Recent reviews by nighthawk

Extensive Dungeons & Dragons 5th Edition rendition for the PC.

Great story, great visuals, great gameplay. Overall 10/10

I admit, I'm biased, as I've had this game on my wishlist for more than a year and have been pumped to buy it!
Having played the original back ages ago on my old Windows 98 machine as a kid, and again (with the FullHD patch) on my Windows 7 machine as a student, I'm glad I get to experience a new and improved version on Windows 11 today.

That out of the way, here's my initial thoughts (having played and completed the campaign up to "Men-nefer"):

+ New voice over (it is professional and sounds very much like the original - in German at least)
+ New options that allow you to customize the way you build and play the game (the default feels very natural as a transition from the original)
+ The new global worker pool is very easy to get used to. Not having to wait for the walker to find workers in houses is definitely an improvement! This is optional (and not the default) for all the purists out there.
+ 4k resolution support
+ You can easily move between the game and your second monitor, as well as alt-tab (this is great to refer to guides or for streamers)
+ You can not only name your family but choose from one of about 10 avatars to represent it (very minor, but appreciated nonetheless - you can see the icon at the top right while you play)
+ Animated main menu featuring the Nile and small ships
+ Interesting steam achievements and trading cards (if you're into one of these things)
~ New way to locate buildings in the side bar (you can pretty easily find everything, but it is a little annoying you cannot hide the tooltips which tend to get in the way a lot - they'd be better at the bottom of the screen in a fixed location)
~ New way the flood plain gets flooded. It is now a wave, and doesn't creep forward tile by tile like in the original.
~ New intro video (the style is similar to the Egypt movie by Disney about the biblical story if you've watched that)
- No campaign video when I started the first mission (will there be some in the future? I'll edit this later)
- When starting the game you can't click on the big three game mode selections (campaign, single missions, and loading save games) to proceed, but have to use the "Proceed" button below them (minor UX flaw, but it is also present for the Dynasty choice). During actual game play I had no similar issues so far though.
- The "Hide" keyboard shortcut does not close the menus, overseers, etc. As far as I know it does nothing. You can only hide menus and popups by right clicking, pressing "Escape" brings up the menu, which is a little annoying if you expect it to close the popup. This will take some getting used to, but could've been prevented if the option worked as I thought it would? Why not have escape close popups and bing up the menu only if there are none of those left? Clunky.
- The "Rends l'argent !" achievement is bugged. I paid myself like a Pharaoh in the "Men-nefer" campaign mission until I had over 15000 debens, but it didn't unlock.
- You cannot read the statement about your reputation on the politics overseer screen. It is cut off and doesn't even display a whole line.
- If I recall correctly, there was a score which was displayed at the end of each mission in the original game, but it is missing in this remake. Missed feature.

I'll get back to this review later, when I played more in a few days and update it with more feedback. Hope it was already helpful for somebody! And don't forget to send gifts to your Pharao.

The game is the definition of infinite replayability.
It made me start modding and join the active scene of other developers for it.
I've put hundred's of hours into it and still discover new things.
And Paradox keeps updating it for free! They keep improving the modding interface, too.
By now there are so many mods out, there's something for everybody.
Even the YT community is great, as there's story telling, helpful guides, animations, and gameplay for hours on end.
It's just all around great! <3

It is just amazing to be able to still play the same game I grew up with and watch it flourish even today!

Let me preface this by saying that I never played any platformers extensively. I own Trine, which I never completed or even played much, and that's about it.
This game is a step above the rest of its genre while it still retains the core concepts (challenging puzzles involving your character's abilities). For me, it was the pinnacle of gaming this year (2019).

I read a review that said this game is a piece of art and scoffed at it. But let me tell you - after playing it - I am now of the very same opinion!

Without any dialogue, text, or much, if any interface, the developers managed to tell a captivating story.

