Mskotor
14,5 hours | 34 of 46 (74%)
16 hours | 26 of 37 (70%)
5,5 hours | No achievements
June 2020 update
Overall
backlog
progress
:
Lord of the Rings: War in the North (Q4 2011) ⭐️⭐⭐☆☆
Action Co-op14,5 hours | 34 of 46 (74%)
⇱ Click to show summary⇲
The good
- good co-op implementation
- small touches like when you break the head of the undead enemy, and they start to swing sword around randomly
The bad
- it's not really possible to play as a pure archer, as arrows are really limited
- enemies are repetitive
- companion bot AI is very basic
- dialogues do not require all players to be present, so it's possible to miss whole quest description
Conclusion:
Easy action game with proper co-op implementation. Don't expect deep plot or advanced combat mechanisms. But it's a fine pick if you want to play with someone a short campaign, and nothing else is available.
Game takes place at the end of the LotR books. We're tasked with defending land from the intruders, but quite early goal is changed - help Aragorn and hobbits to pass the mountains, by diverting enemy attention away. Rest of the game focus on defeating one of the Saruman servants, who tries to conquer whole north. We will help dwarfs to defend their home, talk with a dragon, help elfs to clear old ruins. Apart from that there are some rather not interesting side quests. It is also possible to meet characters from the books like Gandalf or Frodo.
Third person action game. Main focus is on the sword fight with ability to use bow or crossbow. Game is designed for 3 players. If played solo or co-op rest of the players are controlled by the average-AI bots. So game would not be really fun as the single player.
We can do light and heavy attack + use special abilities that consume energy. Killing enemies awards experience (that is not shared between players) and skill points to unlock abilities and rise health / mana / dexterity stats. It is not possible to jump freely, and instead movement is focused on "cinematic" press key on prompt mechanic.
Loot can be found on the fallen enemies or in the treasure chests. There are bonuses for completing armor set, but there are so many sets it's impossible to do without grind. Otherwise 1 - 2 parts of the set will have really low level, which is worse than having high level parts from different sets.
Graphic - ⭐️⭐☆ - graphic is on similar to Skyrim level. Surely dated, but still fine
Music - ⭐️⭐☆ - voice acting, music and sounds are fine
Bugs - ⭐️⭐☆ - occasional enemy physic problems, killed enemy models may not disappear
- good co-op implementation
- small touches like when you break the head of the undead enemy, and they start to swing sword around randomly
The bad
- it's not really possible to play as a pure archer, as arrows are really limited
- enemies are repetitive
- companion bot AI is very basic
- dialogues do not require all players to be present, so it's possible to miss whole quest description
Conclusion:
Easy action game with proper co-op implementation. Don't expect deep plot or advanced combat mechanisms. But it's a fine pick if you want to play with someone a short campaign, and nothing else is available.
Story:
Gameplay:
We can do light and heavy attack + use special abilities that consume energy. Killing enemies awards experience (that is not shared between players) and skill points to unlock abilities and rise health / mana / dexterity stats. It is not possible to jump freely, and instead movement is focused on "cinematic" press key on prompt mechanic.
Loot can be found on the fallen enemies or in the treasure chests. There are bonuses for completing armor set, but there are so many sets it's impossible to do without grind. Otherwise 1 - 2 parts of the set will have really low level, which is worse than having high level parts from different sets.
Technicalities:
Music - ⭐️⭐☆ - voice acting, music and sounds are fine
Bugs - ⭐️⭐☆ - occasional enemy physic problems, killed enemy models may not disappear
Ori and the Will of the Wisps (Q1 2020) ⭐️⭐⭐⭐⭐
Action Metroidvania Gamepad16 hours | 26 of 37 (70%)
⇱ Click to show summary⇲
14,5h
The good
- whole artistic side - music, graphic, animations, story - are very well made
- it is bit easier, so also more accessible to players. Some may think it's negative though
- well designed levels that prompt exploration
- gameplay-helpers are optional, so we don't need to use "teleport from anywhere to the waypoint" or "stick to walls" if we want to have harder time
- whole gameplay layer is more complex, and draws heavily from Hollow Knight
The bad
- too short :sob:
Conclusion:
This game is so good. It's like eating your favorite ice creams - you're happy and at the same time a bit sad, as you know it will end soon. Very good platformer with good (albeit simple) story, brilliant art style and fitting music. It is a bit different from 1st game, as it's a bit more combat oriented, and platforming part feels easier. I played on Normal difficulty.
Game starts with showing how owl juvenile is raised by Ori and his (? I think Ori is a he) friends. When owl is finally able to fly we take a quick tour around... to be separated by a huge storm on an unknown land, that is ravaged by decay. We learn that light which was guarding the place died along old willow. We need to find all light wisps that were created when willow died. Strength, eyes, voice, memory and heart of the forest. Doing so will return light to the forest, and help us save our friend.
