Recent reviews by 4as

Pretty good. Felt too simple for me, so I didn't play long, but for a free game this definitely worth a try.

Just blend. I played for 30 minutes, hoping to see some plot happen, but it really is focused on the protagonist worrying about math tests. Pretty nice looking tho.

A lot telling, without much showing.
Even if you are patient with reading, this game will quickly test your resolve. I gave up after 30 minutes.

Video version of this review:
https://youtu.be/3MsVXYt0rQ0

Developed by NCSoft and released in the west in 2024 for PC and consoles, Throne and Liberty was initially planned as a sequel to the cult-classic Lineage series, but due to reception of its closed beta back in 2017, the developers decided to move in a different direction. Today, the game has little in common with its predecessor. Sure, some skills and the way you upgrade them, the territory wars, or even a certain disposable item that boosts your damage might seem familiar, but otherwise, Lineage this is not.

Even just by looking Throne and Liberty already feels somewhat more grounded, with a setting reminiscent of the 16th century. While magic exists in this world, you shouldn't expect to play as cute little dwarves or explore colorful realms. Instead, most of your journey will take you through fairly standard locations like forests, plains, and deserts, where you'll battle similarly predictable wolves, crabs, or spiders. I say "most," because the game does offer some unique locations here and there, and occasionally lets you fight undead creatures, orcs, or even mythological beasts, but if you're expecting vibrant, anime-inspired aesthetics, you might end up being disappointed.

Setting aesthetics aside, let's dive into the gameplay. Throne and Liberty uses a classic tab-targeting system, which means you select an enemy and then proceed to press your favorite hotkeys one by one until they're dead. Admittedly, this system can feel outdated and clunky at times, but it also can become quite engaging thanks to various countering mechanics. Every enemy you encounter in the game has a powerful attack signaled by a charging animation and a delay that gives you chance to react. You can move out of the way, dodge, or even reflect the attack back to its sender. It's pretty fun, especially once you're facing boss mechanics like being forced to move to a specific spot or activate switches. And sure, it's not groundbreaking stuff, but it's also not mindless clicking like older MMORPGs often were.

Speaking of bosses, let's take a look at what you can actually do in the game. Here, too, Throne and Liberty sticks to familiar territory, offering a variety of dungeons and open-field activities. Said dungeons come in few flavors starting with the co-op challenges where you team up with other players through manual invites or automated matchmaking. These dungeons often require a solid understanding of their mechanics, especially when it comes to their final bosses. A party wipe is a common occurrence if you don't know what you're doing.
Other dungeons include Secret Dungeons, where you face unique bosses one by one, and open field dungeons. The latter are particularly interesting, and not just because anyone can enter them at any time by simply walking in, but because they turn into player-vs-player (PvP) zones at night. Which means if you're not careful, you might end up getting killed by other adventurers. It's quite a spicy idea that also extends to other open-field activities, like for example, you might looking to take down a boss that only spawns at specific hours, only to discover that the area around it becomes a PvP zone.
Of course, there are also peaceful events to enjoy, like boarding a giant flying whale or escorting NPCs, however, you always need to be mindful of what you're signing up for. Luckily, death is super painless, barely an inconvenience.

So far, it seems like Throne and Liberty mostly only sticks to familiar territories, which raises a question: is there anything truly unique about it? Well, few things come to mind.
First, let's talk about character building. On one hand, you have the standard leveling system, where you assign points to your character's four stats: strength, dexterity, wisdom, and perception. But on the other, you have far more interesting skill leveling system tied to each weapon. You see, Throne and Liberty doesn't have classes in the same sense other MMORPGs usually have, instead, your skills are linked directly to the two weapons you can equip: your main weapon and your sidearm.
As you can imagine this makes for an interesting selection of possibilities. You can combine, for example, the tanking abilities of swords and shields with the healing spells of wands, or even the stealth and poison effects of daggers. On top of that, you can make your build even more unique by customizing your skills by, for example, switching those poison effects to lightning or adding a knockback effect to your attacks.
There's even a weapon mastery system that rewards you with passive bonuses when you complete special repeatable quests. It's kind of crazy how much you can change. And if you get bored, you can always switch to a different set of weapons.

