doesn't mean this world doesn't have one! Lots of people have claimed that they were nearly dead, but as they passed out, they found a fellow named Gep. Nobody has seen this "Gep" fellow, but by the way how he comes in to rescue you, and brings you to a safe camp nearby, WITH a drink and a note telling you that he found you there, and took you to safety... well, if you were surrounded by all sorts of monsters, it should be clear that only a HERO would be able to get you out of that. Or a well-organized group, at least.

This "Gep" fellow could very well just be the "Chosen Hero" that all Fantasy RPG's have. And you, the player, are a simple wanderer who must endure the harsh world with the limitations of "just being human".

Now, does that mean you are guaranteed to be weak? The Imperial Guards tore the Hero of Kvatch a new one on MANY occasions, so no. That's not the case at all! It's just that you have to adapt from Square 1. Adjust your strategies. LEARN from the professionals, or the Tutors, maybe brew up a few potions to take with you on your next expedition! All while keeping to heart that one important thing you have to remember:

"You are only an ordinary person in an extraordinary world."

Glitches are inevitable. But that's the core of ANY game these days. And yet, despite its glitches, most of them are mundane, or miniscule at best. With the right contacts, or a simple friend there to help you, though, you can recover pretty much anything you lose via the Debug Options in the game, which can be done by simply putting an empty text file named DEBUG.txt inside the Outward Definitive Edition_Data folder.

Backpack fall underground? Spawn a new one via F1! Lose a Tsar Stone in said backpack? Spawn a replacement for it in the same menu! Don't want to walk as much? F2, and choose your location. (But at the very least, only do that last one AFTER you've completed the game at least once, or walked there before!)

People can also be arguing that the host's storage is different from the guest's in Co-Op. To be honest, I have no idea why that's even an issue at all. Like... really. From my understanding, the complaints is that Player 2 can't access Player 1's stash, and vice-versa? That... means you can't steal from the host. And it also means that you don't have to exit the host's session to rejoin YOURS, grab the stuff the host might be asking for to trade, then leave your world and re-join his, just to drop it off for 'em.

So basically, to trade with the host, you can just BOTH meet up at the stash, and exchange items on the spot. No need for 2-3 loading screens. And that's... a problem?

I don't get people sometimes.

But anyways, yeah. Your homes also share a stash, so you no longer have to carry stuff between homes manually, anymore. That's a definite improvement, for sure!

Anyways, this game is amazing, both for Solo AND Co-Op. My advice is to get accustomed to Solo Play first, and if you're struggling, opt for Co-Op to get some help where needed. Maybe even go for a Mercenary-Style playthrough? Go to the community on Steam and sell your services! Tell people that you'll help carry them through a continent, and name the price, be it in Silver, or Gold Bars! (Silver is the MAIN currency, but Gold Bars are worth 100 Silver, and sell at 100% value, so it's really just to save storage space, since even the CURRENCY has weight to it.)

Little rough around the edges, but this game is a gem! I can see why folks are hating on it, as it's an "Early Access" game, but dammit, folks just need to have more faith these days!

Devs posted on their Twitter about a sale going on just last month. That alone gives me hope that it's not dead, and that folks are just shouting that to intimidate the devs to rush the next patch out.

But I have a feeling they're going to release the next update eventually... and when they do, it'll fix a majority of these bugs that've been reported. And I'm sure there's been a LOT of bugs. Otherwise, there'd be less angry rants and more inspirational posts.

Devs, if y'all read this, please don't give this up. Don't fall under the weather because there's a bunch of storms brewing. I have faith... and so do a few of us out there.

If y'all can just give us one post, though... just ONE post. Let us know you're thinking about those of us who still are faithful in this game.

I may not have played much, yet, but that's subject to change. This game's already got me hooked!

RUSHED REVIEW:

Holy crap, I don't understand why people say this game is like Harvest Moon, when it's more like Rune Factory, which in MY opinion is much, MUCH better!

The game is basically a Farm Sim, but it packs much, MUCH more, from Mining to Fishing, to Exploring, to Romancing Villagers, to DIVORCING Villagers, to WIPING out their memories and Romancing them again, JUST to Divorce them again, and go at it many more times!

The game is amazing, the mods are awesome and hilarious, the maker is a cool guy, and the soundtrack is one of the more memorable ones out there!

This game is godly, and needs a religion based off of it, PRONTO!

Stardew Valley gets a 12/10!

Eh, the game's decent, but not quite enough for a second playthrough. Beat it in just a few hours, and here's what I feel about it, in greater depth:

+Pros+

+ Pretty good story. Nothing too robust, but nothing too vague, getting the basic story out at the very least. You're a Witch Hunter, or more specifically, a "Monster" Hunter. Your family was killed by 'em, and you were the sole survivor of your family. Dedicating your life to revenge, but later turning it for the better good by your mentor, you find yourself in the humble little town of Bellville, where rumors of a beast is said to be terrorizing the locals.

