Recent reviews by VsTheWall

This game is great if you enjoy automation games. This game is perfect if your favorite part of playing those games is just designing factories.

While there is still an unlock system to get different machines, the progression is easy going and is mostly in place to not overwhelm newer players to the genre. That aside, Shapez 2 allows you to build to your hearts content. No enemies, no time limits, unlimited resources; just build factories and create the required shapes to progress. The soundtrack is great and the visuals are satisfying, with good animations and lots of vibrant colors. Watching your ever growing torrent of shapes entering the vortex is it's own unique reward to witness.

This is a great game to kick back and relax to. Not to say this game isn't difficult, by any means. Some of the later shapes become much more complicated to produce, much less at scale, and there's even a hexagon mode if you really want to be put to the test. While the gameplay is low stakes, it'll still make you think.

All in all, great game for it's price and a must if you enjoy the automation genre.

So, just to get this out of the way, this is a game that seems specifically targeted towards people who enjoy games like Factorio or Satisfactory, and even more specifically if you enjoy messing with the train networks in those games; it scratches a very specific itch. The whole game is a logistic puzzle, and a very good one at that. It is visually appealing and the money and time constraints are welcome challenges as well.

A lot of people seem to be writing negative reviews for the aforementioned time constraints and what not, which are an optional thing (you can modify how difficult a level is). There is a level of progression so if a level stumps you, finish it best you can and give it a go later with more upgrades.

All in all, it's not for everyone but if you enjoy automation or logistics style games this is a fantastic game to sink some time into.

Blood West is a challenging but rewarding I-sim. It keeps you on your toes, even when you think you're unstoppable. Starting out, your character is very weak and isn't particularly good at anything. Guns aren't very accurate, ammo is scarce, melee is dangerous in a stand up fight, and even stealth isn't as OP as it is in other games, as you are slow and enemies can detect you easily if they're in a group. Your inventory is also pretty small, meaning you have to either be choosy about what you take or be ready to make the trek back to grab loot. Dying is the only thing you're good at doing, and even that has drastic consequences if you do it too much.

Then you start finding artifacts, rare weapons and cash to improve your chances, as well as slowly gaining XP to level up into various perks, and you start to come out on top more. And then once you hit a point where you think the game is getting too easy, you make it to chapter 2 and are put right back on the bottom of the food chain, quite literally.

I personally love the games monster design, which has a great wild west horror vibe. The voice acting is surprisingly good, with Gianni Matragrano and Stephen Russel being highlights. The level design is surprisingly intricate, especially in later chapters, and the more elaborate set pieces can take some time to fully explore. The shooting feels great, with the game having an emphasis on head shots which are always satisfying to pull off. Melee can also be quite fun if you specialize your build for it, and stealth gets a lot easier while still feeling risky in high population areas.

If I have any complaints, it's that the first chapter can feel a bit bland. Your arsenal is pretty limited and you'll see all the enemy types within the first hour or two. It definitely shows that it was the first map iteration in the development cycle. The game gets significantly more fun in the later chapters, with more interesting enemies, weapons and artifacts that allow for some very unique ability combinations.

This isn't a game for everyone but if you are looking for a challenging game that gets more rewarding as you go, this game might be right up your alley.

I purchased this game when it first came out and couldn't get into it. It was too different from the 2013 reboot that came before and I ended up abandoning it for years. Now with SW3 coming out soon, I decided to give this game a fair shake and booted it up again.

I don't know why I bounced so hard off it before, but now that I took the time to learn the mechanics, I realize that this is actually a pretty great sequel. I prefer the story of the first game much more but the gameplay in SW2 is hands down superior. All the different weapons feel good to use and your character movement just feels better overall. Once you learn the upgrade system and get a collection of weaponry you can make a very diverse and powerful arsenal to take on pretty much any scenario.

A majority of the skills and powers you could use in the first game return with some tweaks, while others that were underutilized were changed significantly or replaced. The overall feel of the weaponry, both ranged and melee, is satisfying; guns feel powerful and melee weapons have weight in their attacks. Removing the stamina meter means you can dodge and sprint infinitely and you now can land from any height meaning you won't die from dashing off a 4 foot ledge like in the first game.

This is a different game from the 2013 reboot, but it feels like an evolution of the formula that (for the most part) nails the feel of combat, and for that I highly recommend it.

Surprisingly good. Definitely a mid-tier game but the devs have done very well with the licence and the budget they were given. Shooting feels solid, the enemies, especially the T-800's, are a proper threat and the game has a satisfying progression of power. More than anything though, the game takes it's source material seriously and feels like more of a proper sequel to T2 than the actual movies that came after. Without saying much about the plot it treats the source material well and gives a satisfying conclusion within the story elements of T1 and T2

Gameplay-wise it feels like a light take on the Fallout formula with lots of scavenging and light crafting and RPG elemnts. The combat slowly ramps up from stealthily picking your targets off and choosing engagements before finally being able to go toe-to-toe with your enemies. There's some dialog choices and side-quests that will determine your ending's outcome and help add more to do within each mission.

