Recent reviews by McGraw

It's F.E.A.R. (The good one) but with updated graphics and if they focused on what you did as actually apart of F.E.A.R. globe trotting operations addressing the paranormal/cultist/mad scientist esque problems as a super soldier much like you were in F.E.A.R. but this time you have a bit more mobility and a short but integral Crysis style invisibility to help cope with enemy AI that are no push overs and will not hesitate to relentlessly push your (last known) position.
It wears its F.E.A.R. inspiration on its sleeve down to ADS being reserved for weapons specifically with scopes thus prioritizing allowing the player to bask in all the carnage they cause.
Enemy variety is great especially in contrast with the original F.E.A.R. which goes a long way to keeping the game fresh and engaging. Gun are all satisfying to shoot though with some if I have any complaints feel considerably more inaccurate then I'd like but with all the mobility the player is given its obvious its a design choice to ensure all weapons have their own specific niche in combat (that can be tweaked with a little bit of part customization) though chances are you'll find yourself regularly commandeering dropped weapons from enemies when you run dry with a specific weapon.

Also did I mention F.E.A.R.?

Unsurprisingly they've contacted valve to hide the reviews very cool! Well its an admission of defeat in a way to be marked with the Asterisk after resorting to such a heavy handed last resort of quashing any deserved criticism.

Games old as hell at this point and had already done the censorship shuffle sometime ago.
I remember supporting the game at launch and mostly played it on Playstation but also showed my support for the PC version as well.
The game was unapologetically horny the main selling point was the roster being comprised exclusively of attractive girls (at the time) it had its own struggles following launch but fans managed to help it get new DLC and continued patches (slow as they may have become) despite not getting the respect it once deserved it was the underdog that should've been more mainstream then it was. None of the games hardships was over the risque nature of any aspect of the art but as the years went on (and I personally came to eventually accept I am NOT cut out for fighting games) eventually the modern Video Game industry and its new reformed Puritans have come to sacrifice their and their fellow peers Artistic Integrity to appeal to Modern Audiences.
At best the moves made to alter the original artistic vision of the game over the years are severely lacking in Artistic Integrity and at worst are also incredibly insulting to those who have worked on that original vision and those who supported the game because of that vision even if they oddly support the changes themselves.
Even if you dont care about all that I cant imagine the games all that popular 10 years on so unless EVO or whatever fighting game expos or whatever still exist decide to finally start showcasing the game for some inexplicable reason and your keen to get into the scene, I'd imagine theres other fighting games more worth your time by now Im sure.

They announced EoS unfortunate but unsurprising maybe one day we'll get a proper successor to Shattered Horizon but today is not that day.
It's taken how many years and we're finally getting a spiritual successor to Shattered Horizon?
Its about ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ time I hope this does well Zero-G cawaduty was and is now again a unique experience to behold.
will definitely update this review again in the coming days/months/years if anything changes but hopefully this doesn't go the way of Shattered Horizon.

This was Shattered Horizon Btw
https://store.steampowered.com/app/18110/Shattered_Horizon/

Remember those top down cartoon town rugs from the 90's? Yeah this is basically the video game version of that and age old 'What if GTA but you work a regular job?' Hypothetical. Very wholesome would recommend especially if you have a younger kid to entertain and youd like something a little more wholesome and mildly educational (In a 'learning about society' sorta way) while managing to have fun mini-games, exploration, and Humans Fall Flat physics humor and gameplay. And best of all both online and splitscreen co-op. At time of writing the game is still in early access and shows loads of promise for further development while even currently providing plenty of content already I'll probably not get hooked as their target audience probably would but what time Ive spent with it already Id say it been well worth the entry price. And if ever have to entertain a little chitlin I'll know what to boot up and have fun playing with them.

The Best 3 dollars you can spend on steam right now and as of writing only getting better with continuing updates adding new characters, Weapons, Mechanics, and levels the sheer amount of content on offer is staggering for its price tag.
Its reminiscent of the hours you'd spend wasting away on those old flash games back in the day, requiring little thought to play but offering a much more deep experience as you get deeper in and learn synergies Vampire Survivors offers hours upon hours of play even if you've caught up with the latest update and unlocked the newest content added the rogue-like draw of achieving your Optimal OP build just to see waves upon waves mowed down is its own reward and the games upfront 30 min round timer is great in its own right knowing exactly how long you should expect a run to take is a god send if your looking to get just one more round in before work/sleep.

Theres literally no reason not to own this game barring some sort of insane level of poverty in which case how/why are you even reading this review?

If you've played this devs previous games you'll know/have an inkling of what to expect from it. If by chance you have not understand a few things before purchasing this product you are in fact looking into what is (at the time of my writing this) a linear game by which I mean there is a beginning and a definitive end, in addition to that its important that you approach this game with an open mind in regards to how the game... evolves. A review for this game and the games this developer makes is going to be inherently difficult without spoiling major story points as they often entertwine with gameplay in ways that are best experienced going into it blind you'll only get to experience those best moments once after all!

