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Yes, this Arcania, even in its vanilla version, is not comparable at all. I played it about three years ago, and there was no plot, no Dovahkiin, and it just wasn't interesting anymore.

Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor



A good action game, plus it has the Lord of the Rings setting, which I enjoyed. Although towards the end, it gets tiresome to constantly slash, chop, and shoot orcs left and right. That's why I won't be playing through the expansions.

I have very mixed feelings about this company: Dark Messiah really appealed to me at the time of its release and was one of the best games, although not without its flaws in design; I tried to play Arx Fatalis twice and couldn't because of game-breaking crashes, although it looked interesting; Oppressed – is utter garbage for kids whose mom bought them a console in 2010 and they hadn't played anything before.

PREY initially seemed almost perfect, a 10/10 – after a million years, they finally added a System Shock-like experience. Level design, exploration, immersion – in short, it's nice, even if the graphics are mediocre (but fortunately not as bad as in Dishonored). But after about ten hours, when I realized that I had found all the weapons, seen all the enemies, and unlocked many abilities, and I still had half the game left to play, I got a little discouraged. Towards the end, it became quite tiring to play when the scale of running around on side quests in compartments in opposite parts of the map exceeded acceptable limits. Instead of feeling like an astronaut, I felt like a courier fixing space junk.
Very decent for 2017, compared to the casual current-gen garbage, but System Shock is, of course, better. I'll close my eyes to the monotony in the second half and give it an 8/10.

Dark Souls: Prepare To Die Edition



I finished it. Twice. Once as a warrior-tank, and the second time as a mage (it was definitely easier as a mage, plus I already knew where everything was and how it worked. Except for the particularly fast bosses, where blocking all attacks is pointless and you need to dodge, which I'm not very good at). It's a great game, despite all the deaths from taking two hits, drinking Estus at the wrong time, and my favorite thing – falling from anywhere and everywhere. And also the paranoia. You constantly feel like someone is going to attack you from around the corner, from behind, or from above, that something will fly at you. Once, after playing for a long time, I went outside and started automatically looking carefully at the ground, up, and peering around corners, lol.
I liked how the locations are designed and connected to each other, all these transitions, elevators, and other things. During my first playthrough, the Fortress of Sen was the most annoying. I kept falling and messing up. Visually, I liked the Ash Lake the most. It made me want to lie down on the white sand and look at the sky, listening to the music that's playing there.
I'll also note the atmosphere. It's wonderful. Decay, ruin, despair, hopelessness, a taste of decay in your mouth, and souls as currency, mmm... Apathetic or crazy characters giving excellent advice,

the corpses of "heroes" of the past, a noble Knight who lost to EVIL, an empty city of gods, Knights protecting an illusion, and even the sun isn't real here... And the final boss fits perfectly. A weak old man, a shadow, a ghost, desperately trying to protect the established order, or rather, what's left of that order. I felt sorry for killing him, and the music was so sad. I suddenly felt melancholic. Maybe I should start the second one, although I'm not in the mood.

Space Hulk - Deathwing

Objectively, the game is terrible, and no one should play it. You walk from point A to point B, constantly shooting at endlessly respawning Genestealers.

Well, what can I say? I should have listened to the good advice.

7/10, somewhat casual, but with polished gameplay, an industrial atmosphere, and level design that is sometimes confusing, but interesting.



As someone who enjoyed the simple Tales of Zestiria and overlooked its flaws, this is an unexpected and significant improvement, making it a perfect 10/10. However, for a random person, it's impossible to predict whether they will like the combat, style, and format. I played it for half a year.



Again, 10/10, this is what Silent Hill could have been if it wasn't terrible. The last thing I remembered about this title, which I had forgotten due to the inability to play it, suddenly appeared as a port on PC, and it blew me away. This is the content I expected to see in the second novel, after such major spoilers, and it turned out to be surprisingly good, interesting, and quite long.



This overhyped title had a very peculiar entry point for me in terms of plot and gameplay. Some moments made me hate it for their flaws, but after completing it and finding and upgrading the most powerful weapon, I understood what was happening and got used to the gameplay, and it became quite interesting. I could even easily spend several hours at a time playing the second half of the game without any fatigue, which rarely happens to me; overall, it was good. But perhaps some things were deliberately made suboptimal to add this player's frustration with the console mindset to the overall pool of emotions they plan to extract from you?
8/10 for a multifaceted story about those seeking themselves in a post-apocalyptic world of mechanical life forms. The yellow-skinned developers, as always, put a lot of soul into it, but created a very depressing product. For the first half of the time, I wanted to cut my veins because of the gameplay, atmosphere, landscapes, and mournful (but still good) music, but in the second half, it was because of the plot, but not as much. The sky is the limit, but at your own risk.
The only thing I can add is advice: don't do all the side quests right away when they appear, but play through some of the main story and get teleports to checkpoints. For the first ten hours, I was very upset by the backtracking and almost dropped it because of this, but then everything became very easy.

