Recent reviews by or10nsharkfin

Technical issues aside, this is a very solid entry into the XCOM series, but let's go ahead and talk about the performance: This, really, is unacceptable. Thankfully, XCOM is not necessary a game where performance can make or break your overall experience, but it is still ridiculous that even though I'm running last year's mid-range specifications (i5-4690k, not overclocked, GTX 970) I'm still seeing constant frame rate drops during gameplay, cutscenes, and even in the menus and Geoscape mode. I average somewhere around 45 across the board, 60 during standard gameplay and combat; 30 in cutscenes and loading screens, and I'm lucky to get 50 when viewing the Avenger carrier.

However, with that being said this is still a very good game. Running through the second-lowest difficulty I was able to easily make my way through the campaign and complete it, with moderate losses and a fair share of failed missions. (I played it all night on Friday, all through the day on Saturday, and didn't go to bed until I'd completed the final mission. It was 4:30 Sunday morning when I'd finally done so)

Replay value for this game is amazing. Every decision you make can make or break your playthrough. On its highest difficulty levels, XCOM is as unforgiving as its classic grandfather. I foresee many different playthroughs with this game.

I would give this game my recommendation, but if you're wary of it based on its current performance issues than I don't blame you for wanting to wait a little while longer. Just know that, technical issues aside, this is still a very solid entry in the XCOM series, a worthy follow-up to the Enemy Unknown reboot in 2012.

There were exactly six dogs.

Temmie doesn't count.

This...I really don't know what to say.

I guess I can start by saying that, despite its lack of dedicated servers, CoD: Advanced Warfare has finally done something great with the series -- and after the disaster that was Infinity Ward's abhorrent Ghosts debacle (Seriously, their PR management was just bloody abysmal) it was time that Call of Duty got a much-needed facelift. While CoD: Advanced Warfare isn't exactly changing the wheel, here, it's still doing enough to make it probably the best entry into the series since Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare.

Let's start this review off by saying that the standard CoD multiplayer formula hasn't changed. The progression system is still intact. It's still very fast-paced. Weapons are still basically railguns with little recoil. If you're tired of the same formula, it makes sense and you'll probably be turned away from this game due to the fact that, well, it hasn't really changed.

Advanced Warfare, however, changes things up by introducing more mobility. It makes it feel like an entirely different type of game, now -- while still retaining the basic and fundamental CoD formula.

In its default matchmaking playlists, every player has an Exo Suit, which gives them the ability to double-jump using boosters, boost while in the air to change their trajectory, or even boost on the ground to give themselve a bigger advantage in avoiding oncoming fire. The only thing it's missing is the ability to run along walls -- Yes, comparisons to Titanfall will be made because it may seem, at first, that the movement system is entirely based off of the parkour-like Titanfall infantry, but there are enough differences to where it just feels like it belongs in a Call of Duty game while still being a very welcome feature.

This game also introduces loot drops to the series. Supply Drops will give you various items with which you can customize your in-game avatar -- and it is varied, as you can completely customize your operator, choosing from default faces, gender, even the uniform from head to toe. Call of Duty, for the first time ever, has finally allowed us to personalize the game -- albeit with some obvious limitations. However, the limited character customization is not the only thing that comes with the loot drops -- you also have variants of existing weapons. While it's not done fully in the style of Borderlands, the game gives you weapon variants with more advantages and disadvantages with their stats and functionality. Like, for example, I have an AK-12 as part of my default loadout that has increased damage but lower accuracy when compared to the default weapon; it also looks slightly different with a model change.

I won't really bother with an in-depth look at Single Player. It's the same affair -- and besides, not a whole lot of people actually care. It's unfortunate to say, but it's the reality of Call of Duty. Hell, when I finished installing the whole game the first thing I did was hop into the multiplayer.

On the technical side of things, Advanced Warfare is nothing to scoff at. This game is true next-gen (if you choose to believe that). While PC gamers have been blessed with a wide variety of fantastic-looking games, this game can finally add itself into that lineup. It, while still having the same Call of Duty feeling we've had for the past several years, has upped its texture resolution, and increased fidelity on modern systems. In single-player, cutscenes are essentially pre-rendered and highly realistic, while the gameplay itself is modeled, visually, to look like one massive cutscene, by itself.

The game is fluid and seamless for both KB + M as well as a Windows Gamepad (if that's what you want to go for). Both playstyles are more than viable, no matter how blasphemous that might be for the "PC Gaming Master Race."

All of these put together makes Advanced Warfare probably one of the better FPS experiences in recent memory, though really all that means is that I haven't exactly played a lot of great shooters in the past two years. I have no trouble giving this time an honest reccomendation for everyone who isn't exactly tired of Call of Duty, and is interested in trying its newest iteration out.

Just going to say, I'm only an hour or so into the game and already I'm starting to get an old-school vipe. This game really makes me harken back to the olden days of computer RPGs where everything was gloriously complicated with little to no hand-holding, no convoluted tutorials on how to do menial tasks in a video game...Divinity: Original Sin is the successor to just about all classic cRPGs of the late 90s. It stands up on its own next to games like Baldur's Gate II, Planescape: Torment, and Fallout II. Larian did their best to create an enriching and engrossing experience and came out on top with this absolute gem of an RPG.

That's enough of me stroking the developers' egos. What did I find wrong with this game? Honestly, very little, and I try my best to find flaws in just about all games I play no matter how much I might enjoy them. My complaints about D:OS are very nit-picky. It's good that they decided to go through Early Access for a while, because from what I've played through there are very little bugs and issues that might cripple the game.

Not unexpected from an Alpha for it to be unfinished and extremely buggy, but what's currently being provided in RUST is definitely enjoyable and intense with the same feeling you get when running into other players in games like DayZ -- not knowing if whether or not they're friendly or they intend to feed you raw meat and watch you die of poison.

Can't wait to see what they can pull off in future updates to the game. Looking forward to them. :)

I could make this as detailed as I want, but considering I've only had, like, less than half of an hour to play it, I'm just gonna go ahead and state what I've learned about this game over my short period of time of playing it.

It's Medieval II: Total War, without the real-time battles. It's also got an EXTREMELY intricate and detailed political and feudal system that could be used in whatever Song of Ice and Fire video game that would have the potential to be released -- and yes, Crusader Kings II has that type of personality. You can marry as a king, then go off on a romp and sleep with every lady in the kingdom to have illegitimate children. Your wife could then leave you, raise an army, and kill the ever-living ♥♥♥♥ out of you if you're not prepared. Your brother can turn against you in the middle of a massive campaign, leaving you alone and surrounded. Your allies can stab you in the back. It's a grand strategy game that has every risk to every action imaginable -- and good God, is it addicting.

I can't recommend this game enough if you don't already have it. The Complete Package was worth the money spent on it.