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Despite all of my efforts to complete everything the game has to offer and try to find any salvation for this little “open-world craft with RPG elements” indie title, there are just too many negative aspects in the game to be recommended for any player out there, let alone the enjoyers of this type of genre.



Just like many titles out there in the same genre, there is little to none when it comes to the plot or the story. In this miserable journey, you and your whosoever partner, unlucky enough to suffer together, are placed in this vibrant and pixelated world of Tinkertown. Greeted by Sage, the first NPC of the bunch, your quest is to rescue the rest of the cast, who are unfortunate enough to be stuck on this bandwagon.

Finding all of them is not as simple as traveling a linear path from A to Z. You are free to roam around as far as you wish and in any direction from the spawn; but it is unwise to do so, as there are some enemies that prove quite a challenge if you are not well-equipped enough for the battle. However, the world is not as open as it better should have been, because there is a border surrounding the starting region, which is the forest biome, that stops you from straying too far away. Understandably, this is not to prevent the players from getting lost (as there is always an unzoomable map with a home base icon), but from not focusing on your current objectives, and wandering around in areas that provide nothing useful at that moment.

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Frankly, I am not a big fan of this babysitting approach to game design. It’s like you’re a child being told by your parents not to do this because of the lack of experience. Rather, I’d like to have the full freedom to explore the map, until I get my ass slapped by a much stronger man enemy to realize my own mistake so that I can come back later with more preparation than before. But I guess that freedom is a delusion, granted to the weak by the strong, which are the devs in this case.

https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3006197716
All in all, the world is decently built, filled with three distinct biomes, each has its own atmosphere, background music, and theme-related locations. My only other critique in this aspect is that there aren't enough landmarks and compelling sights that keep your interest well enough to not get bored from seeing the same goblin camps with different skins slapped on top of them. At least the regions’ dungeons are actually diverse, built with different types of blocks, traps, niches, and foes that you don’t see roaming outside the places.

One of the few redeeming qualities of Tinkertown is the sheer number of placeable blocks and craftable items you can create from various crafting benches, up to more than 500 in total. Mining is a simple no-brainer, using pickaxes for hard materials, axes for wooden stuff, swords for leaves, and shovels for digging your own grave for playing this game.

Constructing your dream base here would be a lot more enjoyable, if it weren’t for the fact that no qualities of life are present while doing so. Inventory is tinier than the crampiest coffin apartment in Hong Kong, with only 25 slots in total, including 10 in the hot bar. Half of my total playtime is just going back and forth from the base to sort items out in these slightly bigger containers which all look the same and can’t be renamed. There are teleportation potions to instantly travel back home, but then you have to walk all the way back to where you teleported before. Have fun with that❗
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3006195214
To add salt to injury, no recipe book is to be seen like my enjoyment, the search bar or filter is non-existent like my will to live. As if those aren’t enough, you can’t even scroll up and down in the crafting window, despite there being a scroll bar that you have to manually click and drag to see which item is available. Because why filter craftable items on the top of the list to make the players’ life easier, when you can make them suffer instead?

Well, maybe combat is actually fun, right? Sadly, not at all. Weapons are categorized as melee, ranged, and magic. With the exception of magic staves having different projectiles, all other armaments have a basic light attack and a stronger heavy attack that costs more stamina/energy. There is no such thing as XP bar or min/max-ing points. Instead, the classes are solely based on the gears you equip with different scalings. The more items with the main scaling you equip, the stronger you are.
That is as complex as it can be. Battling the enemies is just a boring DPS trade until they cease to exist; dodging is available but it’s more unreliable than an easy side-stepping. Melee grunts charge at you blindly, without any attempt to dodge or take cover. There is no timer in between potions and food usage, so as long as you can spam them, you will eventually win in boss fights.
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=3006191668
It’s quite sad to see such an indie title with good pixel art style get squandered like this, and filled with bugs, issues that make the whole experience a lot less enjoyable than it already is.

This game was generously provided for review purposes by the publisher, Headup Publishing, via Summit Reviews. Stay a while and listen.