Another unique aspect of Throne and Liberty is the developers' decision to completely move away from typical mounts, like horses or flying dragons, and instead give your character the ability to smoothly transform into various creatures. Jump into water, and you'll turn into an otter, letting you swim freely for as long as you want. Press your "run" button, and you'll morph into a wolf for fast movement. You can even fly by pressing the "jump" button as you're falling to transform into an eagle.
Honestly, I'm not entirely sure if removing traditional mounts was the right decision, but those transformations are available from the get-go, which leads to some interesting situations. The flying transformation, in particular, is quite useful for bypassing enemies or reaching otherwise inaccessible areas.
Oh, and you also have the ability to transform into random enemies you'd encountered on your journeys, because why not.

Finally, there's the auction house. After reaching the endgame, you can begin trading items with your fellow players for the in-game premium currency. It's a great feature for the free-to-play players to earn some money, although admittedly I haven't used it much myself. Still, it's a welcome addition.

Now that we've covered the good, let's talk about the not-so-good.

Almost immediately after starting the game, you'll notice the first major issue: performance. The game's audio-visual presentation is stunning, with professional voice acting, gorgeous graphics, and invisible loading times, but unfortunately, all of it comes at a cost. Even if you tweak the settings, having just a handful of players nearby can tank your FPS, no matter how powerful your PC is.
Another issue are the outdated controls. Although the tab-targeting system works well enough most of the time, it can become quite problematic during hectic situations like the boss fights or the PvP events. Even if you get used to it, there's always a real chance of targeting the wrong thing or activating the wrong skill.
Finally, there's the biggest problem: the lack of content. Once you hit the current level cap of 50 (after about 30 to 50 hours of playtime) there's not much left to do besides grinding for materials. I haven't mentioned it yet but the game includes crafting, cooking, and equipment enchanting, but these systems require exponentially more resources the deeper you go. While it's intriguing to see how far you can upgrade your character, at the end of the day, you're still repeating the same dungeons over and over again only to get something to help you grind slightly faster.

For better or worse, Throne and Liberty doesn't try to reinvent the wheel. Instead, it focuses on delivering a solid, classic MMORPG experience. While it can feel a bit outdated at times, the beautiful world, diverse activities, and minimal reliance on FOMO makes it a safe choice for fans of the genre. But if you're looking for something groundbreaking or a game that will finally make you love MMORPGs, Throne and Liberty is probably not a game for you.

7/10

Video version of this review:
https://youtu.be/GQ42juNC7IE

Developed for six years by Omocat and released in 2020 on computers and consoles, Omori follows the adventures of the eponymous character and his friends: Hero, Kel, Aubrey, Mari, and Basil. At first glance the game might seem inspired by Undertale, considering the aesthetics and colorful cast of character, but in reality they both take inspiration from a much older NES RPG: Earthbound. However, after the first initial impressions Omori quickly establishes its own identity with not only its unique world, but also a fairly unique subject matter and how it decides to approach it. About two hours into the game (out of over 20 it takes to finish it) you'll take control of the second protagonist - or to be more accurate - the actual real protagonist of Omori: Sunny. As it turns out Sunny is struggling with depression and hasn't left his home for a very long time. That colorful world we started in? Well, it exists only in his mind. The real world is far less welcoming and the main stage to the game's horror elements. Are those figments of his imagination? Or is there more to his predicament? That's for the player to discover. And be assured: where the story goes from here is wholly unexpected and definitely the main draw of the game.

That is... if you actually decide to pursuit this path. You see, few hours into the game you'll be given a choice between exploring the real world, or just staying in the imaginary one. And honestly, the imaginary one is not as interesting.

Omori devotes about 70% of its playthrough to the, as the game calls it, "headspace" a beautiful but standard RPG world, filled with eccentric but shallow characters, a lot of rather traditional side-quests, and both story-driven and optional locations to unlock. Of course, all of it is coated in a lot of charm. You don't just "talk to 5 NPCs," you instead "find and invite 5 lost ghosts to a party." You don't simply buff your party members or debuff your enemies, instead you manipulate their emotions of anger, happiness, or sadness. New locations aren't just rearrangement of existing graphics, instead they're always hand-crafted and unlike anything else you previously seen in the game. And so on, and so forth, the list goes on. So it's abundantly clear the developers poured a lot of love into the game.
Which is why it's so unfortunate most of it feels like filler. Sunny's imaginary world is just that: imaginary. Sure it's cleared based on his real life experiences, including the places he has seen, the friends he made, or even the fears he felt, but at the end of the day all of it has minimal impact on the main plot, beside some brief moments here and there. Spending few hours trying to reconcile Space Boyfriend with his love Sweetheart, or saving your friends from the jaws of Mr. Jawsum can be funny, but it isn't really challenging nor thought-proving. It's a charming adventure without much substance.

