Recent reviews by Sham

| Rating: 3.5 / 5 – Screenshot Heaven, Choice Purgatory—wait for a sale |

Avowed is what happens when The Elder Scrolls IV and Pillars of Eternity elope, hire a Netflix script doctor, and spend the honeymoon debating whether free will is overrated. The Living Lands look like an Unreal-Engine screensaver you can actually walk through—crystal reefs, misty ruins, and sunsets you’ll screenshot until your SSD begs for mercy. Combat? Chef’s-kiss chunky: perfect parries pop slo-mo, heavy swings yeet goblins like plush toys, and chain-casting tornadoes makes you a one-person weather event.

Then the dialogue wheel spins up and the magic stops. Every option collapses into “Sure, pal!” or “Sure, pal, but sarcastic.” Lie to an NPC? They shrug, thank you for your honesty, and hand you a fetch quest anyway. Tell a companion to buzz off? They move in, unpack their trauma, and start commenting on every bush you loot for nine hours straight. Role-play here is mostly a mood board—gorgeous, but stapled to cardboard.

Pros

Gorgeous vistas: every quick-save thumbnail could sell as desktop wallpaper.

Satisfying smackdowns: dodge-parry-ragdoll loops never get old.

Exploration candy: secret nooks everywhere, and nobody arrests you for grand theft cupboard.

Magic builds slap: four-spell tomes + time-dilation dodge = budget Gandalf.

Cons

Illusion of choice: dialogue, skills, even spell picks funnel into the same outcome.

Shallow progression: three active abilities for sword bros; passive-buff city for everyone else.

Tier-gated gear: fight orange-bar enemies with blue gear and you’ll tickle them to death.

Therapy-bot companions: emotionally healthy, narratively boring, never stop quipping.

Minimal set-pieces: major events fade to black like an underfunded community theater troupe.

Verdict: A stunning sandbox with punchy combat and the soul of a guided tour. Enter for the views, stay for the ragdolls, and accept that your biggest decision is whether to equip the sword that “just damages” or the sword that “damages and heals”—spoiler: they hit the same.

| Rating: 3.5 / 5 – Worth $10 on SALE if you’ve got a mic, a flashlight, and at least one friend you’re willing to abandon in Level Fun |

Escape the Backrooms is what happens when Phasmophobia takes an Ambien, wakes up in a Creepy Pasta slideshow, and remembers it left the random-map generator at home. It’s a liminal labyrinth of humming fluorescents, wet-carpet anxiety, and jank that oscillates between “unintentionally hilarious” and “oh cool, my heart just stopped.”

You and up to three buddies no-clip into office purgatory and speed-date a parade of entities with wildly inconsistent manners:

Smileys: sometimes flee after one flashlight click, sometimes tank an entire rave.

Partygoers: either asleep at the wheel or psychic velociraptors—no middle ground.

Neighborhood dogs: adorable until they break your ankles from ten meters away.

Level design is a mixed box of liminal chocolates: the Hotel drips atmospheric dread; the Open Field is a chef-kissed fever dream; a couple mid-game sections feel like filler PowerPoint slides. But when a great level hits—lights buzzing, teammates whisper-panicking, sanity draining faster than your GPU temperature—it’s pure, co-op gold.

Pros

Shockingly pretty for a 6 GB, $10 Early Access joint.

Enough levels (and free updates promised) to fill a weekend of scream therapy.

“Jank jump-scares” turn bugs into bonus laughs.

Potato-PC friendly; your toaster gets to suffer too.

Cons

AI consistency is a myth; flashlight meta = prayer.

Single-player feels like filing taxes in purgatory—play co-op or don’t.

Set path: once you’ve seen the exit, replay value drops faster than sanity on Level Hotel.

Occasional door hitboxes straight-up gatekeep you.

Verdict: A flawed but endearing Backrooms tour that nails the vibe, fumbles the AI, and absolutely thrives on shared chaos. Grab it on discount, squad up, and remember: if a Partygoer starts sprinting, sacrifice whoever picked up the almond water.

| Rating: 4 / 5 – Buy it on SALE if you want five hours of feline parkour, cyber-neon vibes, and a dedicated “MEOW” key |

Stray is what happens when a Studio Ghibli cat sneaks into Blade Runner, knocks over every cup on set, and then speed-runs the exit route. It’s a cozy cyberpunk postcard crammed into 6 GB—smaller than most day-one patches—yet big enough to make you pause, purr, and screenshot every neon alley.

You’re not a magic lynx, a talking tiger, or Garfield with DLC lasagna powers—you’re just a regular orange alley cat who accidentally yeets itself into a robot undercity. That mundane heroism is the sell: squeeze through vents that would make Sam Fisher jealous, scratch rugs like you’re auditioning for DJ Catnip, and press the Meow button with reckless abandon (bonus: robots react with emojis).