The only thing I can add is advice not to do all the side quests right away as they appear, but to progress a bit through the main storyline and get teleports at the checkpoints. For the first ten hours, I was very frustrated with the backtracking and almost quit because of it, but then everything became very easy.

Oh, I just started playing, thanks for the advice.

I can't help but express my opinion about this garbage. The first impression was quite good, interesting, and promising – a road trip-style visual novel with elements of a ball game. The final impression – oh my god, what a load of crap, five out of ten, and that's being generous.
The plot stalls somewhere around 40% of the game, and after that, you'll spend the remaining hours doing the same thing, with the same motivation, skipping the uninteresting and meaningless chatter of the "companions" (90% of whom are non-humans, to support the setting and all the latest SJW trends). The companions, as well as the characters from other factions, "have their own backstory, personality, and motivation," but in reality, they don't. No one ever makes any real decisions, no one conflicts with anyone, everyone is just waiting for their moment to jump at the player and fulfill their every whim, even the former "villains." In short, for a party-based road trip game with aspirations of depth, it's a complete failure.
There's also an attempt at non-linearity, which boils down to the order in which you dismiss people from your party and which "battle" you play against; moreover, it's not even necessary to win – you can lose all the "battles" in the game and still complete it, which is, of course, utter nonsense. The result of all these crazy twists and turns is a regurgitated summary of each character at the end of the game, like in Fallout 2, plus one general summary showing (TELLING IN TEXT) the "good," "bad," and "bad" endings. What year is it, 1917? That's harsh.
There were also a few moments when the amateur developers came up with a sudden "difficult choice" that was so crude, unpleasant, and out of place that it was embarrassing. I would compare this situation to playing hide-and-seek with a three-year-old child with a mild intellectual disability, when you count to ten, turn around, and see him hiding under the table, covering his eyes, shaking, grunting, drooling, and trying his best not to make a sound, because he sincerely hopes to win.
The combat itself is interesting, but in practice, it's monotonous and underdeveloped – you shoot until you kill all the respawning idiot enemies, then you throw the ball, repeat ten times. Half of the characters' builds are complete garbage. The equipment is implemented very poorly – why buy or find and upgrade cool amulets if, five minutes after a new character appears, they can complete their quest battle and receive a much cooler personal item in 90% of cases?
The graphics are cool, and the soundtrack is decent in places.

Overall impression – childish, primitive nonsense, a light and shallow experience, everything is superficial – it lacks depth everywhere. Very disappointed. Don't listen to the Steam users with 90% positive ratings; more than half of them are company fanatics, and another part are teenagers and simpletons.
Some of the worst evenings of my life in the past couple of weeks.

Just, ugh, oh my god. I'm a bit burned out from this crap, I've got a pair of headaches.

DEEP SPACE WAIFU
Just for one evening (literally). At first, it seemed quite good, but the lack of variety in tracks/attack patterns of enemies quickly made itself felt - I got bored quickly. There's also not much to unlock, including achievements.
3.5/10

The Punisher, 2005

When we were kids, around 7th grade, we loved playing this game during breaks before computer science class, and sometimes even during the lesson. There was always a line. I don't know who came up with the idea to install "The Punisher" on the school computer, but it was genius. I remember the game from my school days for its "living shields" mechanic and, above all, its "special interrogations"; it was a great sight, especially for 13-year-olds, but overall, the shooter was cool: a wide range of weapons, bosses, and not the worst graphics. We didn't finish it in school – we didn't have enough time for the full mission. I decided to download it and felt like I was back in my happy childhood. You run around, shoot, there's cruelty, violence – everything is like in the good old days. The graphics aren't very appealing now, but it's tolerable. The game is very easy on "medium" difficulty; the only difficult part was the final boss, and even then, it was more due to the stupidity of the translator, who decided to translate "jetpack" as "weapon." But this isn't a game where difficulty is a must for enjoyment. Of all the weapons, I liked the machine gun the most, and I think it suits the hero's image perfectly. It's a shame that the flamethrower didn't live up to my expectations – it's almost impossible to use.
The main character reminded me a lot of Sanya Nevsky (also known as Kuritsyn) in appearance. It's a shame that the game isn't a comedy; in that case, our Mr. Universe would look great in the main role. After particularly epic kills, he would say "that's how it's done" and so on. We should buy him a license and make a movie.
Overall, an excellent shooter, another proof that good games don't age, 9/10

Initially, I was very upset when I launched the game for the first time; it was lagging heavily, and I wasn't sure if I would be able to play it. But fortunately, after changing the location, the situation improved.