Started as a Kickstarter project back in 2020, and developed by an indie group named Myosuki, Girls! Girls! Girls!? will bring you to the exciting cafe full of crossdressing maids, at the heart of Akihabara. Being their first title to be produced, it managed to deliver a passable and somewhat predictable experience of romancing and dating otokonoko; which by itself is not a bad thing at all, considering all the generic eroge in the same genre that exist out there with little to no story at all.


Dive into the story, as you fill in the shoes of the self-name insert, freshly recruited manager for the Girls! Girls! Girls!? Cafe. Your mission is to maintain its operation, while also keeping good relations with your new subordinates. Just like any visual novel out there, a series of choices is given to the player, many of which are based on your previous decisions. Obviously, we are here to have a date with one of the cute femboys here, which naturally leads to more... intimate moments with them at the end of the story.

Unsurprisingly, this common trope has been used since the dinosaurs in these dating games. It also doesn’t help that the protagonist is written like your typical boring, uninspired and ordinary guy, as shown many times in the dialogue, but not in a good way that the players can relate to, at least for me. Well, unless, the writers knew exactly what kind of target audience who is into this kind of stuff. Regardless, I think the writing for our self-insert protagonist here could have been better, at least well enough to make the audience feel like this guy deserves to go on a date with these adorable and talented maids.
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2982690801
Like the title suggested, most of the story takes place in the cafe of the same name, except for the NSFW scenes of course. There isn’t any public loving scenario if you’re into that, unfortunately. Two backgrounds are used to display the cafe, the interior and exterior with different lighting to create a sense of time. However, the sense of space for the visual is absent, as there is a lackluster of scenes shown in various angles to create such a feeling.

To make up for the unliveliness of the stages, our maids are completely animated with Live 2D; their expressions and manners are very well done, and shown accordingly to their personality and the players’ choices. Another cherry on top of the cake is that you can pause the reading, click on the characters, and they will have their own animation played. These extra features could have been executed better to enhance the storytelling, if they could display more than one emotion; since it’s so out of place to see them smile during some of the disheartening scenes.
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2982687644
The whole plot of a maid cafe full of crossdressing boys definitely resembles a famous manga named “Love Me for Who I Am” with the same niche. Does that mean that this visual novel will have extensive conversations with the cast that delve deeper into this topic? Guys who present themselves femininely, or trans girls during the early phases of their transition, etc - the kind of matter that most society still looks down upon.
Ultimately, if that is the only thing you expect to be served when stepping inside the cafe (besides the lovely dovey content of course), then you will be left with disappointment, as if one of the maids serves you coffee without cream calling you “Master" and gently smiling at you afterwards. Needless to say, there are a lot of exchanges that help us get to know the maids better, as each of them has their own backstories and struggles, which is where our protagonist steps in as expected.

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Personally, I’d say this plot is still insufficient, the cast aren’t developed well enough to reach their full potential, there are some questions that should be asked and answered properly, but none to be seen. It’s like we only get to know the tip of the iceberg, taking the context of the story into consideration.

As for replayability, it took me around 26 hours to thoroughly read every dialogue to make sure that no options or routes are missed. Just like any visual novel out there, it mostly depends on how fast you read.

Now comes the part that makes me itch the most: the inconsistent usage of the characters’ pronouns left me confused, and I wondered what if our new manager here is in denial of having feelings for femboys, so he refers to them all as she/her throughout the entire story. Maybe it’s something personal in their own circle that we get to learn later? No, it’s not brought up at any point. As if that isn’t enough, there’s literally a side character, who is also a crossdresser that shows up in one scene and is referred to as he/him by everyone, including the player. To add further to the confusion, one of the main cast actually refer to themself as “a guy” multiple times during dialogue; and in another route, the switch flop between he/she in many conversations with the same character (even in the explicit scene) might have your hard-on shrink and question whether this is gay or not, instead of enjoying the ride (literally).
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2982682612
Girls! Girls! Girls!? is a passable visual novel about working and dating femboys in a maid cafe. While being able to provide a story rather than being a pure eroge, it is shadowed by its steep price tag, the lack of variety for backgrounds and artworks, and most importantly, the inability of exploring further into the cast’s desires and potential on a deeper, more meaningful level.

This game was provided for review purposes by the developer, Myosuki, via Summit Reviews. Stay a while and listen.

