Archive

Review: Golden Force

Frances Addison

-

May 17, 2021

Golden Force is a game that sets out its stall very early on. When starting up a new playthrough, players will be dropped onto a ship in a storm and confronted with a handful of minor enemies against which they can learn the three main attacks: strike, slide, and dash. It may appear at first as a standard tutorial, with the ship’s captain calling out the various controls, but that illusion is broken inside of a minute when the ship is attacked by an enormous kraken and you are plunged into the first boss battle.

Given the difficulty of this game – players can only take a total of five hits before it’s game over – this is a pretty high barrier for entry and it may end up turning a fair few players away. That being said, it’s also a good indicator of what Golden Force has to offer and it does serve to let players know what they’ll be getting into; if you find yourself having a bad time taking on a difficult fight from the offset, you’re not going to have much fun in the rest of the game.

For anyone who does get through the opening challenge, the rest of the game takes the form of a series of platforming levels, with each island consisting of four main runs and one bonus one. Each fourth main level is home to its own boss, which players will need to defeat to unlock the next island and progress through the game. Individual levels aren’t particularly long, but the firm limit on the number of hits you can take and how uncompromising your own hitbox can be can make them very challenging. Occasional checkpointing does help to prevent players from losing too much progress too often, but there isn’t ever a lot of room for error.

To make things a little easier, there is a levelling system of a sort via the shop, which allows players to spend collectables to permanently improve their health or combo length, or to buy temporary buffs to damage or health. While the permanent improvements can prove very useful, obtaining the necessary collectibles to unlock more than the first level of each demands an extensive amount of work and time. Similarly, the temporary buffs, most of which only last for a couple of seconds, are extraordinarily expensive in contrast to the amount of gold you can collect in each level.

In part, this is likely to encourage replayability, something that is also backed up by the ranking system present in each level, but the prices are so high that many players are likely to ignore the temporary items entirely.

Outside of the game’s mechanics, there is technically a storyline – that the eponymous ‘Golden Force’ team is on the hunt for more money – but it’s so inconsequential to the gameplay that it doesn’t really matter. It gets a minute or so of screen time at the very beginning, but after that players are free to ignore it entirely and go about the business of beating up waves of enemies.

Overall, Golden Force’s main draw lies in its challenge. Despite ostensibly being a platformer, traversing each level never gets particularly unique or difficult; instead, the focus is combat. Simple though the controls and enemies may be, the precision with which players will have to navigate each level is going to be appealing to anyone who likes that kind of perfectionism.

Not all of this challenge is entirely earned, however. Golden Force has a number of technical issues that hamper its ability to really shine, most importantly some slight imperfections in registering inputs correctly. This is most notable with the dash, a darting directional attack, which can be very slow to read changes in the directional keys being used, leading to the avatar moving in the wrong direction. In a fight, that isn’t much of a problem, but for sections of platforming, it can lead to unavoidable deaths.

The same minor imperfections can be found on some platforms wherein the invisible structure contained within the game’s code that the player is standing on doesn’t entirely match up with the artistic structure drawn by the game’s graphics. While this was a problem I only encountered a few times in several hours of play, each time it led to the loss of one of my very limited lives through my being unable to see where the edge of the platform I was standing on really was.

A separate issue, though no less frustrating, is the intense frame drop problem that appears whenever too many enemies or items spawn in the level. This is particularly prevalent in boss battles when there are a lot of projectiles and mini-enemies to dodge, and whenever you uncover a gold goblin, which drops coins as it runs away from you.

The problem is only magnified if you try to use the co-op multiplayer system, which allows two players to connect remotely and work together to get through a level. The performance trouble here was so bad, in fact, that I was entirely unable to play a complete level in co-op and so I can’t reliably review the system’s merits or failings. Unless a future update manages to patch out the severe lag and frame drops currently bugging it, Golden Force’s multiplayer is a non-starter.

In many ways, Golden Force is a solid call-back to the earlier days of platforming, complete with beautiful retro graphics and a killer soundtrack, and if you remember those old games fondly, give this title a shot. However, that being said, this isn’t a nice, easy game to relax with at the end of the day and that is only compounded by irritating performance issues. Hopefully future updates will resolve the latter, but if you’re not looking for a challenge, I’d suggest searching elsewhere.

Review: Go To IT

Wil Raterman

-

May 17, 2021

0

It’s time to take a look at another early access title. Black Deck Crew and Gamera Interactive, let you finally live your dreams of running your very own tech startup. You will spend your day-to-day answering emails, managing finances, assigning projects, and recruiting new employees. This is all presented in a cartoonish visual style, influenced by social media and flash games. While the tasks in Go To IT seem mundane, things will really begin to stack up once your business grows. Being Mr. Manager may not always be as glorified as it is coveted. But how do these real-life emulations hold up when captured into a simulation game?

Get To Work!

