Recent reviews by Scarabic Enterprises

10/10 Pixel Art program great for still images and animation. I would be dead-in-the-water without this amazing tool. I have 440+ hours using Aseprite and have made countless animations and sprites for various projects. I will be using Aseprite for years to come.

NOTE: Make sure you LEARN the program before getting ahead of yourself. It is easy to accidentally mess up an entire project with simple avoidable mistakes. YouTube tutorials will do for the basic understanding, a google search can get some answers too. A simple mistake I made when animating across 100+ frames is accidentally selecting the "layer itself" which applied to ALL of the sprites on that layer, instead of the layer for that single frame, I now know to click twice on that layer if I wish to move a sprite on a single layer only. It took a while to fix what I messed up.

Honestly the best SWAT Simulator ever made. 100% worth every cent. The game has come a long way since early access and continues to grow past its 1.0 launch.

PROS:
- Amazing Tactical Gameplay and squad AI options
- A lot of levels and deep stories/lore attached to them
- Immersive Campaign mode
- Squad clothing and equipment customisation
- Gun customisation
- Graphics are good (better with gore mod)
- Mods are easy to access and run and great modding community

NOTE: I don't play multiplayer, so I have no opinion on it.

CONS:
- AI teammates still have issues here and there (not opening doors or following instructions occasionally)
- Immersion breaks when you find civilians or active shooters stuck in the environment and clip through walls and desks when being arrested.
- We still can't have laser sights and a flashlight equipped to a single firearm... No idea why.
- No female operatives to recruit or play as.
- Cannot customise our own face anymore (Could in early access)

Genuinely good game and always seems to get better and better with time. Not for the feint of heart as there are themes and situations that could be disturbing to some. The devs don't pull their punches when tackling difficult scenarios but they do so with a great level of respect for the situation and accurately portray the horrors SWAT must live through.

8/10 game, -1 for bugs, -1 for Cons. A noble successor to SWAT 4 that holds its own.

(EDITED)

I am a Dragon Age VETERAN and this is NOT Dragon Age.

This is not NOT A BAD GAME as a whole, it just doesn't reflect the tone or essence of Dragon Age or even other BioWare titles.
I am almost in tears because I am TORN between the product I bought and the franchise I was promised. (EDIT: After 9 hours of gameplay, i am less upset, but still feel as though this game should've been its own unique IP with how different this game is from every other Dragon Age title)

PROS:
The game is really well made... kinda. It's pretty at least.
The levels and environments are gorgeous to look at, but shallow in content. They are dense and detailed but unoriginal (Everything floats with magic, wow... like that hasn't been done to death...) (EDIT: Larger areas get unlocked 9+ hours in)
The combat is great (although cartoony) lots of flashy lights to smash your dopamine receptors to bits.
Animations are much better than the awkward jagged animations in previous titles especially in cut scenes.

If you have never heard of Dragon Age until now, you will like it... BUT...

CONS:
The SOUL of Dragon Age is missing. Where is the despair? Where is the dark humour? Where is the emotion?
Looting is bland and lacks substance. (EDIT: Everything pops open and feels tacky)
Inventory feels weird and unsatisfying (EDIT: Despite level/tier-based upgrades, inventory management is an afterthought and items with effects don't explain what they do)
Cannot play as other Companions.
Controls are a bit awkward. (EDIT: You will yeet yourself off cliffs trying to hit boxes)
No side quests or quests givers (EDIT: There are it just takes 9+ Hours to unlock)
Game feels like a hack and slash Call of Duty, just smash your way through linear paths just to continue story. (EDIT: The first 9 hours are like this, it does open up after that.)
A Few odd visual bugs (especially environmental popping in)
(EDIT: MAJOR BUG: Your customised character will become default in cut scenes until you manually go the mirror and reconfirm your character's appearance. I find this happens upon loading a save)
The characters don't react appropriately to the environment or situation, their voice actors don't convey stress.
The levels are tiny and the missions are extremely linear, adventuring feels pointless as there is nothing to explore (EDIT: it just takes 9+ Hours to unlock larger areas with more to do)
Character creation is fine, but don't buy if you want anything more than a B-Cup as a woman, or give your character a curvy feminine appearance in any way...
DON'T BOTHER with the Deluxe Edition, it adds NOTHING worth $30aud, massive waste of money there. (EDIT: The Mortal Kombat Scorpion style mask is cool and the warrior has a "get over here" type ability.)

