Recent reviews by NiallAshes

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If variety is the spice of life, then this game is an unseasoned dish, and not even the DLC contains salt or pepper.
TLDR; This is a derivative and repetitive slog of a game that absolutely outstays its welcome (then still doesn't finish).

Numerous difficulty and accessibility options that can be tweaked to make it as challenging (or conversely, as beginner friendly) as wanted, including modifiers such as Permadeath and Ironman.

If I were to rank this compared to other turn-based tactics games, I would do so as follows:
Empire of Sin < W40k Space Wolf < XCOM Chimera Squad < W40k Mechanicus < XCOM EU/EW < XCOM 2 (+WOTC)


POSITIVES:
+ Fun initial gameplay loop: Liberating the first neighbourhood is good fun, although liberating a whole borough can start to feel like a chore (and by the time you've liberated every borough in Chicago you'll wish you gave up long ago)
+ Interesting and varied characters in the game.
+ The tutorial is actually quite good at explaining most of the introductory gameplay mechanics.
+ I would rather play this than be punched in the nuts (it's a close call though)


NEUTRAL:
~ This game features the "Interleaved Turns" system similar to DOS2 and Chimera Squad, and is therefore similar to the D&D initiative-order system, which I personally enjoy although I know some people are not fond of this.
~ Tonally this game takes itself far too seriously considering how janky it feels - Characters will mean to seem agressive / threatening towards one another but the writing is very C-tier and schlocky so it ends up feeling rather silly.
~ Various units can be hired into your gang, and they all have different "personality traits", relationships with other units, and professions, although I found that they all still felt basically the same as one another (primarily because many of them are 'jack of all trades'), unlike the wildly different units you can get in your squad within XCOM or W40k Mechanics.


NEGATIVES:
- Nonexistent story unless you make up some headcannon rubbish
- Aside from just being way too long, the game doesn't even have any real replay value .
- Total lack of variety in enemy types, and every faction you come up against feels identical outside of a different colour-scheme.
- Completely useless DLC that contributes basically nothing to the experience despite being extortionately priced.
- Game has been completely abandoned by the developers so there will be no bug-fixes or developments in the future.
- Glaring bugs, visual glitches, campaign soft-locks, CTD issues, and obvious core exploits.


STORY CONTEXT:
Playing as one of the major US mob bosses, you are at the heart of the ruthless criminal underworld of 1920s Prohibition-era Chicago - Build and manage your own criminal empire, assemble your own rag-tag gang of criminal miscreants, and defend your turf from rival gangs.
Various options are at your disposal, so choose whether you want to hustle, charm, or intimidate your way to the top, then do whatever you need to stay at the top.

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An absolutely (uncut) gem of a game: There is little else like this on the market!
^ This is one of the best fantasy RPGs on Steam, especially for playing with friends (in this case, up to 6 players)

This game, despite still being in Early Access, comes incredibly close to matching the feeling of playing a Dungeons & Dragons (or Pathfinder) dungeon module.
Yes, it could definitely do with a lot more polish (such as the grammar and spelling mistakes) and maybe a bit of rebalancing, but this is a fantastic entry for a studio who have only made a single other game in the past.

Setting your expectations to a reasonable level is important before you get this game!
This will never match the story, depth or interactivity of other 'D&D-like' games (such as Divinity Original Sin 2 or Baldur's Gate 3), but this is undoubtedly a fantastic indie game that is great fun to play with a handful of your friends!


POSITIVES:
+ Highly engaging strategy combat system, where players can all make their actions at once but this could cause certain skills to be waste, thereby incentivising more effective communication and teamwork (especially at higher difficulties).
+ Branching options through each module of the campaign: Players can decide to rest, shop, fight, or engage with randomised unique events that could grant them a huge boon.
+ Interesting diversion from the generic "Ranger / Fighter / Mage" class archetypes.
+ Very easy to get into a campaign module (solo, or with friends) and complete this within an hour, making the game perfect to play in short bursts (e.g. on the train via SteamDeck)
+ Unique art style that is simple yet aesthetic, and does not create too much visual clutter. Additionally, the appearance of party members can be customised and a transmog system becomes available later in the game (upon reaching Act 4).
+ The game features RemotePlay together, which works perfectly given the style of turn-based gameplay.
+ Through the inclusion of Fortunes, Dice-Rolls, and randomised levels (procedural placement of enemies and environmental items) no two modules will ever feel identical.
+ Numerous difficulty options that can be changed if your party all die in a battle, including either Normal Mode and Hardcore Mode (with permadeath) for those wanting an extra challenge.
+ The game scales well depending on the player-count: Fighting bosses solo vs with a party of four, the the difficulty will automatically be scaled accordingly.
+ Multi-dimensional skill categories mean every character build will spec across a wide range of passive and active skills (e.g. Passive skills under the 'Thunder' skill-tree can affect Crit Chance, while passives under the 'Cold' skill-tree can affect Resistance)


