Recent reviews by Pheabus2K9

Ori and the Blind Forest is a beautiful game with outstanding visuals, but it’s not something that you can beat with a few clicks, in fact this is a really hard game which sometimes even reminds me of Dark Souls, where I learnt that life is more suffering than pleasure, and those eye candy environments only serve as a mild comfort of your failure, this is art.

The music by Gareth Coker is awe-inspiring and filled with both joyful and sorrowful moments, sometimes even religious, it has the vibe of Princess Mononoke in a Disney world. If somehow the difficulty prevents you to enjoy the game, you should listen to the soundtrack at least once, which would probably in turn give you some motive to finish the game.

My only big gripe is that this game is NOT optimized for mouse & keyboard, a controller is strongly recommended because the m/kb control feels very off, and I believe the game has numerous platforming sequences that are almost impossible to pull off using m/kb.

I think most platformer gurus will love this game and those who suck at the genre will probably hate it, if you are unfortunately among the latter I don't know how much you can enjoy the game, really. However, if you manage to stick to the end, you won't regret it.

Edit: The game is still constantly evolving (or degenerating), I'll rewrite this review for the upcoming patch 1.8.2, stay tuned!

As of patch 1.5, the PvE part of the game can be summarized as “4 Alphabridgers farming Barrett's vest”; the PvP part can be summarized as “4 man squad hunting lone wolves in Dark Zone”.
Patch 1.6 introduced a more balanced PvP mode which is surprisingly fun in my opinion, as well as more variety in gear builds which is a great thing. High-level players now have Legendary difficulty missions to farm even better gear. The change is definitely a step in the right direction. But is the game "perfect" now? I'd say far from it.

This game still suffers badly from largely empty environment as an open world game and lack of player interaction as an MMO, which I will elaborate below.


The Division is some sort of paradox to me, it’s a solid shooter and a shallow MMO at the same time, and it’s a great time killer thanks to the RNG god. See, the game is on my recommend list, but make no mistake:
-if you seek meaningful story and plot with twists, or memorable characters with depth, just look somewhere else;
-if you like shooting some bad guys and watch numbers of different colors pop out, look no further and this game does a fine job for you to enjoy.


A Detailed World
Speaking of graphics, The Division is a masterpiece of its own kind: with everything maxed out, the game is truly something to behold: The falling snow, the abandoned buildings and ravaged streets of New York, the dim light at night and the glaring bloom at dawn, everything looks fine with realistic detail and a post-apocalypse touch.

Even at medium settings it looks beautiful. And the game runs fine on my 2-year-old rig, no hiccups or stuttering (I did experience occasional framerate drops, but only in very rare case) which is amazing.

Wasted Potential
Unfortunately, player’s interaction with such game world is shockingly limited: you cannot enter most buildings and even when you can, there’ll be just a few “collectibles” inside or some switches to turn on/off, there are civilians on the street but all you can do is pressing “F” at the right time so they can give you some garbage that you’ll never use.

It seems that tons of assets in this game are not utilized to full potential and only serve as visually pleasing elements, the devs have created lots of interesting set pieces (such as the scene where a woman is playing piano in snow) but all you can do is to collect audio logs, phone recordings and such. Some may argue that the game’s story lies behind those audio logs, but I’d expect 21st century game devs do better than that for an AAA title.

Welcome to The Grind
The actual gameplay is solid: guns feel alright, animations are smooth and most of the agent outfits look cool enough, there are also tons of equipment with different properties/talents for you to grind. The problem is some weapon/gear combinations are vastly superior in performance to others, so you’ll end up seeing Alphabridge users everywhere and 9 players out of 10 are farming Barrett’s vest, which is an irony considering the game’s vast array of weapons and gears. Generally I like the build variety introduced with patch 1.6, but I feel some of them are still much under-powered compared to others, such the Hunter's Faith set, or only useful in very specific situations such as the Final Measure set.

