Recent reviews by ★ SmolGui ★

Arguably one of the best choice based story games I've ever played.

Let's say sunshine for everyone
But as far as I can remember
We've been migratory animals
Living under changing weather

Someday we will foresee obstacles
Through the blizzard, through the blizzard
Today we will sell our uniform
Live together, live together

A platforming journey through grief and the means of processing it, narrated through stunning visuals and a beautiful soundtrack. Give yourself a good few hours to sit through this, it's an experience.

This'll be a cult classic for years to come. Buy it lads.

There's no content at endgame besides endless grind of the same boring activities, with the rewards you gain being placed into the equivalent of a casino slot machine. The grind is boring as hell, with the main problem being your ability to earn barely enough materials due to a severe lack of content in this version compared to the Korean version.

I don't mind slogging through grind so long as the gameplay is fun (which it is) and the content is there (which unfortunately, it is not). But most people will give up at that first point, as the gameplay isn't enough to sustain them up to what is considered the "true" endgame, being T3. Several friends have given up in T2 or long before that point because its the same crap over and over again without meaning, just so they can get to the "actual fun". What's the point?

Couple that with the incompetent management from AGS. They once again demonstrate horrific management of an MMO, this time of one that they aren't even developing. The only thing they succeed in is signalling you to stay away from anything they're involved in, as it never ends well.

I'd really like the game to get better, which wouldn't be hard. It has potential, and is insanely popular in Korea - notably the content from T3 onwards improving player retention the most. They just need to add all of the classes, add all of the Korean QoL features up to T3, and add more of the content. This drip-feeding approach AGS has adopted so far is going to kill the game, and it's safe to say I'm not interested until significant improvements are made.

As a massive fan of the first game, this is just a letdown. I've tried so hard to like it, but the only thing I can say that's an improvement is the parkour, and that's rather sad in all honesty. What we get to replace all of the cool features from the first game is a half-baked, generic copy & paste Ubisoft-esque world, filled to the brim with bugs and rushed/incomplete content. Couple that with the most recent, absolutely baffling nerfs to what is a SINGLE PLAYER game, and there's just no reason to play.

Either go back to the first or don't bother, there's more productive uses of your time. Hell, even Cyberpunk is more of a complete and enjoyable title at this point.

Fairly simple, not all too difficult, and relaxing to boot. Would definitely recommend, especially if you're looking to scratch that management builder game itch.

CLIMB MAP :)

LIFE GOOD :D

MAP FIGHT BACK >:(

KILL HAND :(

FURNITURE GONE ;(

THINK ABOUT FURNITURE ;'(

REGRET

Remember those cozy vibes you got way back when, playing Terraria and Minecraft for the first time? Yeah, this game is just that, if not better. It's nice to have that feeling again, like returning home after a long journey.

I'm telling you now, you won't regret buying Valheim. Trust me, just do it. Never have I had so much fun with a game in a long time.

This game was an experience, and I loved every second of it. The story is excellent, filled with characters who are really well done and believable, and who are developed way beyond being merely two-dimensional. The first person - which I wasn't too keen on at first - makes this game really special: you get to sit next to these characters, have a conversation with them and it's immersive on a level I haven't seen in other RPGs before. It feels as if you're there, and it makes more emotional moments even weightier, exemplified because you feel as if you're interacting with real people, with real motivations and feelings.

The gameplay has been a point of contention, but I feel it's really fun and allows for a lot of builds. It's a bit of a drag starting off, but as you push that level up your character becomes a force of nature - whether that be an insanely fast ninja using either katanas or mantis blades, a stealthy netrunner clearing out entire hideouts with but a few hacks, or an unstoppable juggernaut utilising shotguns and heavy weaponry, it's all up to you. There's a lot of ways to approach things no matter how you play, and the stellar level design allows for a number of approaches - there's a lot of verticality, and routes into buildings aren't restricted to, say, an open door at the front. Some can be found off the beaten path, and getting the double jump upgrade expands on this, as you'll find yourself parkouring across rooftops like a madman and getting the drop on your foes from an unseen vantage. I had a blast with it, and I found myself getting into scraps regularly with small groups of gangers just because it feels so good. Weapons have a lot of impact, are animated really well, and are all satisfying to use. It's for sure a step above the Witcher 3's gameplay, which was more divisive.