Start off by creating your character with a selection of gender-friendly aesthetics and professional attributes. Start as a Specialist, Businessman, or Founder & CEO and decide which time period in tech to operate in, from the 1990s to present day. It’s honestly hard to tell any differences from which time period you pick. You also get to choose whether your character is to be design, coding, or management heavy, and get to work. You will receive potential employee CV’s, project requests, and tutorials all via email. This looks nice, but a game that is information heavy presents important messages with relatively small font. The emails can also be a bit too text-heavy. It’s hard to sift through and tell find what’s important to retain. I found myself skimming through the emails and clicking on all of the projects without realizing the importance of reading everything.

You’ll spend most of your time on this screen. Employees on the left, projects on the right, and your workspace in the middle.

Eventually, it will be time to add more employees. You can use the PR tab to attract resumes. Candidates have positive and negative attributes, which is a nice touch. For Example, Emma Olson may be really good at completing projects without creating any bugs, but is claustrophobic and loses stamina faster in a full office. This creates a lot of unique personalities to work with and it’s intriguing to see how your team will mesh. Keep in mind, if someone is not a fit, there is no termination option. You can only allow a two-week notice. You won’t be able to immediately replace someone if they are not the right fit. The human resource side is Go To It’s biggest strength. Now, lets dive into the operations and financial areas.

KPI Dashboard

There are a lot of different types of services that your company may provide. A nicely designed KPI system within the game showcases money spent, projects completed, and other useful data that anyone familiar in an office setting would understand. Employees three main stat lines (design, coding, and management) can be increased depending on the tools you buy to help them perform. Project requests will show which of the areas that it leans towards. You can then make the decision as to whether to accept or reject. This adds some strategy since it may not be wise to accept everything and overwhelm your team, or waste time on a project you may not be able to finish.

The statistics are drawn nicely to show everything from money earned, to individual performance.

The issue here, is that the extra equipment you can buy for your employees doesn’t seem to have any real impact on their performance. Their base stats are what gets the job done here. For example, Dave has high Management, but low Design. Buying Dave a tablet, which is meant to strengthen Design, doesn’t really yield any real increase in practice. Or maybe it does, but the improvement is so minimal that I wasn’t able to notice during my playthroughs.

Net Gains And Losses

The main goal of Go To It is to yield profit. Completing projects will reward your company money to pay business expenses, employees, and monthly rental spaces. In the beginning I found myself staying even, but had issues staying above the surface each time I expanded my company. I wasn’t able to find a way to grow my business and pay for everything properly and had to resort to taking bank loans out. Then I couldn’t pay my loan in time and took another loan out to pay for my first loan, thus creating a vicious cycle. Either projects weren’t being offered quick enough, or they were too complicated to be able to finish in time, regardless of staff. All of that time and money spent was wasted.

You will reach “Game Over” if your company goes bankrupt. This will happen on a first playthrough. When I played a second time, I paid more attention to the projects, staffing, and bank loans in the early game to avoid the same outcome. Sure enough, come expansion time, I wasn’t able to pay off my business expenses properly. This stopping point is where the difficulty curve may need some extra attention from the developers.

Bottom Line

While, the concept of Go To IT may seem more trendy than creative due to the tech boom in recent years, there is some content here. However, it seems as if the developers put that extra love in some of the wrong places. I like the different attributes assigned to each person, and the chemistry or toxicity that ensues from assembling your team. On the other hand, a lot of important things, such as upgrading employees’ statistics seemed to lack any substance. I spent a lot of time just clicking around on the interface and not paying close attention to the details for these reasons and lost focus. While the issues I found may be fixable before the title’s full release, I’m not sure if this is everyone’s cup of tea. And if it’s your cup of tea, there are others out there with healthier ingredients.

Review: Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 1 + 2

Michael Hoade

-

May 17, 2021

0

The outcome of video game remasters seems to vary quite drastically from title to title. And, the distinction between a ‘remake’ and ‘remaster’ isn’t always that clear.

Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 1+2 is undeniably a remaster of the immensely popular classics that came out in 1999 and 2000. However, this impressive package isn’t just a next-gen port, that only offers some subtle graphical and performance upgrades; it is perhaps one of the most faithful remasters out there.

A blend of old and new:

All of the levels from the original two games have been faithfully recreated; retaining the spirit and structure that made these titles so popular in the first place. Change comes in the form of a modern palette; that perfectly honors the timeless style of these missions, whilst bringing the gameplay up to present standards.

This balance between old and new, is something that the developers have successfully achieved throughout nearly every aspect of this remaster.

The soundtrack, for example, features classics from the era such as “Guerilla Radio” and “Jerry Was a Race Car Driver”, but also adds more recent tracks, such as Fidlar’s “West Coast”, that still fit the game’s distinctive tone.

Unsurprisingly, the music is a core part of the game’s experience, and I found myself consistently impressed by the quality of depth within the soundtrack.

The gameplay itself is fantastic. The movement is responsive and weighty; every mistake; every ‘ollie’; every trick, feels deliberate. Such precision in movement and responsiveness in player input, adds an incredibly satisfying sense of responsibility; when you make a mistake; when you pull off a ridiculously awesome air trick(my skateboarding vernacular is lacking, I know), this is ultimately down to you as the player. I found this incredibly empowering.

