Recent reviews by Veran

Make Wallpaper move funny.

What a great little RPG. If you want a fun experience with an interesting story that doesn't overstay its welcome...Check it out!

"I thought the game was over, but then it just kept going."

"Wild"

"What the heck?"

"I have to go to work now, bye"

-Impressions from our game group playing it.

This is fantastic, go check it out!

One of the best gaming experiences I have had in years, and great on Deck!

A follower asked me if I'd help him fulfill his dream of eating a bowl of poop.

I struggled, but I eventually said yes.

I can now cook a bowl of poop. I cooked it.

He ate it with a smile on his face, and thanked me, his great leader.

He then puked everywhere.

When I think of VR games, I think of moderately fun "Proof of Concept" kinds of games. I've seen some that are unique, quirky, funny...But Half-Life: Alyx blew me away. It was unexpected, and I had my doubts, as we've waited over a decade for anything Half-Life...Valve truly delivered, and proved to me that they still love Half-Life just as much as its fans. Alyx is not just a game to sell more of Valve's Index (I played on an Oculus Quest, btw), it is a true to life experience, and the most fun I've had in a game in a long time.

Still one of the best Survival Games in the genre. Unknown Worlds has managed to show the Gaming World at large how to do a water level right.

Release Update:

The Devs over at Unknown Worlds gave me exactly what I wanted, and that was more Subnautica. Little tweaks and improvements helped move the game along and I appreciate the world building given to us in audio logs and PDA Entries. I enjoyed the full release version greatly, and will probably replay it just as I have the original.

The main stories were intriguing. The universe built around Alterra and TransGov, along with the Architects, make me want to learn more about all of them. It hits me in the same way Dead Space did, minus the fanatical death cults, but who knows, maybe Alterra has those, too!

The sound engineering and design in Subnautica is still Master Class.
No matter how experienced I became with the Sea Truck. Those moments where you have to venture into the depths without a vehicle are harrowing...Hearing a Leviathan out in the distance...Play this game with Surround Sound if you can. Seriously.

I can't wait to see what these Devs give us next. 10/10. I'd support their next project in a heart beat.

Grievances,

Certain sections felt like they weren't very polished. Little bugs that break immersion, running around your base only to get hung up on invisible ledges. I didn't enjoy the Snow Fox sections as much as I would have liked, and felt like the bike took damage too easily, or at least without feedback. I'd look down at the HUD and notice that I'm suddenly at 60% durability while riding along flat surfaces.

The Prawn Suit felt more like a tool than a vehicle. Something to cart around on mining missions, rather than a powerful mech like it did in the original.

If you are on the fence about this game, think about this.
Are you a fan of survival games? Do you enjoy checking every little thing off your list?
If you answered yes to those first two... Ask yourself this last one.

Do you hate how poorly most games do water levels?

If your answer is anything similar to, "Oh lord, yes"... Buy this game, and see what amounts to the grandest, best put together water level you will play for hours.

I can't say enough about this game. I've played it at various stages of development, and every time I came back, I would fall in love with it all over again. At every stage of development I would lose myself for hours playing, building up my base, gathering resources, and poop myself when one of those [insert spoiler here] would sneak up on me out of nowhere. The ocean is scary... An alien ocean where everything wants to eat your bits is just downright unsettling.

Only a week ago, I was almost angry when I saw that they were doing everything all over again with Below Zero, but I decided to play the original again, because I remembered I never actually did a story run, and never even went to the lava zone. Fast forward to when I starting typing this review. I have Below Zero waiting in my queue, and I've already clocked about 16 hours into a brand new survival run on the Original Subnautica. Unknown Worlds Entertainment did early access right, and I'm willing to trust them to do it again.