All that out of the way and keeping in mind spoilers: Inscryption is a deck building self-contained collectable card game with rogue-lite elements. If you are versed in card games and their nuances stuff like proper turn progression of turns/phases and resource mechanics like that of sacrificing to summon new creatures a la Yugioh you're looking at what will be about a 10 hour play-through give or take on account of RNG. Inscryption all the way through to its end will continue to introduce meaningful gamechaning mechanics that as soon as you get into the game proper will allow you to in typical rogue-lite/like fashion find one or more means of winning duels(?)
by abusing mechanics to either out cheese your opponent or gather a proper enough understanding of the nuances of those mechanics to overcome your opponents, in some cases, frankly ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ cheese mechanics... you will lose to bosses and their boss mechanics on your first encounter with them almost assuredly, your first run in with them and their aforementioned ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ mechanics is both a pacing tool for the story but also a learning experience for the player as a puzzle to be solved.
In regards to the gameplay Inscryption makes me hope we get some post-launch patch to give us some true form of endless rogue-liking though im not sure what form that could take. The card game itself is a joy to play sometimes frustrating as learning any new card games systems can be (you will be doing this specifically a few times throughout) but even at the end after the game had tested my deck building skills and my utilization of many of its diffrent mechanics I still sit here wishing for more, I fully expect to give this game at least one more playthrough just to enjoy the card game some more.
The story is good admittedly theres an aspect of the story I couldnt help but not be intrested in and even kinda put-off by but the main characters and cast of the game proper I grew to really enjoy even if I knew them only in passing by the end of the game it was genuinely sad to be ripped away from them.

I highly recommend this game if someones recommended to you and hasnt spoiled the games many surprises? Had you the patience to read through this longwinded diatribe I genuinely advise against spending much more time in these reviews then you already have lest you be inadvertently spoiled of its many fun moments.

It's Good.

-Old review preserved below update-

I've come back after however long and put about 130 more hours into Hunt since grabbing a buddy of mine and getting back into it and now with the advent of the 'As the Crow Flies' event, marking the first new addition to the roster of huntable contracts (finally), I figure its time to revisit my review.
Hunt as I said before is still a good game and as of a number of QOL and balancing updates, a decent number of my grievances have actually been addressed! One of the most irritating tactics that had metastasized at the time of my original review was actually properly addressed with the addition of being able to tell when another enemy player/squad is present in a bosses compound through dark-sight and likely a number of additions to players arsenals and even a few compound map changes matches are no longer waiting matches of squads simply trying to lie in wait in the compound until another squad begins the dirty work and matches now more often then not feel reasonably paced without resulting in them constantly being lightning quick (people can still get lucky and find the boss in the first compound they go into and have the extract right next to them but people should be able to clear the map before the exorcism completes typically giving ample time to contest it) your now looking at the typical match (either 1 OR 2 contracts) being anywhere from 15 to 30 minutes and rarely too much longer then that. Now have gunfights improved? Honestly with me and my buddies experience in duo matchmaking? Not much really. Things seem to be in a much better place now and your more likely to have those good drawn out tense gunfights but in the time since revisiting this game we've come to a realization:

Exclusive Duo Queue (queueing without trio teams) is full of sweaty sweaty try hards. Rank 100 Prestige 100 maxed out tier players that make you wonder why the hell they're still playing the game, teamed together seemingly just to pub stomp the map for their Epic youtube kill compilations.
How do I get around this you might ask? well alongside this realization in a desperate attempt to find *some* enjoyment in matches my buddy got us into the Hunt official discord to group up for the Trio Queue's with randos in the servers voice chats.
The addition of a third hunter in your group more frequently results in those tense gunfights I remember from the early access days of the game. The game no longer feels like a hopeless exercise in futility, the game feels... Dare I say? *FUN* again. Even Duo queueing but allowing to be matched against Trios feels fun! Even if you just outright die more often then not.
Before even this latest event update the dev team had further helped diversify and support different play styles by adding alternative ammo types to pretty much all the guns and for the most part they all seem pretty balanced (I have reservations about shotgun flechette ammo but maybe its just me) the game is in a pretty good place now I'd say.
Microtransactions are pretty much in the same place as they were during my original review; largely cosmetic and at worst a means of saving a little bit of time but not directly allowing a player to just pay to win so I still have no complaints personally on that front and it doesnt seem like the dev team has any plans of deviating too wildly from what is already present any time soon.
Now would I recommend this game now that I've discovered that Trio Queue is fun and not to Exclusive Duo queue ever? If you have a buddy or two and/or dont mind picking up a rando or two to at least start out playing and actually start getting into it without getting dabbed on by a couple of sweat lords, then Yes.
however a few words of warning:
You WILL Die in unfair ways.
You WILL run into sweaty try hards regardless how hard you try (this should be a given for just about any online game you play but it bears repeating)
You WILL struggle and think that all the early rank guns/weapons are garbage ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥
But
You WILL realize those early garbage ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ weapons are actually incredibly good in their own ways
You WILL at least occasionally dab on those sweaty try hards
and
You WILL wonder what the absolute ♥♥♥♥ the dev team was thinking when they decided that the concertina-Armored NPC was a good addition to the game. (No he wasnt always in the game)