NEUTRAL:
~ This game does not feature an Interleaved Turns system (more akin to XCOM EU than to DOS2 or Chimera Squad), which is a perplexing diversion from how otherwise similar it is to the D&D initiative-order system.
~ Describing this title with a food metaphor, I would say "If DOS2 is a full three course meal, then Stolen Realm is like getting fast-food via UberEats or Deliveroo: It's never going to be anywhere near as refined, but you can sure as hell cut the bull$hit and get straight to the main course".
~ There are basically no cutscenes besides the introduction at the start of the game, and there is almost no worldbuilding or character development: The current iteration of this game is all about the combat and loot, which is not a bad thing since that gameplay loop is so fun, but I would never turn down more style to go with the substance.
~ At the time of reviewing, this game is not SteamDeck verified. I will update this review if this changes.


NEGATIVES:
- Rather barebones story, although this may change as the game progresses through Early Access.
- For some, there may be a lack of variety in enemy types, although this is alleviated by the use of prefixes and suffixes which will modify the enemies and give them certain immunities/traits (some will explode on death, some can freeze your party, some are undying or become enraged, etc...)
~ The bosses are all varied in terms of appearance and names, although the majority of them seem to feature the same "Spawns Allies" feature, which begins to feel rather repetitive - However one of the most unique bosses I encountered was a powerhouse who could one-shot some of my units, and this boss could not be killed, instead I just had to survive for 6 rounds.
- Despite the low-poly art style, the game doesn't always run particular well, and can microstutter at seemingly random moments, even if there are no visual effects present on the screen (e.g. fire / explosions)


FURTHER INFO:
Stolen Realm is a turn-based tactical dungeon crawling looter with action RPG elements - The game uses hex-based battlefields where positioning is key, due to battle shrines with special effects, exploding barrels and movable crates.
Players can control up to 6 heroes, solo or through online co-op, venturing forth in adventures set in a high-fantasy, low-poly world.

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TLDR; This is a very fun spin-off title that never outstays its welcome.

Numerous difficulty and accessibility options that can be tweaked to make it as challenging (or conversely, as beginner friendly) as wanted, including modifiers such as Permadeath and Ironman.

If I were to rank this compared to other turn-based tactics games, I would do so as follows:
Empire of Sin < W40k Space Wolf < XCOM Chimera Squad < W40k Mechanicus < XCOM EU/EW < XCOM 2 (+WOTC)


POSITIVES:
+ Highly engaging strategy combat system, especially given the inclusion of 'Breach Points' that all have their own pros & cons, and cannot all be used by the full team, forcing the player to split their units across various entrances to a location.
+ Branching options, with the opportunity to complete different versions of each faction's takedown mission (see the 'Every Timeline' achievement).
+ Interesting use of heroes/classes, each with their own strengths and unique abilities.
+ Very easy to get into and campaigns can be completed within an ample amount of time
+ Fantastic tutorial that effectively sets the scene and vibe of the game (far more optimistic than previous XCOM titles) as well as introducing many of the characters, each with their own personality.