There are no big moral choices or complex plot twists. But devs still managed to show simple things like the fact that even "pure evil" characters could be forced to be like that by rejection and other live hardships, or that even "good" characters can fall under the right circumstances.
Basic game mechanic is the same as in Ori and the Blind Forest. Metroidvania game with very good platforming part. We collect life and energy orbs to extent energy / health bars, and spirit light. But while some games change some minor things and release sequel, Ori changed in many ways, as it took heavy inspiration from the Hollow Knight.
Ori uses the light sword instead of auto-aiming projectiles to kill enemies as the main weapon. Abilities are divided into core (like double jump, dash, grapple hook) and additional (like triple jump, damage reduction, damage dealt bonus). Core abilities are always on, but additional ones need to be equipped into shard slots. Which works the same as charms in Hollow Knight. We start with 3 slots and can unlock 5 extra by beating simple combat shrines.
Spirit light is used to buy maps, optional abilities and upgrading abilities. Some optional abilities need to be unlocked by absorbing the light from the spirit trees.
Chase sequences are easier than they were in the 1st game, I think I died only once or twice on each. Instead of hard platforming sequences game has some easy bosses to fight. It may be needed to grind a bit and upgrade energy / health before facing them though.
It is possible to warp to any warp gate on the map, which saves a lot of time. Save points are also abundant, so risk of repeating big chunk of the map is minimal. If you want collectibles and don't want to roam blindly it's possible to buy collectibles maps. There is also NPC that shows various game stats - number of jumps, time underwater, killed enemies etc.
There are some fetch quests, but are entirely optional. Like we find a place where they make soup and get a portion. Then we need to find NPC in the cold area who would gladly eat warm soup, and we get a hat as a reward. This hat needs to be delivered to someone on the desert to guard them from the sun etc.
There are a lot of abilities unlocked with spirit trees, so we bump into one quite often at the beginning of the game. So it does not feel as special as it did in the 1st game.
Graphic - ⭐️⭐⭐ - gorgeous, just like in it's predecessor. Vibrant and well contrasted colors, fluid animations, hand-drawn style (which means it will also look gorgeous in 10 years)
Music - ⭐️⭐⭐ - fitting to both what is happening on the screen and to the graphic style. Environmental sounds adds more depth. Even way NPCs talk to describe the story is cute and really fitting
Bugs - ⭐️⭐⭐ - I encouraged literally one bug when I was able to get stuck in the wall, outside of the map. Otherwise game is bugless
- whole artistic side - music, graphic, animations, story - are very well made
- it is bit easier, so also more accessible to players. Some may think it's negative though
- well designed levels that prompt exploration
- gameplay-helpers are optional, so we don't need to use "teleport from anywhere to the waypoint" or "stick to walls" if we want to have harder time
- whole gameplay layer is more complex, and draws heavily from Hollow Knight
The bad
- too short :sob:
Conclusion:
This game is so good. It's like eating your favorite ice creams - you're happy and at the same time a bit sad, as you know it will end soon. Very good platformer with good (albeit simple) story, brilliant art style and fitting music. It is a bit different from 1st game, as it's a bit more combat oriented, and platforming part feels easier. I played on Normal difficulty.
Story:
There are no big moral choices or complex plot twists. But devs still managed to show simple things like the fact that even "pure evil" characters could be forced to be like that by rejection and other live hardships, or that even "good" characters can fall under the right circumstances.
Gameplay:
Ori uses the light sword instead of auto-aiming projectiles to kill enemies as the main weapon. Abilities are divided into core (like double jump, dash, grapple hook) and additional (like triple jump, damage reduction, damage dealt bonus). Core abilities are always on, but additional ones need to be equipped into shard slots. Which works the same as charms in Hollow Knight. We start with 3 slots and can unlock 5 extra by beating simple combat shrines.
Spirit light is used to buy maps, optional abilities and upgrading abilities. Some optional abilities need to be unlocked by absorbing the light from the spirit trees.
Chase sequences are easier than they were in the 1st game, I think I died only once or twice on each. Instead of hard platforming sequences game has some easy bosses to fight. It may be needed to grind a bit and upgrade energy / health before facing them though.
It is possible to warp to any warp gate on the map, which saves a lot of time. Save points are also abundant, so risk of repeating big chunk of the map is minimal. If you want collectibles and don't want to roam blindly it's possible to buy collectibles maps. There is also NPC that shows various game stats - number of jumps, time underwater, killed enemies etc.
There are some fetch quests, but are entirely optional. Like we find a place where they make soup and get a portion. Then we need to find NPC in the cold area who would gladly eat warm soup, and we get a hat as a reward. This hat needs to be delivered to someone on the desert to guard them from the sun etc.