The survival DLC, on the other hand, is brilliant, not only it negates the grinding, but also makes everything relevant: the cold weather, the food and drink you collect, the weapon/gear you scavenge from dead bodies, all serve to your ultimate survival goal and are lore-friendly to The Division world. IMO this DLC is a must have for you survival lovers.

Be warned though, the game utilizes Ubi’s notoriously faulty servers, so expect disconnections/lag even if you have good Internet connection.

The Missing MMO
What you think about The Division will also depends on how you view the MMO genre in general. I’d say, as an MMO, The Division’s player interaction options are severely lacking, besides standard co-op PvE, Dark Zone encounters and occasional items sharing, all you have is a public chat channel and for half of the time it just shows players from different countries insulting each other. There’s no guilds, no clans, no platoons and organizations you’d expect from an MMORPG, all you have is your Uplay friend list, which is simply disappointing.

Bottom Line
Overall I like the game, and would recommend it to any shooter fans who have lots of spare time and don’t mind a little grinding. But I do hope future game devs can learn from The Division’s mistakes so we’ll be able to enjoy some truly great shooter/RPG MMO hybrid gameplay in a few years.

Pros:
- Strong narrative & interesting story;
- Remarkable art direction;
- Excellent sound design.
Cons:
- Amateurish voice acting of the main protagonist;
- Tedious monster encounter in the later levels.
Neutral:
- Slightly outdated graphics but excellent use of lighting;
- Deja-vu game mechanics but suites the game’s setting surprisingly well.
Verdict:
Highly recommended for any sci-fi or horror game fans, even if you’re not into the horror genre and just want to enjoy a good story. See the “Tips” section below for more details.

Upon finished SOMA, I can safely say that Frictional Games, the Swedish dev renowned for psychotic horror titles such as Penumbra and Amnesia series, has outdone themselves once again, I was amazed by how much thought was put into this game, as well as the emotional impact it creates. It’s a masterpiece in certain aspects yet falls short in others, the details are explained below in sections(*slight spoiler alert*):

Story 9.5/10:
Why SOMA isn’t your average horror game is that it puts more emphasis on the story rather than horror itself, a sci-fi fan can easily pick up the core concept of SOMA because it features similar elements from classic titles such as Total Recall, Blade Runner, 2001: A Space Odyssey and Bioshock series, yet by combining them with excellent narrative and presentation the devs still managed to create a unique feeling out of SOMA, during the gameplay I stopped more than once to think about the plot details, and watching the ending made me totally speechless for a while. The tradeoff, however, is a bit “story over gameplay” in this title and I can understand this might be frowned upon by some fans, but I applaud Frictional Games for willing to take risks in creating such a compelling experience.

Presentation & Narrative 9/10:
You find yourself in an abandoned hi-tech base haunted by crazy monsters, while you have to find notes and solve puzzles to advance the story, well this is what we’ve done for 1000 times in other games. However this seamlessly fits in SOMA’s setting, as you navigate through the vintage style computer interface and read scientific reports throughout Pathos II, the story gradually unveils itself in a unique but cohesive way. My only gripe about the story is that the protagonist, despite being hinted multiple times about his ultimate fate, only to realize the situation in the last few seconds, this “dumbed down” feels forced and not clever writing.

Sound 8/10
Another feature that makes SOMA stand out is excellent in-game sound design, the ambient sound like machine beeping , distant monster groaning, suspicious noise like footsteps, as well as the water flowing sound in the sea walking levels are all amazingly done, which creates a unique, immersive and haunting feeling. The music, while I didn’t feel its existence for most part of the game, did reminds me of scores from Blade Runner and Space Odyssey in later part, and it complements the atmosphere gloriously.
I found most of the NPC voice acting very well done and Catherine’s voice is especially brilliant, but I can’t say the same for the main protagonist’s voice: it’s unnaturally calm considering all the things happening around him, and for most part it feels like a student reading a textbook, while this more or less explains his not-so-smart mind it just takes away lots of immersion the game manages to create.

