Recent reviews by [GAZArts]

What can I say about Starfield other than the vast majority of reviews have been way off the mark in my opinion. Granted I've been a Bethesda fanboy since the day i first stumbled through Tamriel when playing Oblivion back in 2006 and have enjoyed every game since, even growing to love the black sheep of the family that goes by the name of fallout 76.

Starfield is very much fallout in space and if you go into the game with that in mind then you're going to have a whale of a time. The game sets no new bars, it just refines the formula that has got Bethesda this far.

Everything you enjoy about elder scrolls and fallout is here, you have main quests, side quest, random encounters, sprawling cities with extraordinarily ugly NPCS, factions and loot, god the loot. I have manged to full my ship to the brim with sandwiches, earth lighters and rubix cubes galore.

My play time is currently 8 hours and honestly, two hours of that was tinkering with the ship builder in an attempt to make something extremely absurd that flies. Starfield is a very good game, but it IS a Bethesda game. My only negative is although it runs smoothly on my rig, it does have a tendency to heat my CPU up something fierce, mainly in New Atlantis where all my cores shot straight to 85 - 91c so watch those temps.

Having been a long time fan of the series I remember being very hyped for this remastering by Deck Nine, as a developer I think Deck Nine do an outstanding job at carrying the LIS baton for Dontnod. Although I enjoy this remaster, I must confess I'm a little surprised by the technical issues that can arise. Mainly in terms of graphics. I had so much issue dealing with the Anti Aliasing making everything blurry that in the end I just switched it off completely. The lighting in certain scenes were very questionable too, primarily back at Max's dorm room where the lighting was so dark I could barely see anything. But beyond these two issues I enjoyed the improvements, the facial animations are fantastic and I enjoyed the simple upgrades with regards to grass, models and frabrics. Would I recommend this remaster? yes I would, for fans of the series I think this is a must have for your collection, but to players who had never played Life is Strange I'd probably still recommend the origional.

*Follow up*

A year later I'm happy to confirm the technical issues I encountered upon release are absent now, this is a pretty solid version of the game.

Being a huge fan of the fallout series, so much so I've developed quest mods for fallout 4, I honestly thought fallout 76 would be a no brainier, that i'd love it just as much as its predecessors and to be honest, in the early days this was the case. I was singing fallout 76's praises. I was aware of the technical issues but I still found something of value in it.

Unfortunately over time, with the adding of various game mechanics like board game elements, the game has started to feel kinda convoluted. To an almost overwhelming degree. When I try to come back to it I'm bombarded with so much new stuff I don't even know where to begin. I feel like in this sense the game really is due for some streamlining.

My second issue is, as with fallout 4, my go to build is stealth with a pistol. I would build my character to be a straight up ninja who was lethal with a simple handgun. I'd sneak into new areas and "pew pew" and move along. It was great. And this same method worked for most of my levelling in fallout 76. Unfortunately it all started to fall apart when I got closer to Watoga. I'm not sure how or if the enemies were levelling with me but all the points I'd been putting into my handguns and stealth became useless.

My pistols were utterly ineffective at later levels making me feel my entire journey up to that point had been a massive waste of time. Alas, I still recommend the game, it still has value. Clearly time and effort has been spent on this games development. I just wish the issues I've raised here could be sorted out some day.

How good this game? I installed it thinking I'll play it for just a short while then continue with my work... I've only just stopped playing after 3 hours.

• The music throughout the game has a charming indie vibe, reminiscent of games like Life Is Strange or Gone Home. It's soft, relaxing, and adds to the overall experience.
  
  
• The humor in the writing had me cracking up frequently, especially the main character's witty inner monologue. I couldn't stop laughing when he discussed the potential future of the hospital vending machine!
  
  
• The world design has an almost story book like aesthetic and is very cute. The town of Porcupine is the kind of place you'd love to visit. I adored the simple act of walking to and from the hospital, and the day and night cycles added a nice touch.
  
  
• Similar to Night in the Woods, this game boasts a wide range of interesting and unique anthropomorphic characters. Many of them have complex issues or find themselves caught up in challenging situations (See Matheo).
  
  
• I really appreciate the attention to detail in this game. The small touches, like your character automatically kicking a ball on the floor as they pass by, or how jumping on a trash can slightly bends under the player's weight, it brings the world to life. And your character changes in and out of outfits behind pillars, like a superhero!
  
  
• The environments feel expansive, giving players complete freedom to explore. For example, the game subtly directs you to go upstairs to your ward and start working, but instead, I found myself going through the back entrance of the hospital to hang out with Dimi and Archi, the hospital's ambulance crew!
  
  
• The use of a cellphone to keep track of notes, objectives, and tasks is a clever and practical idea, especially during your shift. It keeps you organised and engaged.
  
  
• Lastly, in terms of optimization, this game not only looks fantastic but also runs smoothly. I experienced a constant high frame rate, and the best part is that it didn't put a strain on my system at all.

Overall, Fall of the Porcupine is a delightful and immersive gaming experience. It combines charming visuals, captivating storytelling, and enjoyable gameplay elements. Just be warned: it can be highly addictive and might derail your productivity. But trust me, it's worth it.

