Recent reviews by Elfinlocks

The game is...fine, but it's not an RPG, not like Fallout prides itself on being. In this game, the characters are "action figures" who you toy with, with no repercussions for doing so. The game revolves around the loot-craft loop, which isn't a bad direction for a GAME, but isn't a great direction for Fallout, specifically. At least, in regards to a mainline Fallout game. Ideally, when you purchase an RPG, the goal is to feel engaged in the story and like you're part of the world - more of a DnD campaign than a loot'em shoot'em experience. This game is odd, in the way in which gameplay trumps story, 100% of the time, and to me it makes this one of the weakest 3D Fallout experiences. I hope Bethesda learns from this, to make Fallout 5 a "return to form," by creating a variable story with choices that actually matter and characters you WANT to care about, but in light of Starfield, I worry that this won't be the case.

where do I even start with the game that has defined most of my life? I have played this game loyally since 2003, and have watched it grow from the browser, to the C++ client, to Steam. It has been an incredible journey, and I don't see myself stopping anytime soon. With that said, let's get into the bullet points.

>RuneScape at it's core is NOT a traditional MMORPG, despite it branding itself as one. RuneScape is a MUD, or multi-user dungeon. Although you will find MMO staples such as raids in this game, you will NOT find traditional MMO classes, combat, and race selections. All players are humans with a wide selection of skills to invest in.

>Due to the nature of being a MUD, RuneScape is a very "sandbox" game - there is no "main questline," the tutorial is very short, and most of the world is not locked behind progressing through levels (more on this later). In my opinion, this is one of the game's greatest strengths - it does not hold your hand. Rather, it tosses you into the world and bids you to go exploring.

>There is no "correct" way to play RuneScape - the game, due to this sandbox nature, allows players to choose for themselves what they would like to do. Would you like to focus exclusively on combat, pursuing ever stronger monsters for immense wealth? Would you like to have the relaxing life of Farming or Fishing? Would you like to be a merchant, spending your days trading with other players to amass a hoard of money? Would you like to become a master of quick reflexes and split-second decision making, as a PvPer? All of these and more are viable ways to play the game.

>The progression of your character is dictated by their skills. At the time of writing, there are 23 different skills available in the game. As you perform actions relating to the skill in question, you earn experience, and level up. Many of these are self explanatory: to train strength, hit things with melee weapons, to train farming, grow crops, etc.

>This skill based system provides an immense amount of customization to your character. Very few players pursue the grind of maxing out every skill at level 99, and not pursuing this does not make your experience of the game lesser - in a MUD, nearly any content can be considered optional, to tailor your experience.

>This game is host to quests, like many MMORPGs, however there is a critical difference: the quests in RuneScape have an actual story written behind them, with even further lore available to those that want to pause and read the books, or talk to the NPCs. Additionally, these quests are far from "bring me 3 animal hides" fetch quests, like you see in WoW (with a couple of exceptions which are written as tongue in cheek parodies of such quests from other games). The quests in RuneScape are lovingly written, and often offer powerful and unique rewards, including exclusive locales. As a veteran of this game, quests have remained some of my favorite content.

>Unlike many others, the social scene of this game is alive and well. People will gladly engage in conversations with strangers, and it provides a real sense of community which I have only seen in other tight-knit games like TF2.

TL;DR: RuneScape provides a truly unique spin on the MMORPG, and offers an experience both customizable and replayable. I highly recommend it to anyone who likes a bit of old school MMO gameplay. For me, RuneScape is my favorite game of all time, and I expect it will continue to be.

A very solid traditional MMORPG. The early game is frankly very slow, and shows its age, and the story is not engaging at all until you reach level 50, and which point ♥♥♥♥ hits the proverbial fan and it gets most people to actually want to invest into it. I mostly play this game for the crafting and gathering system, which is hands down the best that I've ever seen in any MMO. The combat system is also good but your experience can vary a lot depending on what class you play and who you play with. The endgame hardcore raiding scene is very alive and flourishing. PvP is basically dead like in most MMOs though.

An emotional rollercoaster wrapped up in a relatively short RPG. If you're at all as emotional as me you'll be crying nonstop during the ending to this game, would highly recommend to literally anyone.

As many of these reviews said, imagine 2D Minecraft with actual good bosses and things to do. This game only becomes more fun with 1-4 friends to tackle the world with, and just when you think you've beaten it, you're given a whole new stage of the game to enjoy (hardmode). And don't be turned off by the name; it adds a steady but doable challenge to the game, that leaves you satisfied with your accomplishments afterward.

I've played through entirely over 10 times now, reached 100% completion via all achievements, still feels like I could keep playing it forever and ever. I would GLADLY pay 40 or 60 bucks for this game based purely on how many hours I've gotten out of it. 10/10 will play again and again.

So, it took me over a hundred hours but I managed to 100% Stardew Valley. So now I'm obligated to give you my opinions on it!

PROS:
-Lovable Characters
-Charming gameplay
-Simple yet visually pleasing graphics
-Goals to work towards

CONS:
-You either love or hate fishing, there is no in between
-Completing the museum, much like in Animal Crossing, is a ♥♥♥♥♥
-If you're a baddie like me, dungeon delving is tough
-If you want to 100%, Fector's Challenge/Journey of the Praerie King in general is a ♥♥♥♥♥

Regardless of the downsides, this game is very reminiscent of Animal Crossing and Harvest Moon as I'm sure you've heard already if you're looking over reviews, which is very accurate. I was generally more reminded of Harvest Moon than Animal Crossing, however the characters are more fleshed out and realistic than what I've seen from either series. Also something to keep in mind - don't take this game too quickly like I did; I was in a bit of a rush to 100% complete it, and kind of missed out on the joy of taking my time in the game and enjoying it, which I regret. You can easily spend over 200 hours on this game when taking your time, and I recommend taking full advantage of that.

Where do I start on this game? I've spent around 900 hours on it and still feel like I'm barely started. By far, it's the best FPS I've ever played, from gameplay to community. Would definitely reccomend it to literally anybody - it's hard to NOT enjoy it.

Great MMO. Can be completely free if you wanna put the work into it. Only problem is that it takes a while to get in to. The early levels are boring without friends.