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@ggmanreviews
No reviews this week as I’m currently hitting myself in the head with the amount of studying I’ve been doing to try and wrap myself around the 4 exams I have coming up on the first 4 days of October. Oh, Left 4 Dead 2 has a new update so... . . . . . Oh yeah, not many images or gifs about the new Last Stand update so there’s some normal L4D2 stuff included.
GGMan's Weekly Video Game Recommendation #14
I play a lot of games. Some, everyone has played. Others, not so much.
I'll be listing one game per week, that I have played and believe it deserves more attention. If you have already played it, then that's great! If you haven't, then you might as well.
Name: Pacify Genre: Horror Developer: SKH Apps, Shawn Hitchcock Publisher: SKH Apps, Hitchcock Games Engine: N/A Length: 10 to 20 Hours Singleplayer? Yes. (IF YOU DARE) Multiplayer? Yes. Release Date: February 22nd, 2019 Platforms: Microsoft Windows, macOS, & macintosh
Reviews: Steam 9/10, Morbidly Beautiful 3/5, IGDB 71%
I was coerced into playing this. They said it would family-friendly and fun for all ages alike; well... that's what they said.
This is a horror game, and I HATE horror games. Like, I can't even stand the thought of something terrifying or scary-ish. I will curl up into a ball or better yet board up my house like it's another movie from the Home Alone series. I will grab my shotgun and shoot-on-sight for any pale or white floating stuff.
Pacify is a simple yet authentic horror game with the basic premise of finding key items to capture supernatural beings. You work for Paranormal Activity Helpers Incorporated (PAH Inc.) and are sent into one of three places - an old mansion, a decrepit farm, or the sinister woods - and your job is to simply investigate strange things happening in the area. There is a 99.99% chance for nothing out of the ordinary happening. The other 0.01% chance... ehhhhhhhhh you'll find out eventually.
The key to this game is to slowly & cautiously walk through dark places either by yourself (you masochist) or with 3 other friends. You read clues in order to find ways to subjugate said 0.01% chance of actual regret and then bring evidence back to your supervisors. If you think you can't work with others and would rather screw everyone over, there is an interesting PVP mode where you - an INTERN for PAH Inc. - are trying to get the job that everybody in your team wants. In this mode, the one who does the most work will get the job so, you must do everything you can to delay your fellow interns.
This game freaked me out. It is by far one of the best scariest games I have ever been fooled into playing. Whoever or whatever it is that comes after you at a 0.01% chance, just be aware that it can see you, hear you, smell you, and most definitely scare the living daylights out of you. Hide your kids, hide your wife. You're either gonna go crazy, stupid or both by the end of the day.
System Req (Minimum) OS: Windows 7 Processor: Intel i5 Memory: 4GB Graphics: 1GB Video RAM DirectX: Version 10 Storage: 2GB
System Req (Recommended) OS: Windows 10 Processor: Intel i7 Memory: 8GB Graphics: 4GB Video RAM DirectX: Version 11 Storage: 2GB
Price (USD): $4.99
GGMan's Weekly Video Game Recommendation #13
I play a lot of games. Some, everyone has played. Others, not so much.
I'll be listing one game per week, that I have played and believe it deserves more attention. If you have already played it, then that's great! If you haven't, then you might as well.
Name: Warhammer 40K: Dawn of War 2 Genre: Real-Time Strategy & Tactical Role Player Game Developer: Relic Entertainment & Feral Interactive Publisher: SEGA & Feral Interactive Engine: Essence Engine Length: About 21 hours worth Singleplayer? Yes. Multiplayer? Yes. Release Date: February 19th, 2009 Platforms: Microsoft Windows, macOS, & Linux
Reviews: Steam 9/10, Trusted Reviews 4/5, Metacritic 85%, Common Sense Media 4/5
ALL HAIL THE IMPERIUM OF MAN! SKULLS FOR THE SKULL THRONE! BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD! NO MERCY, NO RESPITE!
Warhammer 40K games, books, and its universe do be like that sometimes...
Anyways, Dawn of War 2 is one of those real-time strategy games that basically evolve your experience as you play from an over-the-board perspective. It's kind of like Company of Heroes but with fewer Germans and more Xenos or non-humans if you prefer it that way. You are essentially a royal space marine as part of the Blood Ravens and your job is to purge those who are trying to steal your "geneseed" from your order's recruiting worlds such as Calderis, Typhon, & Meridian. Basically... they (the green Orcs, the religious Eldar, & ferocious Tyrannids) are trying to steal your shit so your job is to stop them from doing so. It may look like a summer's garage sale but that doesn't mean everything is essentially free.
You control squads of loyal space marines whom you'll feel obligated to call your BROTHERS throughout the game. There's you, the most impossible thing to kill in the universe (late game) and your brothers who are basically specific characters who buddy up with their own fellow BROTHERS in your fight against everything else. After every mission, you gain experience for your squads and lots of valuable LOOT. Yes, LOOT; those things you magically get when you purge Xenos. I know, it's okay, we all love LOOT.
With said LOOT, you may periodically upgrade your squads to better stomp, burn, & exterminate every non-human in existence to kingdom come in a much bloodier and less humane way (ha, you see what I did there ya know "less humane way" when killing non-humans heh heh heh... uh, sorry).
This game is very well known by it's Warhammer 40K community but, at the time, it was better known as the disappointing child of the series. The first game had blown fish out of the water (metaphorically, although I wouldn't be surprised if they did that) with its full-scale battle-strategy-like gameplay and when the second game came out, it basically seemed like a slap in the face as it was technically "less" than the original. Ah, but since the latest of the series had flopped so badly, this game doesn't seem as bad as it used to be.