Never have I thought that the metaphorical phrase “Don’t judge a book by its cover” could be taken more seriously when it comes to describing what Hell Pie is like. Stating this title as a kid-friendly game based on its appearance is the equivalent of saying the movie “Team America: World Police” being suitable for a family night watch because of its puppet characters. If you aren’t shy from these themes, you’re in for a wacky trip.




Let us grab the horns of Nate, the cute little Demon of Bad Taste, the 8th Sin in Hell, as you are tasked with finding the most unimaginable, disgusting, foul ingredients from the upper worlds. All of that to conjure up the ultimate grotesque, Dark Souls-like monster of a birthday cake you ever bake to celebrate Satan’s birthday. Accompanied by Nugget the Cherub, the tiny naked angel who assists you with combat and swings you around to overcome the increasing obstacles.

Exploration is mainly on foot, enhanced with the speed boosting or gliding horns once you acquire them by naturally progressing. There are many hidden and locked away areas which unlock only after you finish certain levels, or own the right skills (or horns). Backtracking every now and then is particularly necessary if you care about getting your hands on 100% collectibles. Since some maps are somewhat a huge pain in the butt to memorize due to their sizes, prepare to be on the lookout everywhere you go, if you don’t want to miss that single candymeat in the total of 23/24 collected. Otherwise, you can complete the ingredients list by playing leisurely, as they are well placed in order not to be missed even when you try to.
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2955385952
The first 15 minutes in the starting area and sub-level might not catch much of your attention with its parodic corporate theme and small, long corridors. However, once you unlock the elevators to gain access to the upper environments on the surface (we are in Hell after all), only then will the grand view and pleasing aesthetic of Hell Pie shine the most.

This errand trip brings you to locations as low as the repulsive sewers filled with literal turds attacking on anyone on sight, or the morally questionable human meat slaughterhouse with naked people being treated like livestock, and much more for you to find out. Of course, you can’t be expected to play a game that takes place in Hell without going to the high heaven, at least there won’t be aggressively talking poops up there. All of this will be in full display behind a uniquely cute and cartoonish visual style, which strangely enough makes Hell Pie stand out more than most platformers out there.
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2955378749
Collecting enough candymeats in your pocket, you can utilize them to enhance Nugget’s abilities like additional swing charges to improve movement range, extra speed boost while swinging, or just a small but very useful height gain to the mid-air attack, etc. Nate is not completely useless by himself though, you can also strengthen him like higher wall climbing, adding damage to his dash, etc. There’s even a level that completely disables Nugget, but that won’t stop the little demon from achieving his goals.

Besides candymeats, make sure to look out for the adorable unilambs that are required to be sacrificed, if Nate wants to switch to a different pair of horns. These pointy tusks aren’t just for fashion, they assist him not only with combat, but also greatly with covering large distances, and unlocking hidden areas. The more useful tricks you have at your disposal, the more pathing options you gain to complete the level.
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2955383198
Lastly, combat exists, but it’s so simplified that it’s possible to skip most of the enemies encounters on the way. They are just mere annoyances to deal with, and they respawn when you reset at a checkpoint. Except for a few boss fights, you will defeat anything with a single attack.
With that being said, there are a few instances where you are given guns with infinite ammo to shoot and destroy obstacles, surprisingly. Hold the trigger and happy hunting.

If you can look past the exaggerated violence, blood and unfiltered, dirty sexual jokes, Hell Pie is a fun and solid platformer that brings to the table a decent range of exploration, and a good amount of adequate skills and movesets to traverse from the burning depth of Hell to the gate of the High Heaven.

This game was generously provided for review purposes by the developer, Sluggerfly, via Summit Reviews. Stay a while and listen.

We have this odd but lovable child named Zombie Army 4: Dead War (ZA4) that surprisingly brings a lot of unique features and gameplay elements to the table. Despite its inspiration, ZA4 certainly manages to become a title of its own by providing a fun, leisure but also challenging and intense experience for newcomers and hardcore players alike.



Like its predecessor Zombie Army Trilogy (ZAT), ZA4 is set in an alternative timeline of World War 2; Hitler resurrected his army from the dead using dark artifacts in the hope of turning the tide of the losing war. As one of the few survivors of the living, you must repel the undead, alone or with other comrades, and end the apocalypse once and for all.