OVERVIEW:
Baldur's Gate 3 is Dragon Age 4, it has the right recipe and carries the Dragon Age essence. "Dragon Age: The Veilguard?" More like, "The Veilguard: A Dragon Age Tale" a spin-off of a once great franchise. Bioware really hurt me with this game, because they made a good game, but they are capable of much more. Please DON'T do this to Mass Effect... Please...

2/10 For Dragon Age (EDIT: 4/10)
7/10 for being a Game in general... it works, it is pretty and it is fun, it just isn't AS Dragon Age as it should be and barely feels like a BioWare game. The game itself has its own identity and i'd score it higher if they removed the bugs and added some quality of life improvements.

EDIT: It takes about 9+ hours to get to the point where you meet quest givers and do your first companion quest. There are areas to Explore, but it is VERY different from previous titles. I changed this to a Positive review as the game is genuinely good despite my angst.

I have been waiting for the full release of this game for a long time, happy to finally have my hands on it! The game is actually pretty big although most the levels I have come across feel small, but I am only up to the 2nd area. Some areas are massive and fill me with anxiety (Rat nest especially) and certain enemies will mess you up if you aren't equipped to deal with them.

This game feels like a more hands-on version of Loop Hero but with a gameplay mix of Hades and Vampire Survivors. It is very fun, it fully embodies that just-one-more-run energy, the weapons are varied and you can get some really cool synergies with runes and armour that compliment your weapon/loadout. The progression feels natural (although a little grindy) by collecting gems to advance your meta progression as well as unlock further areas. I have had the most fun in this game by experimenting with different loadouts and right now I have a cool bow that shoots semi-fast and its arrows split off and hit other enemies upon first hit, my off hand throws daggers in a 360 radius that seek out enemies, my helmet shoots projectiles that seek out enemies and freeze them, my cape allows me to doge 48% of attacks and I have used the blacksmith to upgrade/blend my gloves, boots, helmet and armour. Upgrading your camp is worth the investment if you're willing to grind, risk vs reward every run until you make a loadout where you're basically invincible in early levels. The art style is wonderful and the animations work well, the enemies are varied and have their own characteristics, bosses are tough but not impossible, the sound design is pretty good, unfortunately the music is a bit forgettable but it does set the mood for the game.

I don't have much to say about the Despair or Death mechanics outside of, don't die.

I give this game a solid 9/10.

I only came across a single bug where the screen went black at the first big boss, but I fixed it by reloading the game (i didn't lose any progress by doing so). This game isn't perfect and people leaving negative reviews of the game mostly aren't respecting the sheer amount of work it would take to create such a game and for it to work the way it does. People have high standards, can't please everyone. A game doesn't need catchy music for it to be successful, it just needs to not be tiresome, and at no point did i ever feel as though the music was a problem, it just didn't stick in my head at all, which I actually think is a positive... I'd rather play a game with great ambient music that works in the background, than to listen to a catchy tune that irritates me more and more over time.

NOTE: If Loop Hero and Into the Necrovale had a baby, it would be the BEST roguelike ever made.

Steam randomly suggested this game to me... now, I see why. IT'S BRILLIANT!
Runs like an old school CRPG but with MUCH better graphics, sound and storytelling. The art style is nostalgic but refreshing and the double D6 rolls remind me of D&D's ORIGINAL ruleset and other tabletop dungeon crawlers of that era. I honestly didn't know what I was getting into when I first loaded it up, I am incredibly impressed by the detail and gameplay. A very solid modern/old school CRPG. Creating a character and understanding its ruleset is intuitive and responsive. The characters are interesting and the dialogue trees are WORTH READING. The cutscenes are sublime.

This game would NEVER be able to be released in the era it represents... there is coarse language, the game is dark in nature, it has a lot of detailed descriptions of horrific events as well as it's on-screen depictions, etc.

NOTES:
1. Don't go into this expecting a pixel art version of Baldur's Gate 3, the game mechanics are very different to D&D games and plays more like the original "Rogue" with a lot of quality of life features.
2. Occasionally the game lags, I have no idea why, as this game could run on a potato and still not cook the potato. It's not a huge problem as it doesn't happen too often, but it's a little annoying at times, Dwarf Fortress doesn't lag on my PC but this does? I don't get it.
3. For $20aud I have bought games with MUCH LESS content. SKALD is worth every cent so far.
4. This is the game we all wanted on PC back in the 90's, and if it game out 34 years ago it would've been a smash hit and most likely banned for its content.

