Recent reviews by DelinQ

While the game is fun, charming, and doesn't overstay its welcome, I can't recommend it currently.

There are countless bugs, from small ones, to crashes, to ones that literally don't allow you to progress through the main story. As of right now I can't finish the final act of this game and can't complete one side story because they're bugged.

A mind-numbing, shallow experience.

Yaga tackles themes of Slavic mythology, which sounds interesting on paper, especially since these themes don't get explored in media enough, but the execution in this game is done very poorly.

The story is bland, there's nothing really happening to grab my attention, but that isn't the main problem. The gameplay loop and the mechanics introduced in this game are very poorly done. Combat is abysmal, it's boring, doesn't feel rewarding and isn't snappy or fun.

Crafting is useless. Sure, it can help you progress in the game, but it's never properly explained, it's filled with annoying variables that never make it worth the effort to use the system, since weapons break easily anyways.

The game also has roguelike mechanics such as upgrades to skills depending on what moral choices you make throughout the game, or how areas will reward you depending on what time of day you choose to tackle them. Problem is, it never feels like anything actually changes with these choices, it isn't apparent enough to make it feel as if your specific choices even matter.

The best part of the game is that it genuinely seems that dialogue/moral choices matter. It's a shame that this is the one single thing that this game does right. Everything else ranges from mediocre to straight up bad.

2/10

An absolute masterpiece. (Personal Game of The Year)

Going through the list of games that came out in 2021, I realized that I wasn't exploring the Indie scene enough. Shuffling through bigger releases, constantly playing mediocre games that don't do much for me, I decided I should just look at my wishlist and get the first thing that looked even remotely interesting for me. Specifically, an Indie game.

I stumbled upon Everhood, and while I did have the expectations of having a fun, fast-paced experience, I didn't realize just what a great decision I made. It's a rarity nowadays to play a video game that keeps surprising me and puts a huge grin on my face the whole time I'm playing it.

The gameplay loop is addicting. Essentially, imagine if you were playing Guitar Hero, but you had to DODGE the notes, rather than hit them? That's what the game is, it's a concept where you're a character trapped in multiple Guitar Hero levels, and the flying instrumental notes are out there to kill you. It's so simple yet done so well. What helps this a ton is that there is not a single poorly made track in the OST. Every single song in this game is amazing. From funk, to house, to straight up techno, it has it all. For a fan of dance music, it's a rarity nowadays to find games that have soundtracks like this. I would often find myself trying to extend specific boss fights just so I could listen to the songs more.

The world is charming, the characters are weird and quirky, but also very likeable and original. The world is uncanny, filled with medieval castles, and acid trip fueled funky towns, where members of the cast go to play D&D. Everything in the overall design department is done in such an off the wall way, but it also never becomes weird to a point where it doesn't make any sense.

Besides being an already amazing game from the gameplay loop perspective, Everhood tackles themes such as humanity, morality, and existentialism. It raises philosophical questions that you could ponder on for hours. It always seems like when your character is faced with these questions, the developers actually intend them for you, the player, to think about.

It's always a treat to play special games like these, where you can just see how much care and love the developers put into the project, and it translates so well. I'm really glad I went on this journey with them, and just like they kept thanking me for playing the game while I was there, I have immense gratitude for them as well. You guys really made something special with this, and I have no idea what you will have to make to top this, but I'll be sure to stick along.

Thank you.

10/10

Simple and fun, while it lasts. It takes a maximum of 2 hours to experience everything the game has to offer, and it's better to keep it that way. Overstaying your welcome makes the gameplay old very quickly. It's not overly deep, but it doesn't try to be either. If you're looking for something to just spend an hour on, or you're feeling competitive and want to dominate the global leaderboard in the game, this may be for you.

Overall, the amount and quality of the content justifies the already low price. An above average, short game.

6/10

Nevermind the mobile game systems, the janky controls, and the unsatisfying game mode - the game is simply mediocre at best on a fundamental level.

Of course it's in early access, but I can't see developers changing the main mechanics of the game as they are the foundation of it. I can't see this game lasting long, unfortunately.

If I could give this game a "medium" score, I would.

I'm very conflicted when it comes to NieR Replicant. On one hand, I got enthralled in the story of our characters, related to them, and enjoyed the journey they took me on. On the other, I absolutely hated the things I had to do to fully complete this journey.

Replicant 1.22 is a remake/remaster (hence the version name being the square root of 1.5) of a 2010 game that was released with two versions. NieR Gestalt for the west and NieR Replicant for the East. This is the Eastern version of the game remade with improvements to combat based on NieR Automata's success, a graphical overhaul, and some extra content that didn't make it into the original version due to time and budget constraints.

The story itself seems very basic on the surface level, but the whole point of the game is replaying a good chunk of it a few too many times to get the full grasp on the story. It looks like it tells a story about sibling love, and a rescue mission, but it goes deeper than that on consecutive playthroughs. When the story opens up, it tackles narrative topics such as moral dilemas, how revenge makes a person blind, and what it means to be 'human'. It pushes these topics well, but it's nothing crazy, or 'masterpiece' level. There has been plenty of media since 2010 that have tackled a similar narrative much better. I won't delve into spoilers, but the name "Replicant" gives a good, yet obscure clue about the story.

The three main characters are well developed, each one connected to each other through a spiritual sense that relates to their past emotional trauma. Essentially, they need each other to live on happily and with a purpose. While the characters themselves are pleasant to look at on screen, the fact that you're forced into reading huge segments of only text to understand their backstory is annoying to say the least. I wish I could've seen cutscenes of the stories I had to read through.