+ Great environmental details. I felt pretty immersed, despite playing on low resolution. I heard the sounds of twigs snapping, and found myself turning towards the source of the noise, and side-stepping with my gun's barrel raised, ready for whatever might jump out of the bushes... then when I found out it was only the wind, I returned to my original plan - track the target.

+ Fairly decent NPC Animation Progress. I saw on YouTube that when this was released originally, the NPCs' arms were as stiff as the NPCs on Morrowind and Oblivion. Needless to say, when the mayor coughed in his hand, I felt relieved he wasn't just simply coughing in my face. Sure they might still be a bit basic, but seeing that it was a detail that was focused on, it's showing that you, the Developer(s), are paying attention, and that's a very good sign!

++ Attached to that particular note, I also saw that you fixed the grammatical error when the mayor said "God bless", making him address the "Name", and not the "Title". Noticing small details like that are also a great sign!

+ The monsters were pretty scary, though not unfamiliar. Undead are a common threat, and it isn't getting any less fun watching the rotters rise! Just wish there were more of the BOSS Creatures, though that can leave room for the next game, I suppose. (I'd love to hunt a Vampire, Rake, or Wendigo sometime. THOSE things would be a challenge and a half!)

+ Weapons are Era-Proper. Don't expect a Semi-Automatic Pistol or a Custom Monster-Decapitating Chainsaw. You're working with a Musket and a Flintlock. When you aim, you may very well only get ONE shot at it, no matter WHAT you're facing! And no silencers means firing a single shot in the middle of the road MIGHT not be the wisest choice, considering what lurks in these woods...



-Cons-

- The sabre is practically useless against foes moving TOWARDS you. They ignore the hit, and immediately swipe back, and if you're at 20 HP, you're royally screwed then. Sure, it warns that this game won't hold your hand, but if you don't give us a way to at least PARRY or something (you ARE a trained hunter with a freakin' SABRE, after all!) then not only are you NOT gonna "Hold our hand", but you're stripping out the option for us to actually "FEND FOR OURSELVES!". There's a difference between "Not holding hands" and "Ignoring a simple option that can be balanced for FAIR PLAY".

-+ A suggestion is to at least add an option to "Parry" with the Sabre by right-clicking or hitting the "Aim" button. Don't make it a BLOCK, of course, but at least give us an option to "Deflect" a single strike from our enemies, giving us a chance to counter-attack while they're briefly "Stunned". This makes it where you can still have a "Low-Health Struggle" against a single enemy, while also keeping the thought of going against a crowd of monsters "Suicide", instead of the Sabre turning into a game of "Slap-You, Slap-Me", where you can't leave a single quarrel with a zombie without a scratch, despite being a "Hunter" for these kinds of things who SHOULD at least know how to DEFEND himself when they get too close for comfort! Or hell, add it as an UNLOCKABLE, so that the Sabre can start as a "LAST RESORT" then become an actual "LIFE SAVER" down the line!

-- Also, we're talking about Supernatural Elements here when it comes to using Silver as a weapon. So why does the Sabre take TWO hits to kill things? I mean, wouldn't it make more sense to make the RISKIEST move also the most hurtful? You shoot a zombie with a silver bullet that, at that day and age, looked more like a metal marble, and it kills 'em. You pierce a meter of silver directly into its flesh, and it shrugs it off then bites 20% of your health out, though? Not very well-balanced, if you ask me... seems more demeaning of Silver Sabres, if anything.

- Small Mobs Hit TOO Freakin' Hard. It's just ridiculous! 20 HP is just pushing it! I can get punched in the ribs for MORE than just five times from a guy who's STILL alive, while not wearing a shirt, but five scratches from a zombie can KILL you? That's just bull crap right there! Sure, they're SCRATCHING you and/or biting you as well, and THOSE can probably deal more damage than that, but I'd say 10-15 HP would probably be better off for THOSE kinds of things. Dogs I can understand! Hell, those things might as well do 30 Damage, since they've actually got FANGS, and all that!

- Very Short. As I said, I beat it in just a few hours. I didn't really expect it to last TOO long, but I feel there could've been more to it than that...

- Hardcore isn't just Hardcore... it's STUPID. I got the Werewolf to its last few shots, then my computer shut down for an update. Lovely... there goes THAT hour! We can only save when the monster we were hunting is dead.

-+ It's ridiculous, because we DO have lives, you know! Some people only have a certain amount of time they CAN play. I was one of them growing up, but I can see it being a problem for others. What I'd suggest is to keep the ORIGINAL "Hardcore Formula", instead! Perhaps make it so you save ONLY when you get back into town, and ONLY then! Also add in "Perma-Death", where it clears your save if you die, and you'd have to start a "New Game". This would give the game a "TRUE" Risk Factor that the players have to consider and plan for.

-Stealth? WHAT Stealth? You crouch, and you're 70% visible. Why not add in a "Prone" function, too, where you can be 30% Visible?