Gameplay splits between two moods:

Linear chase-n-puzzle runs – outrun Zurk tribbles, lure drones into walls, and solve “Cat-lever” puzzles that mainly involve knocking precarious items off high shelves. No jump button; you Assassin’s-Creed auto-vault to highlighted ledges, so the only true boss fight is the camera angle.

Open hub hangouts – vertical sandbox towns where you fetch sheet music for a synth-bard bot, hack safes, and vibe on rooftops like a furry Spider-Man. Optional collectibles and hidden stories stretch the ~5-hour campaign into “one more catnap” territory.

Your drone buddy B-12 handles the talking, flashlight work, and exposition while you handle the adorable. Together you unravel a surprisingly heartfelt plot that starts “lost kitty” and ends “robots deserve sunlight too.” Expect wholesome feels with a sprinkling of existential dread—plus sudden horror beats when the Zurks swarm like bubble wrap with teeth.

Catnip Pros

Gorgeous art direction: neon puddles, rusted rooftops, and cozy robot apartments you’ll wish were Airbnb-able.

Atmosphere so thick you can taste the rain-soaked RGB.

Every cat trope lovingly weaponized: paw prints in paint, ankle-trip NPCs, mid-cutscene naps.

Soundtrack is lo-fi chill meets synthwave purrfection.

Hairball Cons

Platforming is on rails; wannabe speedrunners may feel declawed.

Story ends just as you fully master tabletop-pushing physics—call your therapist.

$30 for ~5 hours might sting—use those nine lives to wait for a sale.

Verdict: A short, shimmering adventure that nails the fantasy of being a curious cat in a world that desperately needs one. Play it, spam the Meow button, scratch every couch, then uninstall before your real cat sees you cheating with digital stray-felines.

| Rating: 4 / 5 – Buy it on SALE if you like your co-op spicy, your loot scarce, and your jump-scares delivered by both zombies and bugs |

No More Room in Hell 2 is what happens when Left 4 Dead, Project Zomboid, and a Dyson vacuum get tossed in a blender labeled “Early Access.” Noise is the new ammo: sneeze, shoot, or slam a door and the map coughs up fresh undead like a Pez dispenser. Clearing an area? Cute. The horde is on infinite respawn—your only real win condition is “finish the objective before Steam downloads another hotfix.”

You spawn miles apart, lost, low on meds, and immediately role-play the apocalypse version of “Where are my keys?!” Find your squad and you’re auto-bonded into a share-everything commune: ammo, Band-Aids, emotional trauma. Whatever you all extract with converts to communal XP, so every survivor feels like a walking loot box you must keep breathing. (Permadeath means the friend you fail to save respawns as a zombie cameo—perfect for revenge selfies.)

Characters roll with randomized perks: one run you’re a Marine with the pocket space of a U-Haul, the next you’re a PTA mom who revives teammates faster than she signs bake-sale forms. Diversity isn’t just nice—it’s why you live long enough to complain about frame drops when you lob a grenade.

Gunplay slaps, attachments click on like LEGO, and barricading a doorway while your buddy cables a generator is peak “hold the line!” drama. High graphics settings look slick; lower settings look like someone smeared Vaseline on your screen. Expect jank: disappearing HUD markers, teleporting stiffs, and the occasional “keyboard? never heard of her” soft-lock. Torn Banner is patching daily, but for now, sprint in zigzags and pray.

it’s a clever sandbox: winding shortcuts, optional side jobs, and enough switch-flipping puzzles to make OSHA cry. First few runs feel like 28 Days Later; the tenth feels more like speed-running IKEA. Still, when the final alarm howls and eight half-panicked players are screaming codes over VOIP while runners sprint the aisles, it’s pure, caffeinated chaos.

Verdict? An addictive, nerve-rattling co-op gem buried under a pile of Early Access laundry. Party up, pack earplugs, and remember: if Hell is full, the servers will spit you back to the main menu anyway.

Classic Battlefield experience. This is the battlefield game that is most active as of May 2025.
Worth getting if you buy it on the current $1.99 sale.

Worth getting if you're buying this game in 2025 as part of the $1.99 sale.
Just jump right into the combat. Don't worry about unlocking the basics.
Won't ruin your progression, as there are still a bunch of other things to unlock.

| Rating: 4.5/5 – Would recommend you buy this one on SALE before the Paintress erases you |

Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 is what happens when 30 French developers jailbreak themselves from Ubisoft, slam espressos, and decide they’re done making yearly sequels for tax write-offs.
Instead, they paint a fever dream — a world that looks like La Belle Époque took shrooms, cried a little, then wrote poetry about it.

The combat? Technically turn-based. Realistically? It’s you dodging, jumping, and parrying for dear life.
Miss a parry by half a second? Say goodbye. Land it? Welcome to the most satisfying dopamine hit since your first paycheck.
If you think you can just "grind levels" and win — lol. You’ll die beautifully.