An incredibly intriguing start for me, stylish design, good sound, beautiful art, and animation of short scenes. In addition to this, I really liked the main character. A strong start; I expected 9-10/10 content.
I was very disappointed – the game ended when my enjoyment was at its peak, and I was looking forward to further plot development. Replayability, although present, is terrible – to get a couple of new dialogues or a different ending, you have to replay the game, without the ability to skip previously completed content. There isn't much text as such, and there aren't many gameplay features; the "routes" are poor. Overall, what was promised on Kickstarter (yes, really) looks much more promising than what is actually there (even though the budget exceeded the minimum required by three times). However, I won't deny that I liked what was done to some extent.

Subjectively inflated and not very deserved score: 6/10.

^
+5 points of professionalism to this gentleman.

Rumors have long circulated in the lands of Steam. Rumors of terrifying, merciless creatures terrorizing the gaming community. A new guise of the legendary Camper, leaving no chance for salvation. The Ping-Wizard, capable of teleporting four people simultaneously every second with the powerful "Torrent Download" spell. And, of course, the Cheater-Bogatyr, that Usain Bolt with built-in X-ray vision, from whom there is no hiding.
But heroes were found who could challenge the forces of evil. Team-players and randoms, try-hards and noobs, old-fags and schoolkids — as one united force they fight, overcoming cheats, ping, and the lack of balance.
So say the legends, or rather, the Steam reviews. Now, let me tell you.
The general essence is four survivors, one maniac. The maniac must catch everyone and hang them on a hook; the survivors must prevent him from doing so, open the gates, and escape.
The game really hooked me for the following reasons:
- The Idea. We haven't seen session-based games in this format before; co-op has existed for a long time, of course, but not in this format.
- Roleplay. Playing as the maniac is an absolutely special sensation, primarily due to his invulnerability. You truly feel like a predator that inspires fear. The hunting excitement during a chase or search for survivors, the growing bloodlust when you manage to land a hit, and the cruel pleasure at the sight of someone helplessly dangling on a hook... Simultaneously, there's a slight anger when a survivor escapes and a bitter resentment when you, as a maniac with a single level 2 perk, end up against a coordinated team of survivors with four level 4 perks. Here, you are no longer the predator — you are a retiree whose summer house has been broken into by teenagers who are now breaking your hooks and traps, shining flashlights in your eyes, and ruining your life in every way possible.
Playing as a survivor is also quite good, especially after the introduction of the imba Leatherface, from whom it is almost impossible to escape, making him truly scary; moreover, he appears in matches VERY often, even though he is behind a paywall.
- Atmosphere. Although the devs added a few maniacs from movies, overall the universe is their own. Perk descriptions in the form of diary notes (so much was written and in such a way that I even thought they had copied it from the works of some madman or sci-fi writer, but it turned out they did it themselves), level design, their own lore and the linked locations for killers and survivors — all this contributes to the immersion.
- Different skills for maniacs and even survivors add variety to the game.
Of course, there are downsides, and some are quite serious.
- No servers. The maniac hosts. I already mentioned the ping mages.
- Perk imbalance. I wrote about that too; actually, it's not that bad.
- Players often crash before the start or during a match.
I didn't play as survivors much; it's not very interesting with randoms. I haven't seen any cheaters, though I had suspicions. I encountered a ping-mage once; it was very unpleasant. Bubba Sawyer is a hellish imbalance.
I mostly play as maniacs; it's genuinely fun. I watched quite a few slashers in my time, and it was interesting to experience being the protagonist, specifically the maniac. Of the defaults, I played the Hillbilly, the Trapper, and the Wraith the most. With the first one, using the chainsaw, you can get a -4 without much trouble if you're lucky with the map, but in tight spaces, there's a high probability of ending up with no victims at all. Nevertheless, for now, he is my favorite maniac both in appearance (an ugly redneck with a chainsaw is an immortal classic that appears in dozens of slashers) and playstyle, although some say he is the weakest killer in the game. The Trapper is the game's calling card; conversely, he is good on tight levels where a trap is hard to miss. The Wraith is quite versatile, but I haven't really grown fond of his playstyle yet; maybe I'll like it more over time. I didn't like the Huntress or the Nurse because of their low speed, although the Nurse is even considered imba.
In total — a fun and unusual game, but not very well-made technically, 8.5/10