Which is actually the opposite of what you can expect from the real world which plays by a completely different set of rules. Here battles are rare and mostly optional, you don't gain experience or learn new skills, the money is hard to come by, and your decisions... have actual consequences! Even the side-quests impact the ending. But the most important difference here is that this is where the meat of the story is. You'll quickly discover that Sunny and his friends experienced some tragedy in their past and are now coming to terms with it in their own ways. The real world is all about exploring what exactly does this entail.

So, going back to the choice I've mentioned before. On one hand you have an imaginary world that serves mostly as filler, and on the other you have the real world with enticing mysterious tragedy your friends are struggling with - which one are you going to pursuit? Well, it doesn't matter because the headspace escapades will still take up majority of your playthrough. Omori is a perfect example of a game where "more" doesn't necessarily mean "better."

Omori presents a compelling story buried under vast amounts of fluffy content. If you're looking for a game that's laser focused on delivering its story then Omori might not be a game for you. But if you enjoy the little moments, going on funny side-quest, experiencing quirky personalities, and exploring charming environments, then Omori just might become your favorite game of all time.

7/10

Video version of this review:
https://youtu.be/Ihcnuho17n8

If a game promises no wrong choices, doesn't it mean that by definition it also promises no right choices, either?
Here is my quick review of Slay the Princess.

Slay the Princess is surprisingly hard game to describe. At first glance you might think it's a visual novel about a hero on a quest to slay a princess, but this doesn't even begin to cover what you can expect from this game. Let me say this right now, there is exactly zero chance you will predict what this game is actually about. I've played a lot of games in my life and Slay the Princess has never ceased to surprise me at every corner.

Things start simple enough. On your path to the Princess you control a character simply refereed to as the Hero who's accompanied by two voices: Voice of the Hero and the Narrator. You might chose to question your own role in all of this, or you might question the Narrator's motives, but sooner or later you will face the Princess, and you might even be given an option of slaying her. And let me quickly add something: this is not a spoiler.
Nothing in this review goes beyond the first 20 minutes of this 3 hour game.

And that's the beauty of Slay the Princess - the initial premise is only the first chapter of the story.
About 80 different outcomes split into 10 different routes, and, quite frankly, absurd amount of choices, means no playthrough is the same. And that's not all. You also get thousands upon thousands of hand-drawn illustrations, some even animated, and all of it fully voice acted. Just to give you a taste of how much content there is in this game: when installed this visual novel occupies over 8GB of space. It's amazing how much effort and care went into creating Slay the Princess.

However there is still one disappointing thing about the whole experience. As I mentioned in the beginning, the game proclaims to feature "no wrong choices" in here, which of course by extension means it also features "no right choices." And, I know, I know - what does this even mean, right?
Well, to put it simply there is no real exploration akin to what you would see in, for example, Ace Attorney series or Danganronpa. Of course those two games are linear, while this one is pretty much the opposite of that. So what I mean here is that there are no optional locations to visit, or optional characters to talk to, so you can't really learn more about the princess and thus make better, more informed decisions. No. If you make a choice you are committing yourself to route with no option of going back. Beside loading the game, that is.
Basically you're just picking options that you like, that's it, that's the gameplay.

That being said, in reality, rarely do visual novels offer actual exploration, opting instead to limit the game to predefined routes. So Slay the Princess isn't that different in this regard, however in face of all those choices, it's a bit of shame that the game doesn't offer options of turning back or de-escalating the rising tension like, for example, Life is Strange did in it's famous roof scene.
I guess the game just needs... more content?


A roller-coaster ride in visual novel form, Slay the Princess offers plethora of choices, beautiful graphics, stellar voice acting, and one of the most unique stories ever told. It's a ride you don't want to miss.

9/10

Video version of this review:
https://youtu.be/zjq1gaFsfmU

Do you ever play a game and just FEEL the developers focusing on delivering pure fun above everything else? If you know what I'm talking about and want more of it, then here is a game for you.