Overall, this game is really fun and useful at making you and your less than 20 brothers feel like absolute gods as you do the purging, looting, and uhh... purging... better than hundreds and thousands of non-humans out there.
BUY THIS GAME, FOR THE EMPEROR! AAAAAAHHHHHHHHH!!!!
[PC] System Req (Minimum) OS: Windows XP/Vista Processor: P4 3.2GHz / Any Dual Core Memory: 1GB for XP / 1.5GB for Vista Graphics: NVIDIA GeForce 6600 / ATI X1600 Storage: 6.5GB
[PC] System Req (Recommended) OS: Windows XP/Vista Processor: AMD Athlon 4400+ / Any Intel Core 2 Duo Memory: 2GB for XP and Vista Graphics: NVIDIA GeForce 7800 / ATI X1900 Storage: 6.5GB
Price (USD): $19.99
Gareth's Weekly Video Game Recommendation #12
I play a lot of games. Some, everyone has played. Others, not so much.
I'll be listing one game per week, that I have played and believe it deserves more attention. If you have already played it, then that's great! If you haven't, then you might as well.
Name: Star Wars: Republic Commando Genre: Sci-Fi First Person Shooter Developer: LucasArts Publisher: LucasArts, LucasFilm, & Disney Engine: Unreal Engine Length: 17 Hours if played on the hardest difficulty Singleplayer? Yes. Multiplayer? Yes. Release Date: February 28th, 2005 Platforms: Microsoft Windows & Xbox
Reviews: Steam 9/10, Gamespot 8.7/10, Metacritic 78%
SHUT UP AND TAKE MY MONEY!
Star Wars: Republic Commando is an excellent classic FPS video game developed by LucasArts and is still one of my all-time favourites. Star Wars: Imperial Commando was supposed to be the critical sequel to the first game but it was cancelled shortly after some concept art was created, back in 2004, whilst they were also developing the original in question.
In Star Wars: Republic Commando you take control of four clones from the elite Delta Squad. You play through the perspective of RC-1138 (known simply as Boss) and fight your way through perilous missions across Geonosis, a Republic assault ship known as the Prosecutor, and Kashyyyk whilst accompanied by your brothers RC-1140 (Fixer), RC-1207 (Sev), & RC-1262 (Scorch).
Through the systematic use of a profound squad command system, your brothers will expertly out-maneuver enemies with the push of a button. If you feel as if the single-player campaign wasn't enough, you may swap to multiplayer battles consisting of 2-16 other players. Although Star Wars: Republic Commando was no longer considered canon to the Star Wars universe, as a bonus, this game technically takes place as a prelude to Episode III.
Lastly, EA has yet to touch this game. Thus, all the more reason to enjoy it now before there comes the haymaker for being overpriced & the inclusion of in-game purchases. Ah, but do be aware that the mouse speed in the main menu is more aggressive than EA's lust for money.
System Req (Minimum) OS: Windows 2000/XP/Vista Processor: Pentium III / Athlon 1.0 GHz RAM: 256MB Graphics: 64MB 3D Graphics Card with Vertex Shaders and Pixel Shaders DirectX: Version 9.0b Storage: 2GB
Price (USD): $9.99 [Microsoft Windows] & $12.25 [Xbox]
No reviews this week as I am and have been very busy moving houses’ UwU
GGMan's Weekly Video Game Recommendation #11
I play a lot of games. Some, everyone has played. Others, not so much.
I'll be listing one game per week, that I have played and believe it deserves more attention. If you have already played it, then that's great! If you haven't, then you might as well.
Name: Viscera Cleanup Detail Genre: Science Fiction Simulation Developer: RuneStorm Publisher: RuneStorm Engine: Source Length: 40-65 hours Singleplayer? Yes. Multiplayer? Yes. Release Date: October 23rd, 2015 Platforms: PC & Classic Mac OS
Reviews: Steam 9/10, Keen Gamer 8/10, Humble Bundle 91%
Do you ever wonder what happens to the deceased after the dust had settled? During the World Wars, there was always a company of soldiers tasked with collecting the fallen on both sides; but that is real life - what happens if it's in a video game? For example, you have Doom Guy literally slaughtering every demon he comes across and he does make quite of a mess for the cleanup crew to work around. Well, if you never actually felt sorry for them, you won't have to because now you can pity yourself and your friends in this sci-fi cleanup simulator developed by a little known South African company known as RuneStorm.
Viscera Cleanup Detail is a relaxing time waster where you take after the lives of video game janitors who are tasked with picking up after our unknown hero who had just recently stopped an alien invasion. Instead of using guns and explosives to carve your way to becoming a legend, you own a mop and a pair of rubber gloves just trying to earn your next paycheck.
The concept behind this game is so simple yet entertaining, especially with a group of friends. You, alone. could venture into the eery jungles draped with wrangled bodies and decapitated Xenos and coincidentally ignite your inner OCD, or you could go into outer space with your friends and attempt to renovate the interior of a space station whilst tempted to experiment with its gravity controls. However, let be honest here, cleaning is probably going to be the last thing on anyone's mind. If you're like me, the first thing I'd try to do is fool around or annoy the crap out of my friends who are actually trying to play the game.
Viscera Cleanup Detail has helped me realize that I'd rather attempt to rehabilitate putrid sewers for 5 hours than my own room. That way I could actually feel productive for once in my life. I may be a student now but by playing this game, I feel like I have a vision of my future, if I don't do well.