The soundtrack is possibly the strongest feature of this game. It's melancholical, emotional, and manages to convey these feelings with the overall cadence of the OST. It also greatly elevates the mood of the areas and plot points when you reach them.

Unfortunately, these are pretty much the only things that the game does right. The gameplay itself is dated. Very dated. Even 2010 standards dated. The overall mechanics, apart from the updated combat (which, while fun, isn't anything complex, simply flashy) most of the game plays like a PS2 era JRPG. Mind numbing fetch quests, constant back tracking and running around the world for miniscule purposes such as "Ask this NPC in the other corner of the world a question". This becomes very apparent once you finish your first playthrough and start replaying the 2nd part of the game. It becomes a chore to get to the end 3 more times for some extra cutscenes, and you will notice yourself skipping every single piece of content possible just so you can get to the end point faster and get it over with. The initial magic that you felt when you started the game for the first time wears of very quickly.

Boss fights and 'dungeons', or, let's say, boss areas are mostly fun and imaginative. Each boss has some sort of gimmick that doesn't overstay its welcome, and the process of beating them is exciting. The first time, at least.

While it seems that most of my talking points are positive, unfortunately, the thing that I remember the most from my experience with the game is tediousness and mind numbing gameplay. Difficulty is poorly done, with Hard mode making the game even slower than it already is, combat is flashy, yet becomes a button spamming/holding feature once you find the best weapons (spears, mostly), and this stuff is what you will see for most of your playthrough.

I leave NieR Replicant 1.22 with a sour taste in my mouth. It's not bad, but I can't help but not be satisfied with the experience. Unfortunately, I can't recommend the game at full price, but if you're interested in the franchise, you should play it some years later when the price drops to an appropriate amount.

Oh, one more thing: The game is a nightmare from the completionist perspective, so keep that in mind.

5/10

Becomes useless by the time you get to use it. Don't waste money on this

From a gameplay perspective, Outriders is fine. Nothing horrible, yet nothing special. It doesn't advance on the looter shooter formula, but it doesn't use the tropes in the most basic way either. The mod system is great, it's the basis that the player builds upon when they start to realise that it's not all about the stats of their gear, and how much damage their weapon does. The problem with Outriders lies in absolutely everything besides the gear system.

Launch Weekend and the following week - the game released in a semi-terrible state, with players not being able to enter the servers, crashes, bugs, inventory wipes etc. Rather than giving players a deadline, or a quick fix, PCF (the devs) decided that they would wait a week and then inform the players, that they will have to wait another week for a patch. That's fine, however, the issue with this announcement was the fact that a bunch of nerfs were introduced to the game (1 week after release, I'll emphasise this), to builds that were dominating the endgame content. Not only did this tick off a bunch of players that spent dozens of hours trying to achieve the gear to pull them off, it also introduced NEW bugs and crashes that accompanied them, such as whole characters being deleted.

Artificial Game Lengtheners - PCF seem to love making the game last as long as possible. Every time you do the smallest thing: black screen, short cutscene, black screen. It's annoying, it's low effort, and it goes against the idea of a game type that is meant to be grinded. No one wants to repeatedly see these things if they're trying to grind a boss or a side quest for a long period of time.

Story - An absolute embarrassment. PCF are the devs of Bulletstorm, which was also known for having a very corny and poorly written plot, but Outriders outdoes itself, by having a bunch of plot holes, predictable B movie tropes, and terrible, and I mean, TERRIBLE voice acting and dialogue. It's like watching a bunch of Tommy Wiseaus (I did not hit her, I did not! Oh hi Mark) speak to each other. Thankfully, it's not the appeal of the game, but if you go into this expecting a good single player experience regarding the plot, just go buy the next thing.

Linearity - The areas in the game are nice to look at, but are very unimaginative. They're all just glorified HD hallways that have an arena at the end of them. It's great that there is some variety to the maps, so they don't end up feeling like the same place every time, but again, map design is pretty much the same thing throughout the whole game.

Multiplayer - As of now, it's been 1 week since the game came out, a big chunk of people have still yet to join a working match. Enough said.

Endgame - The main selling point of this game was supposed to be the endgame, which was marketed as an absolute blast. That's a bunch of bs. They're repetitive and get boring quick, and there's nothing rewarding about them, besides when you reach the final Expedition tier, since that means you have now reached the point where you can drop the game and move on.

So, if it isn't obvious, no, I don't think this game is worth 60$. The devs seem like they care, and they're trying, but they keep digging themselves a bigger hole day by day. It's average, the devs are, unfortunately, while nice, pretty much incompetent and clearly have no experience with looter shooters and it's just not fun. What kind of looter shooter has legendary guns that seem inferior to basic ones?

Too good to be so short

UPDATE: Don't buy this game. Play the original. At it's current state, this one is in no way worth full price.


Some negatives to consider before buying the game (especially for those wanting a Day 1 purchase) -

- There is no FOV slider
- Mouse sensitivity is weird. You can't match aiming down sights sens with your normal one.
- When you shoot, there's a millisecond delay before the bullet comes out, this is apparent with the pistol especially.
- Game just feels clunky. NPC animations are complete stiff robots.
- When you get shot, besides the minimal red flash on your screen, there is 0 indication. There's no impact which makes it harder to feel like anyone is actually attacking you, and it doesn't help when it comes to being aware of your HP.
- Hard difficulty is honestly a joke. The enemy AI has no clue what it's supposed to do. I can only imagine what Easy difficulty is like.