Recent reviews by NateGs

After days spent in the grind, 9-to-5's weary chase,
I'd find my solace in Baldur's Gate's embrace.
A hero or a villain, in its realms, I'd face,
A reprieve from the gray, in its magical space.

It wasn't just a game, but a beacon so bright,
Guiding me away from my darkest night.
It gave me strength to continue the fight,
And in its world, I found my joy, my light.

10/10.

I've always been a big fan of the Far Cry series, eagerly lining up each new title for that intoxicating blend of explosive action, immersive exploration, and anarchic delight. With the release of Far Cry 6, I had hopes of being teleported into yet another vivid, dystopian world, ready to tackle the oppressive regime du jour. Unfortunately, it seems like Ubisoft has dialed down the chaos meter this time, and not in a good way.

Right out of the gate, Far Cry 6 hits you with a familiar setup on par with the franchise we know and love - a dictator, an uprising, and you - the chaotic element tipping the scales towards justice. However, unlike the charismatic villains we've come to expect from the franchise, the main antagonist feels formulaic, falling flat in his attempt to menace or intrigue.

It's like getting a Wagyu cheeseburger without the cheese; it's still a damn good burger (thanks to Giancarlo Esposito), but something crucial is missing.

Where the series usually excels in its frenetic pace, Far Cry 6 slows things down. Now, this could have worked if the slower pace meant a deeper exploration of characters, plot, or mechanics, but that's not the case here. Instead, we have long, stretched-out segments of fetch quests and repetitive objectives that feel like more of a grind than an exciting resistance against a tyrannical regime. Even the gunfights, usually a high point of the series, lack the chaotic excitement I've come to expect. Some guns are SEVERELY under-powered or highly situational which greatly limits the incentives to crafting and creativity for liberating outposts and the like.

Perhaps most disappointingly, Far Cry 6 fails to bring anything new to the table. You still liberate outposts, recruit allies, and stir up trouble to draw out the big bad, but it all feels done before. The mechanics haven't seen significant evolution, making Far Cry 6 feel like a reskin of the previous games rather than a fully-fledged sequel.

On the bright side though, graphics and sound design still stand strong, keeping up with the quality we've come to expect from Ubisoft titles, and the game world is visually stunning. The lush landscapes and urban environments are a treat to explore, but they're not enough to carry the game on their shoulders.

From the perspective of a long-time fan of the Far Cry Franchise, Far Cry 6 feels like it's treading water rather than pushing forward. It has the makings of a great game, but it doesn't capitalize on them which is a real disappointment. This game not only lacks the innovative push that the series sorely needs to keep it fresh, but its slower pace, coupled with a flat storyline and lack of originality, make it a far cry from the franchise's best, despite being competent

TL;DR: If you are looking for great Far Cry titles, this ain't it. I would recommend sticking with Far Cry 3 or give a chance on my personal favorite one, Far Cry 5.

Gameplay: 6/10
Story: 5/10
Graphics: 8/10
Sound: 8/10
Innovation: 3/10

Overall: 5/10

Life's expensive,
a subscription to FFXIV is not.
I traded stress for tranquility
with a rod and a pot.

While the guild's out raiding,
I'm here sautéing.
Keep your story..
I found my own way of playing.

10/10.

A pretty fun and interactive way to learn the guitar. About 16 hours at the time of review, and thanks to the mini-games, adaptive difficulty and riff repeater feature, I can seriously admit that I've learned to master more songs during this time than I've ever learned with months of IRL study. I use the official tone cable and my only complaint is that its tune detection can sometimes be off, giving me a perfect score when I plucked the wrong note at times. Looking forward to the Rocksmith+ release in the future! \m/


9/10

A visually stunning dreamy arcade game with a well crafted soundtrack and wonderfully unique levels. This is the type of game that might be lacking content as you can probably finish it in one sitting, but is so well made that it stands out to be a hell of an experience worth trying out.

8/10.

Following the recent release of the fifth and final episode of Life is Strange 2, I thought it would be appropriate to write a review and give my thoughts on this installment of the episodic story franchise by DONTNOD Entertainment. Unlike the previous Life is Strange releases set in the same universe, this story centers around the life of two brothers, Sean and Daniel Diaz who were the unfortunate victims of racial profiling in suburban Seattle, leading to Sean taking Daniel to flee and cross the border to Puerto Lobos, Mexico where they can live in safety in their father's hometown.

Because of the nature of the two brothers' story, the theme seemed far more mature and political, with most of its episodes emphasizing the spontaneity and tension of the plot, I felt responsibility in being at least a halfway decent brother and father figure to Daniel. With that being said however, although the wolf brothers had great dynamic and character development, I felt like the long journey they had was rather downplayed by the 'time-skip' structure the writers had in between the episodes narrative, leaving me dissatisfied as having to rely on multiple short journal entries to entirely catch up was rather lacking for a story driven game.