PC System Req (Minimum) OS: Windows XP3 / Windows 7 Processor: 2.4GHz Dual-Core CPU Memory: 4GB Graphics: NVIDIA GeForce 8800 GT / AMD Radeon HD 3870 Storage: 5GB
macOS System Req (Minimum) OS: OS X 10.8 - MacBook Pro 2013 Processor: 2.0GHz Intel i5 Dual-Core Memory: 4GB Graphics: Intel HD Graphics 5000 / Intel Iris Storage: 5GB
If your PC or macOS is equivalent or better than the above, then you're good to go!
Price (USD): $12.99 Current Price
GGMan's Weekly Video Game Recommendation #10
I play a lot of games. Some, everyone has played. Others, not so much.
I'll be listing one game per week, that I have played and believe it deserves more attention. If you have already played it, then that's great! If you haven't, then you might as well.
Name: The Beginner's Guide Genre: Story Rich Walking Simulator Developer: Everything Unlimited Ltd. Publisher: Everything Unlimited Ltd. Engine: Source Length: 1-2 Hours Singleplayer? Yes. Multiplayer? No. Release Date: October 1st, 2015 Platforms: PC, Linux, Classic Mac OS
Reviews: Steam 9/10, Metacritic 76%
If you're a human, like me you would come across certain times of stress and/or anxiety. These emotions could stem from life obstacles or past regrets. Most of us would eventually find a way around this problem and basically dig ourselves out of the hole we had fallen into. We may write about our hardships, or talk to someone else about it - alternatively, we may repress these inconvenient thoughts and feelings with external sources that provide laughter and or happiness, such as music or comedy shows. Davey Wreden had gone through a similar turn of events but what did he do? Oh, it's simple; he made a video game about it.
The Beginner's Guide is Davey Wreden's attempt to talk about his setbacks in life and as a creator for the video game industry. There are no extravagant mechanics, no goals or objectives; there is only a narrative of one man's story being brought to life through the depictions of other smaller, yet draft-like, video games. You control Coda, a video game developer who apparently had big dreams broken down due to the criticism he had once received from the video game industry. You walk through some of Coda's pieces as you listen to Davey's narrative or what had been done, what there was to do, and what could not be.
Even though it may be a short game, it tells a realistic story about the struggles of rising video game creators. I'm not here to spoil the game for you but the elements of this game do indeed revolve around Freud's theory of psychoanalysis and the common topic about overestimation & subjectivism. Davey himself did not talk much about his reasons behind this majestical game and instead left it open for interpretation. I'm not going to lie, I could talk about the psychological impacts this game makes but, no, I don't think I will. Play the game, and find out for yourself.
System Req (Minimum) OS: Windows Vista/7/8/8.1/10 Processor: 3.0 GHz P4, Dual Core 2.0 / AMD64X2 Memory: 2GB Graphics: ATI Radeon X800 / NVIDIA GeForce 7600 / Intel HD Graphics 2000 Storage: 4GB
This review might've seemed a bit rushed but I was thinking. I noticed that my reviews have just been getting longer and more complicated over time, which isn't a bad thing but, I'm afraid of beating around the bush. Thus, I'll try to prioritize quality over quantity for future reviews.
Price (USD): $9.99 Base Price
GGMan's Weekly Video Game Recommendation #9
I play a lot of games. Some, everyone has played. Others, not so much.
I'll be listing one game per week, that I have played and believe it deserves more attention. If you have already played it, then that's great! If you haven't, then you might as well.
Name: Hand of Fate Genre: Action RPG Card Game Developer: Defiant Development Publisher: Defiant Development Engine: Unity Length: About 15 hours Singleplayer? Yes. Multiplayer? No. Release Date: February 17th, 2015 Platforms: PC, Xbox One, PS4, Linux, Classic Mac OS
Reviews: Steam 9/10, PC Gamer 73%, Metacritic 7.8/10
Hand of Fate might not be the most highest-rated game out there but, most of the time, games aren't entirely defined by the ratings given to them by critics and such. What matters most is the user experience and basically how much fun one has with the game. This is an action role-playing card game where basically, the cards that you play, decide your fate or basically how much of a cakewalk your RPG experience is going to be.
You start out sitting in front of a mysteriously evil (BUT charmingly awesome) hooded man who offers you to play a game of cards with him. You nonchalantly accept despite not knowing that this isn't just a simple deck of cards but rather, it is a game between life and death. Apparently, you're either dead, in hell, cursed, or all of the above and your story is to complete this card game and escape the never-ending nightmare.
This game isn't like Hearthstone where you see magical looking cards with fantastical creatures on the top sending sparkling lights and elements at their opponent's set of cards in order to destroy them. Hand of Fate presents a hybrid between a table-top dungeon simulator and 3D visceral combat. The cards themselves make out the type of dungeon you will be forced to fight for your life against a variety of monsters and unearthly inhabitants. With each level, there comes the naturally increasing difficulties of a video game alongside bosses that somewhat represents the Jack, Queen, King, and Ace from a standard deck of cards. If you die, it's fine because you are cursed to forever play this game until you win.
Throughout the dungeon, you are faced with events that react based on your decisions with these said, events. For example; you may come across a woman begging for food and depending on how much food you give her, she will react accordingly and give your rewards for your generosity. A more interesting example would be when you're faced with a decision to go after a treasure chest - little did you know, this chest is a trap and depending on your luck of the draw, you could either claim the loot or suffer just as much and end up losing more than you were to gain.
Although Hand of Fate is an intricately genuine piece of originality, it does lack in the combat department as the controls are relatively simple despite every battle slowly turning into a war of the Titans. With luck, you could be fighting with a mace that farts electricity and a shield that RKO's skeleton kings. However, with the luck of RNG (random number generator), you're most likely to fight a copy of the final boss, at the begin of the dungeon, with a rusty axe and dinner plate shield, after being cursed down to 50% of your original health, with an additional level of regret from giving away all your food and gold to the poor.
