Recent reviews by Sen

It's hard to express what a disappointment this game is upon finally getting to play it.

I could forgive many a game for attempting to emulate the success of a game like Stardew Valley provided the game brings something fresh along with it as a part of its experience.

A lot of the reviews mentioned a darker comedic tone in GK as a main selling point but I found the dialogue and plot to be very poorly written/translated. I do not find any of the characters to be remotely memorable or likeable and I will have likely forgotten the main plot by this time next year. Shoddy craftsmanship and not a selling point at all.

A lot of the disappointment in this game hinges off the fact that there's about 20-30 hours worth of content here that has a lot of artificial padding to make you wait longer for things to happen, not a nice experience at all being forced to drag one's heels.

Be very sceptical of this game and its developers, they've made a rush and substandard product and hope that you don't notice.
Outright distrust opinions that say this game is anything close to Stardew Valley because there is no grounds for this basis; Stardew has a wealth of gameplay and character to it that a game like GK will never match.

This is a puzzle game.

That is to say that it is a game that itself is the puzzle; there are no gimmicky word searches, no point and click items to find and use, no collect 10 pieces to solve the mystery. There is nothing more than simply having to use your mind to deduce and reason a tale and the fates of the Obra Dinn's crew using scant little evidence provided to you through the games crime scenes.
This is what sets the RotOB apart from so many other mystery games, it's unique approach to laying all the clues you'll need in plain sight but giving you none of the tutorials or advice that so many other games would lavish upon you.

It is with thanks to Pope to give us such a towering concept delivered in a neat, tidy and minimal package, truly a masterpiece worthy of all praise it receives. As close to a perfect game for my tastes as possible.

Good hat simulator, 8.5/10

Early access: Please note my opinion may change with time and with updates and changes.

I'm a long time fan of the GITS franchise, I'm old enough to remember buying the original film on VHS in the 90's and it's one of those animes that will always stick with me.

And firstly, and for me most importantly, I struggle to see what this game has to do with the espionage, intrigue, sabotage and subterfuge of that brilliant fiction. There is not much more than faithful aesthetics and sounds and even then that is only a thin veneer on a game that very clearly seems to lack any style of its own. There is a deficit of substance and depth that will deter some fans of the series as I know it is doing so to me because this is something integral to the GITS franchise, story.

To address the game itself I find myself struggling for words but the ones I pick are picked carefully.
I still think the franchise would be best suited to a FPS but as a shoddy, clunky FPS that doesn't flow smoothly it made my skin crawl, seriously, the controls and handling are in dire need of speeding up and streamlining (Ctrl for crouch but Caps Lock for Sneak??? Pick one, make it do both and stick with it.)
the combat in the GITS films and series is cool and slick, featuring acrobatics and feats of strength, this is important to be reflected in the gameplay, you should "feel" like you're a cyborg agent who can moonsault a gun out of an opponent's hands.
It may come to stick that this title plays like Deus Ex meets COD and roughly looks like the offspring of such a union but that is only indicative of the niche this game is trying to fill and how poorly it will succeed at filling either better than they have themselves already.
Nothing offered isn’t already on offer anywhere else save for the IP but you’ve already heard my thoughts on that.
Compared to other gameplay types from popular shooters this feels like a poor job, none of the nuances that make other titles fun or exciting to play but just a dull, repetitive drudge.

Seriously consider the development of this game as yet another FPS online multiplayer game in a veritable ocean of similar titles, nothing is new or brilliant.

I will continue to play this game in the coming days and will update, amend and edit this review according as I see fit.