Recent reviews by bruisejuice

WEBFISHING is a small but well-designed angling game with great potential to expand its content. Everything currently included works perfectly fine.

However, here are a few features I’d love to see added: more animals to choose from, diverse weather conditions, instruments like a xylophone or marimba, and perhaps a way to catch bugs with a net to use as bait (in addition to buying them).

For 4.99€, this game is a no-brainer for cozy game enthusiasts.

From A to D, skipping B and C!

I would like to give this game a neutral rating as of today, but unfortunately, that's not possible. However, I tend to recommend this game - here's why (and why not):

First of all, Hunt: Showdown is my favorite First-Person-Shooter of all time and I've played ~850 hours at the time writing this review. Although the game is far from perfect, it delivers a highly enjoyable experience overall. The synergy between sound design, atmosphere, and the fantasy-western setting is what makes this game stand out from the crowd so much. Even the graphics can hold up to this day and may(!) receive a slight beautification with the announced CryEngine Update. Hunt has its random moments, which some people may not like, but for me, those unforeseen situations make the game as fun as it can get. You have a wide range of well-balanced weapons, tools, and consumables to choose from, which leads to a ton of options to customize your loadout to fight other players, grunts, and bosses in the bayou. Events are definitely the highlight of this game because they can switch up the gameplay a lot, like leading the players to fight in heavy thunderstorms or between wildfires.

When it comes to monetization, the latest changes (as of update 1.13) are a slap in the gut to the player base. You only get about 50 Blood Bonds a week if you complete all weekly challenges, while Legendary Hunter skins can cost around 1000 Blood Bonds – you do the math! Yes, you can get Blood Bonds from the Dark Tribute, but that’s a random drop, and we don’t know the odds. Yes, they probably want to make more money from the game, which from a business standpoint is somewhat acceptable. But why does a game that costs 40 bucks have a monetization model that comes close to a free-to-play game? I’m lucky enough to have received this game as a gift but that’s something I can’t wrap my head around, and I deeply hope that Crytek won’t push any further in this direction. Keep in mind that everything relevant to the core gameplay cannot be bought with real money. Blood Bonds are 'just' spent on cosmetics (which is weird to say for a video game that you consume with your eyes).

If you are looking for an immersive game that nails the balancing act between engaging gameplay, stunning atmosphere, and a hell of a lot of fun, Hunt: Showdown is for you. If you are a collector who wants to get every skin in a game without selling your kidney, you should play something else. As always, it's more fun to play with friends, but be careful – the bayou doesn’t forgive mistakes.