Recent reviews by Caziban

It Takes Two is a co-op adventure game with stunning visuals, a captivating narrative, and innovative gameplay. You play as Cody and May, a fractured couple who have been magically transformed into dolls. Trapped in an unusual world, they must work together in solving puzzles and challenges before they can be returned to their normal forms (a promise made to them by the suave love expert, Dr. Hakim). It Takes Two guides you through a story that will pull at your soul, accompanied with a masterful blend of engaging game mechanics.

A breath of fresh air in adventure games, you'll encounter a wide variety of levels and challenges as you progress through the story—all of which are entirely unique and equally memorable. A source of magic in this game is the enchanting incorporation of seemingly every video game genre within a single cohesive story. Across seven chapters, you'll play through platforming, racing, shooting, fighting, and even rhythm games. A narrative masterpiece accompanies this fantastic gameplay as you become emotionally involved in understanding the struggles of marriage and the importance of communication. It Takes Two delivers on the promise of an absorbing story with a well-designed co-op experience.

Each chapter can take roughly one to two hours to complete, and with only seven chapters, the game can feel short. Best played through single-chapter sessions, the intricately designed maps encourage curiosity-driven exploration, each with an array of hidden mini-games and easter eggs. Self-pacing and exploration are particularly important given that the linear nature of the game naturally prohibits any meaningful form of replayability. While It Takes Two will be especially memorable, yearning for more is essentially a certainty.

It Takes Two is extraordinary. From the first chapter to the last, your skills will be uniquely tested and the story you share with your companion with live on beyond the game. At full price, this game is a steal; at a discount, it should be a crime to pass it up. It Takes Two will undoubtedly serve as one of the most unforgettable co-op experiences you'll ever have, as you are guided through a journey of self-discovery, forgiveness, and love.

ASTRONEER is an open world, survival & crafting game with breathtaking visuals, an engaging crafting system, and a charming art style. At its core, the game is centered around exploring planets, gathering resources, and researching technology. ASTRONEER allows you to serenely discover the universe designed by System Era Softworks at the pace most comfortable for you, while providing tools and technologies to push the limits of your journey.

From the start, ASTORNEER captures what it means to be a space explorer without flaw. Throughout the campaign, you will explore a rich array of planets with varying biomes, resources, and threats. Sessions of ASTRONEER will fall into one of two (equally satisfying) modalities: exploration and exploitation. In a perfect cadence, you'll find yourself exploring your surroundings (as your tech permits) and subsequently exploiting the collected spoils to push your technology further. Clearly, the design of ASTRONEER is to bring enjoyment from base-building and adventure; the game stays wonderfully true to this principle throughout the entirely of the campaign.

ASTRONEER excels at allowing players to explore the universe at sometimes surprising levels of tranquility; the "threats" that exist are rather moderate inconveniences (and the punishments of death are rather forgiving). While an attractive quality in some circumstances, the lack of any real tangible risk can lead to a sense of detachment to the ASTRONEER universe. In adventure games, risk often precedes reward; while ASTRONEER emulates risk largely through oxygen limitations and "aggressive" flora, it does so mildly, which can make rewards feel underwhelming sometimes.

ASTRONEER is a multiplayer space explorer done right. The arc from your initial drop to mastery of the surrounding planets is chock full of absorbing and entertaining content as you learn how to survive, build, and thrive. Fairly priced and a fantastic experience with companions, ASTRONEER exceeds expectations with a captivating gameplay loop, remarkably diverse planets, and incredibly satisfying technology.

Divinity: Original Sin 2 is a turn-based RPG with immersive storytelling, intricate leveling, and polished combat. DOS2 represents the intersection between PC gamers and DnD players, as the core fundamentals clearly hearken to traditional interactive storytelling, yet the applied polish enable a satisfying experience through the PC gaming platform. However not void of its own limitations, Divinity: Original Sin 2 will undoubtedly stand the testament of time as one of the best implementations of DnD that gamers have seen to date.