-+ I'd also suggest replacing that "Crouching Ability" with "Prone SPEED" instead. Make it so you start off going prone VERY slowly, and make the ability speed it up tremendously!

- Evil Sense is EVIL. Don't use it, or you'll be forced to spend a bit of time just standing there, staring at what the monster sees, making you lose control of your character.

-+ Make it so you can togge it OFF, please!



_OVERALL_
I'd score the game a 6/10. It's got potential, and I hope and PRAY that it gets better over time! But in its current state, it's mostly just a quick "Time Killer" that was probably rushed for Halloween. I beat it in Halloween, and found it decent, but NOT quite enough to recommend to my friends.

Personally, I want this game to succeed! I LOVE when the main characters in a Horror Game are actually COMPETENT, and with having a Monster Hunter for a protagonist, set in what seems to be the Industrial Age, I can see our unnamed "Hunter" going far... so long as he learns how to freakin' PARRY when they get too close for comfort... without knowing how to defend yourself, it's a miracle he's still alive!

Now, I'd like to give a note to the players that play this game. This isn't just some "Shooter", nor is it just some "Horror" Game. It's a "Hunting" Game, first and foremost. Patience and Preparation are the key factors here! Rushing will get you killed!

Finally, here's an idea for the Creator(s). Why not also add Silver Stakes and Monster Grappling at some point? Give you a chance to "Struggle" while a monster grabs you, forcing you to tap a button while your character either tries reaching out for their "Cross Necklace" made of silver, which doesn't hurt the beast, but REPELS it from you, forcing them to drop your now critically injured form, or use a stake to stab the thing and make it run away!

Been quite a long road. I remember playing this game back when it was 2D... like, 100% Sprite-Based 2D.

Ever since the "Kate & Baldspot" Era, pretty much. I've been on this road since Alpha 0.1.2a, and have learned a lot through countless deaths, rebirths, and all-around restarts. The hours played on Steam does NOT accurately represent the hours I've spent altogether.

I was Bob Smith, beloved husband to Kate Smith, who spent his final days protecting her with his life. Before durability was a thing, I remember walking down the streets with my trusty ol' Nail Bat. In my mind, I saw this bloodied survivor with a bald spot on his head... a man whose main goal wasn't even to survive... but to protect his beloved wife. And with nothing more to do, I logged out there, having survived well over a few months. I left it there, at a cliffhanger.

Skip a few years, and it's clear that his end was met eventually, as the Title Art "secretly" reveals. (Look at them when the lightning strikes.) In a way, I feel a sense of deja vu every time that lightning strikes, because while most of the modern-day players would see a simple man and woman, I see a former life of mine, having succombed to the virus that has taken over most of the world... and it gives me the urge to run up to their safehouse, and face myself, to finish that old story, so that I may grant the old me his long-awaited closure.

THEN find Earl and tell 'em "Howdy, neighbor!" with a shotgun already at hand.

Long story short, this game has infected me with how addictive it is. It's damn-near IMPOSSIBLE to forget this game once you get hooked onto it! Yes, you will die, but through those deaths, you'll learn from your mistakes, you'll grow stronger as a player... you'll become a battle-hardened survivor. And before long, you won't die from the zombies anymore... no, you'll find NEW ways to die in the long run.

You find an armed survivor who has "THAT look" in his (or her) eye? BAM! Shotgun to the head. You've survived for a month.

Run out of food, and forced to eat rotten stuff? You've gotten sick, and don't have the proper medication! You've survived for 6 months.

You're constructing that huge tower for defense, but accidentally trip, and fall down four or five stories? SPLAT! You've survived for 10 months.

You've been through Spring, Summer, and even Fall! Now you're at the end of Winter, and frostbite has your limbs frozen beyond a simple "patching up". Hypothermia finally claims you. You've survived for 1 year.

You've got the hang of things, now. People recognize you, and come to your base. You think you can trust them, since they have a skilled chef. The chef, however, sneaks bleach into your soup, and offers it to you. You've been poisoned! You've survived for 3 years.

In the end, this game's still in "BETA", but has come farther than DayZ (AND most of its other competitors), offers you more freedom than most of them do, treats survival a LOT more realistically (We have to eat 3,000 meals in one day... WHY again?)

If there's one thing that I must warn you about, Reader, it's this... don't listen to the people who claim that this game is "Dead", because it is FAR from it. Go to https://www.projectzomboid.com/ and see for yourself, then ask those "Dead" sayers to SHOW us where the developers said that they "Quit", or "Give up". Unlike SOME famous developers out there, THESE guys still dedicate at least ONE day weekly to tell us how they're doing, as well as how the game's doing. At LEAST one day a week! Now, go to another developer's website that's been around since 2011, and tell me how long THEIR last announcement was, following the one before it.

Six years. Almost seven, now! And they STILL haven't given up! If these guys aren't considered "Dedicated", then please, do clarify the meaning of that word, so that we may better understand your train of thought, and compare it to the rest of the people out there.