System Req (Minimum) OS: Windows 7/8/8.1/XP/Vista Processor: 2.4GHz Intel Core 2 Duo Memory: 4GB Graphics: NVIDIA 260 GTS / Radeon HD 4850 DirectX: Version 9.0c Storage: 5GB
System Req (Recommended) OS: Windows 7/8/8.1 Processor: 2.66GHz Intel Core i7 Memory: 4GB Graphics: NVIDIA 460 GTX / Radeon 5770 DirectX: Version 9.0c Storage: 5GB
Price (USD): $14.99 Base Price but it's currently $9.99 as it's 50% off on Steam for the weekend
GGMan's Weekly Video Game Recommendation #8
I play a lot of games. Some, everyone has played. Others, not so much.
I'll be listing one game per week, that I have played and believe it deserves more attention. If you have already played it, then that's great! If you haven't, then you might as well.
Name: Golf With Your Friends Genre: Casual Sports Game Developer: Blacklight Interactive Publisher: Team 17 Digital Ltd Engine: Unity Length: N/A Singleplayer? Yes. Multiplayer? Yes. Release Date: January 29th, 2016 (For PC) & May 24th, 2020 (For Everything Else) Platforms: PC, Xbox One, PS4, Nintendo Switch, Linux, Classic Mac OS
Reviews: Steam 9/10, Green Man Gaming 8.7/10, Humble Bundle 85%
Golf With Your Friends is like your casual game of minigolf (not to be confused with the video game called Minigolf). I mean, you're playing golf, but digitally and... I... uhh.. to be honest, there's not much hype you can set-up for a game about golf. In case you do not know how golf works, it's simple; you have a stick; you use this stick to hit at a ball... and said, ball, is supposed to be hit into a small hole. The fewer strokes you make trying to get that ball into the hole, the better your chances are of becoming the world's best golfer. Unless you're a digitally enhanced version of Tiger Woods, this game would seem like a piece of cake but, you are mistaken. This game is literally rage inducing because unless you have the perfect level of power, the perfect angle, and the perfect mind of a tactician, you're going to go for broke and rack up scores that you would NOT believe.
One may play this game alone, but where's the fun in that? The best way to play golf is with a bit of competition; and what better way to find competitors than through a handful of your closest friends, and/or family members. You choose from a variety of official maps provided by the sadistic developers or, you may go online and find custom made nightmares uh I mean maps, by other players. Afterwards, you are allowed to choose a game mode that you'd like to play on your chosen demonic map, or you could customize the setting and rules as of personal preference to how you'd like to dig your own grave.
Something about this game is like magic, and I'll explain to you why it is so. You start this game playing with 1-12 friends and by the end of the game, all your friends are gone. It's not the fact that the game ends, but it's the fact that this game makes you lose friends because IF you enable the cursed "collision mode," you could lose friends as fast as you lose brain cells whilst attempting to win this game. However, if striking one's ball against another's isn't your cup of tea, the settings allow you to enable "powerups" such as the "honey trap" where you seize your opponents in their tracks, or the "randomizer" where you turn your opponent's balls into some unorthodox shape. These are just some of the many ways you could use to make your golfing experience, more interesting. evil laugh
Overall, this game is really fun as it practically spices up the commonly-known-to-be-slow game of golf and if played properly, or improperly if you prefer a little bit of chaos in your life, it can help create some of the greatest casual gaming memories of your life. Alternatively, you could always modify the game's settings for a friendship test; those who stick with you till the end are either your best mates or they plan to cause you as much suffering as you had caused them.
System Req (Minimum) OS: Windows 7/10 Processor: Intel i3-2100 / AMD FX-6300 Memory: 2GB Graphics: GTX 460 / Radeon 6870 / Intel HD Graphics 630 Storage: 4GB
System Req (Recommended) OS: Windows 10 Processor: Intel i5-6600 / AMD FX 8350 Memory: 4GB Graphics: GTX 960 / AMD R9 280 Storage: 4GB
Price (USD): $14.99 Base Price
GGMan's Weekly Video Game Recommendation #7
I play a lot of games. Some, everyone has played. Others, not so much.
I'll be listing one game per week, that I have played and believe it deserves more attention. If you have already played it, then that's great! If you haven't, then you might as well.
Name: Aim Lab Genre: Aiming/FPS Simulator Developer: State Space Labs, Inc. Publisher: State Space Labs, Inc. Engine: N/A Length: N/A Singleplayer? Yes. Multiplayer? No, but you can compare scores, globally. Release Date: February 7th, 2018 Platforms: PC, Xbox One, PS4 (For consoles, it's still on Steam but you may use the controller from either of them)
Reviews: Steam 9/10
Aim Lab is a free-to-play aiming simulator/trainer that is supposed to help gamers get better in shooting games by improving your overall accuracy, or at least making sure you know where you're at in terms of your personal skill. When I first picked up this game, I thought that I was pretty decent, but I was immediately proven wrong. I was so bad, and I couldn't even believe that I was that bad. Initially, I felt that the simulator was a complete scam, but realized that it was probably my mind going into denial for how terrible I was.
Anyways, I decided to give the simulator a shot and at the start, I didn't actually know where to go; I didn't have a mental plan of what tasks I wanted to do in order to improve my overall performance. As time progressed, I managed to get a hang of things and every day I practised for 25 minutes on 7 different tasks that covered 6 different areas; flicking, tracking, speed, precision, cognition, & perception. By the end of my two weeks, I found myself to be a lot better than I was before as my in-game scores and personal performances in other games had definitely improved. I could double-tap targets that I would've just sprayed and prayed. I was like "oh wow, I hit that?"