At the forefront, Divinity: Original Sin 2 is a masterpiece of interactive storytelling through the PC gaming medium. The traditional primitives found in DnD are clearly present: there are distinct and lengthy adventures that your heroes partake in, turn-based combat is incorporated (with plenty of modifiers), a plethora of unique stats are available to fine tune your hero, and complex relationships with NPCs have a significant impact on how your story unfolds. Additionally, DOS2 also sports the characteristics of great RPG games, namely: fantastic visuals, satisfying controls and game play, immersive music to accompany your adventures, and a meaningful storyline (with an abundance of sidequests to keep you distracted). All of these components enable serious replay value, as the game is simply too massive (and too intricate) to explore every corner, dialogue, and build in one playthrough.

Even though Divinity: Original Sin 2 is a marvel of interactive storytelling to the PC platform, it isn't without its limitations. There are flaws centered around how group play is designed that may leave a slightly sour taste in your mouth. Simply put, playing for optimality is (almost completely) orthogonal to playing for roleplay; you'll find yourself most successful when you funnel characters into having very specific attributes, e.g., one player in your party will manage all finances since the bartering attribute isn't shared among the party. This naturally ends up forcing directional compromises within your party on how you each want to play the game. Alternatively, better group design could avoid such detracting situations (shared loot & attributes, and non-gimmicky thieving mechanics come to mind). However, I'd conclude these limitations as nit-picking, as they have nearly nothing to do with game itself and moreso about some (stupid) diplomatic tensions you may encounter.

Unarguably, Divinity: Original Sin 2 has to be one of the best games I have ever played. Few games draw out the satisfaction, enjoyment, and impact that Divinity: Original Sin 2 produces. The immersive storytelling, breathtaking visuals, superb audio, and limitless customization allow you and your friends to have an adventure in a game like none other, where your only true limitation is the diplomacy of your group. Divinity: Original Sin 2 stands leagues above other interactive party-based storytelling games as it sets the standard for DnD games done right.

PLAYERUNKNOWN'S BATTLEGROUNDS is a 100 player Battle Royal featuring 1 to 4-man teams. Unlike its counterpart H1Z1: King of the Kill, PUBG leans towards the side of realism over arcade: the gameplay is slower, guns maintain accuracy over long distances, and tactics + positioning become the dominant differentiator between experts and novices. Naturally, the game becomes significantly more fun when you have a team to play with. At its peak, the game plays like a balanced blend of Squad and Rust.

Each round, players load into a static map in a carrier that approaches the island from a random direction every playthrough. Due to the sheer vastness of the map, not all locations are reachable from the carrier, which creates unique gameplay with every match. Once players land, a frantic looting stage begins with about a third of players becoming killed off within the first couple minutes. After areas become uncontested, the game transitions to tactical-play where sound, positioning, and the acquired equipment determine your survival.

The game offers a fantastic sense of realism with its vast map, realistic weapon mechanics, and audible ques. While admittedly it could be a bit better on optimization, the polished mechanics underneath outshine the fact you may see undesirable dips in your framerate throughout the game. Fortunately, the low framerate appears to be a function of nearby players; in the starting zone, the framerate drops significantly, but returns to acceptable values once you land in an area where there are only a handful of others around you.

If you enjoyed the combat of Rust and itch for the required coordination and tactical gameplay featured in games like CS:GO, Squad, or Rainbow Six: Siege, PLAYERUNKNOWN'S BATTLEGROUNDS will fill a special niche in your gaming library as an intense surival shooter with your own skill being your only investment in the game. At $30, the game feels like it delivers its worth. However, that worth is only realized when playing with a squad of friends, as that's where PUBG shines the brightest.

White Noise 2 is a unique 4v1 asymmetrical horror experience where a group of investigators need to traverse one of (currently) three distinct, vast, and well-designed maps to acquire eight scattered tapes to reveal a mysterious altar which banishes the monster when destroyed.

White Noise 2 offers a prominent cast of characters with even a more impressive selection of pairable flashlights, each with their own special stats, such as stealth, battery management, bravery, and speed for the investigators; spread, endurance, and exploration for the flashlights ("Flashlights" is a bit of a misnomer here considering about a third of the (currently) 18 available forms of light are actual flashlights. The majority are varied forms of light; such as lanterns, cell phones, and even cinema spotlights). Such a diverse set of investigators and flashlights enable distinct and varied playstyles from game to game. Will you build yourself to better handle encounters with the monster with speed and endurance or will you opt to investigate the map as rapidly as possible by maximizing your exploration and battery management?