From traveling throughout Europe in ZAT, the journey now guides you across Italy, with many cities like Rome, Venice, the island of Sardinia, etc and eventually Hell itself. With nein (haha get it?) campaigns in the base game, each one features different maps and themes associated, making the whole experience more less repetitive. Passing the narrow streets of Venice, or traversing the haunted forests of Sardinia, although each level in all campaigns is still linear by design, the layouts are more complex, with different paths and levitation.
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2946505877
Unlike in ZAT where exploring every corners provides you with little to no worthy rewards, ZA4 makes sure to recognize the players’ time by giving them the tools to even turn the tide of a battle, like heavy machine guns, rocket launchers or the hard-hitting shotgun Preacher; consumables like medkits, traps and throwables. And of course, finding collectibles will also grant you perks that boost your stats in one way or another.

With a total of 10 guns in 3 categories, and only 3 sniper rifles are pale in comparison to the arsenal of ZAT. If counting only rifles, then the previous title already gives us 9, with a total of 19 guns. At least, there are more variants of throwable, like the bait grenade that can help you score 20 multi-kills at once, or the divine grenades which are basically throwable medkits, unless you’re playing as a zombie (yes, you can do that in ZA4).

Regardless, the limited weaponry still delivers a lot of firepower, more so when combined with mods. Gunplay is solid, paired with a heavy and impactful sound design and smoother animation; all of which conveys a much more modern experience compared to ZAT.
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2946510606
With the introduction of mods, guns can be altered to perform much better than they once were. Aiming in first-person via a scope isn't exclusive to the sniper rifles anymore; the assault rifle MP44 can be equipped with a special scope that heals you everytime a critical hit is scored. Or if you prefer to go loud, the Shotgun Mortar is a destructive but pay-to-win tool that shoots grenades which can incinerate and (or) electrocute zombies with mods. Need an automatic gun but with the accuracy of a sniper rifle? The Gewehr 43 is waving at you.

All of this progression is particularly noticeable in the late game, and everything can be upgraded with weapon upgrade kits scattered throughout the map, or rewarded from doing certain tasks like saving NPC, fully mastering a weapon, etc.

You can’t expect to play a co-op Nazi zombie shooter without the special infected undead officers with hierarchy. The typical, cannon fodder, mindless husks are unthreatening, unless you get surrounded by them in higher difficulties. Then we have the elite variants like the slow-moving heavy gunners; and his intimidating brother called the butcher rushing to melee at you with a deadly chainsaw, which can be used against him with brutal takedowns. Not only that, we also face the more intelligent generals that can enrage or resurrect the fallen ones unless we put a bullet in their heads.
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2946512966
Overall, the undead horde is well designed, and each archetype supports one another like a cohesive and orderly army, at least for the unliving. My only gripe is that the sound cues for some of the specials aren’t distinctive enough, making it harder and rather annoying to identify and prioritize them in a big fight, since the game likes to throw a butt load of zombies all at once in some events.

If you’re a Left 4 Dead veteran looking for something new and refreshing, fans of Zombie Army series, or just completely new players to the franchise as a whole, ZA4 is definitely worth picking up, especially in a sale. Just don’t expect anything revolutionary, and enjoy the game, more so with a partner.

Would you like to know more? Follow our Curator page, Summit Reviews for more!

There I just paid. Now go fix the ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ god forsaken servers that's been dragging down this game for ages.

"Once upon a time, there was a princess locked in a tower. The evil witch kept her away and ordered her minion monsters to keep the humans away. All travelers who were brave or foolish enough to go on a rescue, had never returned or ever heard from again.
Until one day, a mighty hero with a magical sword came and bravely annihilated all the beasts and their mistress, then he rescued the princess from the rusty chain of the broken tower. Evil forever perished from the kingdom, the knight married the lady, and they lived happily ever after… The end.”