As for the mechanics of the simulator itself, you have a variety of different tasks, each with its own variable depending on the area you seek to improve (flicking, tracking, speed, etc). The tasks themselves could be a simple fast-paced "grid shot" where you have to shoot as many targets as they constantly appear, or a more extreme precision/flick-based "six-shot" where you have six dots on screen at any given time, and like the "grid shot," you have to hit them as fast as you can within the given time. It's easy to learn but hard to master. Personally, I always use the "grid shot" as a warmup exercise before I get into my daily training schedule.
The simulator even tells you specifically where you're at your best and where you're severely lacking. In my experience, I was extremely accurate and thus received a comment referring to myself as a "sniper" or "boom! headshot." However, because I prioritized accuracy over everything else, I lacked in having the speed of a fast hand and was ultimately too slow to hit my shots. I was able to see the analytics of where I lacked and so I sacrificed an average of 97% accuracy to 89% so that I could increase my speed of targets hit from 50% to 72%. Okay yeah, the numbers don't add up but that's what the game tells me so, preach don't beseech.
Each task is one minute long and will calculate your score using its own system and with that score, you will be presented a rank, similar to that of CSGO. The ranks go from Bronze (the lowest) to Grandmaster (the highest), and each with their own sub-level which is basically a number between 1 & 4, with 1 being the highest sub of that rank and 4 being the lowest. I started at Gold 3, (which was just 2 ranks above bronze) and after two weeks, I ended up at Ruby 4 (which is 2 ranks or 7 subs above). This system is extremely useful and well organized, and I'm not sure about everyone else but, I became fixated on the ranks alone. Every time I dropped in my rank, I knew that I did the opposite of improvement and therefore, I strived to be better the next day, and when my rank did increase, I felt good about myself because I accomplished my goal and got better.
However, the main question is whether or not this simulator works? Well, in my opinion, it's all relative. If you use it properly in whatever way you deem proper, and then keep that up for a good amount of time, then yes, it does tend to help you improve. However, the reason why I said it's "relative" is that there's a significant difference between shooting your way through a single-player and multiplayer game. In single-player, the difficulty of your enemies is based on how you want them to be (even in games like LA Noire where it gets progressively harder because your character gets better over time); whereas, in multiplayer games, the difficulty varies from person to person and thus, you may get dumped on even if you trained yourself using Aim Lab.
System Req (Minimum & Recommended) OS: Windows 7/8/10 Processor: Intel Core 2 Duo E6600 / AMD Phenom X3 8750 Memory: 4GB Graphics: NVIDIA GTX 560 Storage: 3GB
Price (USD): FREE but it's in very, very, very early access so there's definitely more content to come!
GGMan's Weekly Video Game Recommendation #6
I play a lot of games. Some, everyone has played. Others, not so much.
I'll be listing one game per week, that I have played and believe it deserves more attention. If you have already played it, then that's great! If you haven't, then you might as well.
Name: The Testament of Sherlock Holmes Genre: Adventure Game Developer: Frogwares Publisher: Focus Home Interactive Engine: N/A Length: Around 15 Hours Singleplayer? Yes. Multiplayer? No. Release Date: September 20th, 2012 Platforms: PC, PS3, Xbox 360
Reviews: Steam 9/10, GameSpot 8/10, Metacritic 73%, Adventure Gamers 4.5/5
Ah, Sherlock Holmes, or as I like to remember the character, a ridiculously smart and insanely cunning, sociopath. Although I'm generally not much of a bibliophile, I am still a gamer and thus, I have played ALL the games of the series, from The Mystery of the Mummy to its latest, The Devil's Daughter. However, the fact that I haven't read all of Arthur Conan Doyle's short stories and novels about the fictional character doesn't matter because, like every other game belonging to the series, this one presents an original story.
Sometime in 2021, Frogwares plans to release another to the series called Chapter One. Although it sounds like they're trying to redo the entire series after their latest game flopped back in 2016, it could also be, like how the trailer suggests, that the developers want to go back in time and show the players how Sherlock Holmes became to be.
Anyways, in The Testament of Sherlock Holmes you, obviously, control this master detective in one of the darkest investigations of his career set within a reproduced version of London in the late 19th century. From being suspected of fraud, theft, and the murder of innocents and criminals alike, Sherlock Holmes faces his own personal hell where you, as the player, learn how sometimes those seemingly great people, aren't always the most decent.
If you aren't familiar with the Sherlock Holmes adventure games, it's rather quite simple; in either a first/third-person perspective, you come across crime scenes with a plethora of mysteries, find clues, disguise as a random Brit, (questionably) harass people for answers, and uncover more of the game's plot.
To me, what sets this game aside from the rest is a combination of both the 3D graphics and its unexpected turn of events. If you play or have played the five games prior to this one, you'd notice that even though the industry of video games and its even changing graphical technology has simply passed numerous obstacles within the first decade of the century, Frogwares had yet to board that train. Although I wasn't aware of their games at this time, I was soon made receptive to the fact that the players wanted more stimulation to the eyes to go along with the series' constant track-record of impressive storylines. The Testament of Sherlock Holmes was like a breath of fresh air to the community and also a new setup for future games of that series.
As for the plot twists within this game, let's just say that (without spoilers) whatever you expect is whatever you get but, there comes a time when people start to think if someone as remarkable as Sherlock Holmes can solve crimes that no other man/woman could, who would be able to solve crimes if they were instilled by none other than the illustrious detective, himself? Would anybody continue to believe and place their trust in our exalted detective if he, himself, couldn't prove his own innocence? So many questions yet very few answers; play the game and find out for yourself.
