Recent reviews by Nightmarian

Yomwari is an interesting game that was something of a surprise coming from Nippon Ichi, but after playing the game through I can say that it's maybe not that that surprising at all. The game is only very loosely a horror title, more focused on the terrors and imagination of a child. There's still a pretty dark story in the background which includes the ending.

The game is fairly short, maybe eight hours tops not including retries and aimless wandering, there there's a good deal of extra time in the game if you enjoy collectibles (I do not).

In my opinion a game is overall decided by story and gameplay, one or the other has to be excellent and the best games have both in full strength.

The story here is barebones, with the true story never really explained. Basically you're searching for your sister after she vanishes due to your character being in denial from an event at the very start of the game. You go look for here. Nothing complicated or frankly very interesting.

There is however apparently a much deeper story in the background between two gods, though it seems that it's a cultural thing lost on us foreigners. I ended up reading an excellent post that did a good job explaining it which would also likely explain the sisters' missing parents and the ending of the game. Knowing that heightened my enjoyment of the story, but it's not something the average joe would pick up as it's not well explained in game.

[POOR] [ACCEPTABLE] [EXCELLENT]

I played this title using my steam controller on my tv since my monitor's ultra wide was not really supported. The controls were decent but didn't feel very fluid. The gameplay itself was simple, you either distract or avoid enemies each of which detect, hunt, and move in unique ways. There were a few frustrating parts, but not ultimately very difficult. You WILL get lost however as the map is subpar at best and the layout of the game world can be disorienting.

There's nothing to cry home about here. There aren't any moments where the game makes you feel great about an accomplishment or the completion of an an event and nothing for those seeking challenge I was still happy enough to tackle each section and had motivation to continue forward, and the game was fun throughout in a simple, pleasing way.

That's probably due to the very retro vibe I got in terms of gameplay and controls, especially during the moments of frustration (factory, for instance...). That's not necessarily a bad thing and some people might even like it.

[POOR] [ACCEPTABLE] [EXCELLENT]

• Art style fits the game well
  
• There's enough challenge to maintain interest for most people
  
• You definitely have motivation to continue playing; finding out what the heck is going on is great lure
  
• Atmosphere, which is important for horror games, is different but there and well executed

• Aside from a few jump scares and scenes not very scary or disturbing
  
• Music was forgettable, as was the presented story
  
• Controls can be frustrating at times

Yomawari is never going to be an indie hit, but it's a fantastic game well worth its humble price. If you enjoy horror games and want to try something on the lighter side Yomawari is a great cleansing snack before or after games like Soma.

As my hours show I really do love this game. While it'll never surpass the giants like Baldur's Gate or Planescape Torment, that's akin to trying to have been born before your parents... it just makes no sense. In a lot of ways Pillars learns from those games and modernizes the genre, but it is also a fresh start at it.

Unfortunately it's exactly because it's pioneering a new direction for the genre that the game is not without its (many) flaws. Even so, they are mostly minor for fans of the genre with the rest being highly subjective (I don't mind lack of full voice acting or the amount of texts in the slightest, for example). Overall this is a fantastically and beautifully realized world with a really deep and intriguing lore that the story weaves through.

It is without doubt one of my favorite recent games of all time and definitely within the RPG genre. Now Deadfire is releasing and aims to fix pretty much all the problems with the first game as well as improve what was already great about it, and I expect this trend to continue especially since a lot of other studios are using their engine. We saw this with games like Tyranny, and in fact it's thanks to Tyranny that we now have its context system (hover over a word/name for its lore or meaning) in Deadfire.

THIS is what excites me the most. With each iteration I imagine Pillars will get better and better, as will the raw engine others hopefully use to create fantastic modern CRPGs. And now that Obsidian is finally back on their two feet, I expect to see a bunch of great stuff from them beyond Pillars.

That being said, if you're a fan of old school CRPGs or want to get into them but are turned off by outdated engines and mechanics, this is a great jumping point. If you're just a fan of RPGs, it's a fantastic game overall. And if you're neither... well, you're probably best sticking with games that only lightly tread in the RPG ocean like Elder Scrolls (and there's nothing wrong with that).

Do yourself a favor and play one of the other many polished 4x games out there. Yes, there aren't any truly phenomenal ones especially if you want a fantasy themed game (there are sadly better sci-fi ones out there currently), but they're a good deal better than Planar Conquest in terms of graphics, game play, strategy, AI, and content. I thought the remake would bring significant changes but that's my own fault for not researching what was planned (because I really didn't care).

If you like tactical battles the most go get Age of Wonders 3. Its recent expansions have made it a very rounded game though its strength still remains solely in its tactical battles. If you want an overall balanced experience Fallen Enchantress' line of games is where you want to go, but it's arguably an ugly game and the AI is kind of terrible (aren't they all?).

For the best overall pick though, Endless Legends is probably the best fantasy 4x game right now. I don't really play any of them much since I'm still searching for what I specifically want, but it's been very well reviewed and is more or less the best fantasy 4x game right now with the exception of its very basic and, in my opinion, boring tactical combat. Still, you can do worse than spend your cash on it.

Whatever your choice there's really no reason to pick up Planar Conquest and they kind of know it which is why it's priced so low.