Recent reviews by Bobmanbob

Develpers SIEIDI are still highly involved in updating the game at the time of writing, so gameplay and presentation elements may change after this review.

If you would prefer to read the online version of this review with screenshots, click here[www.bobmanbob.com]

Premise & Presentation:

Poor Bob is allergic to everything, but one day he decides to step outside and overcome his affliction by travelling the World and blasting anything that moves with his Inhagun 2000, so he can develop inoculations. Immunity won't develop during the course of gameplay however, so everything that moves is a threat. Unfortunately, this backstory is only available by reading the product description. I'd love to see a short intro sequence with some artwork and text. Instead, you are abruptly dumped into Bob's living room without any intro or explanation.

Graphics are cute, chunky, cartoony and bright, kind of like a more colorful Gunheimm. A good deal of attention has clearly been given to the characters and animations, which are quite detailed. Some levels feature extra little pieces of detail like hidden creatures and the lighthouse's rotating rays casting a warm light over the level.


Gameplay & Difficulty:

Hypersensitive Bob is easy to pick up instantly and just have some fun with.

Bob travels between one tiny arena-like level after another in his rocket. The journey is complete when you beat them all (approximately 20) and there is no saving in between. Mid-level, you will be given the opportunity to purchase 1 of 3 random bonuses, which boost or change your abilities for the duration of the journey. Bonuses range from common types, to rare to epic to legendary. They really help to add variety and make each adventure a bit different.

Enemies are all based around some type of animal or creature e.g bees, skunks, turkeys and snails. Each one has it's own attack pattern that you'll need to learn. Touching an enemy or getting hit by a projectile docks you 1 life. Lose them all and you're back to the start of the whole adventure, unless you've collected enough points (from defeated enemies, loot, treasure chests or rare "vaccine machines") to respawn at the start of the level.

I was surprised at the level of challenge, but I found that pacing yourself and not trying to get too many shots in at once was key. I also found that I progressed much farther when I got lucky with +HP and +damage bonuses popping up between levels.


Controls:

Movement is in 4 diections and so is shooting. You can fire in one direction while moving in another, but this will slow you down as Bob has to do a little turn before each shot. Keyboard users can press spacebar to fire in the direction they are facing, but that's not as useful. You have to line your shots up and judge the distance too.

The controls may be a sticking point for some people. Movement is sort of slow (Bob waddles rather than walks) and shooting leaves you stationary for a moment that really leaves you open to getting hit (there is a random bonus that reduces this movement penalty though), so timing your shots and knowing how many times to fire before retreating is crucial.

Judging by the comments in the discussion area, smoothing out the controls seems to be the #1 priority the develoeprs are working on right now.


Other Comments/Suggestions:

• The characters are really likeable and I'd love to see some custscenes and/or artwork to flesh out their personalities a bit more
  
• The living room area is really cosy. You'll notice 2 unlockable characters sitting down and more waiting to take up the empty seats. There could be other secrets to this room and I think it'd be great to see souvenirs from your journeys displayed here. Perhaps this is already possible?
  
• I haven't unlocked any yet, but the masks and accessory items look like a cool way to deck out the already cool characters. Some kind of co-op exploratory mode would be a cool way to show of your customized characters.

I was provided with a copy of this game to give feedback during the beta phase. I decided to post a review here also. The opinions expressed above are my own and were not influenced by anyone else.

Short Version

Dub Dash is a rhythm-based game that translates the "wobbly" beats of dubstep music into a giant, revolving disco ball and has the player dodging and weaving around obstacles by tapping left or right to "jump" or holding the key down to "bounce". Levels range from simple-but-tricky to complex, mind-bending challenges.

The level comes to life as you time your keystrokes successfully, with equalizer-like structures popping up around you and rather euphoric-looking smiley faces silently cheering you on, all of which are changing color like a chameleon suffering with multiple personality disorder.

As you progress, the game likes to throw you curve balls mid-song. Level make-up will transition from revolving globe to side-scrolling and top-down modes, each requiring a new type of finesse to beat. I found the side-scrolling sections very tricky to master and it's worth noting that they are not based on rhythm.