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And that is what most of us were told when we were kids, as bedtime stories, or in literature sessions. But alas, the concept of good and bad has never been a distinct black and white difference.
The simple yet brilliant visual novel/gardening clicker, A HERO AND A GARDEN, perfectly interprets that ideal, while also giving meaningful messages about forgiveness, empathy, and letting go of your past.


https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2811225210
… With the young knight, Cyrus, comingto rescue the princess from the tower. Wielding a magical sword, he wreaked havoc on the monsters and their settlements on his path. Suddenly, the witch struck him with a magical bolt, rendering the lad invulnerable.
After waking up from the coma, he found himself bound to a curse that wouldn’t allow him to return to his kingdom. Now, he is forced to work for the so-called “evil” witch and her “dangerous” minions by picking up enchanted berries and repairing the town for them, as it is the only way for him to lift the curse. However, he soon finds out that not everything is as it seems to be because not all monsters are evil, and some can be his new friend.

A creature that refuses to talk to Cyrus every time she collects berries from him. AAfter hearing his monologues so many times, she finally opens up about not engaging in conversation, the reason why she’s shy around him. Ultimately, thanks to the mutual empathy the two give to each other, they become an unlikely but adorable couple of friends.
Undoubtedly, she’s the most relatable and favourite character of the bunch. Because it is indeed hard for us introverts to make friends when people make fun of our appearances or voices.
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2811232040
A judgemental guy with horns who’s acting passive-aggressively towards Cyrus at first, which is understandable. But as the story progresses, he finds out that the lad was just naive and didn’t question what was told and bestowed on him by his father and their strict knighthood tradition. Soon, he forgives Cyrus despite his actions towards the townspeople. Just like how Peter Parker forgives Flint Marko in Spiderman 3, forgiveness is truly deserved for the desperate or naive people who are just in the wrong place at the wrong time.

Definitely the odder fellow out there. Excited and curious about Cyrus whenever he receives the ripped and delicious berries, he desperately wants to know the lad’s secret behind growing them. To his surprise, it was just the loving and caring intention of the gardener that magically nutriates the plants. He doesn’t take Cyrus’s destructive actions to heart, as the boy has helped more than the harm he caused, thanks to the happy berries. Their interactions were funny and wholesome, as they gave me some laughs here and then.

In contrary to what we were told about most princesses in fairy tales, this little lady wasn’t locked in a tower at all. Some girls just want to be themselves and not be restricted by the rules of a royal family, and this lass just happens to be like that. She may let go of her hurtful past, but she still appreciates the ones that loved her back then.

If only us humans would make gifts for each other after a fight to promise to be good in the future, something that the catgirl often does in her family, then the world would be a better place now for sure. Yet, we call them “monsters” and attack creatures who are just different than us.

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While the casts here aren’t extensively developed as emotionally as ones from npckc’s previous title A YEAR OF SPRING, they can give you a meaningful time together nonetheless. As I see this version of the “white knight” fairy tale is far more consequential, relevant and memorable than the ones we were told in the past.
With all the weird but endearing interactions between Cyrus and the crew every now and then, I found myself more intrigued the more I engaged in dialogue with them, so as to collect as many berries as possible to make amend for my - or Cyrus’ - actions.
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2811230856
As expected from games made by npckc, relaxing music is always present in the entire experience, so leaving it running in the background while working, writing, or just chilling before sleeping are definitely great ideas. In addition, there are also lo-fi remixes of the songs available in Endless mode, where you can unlock collectables by letting Sooty the helper to collect berries by itself without your interference; this is a perfect setting for writing reviews, hence my unusually long playtime. Othewrwise, the game can be finished with all items collected in under four hours.

In honesty, A HERO AND A GARDEN should be the modern version of the good old fairy tale. More thoughtful and less one-sided is what we need in the world right now. When I got kids, I’ll tell them about Cyrus’ bizarre adventure before bedtime. I hope you will have a cozy and pleasant time with this adorable visual novel.

This game was generously provided for review purposes by the developer, npckc, via Summit Reviews. Grab a drink and enjoy some good reading.

"A YEAR OF SPRINGS will make a fine addition to my collection of transgender theme-focused games."

While this cutesy visual novel doesn’t provide any interesting or unique gameplay, like If Found which also features a trans protagonist, it surely makes up for it by introducing very well-developed characters that draw my attention really quick.
Although only a small fraction of the first and second chapters' situations are based on real-life events in Japan, the remaining instances and how the cast’s reactions are so realistic and believable that I don’t see them as fictional characters, but rather as individual human beings with backstories and emotions.


https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2774197564
The main cast features a circle of friends which comprises three young women with their own experience and chapters. What I really love about the game is that you get to play as each of them in separate episodes, which allows you to see how the stories unfolded from their perspective based on choices you made, which ultimately lead to many different endings.

