Hi, my name is John. This is my outlet for my thoughts on the video games that I play, so that I'm not constantly annoying my circle of friends with this one topic. Watch out though, my reviews generally contain spoilers and I will not further warn about them! You can read more about this site here.
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Ryse: Son of Rome Review
Published on .
A decade after its initial release, how is Ryse: Son of Rome remembered?
Primarily as a launch title for the Xbox One, I would imagine.
And with that, all the other things people tend to say about launch titles: that it appears rushed and is mediocre play-wise, that, at the time, it nicely showed off the graphical capabilities of the hardware it was launched with.
One could even mention the game is set in the Roman Empire, a thoroughly underexplored setting for action games—antiquity in general really.
Assassin’s Creed discovering this setting for itself was still several years away.
But on replaying the game, I’ve found it not to be a pretty but mediocre launch title.
While the game does use expensive graphical effects previously not seen on Xbox, the overall image quality varies heavily.
Gameplaywise, Ryse can only be described as boring—pretty much the worst for an action game.
I will concede that the setting and story are interesting, but not in the way one might expect.
Why reinvent the wheel?
Gato Roboto Review
Published on .
Calling Gato Roboto a Metroidvania feels like too broad of a statement. No, Gato Roboto is a Metroid game in all but name. From structure to gameplay, it is Nintendo’s bounty hunter series through and through. But that’s not to say that the game is a shameless ripoff—quite the contrary. Gato Roboto respects its roots, extends them slightly and puts its own spin on them.
Surprisingly playable, surprisingly indigestible
Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker Review
Published on .
Metal Gear Solid: Peace Walker is the first portable story-focused entry into the iconic Metal Gear Solid Series.
And while this is a spin-off title, the story is a direct continuation of the widely celebrated main-series entry MGS3: Snake Eater.
After completing a top-secret US government mission, Snake a.k.a. Big Boss, starts a private military company with a man named Kazuhira Miller.
Shortly after, they are presented with an audio recording of Snake’s believed-to-be dead mentor: the Boss.
They follow the trail to Costa Rica, but instead of finding her, they discover a covert CIA nuclear arms programme that, if successful, would entirely change the nature of the ongoing East-West conflict between the United States and the Soviet Union.
A radical vision realised
Final Fantasy VII Remake Review
Published on .
In a dystopian and industrialised world, the Shinra Electric Power Company rules over the city of Midgar in all its facets. The company exploits a natural resource called Mako for energy generation at great environmental cost. The game starts with you in the shoes of Avalanche, a small group of eco-terrorists on a mission to destroy one of Shinra’s Mako reactors. Throughout the game, Avalanche’s conflict with Shinra escalates further as they retaliate and the group’s members grow closer together. But something isn’t quite right…
The sequel we deserve
Hotline Miami 2: Wrong Number Review
Published on .
Hotline Miami 2 is easily one of the most remarkable instances of creators trolling their own fan base. This game is notorious for not living up to the expectations set by its predecessor. Yet, I don’t believe that this game is a failure of game creation but instead has been deliberately constructed to be the way it is. To understand why we have to look at what came before HM2.