One mistake and you're back to the start of that track, unless you beat a randomized level in Challenge Mode, which will net you 5 lives that allow you to restart from checkpoints upon failure. These random interpretations of the songs also add some replay value to the game, which is most welcome because there is no option to import your own music library or create your own levels. You could also try Practice Mode, which enables checkpoints so you can more effectively train yourself to beat the segment you're stuck on.

Unlike other games in the genre, there are no bonus points awarded for perfect timing, the only goal is to survive until the music stops. Also omitted are any sort of obtrusive noises or chimes for successfully interpreting the musical cues.

Up to 3 other players can tag along for some competetive split-screen fun that's sure to go down well among like-minded friends up for a challenge.

So here's the wub:

Dub Dash is an addictive rhythm action game with refreshing mechanics and pretty visuals. The controls are simple but timing is crucial and the challenge is high. Skill with music/rhythm games and fine motor control is required to beat most levels, so unless you have supreme mastery over both, Dub Dash is going to provide you with many hours of entertainment. I believe the developers are also planning to add more songs, so keep an ear out for those too.



Longer Review

If you're interested in reading an extended review with screenshots, gameplay footage and a giveaway (ends March 4th 2016), click here[www.bobmanbob.com]


This game was provided to me for review purposes. The opinions expressed above were not influenced by this.

Short Version

An atypical blend of turn-based strategy and survival RPG where resource management doesn't have to play a primary role, because the player's choice is king in Thea: The Awakening. Highly customizable difficulty settings and auto-resolvable battles allow you to choose a level of challange that suits your personal preferences. The well-presented user interface also has helpful topics that drop down when you hover over any stat or icon.

Combat is fun, refreshing and simpler than you may think. Your characters (represented by cards) are randomly placed into the offensive or defensive positions on the board, you choose positions for your offensive cards on the battle area, use your defensive cards for buffs/debuffs and then each side will auto-battle by attacking opponents at either side of them.

Becoming familiar with the large number of icons and how to gather food and resources is a learning curve, but once surpassed reveals a highly rewarding combination of exploration, crafting and encounters with many curious characters, mysterious monsters and bizarre beings.

The main story arc is nicely voice-acted but in my opionin it's outdone by the excellent storytelling found in the numerous sidequests. Every encounter is accompanied by beautiful, painterly artwork (there really ought to be an artbook of some form available). The high-quality soundtrack is very easy on the ears, a nice fit for the fantasy theme.

For anyone on the fence about this due to the strategic/management/4x elements: just go fot it. Thea: The Awakening is the most rewarding, enjoyable RPG I have experienced on PC for a long while.


Longer Review

If you're interested in reading an extended review with screenshots click here[www.bobmanbob.com]


This game was provided to me for review purposes. The opinions expressed above were not influenced by this.