NEUTRAL:
~ Game may not be canon? The title is described (by the developers Firaxis) as "in the XCOM universe" which is somewhat vague.
~ The new "Interleaved Turns" system is very different from the old turn-based system that many players will have been used to, and is more similar to the D&D initiative-order system, which I feel is more organic.
~ Tonal shift towards more optimistic and schlocky that some may find to be rather silly
~ This title is highly polarising compared to the other mainline entries: As another reviewer (Scorm) described it, "Effectively the XCOM Apocalypse of the modern XCOM games" so basically it's like Marmite, you either love it or hate it.
~ Echoing another reviewer (Plorthos) with an apt analogy comparing this game to food, "If XCOM 2 is a full three course meal, then Chimera Squad is drive-thru burger and fries. It's not as deep or as fleshed out, but sometimes you just want a burger".
~ The cutscenes are more akin to a comic book/cartoon, which some people may not care for (as an avid comic reader, this didn't put me off the title)


NEGATIVES:
- Rather barebones story that can be finished quite quickly, although this latter aspect is arguably by design.
- Aside from just being shorter, the game has vastly less replay value when compared to XCOM EU or XCOM 2.
- For some, there may be a lack of variety in enemy types, although this was fine for me as the game doesn't outstay its welcome, so you never really feel tired of fighting these enemies.
- Removal of the much-loved feature to completely customise your squad.


STORY CONTEXT:
After years of alien subjugation, humanity won the fight and reclaimed Earth, however when the Overlords fled the planet they left behind many of their former soldiers.
Five years after the events of XCOM 2, where humans and aliens are working together to forge a new civilization of cooperation and coexistence; Unfortunately in City 31, threats are rising from terrorists who denounce interspecies alliances.
You play as the titular Chimera Squad, an elite force of agents, working together to prevent the city falling into chaos.


ICONIC QUOTE:
Whisper: City Archive has a lot of irreplaceable artifacts. So, you know...
Torque: (Excitedly) Shoot the duplicates to drive up the value of the remaining goods!
Terminal: Test the limits of the post-war insurance industry?
Whisper: ...Let's go with "None of the above".

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Avoid this game like the plague! I genuinely believe this game is not even worth the price when it's on sale.

Very few difficulty and accessibility options can be set to make the game less of a slog, which is worsened by how the player ideally needs to grind for currency so that they can buy card-packs, individually fuse the duplicates together, and manually equip all the new upgrades.

I cannot emphasise enough how demoralising it is that this game has a lackluster soundtrack with minimal in-game audio effects, especially when compared to W40k Mechanicus which has a flawless soundtrack.
This game definitely feels like the mobile port that it (unsurprisingly) is.

If I were to rank this compared to other turn-based tactics games, I would do so as follows:
Empire of Sin < W40k Space Wolf < XCOM Chimera Squad < W40k Mechanicus < XCOM EU/EW < XCOM 2 (+WOTC)


POSITIVES:
+ No micro-transactions.
+ Comprehensive deck-building and management (if you're into that)
+ Vast assortment of tactical, weapon, movement and equipment cards across multiple levels of quality/rarity levels.
+ Innovative "chained card" system that incentivises careful use of cards.
+ The game does run well for the most part and isn't too graphically intensive


NEUTRAL:
~ Conversations with Space Wolf characters on the main menu are not voiced so you have to read everything. Unlike W40k Mechanicus this decision is not deliberate and feels like a cheap decision to cut out voice actors.
~ Only three difficulty settings, which is rather poor when compared to games like Mechanicus or XCOM which have Ironman and Permadeath settings, although these three options are very much the standard "Easy, Medium or Hard".
~ Bizarre restriction for units where they can only attack in the direction they are actively facing (turning is not free, and costs movement points) which does not tie in with any other turn-based strategy game I have played.
~ The game could not be played offline: This game required a permanent online connection, which seems bizarre considering there is no real reason for such a limitation to be imposed... An update was made to fix this, which was notorious for causing many people to have their in-game progress be deleted.
~ Thee mini-campaigns, a wave-based survival challenge and a PVP/versus mode are the available game options.
~ Campaign missions have one or two mandatory objectives to achieve success, while optional objectives provide additional rewards if they are completed.


NEGATIVES:
- Space Wolf vastly fails to deliver the atmosphere of Warhammer 40k.
- Totally barebones story, poor characterisation, and the antagonists are barely fleshed out.
- Artstyle is very poor and fails to capture any effective style of W40k (e.g. the Gothic megacities).
- Grindy achievements, repetitive gameplay, and frustrating card-deck accumulation.
- The game can crash quite often, which is bizarre considering that it's absolutely not a graphically intensive title and only has turn-based combat.
- Admittedly the game has many levels (especially with DLC campaigns) but because you need to grind for currency to improve your aptitude, the length of the game feels tedious... Without the grinding, the game's length may have actually felt well curated.
- Very poor tutorial that barely explains features like the Rage meter.
- This game has no replay value, especially when compared to XCOM (EU or 2) and W40k Mechanicus,
- The gameplay loop is based around an "effort" system, that effectively punishes you for playing high-tier cards: Instead, using card decks filled with the cheaper cards is almost always better because you can then take twice, or even three times the number of actions that an enemy can.
- Asinine system where enemies attacking your units causes them to regularly DISCARD their cards: The more people attacking your units, the higher the likelihood of you losing your best cards.


