Recent reviews by Prof Goggles

after playing for over 100 hours in both single and multiplayer, i can honestly say I've spent enough time in the game to not recommend it. in a nutshell, the developers seem to be focusing more on making the game "cool" as opposed to working on priority tasks such as optimization and making the game stable. i cannot tell you how many times i've lost inventory or progress while playing - and that's putting aside other issues like the game taking a ridiculous amount of time to load, the game randomly crashing, graphic/texture issues, slowdown, and the like. frankly speaking, it's unacceptable for a game to be this broken and not have the team focus on working on the fundamental issues rather than, say, character models.

in good faith i cannot recommend this.

I have to say, so far, i'm pretty impressed. This is legally distinct Half Life 1 and it definitely has that old school feel, humor, and look to it. The gameplay is fun and fairly intuitive. I'm enjoying the crafting system so far and I like that you're able to figure out new recipes just by picking up new things.

One thing in love in particular is the character creation system. The classes feel just right for the setting, and when playing with friends everyone has a dedicated role to contribute to the party. The perks/traits system is very reminiscent of fallout and i think it works very well. I honestly can't wait to see where this goes.

(p.s.: thanks for having female scientists as player choices!)

It's easy to get distracted while trying to get work done, but Virtual Cottage is a great way to assist with focusing on tasks. You can full screen the game so that you're only focusing on whatever task at hand, set a timer to get your work done, and you can choose to have a soft timer go off when your time ends. It's simple but very effective. I've used this for grad school work, grading, even tidying up the house.

Some neat options include adding ambient sounds like rain & wind, and choosing between a doge or cat to accompany your avatar. I do wish you could customize your player & home a little, but that doesn't take away from the game.

My only real complaint is that some of the music is a little "harder" than I like, which interrupts me when I'm studying or working, but otherwise it's a great little experience.

I definitely recommend it if you need some additional focus, or just want to chill a little with some lo-fi beats.

Let's get some of the critique out of the way: The game is short (I finished it in about two hours), and you're limited to saying "No", controlling what kind of NO it is, and ways to goof on your co-workers. If you're looking for more interaction than that, or a longer play session, this isn't going to be the game for you.

That said.

This game has a ton of heart, and there's clearly a lot of work and passion put into it. You play as a milquetoast new intern who, like most people in your job, is unable to say anything but YES to demands and requests. You quickly learn how to say NO, and more importantly, why it's vital to do so. I don't want to spoil what story there is (especially since you'll figure out the twists and turns quickly), but it's really more about the journey than the destination here. There's a great message about self-confidence, standing up for yourself, demanding worker's rights, and more, all packed into this little game. It helps that the soundtrack is enjoyable and the art style is so charming. I truly cannot recommend this game enough.

Protip: don't say NO to everything. You might miss out on some things.

These are my inital thoughts after playing Youtubers Life for about five hours straight. Please bear in mind that this review is based off the early access game, as of June 26 2016.

Pros:

• The game is engaging from the very beginning. The create-a-character is simple and cute, and you're able to select from a few variations of clothing and looks (with more clothing unlocked as you progress through the game).
  
• The editing is fun (but problematic - more on that later). It was neat to unlock cards and try to decide which response would be the best for you and your viewers/the video.
  
• Events in the game, like going to the movies or attend conventions/shows add a much needed bit of variety when making videos gets to be a tad stale. It's an excellent opportunity to catch up with friends that you may have accidentially blown off (... just me?)
  
• The variety of games/references to real life titles is a very nice touch. I feel like I'm slowly progressing through the recent history of games, and the nostalgia is nice.
  
• Although it utilizes Skinner Box techniques to keep you going, well... it works. Everytime I tried to stop playing, I always thought "well, just ONE more video, let's see if I can earn more money or subscribers..."

Cons:

• It's sometimes very difficult to tell what, exactly, to do when it comes to editing your videos. The interface isn't necessarily intuitive and it takes some getting used to. And just when you think you've got the hang of it, you're penalized for reasons that aren't entirely explained. I would edit the pieces perfectly together (making all the puzzle pieces "fit" out of the ones I chose), and I wouldn't get as near a high a "score" as opposed to just slapping things together in order. That seems incorrect.
  