Rusty's Retirement is the game you didn't know you wanted or needed in your life... but once you have it, you're can't live without it.

As someone with ADHD, this game is incredibly useful. Sometimes when I am working at my PC on game development, writing stories, or practising pixel art, I will minimise the screen of my work and play a game or watch youtube or something to break up the stress of work. However, this sometimes completely distracts me and reduces my productivity. Rusty's Retirement is the PERFECT game for satisfying my ADHD while i'm busy working on other things. It is slow paced but not a crawl and user input isn't always needed (once you get automation going) but taking short breaks to play the game and expand the farm and then clicking the cog while i proofread my work is super satisfying.

I am calling this a business expense as it is the perfect tool to keep me company while I do the mundane tasks that normally put me off being as productive as I want to be. I bought the supporter pack because the dev deserves more than just the asking price. I know as of this review I have only had it open for 0.7 hours, and THAT ALONE has left this immensely positive impression on me. Sometimes a game will take about 4-10 hours of me playing it before I decide whether to make a review or not. The sheer concept of this game is what got me to purchase it, the execution is what made me leave this review.

The gameplay itself is really satisfying, having to grow a certain amount of each type of crop to unlock more crops is genius, it completely reworks the "research centre" concept and replaces it with natural progression. This game is designed to be in the background while presenting itself in the foreground. You can change the size of the screen on the go with the up and down keys on your keyboard, there is an option to have the game over the top of your programs or untick it to have it in the background. The art style is cute and watching the little dudes water crops and move around is relaxing, that being said, the music is perfect for the style and vibe of the game, I could listen to it for hours without it grinding at me.

I'm giving this game 10 out of 10 fidget toys.

NOTE TO THE DEV: "Thank you so much for making this game, you have helped me more than you can imagine."

Best VR gun mechanics I've ever played with and an enormous amount of weapons to choose from. Pavlov is basically VR Counter-Strike. I really enjoy maining an LMG or going through clearing rooms with a pistol like John Wick. Haven't personally played much multiplayer, but I hear the mods are great and add a lot to the game (modes, maps, etc) though, a lot of children play the multiplayer, the game is pretty violent for kids and they've picked up some pretty brutal language... you've been warned.

WRITING THIS REVIEW WHILE WAITING IN QUEUE...
I got the supporter edition because I believe in this project. It isn't ready yet. It's fun but it runs really poorly. Needs more time to cook, but I still feel as though my money was well placed as the devs are patching the game, absorbing feedback and doing their best to deliver what we've been promised. The game is definitely there and it's mechanics are amazing... BUT...

Terrible performance even on 3090Ti and 32 Gigs of RAM
Rubberbanding central
Enemies are invincible even if shot in the face 5 times or die instantly with 1-2 shots... very inconsistent.
Server Issues, game signed me out and could not get back in without restart (mid-mission)
Frame drops to slideshow, sometimes showing one frame for 5-8 seconds (especially in helicopter)
Long queue wait times even in PvE.
PvE is forced online co-op, no straight-up native singeplayer/co-op gameplay (You HAVE TO wait in queue) Not the game mode I was execting for PvE but it is still fun when you can get in.
T-Posing corpses
People without faces (Patched)
corpses half buried in the ground, glitching through.
NPC clothing glitches out like mad in the wind (or just in general)
No Proper Tutorial.
Unclear objectives.
Lacklustre Character Customisation
Male faces look borked and derp.
No Female operatives?

PLEASE FIX THIS GAME, I PAID A LOT!

Looking forward to seeing if my money was well spent as development progresses, I am changing this review to Positive as I am genuinely having fun playing the game despite the flaws.

EDIT - March 9th 2024: After the first patch, Garmonbozia is a lot easier to acquire. They tweaked the dice rolling a little but still not enough to make if feel real. The game IS more enjoyable in its current state though. 1.0.2 Spruce update has added a Key to the Map and they've made adjustments to the UI for editing the dice. Anything that has been fixed in "Cons" has been removed from my review.