Short Version

UPDATE January 2016:
One-man develepor Retrific has updated and extended Just Get Through many times. Most recently, a surprise Winter 2015 update added a new game mode: Explosion Runs: this is probably my favourite game type, which adds an element of panic as you try to move quickly enough through the traps while staying ahead of a wall of explosions chasing you. If you like to take your time getting through the regular levels, this mode will literally put a fire under your ass and force you to make your decisions on-the-fly. Props to the developer for adding free content after the cutoff point.

~~~

Just get Through is a rogue-like platformer, presented simply on the surface, with an addictive core of gameplay underneath. The basic premise of Just Get Through is to make it the end of as many procedurally-generated levels as possible before running out of lives. You can jump, rebound off walls or blow away portions of your environment with TNT. This makes for some interesting gameplay decisions because you can choose to speed through the levels using wall jumps and precision platforming to get to the end, or take your time to plan an alternate route or create your own with TNT (being careful not to blow up platforms necessary to complete the level).

Many game modes are included, e.g:

• Set Run offers an unchanging set of levels so you can master the layouts
  
• Night Run has you navigating in the dark with the aid of flares and a glowing player character. Very cool mode!
  
• Coin Run: collect coins to spend on upgrades
  
• Survival Run: get as far as you can with only 1 life and without health drops or upgrades.
  
• Speed Run: play with faster movement speed and easier jumping and aim for the fastest completion time.
  
• Hardcore Mode: see for yourself... or checkout the video (link below) for an example ...

Color palettes sometimes drop from treasure chests, which make the default black and white particle effects and explosions look much cooler. If that still isn't enough replay value for you, try out the user created levels or have a go at making your own and track the performance of community members playing it.


Longer Review

If you're interested in reading an extended review with screenshots, gameplay footage and a giveaway (ends February 12th 2016), click here[www.bobmanbob.com]


This game was provided to me for review purposes. The opinions expressed above were not influenced by this.

Short Version

A simple concept greatly enhanced with oodles of variety and replay value, Zombie Party is an enjoyable single and multi-player twin-stick shooter if you're looking for a game that focuses on the fun factor without wasting time on telling a story.

New modes and updates have been consistently added to date. At the time of writing we have:

• Adventure: Defeat waves of enemies, shop for upgrades in between then defeat the challenging and inventive boss and move on to a totally new world with new enemies and attack patterns.
  
• Arcade: Reach 10,000 zombie kills as quickly as possible. No upgrades or stopping to shop, just keep shooting and aim for a high score!
  
• Dungeon: Great mode with a lot of replay value. Travel through larger maps of randomized dungeons with new enemies and scenery. Bosses make appearances too.
  
• Deathmatch: A barebones deathmatch mode for 2-4 players. Shoot each other in tiny arenas. Probably won't grab your attention for more than a few minutes.

A.I bots make a great addition to solo or local co-op games. Let them tag along in any of the game modes above and they will collect and upgrade weapons and hardly ever let go of the trigger. They will even revive you if you're downed. Adding bots in is also a good way to see what super weapons the unlockable characers have, without spending gold to unlock them first. Excess gold can also be spend on permanent stat upgrades or hats (woohoo!) for your favourite characters.

The number of weapon upgrades and visual variety of their projectiles is huge. They can be upgraded to increasingly ridiculous versions, for example the shotgun can become a blunderbuss or a fish launcher (more like giant dolphin launcher). On top of this, artifacts modify the projectile type e,g bullets become lasers and runes (auto-equipped to a max of 3 and interchable) can add elemental effects. Weapons also upgrade in level as you use them. The result is a game screen constantly filled with rapidly-changing bombs, spinning lasers, auto-turrets, exploding teddy bears and so much more.

At it's core, Zombie Party a simple wave-based twin-stick shooter with enough variety to keep 1-4 players occupied for quite a few hours.

Longer Review

If you're interested in reading an extended review with screenshots, gameplay footage and a giveaway (ends February 4th 2016), click here[www.bobmanbob.com]


This game was provided to me for review purposes. The opinions expressed above were not influenced by this.

Short Version

A unique, pleasant cat-themed game with an emphasis on platform jumping and collecting. Enemies such as rats and birds can be dispatched by your claws but more serious enemies such as dogs and old ladies need to be nimbly dodged or sneaked past. Those mutts can be avoided byhiding in a box, Metal Gear Solid style :)

Animation is absolutely top-notch, it's no wonder the animator has experience with Disney and other major studios. Music is pleasant and relaxing, mostly piano and classical type tracks. "Boss" encounters incude an interesting take on the whack-a-mole game, a battle with a giant raven and a perilious climb to the top of a chapel while dodging pigeon ... projectiles.