Developed by WayForward Technologies and initially released for 3DS and Wii U, but later ported to PC and all major consoles, Shantae and the Pirate's Curse follows the eponymous Shantae, as she once more must venture forth to stop the destruction of her beloved home.
But rather then once again fighting her nemesis from the two previous games, this time around Shantae has to team up with Risky Boots to stop an even bigger threat: The Pirate King, before he awakens. With no longer having access to her magic (after losing it in the previous game) our half-genie needs to gather, and make us of, various pieces of equipment that once belong to Risky. This is where the main mechanics of game come into play. In typical metroidvanian fashion, Shantae has to travel between various islands looking for new abilities to unlock, while avoiding obstacles, solving puzzle, and defeating bosses.
At first glance this all might seem like stereotypical stuff - and in a sense it's true - but where Shantae and the Pirate's Curse shines is in the executing of those well-known ingredients of the metroidvanian genre. But to explain what I mean by that, let's backtrack to the absolute basics. How does Shantae attack her enemies? Does she shoot them? That's an unlockable skill and not her main form of attack. So, does she kick them, perhaps? Also an optional skill you can get and not her main attack. Shantae's main form of attack is... her hair, as she whips it back and forth.
This kind of goofiness completely redefines the whole experience. Sure, you have boss fights, but you're fighting "Dagron, aka the Massively Misspelled Monstrosity." Sure, you have to get through hundreds of enemies on your path, but when you're killing zombies they drop their heads which you can hit for additional gems. And of course, you have puzzles, but to awaken a sleeping dragon you have to whip a piece of meat and capture its tasty aroma to trigger the dragon's sense of smell. Even the story and the characters, despite rather grim predicament continue to maintain lighthearted attitude, thus creating a perfect balance between funny interactions and surprisingly wholesome moments.
But enough about the presentation - how is the gameplay? Shantae and the Pirate's Curse follows a rather simple formula: travel to an island, explore for a bit, find a way to solve its puzzles, and then finally venture into the dungeon to defeat a boss at the end. Then repeat this process on the next island until you complete the game. Sounds simple enough, right? Well, the devil is in the details. Things start pretty straightforward at first, with basic fetch quests, easy platforming, and harmless enemies, but it doesn't take long before the game starts rising the bar. The platforming gets tighter, the enemies get trickier, and you will be expected to use all your unlocked abilities, especially when it comes to making progress. Remember that chest you saw buried in the ground two islands ago? It's time to revisit it now that you've unlocked the downward attack. Found an ancient relic? Who in the town could tell you more about it?
The game does an excellent job keeping things fresh and making sure you're using your every skill. Whether you're rushing to save your injured friend, or sneaking pass by the prison guards, the game is constantly committed to delivering a fun experience and hilarious high jinks. After 12 hours it takes to complete the game, you'll be hard-pressed not to restart it and aim to unlock every skill, every item, and of course every ending. It might sound cheesy, but it's a refreshing feeling to play a game that just makes you smile.

Shantae and the Pirate's Curse is a solid metroidvanian, with great and pleasantly challenging gameplay, adorable aesthetics, lovable cast of characters, and a world that you wish you could be part of.

9/10

I hate to say this, but the game is just not fun.
On the surface it might not seem that way since Wayward Harbor is a pretty well polished game, but as you actually start playing the mirror gimmick quickly loses its appeal and just becomes annoying. The truth is the developers executed the idea in probably the worst way possible.
Let me explain it by describing the challenges you'll be facing in the game. So the first one boils down to leaving the house you start in using a linear path that's blocked by the monster. You'll quickly discover that looking at the monster through a mirror will agitate him into chasing you, which sounds reasonable - you have to use the mirror to find the monster, but you can't use it too much or you'll risk getting killed. But as you use the mirror to lure the monster into a big room in which you have enough space to walk around it (anywhere else the path is too narrow), two issues become apparent: since the monster teleports short distances instead of running it's hard to judge your distance from it - be too far away and it will lose sight of you (especially thanks to self-closing doors) and thus interest, be too close and it will kill you forcing you to do the whole thing all over again. Then the second issue is with your own movement, since looking at the mirror means you have to think in reverse. Those two things make the luring process more tedious that it should be, which in turn makes death very annoying.
But whatever, you probably just have to get used it, right? Except it becomes completely irreverent once you leave the house. Turns out the outside is full of dead ends and narrows paths that leave no room for any cleaver use of the mirror you're carrying. In fact the game pretty much punishes you if you do. Multiple times you have to enter a dead end to complete an objective, but if you use a mirror to check on the monster it only lures it toward you blocking off your path of escape. It quickly becomes apparent the best way to progress is just brute-forcing it - running head on into your objectives is fastest way to progress.
And this brings us to why the game is not fun: the best way to progress is by NOT using the core mechanic.
What's worst the developers could very easily fix the whole game by just flipping how the mirror works on the monster. Instead of agitating it, the mirror should freeze it in Weeping Angle or SCP style. Then you would have an actual "weapon" to fight the monster, a way to leave those dead ends if things get dire, while stilling being in a tough spot since moving and keeping the mirror on the monster is not an easy thing to do.
5/10