I received this game for free and have loved every second of it. The game only bugged out once, never crashed. There are a few improvements and features I would recommend implementing but outside of that, this game is amazing. I LOVE the attention to detail in the art style <3

PROS:
- For the most part, the game is incredibly enjoyable, it reminded me of "Slay the Spire" and "Monster Train" (in a good way) a really decent take on the Deckbuilding split-path genre.
- The Art Style is amazing and full of detail, everything looks incredible from the characters to the map and backgrounds and areas. I especially loved the detail on buildings.
- There are a lot of combinations and possibilities for synergy with how to build your dice (I love the infinite loops)
- The Music rocks hard.
- Flipping dice to create Infinite Loops is super satisfying (and helpful to nuke multiple enemies)
- Dice Forge is the best addition to this game, customising each side of my dice has eaten a lot of my time (in a VERY good way)
- Interesting creatures and characters (please name them)
- Upgradable Base for Meta progression and unlockable abilities when leveling up after runs.
- The game has a "just one more" addictive quality that some games don't quite master.

SIDE NOTE:
- Garmonbozia is frustratingly hard to collect (at least at the start), I have no idea if this was intentional or not, but looking at the price of some of the purchasable characters and things, it makes the game seem a bit too grindy, but Garmonbozia ends up becoming really easy to come by once you've invested in the lodge and learn the mechanics of the game enough to win boss fights and encounters.

CONS:
POOR UI:
- There is an audio cue for The Shop for the 2 vendors, but no name or shop title is apparent when scrolling over them.
- Enemy names and character names don't pop up when scrolling mouse over them (who or what am I fighting?)
- 2nd Boss (lizard thing) has a UI pop-up box for description of abilities that are half off the screen and needs to be readjusted.

BIG ISSUE:
- Right now, the biggest downside of the game is its primary function, rolling the dice. Manual rolls do not feel satisfying and feel like they could be easily cheesed (although the dice are designed to slide off each other, you are able to stack the dice on top of each other and fudge your rolls in your favour). Auto-roll tends to knock dice together more than not and feels less random for knocks. The dice don't roll realistically and has no verticality or weight to them, they seem to be stuck in place on the X/Y axis and have zero Z axis, Having the dice feel more weighty and seeing the size of dice change on Z axis when rolling would make the game feel a lot more alive and engaging. I understand that it is difficult to program a balanced physics-based die in a game (I have been toying with it myself) but maybe an increase to the spin of the dice you're holding could make it less easy to cheese and feel a little more random.

OVERALL the game is amazing to play and very addictive, if you enjoy Slay the Spire or game just like it, you'll enjoy this one too. I have played for nearly 7 hours and I plan on playing until I unlock every character and earn every Core. Highly Recommend for a fun time.

I'll give it an 8/10 for now, if dice become more realistic to use and UI issues get polished 10/10

Baldur's Gate 3 feels like a turn-based Dragon Age game. This is a VERY good thing as the Dragon Age and Mass Effect series are my favourite RPGs due to the interactions and relationships you can have between your companions. Characters develop and react to your actions, everyone has a deep backstory that you have to uncover for yourself and the game itself is MASSIVE!
I have not made it to ACT 2. I have like 5 characters (testing different builds and play styles) and have already played about 60 hours so far. The way you play BG3 all depends on your imagination. DO NOT play it like a standard CRPG (although you can), play it like it is D&D. Think outside the box and you will be pleasantly surprised at the sheer volume of things you are able to do. The attention to detail in this game is unfathomable. Exploring is rewarded with chests and hidden loot, random encounters and oddities. The world feels alive and the possibilities are endless.

At first I hated that BG3 due to it being priced so high in early access, but now that I am playing it... It is worth every cent!

However, I know Larian Studios is currently working on fixing bugs and optimising the game... But it DID NOT make a good first impression on me. Characters were off-screen or floating in the air during conversations, my characters 4/5 times spawned into their "pod" standing on it at an angle instead of waking up laying there and exiting. Textures pop in and out at random, I have only had one soft lock though. I fought a bunch of enemies starting the combat in stealth, and for some reason once everyone had joined the battle, I was unable to end my turn, so the enemies and I just stood there staring at each other until i reloaded a previous save. Good thing I SAVE OFTEN as the autosave is rare and you can lose a lot of progress if your party gets wiped of your pc crashes etc.

Overall the game is a 10/10 minus 1 for glitches and bugs 9/10 at the time of this review. I LOVE BG3, I want more games to be this ambitious. This game sets and example as to WHY we should wait longer for games to be made... the end result is worth it.