Recent reviews by Bimble

The writing works extremely well with the storytelling mechanic - amazing game. The characters are distinct, believeable, and well-rounded. Arguably, not much happens over the course of the episode, but there's a lot to explore and try out.

The puzzles are simple; they're mostly excuses to rewind time, but who'd complain about having an excuse to rewind time? Being able to explore alternative choices without reloading a save is great fun. And it makes the choices you keep feel meaningful.

Play it for the story, and to explore the consequences of your choices. This is a heck of an episode one.

Fun game for the price. Battles require thought after the early dungeons are out of the way, and keeping everyone happy about loot is a bit of a challenge. Your raid's strength grows noticeably over time, and some of the character actions can be amusingly nostalgic if you've ever raided in an MMO (like someone going link dead, or a mage deciding to tank). MMO experience can help you get a handle on strategy quickly, but I don't think it's a requirement to enjoy the game.

The character quirks don't impact the gameplay too much, so luck isn't a huge factor. Fights boil down to managing the raid strategy (like DPS, healing, and tanking priorities) and figuring out boss patterns. I'm impressed by how well the game simulates the raid management experience ("WHY DID YOU DRINK THAT POTION INSTEAD OF HEALING THE TANK?!?") without getting bogged down in micromanagement. Fights can drag on at times, but hey, they're raids. They do that.

It would be great if characters had more personality, or if raid groups could be bigger, or if character abilities were more varied. For the price, though, those aren't complaints - just wishes for a DLC/sequel someday.

It's surprised me how much I've enjoyed Marvel Heroes. They seem to have done a good job of addressing criticisms levied at the game when it was originally released. I'd compare it favorably to Diablo 3, in terms of gameplay style and fun factor.

As a free-to-play game it's not a bad system. You can choose one hero from a handful of starters when you create your account, and you're stuck with that one at first. If you want more, you can either spend money or play until you accumulate enough in-game currency to buy another. The first playthrough of the story is set up so that you're guaranteed to be able to buy at least a random hero choice by the time you're done (around level 30), and if you take your first character to 60 I expect you'll collect enough to choose what character you'd want to play next.

There's a good variety of heroes available, with some more distinct than others. Some have had recent reworks for balance and fun, while others are still awaiting review. Whether a hero appeals to you will depend on your love of comic books or on the playstyle of the hero. Though it's hard not to love Squirrel Girl, no matter what.

The drawback of the hero system is that weak-willed people (like me) are likely to spend money on heroes and costumes, and some of the items in the store are obvious cash grabs (like "cards" that grant a random item - usually a random buff potion, sometimes a rare costume or pet). If you can hold out, though, there's enough to do in the game that grinding in typical Diablo fashion doesn't feel like too much of a chore.

You spend a lot of time playing in areas with other players (kind of MMO-ish), but grouping isn't required if you're just after quest targets or loot. Anyone nearby will get a piece of the pie when a mob dies, though I think there is a small advantage to getting the first tag.

Voice acting for the characters and cutscenes is mostly good, with some recognizable voice actors. The chatter can get grating for some characters as they comment on other passing heroes though. Silver Surfer is surprisingly whiney for a cosmic superpower, and Invisible Woman never lets you forget she's a mom - but then again, Deadpool and Rocket Raccoon have some pretty amusing quips.

You can play through the whole game without spending a dime, which is a nice setup. The hero prices are higher than I would like (often $15-$20 for a bundle of a hero plus two or three costumes), but they go on sale occasionally. In fact, the Steam summer sale is going on now, with the handful of packs they sell here at half price. But again, if you grind a fair amount, I expect you could pick up a couple heroes before your patience runs out, PROVIDED your first hero pick is one you enjoy. The lack of a way to switch that hero or try them before choosing is definitely a flaw.

There is incentive to level multiple heroes - the more total levels you have, the faster your heroes will gain XP. And there are synergies that open up as you level each hero that you can apply to other playthroughs (like bonus melee damage or rare item find chance).

What it comes down to is the question of whether you enjoy Diablo-style hack-and-loot gameplay, and whether you like Marvel superheroes. Even if the basic combat mechanics of Marvel Heroes aren't terrifically innovative, and some attacks are recycled between heroes, getting to play as identifiable superheroes definitely appeals to a nerd like me.

This is a physics playground, and you're some kind of supergoat. If you need to know more than that, then you might not want to spend money on this, becuase there is no point to the game beyond what I just described.