• The repeated sound assets, particularly when it comes to the characters talking with each other. Each character says almost exactly the same thing, if not THE same sounds, during conversations. It's off putting and a little irritating.
  
• There's lot of graphical glitches throughout the game. Twitchy mouths, floating celings, outfits that sometimes clip into parts of the background (or character's bodies). I'm willing to give this a bit of leeway since early access and all, but it's something I hope is addressed as the game continues to be worked on.
  
• The relationship system is weird. I understand friends getting upset when you haven't spoken to them in a while - makes sense - but you lose SO MANY points when you fire someone as a collaborator. I had to let my first one go since I didn't have enough money to support them, and now they absolutely hate me. I feel like there should be some kind of dialogue based on your money situation or friendship level so you can better explain why. (This is probably just a nitpick, though.)
  
• The BIGGEST problem, as repeated by many others here, is the speed of time. It's entirely too fast. It shouldn't take 2 hours to walk from the kitchen to the bedroom in my "Mom's" house. And when it comes to creating or editing videos, you should consider adding an option to have time pause. I screwed myself out of a few paid tasks since I didn't realize that time was still flying by while I was editing the projects in question. Please, please, slow down the time it takes to do tasks. Or at the very least, add in an option for the player's to slow/speed it up.

Despite my list of gripes, I still think it's a fun game, and I'm looking forward to seeing more of it as time progresses. I'm especially looking forward to unlocking more channels (I really want to try the Lifestyle and Music channels), and various kinds of videos. You've got the basic gameplay down, it's just a matter of finetuning it at this point.

Dog Petting Simulator is a great game. Despite Steam being flooded with [x] Simulators being shoved through Greenlight these days, DPS is actually a fantastic representation of what it's like to lovingly own a dog. Petting the dogs really gives you a sense of accomplishment, and they're written in such a way that you can almost feel their appreciation - y'know, if they weren't just written lines of code and some pixels. Highly recommended, and all dog lovers should absolutely play this.


...Okay, I'm being a smart aleck here, but all that you need to know about Undertale is that it has a fantastic storyline, wonderful characterization, a lovely soundtrack, and it's one of the few games where your choices actually DO matter. To say anything else would be to spoil the experience. If you like RPGs, especially those in the vein of Earthbound, you'd be doing yourself a disservice if you ignore this title. Pick it up if you haven't already.

I want to like this game. I loved the other games Dejobaan have made in the past, and I was curious to see what they would do with Ugly Baby, so I was eager to pick it up. I didn't mind it being in early access since I had faith in their abilities to create a game (especially after Aaaaaaah), and it was one of the reasons that the Potato Sack from 2011 worked so well. There was a lot of good potential there.

It's been a few years now, and there's still nothing here but an incomplete game. In fact, it's worse; last year, I was at least able to load the game and run the few test levels (and, admittedly, had fun with them). Now the game has trouble booting up, and when I do manage to get it working, absolutely nothing works.

I'm very disappointed by this, and despite my enjoyment of their other titles, their quality is definitely taking a hit in my eyes. The lack of public accountability (or even timely updates) is especially frustrating.

In other words, unless you see an update with something along the lines of "the game is finished!", I would sadly say to stay away from this title.

I was intrigued by the trailer I saw in the Humble Indie Bundle, and a friend of mine picked this title up for me. I would have gladly paid full price for it if I could have. In short, this is an absolute gem of a game.

The music is absolutely wonderful, and it engages you with the gameplay. The plot (such as it is) and the art style might not be for everyone, but if you enjoy throwback to pixel-era graphcis and vague mystery men pushing you in the right direction to save a world in your own woeful tale (ahem, Half Life 2), I do believe you'll get a kick out of this one.

It's also short (insofar in that it can be beaten in a month - less if you 'cheat'), so it's a nice title to hold you over until the bigger releases arrive.

Really, just pick this up. It's utterly fantastic and absolutely worth your time.