System Req (Minimum) OS: Windows XP / Windows Vista / Windows 7 Processor: AMD/Intel Dual-Core 2 GHz Memory: 2048MB Graphics: ATI Radeon HD 2600 XT / NVIDIA GeForce 8600 GT Sound: DirectX 9.0 Storage: 14GB
Price (USD): $19.99 [PC & PS3], $21.34 [Xbox 360] In my opinion, the price is worth it at 20 to 21 bucks despite the lack of content. However, the game itself is very fulfilling as it is possible to gain 90% of the achievements on the first playthrough.
GGMan's Weekly Video Game Recommendation #5
I play a lot of games. Some, everyone has played. Others, not so much.
I'll be listing one game per week, that I have played and believe it deserves more attention. If you have already played it, then that's great! If you haven't, then you might as well. The bigger the game, the longer the review due to the amount of content.
Name: Company of Heroes Genre: Real-Time Strategy Developer: Relic Entertainment Publisher: THQ (Sega from 2013 till present) Engine: Essense Engine Length: Over 100 Hours Singleplayer? Yes. Multiplayer? Yes. Release Date: September 12th, 2006 Platforms: PC
Reviews: Steam 9/10, GameSpot 9/10, Metacritic 93%, IGN 9.4/10
Now, where do I start? Company of Heroes shall forever be one of my all-time favourite games. It's not the oldest one I've played, but it was the very first one that introduced me to, back then, the rising industry of video games. You might recognize the franchise by its sequel that came out in 2013, which was also the last of the franchise as Relic was bought by SEGA, later that year, & THQ (not to be confused with THQ Nordic) filled for bankruptcy in 2012. Company of Heroes had managed to redefine the staple of real-time strategy games as it won numerous awards including two game-of-the-year titles from IGN & GameSpy.
The game takes place within the European Theatre of World War 2, as it covers not just individuals but, companies from specific armies and they're efforts throughout the Invasion of Normandy. From the heroic landings of Omaha Beach to the famous encirclement of the retreating German 7th Army within the Falaise Pocket, you control Able Company as a detachment of the U.S. 506th Infantry Regiment and basically re-live their experiences amongst some of the most pivotal battles of the war.
However, if American campaigns do not interest you, then you may be entertained by their standalone DLC's. Company of Heroes: Opposing Fronts allows you to take control of the British 2nd Army in their conquest for Caen, and the German Panzer Lehr Divison with their perspective during Operation: Market Garden. Company of Heroes: Tales of Valor does not follow after its predecessors with specific campaigns throughout the war, but instead, it allows you to re-live three episodes, from the war, depicting individual soldiers or groups at their finest hour; Tiger Ace SS-Hauptsturmführer Michael Wittman, the 82nd Airborne Division, & a unit of Waffen SS-Panzergrenadiers.
If you're a history fanatic, like me, then the premise of the game's story alone would already have you keen to try the game out for yourself. However, if you're not really a fan of World War 2 based video games, then maybe the gameplay would manage to catch your attention. Unlike your old-school strategy games such as Starcraft, Warcraft, & Age of Empires, Company of Heroes introduces the mechanics of, for example, economic gathering, sectorial management, dynamic cover, command powers, destructible environments, real-time physics (get that Fortnite sh*t outta here) and I could go on. Combat wise, you control one of four different armies, two from the allies & and two from the axis, which deploy squads of soldiers or individual tanks each with their own pros and cons. You use a combination of the multiple varieties of units available to you in whatever method of attack or defence that you want to do.
Do you want to charge over 70 units of US riflemen, armed with the BAR & sticky bombs against a division of German panthers? Of course, you can! Do you want to launch a rocket at a single British officer running for his life? Go ahead! This game lays down the groundwork through historical maps, battles, events, and basically hands over an immeasurable amount of freedom to choose how YOU want to play.
If you have completed the campaign without much of a challenge, then you may dive into the multiplayer as you, obviously, battle other players live to each their own choice of playstyle, and even against the game's computer-based AI which, depending on the chosen difficulty, it could either be a walk in the park or your complete and utter annihilation.
Graphics & Immersion? Who cares! As a game from 2006, using a (now) dead engine, this game takes the cake when it comes to the bare bones of the pixel by pixel details. For a real-time strategy game, you have realistic looking weapons, uniforms, tanks, maps, explosions, faces, voice acting ("EAGLES! SCREAMING ON JERRY!"), destructive action, rockets, more explosions, tiger tanks, cartoonish animations, physics, fires, airstrikes, buildings, and did I mention explosions?
In my honest opinion, Company of Heroes isn't just a game that deserves more attention because let's face it, the attention is already there from way back in 2006. This game is a must-play for any RTS fanatic out there.
System Req (Minimum) OS: Windows XP / Windows Vista Processor: 2.0 GHz Intel Pentium IV / AMD Athlon XP Memory: 512MB Graphics: NVIDIA GeForce 3 Series / ATI Radeon 9500 Sound: DirectX 9.0 Storage: 9GB (Steam says 1GB for some reason)
System Req (Recommended) OS: Windows XP / Windows Vista / Windows 7-8 (10 has some initial compatibility issues from my experience) Processor: 3.0 GHz Intel Pentium IV Memory: 1GB Graphics: NVIDIA GeForce 6800 Sound: DirectX 9.0 Storage: 9GB (Steam leaves this blank for some reason)
Side Note: On Steam, there's the normal version & the legacy version, which are given to you upon purchase. The legacy version is the most updated version of the game by Relic Entertainment but, access to multiplayer is extremely troublesome as it's not supported by Steam servers. Play the non-legacy version for little to no issues.