STORY CONTEXT:
Set in the Warhammer 40,000 universe, you play as a squad of the Space Wolves, led by the hero "Valgard Twice Slain".
Ambushed by the Chaos Space Marines of the Word Bearers legion, your ship fell planetside on Kanak, a volcano-wracked world, inhabited by tribes of ruthless barbarians.


ICONIC QUOTE:
The Sons of Fenris they are, hardened in the forge of their harsh world, eager for battle and honour. They are the grey warriors, ashen like the wolf, whose greatest joy is to hear the clamour of steel amidst the din of war.

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A very intuitive title with numerous difficulty and accessibility options that can be tweaked to make it as challenging (or conversely, as beginner friendly) as wanted.

It cannot be stressed enough that this game features a flawless soundtrack that is in-keeping with the Adeptus Mechanicus (and Nekron) setting, and has numerous tidbits of Warhammer 40k lore for those who are so inclined.

If I were to rank this compared to other turn-based tactics games, I would do so as follows:
Empire of Sin < W40k Space Wolf < XCOM Chimera Squad < W40k Mechanicus < XCOM EU/EW < XCOM 2 (+WOTC)


POSITIVES:
+ Highly engaging strategy combat system (for example, AoE weapons can damage your own units so the game really makes you think about positioning).
+ The shared pool of "action (cognition) points" for your team, meaning players need to think multiple steps ahead (i.e. one unit can do a lot at the expense of others being able to do anything).
+ Decisions that make the player consider their priorities (Blackstone vs Awakening vs Initiative).
+ Branching narrative, with the order of story progression being linked to the player's choices.
+ Interesting use of "hero (Tech Priest) units" in contrast with the expendable (Servitor) units.
+ Legitimately one of the best soundtracks in gaming of the last decade.
+ Mechanicus NAILS the atmosphere of 40k.


NEUTRAL:
~ Conversations between Mechanicus characters are not voiced, instead being mass of audible noises meant to imitate words; Contextually, this was done because "speech" patterns for each Magos cannot easily be voice-acted, but I would argue that this adds to the charm and worldbuilding (Note: Necron Overlords are voiced)
~ Many of the auxiliary "Servitor" units are limited in their usefulness, and they do cost resources to take on each mission, however this is by design; Hero (Tech Priest) units are meant to be far more efficient but you only start with two, and have to unlock the other four by completing a certain questline (Khepras' missions).


NEGATIVES:
- Rather barebones story (as Mortismal Gaming said in his YT review: "What you see is what you get")
- The game can, depending on the in-game environment, be rather graphically intensive considering the turn-based gameplay; Be aware that you may have to tweak your graphics/resolution settings to improve performance.
- Admittedly this game is shorter to complete than XCOM (EU or 2) and with arguably much less replay value; The length is more comparable to Chimera Squad than the mainline XCOM titles.
- For some, there may be a lack of variety in enemy types, although this can depend on how many missions someone completes before finishing the campaign (the longer you let the game run, the more tired it can feel fighting the same types of enemies)


STORY CONTEXT:
Set in the Warhammer 40,000 universe, you play as the Adeptus Mechanicus, a faction of technologically-advanced humans who worship a machine god and are responsible for maintaining and developing the advanced technology used by the Imperium of Man.
In this title, you are tasked with claiming an ancient and abandoned planet that is filled with technological relics and rare resources, however the planet is also the tomb of dangerous immortal 'Xenos' lifeforms.
This game explores the themes of faith and loyalty, and the cost of obsessively pursuing knowledge.


