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video game reviews

Game Review: Digimon Survive

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This was not a review code. I bought this game when it came out because I love Digimon. Digimon Survive is a visual novel with some survival and RPG elements. You can play it on all major consoles, but this review is for the Switch version.

If you are a fan of visual novels, this is a solid one based in the digital world. The art is cool, the voice acting is amazing, and the story is fine. Most of the gameplay involves flipping through a visual novel with a bit of exploration and combat sprinkled in.

The exploration is simple. You move between rooms and talk to other characters to unlock more of the story. The game does encourage exploration by hiding useful items in each room, so be sure to click on everything. The exploration is limited to whatever rooms are relevant to the current events in the story. There is no voice acting for the exploration scenes, so you will have to do the voices yourself. This isn’t a criticism because I love the sound of my own voice. 

All images and video are taken from the game

Combat is where I had the most fun, but it is a bit limited compared to other RPGs like Fire Emblem. You control a team of Digimon that you can continually edit as you progress through the story. You can move, make attacks, use abilities, boost your Digimon, and even befriend enemies. I recommend you mess with the settings to speed up the combat unless you don’t mind the tedium of sitting through the animations. Compared to other games in the genre, the grind is almost non-existent. You can grind as much as you feel necessary, but it wasn’t a life-sucking endeavor that others have been. You can enter combat whenever you want in between stories, but I wish there was a bit more in the form of dungeons personally. I had a lot of fun with the combat. It was my favorite part of the game.

Music by QubeSounds from Pixabay

The visual novel makes up most of the gameplay in Digimon Survive. The story is fine, but if you don’t like anime, you are going to have a bad time. I watch a lot of anime and felt the story to be a bit on the generic side. It wasn’t bad, but it didn’t do much to break the mold. If you are a fan of anime and love Digimon, this will be a decent experience. The story is voice acted by very talented actors. It is in Japanese and I couldn’t have it any other way. I can only hope that this can become adapted as an anime because the fights would be amazing!

So is this game worth it? It depends on your tastes as a person. This is a very niche game made for a specific audience. If you are a fan of Digimon and anime and enjoy visual novels, pick it up. If you don’t mind spending your gaming time reading and want to dive into the visual novel genre, this is a decent place to start. If you are on the fence, I would wait for a sale. While I did enjoy this game and am glad I bought it, I could only play it in small bursts because of my short attention span. 

You can play this on the Switch, Playstation, and Xbox. Links are for my affiliate shop.

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By Shopitree, Fair use, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?curid=70920496

video game reviews

Game Review: El Paso, Nightmare

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I want to mention that I was sent this game as a review code. While I am very grateful for the opportunity, I will not let that sway my opinions. This will be an honest review of the game.

El Paso, Nightmare is a Doom-like first-person shooter that proves you don’t need high-fidelity graphics to make a game fun. This high-octane, blood-pumping and disorienting experience is something that should at least be on your watchlist. Take control of Luis Rojas as you navigate through a nightmarish labyrinth killing monsters and trying to find a way out.

The gameplay is strait forward. You run around a maze picking up pills, weapons, ammo, and keys while killing the monsters that hunt you mercilessly. Don’t get caught or it’s game over!

Music by prazkhanal from Pixabay

I had a blast with El Paso, Nightmare. The music is fantastic, and I hope there is a soundtrack soon. There isn’t much of a story except for the little setup you get at the start, but the voice acting is great. I love the bit of dialogue Luis says as he tries to calm himself down. It is well-acted, and it makes Luis a more tangible character. Luis is very relatable because he is a normal guy going through a terrifying experience and the voice actor does a tremendous job of expressing this. 

I don’t do well in horror games; I had a hard time at first. My heart was racing, and I almost quit after the first jump scare, but I powered through for you. The horror in this game is well done. You can hear the creatures shuffling in the distance, feel the footsteps as they chase you, and the music makes the whole experience that much more intense. It does get easier the more you play, but I always had trouble when I reached a new area of the maze.

Screenshots and Video taken from game

My only complaint about this game is that the gameplay does get a bit repetitive. When you die, the level resets. All of the monster, weapon, and item spawns stay the same. After a while, you learn where everything is. You start to form routines as you make you plan your way to the next area. It becomes tedious when you are killing the same monsters and following the same paths because there are no checkpoints. At least none that I reached. The game does try to balance the monotony by creating multiple paths that lead to other areas where you fight different monsters. I still wish there was a way to save my progress so I didn’t lose my work because I got careless. 