All in all, great game for the price and a solid Terminator sequel as well. If you're on the fence, wait for a sale and pick it up then and you'll be pleasantly surprised

Grounded is very much a template survival game; like many of it's brethren you have to collect resources, fight enemies, manage health/hunger/thirst, build bases, research tech, etc.

Unlike most other survival games, Grounded absolutely oozes style and personality. The "Honey I Shrunk the Kids" setting is fantastically represented and everything from the various yard trash and the thick "forests" of grass make you feel minuscule.

As far as development has gone, Obsidian have done a good job updating regularly with new content ranging from new areas to explore to new enemies to fight. It feel like the closest thing we have to a AAA (or AA) survival game.

All in all, good game, recommend it. 7/10

Let's get the obvious out of the way; Subnautica is everything this game wishes it was.

That being said, for what this game is, it's pretty dang enjoyable. Despite a lot of people saying the dev abandoned this game, it is a complete game. It was never meant to be this epic grand adventure, just a fun little distraction with a cool art style. And for a game of this scope (mind you, developed by one single dude in his spare time before Subnautica was even a concept) it is feature complete and worth a look at the very least. This game often goes on sale at a very low price and is worth it just to expereince a relaxing diversion.

The gameplay is simple enough; get to the surface to be rescued. There are some light survival mechanics, and oxygen is a plentiful resource that is easily replinished allowing you to eventually explore the world with little issue. My main gripe is that the enemy a.i. is simplistic to put it gently, but it does its part to provide a challenge. Though easy to beat, it's fun enough that I occasionally boot it up to mess around with and just enjoy the experience.

TL;DR it's fun. If you have the 2 dollars to spare when it's on sale, go ahead and buy it if you enjoy survival games.

Well, to put it simply, I didn't like this game when I first started out. I love the Metroidvania style games in all their forms, and this one was so highly recommended I had to check it out.

At first, the graphics didn't mesh with me. I felt like the gameplay was sluggish and boring. The map felt the same no matter where you were. The enemies weren't engaging.

But I sucked it up and played. And then, about an hour into it, it just clicked and I started to really enjoy myself. Now it's probably my favorite of all the games in the genre! It has a slow burn to it, both with the story and with the gameplay itself, but it is immensly rewarding when you give it a chance. At this point the only complaint I have is I tend to get lost and must constantly check the map, but that's just a testament to how intricately designed this game is.

It's also a meaty game. Over 30 hours in and I was only 80% completion and no where near the ending. What few characters there are remain memorable and the post content support has been delightfully sufficient. This game has put Team Cherry on the map for me and I hope they continue to produce awesome content such as this.

Alright, so this game is best described as a flawed masterpiece. It has some very solid shooting, the enemies are fun to fight (for the most part) and the bosses are pretty unsettling when you have your first go at them. The enviroments tend to change on a whim, and with that your tactics often will change as well, keeping the gameplay fresh.

There are, however, a few flaws. The game has a breakneck pace (especially chapter 10, which feels like a marathon of pain) that can have some very long and unfogiving segments. The game likes to increase difficulty by having bosses and scenarios with one hit kills that can be very frustrating at times. It is more than possible to just "git gud" at these parts but it feels like a lazy way to provide a challenge. The story is also a (purposely) convoluted mess, not helped by some slightly confusing dialog and a majority of the story taking place in notes found around the world.

That said, I still find this game fantastic. If you have played RE4, it will feel very familiar in many ways. Even the difficulty follows a similar ramp up as your arsenal grows and the enemies become more varied and deadly. There are some light RPG esque elements in the form of weapon and character upgrades, and there is a NG+ that lets you take all your upgraded toys (as well as some special unlocks) back to any chapter to get revenge on anything that gave you trouble before.

Finally, the DLC for the game is very worthwhile, with The Assignment and The Consequence in particular being well done story bits. If you have been eyeing the sequel and want to play this game to get some of the backstory, it is highly recommended that you play these to get a better grasp on the second game.

All in all, The Evil Within remains at the top of my list of horror/action games. Slight flaws aside, this is a memorable experience that will leave you on the edge of your seat for a majority of your playthrough.

At this moment, I've only been playing this game for a few hours but I have enjoyed every second of it thus far. Having played both original Dungeon Keeper games, this one was easy enough for me to pick up and immediately understand what to do, with controls and missions laid out pretty much the same.

Honestly, other than the art shift, this game is pretty much DK2 with better graphics. Most of the minions for your dungeons are pulled directly from DK2 but with a new name and look. Heck, it even has the original game's narrator (Richard Riddings) returning to reprise his old role! This isn't a bad thing, IMO, as what EA has done with the original IP has been more than a letdown and has probably ruined any hope of a proper sequal to the Dungeon Keeper series. Think of this as a fresh start for a used and abused franchise.

Again, although I haven't played much at the time of this review, so far it is a game certainly worth your time and money if you are a fan of the old Bullfrog games and want to scratch that particular nostalgic itch.