Price (USD): $16.18 (Main Game + Legacy Edition), $29.43 (Main Game + Legacy Edition + Both DLC's) [PC] Disclaimer: this is a direct conversion of my local currency via Steam because Google is being dumb. In my opinion, it's worth the full price.
GGMan’s Weekly Video Game Recommendation #4
I play a lot of games. Some, everyone has played. Others, not so much. I'll be listing one game per week, that I have played and believe it deserves more attention. If you have already played it, then that's great! If you haven't, then you might as well. Pushed ahead of time because on other platforms, I’ve already reached the 4th review.
Name: Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning Genre: RPG, Fantasy, Open World Game Developer: 38 Studios & Big Huge Games Publisher: Electronic Arts Engine: Havok Length: Up to 200 Hours Singleplayer? Yes. Multiplayer? No. Release Date: February 7th, 2012 Platforms: PC, PS3, Xbox 360
Reviews: Steam 9/10, PC Gamer 74%, GameSpot 7.5/10, Metacritic 81%
Eyyyyyy it's the first of many huge triple-A role-playing games, to come. This unique looking RPG and its story originates through the minds of bestselling author R.A. Salvatore, Spawn creator Todd McFarlane, and The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion lead designer Ken Rolston. Although this game was not exactly the best result for 38 Studios, considering how they filed for bankruptcy shortly after its release, it is still a decent game with predominantly everything that you'd expect out of a "poster-cut-out" RPG.
Essentially, you start out as a complete nobody, sadly like how many of us are in real life, until you are discovered to contain a special power or life-force of uncertain heroism, again like how many of us are NOT in real life, and as you would expect, your job to is to find out more about yourself and fulfill your destiny as the world's saviour. Although this game initially received mixed feelings when it was first released, you have got to hand it to the developers of 38 Studios that the general idea of a single man/woman being the supposed "chosen one" meant to save all of mankind and defeat the dark evils, that probably lurks just under your bed, is not a terribly overrated idea. This is considering, how many other games such as Skyrim, Greedfall, Witcher 3, Sekiro, StarWars: KOTOR, and many other similarities, have either fully adopted or partially used a strand of this primitive outline for their own storylines. I'm not saying that these games have done exactly like Kingdoms of Amalur, but rather, these games had done it better, with the exception of StarWars: KOTOR as that game is of its own supreme level and thus, might be covered by yours truly, in the future.
The gameplay, I would say feels like if the original God of War games had a baby with Dragon Age, and then in the mix came polygamy with Darksiders... then yeah, that's probably the best short description I can give you. On a real note, the gameplay wraps around a skill-based system where timing your button pressing skills would lead you to victory. Also, just like most action-based-button-pressings RPG's, this one does include a "rage mode", in or in this case, a "fate mode" where you literally wrestle with fate and use it to bash your enemy's head in. Sadly, unless you're into a full achievements Olympic track record, the replayability is not exactly there. Like Witcher 3, Kingdoms of Amalur is essentially a cakewalk after a few hours of character progression on the hardest difficulty and the only reason, that I would personally find, for going back would be the outcomes of the choices you make throughout the game.
Last but not least, the look of the game is amazing. It could be your alternate, less people-ish / less community-ish World of Warcraft game since the graphics, if you were to compare it, looks fairly similar. However, if you think that this game does not look like a Gordon Ramsay's Special Beef Wellington, then I have news for you. THQ Nordic purchased the rights for the game back in 2018 and plan to release a remastered version some time this year, 2020.
PC System Req (Minimum) OS: Windows XP / Windows Vista / Windows 7 Processor: 2.2GHz Intel Core 2 Duo / 2.6GHz AMD Athlon 64 X2 Memory: 1GB for Windows XP / 2GB for Windows Vista & Windows 7 Graphics: NVIDIA GeForce 8800 / ATI Radeon HD3850 Sound: DirectX Version 9.0 Storage: 10.5GB
PC System Req (Recommended) OS: Windows XP / Windows Vista / Windows 7 Processor: 2.4GHz Intel Core 2 Quad / 2.6GHz AMD Phenom X4 Memory: 3GB for Windows XP / 4GB for Windows Vista & Windows 7 Graphics: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 260 / ATI Radeon HD4850 Sound: DirectX 9.0 Storage: 10.5GB
Side Note: Minimum Resolution of 1280 x 720
Price (USD): $19.99 [PC, Xbox 360, PS3] On Steam it's an assured 20 bucks but for consoles, especially the Xbox 360 (since it's no longer in production), the prices may vary depending on where you purchase the game. In my opinion, the price is just right for the game considering the amount of content it offers. However, if you're like me, who feels that you're are always poor no matter what you've got in your bank account, then waiting for a sale of minus 5 bucks, is alright.
Longest one yet so, I do apologize if you're annoyed because it is a bigger game in comparison to the rest so, I wanted to give a proper take on what it's worth.
GGMan’s Weekly Video Game Recommendation #3
I play a lot of games. Some, everyone has played. Others, not so much.
I'll be listing one game per week, that I have played and believe it deserves more attention. If you have already played it, then that's great! If you haven't, then you might as well. Pushed ahead because on other platforms, I’m on the 4th game I’ve reviewed.
Name: The Awesome Adventures of Captain Spirit Genre: Story-Rich Adventure Game Developer: DONTNOD Entertainment Publisher: Square Enix Engine: Unreal Engine Length: 1-3 hours depends on whether you want to focus solely on the main story or experience all the secrets that it has to offer. Singleplayer? Yes. Multiplayer? No. Release Date: June 25th, 2018 Platforms: PC, PS4, Xbox One
Reviews: Steam 9/10, GameSpot 8/10, GamesRadar 4.5/5, Metacritic 79%
It's a cute and wholesome story-telling adventure game that was released mid-2018, FOR FREE, as an advertisement and a trailer for Life is Strange 2.