You should check out El Paso, Nightmare. It is well worth the $5. If you are a fan of the original doom, you will like this game. If you want a game that isn’t a huge commitment that you can pick and drop whenever this is a great choice. I will be looking out for its sequel because I am curious to see what they can do. You can buy it now on Steam. 

video game reviews

Game Review: Of Blades & Tails

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I’d like to start by mentioning that I was sent this game as a review code. While I am very grateful for the opportunity, I will not let this sway my opinions. This will be my honest opinion of the game.

Of Blades & Tails is a 2D turn-based RP that I had a lot of fun with. I played it on steam, but there are plans for its release on all major consoles in Q3 2023. This game is currently in early access, and this review will be more of my initial impressions of the experience. I will be consistently returning to this game over time so that I can experience its growth.

All pictures and video are taken from the game

The game lets you take control of Reik, a fox person with an empty slate. As you grow, you are allowed to grow Reik and whatever manner you wish. I played him as a warrior with a sword and shield, but the combinations are nearly endless. Want to do magic? There is a skill tree for that. Want to play a rogue? There is a skill tree for that. Want to punch people to death? It’s in the game! If you are indecisive, I have great news: you never have to commit to a class or skill tree! The game allows you to reset your skill trees whenever, provided you have the materials to do so.

The game lets you choose from three different difficulties: relaxed, adventure, and a challenge mode that isn’t out yet. I played on the adventure difficulty and thought it was perfect. I suggest you start there unless the challenge mode is available when you play.

Combat in this game is relatively simple. You move around on an open map with roaming monsters that attack you on sight. If you agro a monster, combat starts. Combat is turn-based. You can take one action per turn. You can move, attack, use an item, or use an ability as your action. Monsters don’t move unless you complete your action, allowing you time to plan appropriately.

Music by Daddy_s_Music from Pixabay

Do not let the appearance of this game fool you; this game can be unforgiving. I died a lot because I was careless and cocky. If you die, you restart from your last save. You need to be constantly saving or risk losing items. 

One thing to note about the gameplay is that it is a grind. If you don’t like grindy games, this probably isn’t for you. The grind isn’t bad, but it is repetitive. You will be fighting the same monsters in the same locations until you are strong enough to move to the next area and do it all over again with a different set of monsters. I didn’t mind this grind, but it is something to keep in mind.

I loved the aesthetics of this game. I love the 2D pixel art of the world. It was very cute to see how my little fox warrior changed as I geared him over time. I never got to enjoy the NES era of gaming, so I was very excited to see that this game has a retro filter to emulate the experience. 

So what do I think? For the price, I think it is a solid experience. If you don’t mind this game being a grind and in its early stages, I would say support it. It is only 13 bucks. Otherwise, I would wait til it is further refined. Some missions aren’t available yet, so you are currently only getting a fraction of the experience. This isn’t something that I mind much because this is a game I will be coming back to. 

Of Blades and Tails is a game that you throw on when you just want to chill and not have to be too invested in story and mechanics. There is some min-maxing you can do for those of you that like that style of gameplay, but I am not smart enough to speak on that. As a filthy casual, I never felt the need to min-max. At the very least, you should consider adding it to your watch list.

video game reviews

Game Review: Lovecraft’s Untold Stories 2

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I want to start out by saying that I got this game as a review code and while I am grateful for the opportunity, I will not let that sway my opinion. This will be an honest review of the game.

Lovecraft Untold Stories 2 is a 2D isometric dungeon crawler for pc based on Lovecraft lore. You start off choosing from three playable characters: the witch, the professor, and the detective. Each character has its own unique abilities, armor, and weapons. You control your character through randomly generated dungeons as you try to solve a mystery.

All pictures are from screenshots.

I was very excited about this game. I liked the art, I liked that the cutscenes were comic-like, and I had fun at the intro level. But once you get out of the intro mission, the game becomes frustratingly unplayable. Movement becomes clunky and slow in the cluttered rooms. I was constantly getting stuck on boxes, holes, and trees, making kiting enemies virtually impossible. To make matters worse, I was getting stuck on the invisible boundaries of boxes and trees. The witch has a cool teleport ability that could pass through enemies but would get stuck on invisible artifacts. I died so many times because my teleport was constantly being canceled by nothing. There are instances where I would teleport only to be trapped in between an inescapable grouping of trees. When the environment is more deadly than the enemies, that is bad game design.