There are a few issues I had with the gameplay however. You get showered in loot all the time so you're often dismantling it all or trying to sell it, and this makes getting a new weapon less exciting, as all you care about is equipping something for the stat boost. The crafting doesn't do much to remedy this, as you have to level it a ton and it'll be a while before you can craft good weapons - which will be quickly outclassed by what you find as loot. The loot issue also extends to the clothing. Sure, you can equip blue or purple clothing items that have mod-slots, and put armour mods in it so you can use it until end-game, but you're still missing out on a lot of clothing and you can't really equip what you want unless you want to take a massive stat penalty. The game is practically crying out for a transmog system as a result. The AI can also be very dumb at times, especially the police - you get a wanted level and they appear from thin air, and they can't drive. Another thing that irks me is the fact that cyberware can be a bit one-dimensional. The monowire no longer has the hack ability as shown in the trailers, and is just a melee weapon with a charge. The stealth animations aren't even changed if you have it or other weapons equipped, which is a disappointment. The gorilla arms also work differently to how you'd think they would: having them doesn't increase your strength, and you have to increase the related stat before you're able to open certain doors or rip off turrets, and the only thing that changes is you get a different animation with them. I'd much prefer it if you got a stat boost dependent on what you have equipped (eg: monowire buffs your hacking, and gorilla arms buff your strength).

As for the driving, it feels a bit off at times. Some vehicles feel super floaty and handle like there's a delay built into the engine before you can stop or turn a corner, meaning you often have to do so in advance. Whereas other vehicles handle excellently - especially the bikes and the Mitzuani Shion. I feel the problems with what is a crucial part of the game could be remedied with just a little bit of tuning, and by panning the minimap out further while driving (so you can actually see turns coming). An auto-drive feature would also be nice - it is 2077 after all.

Concerning performance, I had no issues. I was running the game at ultra (with shadows brought down a setting) without any noticeable stutter or frame drops on an RTX 2070 + i5-8600. The game looks beautiful, and there's a lot of care put into every inch, everywhere you look. The character models are the primary example of this: you'll catch little details you wouldn't normally notice taking portrait shots in the photo mode, from the facial features to the clothing. On the whole the game seems well optimised too, but then again, I don't have a low-end rig around or above the minimum recommended settings to confirm this. If you have a lower-end rig, I'd recommend holding off on a purchase until you upgrade, as you'll just be limiting yourself on the detail front.

There are also quite a lot of bugs and glitches that have caused me to reload my save. These aren't necessarily a detriment to the experience as a whole, but it disrupts the flow. As a result I've put the game on hiatus for the time being until they patch them all out, and if you're on the fence about this game I'd recommend you do the same unless you can live with the issues. Hopefully this comes sooner rather than later, because I can't wait to jump back into Night City once everything has been addressed.

Got myself deliberately enslaved just so I could train stats. Never have I had so much fun, constantly escaping and getting the crap beat out of me so I could grow stronger. At the end I had reached such a level of proficiency I just walked out of the place like it was summer camp. With my newfound and easily acquired freedom, I went and kidnapped a robot, using him as a punching bag in some dainty shack in the middle of nowhere to get better at combat.

Before you know it, I've recruited a squad of people and put them through the exact same process, taking their limbs off using a lovely device called the "skin peeler" to cybernetically enhance them. It didn't take long from that point to conquer two nations, and to build a thriving outpost in the heart of the river valley.

And that's only one way to go about things in Kenshi. You can do whatever the hell you like, in whatever way you like. Get past the initial difficulty hurdle, learn what to do, and the sky's the limit.

Do you want to be a wandering trader? You can do that. An adventurer charting lost ruins, a bounty hunter, a bandit? Yep, you can do that. A drug runner growing product in the swamps, or a complete and utter madman using only your fists as a weapon? Yeah, you can do that too.

It's an endless sandbox I find myself coming back to over and over again. You may find you'll do exactly the same.