A shy but cute transgender woman who has trouble fitting in society because they keep telling her that she isn’t a woman but neither does she belong in the men’s world.
While the similarity between her and I ends at being trans, I still feel a lot of emotions and get a bit tearful when reading about her struggles in situations where I would be fine like any other woman (maybe except paperwork, that one is always the pain in the ass to deal with).
Ultimately, Haru’s stories help me cherish the things I got in the present that many trans women out there are still struggling to get and remind me about my troubling beginning just like hers, that shaped me into the person I am today.

Haru's best friend since childhood, prior to her transition; an energetic lady who spreads her positive aura and always appreciates Haru for who she really is.
While her story is the last we get to venture into, the tense realization she has when finding out that how she perceives "love" is uncommon, unlike her friends nor the general population, would certainly capture the hearts of a small portion of players out there.
Yes, that’s right, A YEAR OF SPRINGS also touches on other minorities too, probably even within the already small transgender community. I always respect well-developed LGBTIQ+ fictional characters, not just shoe-horning for the sake of soulless representation, and this hidden gem right here proves that people of different gender identities and sexualities are just as valid as everyone else.

Manami’s best friend in high school, a delinquent woman that doesn’t know much about gender identity or sexuality but she means well even if her wording is a bit… clumsy, which is okay, everyone starts out like that. It’s not like all of us are taught about this in official education anyway.
Her character development comes naturally in the second chapter, as she (or the player in this case) finally realizes that being trans is harder than she thinks while trying to hold a birthday party for Haru.

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Thanks to their charming personalities, I find myself drawn into reading more than in any other game, as there isn’t much to do besides clicking on the screen to progress to the next text and making choices every now and then. In addition, there are also calming and catchy melodies that fit in different instances, like the emotional confession between Erika and Haru, or the memorable night when Manami realizes her sexuality.

There are also a few side characters, all of which you get to know if you make the right choice beforehand. Even if the conversations between the main cast and them are very short, the way they are handled and how they affect our trio’s experience proves that the world can be kind too.

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In the end, this charming little visual novel plays out like reading a short book after a day of work with relaxing music in the background, which is perfect the way it is.
Although the total playtime is very short, the characters are undeniably memorable and a lot of players (including me) will find their experience very personal or even a reflection of themselves, rather than just fictional characters.
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2774285032
If you are looking for a game to get to know more about people with less-known sexuality and gender identity, particularly transgender folks, A YEAR OF SPRINGS will doubtlessly not disappoint you.

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In case anyone hasn’t realized yet, Clownfield 2042 (CF2042) is a direct parody of the highly anticipated but ultimately disappointing Battlefield 2042 (BF2042); as such, this game isn’t meant to be taken seriously. However, I do think CF2042 can be improved and introduce a few features to be a good title on its own. At the current state (Day 0 Update), this is just a simple arena-like shooter with no class whatsoever, so expect changes in the future.

https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2703409505

https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2703426171
These are only my objective suggestions, as I do enjoy the graphics and simple gameplay of CF2042, but I’d love to play it for more than a dozen hours as I did in Battlefield 4 (BF4).

• Add more gameplay modes. There are only three modes (Team) Deathmatch and Domination available for now. Maybe add conquest with a total maximum of 32 players, larger maps, as the five accessible maps right now are very limited and have nothing new to provide after an hour or two.
  
• Add class systems, but still keep the simple no-class arena shooter. This will attract more players and increase the gameplay element, e.g. people who are fond of the nameless class soldiers in BF4 will enjoy this, and it also adds to the team play aspect this game lacks. Also, old-time boomer players, like me,will have something we desperately need ever since Quake III Arena.
  
• Add small-level environment destruction, but under a new name like Cleverlution or similar.
  
• Balance out the guns’ power and recoil. Shotguns are OP at any range, can snipe better than a DMR-but-are-called-sniper-rifles SVD (lol what?).
  
• More varieties of weaponry. Only six guns available isn’t enough and we all know it.
  
• Clear indication of teammates on-screen and minimap. Because my sister and I don’t know which team we are on until we have to kill or be killed to see the color on our name.
  