Famous internet cats make cameo appearances and the entire game is full of references cat-lovers will enjoy. The humor may be lost to those unfamiliar with these characters though. Play time is short (about 3 hours if you don't collect everything) and there are no bonus modes or quests aside from collecting everything and freeing all of the cats, which then become permanent residents of your main menu screen. It's a nice touch!

A portion of the proceeds go to various animal welfare organisations. I strongly encourage you to check out the developer's official website for lot's of interesting cat stuff.


Longer Review

If you're interested in reading an extended review with screenshots, gameplay footage and a giveaway (ends February 10th 2016), click here[bobmanbob.com]


This game was provided to me for review purposes. The opinions expressed above were not influenced by this.

Short Version

Superb blend of supernatural/demonic themes and Wild West tactical gunplay. What impressed me the most is the unique way the story is told and new areas are revelead based on the decisions you make. Battles are solid, turn-based firefights made interesting with the hugely customizable skill system: equippable playing cards yield direct bonuses and extra effects by carrying a poker hand. Weapons and items add an extra layer to this customization and are also upgradable if you look in the right places. Cover and luck systems are great: choose almost anything to duck behind/under and take your shot, shattering windows along the way and if you miss, it's not a total loss becaue you'll detract from your target's luck which is needed to activate powerful and interesting skills.


Read the full version with screenshots online[www.bobmanbob.com]


Full Version

True to it's name, Hard West is a tough tale set in the unforgiving wilderness of the Wild West. In the opening scene, your mother is lost to bandits. Left with low hope and little choice, your father ropes you into the dangerous gold mining trade from which you struggle to eek out a living. Opportunities belie misfotrune at every turn; caves collapse upon discovering their riches and working relationships become very soured when your new friend is captured. With prospects hitting rock bottom, your father succumbs to a suspicious offering from a mysterious stranger: an amulet that will cure bad luck and heal your woes. Unforuntately, your woes are not at an end and the amulet forever curses the owner to bring bad luck wherever they wander. Burdened with a poisonous aura of misery and the guilt of his decision, your father exits your life.

Hard West's story begins like a sombre western, except it includes all of the action they promise but usually fail to deliver on. Soon enough, clues begin to drop to suggest that this is not your typical wild west world and you begin to get the feeling that something big is gonna go down. The fantastically voice-acted narrator is suddenly revealed to be Death himself, the mysterious stranger no longer shows up on foot but instead materializes out of thin air and it's not long before you're battling horned demons and cannibalizing the corpses of your assailants (not a mandatory activity). It's an effective transition from ordinary to supernatural that makes for a refreshing backdrop to this tactical RPG.

What surprised and impressed me the most is the way in which the story is told. While visiting areas on the overworld map, text-based branching dialogue options will open up various opportunities and potentially reveal new places. Narration flows seamlessly from cutscenes into map exploration and battles, which helps to tie them all together nicely into a singular storytelling device. Once again living up to it's name, Hard West is littered with tough choices that have far-reaching or sometimes immediately impactful consequences. Curious promises will be made in return for your help, risks will surround the paths to riches and pursuing the local myths and legends is a trepidatious endeavour with unpredictable outcomes. Your morality and trust will be called into question as you are presented with these hard choices and you'll have to carefully consider whether you want to play the role of a selfish, profit-driven individual or a selfless, helpful character. It's a hugely interactive method of storytelling that deeply involves the player and the decisions they make.

Evident from the outset is the attention to detail Creative Forge Games have applied throughout the game. Check out the first screenshot: how's that for a snazzy main menu with all the animated bells and whistles? Battle maps extend beyond threadable ground to include a multitude of extra buildings and scenery, which is nice to see while you're scouting around for enemies. Almost every wall, piece of wood and object lying around can be used or turned into cover. Shotgun shells and rounds of ammunition shatter windows and send glass in every direction. The user interface is also highly-detailed with decorative silver flourishes surrounding every button and piece of canvas.