There is beauty to be found here at every corner. One thing in particular about it touched me profoundly to the point of tearing up:
The simple moment where you get your voice back and can start singing. It swept me off my feet, when I wasn't expecting it.

The art and effects are wonderful throughout.

One caveat: If you're here for a challenging platformer - this is maybe not what you want exactly. Sure, many platforms turned out to be difficult, but this is a very relaxing experience - you never get set back way too far and can never completely ruin the run. It is always possible to continue where you left off, even if you made a longer pause on your first playthrough and forgot what you were doing.

The level design is intuitive - and it kind of has to be since it doesn't tell you anything. It shows.


This is worth the full price I paid, even if it is just a little more playtime than a visit at the cinema.

Immersion. A fully moddable role-playing game will always be tweaked by the community, but this game took it to the extreme. Entire sites are dedicated to improve your gaming.
But even without any modifications the game itself is an amazing piece of work. An open world with the possibility to develop your character as you wish while still being able to pursue the main quest or even leave it along the way.
With a story backed by the Elder Scrolls series, the game itself has an amazing lore and provides ingame books which you can read as part of the game itself.
The leveling in itself is designed go along with your character. Fighting with the weapon of your choice, enchanting items with powerful magic using souls captured in gems, brewing potions to use later on, nearly every action in this game can be improved by just using it. You can even train with a master of the art to further improve your knowledge.
As you follow the storyline, you will gain the ability to shout ancient words which are of magical origin, slay dragons and follow your destiny to save the entire world of Tamriel.
Speaking of following: You can recruit many people to adventure alongside with you. You can build a relationship and marry inside the game. You can buy a home for yourself and all those who accompany you.
You will discover the whole world of Skyrim and loot anceint ruins of their long forgotten treasury.

This game is an amazing piece of art and I can only advice to play it modded to fulfill your own dream of its appearance.

Discover the ancient order of the Grey Wardens as they struggle to fight the ever returning Darkspawn in a world full of magic and dangerous creatures ranging from rats to dragons and everything in between.
Join the ever vigilant watch(wo)men and rescue an entire nation on the brink of extinction which is torn apart by a civil war.
Recruit companions to follow along your path. Their secret backstories will prove to haunt most of them so be wary. As the groups leader it is among your duties to keep every one of your followers focused on the tasks ahead of you.
The group-oriented pausable combat is a strategical task on the highest difficulty level, but can be tuned to support your playstyle.
Use 4 styles of combat: Magic, Melee and Ranged and Stealth.

As the game reaches its climax you will be faced with a difficult choice which will ultimately reflect your playstyle as a character and how you interacted with your followers.

This role-playing game is most certainly one to be played for years to come.

Being one of old Dragon Slayers, you will start as a recruit and search for one of the last Dragon Knights after your training is complete. But not everything is as it seems and not everyone is who (s)he pretends to be.
Be careful and watch your steps! There might as well be another powerful mage around the corner?
This game is as much an awesome RPG as it is a Hack & Slay Game.
Watch as your characters power grows beyond the sight of death and all over the skies.

Take over the role of a mighty sovereign in his or her struggle to rebuild the world after the cataclysm.
Magic so powerful is at your disposal that the earth itself shatters beneath you!
You will build cities, take over wild ressources, train soldiers and mages, recruit heroes to fight alongside your sovereign, learn magic powerful enough to win the game, forge alliances, discover ancient quests and clash with your enemies in round-based battles.
The most powerful sovereign will always outshine any other unit and this is as much a strategy-game as it is a role-play-game.
Prepare your mind for this game will surely make an impact!

A struggle throughout the ages. You will advance your civilization, train your soldiers, forge alliances and clash with your enemies.
After each battle you shall be all the wiser and more prepared for your next or you will be crushed and suffer an inevitable defeat.
Age of Empires II HD will guide you through the Mediaval Ages and test your skill against other human or non-human players. The mass of scenarios, campaigns, custom maps and randomly generated map will blow your brain!
Definately a classic strategy game ... or should I say: The Classic?