Video version of this review:
https://youtu.be/ZLdGhy8fTkk

Meet Ame-chan a girl who wants to become the biggest streamer online, and you, the player, will help her achieve that goal. Can you reach one million subscribers in 30 days? Well, no time to ponder, one introduction stream later and the game begins.

The gameplay seems pretty straightforward at first. Ame, aka KAngel has 3 stats you have be careful about: Stress, Affection, and Mental Darkness. Your objective is to balance them out so neither reaches their extremes, which you do by planing Ame's activities during the day. So for example you might want to play some games during daytime, then take a quick nap at dusk, to finally stream at night. However, as the game progress you will quickly discover it's not all as simple as it seems. First of all, reaching KAngel's dream in 30 days is definitely not an easy task, you will want to stream each and every night, but at the same time you also don't want to overwork her, unless you're ready to risk ... some bad stuff happening. Indeed there are some morally questionable choice you might need to make. And then there's the issue of actually having something to stream. You see, Ame needs a solid idea before she's ready to go live in front of the camera. This means you might be forced to pick a less optimal activity, like playing games together to unlock the "Let's Play" idea, instead of for example spending time together which gives almost double the benefits. There are also few other things to consider but half of the fun is actually discovering all of them for yourself, so I'm just gonna leave it at that. Basically it's a game that's easy to jump into but hard to master. Plus if you make a mistake it's very easy to jump back in time and quickly click through to a different outcome.

However, that's only half of what you can expect on your playthrough of Needy Streamer Overload. The other half is, not surprisingly: the narrative. The developers did an excellent job simulating the Internet atmosphere with things like the streaming chat, the online interactions, and Ame's direct messages. All of them have TONS of text to read through, but unfortunately (or fortunately, depending on what you enjoy) almost all of it is optional flavor text that you can easily just mindlessly skip over. Honestly it feels like a missed opportunity to not have the game switch to a visual novel mode during the dates with Ame, where you would, for example, get to know her past, how she meet the player, etc. But alas, that's not the case, and what you get is only occasional nuggets of backstory and some quick thoughts about the world that surrounds them, which ultimately means the game is pretty shallow on the story side. Of course to be fair some endings can hit you like a truck, but after all is said and done, I wish there was more to it.

All in all, even though I feel there was room for improvement I still consider Needy Streamer Overload to be a great game. Fun from start to finish, well crafted, creative, and most importantly well worth playing through all of the 22 endings.
8/10
Bless

Black Skylands: Origins is a perfect example of a game that has everything going for it, but is bogged down by poor execution. Which in case of BS:O means one thing: just about everything you interact with requires a unique logic that doesn't match with anything else in the game. Let me explain. So, for example, to fix your ship you have to interact with a crack on it, while having a repair kit in your ship's storage. Ok, cool, understandable. So how do you refuel your ship? You interact with the fuel pump WITH a fuel can in your hands, not in your ship's storage. Ok, I guess that makes sense, but why can't the repairing process be the same? Well whatever. So how do you refill cannon's ammo? You approach them with ammo in your hands? Do you interact with them with ammo in your ship's storage? Neh, just buying ammo in the shop instantly moves it into your cannons. And this nonsense exists everywhere in the game. To skip a dialog you have to press a button once, but to skip a help popup you have to press and hold a button. And what's worst those inconsistencies even exist on a bigger scale: the way you control your character has NOTHING in common with the way you control your ship. There is exactly zero overlap between those two, even though they make up exactly 50% of the game each. Each time you switch between those two, is like switching between two games. All of this means that EVERY interaction in BS:O is preceded by you asking yourself "wait, how do I do this again?."
5/10