Recent reviews by Killerbro

I had heard little about Firewatch back in 2016 when it dropped.
That was during the time where Unity Inde titles were really booming.
I heard it was wonderful, a bit of controversy some time after that, and then nothing.

so here i am, 8 years later, and what do i think about it?
TLDR: I enjoyed it. The story could easily lose you if you don't empathize or immerse yourself in the characters or the story, or have a hard time doing so.

The story kept my interest, it was fun to explore the forest around me- then it lost me.

It was tense, it made me nervous, i was anxious to see what happened next- then... it ended.
I'm left feeling like there's something i missed, like a second ending, a continuation of events, or some other part of the puzzle, but the puzzle is done, and the piece that's missing was designed to be missing. I bought it like that.

Now, that's not necessarily a bad thing. It asked me questions and allowed me to answer them as the character in a way that made sense.
It has a lot to say about abandonment, relationships, and mental health.

It was easier for me to empathize with the main character, both me and the person i was streaming to both have family members suffering from dementia, and the game asks questions concerning what distance is a healthy amount of distance-
and i wish this game leaned more into that discussion.
How relationships can be strained, how your actions have a consequence for others should you choose to act, or a lack of action.
But once the mystery started, it became harder to keep track. I was invested because there was some sense of danger, and characters i came to empathize might be hurt or killed, and- being a game designer, the game kept alluding to obstacles that would crumble or falter, and there were times it happened, and times it didn't.

Which, kept the suspense, until the mystery was over, then the game ends.

I know its 8 years ago, and even though I'll still be vague about the ending and what exactly happens, I'll still put it under a spoiler tag.
--
It went out with an "I did it" kind of confession, and then quickly ended with- what you expect, an out of control fire.
Which- i don't really know how to feel, having it end so quickly, and not exactly wrap up the 'right things'.
The message is clearly 'People make simple mistakes that affect them and others around them for the rest of their lives', but it doesn't really expand on that past there being a comment about what you do about it.
Then you start talking about what your next steps are in life, and... that's it!

I got a quick little text-based beginning about Henry's wife, why don't we get a short epilogue while the credits roll, explaining what he chose to do when he got home?
--

I remember seeing something about the ending briefly in 2016, maybe that set my expectations, but i don't remember anything but orange colors and Delilahs name being said in a questioning voice. So maybe that set my expectations to be a sad ending. Which, maybe i got, considering.

But either way, I'm left with a thought, and that thought is "It happened too fast."
Even so, i had fun, and I won't pretend like i didn't enjoy my experience.

I could see another version of myself not liking the game.

And if your the type to not immerse yourself in a game in attempt to take its story seriously, maybe its not for you.
As for me?

Eh. I enjoyed it well enough. Get it on sale.

I don't have any words for what i just experienced.

I hate card games.

I absolutely LOVED Inscryption.

'nuff said.

If you're looking at the reviews thinkin "man it seems like i'd enjoy this", you will, give it a try.

This game really gets going once you start getting the controls down.
You start to understand how the game operates, and the move-sets you can learn by messing around with the controls helps quite a bit.

Each level does its own thing while still being simple enough to really understand.
This character has grabbed you! its pulling you up and you're in a position where its not a problem and you can try again without taking damage or being frustrated.
Ok, now its pizza time, and during your escape you're dealing with 4 of these in succession trying to keep you up when you need to go down.
Then the next level says "I'm gonna put you in a barrel." and you can just roll with it and figure things out as you go.
These concepts are introduced in a non-stressful environment, then put to the test in a stressful environment
Its not exactly formulaic, either. You'll get stages that give you something entirely different.
Like a shotgun.

And getting better ranks becomes easier the more you try the levels. Or dont! get the toppins and beat the game then never touch it again.
its up to you. I don't have much else to add!

Downwell + heavy bullets with flash game DNA in it.

I probably haven't discovered all its secrets, but this was a nice little game now that i finally got around to playing it.
(I did beat it in an hour, but mostly because I've got fast game brainrot)

Is good, get it if you like supporting small inde devs and interesting games

myeah.

Honestly, I've seen someone play some of this. didn't know who David was, didn't really think about it
Saw the ending but that didn't make me any less fearful of what was to come.
Frog(?) Still startled me more in this game than in ultrakill.

Even having expected what was to come,
I didn't expect the bumps along the way.
I also really liked the map and grid system to follow.

This is also how you do achievements right.
Showing what you've done in game, and two extra things. letting the player know, in a meta way, 'there's something else you can do.'

Am i making sense?
its like 1 am.'
and i am very tired.

im mashin keys because im still not used to this kleyboard after 6 months of use
anyway
myeh.

MANKIND IS DEADBLOOD IS FUELHELL IS FULLIf you see gameplay footage and think 'That's ♥♥♥♥♥ awesome' then you'll enjoy this game.The less you know, the more enjoyment you'll get out of discovering its secrets.Honestly there's just a whole bunch of content outside of the main levels, too.There's a secret level where you- just play 'The witness'- play crash bandicoot- fishHell, If that don't sell it, i dunno what will

If you're the type of person to like weird experiences that take you for a trip the entire way through, you'll like this.
if it seems like your kinda game, it is.

Also a penis flamethrower is the best weapon in the game.
I have nothing else to add. Meat game is made of meat.

TL;DR:
Inde game from 2012. you feel the jank but it doesn't take away from your ability to play it for the most part.
The game's development story is more interesting than the game's story.
It's still an experience.

Dust is a tiny little inde Metriodvania game with a strong 2010 inde game vibe.
Its not the greatest game, but its easy to get through. There are other parts of the game that aren't nearly as polished as others. It's still fun, no doubt, but if you have a hyper-critical eye- im sure you'll see areas in which the game feels undercooked.

Like the RPG elements, as an example. You can powerscale yourself so fast that you're taking down most enemies with 1 hit. Your ability to make things excessively easier for you come down to how you allocate stat-points that, should of locked the player off a lot more than it did.

The story isn't much to look at, comes off as silly sometimes.
Dust loses his ♥♥♥♥♥' mind over a little rock guy's dad, who you never see onscreen till he's dead
But you know, plenty of stories ask you to care a lot more about a character you've never met.

Honestly the games development story is more interesting, and you kind of appreciate the game more knowing it was one guy doing all of the work.
This game came out when Xbox had an inde arcade marketplace, and it shows that it was running off Xbox money. Gleaming from what i know about the development about Psychonauts, you met microsoft's deadlines, or they didn't publish you.
So the fact that Dodrill, the developer of dust, was in with their XBLA releases, leads me that the crunch he put in was not self-imposed. Which explains why some of the game's areas feel undercooked- the dev slammed ass in 2011-2012 to meet a microsoft-imposed deadline.
Which, again, shows in its gameplay- but not so much that its annoying or frustrating.

I suppose my recommendation comes with a asterisk.
This game brought me back to a time when Braid, Fez, and Meatboy (games that are referenced as secrets for you to find, with their own stat buffs) were THE inde games. It reminds me of the times where the hot new inde games were the talk of the schoolyard, so to speak. That is, to say that you'll appreciate this game more if you have 2010's nostalgia.

Experience it for yourself. Play Frog Fractions.