Graphics & performance 8.5/10:
Slightly outdated but gets the job done fairly well, there’re some low-res textures here and there as well as color banding issues, but the game looks really beautiful during the seabed walking scenes and in the later interior levels due to the well used lighting. Early on I’ve heard lots of complaints about the game’s performance issues but in my play-through I experienced no stutter and bugs, so I guess the early issues have all been fixed.

Gameplay 7.9/10:
As I previously mentioned, the whole Pathos II base is presented to the player with remarkable detail and authenticity, you can pick up a large variety of small objects as well as drag-open doors & drawers in a realistic way, although the physics in this game is more cosmetic and doesn’t play a vital part as in titles like Half-life 2, it adds a great amount of immersion to the gameplay.
However, the “real” gameplay is a mixed bag for me, despite walking on the seabed chased by monsters is nothing short of thrill and brilliance, and the fact that the devs tried to create a diversity of monster behaviors, the core mechanics (crouch, peek & hide) coupled with the chromatic aberration screen effect caused by panic/ monster attacks inevitably make the gameplay more like a chore than interesting interaction, especially in the later phase, like you’re in a pitch dark room but can’t use flashlight since that will immediately attract the monster, as well as some linear and uninspiring chase scene, this makes the last 1/3 part of the game more like an interactive movie and less like a video game, which is kinda disappointing.

Recommendation: If you’re a fan of psychotic horror games and good story, this is a must buy for full price to support the indie developer. However if you’re less interested in the story and prefer more “hardcore” horror gameplay you may want to pick this up on sales, because the gameplay is kinda weak and game can be finished under 10 hours.

Tips:
- For gamers can’t deal with the monster encounters I recommend the WUSS mod, this makes most of the monster in-game harmless and allows you to freely explore the levels to fully enjoy the awesome story.
- You can use ReShade/SweetFx[sfx.thelazy.net] to enhance the slightly dated graphics, post process effects like Depth of Field, Ambient Occlusion, Tonemap, Vibrance and Curve work wonders on the dull vanilla colors.
- You can enable the debug mode to utilize developer features like quick save (F9) and quick load (F10), as well as pause game (F2) and free camera (F7), the latter is handy for taking screenshots.
http://gtm.steamproxy.vip/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=630072241
http://gtm.steamproxy.vip/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=631666779
http://gtm.steamproxy.vip/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=632130179

If you got more useful tips please feel free to share with me, I’ll be glad to add them here.

Well, my feeling about this game is actually mixed, still it's more positive than negative, perhaps 55% vs 45%?
TL; DR:
Pros
It's the last CoD made by Jason & Vince team, worth playing for this reason alone.
Cons
SP: too much Michael Bay and little (if any) Steven Spielberg;
MP: No dedicated servers, tiny maps.
This game basically started the sh!tstorm against the franchise.
Howerver, I still suggest buying it, but only at 50% off or more discount.

Will update to a full review when I have the mood, mainly for comparison to CoD4, for which I've written a longer review.

This game and Deus Ex set the cornerstone of the Cyberpunk genre, other similar games just pale in comparison.
Oh, and forget the "1999 mode" in BInfinite, this is the true 1999 mode you should play.

This game is just a helluva fun put together, it has lots of elements seen in other games: Call of Duty, Fallout, Halo... etc., yet the gameplay still feels unique and fresh.
The sequel, Borderlands 2, has made a lot of improvements, and in general is a better game, but it was the original Borderlands that set the humorous tone and established a successful formula: explosions, loot and addictive fun.
The "loot" part is arguably the best part of the game, I've finished the campaign years ago, yet I always come back for more.
Now that Gearbox has released the Steamworks patch for Borderlands to restore its multiplayer, would you kindly pick up this timeless classic, and share the fun with your friends?

Have sex with your killer, then kill him while he is asleep, 10/10.