There are a lot of abilities unlocked with spirit trees, so we bump into one quite often at the beginning of the game. So it does not feel as special as it did in the 1st game.
Technicalities:
Music - ⭐️⭐⭐ - fitting to both what is happening on the screen and to the graphic style. Environmental sounds adds more depth. Even way NPCs talk to describe the story is cute and really fitting
Bugs - ⭐️⭐⭐ - I encouraged literally one bug when I was able to get stuck in the wall, outside of the map. Otherwise game is bugless
The good
- enemy AI
- stealth gameplay
- likable characters
The bad
- auto-aim that can't be turned off
- story is average
- not possible to play in the pacifist way
- game looks like it has moral dilemmas, but they don't lead to anything
Conclusion:
I expected more of this game. While it is a good stealth game, story is kind of meh. Environmental puzzles with light are really barebone. And I don't like to take care of whiny kids ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
Raiders of the inquisition come to house of the french nobleman. They start to kill everyone, and only Amicia and her brother - Hugo - manages to escape. On their way to find save place to stay they meet other kids that are orphans - two thiefs and blacksmith son. At some point they decide they can't just hide, and need to kill the Grand Inquisitor to be able to live normally again.
Killing everyone inside Amicia's house turns out to be because of Hugo - he has connection to the plague, and that's the reason why Grand Inquisitor wants to kidnap him. Game shows how infected villages looked like, with markings on doors to show which household is infected etc. But game is not strongly tied to the historical events, connection between black death and rats is made more to justify simple puzzles where we need to make passages between rats hordes than having any educational or deep meaning.
Third person stealth game, where it's not possible to move vertically (apart from pre-scripped action prompts), and not possible to turn off auto aim. Stealth part is good, not stressful or fast paced. But around middle of the game there are more and more situations that are hard to resolve in sneak way. And game endings forces us to kill enemies. So it's not possible to have truly pacifist run.
There is no "hiding in the closet" here, just hugging walls or low obstacles. We can carry one pot with us to distract guards, or shot rocks on piles of metal to get enemies attention. There are few other projectiles for the sling - lighting up torches or fireplaces, putting out the fire, make guards take down their helmet, create temporary light source, attract rats to certain area or sleep powder. Cost of crafting sleep powder is so high that it's not possible to use it regularly. Otherwise we will not be able to upgrade equipment.
Amicia gathers junk laying around - leather, string, alcohol, sulfur etc. to craft ammunition and upgrade gear. More space for materials, ability to carry more ammunition, quiet sling and walking around. Although they are not must-have, and game can be completed without upgrading much.
There are some easy light puzzle, where Amicia needs to make her way across rats. They are really basic - either light up something to chase rats away in a circular proximity, or move stationary lantern to create straight road across rats with a light beam. I think it can even be said those are just puzzle elements, not that this is puzzle game.
Graphic - ⭐️⭐⭐ - graphic is really nice, with detailed models and environments
Music - ⭐️⭐⭐ - very climatic with good voice acting
Bugs - ⭐️⭐⭐ - I didn't encourage any bugs here
- enemy AI
- stealth gameplay
- likable characters
The bad
- auto-aim that can't be turned off
- story is average
- not possible to play in the pacifist way
- game looks like it has moral dilemmas, but they don't lead to anything
Conclusion:
I expected more of this game. While it is a good stealth game, story is kind of meh. Environmental puzzles with light are really barebone. And I don't like to take care of whiny kids ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
Story:
Killing everyone inside Amicia's house turns out to be because of Hugo - he has connection to the plague, and that's the reason why Grand Inquisitor wants to kidnap him. Game shows how infected villages looked like, with markings on doors to show which household is infected etc. But game is not strongly tied to the historical events, connection between black death and rats is made more to justify simple puzzles where we need to make passages between rats hordes than having any educational or deep meaning.
Gameplay:
There is no "hiding in the closet" here, just hugging walls or low obstacles. We can carry one pot with us to distract guards, or shot rocks on piles of metal to get enemies attention. There are few other projectiles for the sling - lighting up torches or fireplaces, putting out the fire, make guards take down their helmet, create temporary light source, attract rats to certain area or sleep powder. Cost of crafting sleep powder is so high that it's not possible to use it regularly. Otherwise we will not be able to upgrade equipment.
Amicia gathers junk laying around - leather, string, alcohol, sulfur etc. to craft ammunition and upgrade gear. More space for materials, ability to carry more ammunition, quiet sling and walking around. Although they are not must-have, and game can be completed without upgrading much.