I thought the randomly generated dungeons were cool at first, but that view quickly turned sour. I quickly learned that the room generation was quite unbalanced. Some rooms were laughably easy, with only two enemies standing in my way. Others were impossibly hard, with too many enemies and no way to escape. There was one room I couldn’t even complete because there was a wall blocking the exit. I love the randomness of life as much as any other gamer, but this experience was frustrating. 

The insanity mechanic is nonsense. If you get hit by an enemy, you slowly get stacks of insanity. If you get too many, you die. The problem is, there is no clear indication of how much insanity you have, nor is there an easy way to clear it. Because the environment made movement difficult, it was impossible to clear a level without getting stacks of insanity. You either got killed because you got stuck trying to run away, or you died because you gathered too much insanity. This poorly designed mechanic made this game harder than it should be. 

I was beyond excited about this game because it reminds me of the Arkham Horror board game. I have been desperately trying to find a group to play with, and I believed this game would be my only chance. The disappointment I collected from this game was so painful, I couldn’t muster the strength to finish this game. I forced myself to play as much as I could, but I can only be so patient. This game is broken to the point where you won’t get any meaningful enjoyment out of it. Lovecraft Untold Stories 2 isn’t worth your time as a free game, let alone the $25 it is asking for. But if you don’t believe me, you can buy it on steam.

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video game reviews

Timemelters: First Impressions

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I got sent the Timemelters demo as a review code, and although I am grateful for the opportunity, I will not let it sway my opinions. Since this is a demo, this will be less of a review and more of my first impressions. You can download the demo on Steam today, and I recommend you try it out.

Timemelters is a first-person tower defense-like game that I had a lot of fun with. It reminds me of the Orcs Must Die! series but with fewer traps. In Timemelters, you control a single character and run around a large map setting traps, killing mobs, and turning back time. There is a bit of strategy involved in this game, but it shouldn’t be a problem for most people. I am not very smart, but I managed to brute force myself through eventually.

All pictures are from screenshots

This game is incredibly polished for being made by such a small team of three developers. It runs smoothly, looks beautiful, and is a lot of fun. The concept is simple, but the range of abilities and the pacing of the mobs kept the game fast-paced and exciting. 

I can’t speak on the story because the demo doesn’t explore it too much, nor can I speak on the diversity of the missions. The demo offers a great tutorial and a few missions that provide a fantastic taste of what it has in store. I never felt lost or overwhelmed by the information and was only limited by my skill level,

The game fully launches on Steam on October 12th. This game deserves a lot of love. I am vastly impressed by how much this team of three was able to accomplish. If you like tower defense games with some RTS elements, give this game a try. The demo is free, and it is available on Steam!

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video game reviews

Game Review: Way of the Hunter

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I want to start by saying that I received this game as a review code. While I am very grateful for the opportunity, I will not let that sway my opinion. This will be an honest review of the game. I stream every game I review on my Twitch and Youtube. Check out my Twitch for an up-to-date schedule. 

All images are screenshots from the game. There are no animals because I am a terrible hunter

I played this game on PC, but it is also available on PS5 and Xbox. Way of the Hunter is a hunting simulator game that aims for realism. You can track animals, pick up job requests, and there is an overarching story that you unlock as you play. It is easy to get lost in this game because it is so beautifully immersive.

The graphics in this game are pretty solid, but it is a few updates from being perfect. I encountered a few visual glitches like floating rocks and trees that affected immersion, but none of them was game-breaking. Someone in my twitch chat mentioned the art was too grainy, I didn’t have a problem with it but keep that in mind. My only issue with the visuals was the grass would get too busy, and I would lose myself trying to find the kills. My playthrough is littered with countless unclaimed carcasses because I couldn’t find them in the brush. This seems like a personal problem, but it is something to keep in mind.

The game has a story, but it acts more as flavor. You can also accept jobs to make more money that requires you to hunt specific animals. Gameplay isn’t limited to quests. You have free reign to hunt whatever you like, granted you have the right equipment. Make sure you use the money you earn to purchase the appropriate tools. 