Let's talk action. Encounters are turn-based, tactical firefights which see you choosing an area to take cover behind and line up your shot from. That giant boulder may offer you full cover but will consume all of your action points reaching it whereas the nearby barrel will offer half cover and leave you with enough AP to take a shot. Skills add new layers of depth to this would-be familiar system: pray for random bonuses, ricochet shots off obstacles, reduce all friends and foes to 1 HP and much, much more. These skills are obtained as rewards, in the form of playing cards. Sacrificing the skills and passive bonuses of individual cards can be beneficial, because special bonuses are obtainable by equipping a set of cards whose combined face value amounts to a poker hand. Combine this tinkering with a wide range of weapons, relics and items and you're in character customization heaven. I personally loved the level of customization this allows, especially given that the skills are tied only to cards and are therefore completely interchangeable amongst characters.

Death is permanent in Hard West; if a character dies in battle, they're gone. However, most extra party members are fleeting due to the fact that the story moves on between chapters. Mess up once and you'll have to restart or move on without them. After making a few rash decisions myself, I was left with only 1 party member to take on the next mission: a siege against a high-profile criminal and a mob of his best shooters. Herein lies the beauty of the skill and exploration systems. While wandering around the map for the best equipment I could find, one store owner had a new dialogue option: he offered to add an extra barrel to my double-barreled shotgun. Yes please. Talking to him again, he offered to add a 4th. Hell yes! I also now had a large deck of cards to choose my skills from, since my other members had bit the dust. I won't talk about the combination used because it was one of the highlights of the game for me and I don't want to spoil it. Suffice to say, I was transformed into a supernatural, quad barrel shotgun wielding force to be reckoned with that went on to kick some serious ass. It still wasn't easy, but boy was it glorious. I found playing around with the skills, stats and weapons and then using them to successfully enact your own strategies and theories on the battlefield to be hugely entertaining.

Gameplay is challenging but always fair. Positioning yourself effectively is paramount if you want your shot to have a high chance to hit. Missing is never a total loss though, because you will detract from the enemy's luck instead, which is needed to use skills. Taking a hit from an enemy adds to your own luck and brings you closer to activating powerful skills that can really help to level the odds. Even when I had to restart a battle, I wasn't cursing the decisions I made but instead found myself excitedly looking forward to trying out new strategies and skill/item combinations. There are so many other good ideas and little secrets knocking about in this game too copious to cover here, but they await any pilgrim who ventures out into the Hard West.

Dungeon Souls is one of those instantly-accessible, immediately fun-to-play games. Choose a character and fight hordes of enemies to survive as long as you can while looting tons of equipment along the way.

Controls are very responsive and each character offers a unique gameplay experience. I found my favourite in the Thief. Coupling his high-rate of attack and critical damage chance with items that fan the area of impact with flames is fantastic fun. Certain requirements are needed to unlock other characters. Unlocking and rambling around with the slow, but powerful

Necromancer, buffed with a demon eye that attacks enemies automatically and minions to swarm my enemies was also a joy.

Being a rogue-like game, there ought to be enough variety in gameplay and equipment to keep you coming back. This is certainly the case: enemies are fairly diverse and loot adds very interesting, powerful effects that make you want to come back to discover more. Unlocking characters is definitely something you'll want to do too, because they add a significantly new dimension to your dungeoneering.

In short, Dungeon Souls is just as fast-paced, frantic and enjoyable as the videos portray.

Giveaway here[www.bobmanbob.com] (ends January 22nd).

NOTE: keys were provided to me for the abopve purposes.


Read this review (with video + images) and enter the giveaway (ends January 8th 2016) here.[www.bobmanbob.com]


Suddenly coming to his senses at the top of a set of escalators whilst the night's heavy rain thrashes against the all-glass exterior, the first words your player character utters are "What
the! Where the hell am I?". Those questions will circle around in your own mind as you descend, only to re-emerge at the top until eventually, a mysterious creature offers you a strange blue substance for tasting. As you oblige, reality warps around you and your adventure begins ...

Sinless is set in a utopian World which wants to distance itself completely from the now-bygone, "primitive" AD era. Due to catastrophic flooding, civilzation was forced to build it's habitation upwards, simultaneously diving the population geographically and caste-wise into lower, middle and upper classes. All citizens interface with scheduled programs through ports on their augmented bodies. These "progs" dictate what activites are acceptable on any given day. Anything else is considered a deviation from the "prog" and results in immediate punishment.
The omnipresent 'OmniCare' is the megacorporation pulling the strings, insisting it's all for the public good; a mandatory ruleset that eliminates anti-social behaviour, resulting in a healthy, happy populace. A world without sin ...