ICONIC QUOTE:
From the moment I understood the weakness of my flesh, it disgusted me. I craved the strength and certainty of steel. I aspired to the purity of the blessed machine

There are multiple layers of complexity to this game which are worth appreciating...
The gameplay is very deep and definitely fits the mantra "easy to learn, hard to master".
For those who are not a fan of the melee combat, the game also features Bowguns of varying specifications, which are a good weapon to help ease new players into the franchise (the controls will be far easier to grasp)

It's worth noting that new players should consider trying to avoid using the the guardian/defender armor as this equipment set totally ruins the sense of player progression in the game!

Furthermore, I would state that the Zorah Magdaros large-monster encounters can be quite polarising as they are incredibly atypical encounters.
These only occur two times in the campaign, but I found both occurrences quite tedious.

For a single-player game, you'll sure as $hit to see a whole lot of:

• Logging in...
  
• Trying to connect to Steam / Square-Enix servers...
  
• Connection Failed....

Square Enix pushing the "Always online DRM" is a pain but is sadly all too unsurprising

That all said, when the game runs without the internet buffer, it's dope and fun as hell
- If it had any more explosions in it, you'd think it was directed by Michael f0cking Bay

I've had a lot of fun with just how absurd Just Cause 3 is to play (if not also to watch):
With the ridiculously OTT voice acting, distinct character personalities, over-the-top action, addictive explosion displays, and more... this game is a glorious bundle of joy that has a playtime long enough to savour unwrapping everything inside!

I wanted to make people aware of the DRM and Networking issues but that isn't to say that the game is unplayable; Despite that, other factors such as the physics, graphics and stunts are also masterfully crafted and will be better detailed in other reviews.
Yet when all is said and done, you really have to see/play it to believe it.

I have fond memories of playing the original version of Flashback back when I was a kid, and I can remember how fondly I enjoyed it (just as I enjoyed Another World for very similar reasons).

These classic games are hard: there's no way around that - In the cases of a lot of classic games, as with a few modern releases, however this does not detract from the game still being fun too (as is ideal).
Many great games that are hard, are also fun: Dark Souls for example is a series renowned for how brutally difficult it is, and that game series is famously unrelenting until the player learns to "git gud" and adapt to enemies by either learning fast or to die trying.

Conversely, this game can only be described as being off-putting to the a degree/level only akin to "a pile of w&nk stained socks once worn by a man with BO and fungi problems".

The game is far beyond broken ... I say this with the utmost sadness, because this 'remaster' has stained a once-classic game's legacy.
These issues are at the stage where the game has:

• Numerous Crashes to Desktop (CTDs)
  
• AI so bad that the developers remastering it just decided to make your gun a pea-shooter at high difficulties to emulate real challenge
  
• Faulty (to the point where I question its inclusion) stealth mechanics
  
• $hite checkpoint system that are almost as bad as those seen in GTA IV (one death can force the player to lose huge amounts of progress and even collectibles)
  
• A pointless collectible system
  
• A genuinely alienating levelling and upgrade system
  
• Voice acting that makes me wonder if the story was genuinely more engaging in 1992

I'd even go so far as to wager that Ubisoft actually 'relies' on CTDs for the user to quit the game, because even *that* simple feature (of quitting properly) fails on many occasions and then reverts to another crash to get you back.


And after all of thise, my biggest gripe with a game is still the bloody DRM!

- Users should not be expected to enter a key and run the game through Uplay of all bull$hit software after they have bought the game through Steam's far more acceptable DRM system anyway.


TL;DR - The existence of this insufferable remake genuinely saddens me

I have also included where abouts to find the included items as the player will not magically spawn with them, for those wondering.
Potential spoiler warning with regards to the location, ( but only from within the first 20 minutes of the game ):

The merchant "Bram" who you save from the griffin at the start of the game should arrive in town shortly after you finish asking after Yennefer in the Inn (although I meditated until the next morning too so this may have helped). Bram will then sell all of the armor (including gear for the horse, e.g. a Temerian Saddle) from a make-shift market stall.
He will likely be the very first NPC you encounter to sells this armor set, although there may be others merchants who similarly sell it throughout the rest of the game.

All of the armor is useful and can be equipped from Level 4 onwards, and it isn't all too expensive either if you've been looting and selling enough Rusty Novigrad Swords or Blunt Axes from corpses and other remains within the nearby battlefield.

Great work CD Projekt Red!