Recent reviews by DrDiablo

It didn't take me long to figure out the sniper is behind a paywall.

The BG3 game box now stands where it knocked the dusty Dungeons & Dragons books off the shelf.

Smoke and mirrors is one of the best descriptions for this game that I heard on a review. It says MMORPG on the box, but in reality this is at best a MORPG. The "Massively" part just isn't living up to its name, like being on a massive aeroplane where every four seats have been cordoned off with fake walls and a door.... there are so many of us that we have to queue to get on the plane and when onboard, you can only see a small group out of the hundreds on the plane. The next point of smoke and mirrors is the character progression... so many systems and abilities that tweak and improve a character that makes you think it matters, well the false sense of I am "UBER" is fake too, as this game is a cake walk. The next smoke and mirrors is the lay out, geography of the game, every MMORPG I have ever played has open world areas populated with lore and destinations all in one world, albeit with continents that separate the world as you would expect, and again this game pretends to have that, but it is all a bundle of linear and windy roads linked with pathways of gates and a ship mini game. Then one has to wonder why guild sizes are limited to 30? Why the convoluted currency system with gold, silver, pirate coins, amongst other types of coins and of course different types of crystals. Some might argue this is content, I don't agree. All the "gifts", I think it is to do with conditioning, acceptance of change, how we pay for our video games. I also think many streamers rely on trends and hype to maintain and increase their viewership, and so often people forget its business and they don't work for free(and I am not suggesting that they should). Just don't accept anything they say as biblical. Think for yourself.

I don't think anything in this world is free and there is more than one way to pay for a game apart from getting your wallet out. As a community, when we support these schemes, and later find it dripping and draining its contagion into the gaming market, you will find it to tear down the fabric of the threshold of what defines a decent exchange of money for entertainment and the development of such entertainment. Games have being stripped down into smaller compartments of payment systems, and now with the concepts like NFTs that are floating around, where the end game objectives are to sell pixels, because you will ultimately pay far more this way than paying for a honest price tag and get what's in the tin, and then achieve in the game to get that cool piece of armour, when you down a real tough and challenging boss - like the good old days of WoW. In this game everyone shows up to the Raid looking like they are experts at the game, except they are only experts at paying cash for pixels. And we wonder why the gaming industry is now run by MBAs that have probably never played a game in their life, people that are only interested in creating schemes for profit and don’t care about gamers or the industry. You are responsible for the mould of the future games by voting with your money and more importantly your time. Disclaimer: this is my opinion and is not intended to sound negative or to influence your opinion. (Fanboy flame suite on)

Great game, something about it, but just not for me. I nominated this game for an award, which proves, for me at least, that you don't have to like a game for it to be a good game or a good piece of entertainment.

What a brilliant game! You can be creative with your build while facing the environmental challenges and get somewhat of an education on scientific gadgets - learn about gasses and how to manipulate them to your advantage - farming and even plumbing! Just all round fun game. One of the best indie games I have had the pleasure to play.

With 10 dlc and 4 expansions, where so many 4X conscepts are delivered with the slices they took from the pizza in the first place, I'd say, if you like this type of business model then you'll love Stardock!

*Fanboy flame suit on*

Easy to learn and hard to master. If you enjoy creative gaming where you can assemble your own band of warriors and kit them out with weapons and armour, then look no further. Your journey will be emotional especially if you play Ironman mode, because you could see a brother die instantly, whether that be by the hand of an Orc axe strike or by the unlucky landed arrow in his face! Pride will visit your gaming session when your company of brothers lines up for battle, each piece of gear having been hard earned and each man's life on the line. You will eventually recall the names of the fallen that fought so bravely.

So its not the AAA graphics and big screen drama, but it is an endearing and addictive game play. I could go in to a lot of detail about strategic depth and variety, but I know there are good guides on the community hub of which I have noticed are always happy to help and answer those frustrating questions. Yes there is some frustration in this game, especially with the talents. I find them to be good options for your own creations, or you can just go with those archetypes already planned out in the game guides. There is no one fit all solution, and that is where a lot of the creative choice filters in to the game. Each brother has his own background and potential, one might be a good archer, another perhaps a good future duellist? Experiment with options and see them fail and succeed. Alternatively just look at the guides and try what has stood the test of time.

Note, this game will teach you the concept of the need to retreat when necessary. Be prepared to use the retreat order and live to fight another day!

I give Battle Brothers graphics 5 out of 10 and for everything else 10 out of 10!
(Just to be clear the 5 out of 10 isn't due to the missing legs!)

If you have patience, I highly recommend this game to you.

I have enjoyed this game a lot more than I initially thought I would. It seems simplistic at first, but succeeds in simulating a desperate situation for the axis at the time of the war. Elements like running out of fuel and the commando actions to delay units is well done. Maintaining your supply lines is the lifeblood of keeping your units fighting, which is the way it should be in war games. Accurate historic representation of units, and it does reflect in battle as long as one man army tactics are avoided. The game only covers a small part of the war when it was nearing its end... I like it, it is different in so many ways compared to other war games. It holds history close to its sleeve.

Excellent game, very challenging and enjoyable. Part of what I enjoy the most is depending on how you play each leader of your dynasty, you can look back at the history of your game and see the characters for what they were and how they developed and turned out. Building your empire, expanding it, developing technology and keeping up to date with your diplomacy and the intrigue of your court all makes up for a high level of satisfaction. It does have a tough learning curve, but hang in there as it is a rewarding game. I enjoy playing the Vikings a lot, Pagans do have more freedoms, but their caste system works differently. So the expansions here do bring something new to the game, but the original game is not dependant on it. The developer has the right idea how to use dlc's. The Dlcs are not essential, the original game is all that it needs to be.

Historically accurate, strategy, war, diplomacy, intrigue, katana's and cannons. The UI makes all of this work together. Rise of the Samurai and Fall of the Samurai are different ages of the same game that include different units and agents. This game is worth the time and money.

I have edited this for my Steam Awards badge =). But after all these years I still highly recommend this game as the best released by this developer. Far better than anything they have done recently.