Such a beautiful experience, I'm really starting to enjoy how the concept of a good visual novel has evolved into these types of games where it becomes so much more than a visual novel. I loved the cinematic tone and the art style for me was a little reminiscent of the Life of Strange universe, which I've always been a sucker for. The game play was fun and lastly I really enjoyed the main character. I'm not sure who her voice actress was but she really gave the story some oomph! I look forward to seeing what the devs create in the future!

I first played Oblivion way back in 2006. It came with my Xbox 360 console. I remember the store clerk telling me "I hope you've taken the week off work mate" and when I got it home and started playing, I could see what he was talking about.

Oblivion is one of those infamous games that needs to be apart of everyone's game library. Its not just a classic, it's a masterpiece in both story telling and world building.

Playing it again recently after many years away and it still fills me with that same excitement that I felt back in 2006. The graphics, although a little dated by Skyrim's standards, still holds up. Cyrodiil still looks beautiful.

The only negative that i can think of is the human NPC's often have a tendency to look like they've been hit with the ugly stick (haha). And I swear they've used the same voice actor to voice like 200 NPCs. This became apparent when you first visit Weynon Priory and the three NPCs who live there all sound identical.

But other than that 10/10

Really enjoying it so far, It gives me classic 1990s Broken Sword vibes. The art work is real nice, the voice acting isn't cringe and the main character is likable. Also the story is interesting so far and the puzzles don't fry my brain, which is always good.

Its funny but there was a time when I didn't like the idea of one of my favourite video game franchises being handed over to a company that weren't the original Dontnod devs. But once I'd completed Before the Storm it became clear that Deck Nine were more than capable to deliver beautiful story telling that still felt like it belonged in that same LIS universe.

True Colours is similar to Before the Storm in that its a complete emotional rollercoaster from start to finish. Not many video games seem to be able to elicit such a wide range of emotions from one chapter to the next.

All the characters had depth and felt like they were real people, Haven feels like a super old 'lived in' mining town steeped in history and has been created so well i found myself between goals just simply walking around and observing the town folk and at times helping them with any issue they happened to have.

The graphics are great, the game seems well optimised, my system didn't struggle all that much. The music is fantastic and is on par with the previous game's soundtracks but most of all, all the choices felt heavy and felt like they actually mattered.

A really enjoyable experience, If Dontnod ever choose to stop creating Life is strange games, I surely hope they leave the universe in Deck Nine's more than capable hands. 10/10

This game kinda took me by surprise. I bought it on a whim as I'm a sucker for most things 80s related and found myself playing for almost three hours straight right off the bat. I thought the prospect of delivering mail every day around Providence Oaks would get tedious and repetitive after a while but it actually didn't. I started every new day with a "lets do this!" mentality and its actually a lot of fun.

I feel the countless hours i spent playing 'Paperboy' on my Sega in the early 90s prepared me for this type of gameplay. There were many things I enjoyed about this game such as the characters, each person you encounter in Providence feels more than just a two dimensional character, this is helped by the really great voice acting and varied personality types.

The general aesthetic of the game is really nice although truth be told there were times when I felt certain houses looked like they were still in the alpha stage of development (even with graphics set to the highest). Kinda like a square box with windows glued to them. I think i would have liked certain areas of the game to feel a little more polished.

Also there were many times during cutscenes where characters would need to open or close a door or to simply sit down and the camera would look away so they wouldn't have to show an animation for those actions. That surprised me a little because the devs can do animations pretty well from other cinematics in the game. It felt like they may have been cutting corners here.

BUT this aside it doesn't take away from the fact that this is a really good and fun game. I liked the story and the choices felt like they carried weight, especially when it came to deciding how to spend your evenings after work. A really enjoyable 7 hours. 8/10

Just finished my first playthrough unlocking New Game+ and before I jump back into Petria I just had to come here and give my two cents on the game. One thing I feel like I need to talk about first is the game's length. Now as my playtime shows my first playthrough was 7.6 hours from beginning to credits. The reason I mention that is because one of the earlier reviews I read mentioned the game being short which, for the game's price obviously isn't and there is tons of replay value here.

Road 96 is a really good unique game that delivers the story in no particular order of events, making each playthrough a unique experience. I love the art style, its very reminiscent of art work that I saw in the Life Is Strange series only instead of a third person perspective you're seeing the beautiful world Digixart created in first person.

The voice acting is great and the characters are not just likable but also memberable. The overall story is an interesting one, Yes I can understand if people like to use the term 'woke' while describing this game but all that means is that even though its a great game, it also has some very interesting / thought provoking messages. You can choose to ignore this and enjoy the story regardless.

You play through the game as multiple characters, all runaway teenagers who are trying to make it to 'The Boarder' and I found myself so invested in that I wanted each teenager to make it and was super annoyed at myself when I failed. There are many routes (or roads) to take in this game with many choices to make so choose wisely!

8/10 would recommend.
PS (The soundtrack is gorgeous too!)