There are some easy light puzzle, where Amicia needs to make her way across rats. They are really basic - either light up something to chase rats away in a circular proximity, or move stationary lantern to create straight road across rats with a light beam. I think it can even be said those are just puzzle elements, not that this is puzzle game.
Technicalities:
Music - ⭐️⭐⭐ - very climatic with good voice acting
Bugs - ⭐️⭐⭐ - I didn't encourage any bugs here
Evil Genius (Q3 2004) ⭐️⭐⭐☆☆
Strategy5,5 hours | No achievements
⇱ Click to show summary⇲
5h
The good
- minion AI is good
- versatile room building options
The bad
- building aspect is annoying - it's not possible to buy 1-tile corridors, demolish only part of the room
- tourists AI is stupid, it they will not stick to staying in the hotel (even when game tutorial says hotel is a way to keep them off wandering around the island)
- no warning that enemy agents are on the strategic map
Conclusion:
I don't really like this game. It looks like solid strategy game, but some gameplay mechanisms are so primitive I'm not able to force myself to play it.
I didn't play long enough to know if there is a story. In general we are given the role of one of the evil genius, and need to conquer the world. Mission quests focus on things we need to build in order to progress our base. I think it's similar here to Plague inc - game focus simply on beating the scenario.
Isometric real time strategy game, like dungeon keeper. We recruit minions that can't be controlled directly, and plan building the base. Minions will create new rooms / work in the command center / take some leisure time. There are henchmen that can be controlled manually but from what I saw they always wander away and it takes them forever to reach their objective. Sometimes general minions will kill enemy agents faster than henchmen that's designed to do it...
We earn money by sending minions to territory on the strategic map, and order them to steal. It is also possible to order them to "plot" which makes them uncover missions or hide. Last option should be used when agent of justice stays on the same territory as our minions. But there is no notification that agent appeared, so by the time I go back to strategy map all my minions are long dead. Useless.
Main map is also swarmed with agents of justice, that need to be killed by minions / henchmen or by traps. But fact it's nightmare to re-design base layout makes traps hard to implement, unless you know from the start how base needs to look like. And it's hard to know how to play when you just start. In theory it's possible to build hotel on the island to keep agents and tourists away, but their AI is broken and they will avoid hotel or straight out destroy it.
Graphic - ⭐️⭐☆ - game looks dated, and art style is not interesting
Music - ⭐️⭐☆ - fitting, but very basic and monotonous
Bugs - ⭐️⭐☆ - I don't know if enemy AI is a result of bugs or bad design. So I will remove one star from the rating
- minion AI is good
- versatile room building options
The bad
- building aspect is annoying - it's not possible to buy 1-tile corridors, demolish only part of the room
- tourists AI is stupid, it they will not stick to staying in the hotel (even when game tutorial says hotel is a way to keep them off wandering around the island)
- no warning that enemy agents are on the strategic map
Conclusion:
I don't really like this game. It looks like solid strategy game, but some gameplay mechanisms are so primitive I'm not able to force myself to play it.
Story:
Gameplay:
We earn money by sending minions to territory on the strategic map, and order them to steal. It is also possible to order them to "plot" which makes them uncover missions or hide. Last option should be used when agent of justice stays on the same territory as our minions. But there is no notification that agent appeared, so by the time I go back to strategy map all my minions are long dead. Useless.
Main map is also swarmed with agents of justice, that need to be killed by minions / henchmen or by traps. But fact it's nightmare to re-design base layout makes traps hard to implement, unless you know from the start how base needs to look like. And it's hard to know how to play when you just start. In theory it's possible to build hotel on the island to keep agents and tourists away, but their AI is broken and they will avoid hotel or straight out destroy it.
Technicalities:
Music - ⭐️⭐☆ - fitting, but very basic and monotonous
Bugs - ⭐️⭐☆ - I don't know if enemy AI is a result of bugs or bad design. So I will remove one star from the rating
Side note
Xbox Game Pass is neat offer on PC, especially that I get 3 months for free with my PC. But it is shit in some areas. It’s still in beta though, so hope it will get bet better as full release:
- sometimes it’s needed to click twice to start the game, first click just minimizes Xbox app and nothing happens
- requires Windows 10 to work
- achievements pop ups are tied to Windows notifications, I turned notifications off first thing after I installed OS and was puzzled why I don’t see achievement prompt on the screen
- client does not track gameplay time, so I have no idea how long I played Plague Tale or now Dead Cells
- achievements progress is shown as percentage of owned points, not number of achievements
- not possible to start a game without internet, even when it’s not a streaming service
But it has couple of games I wanted to play. So I will focus for the next 2 months on beating games here. I already beat Ori and Plague Tale, now try Dead Cells. Have 8 more in the queue, but will make separate “Steam Sale” post about those :P
I used icons from this page, to show gaming platform in my post:
https://icons8.com/icons