On the other hand, playing as the monster in White Noise 2 offers a chance to outsmart and outplay up to four investigators who (unjustly) wish to banish you from your rightful domain. Attack the investigators by placing traps that disable their flashlights, activate abilities that teleport you right behind your victims, or even summon deceiving decoys which emulate tapes to lead your prey astray. Much like the investigators, the terrors in White Noise 2 sport their own metrics, like light resistance, horror, and perception, which enables strategic counter-play based on the investigators you expect to consume.

White Noise 2 offers a wide variety of content to utilize and an impressive depth to explore as you learn the intricacies of this intense cat and mouse experience. As it stands in Early Access, White Noise 2 exceeds expectations and will sit in a special place in your gaming library as a solid go-to game when it's late at night and you and your friends are looking to finish it off with something that's both paradoxically casual and competitive. For the (incredibly) modest price of $8, White Noise 2 is a steal while offering a totally unique gaming experience that combines tactical gameplay, horror, and replay value that'll leave you coming back again, and again, and again.

Battlerite is an online arena brawler featuring best-of-five 2-minute matches in 2v2 and 3v3 flavors (as well as 1v1 in private matches). Battlerite builds upon its spiritual ancestor, Bloodline Champions, by introducing a wider variety of characters, ranked matchmaking modes, and a more polished gameplay experience.

This game is aimed towards the competitive gamer with both its high skill floor and ceiling. Many have compared this game to WoW arenas due to the fact that hardcore PvP is at the heart of Battlerite. However, the true crux of this game is closely coordinating with your teammates; as such, enjoying this game to its maximum potential relies on having friends to play with over comms. Unfortunately, there is no voice chat in-game and the matches are much too quick to attempt to coordinate over text.

Nevertheless, Battlerite is action-packed and highly satisfying, with a great amount of replayability. At the modest price of $20, the game is well worth it considering that early adopters will never have locked future content when the game goes free-to-play, set for sometime next spring. If high-level PvP brawling fits your niche, Battlerite is sure to satisfy.

Evolve Stage 2 takes a new direction from its controversial predecessor. Overpriced DLC, poor matchmaking, brutal learning curve, & an ugly high-level meta ("Flee till Three", "Save the Dome", & "God Domes" to name a few) really hurt the novel game. There were so many good aspects about Evolve, but the glaring flaws made it what it was before Stage 2: A deadbeat game with an average of 100 players per day.

However, Evolve Stage 2 resolves many of these problems: The DLC is still there, but now as a F2P game the cost doesn't feel like you're getting ripped off. Characters are relatively cheap relative to the number of Silver Keys (in-game currency) you obtain per hour. In the short couple hours I've played, matchmaking appears to be a bit more stable, not perfect, but it doesn't take 7+ minutes to find a match anymore. Evolve tackles a novel approach to video gaming. Not many games attempt asymmetrical game play and there are fewer who get it right; Evolve isn't without its flaws, but if you're looking for an unparalleled experience with friends and an insatiable feeling when you beat 4 other players, Evolve is definitely worth looking into.

Archeblade is a F2P 3rd person fighting game and it rocks! Foremost, the developer's (Codebrush) have openly announced that this game would no longer be developed, but that doesn't mean the game isn't worth a couple of action-packed hours that'll keep you on the edge of your seat. There's a diversity of characters with unique movesets, maps, and gametypes. With a moderate skillcurve and unique gameplay, Archeblade offers a long-lasting and rewarding gaming experience.

Need for Speed: Hot Persuit is a refreshing game in the Need for Speed franchise, definitely recreating gameplay that was similar to Need for Speeed: Hot Persuit II which was released for the Playstation 2 in the late 2000s. Stunning graphics and the classic Need for Speed arcade-style feel, if you're looking for an updated Need for Speed that resembles how it once played, this is the closest game I've played that meets the criteria. Has an absolute ridiculous amount of content, too, for an added bonus. If you have friends, the game only gets that much better. Plus, it's usually on sale for ~$10, so how could anyone pass it up?

Killing Floor is a zombie wave-defense game where players have to move about the map for supplies while defending against hordes of various types of infected. The game engine itself is a little dated; definitely has a "clunky" and retro feel to the game. The game offers some great hours of mindless fun while offering more challenging difficulties and maps for the more serious player. This game goes on sale regularly for $2.50, so how could I not recommend it? Like seriously, this game is cheaper than a cheeseburger.