There are several moments in this game that genuinely impressed me with its narrative, brilliantly written characters, and clear ability to blend the story with a beautiful soundtrack. However, I felt distanced between each episode as if most of the choices mattered little to none as they had no real impact in the following episodes. I understand the reasoning behind this as the brothers did not have time to connect and reminisce on their road ahead to Mexico, however it felt misplaced as they failed to explore the other outcomes of choosing a certain path, ultimately only having meaningful choices in the conclusion of the story.

In my opinion, Life is Strange 2 is different from the previous Life is Strange titles. DONTNOD created a great emotional story between the two brothers and their lengthy journey growing up on the road, however they have failed to attach the importance and consequence of its players' choices in between episodes and ultimately felt like a commentary on the political climate of america rather than a consequential choice based game about the two brothers. I admit that there are some genuinely good moments in this game, but nearing the end I felt quite detached from their story and it was overall quite underwhelming.

Its not bad, but it could have been better.

5/10

"STAR WARS Jedi: Fallen Order" is an open world hack-and-slash game from Respawn Entertainment that brilliantly utilizes the elements of games like Dark Souls in its challenging combat / parry system and The Uncharted Series in its dungeon like exploration, wrapped up in the Star Wars theme to create something absolutely magnificent.

Being a huge fan of Star Wars and the universe that surrounds it both in Canon and Legends, I personally found the game's story to be unfortunately lacking and rather cliché. With that being said however, the pacing of the story was masterfully worked in with every scene in the vast array of planets being uniquely entertaining in terms of its cinematic presentation, urging me to continue on and explore each individual world to be rewarded with brilliant action sequences, tough boss fights, and secret bits of lore.

In terms of overall gameplay, the combat itself is perhaps one of the most enjoyable experiences I have had this year. Its fluid lightsaber movement and force power use, combined with its challenging enemy types forces adaptive and strategic planning. Do not be discouraged if that one husky frog boi kills u over and over again; It's challenge makes it all the more rewarding.

In my opinion, this is one of the few games that I would ever recommend getting for its gameplay alone without regards to much of the story. The near perfect combat, exploration, and signature star wars atmosphere is totally worth sacrificing the story with its rather weak narrative.

8/10

Doki Doki Literature Club is just a 'dating simulator visual novel'.

Having absolutely no experience whatsoever in visual novels, the 'game' shows me the absolute power of creative expression in storytelling. Coming into the game, the protagonist was given four options between possible romantic candidates: Yuri, Sayori, Monika, and Natsuki. In order to win their love, we the players are tasked with having to pick words to create poems to impress whichever individual we choose. I choose Yuri because of her cryptic yet meaningful poems as well as her looks and overall personality.

The goal of the game is to create poems out of a list of words that correspond to the characters you choose to flirt with, and that's pretty much the only few game-play elements the game has to offer. In the end, although the protagonist had seemingly been freaked out by Yuri's confession of love as the game progressed, I found myself personally falling more and more in love with Yuri both in her cute romantic personality to her deep flaws and emotions as a living and feeling character.

This is perhaps the first time I actually mean it in saying that words have failed me in trying to express how absolutely perfect a game is in executing visual storytelling. A solid 8/10 for this free visual novel 'game'. What it lacks for in overall gameplay it makes up for in innovation and unexpected storyline.

The Witcher 3 is a third person, open world action role playing game developed by the amazing CD Projekt Red, based off the witcher novels by the Polish author, Andrzej Sapkowski. The game follows the story of Geralt of Rivia, a mutated monster slayer (witcher) of the school of the wolf after the events of the first and second games. In this title, geralt is in pursuit of his adoptive daughter, Ciri who had been running from a group of Aen Elle elves who had set sights on her elder blood, called "The Wild Hunt"

My initial thoughts when playing the game, was that the graphics and the scenery were all incredibly breathtaking and well presented in the vibrant world, brimming with monsters. Everything from the gorgeous soundtrack, fluid animations, beautifully modelled characters, to the well written dialogue makes this game ages beyond its time, being able to complement each other to make its world alive.

Questing is another one of the golden features The Witcher 3 presents to the table, from the small quest of tracking and turning in a racist Temerian pyromaniac, to the darker story of an island, cursed by the soul of a woman who was left for dead by her lover, The Witcher 3 is nothing short of well written content.

Gameplay is fun and can be rather challenging at times, with the old fashioned leveling aspect of role playing games combined with new mechanics that fit into the lore of the witcher 3, such as the crafting of special beast oils to add bonus damage, rune crafting to enhance equipment, potion brewing, bomb crafting and spell signs for combat use.

(tl;dr) The Witcher 3 is a game that deserves all of its awards and more. Being developed by a dedicated team of talented individuals in CD Projekt Red as well as the support and feedback of the loyal fans over the years, The Witcher 3 is by far the best rpg experience I have ever played through. Filled to the brim with content worth thousands of hours in a vibrant living world, it easily earns a perfect score in my opinion.

10/10

This game is my childhood.