Expeditions: Viking



Stumbled upon a review of this game in the depths of YouTube. Decided to play it. After all, it's about Vikings, and I'd never played an RPG in this format, so I had to give it a try. Well, what can I say? I liked it, it's decent. Plus, Arandor is also in the game, which is cool. Too bad it's very short. And those percentages... It's funny when you have an 88% chance to hit with a bow and you miss. All sorts of similar things, it's irritating. And then there's the cover... Either they are bugs, or it's stupidly designed, or I just didn't get it. When an enemy is practically in the open, not standing behind anything, but you still can't hit them. Overall, I had a good time playing. I roleplayed as a nice guy, a sensible diplomat; I only robbed and killed those who asked for it. Formed an alliance with the Picts solely for the red-headed woman, because I didn't like the faces of the Northumbrians. Something like that.

A bit of life experience.

Like Nebku, I really enjoyed the first game, so despite many negative reviews, I decided to play the second one.
I'll start with what I liked in the first part: the atmosphere. Although the setting remained the same, it changed a lot. What a decline, what desolation and hopelessness? The sun is shining, Shanalotta is walking around, the dead blacksmith found his lost daughter, the cat is joking, even the enemies make you laugh. Of course, sometimes the atmosphere "normalizes," but it's not the same as in the first part. Actually, whether this is a minus or a plus is debatable. Some, especially those who haven't played the first game, might like this more relaxed atmosphere.
What struck me immediately after the atmosphere and caused purely negative emotions was the redesign. In the first part, there were normal undead, but here there are some vague green zombies. The sight of the "dragon" weapons and armor immediately made me not want to play as this covenant, although in the first part I really liked its visual aspect. And finally, just look at this monstrosity, what complexes must a person have? Even if we assume that only I don't like the new design, a gratuitous change within the same series is definitely not a good thing.
The covenants in this part are also not very well done. Personally, I found only two interesting: the champions (which I played through the whole game) and the brotherhood (where I went to try my luck in the arena), but the problem is not so much in this, but in the fact that finding covenants in this game is a rather boring activity. In the first part, this was implemented much more interestingly.
The characters here are kind of... bland. Although there are more of them than in the first part, the storylines of most of them simply boil down to summoning and the reward is always the same: a set of armor. And the abundance of characters again affects the atmosphere.
Soul gems (alternative healing items) are absolutely unnecessary. Why change the excellent healing mechanic that only used Estus flasks – I don't understand.
I also didn't like the "soul memory" mechanic. I was constantly worried about it, because before, for comfortable PvP, it was enough to remember the level, which was not difficult. Now I have to keep track of both. The ring helps, but sacrificing a slot just for comfort in PvP is not ideal.
Well, I've criticized the game. Now I can praise it a little.
New combat mechanics have been introduced. I liked them all.
There are many bosses, some are frankly boring and easy, some are difficult and interesting. Overall, it's okay. The only thing is that the bosses are now almost not locked.
The level design and ordinary mobs did not cause any particular complaints; it is quite interesting to run around the locations. However, it does not reach the level of the first part; in the first part, there were excellent secret locations. And the transitions between locations were much more natural.
Finally, they introduced a normal PvP mode, with an arena, anti-cheat, and other goodies. The only thing that annoyed me was that the community became worse. They don't even know what etiquette is.
The game has become noticeably more comfortable. The camera doesn't jerk, the crosshair doesn't jump. I had to tinker with the settings, but overall it's much more pleasant than in the first part. And the teleport from the very beginning greatly simplifies life.
Now I need to tell you how I played and what else I noticed.
I played as a pure warrior, focusing on dexterity and wearing medium armor. I liked it much more than in the first part, the variety of builds. Here you can make a poison build, a bleed build, and fight with your bare hands, and many other options. I was very pleased with the additions. The style of all locations is well maintained, all the bosses are interesting. However, the only bosses in the game that really annoyed me were the black tigers from the DLC. I killed the boss on the fourth try, dying more than 20 times along the way.
Conclusion
From everything written above, one could conclude that the game is at best so-so, but this is not entirely true. Yes, we lost the atmosphere, the seamless world, the characters, but we gained a normal PvP mode, comfortable controls, the ability to defeat a huge number of new bosses and mobs with a huge number of new weapons with new mechanics, which is very good. In general, if the first part is remembered primarily by the game world, perhaps you should not play this one, because it is expensive. But if you really liked the combat and exploration of locations, I recommend playing it. I, as a person who liked everything in the first part except for the convenience of controls, will give the game 8/10, because despite my grumbling, the emotions from the playthrough remained almost entirely positive. By the way, I rate the first part 9/10.