As for the constant CTDs, you should know it's standard for a Obsidian/Bethesda game, use this little mod:
http://www.nexusmods.com/newvegas/mods/41381/?

Last great game by id Software, if you are a true pc player, buy this instead of the so-called "BFG Edition" console port, the latter is simply not worth it.

I've beaten this game countless of times, recently re-bought it during Quakecon sale just to share some pics, with the latest sikkmod and wulfen texture max out, the game still looks amazing. Keep in mind though, this is an openGL game so regular DirectX tweaks might not work, luckily there're tons of mods to customize it, provided you have enough hardware power to run them.

If you want this on Steam, I suggest picking this and RoE expansion during next sale for less than 3.5 bucks, then install the latest graphic mods, play this at night with lights off, and let your soul burn in hell! :D

A Stunning Tour de Force and A Satisfying Conclusion to the Bioshock Saga

I played the original Bioshck back in 2008, it was a game of both great gameplay and artistic design, while the first game certainly raised the bar for the industry, the second one was more or less a letdown for me, although a decent game on its own. However, when it comes to the third game, Bioshock Infinite, the developer has done a great job to bring the series back to its full glory.

Graphics: 9/10
The world in Colombia never lacks breathtaking beauty, whether it is in peaceful sightseeing or under brutal combat situation, I can't help but stop to admire the city in the clouds at times, it's all you can imagine in a lost fairytale.
At first glance, the city is vivid with people murmuring and birds flying, as you discover more truth, the environment shifts yet continues to impress you. There might be blocky props here and there if you care about the smallest detail, but it's clear that the developer tries to maintain the best balance between image quality and good performance.
All in all, "Colombia seen from the Skyline is always the city seen for the first time, in its first wild promise of all the mystery and the beauty in the world."

Presentation:9/10
Elizabeth is quite possibly the best female companion in a video game since Alyx Vance in HL2, her a.i. is excellent, the appearance is impeccable, voice-acting is top notch too, they certainly put a lot of fine work in creating the character. I also like her ability to resupply you during combat, having such an agreeable companion is much better than some painful escort missions commonly seen in other games.

Story: 10/10
Bioshock Infinite may feature one of the most intricate storylines in video game history. After you've first beat the game, the ending will most likely leave you speechless for quite a while.
The returning to Rapture at the end makes you wonder the possible connections between Booker and Jack, Comstock and Ryan, Elizabeth and the Little Sisters, are they just the same projections in different universe? As Elizabeth mentioned to you, "There's always a man, a lighthouse and a city". It's more of a challenging test for the players' intelligence rather than physical skill.

Gameplay: 8.9/10
The combat in both previous 2 games is amazing, each gathering/hunting-down-a-big-daddy mission is a challenge by itself, but if the player plans carefully beforehand, the result is very rewarding. However, I cannot say the same about the 3rd game, surely all those guns look great, shooting them is satisfying too, the Vigors and skyline are also nice additions to the game, but the overall combat just feels tedious and falls into the generic run-and-gun genre, the difficulty is laughable even on higher settings.
While the storyline is excellent, the gameplay is way too linear, I would love to enjoy mini-games as in the previous 2 games as well as more interaction with the environement, it's a shame that Colombia is full of details yet all the player can do is collecting coins/snacks/salts, etc, I think it's a missed chance for the developer, then again, nothing is perfect.

Overall: 9.2/10
Bioshock Infinite has raised the bar for the art of gaming, it may be a generic shooter but a masterpice in storytelling, the mystery introduced by the awesome ending will make players come back for more. Hallelujah, Rejoice!

A fantastic movie, reminds me of the college days where I spent hours after hours playing War3 Dota with roommates, sometimes all day long.I know I can never bring those days back. Adieu, ma jeunesse.
I've never stepped into the competitve scene so it is hard to comment, but I always respect and admire all those professional players, their playstyles gave me so many inspitrations.
Thanks Valve for all the hard work and make this movie free to watch.