Recent reviews by J-Omega

Expect what you would expect from a tabletop D&D campaign with friends; albeit with much better writing, visuals, and sounds. If you haven't played either before, expect a narrative focused, deliberately paced, turn-based, western RPG. There is a large amount of text, talking to NPC's, and wandering about from destination to destination as opposed to the predominantly combat heavy, action-oriented RPGs popular today. If anything it is the definition of the CRPG genre and for those that enjoy the turn based RPG's of the 90's and prior, I would suggest giving it a shot if this one passed you by. It somewhat captures the feel of a tabletop experience but is also a very well made game in its own right. The music, dialogue, and artwork in particular are well done. The pre-rendered backgrounds still look great and still worth checking out if you're in the latter camp. If not, do some digging to make sure this would be right for you. If contemporary Final Fantasy, The Witcher, and modern Elder Scrolls are your bread and butter for RPG gaming, you may find this is to be too tedious or slow.

Recommended to those who enjoy linear, narrative-driven shooters. Although the game is well over a decade old, I found the experience to still be enjoyable as of this writing. Many modern day staples are derivative from Valve's work and indeed, the sequel to one of gaming's finest still holds up many years down the line. However, if you played the original and for some reason have not played this yet, you may be left disappointed. Half-Life 2 is more of a 'daring-do' escapade where Freeman is lauded as somewhat of a mythical savior by humanity's remaining survivors of an alien invasion. Gone is the feeling of unforgiving isolation and one man's personal, unsung struggle to simply stay alive as everything falls apart around him. While the sequel conjures these feelings every once in a while, I found them to have much less impact than the original (the current year notwithstanding). Although newly introduced gameplay elements make up for this in part, the experience goes in a considerably different direction than the first. Regardless, the product is extremely polished and the gameplay will be satisfying if this type of game is up your alley. If not, you may want to make an exception for this one given its pedigree. To those who played the original - you will most likely enjoy this but don't expect the same burlap sack of magic from 1998. If you don't enjoy FPS's, well then why are you reading this review?

Recommended to those who enjoy deliberately-paced, puzzle-platformers. Ultimately, Limbo is a wholly linear, environmental puzzle-platformer without any real combat. The narrative is extremely limited with the game having a dream-like aesthic to it that works extremely well given Limbo's minimalist approach to the graphics, gameplay, and story. Although Limbo is presented as a continuous journey, the game is essentially broken into 'stages' with each stage being reprsented by a specific environmental puzzle. Once the player completes the puzzle, the character is allowed to move on through the environment until the next bottleneck is reached. This formula is followed to the end. It may sound boring, but the puzzles are varied from those that require pure intellect, to fast-paced platform jumping that requires excellent timing a la classic sidecrollers. There's quite a bit of platforming variety here and I personally found it refreshing. Graphically, the game delivers a wonderfully somber and bleak atmosphere - not threatening, but unsettling. Not too long but I suggest Limbo even for those who may not be fans of the genre. It's one of those rare games that provides a unique experience that most likely won't be forgotten. Before you purchase - know what you're getting into. It's not quite avant garde, but close to it. If methodical, linear, minimalist games aren't up your alley, I would strongly avoid.

Do do doodle loo, do do doodle loo, do do doodle loo, do do doodle loo, do do doodle loo, do do doodle loo, do do doodle loo, do do doodle loo, do do doodle loo, do do doodle loo, do do doodle loo, do do doodle loo, do do doodle loo, do do doodle loo, do do doodle loo, do do doodle loo, do do doodle loo, do do doodle loo, do do doodle loo, do do doodle loo, do do doodle loo, do do doodle loo, do do doodle loo, do do doodle loo, do do doodle loo, do do doodle loo, do do doodle loo, do do doodle loo, do do doodle loo, do do doodle loo, do do doodle loo, do do doodle loo, do do doodle loo, do do doodle loo, do do doodle loo, do do doodle loo, do do doodle loo, do do doodle loo, do do doodle loo, do do doodle loo, do do doodle loo, do do doodle loo, do do doodle loo, do do doodle loo, do do doodle loo, do do doodle loo, do do doodle loo, do do doodle loo, do do doodle loo, do do doodle loo, do do doodle loo, do do doodle loo, do do doodle loo, do do doodle loo, do do doodle loo, do do doodle loo, do do doodle loo, do do doodle loo, do do doodle loo, do do doodle loo, do do doodle loo, do do doodle loo, do do doodle loo, do do doodle loo, do do doodle loo, do do doodle loo, do do doodle loo, do do, do do, do do, do do, do do, do do, do do, do do, do do, do do, do do, do do, do do, do do, do do, do do, do do, do do, do do, do do, do do, do do, do do, do do, do do, do do, do do, do do, do do, do do, do do....................












Do do doodle loo

- John Williams

Be prepared to gape your a$$hole. This game's going to take over your life, throw you in stirrups, and dominate you.