The map is huge and will involve a lot of driving and walking to unlock all of it. There is fast travel available to keep you from making the long treks twice. My favorite part of this game was the sound. It is incredibly immersive. You can hear bugs zip by your ear, the babbling brooks, the birds in the trees, and other animal calls in the wild. I now know what a mule deer sounds like, and I can track it by just its call.

Hunting is fun, but it requires a lot of patience. If you spook the animals, you will have to spend time tracking them down or waiting till they come back. There is a detective mode that helps with tracking, but a spooked animal can easily disappear in the tree line. I have zero patience and as a result, this game became a hiking simulator. This isn’t a criticism because I enjoyed my virtual hikes. I had a favorite spot I would go to just to listen to the stream and the birds while I waited for prey. It is easy to get lost in this game as you relax and enjoy it for what it is.

My one complaint about hunting is that not all of the AI is perfect. Some animals are smart, and tracking them is fun. Others will get stuck running loops or stop making them easy targets. Some animals didn’t leave blood splatter or trails, making them impossible to track. These cases were rare, but they are something I can’t overlook.

Way of the Hunter is one of the most relaxing games I have ever played. I recommend it if you like simulator games and don’t mind waiting around for hours. I am very impatient and still enjoyed every minute. One of my favorite parts of this game is the tips you get as you play that give the players practical hunting advice not just for the game but also for real life. This game goes out of its way to teach sustainable hunting practices, and I appreciate the effort.

This game isn’t for everyone, but it is worth consideration. Check it out on Steam, PS5, and Xbox.

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Video Game Review: Destroy All Humans 2: Reprobed

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I want to start by saying that I received this game as a review code. While I am very grateful for the opportunity, I will not let that sway my opinion. This will be an honest review of the game.

Destroy all Humans 2: Reprobed is an updated version with new art and updated graphics. This Reprobed edition includes new locations, new missions, and new weapons to make the game feel fresh and modern for veterans. You play as Crypto as he wages war against the KGB for blowing up his mothership. This crude chaotic third-person shooter is perfect for a gamer looking for a chill and relaxing game to add to their library. It’s even better for those wanting to relive some nostalgia.

I had so much fun with this game; I have never laughed so hard gaming before. I haven’t played any other games in the series, but I have always heard good things about it. I thought this was a great introduction to the series. I never felt alienated by the lack of knowledge bout the lore as the events were kept rather neatly within this story. I am sure those who have played since the beginning will have a deeper appreciation for the game, but do not be intimidated by starting at number 2.

I loved the freedom this game gives you to explore the major cities while you prepare for the next story mission. The game does a fantastic job at encouraging exploration by hiding trophies, Easter eggs, and materials to help you level your weapons around each city. This game has enough going on to keep the completionists out there happy. Each city has a series of side quests that also help you level your character as you prepare. The main story was hilarious, full of crude jokes and innuendos that have you crying from laughter. The voice acting in this game is fantastic. I recommend this game just for the voice acting.

The upgrades in graphics were very much appreciated; this game is beautiful. It was very satisfying to rain down chaos on the streets of San Francisco. The gameplay was good for the most part. As Crypto, you had a choice of various weapons and alien powers that always kept the mayhem refreshing and new. Crypto also has access to a jet pack and skateboard that made movement around the city incredibly fun. The only complaint I have with this game is with the saucer levels. You unlock a saucer early on, and the levels that force you to use it are frustrating. The movement was sluggish and inconstant. The saucer never moved where I wanted it to, and aiming with its weapons was an equally terrible experience.

I played this game on normal difficulty, but I recommend playing on anything harder. I found that the AI on normal was very dumb. You can breeze through the Crypto levels easily if you can figure out a way to trap the NPCs. I assume the saucer levels suck at any difficulty.

I had a lot of fun with this game regardless of the saucer levels. If you prep enough beforehand with the exploration, side missions, and leveling, the story should be manageable at any difficulty. If you are a fan of the originals, there are probably a lot of jokes in this that you will appreciate a lot more than I did. I recommend you get this game if you are on the fence.

I played this game on Steam, but it is also available for the Xbox, Playstation, and through the Epic Games Store.

Please consider supporting what I do by checking out my affiliate links. You might find some sweet deals:

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If you want a physical copy: PS5, Xbox or a Gaming PC

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