Recent reviews by [CL] Ethan

This is a really good start to what could be a really great game. There are full games that have released with less content than is already in this first chapter. I really like the atmosphere and the general tone and setting. Makes me want to play like a ttrpg or something in this world.

The gun-play is extremely satisfying. One of the few shooters that It actually feels like you are shooting a person with a gun. The amount of damage that can be done and the time to kill is just right, as it stands, to me. The melee is a little harder. Takes much more getting used to, and I don't think I was really even close to being good at it till the last level of the first episode. That being said, once you do get used to it it feels really good. I kinda fought like Ippo, Dempsey rolling with quick jabs left and right and it felt really nice and effective.

I have finished the first episode once, and I am deeply interested in the mystery and the characters. I really like that it's playing with genre troupes, and using them straight, while being able to make them interesting without feeling the need to reinvent the wheel or to do bad/shoehorned subversions of your expectations. You expect gristled gumshoe noir superhero stuff, and you get that.

The exploration is great. Each level has crazy large hidden facets or little areas to explore. There's an entire optional underwater section that you have to puzzle your way through and it has it's own little stories and unique pieces of content that I really appreciate. You get that sense of "Oh, I wonder if I can go there?" and most of the time the answer is YES! It leads to the world feeling somehow very real and lived in. They also use the secrets, a lot of the time, to give you more lore or intrigue or to just show a few more ♥♥♥♥♥♥ up things about the level of crime and violence in Switchblade City. My favorite example is a hidden upstairs rooms that contains a wooden soldier, a wooden tank, some blocks, and a fully loaded .357 Magnum, minus one bullet.

I can't recommend this game enough. I'm deeply hopeful for it's future and I can't wait to play some community made levels. The level editor is maybe one of my biggest hype points, currently. New blood hasn't disappointed me yet, and I can't wait to see where this story goes. BUY IT.

Democracy cannot be beaten.

I do not speak lightly when I say that his game has single handedly restored and rejuvenated my faith in AAA video games. I LOVE cRPGs, and this is maybe one of the best I've ever played. Larian is at the top of their form, in this, and they deserve every bit of praise they're getting.

The game is deep and expansive. It's logical. Little things that you think might work in combat almost always do. Pushing enemies, using spells, preparing and changing the battlefield around you with items all feel absolutely amazing. The jump feature is maybe one of my favorite things in the game. The verticality, interweaving nature of maps that it opens up is amazing.

Another thing about this is the nature of the game. It's a $60 purchase with good graphics, stellar storytelling, and zero micro transactions or lootboxes or any of the other plethora of measures that most AAA studios use to exploit the video gaming community. Larian Studios has taken everything they've learned from the Divinity series and crafted into a shining gem, a masterpiece of a game.

I physically cannot recommend it enough.

EDIT/TLDR: Since writing this review, I've finished the game and my ideas haven't changed. I adored this video game, and it is absolutely my GOTY if not GOTD.

effectively infinite versions of every boardgame you would want to play, while still allowing for house rules and with some of the tactility of playing board games. I want nothing more from a boardgame simulator. Much better value proposition than other options.

This game is fantastic. I've never felt closer to what I see in my head when I play D&D than when I play this game. Absolutely amazing. Hopefully the sequel lives up to the promise of this game!

I played my first game as House Atreides and got my ass handed to me by the first big Harkonnen attack. Unlike Leto, I had a lot of fun scrambling to beat that. Really recommend it already, and it feels like it can only get better!

I should be honest and say that I haven't finished this game. But I spent hours and hours and hours with the original book, as a kid, played through it cover to cover many times, and I absolutely adore it. This is a very faithful adaption. Everything is here. The original fighting fantasy world presented in really amazing-ly realized graphics. The world map is gorgeous. The frames of art from the books even more so. (there are lots of fantasy artists that are technically "better," but John Blanche's art is among those that simply can't be touched.) The new combat is a more fun that the standard die rolls from the books. Feels more involved, as a video game should.

I've actually put more time into the IOS version, because it's just so convenient to have it in my pocket to play when I just feel like reading. It's the same as the old book!

A fantastic game. I'm not sure that the deluxe edition is worth it, but the base game absolutely is. The story is really cool, and exploring the different levels over and over really turns you into the matrix level bad-ass it shows you as early in. I really like the interplay between Colt and Juliana, they actually feel like friend-enemies.

The entire concept was and is right up my alley. Full of wonderful time-messing nonsense

TLDR: A strong recommendation, with some very small worries for the future.

This game is so fun I bought it before I hit the trial limit, which is RARE for me. I knew I was gonna keep playing enough for the purchase to be worth it. Gameplay is tight and very fun. Losing doesn't even feel that bad because the gameplay naturally breeds swing-y moments between even mismatched skill-level teams. The special balls are all cool and unique, and there is tons of options for expansion. All of the maps so far are at least good, with most of them actually being great. Not a bad one in the bunch. The Concussion Yard and Galaxy Burger standing out as personal favorites. (I like maps with verticallity!)

Customization is another very strong part of this game. It's not part and parceled off. No loot-boxes or anything like that, so far, you just get cosmetics (and pretty cool ones at that!) pretty regularly from actual gameplay. This is the part that I fear EA will somehow ruin after all the good PR the game has gotten. That's my big worry, they're gonna mess up the monetization in a big way somehow. Loot-boxes or cash-grab boosters etc. etc. None of that is here yet, but I can't help but feel that it will be eventually. As long as they don't, this is a 9/10 multiplayer games with the potential to only get better.

The greatest VR shooter that currently exists. This game is everything Boneworks wishes it was. An absolute must play for PCVR. The physics interactions are deep, and super cool, without making you sick or bringing you out of the experience. Can't recommend it enough. There are also enough extra levels and mods made by the community that you have hours and hours of content, even after the main campaign.