But if this intrigues you, you won't be disappointed by it. It's fun for an hour here and there, and I could see revisiting it on occasion because, well, you're a goat plowing through construction sites and people's parties, occasionally finding out-of-the-way things like jetpacks and demonic rituals. Why wouldn't you revisit that? Oh, and there's a score and achievements and occasionally you'll laugh at some weird accomplishment the dev worked in there for you to discover.

The playground could be bigger. There are plenty of bugs (which is absolutely intentional and part of the charm). And you won't be able to show off much to people watching because you're a goat, so feats of grace and daring don't come naturally.

So yeah. $10 to jump on a trampoline as a rather unexpressive goat. I would pay that price. Would you?

It's free. If you like interactive fiction, grab it. You'll be done in an hour, money and time well-spent.

The story unfolds by interacting with objects, examining them and hearing the protagonist's reaction. He describes what he remembers about objects and how they relate to Serena. As you examine more, and learn more, the protagonist's reaction to the objects changes, so returning to look at something later can turn up new information. Eventually the full story unfolds - though by "full" I mean "narratively complete, but with enough open to interpretation that there's still plenty to think about".

It's well-written and clever. The voice acting could be better, but it's not bad, and for free, why would you demand better than "not bad"?

This is a game in the old Wizardry style (or MIght & magic 3-5, Ultima 7, Etrian Odyssey, etc.). You make a party of four characters who start undergeared and weak, then explore the world and complete quests to level up and obtain better gear and spells. It's turn-based, and the map is a grid (where you can only face in cardinal directions), so it has the feel of an old game with modern graphics.

If that appeals to you, I'd say you'll enjoy Might & Magic X. If you aren't sure, then a cheaper (though older) place to start would be Might & Magic 3 or World of Xeen (which combines M&M 4 and 5). The playstyle is very similar. Legend of Grimrock isn't far off either, though that game has more emphasis on puzzles and survival.

The world is quite open (and unforgiving - save often, for you can wander into areas too tough for you without warning). The focus is on advancing your party and winning fights while you explore the world, so if you hate turn-based combat, stay far away from this one. On the other hand, if you like exploring dungeons and trying different party builds and skill choices to fight your way to victory, this is a solid game. It doesn't necessarily do anything new, but does a great job of paying homage to a type of game you don't see much anymore in the West.

Note that this game does use uPlay, Ubisoft's client, and keeps it running while the game runs. However, the dev has said that you only need to be online for the initial game launch, and after that you can run uPlay in offline mode without any problem.

Amazing game. Strategy on the overmap includes original exosuit selection (pick four of six, plus one pilot of six with its own ability). You choose the loadout for each exosuit, and each day mission selection is up to you (to focus on different loot types, or to weaken the eventual enemy assault on your base). Missions vary objectives and have random maps. Enemies get more powerful over time and have their own personalities and attack types. And inside missions the turn-based combat and fragility of life forces you to be careful about everything you do.

It's easy to pick up and play, but is not easy to win. Simple elements fit together really well, and it's a cheap game to boot.

There's a demo on Arcen's website. Grab it, try some missions out, and then buy the game. It's fun!

There is a ton of variety in minigames, weapons, and missions. While side missions tend to just be "do several minigames in a row" sorts of things, the main missions are pretty different from each other. It makes it hard to get bored - the activites don't take long, so even if it's one you aren't fond of it doesn't detract from the fun. It's really easy to lose several hours at a time to this game. Just don't expect it to take itself seriously, and don't plan to play a very nice guy/gal. There are references to previous games in the series, but they aren't required to enjoy the game's story. Over-the-top fun, good sense of humor, open world with plenty of things to do - it's well worth the money.

Excellent storytelling. Be warned that there's generally only a couple hours of gameplay here, but I found the way the story unfolds fascinating - a mix of journal entries and the scraps and letters lying around the house from which you piece together information about your family. Just know that this is a game about exploring a house and learning about its missing inhabitants - there's no action here.

Not very long, but there's incentive to play through two or three times - just expect some repetition those extra times. Was expecting puzzles to exploit the game's gimmick - that you bring three characters along, and each has their own ability. Unfortunately, while the puzzles are clever, they're more to do with using items in clever ways than using the character abilities (except for each character-specific area, where their tale unfolds).

Still, for what it is, and the price, it's a fun game and worth the money. Great sense of humor and interesting story for each character. And like I said, the puzzles can be clever - just don't expect to spend more than a few hours on your first playthrough.