Recent reviews by North

Well, if there was any game to warrant a "middle" thumbs direction, it would definitely be Persona 5: The Phantom X. I'm throwing in the towel on this one despite spending a fair amount, due to no fault of my own. The gacha system isn't in a good spot right now, too, when compared to earlier server releases. It started off as a great experience for a bit, but fell off after a couple of weeks.

The gameplay is fairly self-explanatory for Persona players: you help drive a story forward through missions. You can also complete a daily cycle of mini-activities to level up your main character's traits and synergy with other characters.

I noticed people saying in Steam discussions that there wasn't enough content days after release, and I'm completely bewildered by that as I didn't manage to finish even half of the content currently in-game. They must have completely "no-lifed" it all; there's very much enough to go around if you're a casual player, for a month or two, story-wise. The gameplay itself, when aiming for full completion coverage of areas, is very mindless and bored me to death.

The story itself is slightly interesting; I was amused by some characters, but otherwise it's rather forgettable. Honestly, I'm going to go play the actual single-player Persona games now, as I've had them on backlog for years, and if you haven't played those either, I'd recommend doing the same instead of trying this.

This game has always had a lot of potential, and it's fantastic to see how much progress it's made in terms of online stability. There were times when crashes and disconnects were a big problem (I remember losing vital items after a disconnect in the volcano!), but now, the online performance is in a much better place.

While my personal experience has greatly improved, I know that some of my friends have still run into occasional issues. It's clear the developers are dedicated to continually improving the game, especially the online features. Playing solo and offline has always been a solid experience, but the online mode is catching up quickly. With these ongoing improvements, this game is fast becoming a top recommendation.

The gameplay loop is bland due to the AI; they ignore stealth attacks practically on top of each other. Teammate bots don't know what to do unless tasked with simple commands, and even then, they have difficulty doing them proficiently. I had a few get caught up on an open safe door and had to throw a full heist bag like I was playing fetch to get them off it. Gunplay seems off, almost as if it's a mobile game port. Could be fun with friends, but it's certainly not worth even two dollars, so I'd recommend not even trying it.

This DLC ruined any enjoyment I had for Power Wash Simulator.

All of the jobs featured in this DLC are vehicles. The power washing machine is underpowered, making any job very slow. Tedious details lead to nooks and crannies. I had to progress through the levels gradually in small play sessions. The last job was a doozy! That one took me from August 1st to today (2 months) based on its achievements (clean first and job completion). What a relief to be finished; now I can have fun again. Buy it on sale; recommended only if you're a 40k fan or one of the unlucky few who pursue achievement completion.

The DLC was a mixed bag. I truly enjoyed the story and interactions between characters because there was plenty of depth. However, the gameplay was fundamentally flawed. Absolute garbage to the utmost degree. There are traps scattered throughout the environment, and enemies lurk around every corner. That wasn't too terrible to deal with. The worst part, in my opinion, was navigating the world map. The map design at times was among the worst I've ever encountered, and I believe it was developed to solely add time to completion. I'd begrudgingly recommend playing it once.

I'm nominating this for the Steam Game of the Year award.

I thoroughly enjoyed the time I spent with Crime Scene Cleaner. The story aspect is different from what I've seen before in a game of this style, but that's what sets it apart from the rest. I'd come back to the character's apartment and see how things changed in regard to how much money he earned doing dirty work; it was satisfying. Others may overlook it, but details like that win me over.

I only encountered a couple of bugs; my in-game music kept repeating one song after the first choice, regardless of what I selected. I had to turn the music off and spend the rest of my playtime listening to podcasts. Another bug occurred when I mopped a discarded piece of glass into a wall. Aside from the occasional jankiness, the gameplay loop is clear.

I recommend it to anyone who enjoys true crime and cleaner-style games. It is worth the selling price.

Bombastic fun for everyone involved. It's simple at a glance yet intricately designed for progression and customization. It can be a bit jarring at times, and I far and beyond prefer the smaller gamemodes (32 vs. 32) for epic games of Rush and Domination. Guns can improve wildly with certain attachments locked behind kills, so for me personally, I didn't really start to pop off per se until after about 100 kills on the starter assault rifle.

With these kinds of games, I set personal goals to elongate the progression; in this case, I've set a rule to only move onto another weapon until I've found the perfect setup. On other battlefields, I've set it to 100 kills per weapon, but the M4A1 doesn't feel quite right yet. Rambling, sorry.

There are vehicles, gadgets, destructible elements, and clear VOIP (local and squad-based). And above all, very accessible graphics for any type of computer. Recommended at the base price for what content you get and what has yet to come.

Marvel Snap is a fun, free card game. It's a mobile port, and it shows but doesn't take away from the gameplay loop. It might take a little bit to build up a starter deck, but it'll be hard to put down when you do eventually get some decent cards together. I'm three fourths of the way through Pool 1, so I've barely scratched the surface of card variation. The verdict is: pick it up; you'll get some joy from it.

So, shucks. With this recommendation, I'm caught between a rock and a hard place.

Shadowrun: Hong Kong is by far my least favorite of the three games in the series. The plot hasn't captivated me, and I've restarted a few times to experiment with different development paths. I can tell I've only scratched the surface of a lengthy, if forgettable, tale. Other reviewers mention that the graphics are the best of the games, but I didn't notice because if the world setting is boring, the graphics are the least of a player's concerns. The game provides the same build options as the others. Character customization is limited, but this is par for the course. Let's not even get started on decking. What on earth were they thinking?

The verdict is that I would still recommend it to someone who is new to the series. However, I strongly advise starting with Shadowrun: Hong Kong, then Shadowrun Returns, and finally Shadowrun: Dragonfall. I wish I had done that; it would have likely alleviated the majority of my complaints.

I played Portal 2 and its co-op mode on the PS3 a long time ago. I bought it on Steam a couple of years ago to relive the nostalgia. This was a fantastic puzzle game in my memory; the story is fresh, and I recall the ending vividly. Though it appears that I did not see the replay value, this does not diminish the value gained from experiencing it at least once. This was my first Portal game, so don't feel obligated to complete the first. You won't get as many references, but Valve did an excellent job of explaining the environment and what you're doing with a portal gun. If you like puzzle-story games, you should pick this up on sale; this is top notch.