Recent reviews by ArmoredTent

To add to the recent reviews: STOP KILLING GAMES!

2K pushes online play in this series more than any other. They control the servers, so when they decide you need to get the new version they just pull the plug. Let me play the game I paid for, jerks.

To add to the recent reviews: STOP KILLING GAMES.

2K pushes online play in this series more than any other. They control the servers, so when they decide you need to get the new version they just pull the plug. Let me play the game I paid for, jerks.

Steam says I have played this game more than anything other than Skyrim. More than anything I wish I could recommend it, because the story and gameplay are amazing, and even after State of Decay 3 was announced they are still updating this game. But the crashes.

Oh. my. god.

The lack of stability especially in late game play makes it just so frustrating. I had a couple hundred hours for free on Xbox Gamepass before I paid good money for it, and would do it again, but...

I am looking forward to 3, but won't be looking to put down money until a year after release so they have time to fix at least the major bugs that will absolutely be there. I'm too old for this ♥♥♥♥.

It's like One Finger Death Punch but prettier. Some changes so it is definitely its own game, but if you like one you'll like the other.

TL;DR at the top: If you're a cycling fan and haven't played a PCM, get one that's a year or three out of date and you won't be missing much. They are worth buying, but it's definitely not worth buying every year. I DO NOT recommend this game if you're not already a road cycling fan - you don't have to be on the level of knowing all the riders, but you should have a grasp of the general strategy that goes into racing.

Next verse, same as the first. The last PCM game I played was 2006 or in that era. This one plays the same, acts the same, all kinds of familiar controls and whatnot. Haven't had any crashes or game-killing bugs but I don't have a ton of hours in yet either. The only part that I really, really don't like is the re-use of the old audio files for commentary. Not just the same voice guy, literally the same dozen comments that were in the earlier versions of the game over a decade ago.

Pros:
The new "Pro Cyclist" individual career mode is pretty cool.
Your teammates will actually bring you water(!) in that mode (I guess making a case for it having somewhat decent teammate AI)
They (still) care about some authentic feel as far as actual race strategies working or not.
Races feel like you're actually directing the team in a realistic race.
Scenery is pretty.

Cons:
My pro cyclist got injured for several weeks and simulating through all the races was literally staring at my screen for ten minutes (I kept track by playing known-time games on my phone while the sim was going). Simulating races you're not participating in is long and boring and needs some serious optimization.
The middle of races can be long and boring because there's nothing going on. There's a reason US broadcasts of the Tour de France are on a long tape delay and start in the middle of the race, cutting out long portions where the peleton isn't chasing and there aren't attacks or crashes happening.
Seriously they need to go on Fiverr and give somebody a script to update the commentary.
On-course graphics are ♥♥♥♥♥ (you'll ride straight through vehicles, barriers, and crowds loitering on the course).