-Older review (read for some context for the above one)-
This game used to actually be fun and suspenseful to play, Now due to a number of adjustments to how gunplay works and the inclusion of the new gunslinger aiming mode its turned gunfights that had the possibility of being tense drawn out showdowns to little more then two shot kill strafing matches (If your lucky). Possibly due to the increased playerbase the game has also developed an incredibly annoying habit of spawning you in close proximity to other squads/players forcing confrontations at the very beginning of the match typically resulting in the squad who ran ahead first by chance to start the ensuing fight a man down or a majority of their collective health gone. And now with the addition of new Three-man Squad matches an incredibly annoying new meta has evolved wherein squads will actively wait absurd amounts of time to ambush squads who are doing/have done the bounty a strategy Im not opposed to really but the spans of time these teams will sit and wait are baffling but I dont know I've really only gone into three man squad matches solo to ♥♥♥♥ around but a few of those matches I've hid near the bounty to wait for them to start it without them knowing I was there and lo-and-behold their doing the same... Just without knowing if any other squads are even actually coming.

At the moment I really cant recommend Hunt as it is right now. I dont know if its just the changes to gunplay, the increased playerbase overpopulating the matches and the game just spawning people too close (or in some cases not populating the servers at all, though I cant say I've experienced that myself) or just maybe overlooked gun balance that never reared its head in Beta, or even a combination of it all but going back to this game now after release I just cant ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ play it anymore and it sucks to say all this because the gameplay loop of leveling your hunters and purchasing weapons and the whole economy aspect of the game is actually VERY good they added alot of Microtransaction ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ that Ultimately is largely cosmetic and the ones that arent are a waste to use the currency on anyways (we're talking saving the player the time of playing a single match). I want to get back into this game but the way the game plays out now compared to back in beta I just cant I'll definitely comeback every so often in the hopes that the devs make effective changes to the game that restore the gunplay to its former glory and at such a time I'll gladly change this review and to anyone who's curious about the game Im not going to say this is a ♥♥♥♥♥♥ game at its core because its not but this is one of those odd times where the Beta just PLAYED better and closer to what seemed to be the original vision for the game.

Also,
yes the new UI for the game is a bit worse then it was in beta but its nothing you cant get over (Although seriously devs the store layout is just horrendous compared to how simple it was before)

Its ♥♥♥♥♥♥ good I got it in a monthly bundle but for 10 bucks its easily worth it too.
Good responsive gameplay with great execution of style with a built in CRT shader for max aesthetic.
This game is not just good as a meme theres fun addictive gameplay that should keep you busy for at the very least a few days while you experiment swapping out the games soundtrack with some initial D Eurobeat.
The game feature Speedlines for its ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ boost mechanic come on just get it already.

As of 12/3 or 12/4 2018 the team seems to have fixed the issues that appeared to have been some sort of mouse emulation in the game making aiming very choppy and imprecise and now mouse aiming feels just right thus adressing the sole issue I had with the PC version of this game (shame about that no Co-Op multiplayer but the singleplayer is where its at in this)

I'd highly reccomend this game to anyone looking for a fun singleplayer experience with a movement system that feels good and is intergrated into the gameplay itself making you feel like a highly mobile badass with a wide array of fun weapons (Wouldnt be an Insomniac game with them). While many articles and reviews would opt to describe the writing in the game as meme humour I'd have to say that descriptor is pretty inaccurate giving the impression that the humour would be dated to whatever internet memes were popular at the time. The humour doesnt (as far as my memory serves) fall back on to any sort of actual internet memes instead usually opting for 4th wall breaks. Its evident from the start and from just about any promotional material out for the game that the game is solely intended to be a fun experience and not be taken seriously from a story perspective at all, Theres a healthy amount of player customization from the get-go with more unlocking as you proceed through the game along with your arsenal of augmentable weaponry. The game is a blast to play and move around in and for 20 bucks with all the content from the original Xbone release (Minus the co-Op Multiplayer) Now is best time to give this game a go. Its a shame it took so long for it to reach a platform people will actually play the game on but hey its here, it's cheap, and the mouse aiming works now as of my writing this review and man does it feel good to play this game on M+KB as apposed to controller.