• Add customization for HUD.
  
• Make vehicles drivable, or at least a mode for vehicles -♥♥♥♥♥♥- lovers.
  
• Gradually bugs fixing, like falling through the ground, invisible barriers that people can abuse to camp and shoot out but no one can shoot back. Yes, I’m looking at you, sea campers in The Island map.
  
• Actual AI bots, rather than practice dummy targets.
  
• Add audio queues. Not the cringe voice lines in BF2042, but the yelling and chaotic atmosphere of BF4. I wouldn’t mind my comrades nicely asking me to get my balls out of my mom's purse when camping for too long.
  
• Improve the various quality of life, like more interaction keys in the menu, reasonable flag points, better spawn area, clear firing projectiles, etc. What’s the point of instant spawning instead of waiting for five seconds, when both instances have spawn protection?

https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2703431910
I know what I just listed is pretty overwhelming for the developer(s) and sounds greedy for its price. But this game has potential, and I’d love to see it shine and be something special to enjoy in the long run after an office day of work. I wouldn’t mind the dev(s) increasing the price if they plan to add more features and improve this product. Massive respect if only one person managed to pull this off just before New Year's Eve.

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The last time I played the first installment of the Ghost Recon series was over a decade ago, so coming back to its successor felt naturally exciting. The differences between Wildlands and the original are vast. Thanks to that, I enjoy exploring the game more than I could ever hope for. This review will surely give you heaps of insight into the game, without a single spoiler.

Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon® Wildlands (GRW) is a PvE-focused military tactical FPS, where you assume the role of special forces operators, known as Ghosts, in a reactive and immense recreation of Bolivia to take down the savage drug organization known as the Santa Blanca Cartel.


GRW features 21 provinces inside eleven highly detailed and realistic ecosystems, making each visit to these areas feel like a whole new experience. From shallow swamps, open green lands, elevated forest valleys, lakes, waterfalls to snowy mountains. With the character creation available at any time, you can customize your whole squad - composed of Nomad (your playable Ghost leader), Midas, Holt, and Weaver (your AI teammates) - to alternate their appearances and fade into nature’s background. While most locations and the geography of the world are purely fictitious, a few recreated landscapes are based on their real-life counterparts, like the terrifyingly accurate Death Road, or the beautiful shallow salt lake Red Lagoon, and many more for you to explore.

Although made up, all other locations still feel believable enough to be indistinguishable from real life, with NPC civilians all having proper interactions with each other and the environments, like celebrating in costumes, playing football, or simply swiping the floor. Watching them react is fun and intriguing, which is something I rarely enjoy in any other games. Sincerely, I think this fictional version of Bolivia has become my new standard of how an open-world game should be.
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Since the world is reactive with weather conditions, day/night cycle, along with enemies and civilians acting accordingly to their set daily routines, you too can choose how to handle them and use the environments to your advantage. Almost all cartel thugs, even the Unidad - dirty government soldiers - sleep and eat at night (except during special operations), making them vulnerable to a stealthy operator. During nights, enemies are harder to see, and so are you. It'd be wise to scout out the whole area using a binocular or a drone. With night-vision goggles equipped, you'll be the unseen ghost, silently striking enemies' bases when they are at their weakest. And operating in the dark during a thunderstorm or mist? That’s when the immersion hits through the roof!

Or perhaps you’re just a casual player who wants to shoot bad guys and blow things up to have fun? Then, go loud, spray and pray with LMGs in broad daylight, when you can see everyone and become the spotlight for all guns pointing at you.

Be warned though, as carelessly acting like that is not favorable in higher difficulties like Extreme, aka simulation mode. And for any hardcore, masochistic players or Ghost Recon old-timers out there, Ghost Mode with permadeath is awaiting to challenge you. Always planning, strategically maneuvering, paying attention to your surroundings, and being precise with your bullets are the keys to enjoying GRW. Playing on Ghost Mode, Tier One (increase the challenge, earn exclusive rewards) with Extreme Difficulty, and limited HUD (Minimap, Ammo, and Items shown only) brings me back to the punishing experience of the original game.
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2702252676
GRW provides you with over a hundred firearms, with the option to carry one primary, one secondary, and one handgun, so choosing your favorite can be tough. Each gun is made distinct, not only on the model but also in the sound, both suppressed and unsuppressed. Bullet drop, recoil pattern, penetration power, and attachments contribute to that factor, too.