Sinless has a strong sense of it's own aesthetic style and it's a pretty unique one: predominantly dark backdrops are flooded with neon-like bloom/lens flare lighting effects from the red/pink area of the color spectrum, corners and objects are semi-obscured with blurring or pixelization and characters are animated in a very minimalist, odd, entrancing way. It's a style that always leaves something to the imagination which really helps to immerse the player in the cyberpunk world that MGP studios have created.

Gameplay is essentially a visual novel with point 'n' click elements. Making the wrong decision or provoking the warth of the law can result in a 'Game Over' screen, but it's fun to discover the many ways you can end your character's existence. Interactivy is relatively limited: your standard "examine/look" and "use" actions are the staple here once again and there is no great deal of exploration or sidequests to be had. 2 mini-games and 2 instances of a puzzle are decent little bonuses.

Second to the unique presentation, sound and music is where Sinless really shines. The game comes with the OST included, which for many would probably be worth the price alone. Headphones are definitely recommended here (as advised by the developers) to experience the heavy electronic score. Most impressively, the intensity of the tracks increases as cetain revelations and milestones occur on-screen. It's a perfect compliment to the visuals and the combination of the two enhances the immersive experience.

The story is not particularly deep and influences from popular science fiction are evident. Little or no connection is made between any of the characters and most of what they have to say is strictly related to your progression through the story. There are however some interesting observations and theories relayed by a few of the seeminly inconsequential characters. At the same time, a strong argument could be made to explain this pervading, distant behaviour as a plot device. I suspect a clearer picutre will be painted in part 2, which I'm very much looking forward to.

NOTE: key was proivded to me for review purposes

Tempest is a lovingly-crafted, charming addition to the insufficiently-populated pirate genre. At the time of writing, some aspects are more polished than others, but there's some solid buccaneering to be had, with the potential to be a real gem upon final release.

Your adventure begins in a second-rate vessel, your prized ship having been destroyed by a monstrous sea creature. This is a fitting way to begin because it stokes your anticipation of the ship upgrades to come and hints at some glorious kracken-cracking retribution (I hope). Gameplay is essentially split into 3 distinctly different, but complimentary forms:

• Exploration, which takes place across an interactive sea chart with islands and towns revealing themselves as you navigate your ship through the receeding shrouds of mist.
  
• Battles. Other ships with malicious intent may randomly engage you while sea-faring. You have the choice to autoplay the battle and hope for quick bounty, or man the wheel yourself and take matters into your own hands. Choosing the latter will transition you to a real-time, 3D battlefield. Select your weapon and target, wait for your crew to load it, manoeuver your ship into position and fire. If you've played other pirate games you'll already feel acquanted.
  
• Management. Recruit shipmates and assign positions to them, train them up, buy/sell equipment and repair or upgrade your ship. The use of 2D cut-outs/cross sections to let you see inside ships and taverns etc is really nice.

The overall presentation really stands out as a stylish, extremely well crafted piece of work that oozes a dark, yet jolly "piratey" atmosphere. Text is presented on dark canvas backgrounds, adornments are used to emphazise the era and super-slick overlays slide and pop in and out of view. It all blends together very well and if this level of polish can be extended to the rest of the game, it would amount to something very special.

The 3D battlefields have a unique look to them. Moonlight bounces a wonderful glow across the ebbing and crashing waves, natrual rock formations and towns offer really nice backdrops for the action and some scenery (i.e said rocks) are not super-smoothed, but every-so-slightly rough around the edges, which for my tastes is perfectly befitting of the theme and enhances the appeal of the presentation.

The customization, upgrading and crew leveling looks really promising. A good deal of cosmetic choices can be made from the beginning, with gems and weapons hopefully opening up more interesting options later on.

At the time of writing, I feel that the steep learning curve and punishing difficulty needs a lot of attention. You are simply dumped into the deep end without any idea of the controls or what any of the icons do. It's not very intuitive, but you will figure out the icons soon enough. Help with controls either pops up after you've figured it out yourself or disappeared before you can assimilate it. I'm still confused about the controls and how to line up an effective barrage of cannon fire. I almost always run out of cannon balls or health before the battle is over.

If you lose a battle, your gold and resources take a huge hit. Once or twice is enough to leave you in a situation where you cannot afford any repairs or ammunition. As far as I can figure, your only option at that point is to start the whole game again, as neither manual saves or multiple profiles are currently supported.

Worth mentioning is that the game is very well optimized already and looks really nice even on older machines.

I feel that Tempest will one day mature into a unqiue priate game with a ton of charm, so I'd recommend keeping your good eye on this as it develops.