Recent reviews by [Q_Q]

Still a romp after ~400 hours playing. Great action/survival game with manageable early-game mechanics! Amazing structure build system, no pre-fabricated room sets, you can build a simple box for a home or as elaborate as mountain castles. Build to your heart's content (within the game's rules of course.)! Fantastic mod community as well! Best played with friends 10/10!

The hottest game right now is called, "Dave the Diver".

It's got everything...

all the fish, harpoons, sniper rifles, stabby-stabby knives, TENTACLES, weird sushi, ANIME REFERENCES, shallow water, deep water, DEEPER WATER, weird people, fish people, sand, surf, and A LOT MORE.

To say that this game has got a TON OF CONTENT is an understatement. AND IT'S STILL ON EARLY ACCESS.

Do yourself a favor and get this game.

Graphics: 8/10 - stylized 3D and pixel art)
Music: 9/10 - covers all the bases!)
Sound: 7.5/10 - Eerie, haunting audio especially at lower depths; I just wish it was voice acted! that would just be :chefs kiss:!
Gameplay: 9.5/10 - oozing with charm, this is a genre-bending game fusing a fishing sim + rpg elements + restaurant sim? + a card collecting mechanic, random mini-games, and quicktime events!

Super recommended!

you want pixels? DANCING PIXELS?!! MOARRRRRR PIXELS?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!

10/10 will get you pixels

I was skeptical when I first heard of this game, but being such a fan of the metroidvania genre I had to try it out.

What got my attention from the get go is the art direction. This game looks fantastic! All of the modern graphical bells and whistles, packed into a side-scrolling platformer featuring anthropomorphic animals — what's not to love? The world looks and feels lived-in; a fictional China if the population were a bunch of furry animals, and with a surprisingly high level detail of from neon signage to in-game decals, it's the small things that deliver the love and dedication the developers had for this game. Not to mention how many different biomes it has (it has several), the world will keep you going back to reference the map more times than expected. The cast of character's designs are spot-on and memorable, voice acting and animation is well executed. Even the NPCs were given enough attention that they feel like they're part of a cast rather than just random placeholders in the map.

F.I.S.T's gameplay however is its strongest suit. The action lends itself well to a controller and has enough weight that you feel Rayton's punches land. There's a certain satisfaction that you get if you manage to run a difficult combo and execute perfectly. I'm a sucker for that, that's for sure. There are a few instances when the moves didn't register as I wanted, but not too often that it broke the experience for me. The difficulty in the AI is good: not super punishing, but not push-over easy, and the variety of different enemies kept me wanting in anticipation for the next one. The tedium of grabbing all the collectibles was made lighter by the many varied enemy instances that it didn't come off as boring or taxing.

But if its gameplay is the high point, the main story falls short and is something i'd consider pretty generic; typical hero narrative, with a supporting cast that don't really do much. As memorable as Ursus the bear is or Chuan the red panda, I wish they had more involvement in the narrative as I would have loved to see them in more scenes. That said, I wish they worked Lady Q's character more into the game. Despite that, I still felt the story to be compelling enough for a 20-hour playthrough.

Lastly, the sound design in this game was amazing. The SFX they used for the attacks, enemy soundbites, ambient sfx of traffic and chatter were all top notch. The music perfectly complimented the action, and it almost took a life of its own with all the orchestration and jazz licks that you are able to sample as you play through the game. I thought that the voice acting (except for Rayton's stoic performance) was pretty good, and the cutscenes — particularly the fight choreography — are gorgeously made.

Overall, I think this game is one of the better metroidvanias I've played in recent years. I'd for sure be on the look out for future DLCs or sequels, as I'm sure this wouldn't be the last to come out of the studio. A definite must-try for casual gamers, and a sure-buy for fans of the genre. An easy 8.5 out 10 carrots.

Neon? Good. Abyss? Good! Game? GOOD!

Pros:
- Very responsive game play
- SOLID art direction
- Top-notch world building
- Interesting lore and mythology
- FANTASTIC soundtrack
- Entertaining dialogue

Cons:
- No stage map (not really an issue, but the game would be a lot easier to navigate with it)
- Progression can be unclear at times
- Weapon/Skill damage doesn't display in the menu clearly (e.g. you get x upgrades on strength, you don't really know how much it affects damage output with a chosen weapon)

Another classic for Devolver's roster of fantastic games. Death's Door is a MUST-HAVE for fans of the zelda/metroidvania/souls-like genre. Lots of exploration, interesting enemies/mini-bosses/bosses. Not particularly punishing, but challenging enough to engage hardcore fans.

Blade Assault is a time sink for fans of games like Dead Cells and Hades and other games in the rogue-lite action space. I've currently sunk 85+ hours of gameplay and I have a much better grasp of how the systems work.

Pros:
- Multiple characters = varied gameplay styles (2 out of 5 characters at the moment, with varied weapon systems)
- Detailed pixel animation
- "Core" (or elemental damage) system adds a new layer of strategy
- Difficulty curve is gradual in earlier assault levels, with a lot of room for those who enjoy playing on a higher difficulty
- Smooth, responsive, satisfying control
- Lore is a intriguing, but a little lacking at this point
- Stage design is good, variety can still be improved. At the moment there are around 7 different "biomes" (not exactly the names, but: city, submarine depot, docks, sewer, city outskirts, abandoned hospital, laboratory)
- Music/soundtrack is fantastic
- Items (and upgrades) are based on RNG, but the variety is pretty solid


Cons:
- Enemy variety. There are a lot of enemies, but most attacks are pretty linear (projectiles from left to right, lobbed projectiles, melee attacks, and charged attacks) Elites and the variety with which they attack can be punishing, specifically at higher levels.
- Item upgrade system is still largely unbalanced (some are horribly OP, whereas others you can hardly feel the change)
- UI and inventory system still a work-in-progress
- As of this writing there's no other way to track your weapon mod (unless you're speaking with the upgrade vendor)
- Skill upgrades are a mixed bag of good and mediocre (gameplay changing vs passives that are meh)

Additional notes:
- Currently in early access (but it's also a good thing!)
- Vendors are ok, but might need to up the ante with how often they appear
- Assault Level mechanic is a little on the iffy side
- Character builds are quite interesting but since skills are still unbalanced, the tendency is to not experiment with other mods
- In-game currency (gems, roses, chips, coins, cubes) have little-to-no impact in the late game; would add more opportunities to utilize and spend those.
- Level design is expected to expand, which opens up a lot of lore which is great
- Looking forward to having a use for the drone that follows you around (currently just aesthetic, but cute!)


Still overall a pretty solid and fun game. Looking forward to upcoming updates and patches!

8 Blades Assaulted out of 10

Amazing game! I first played this on the PS4 several years ago, and quite happy when it got ported over to PC. Enjoying the ride all over again as I'm playing it with all the bells and whistles. I cannot recommend this game enough especially to fans of story-rich post-apocalyptic action. 10/10.

Twitchy, responsive gameplay. Builds and "skulls" (or other characters) vary in the way they play. A lot of things are still super OP (but that actually adds to the game, especially if RNGesus is on your side).

All in all, quite good. I'm excited for future updates.

ScourgeBringer is an insane delight in gameplay and frantic gunplay. Obviously it's early access so content is not yet to the fullest potential. It's a fun romp if you like killing baddies with speed and finesse and the occasional smash to the ground.

10/10 pizzas