Gunplay is easy to learn for the most part, but hard to master if you, like me, prefer to use sniper rifles and attack from afar. Sniping over 500 meters and watching the enemies confusingly running and hiding behind cover is amusing, as they are clueless to find you since the gunshot source is too far away from them to know where to look. But if you shoot loudly about 150m close to them, they will hear, react to your shot and try to run towards the sound, so don’t camp and be on your toes.

That being said, sometimes they can magically spawn a vehicle to pursue you if you are too far away even though logically, they shouldn't know where you are, which ruins the immersion. Oddly, corpses disappear way too quickly, in under 30 seconds. The fact that you can't carry them around to hide or dump in a trash can where they belong to feels unpolished and lackluster in a AAA tactical shooter like GRW.
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2702271902
GRW allows you to co-op with your friends or resort to public matchmaking to find randoms, so you can role-play together or have some dumbass ruin your plan by not communicating and exposing your position. The best thing about the co-op is that no matter where you and your friends are, all players’ progress contributes to each other. This means you can operate on one side of the map, while another player is at an airport over 15km away, to steal a resource plane and fly to the finish point. All of the players in the match will receive the same rewards.

Check out my Fallen Ghost review for more details.


Overall, it’s a solid installment to the franchise. Without all the changes in this game compared to the original, I probably wouldn’t have had a memorable and immersive experience, with over hundreds of hours of role-playing as the Ghost and exploring this recreated Bolivia. Wait for the occasional sale, even if you intend to play as leisurely as I do.

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The Fallen Ghosts DLC takes place after the Ghosts have completed Operation: Kingslayer (main game’s campaign) and are now returning to Bolivia to extract CIA assets that have been exposed to the ruthless mercenaries, ex-disgraced special forces called Los Extranjeros.

https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2702232517
However, their AIs don’t do anything new and are just as dull as in the base game, which makes them decline in quality and lower the intimidating aspect of the Los Extranjeros.

1. Armored
   Big tough guys that are protected everywhere on their bodies except for the head (how dumb is that?!), and can only be damaged there. Yes, “damaged”, not one-shot through their bright yellow balaclava. From an undetected position, these guys take one shot to kill as expected, while if you're revealed they will take up to six before dying. That’s ridiculous in a tactical game such as Ghost Recon, known for requiring precisely one shot to an enemy's head to kill them immediately.
   
2. Covert Ops
   These guys favor high-damage crossbows, use optical camouflage, and are nearly impossible to see right away… until you put on heat vision goggles. Tactically speaking, if they had moved more often rather than standing in the same spot, they would have posed a more serious threat.
   
3. Elite Sniper
   These cool-looking guys can spot you from much further distance of up to 500 meters. One bullet from their BFG-50A can instantly knock you down. They don't just hit hard but also have pinpoint accuracy, making them more efficient snipers than those in the base game. That said, their big red glowing eye exposes them very easily.
   
4. Jammer
   Aka mobile jamming station. They jam your drone (duh!), make your screen somewhat static, prevent you from using night/heat vision goggles, and disable your minimap and enemies’ icons completely. Cool concept, but aside from the last mission, they suffer from the lack of AI utilization just like Covert Ops, since they mostly stay in one place and don't travel in groups.

Some of the story elements don’t make sense either. You are supposed to be hunted since Los Extranjeros already know your plan, but there are helicopters everywhere so you can just fly away, as if you're not being hunted anymore; however, the invisible wall prevents you from doing so. If you manage to travel far enough, predetermined enemies' spawns are still there, and NPCs can still travel everywhere they want.

Also, isn’t Unidad supposed to be severely weakened after the completion of the main campaign? So why can they still spawn infinite soldiers from anywhere to pursue you when you are engaging with them? Isn’t that feature supposed to be available only for the Los Extranjeros, since they are an army so large that even Unidad had to hire them? An oversight that could have been easily fixed.

I got it for free so I'm happy with it. However, considering the quality of the added contents, I wouldn't buy this in full price. If you are planning to buy this, wait for sales up to 70%.

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