The soundtrack slaps. The visuals punch you in the soul. The characters make you feel things you didn’t know a turn-based RPG could.
It’s like NieR Automata and Persona had a dramatic French baby who smokes clove cigarettes and monologues about grief.

Minor complaint: manual saves would be nice. I love dying heroically; I love running back through three rooms slightly less.

Also: yes, you can interact with a trash can. Yes, it is important. No, I will not elaborate.

Buy it. Cry. Miss your parry. Cry harder. Switch the voice acting to French and ascend. Vive la révolution, gamers.

| Rating: 4/5 – Would recommend you buy this one on SALE |

I highly recommend this game for anyone who wants to play out a movie. As Dusk Falls has an compelling story and characters. You will get lost in the gameplay and before you know it be a few chapters in.

The one problem with the game is that it does not feel finished. Unfortunately, it feels like the develops never completed the final chapter.

I would give this game a full 5/5 if the story was complete. Definitely gives you blue balls.

| Rating: 5/5 – Like floating through a haunted house in space — if the haunted house was trying to eat your face off |

Simply wow. I completely forgot how immersive and thrilling the Dead Space genre was. This remake pulls you in with some of the most well-designed levels, unique weapons, and a relentlessly tense atmosphere. It’s hard to pick just one standout feature — there’s just so much done right.

What really struck me was how much care clearly went into this game. You can feel it in the story, the tight mechanics, and especially in the way the world is built. It’s rare to see this level of polish in the industry nowadays. I spent more time than I’d like to admit floating around in the zero-gravity rooms — it genuinely feels like you’re in space.

Also, the sound design deserves a special mention. Every creak, whisper, and distant scream adds to the dread. And visually, it’s stunning — the lighting, shadows, and gore are all meticulously detailed, amplifying the horror in every corridor. Play it with headphones, and you’ll know what I mean.

The major organization reviews speak for themselves. Definitely give this game a go if you haven't dived into the Dead Space series. It's a classic!!!

“...one of the best games of all time.”
10/10 – Inverse

“It’s a masterpiece...”
10/10 – GamingBolt

“...one of the survival horror genre's best.”
9/10 – Gamespot

| Rating: 5/5 – Best Game for Aspiring Stalkers |

I thought Stalker 2 was going to be about surviving mutants and radiation in the Zone. Turns out, it’s a masterclass in lurking, looting, and learning way too much about other people’s business. Here’s why it’s the ultimate game for anyone who secretly wants to live the stalker lifestyle (in a totally Zone-appropriate way):

Stealth Mechanics Are a Stalker’s Dream.
Crawling through the Zone’s bushes and ruins, dodging enemy patrols, and listening in on bandit conversations is perfection. There’s something wildly satisfying about sneaking past mercenaries just to hear them gripe about mutant attacks or bad vodka.

Looting Is an Obsession.
Every corner of the Zone has something to snoop through—rundown shacks, crumbling factories, or abandoned military checkpoints. Most of it’s junk, sure, but the thrill of finding rare artifacts or precious ammo makes every scavenging trip feel like a jackpot. Bonus points if you loot it off an unsuspecting NPC.

“Friendly” Encounters Are Awkwardly Fun.
Random stalkers wander the Zone with their own stories, and you can totally sidle up and act like you belong. “Oh hey, just passing through… but wait, tell me more about the mutant nest you’re too scared to clear. I definitely won’t follow you there for, uh, research purposes.”

Radiation and Anomalies Make Lurking Dangerous.
Stalking people in the Zone isn’t easy when random pockets of radiation and floating anomalies want you dead. Following someone into an electro anomaly field or trying to loot near a gravitational vortex keeps you on your toes. Bring anti-rad meds.

Atmosphere Straight Out of a Nightmare.
The Zone is downright haunting. Between the endless fog, eerie ruins, and distant howls of mutants, it feels like the world itself is watching you. Perfect for creeping through ruins and spying on anyone careless enough to light a campfire.

Quests to Stalk Other Stalkers.
Half the missions feel like glorified stalking jobs. Track someone to their camp, find out who’s looting the wrong stash, or tail a squad into a firefight and swoop in to clean up the mess. It’s like the Zone encourages you to be nosy.

The only thing missing? A mechanic where someone catches you spying and calls you out. That’d be the cherry on top of this stalker sundae.

In short, Stalker 2 nails the post-apocalyptic creep vibe. Whether you’re looting, eavesdropping, or just lurking in the shadows, the Zone rewards your every sneaky move. It’s thrilling, weirdly hilarious, and incredibly addictive.

Now, if you’ll excuse me, I’ve got another rookie stalker to quietly follow. Just keeping the Zone safe, you know?