You'll gobble it down and beg for more.

*Note: I received this product for free via purchashing a new graphics card. The inclusion of the game had no impact on my choice. Budget and specs did.

Colonel...Can you hear me? As a gamer who grew up with the NES, SNES, and the introduction of the first major 3D systems (N64 and PS1), I definitely played the original MGS back in good old '98-'99. As is widely known, the original was amazing and introduced unique gameplay elements (I'm thinking of Meryl's frequency on the jewel case, Psycho Mantis 'moving' your controller, etc.). The core gameplay itself was fairly groundbreaking but its presentation was where the game broke true boundaries. In any case, I've obviously been a fan of the series, and have kept up with most releases. With this almost certainly being Kojima's last MGS foray, is it worthy of a true finale? Does it still retain the MGS flavor?

Yes and no. Gone is the strong narrative and linear gameplay. This sounds like heresy but the storyline is actually mission based. You can also explore the game world at your whim; think of something akin to a Metal Gear GTA with bases to avoid or destroy, vehicles to shoot up or capture, etc. Surprisingly, this doesn't feel like a Battlefield clone because the game stays close enough to its roots to give it that MGS feel; albeit in an open warzone. There are too many details to describe how MGSV walks the line between your big budget military shooter and staying true to the Stealth-Action genre (Mother Base, FOB missions, weapons development) and they are almost all new to the franchise. Having played the game fairly extensively, I can say with confidence that Kojima was able to create a MGS-esque type game with the aforementioned additions of generic action game type elements. I have to admit my skepticism, but Kojima and friends pulled it off.

With all this being said, I would recommend the game to MGS fans and action fans alike. For better or worse, it will appease MGS fans (while feeling slightly watered-down), and invite those who prefer a more action-oriented playstyle (while feeling somewhat obscure). Some missions do require absolute stealth (the vast majority do to get the best mission rank) but it won't be the stunning stealth narrative you've experienced in the past. However, I dare say it has enough of the latter peppered in to still feel like MGS. The gameplay can be described similarly. In fact, I was surprised by how much it did feel like MGS given it's GTA-like foundation. It will give you plenty of Michael Bay-esque 'Wow! Explosions!' moments (Kojima does them well), while also giving you a healthly dose of the sneaking, hiding, and fear of capture that the series has evolved around (that can be optional given the aforementioned equipment development). Frankly, that's exactly it. MGS has evolved to accommodate modern gaming, and perhaps Konami's business model(?). While still an enjoyable MGS game on a gameplay, presentation, and technical level, it has accomodated nonetheless. Take it or leave it.

One last note: buy with the understanding that while the storyline reaches for excellence, it fails and is clearly unfinished (but not horrendous). However, most other details (including the technical ones) are what you would expect from Kojima and crew; top notch. Sad to see David Hayter not voice Snake as well.

What's to be said about the now iconic Dark Souls? A spiritual successor to the 'King's Field' series and it shows. Play if you're interested in a Japanese take on a dark, fantasy, action-RPG. As has been repeated ad nausem, the difficulty can be high so if you prefer an easier play through, stay far away. However, if you decide to stick it out and conjure up your perserverence, a deep satisfaction reminscent of the 2D side-scrolling days can be found. The level design, art direction, gameplay, and limited soundtrack are of extraordinarily high caliber and it would be a blunder to not give this one a shot.

*NOTE: The game is borderline unplayable without two modifications - DSFix and DSMFix. I highly suggest installing these mods.

Expect the same type of gameplay that you would experience in the 'Gothic' series. Very old-school quick saving and loading due to cheap deaths style if that's your jam. True to the aforementioned series with cooking elements, weaponsmithing, different storyline paths, etc. Humourous dialogue at times with pipe smoking and booze drinking as well. Stay away if you don't like a 90's-era action RPG feel but if you do, you'll find an enjoyable experience here. I shouldn't neglect to mention that the soundtrack is pretty solid as well.

Would absolutely love to recommend but game-breaking bugs and terrible AI make this one not worth your time and/or money. I've had to quit numerous battles I've won because an enemy's routing unit gets stuck on an object and magically becomes invincible. Upon quitting, somehow I'm always met with the 'Defeat!' screen. Campaign map troop movements by the CPU can become confused, leaving turns for CPU factions taking 10+ minutes to complete (no joke), ultimately destroying the experience. Granted, the latter only seems to happen when you continue after completing a campaign's objectives, but what's the point of allowing the player go for complete global domination if it's unplayable? Sadly, these issues (and more) plague the game for many and were never addressed by the developer. I love Total War, and I want to love this iteration so badly. I just can't recommend a game you can't fully complete and that has broken AI in crucial areas. Darthmod is amazing but doesn't address everything. Guess I'm sticking with Medieval II for the time being.

Bought this game and then found out the paternity test was NEGATIVE! Dem hoes... 10/10