This heartwarming yet honest game takes upon a somewhat realistic setting of an out-of-the-way home and family consisting of a single alcoholic parent, and an extremely imaginative kid (two different sides of the same equation heh). However, don't let that fool you as this story is played through the perspective of Chris Eriksen, a nine-year-old boy who often tends to escape reality with his alter ego, Captain Spirit. From the team behind the BAFTA award-winning game, Life is Strange, return to your childhood as you follow Chris' make-believe and down to earth adventures that practically whisks you beyond the harsh reality of life itself.
I swear, there are definitely a handful of ninjas cutting onions around here because this game really brought about a dwelling sense of melancholy within me as I truly felt for the main character. It's one of those few games where you remember it not for the gameplay or the graphics, but rather, the original narrative that enhances the gaming experience. Although some aspects of the game's content sound cliche, that's simply because you're not taking control of an adult with expectations or a teenager with anxieties; you are simply a child with dreams.
Like me, you will wish that this game was longer.
PC System Req (Minimum) OS: Windows 7 or above Processor: Intel Core i3-2100 or AMD Phenom X4 945 Memory: 4GB Graphics: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 650 or AMD Radeon HD 7770 DirectX : Version 11 Storage: 5GB
PC System Req (Recommended) OS: Windows 10 Processor: Intel Core i5 3470 or AMD FX-8350 Memory: 6GB Graphics: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 970 or AMD Radeon R9 280X DirectX: Version 11 Storage: 5GB
Price: IT'S COMPLETELY FREE
GGMan’s Weekly Video Game Recommendation #2
I play a lot of games. Some, everyone has played. Others, not so much.
I'll be listing one game per week, that I have played and believe it deserves more attention. If you have already played it, then that's great! If you haven't, then you might as well.
Name: The Stanley Parable Genre: Indie/Adventure Developer: Davey Wredon & Galactic Cafe Engine: Source Length: 30 minutes to 5 hours... depends on whether you play all the endings or not. Singleplayer? Yes. Multiplayer? No. Release Date: July 31st, 2011 Platforms: PC, Mac, Linux.
Reviews: Steam 9/10, PC Gamer 90%, IGN 8.8/10, Metacritic 88%
It's an interactive, yet dramatic, walking simulator with a grand total of 19 endings. NINETEEN! That's more than your average Telltale Game. Originally, it was meant to be a free mod for Half-Life 2 but Davey basically went, "ya know what, screw it, time to make some money off of this game" and here we are. Although the price for a minuscule, fragile, game like The Stanley Parable is quite steep for the amount of content, it's an absolute mindblower. It will keep you guessing what you plan to do, what you're doing, and what you have done with its fascinating narrative.
I can't think of a better summary for the game, other than what the developer wrote on the Steam store:
"You will play as Stanley, and you will not play as Stanley. You will follow a story, you will not follow a story. You will have a choice, you will have no choice. The game will end, the game will never end. Contradiction follows contradiction, the rules of how games should work are broken, then broken again. This world was not made for you to understand." - Davey Wredon, Steam Store.
It's an adventure that is not exactly taken but, it is still adventurous HAHA (ah my brain hurts). However, if you're not fond of the steep price, you may install the free demo version from the Steam store.
System Req (Minimum) OS: Windows XP/Vista/7/8 Processor: 3.0 GHz, Dual Core 2.0 or AMD64X2 Memory: 2GB Graphics: ATI Radeon X800 or NVIDIA GeForce 7600 or Intel HD Graphics 2000 Storage: 3GB Sound Card: DirectX 9.0
Price (USD): $14.99 [PC, Mac, Linux] In my opinion, the price is a bit steep for such a small game so I would recommend waiting for a sale to drop the cost below $10.00. However, the demo version is free so that's a plus.
GGMan's Weekly Video Game Recommendation #1 I play a lot of games. Some, everyone has played. Others, not so much. I'll be listing one game per week, that I have played and believe it deserves more attention. If you have already played it, then that's great! If you haven't, then you might as well. Name: RUINER Genre: Shoot Em' Up Developer: Reikon Games Engine: UE4 Length: 2-10 hours... depends on the selected difficulty. Singleplayer? Yes. Multiplayer? No. Release Date: Sept 26th, 2017 Platforms: PS4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, PC. Reviews: Steam 9/10, PC Gamer 84%, Metacritic 75% It's one of those cyberpunk-themed, indie, third-person shooters that use a top-down format. It's really fast-paced, easy to learn, but difficult to master as you fight an OVERWHELMING number of enemies whilst listening to a badass soundtrack. It's a very brutal game, imma tell you that; makes Hotline Miami look like a fancy picnic. It's your average day in the life of a half-man, half-robot (heh sounds like Robocop), who also turns out to be a psychopath. He discovers that his brother was kidnapped so, just like Liam Neeson from the movie TAKEN, he sets out on a path of slaughtering the corrupt, with the aid of a secretive hacker friend. System Req (Minimum) OS: Windows 7/8.1/10 Processor: Intel Core i5-760 or AMD Athlon II X4 645 AM3 Memory: 4GB Graphics: GeForce GTX 460 or Radeon HD 6850 Storage: 10GB System Req (Recommended) OS: Windows 7/8.1/10 Processor: Intel Core i5-4670K or AMD FX-6350 Memory: 6GB Graphics: GeForce GTX 660 or Radeon HD 7970 Storage: 10GB Price (USD): $19.99 [PC, PS4, Xbox One, Switch] In my opinion, it's worth the full price. However, if you are running a little dry, there's no harm in waiting for a sale.