Sticking to the principle of ‘blending the old and new’, the core gameplay loop harkens back to the ‘arcade’ style of the original games. You’re still, generally speaking, looking to hit high scores and collect certain objects, but there are a few nick tricks to play with.

Later additions to the series such as reverts, wall plants and spine transfers, are also included here. This adds more depth to the remaster, without detracting from what made the originals so great in the first place. The player has the choice to change the control scheme to only feature maneuvers from the original games, if you wanted to really take things back further.

As a matter of personal preference, I found that collecting different items across the arenas became quite repetitive. After a few runs, it started to feel like busy-work between trying to achieve high-scores. However, the engaging gameplay meant that this never became more than a minor, momentary grievance.

Simple to learn, difficult to master:

Picking up the board, doing a couple tricks and rocking out to an awesome soundtrack was how I spent most of my time playing the game.

A deep tutorial, simple, responsive inputs and progressively more difficult maps provide an encouraging experience for new players. Simply speaking, you can very quickly reach a level of ‘competency’ within the games, but through increasingly more difficult challenges and map layouts, the game reminds you: there are levels to this.

Progression in this game is immensely satisfying. A deep roster of skaters, seemingly innumerable unlockable cosmetics and new maneuvers to master, mean that there is always something to be working towards. This is great. And when combined with fantastic gameplay, you quickly start to recognise the absolute brilliance of this remaster. Key word being ‘master’. This is absolutely the pinnacle of skateboarding video games.

I haven’t even mentioned the level editor(which whilst initially daunting, quickly showed its brilliance) and online multiplayer – which adds another layer of competitiveness.

As I am writing this -and becoming increasingly self aware of how much I am gushing over this game – I feel obliged to ‘try’ and point out one area that I felt the game was sorely lacking.

The game’s character creator is just not very good. Which is especially disappointing, because of how polished the game is in just about every other aspect. There is hardly any depth to the creator, with the bizarre absence of sliders meaning that you are working with pre-set choices.

Does this one blemish mar the whole experience? Absolutely not, but it does feel like a glaring oversight, in what is otherwise an absolute masterpiece.

The best remaster ever?

Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 1+2 absolutely sets the bar for what a ‘remaster’ should be. Staying true to the original’s strong foundations, this remaster modernises the classics; managing to retain the best aspects of the originals and place them in a package more in line with our modern expectations.

This is truly the definitive skateboarding video-game experience. If you’re like me – desperately un-coordinated and comfortably not a ‘thrill-seeker’ – you can still experience the absolute adrenaline rush of the sport, within the comfort of your couch. Oh, and the soundtrack is full of absolute bangers – oh, I mentioned that already, didn’t I?

Just brilliant.

Review: Baldur’s Gate: Dark Alliance

Daniel Waite

-

May 17, 2021

0

Few genres age well. Usually, the gameplay becomes dated; the graphics look horrific, and playing them quickly becomes a big mistake. RPGs, however, are timeless. The well-written stories, the memorable heroes, and the glorious quests are all worth another look. I don’t mind returning to an original game, even on a modern console, but when a remake is released, I jump at the opportunity to give it a go. This is exactly what happened when I saw Baldur’s Gate: Dark Alliance. This re-release has stuck to the original mechanics, settings, and story, but has a 4K makeover for 2021.

Developed by Black Isle Studios and published by Interplay Entertainment, this is a classic D&D RPG with a Hack ‘n’ Slash twist, that is viewed from a tabletop perspective. Baldur’s Gate: Dark Alliance is a great example of an RPG adventure title keeping things simple, allowing the action and the story to do all the talking. I remember when this was first released, I loved it then, and couldn’t wait to see how it would compare all these years later.

Baldur’s Gate: Dark Alliance shows its age.

I will not sit here and say that this is a masterpiece. Yes, in its day, it was well-received, was afforded plaudits from the gaming community, and was much-loved by its fanbase. Yet sadly, its whole premise is dated, the simple approach doesn’t push you enough, and recent RPGs have a lot more depth to them. This being said, I still adored my time with it, and once I got started, I couldn’t stop playing.

Originally released in 2001 for the PlayStation, Xbox and GameCube, this RPG adventure Hack ‘n’ Slash title was set in the Forgotten Realms campaign under 3^rd Edition Dungeon and Dragons Rules. It was the first console release in a long line of Baldur’s Gate games, having been PC exclusive. It had a basic but well-written plot that finished on a cliffhanger ending, allowing the developers the freedom to create the much-anticipated sequel.

Using a linear quest line your hero must move through four acts of this fabled tale. You begin your adventure in the medieval town of Baldur’s Gate. From here, you will travel across the world to different locations. You are offered the opportunity to complete side quests for extra gold and items. These are free-flowing with the only restriction that they must be completed before each act ends. The plot tells of dark powers, friendships, love, loss, and treachery. It is not the most complex of affairs, but it keeps you hooked from beginning to end, and the twists and turns keep you thinking throughout.

Three heroes with their own style.

Baldur’s Gate: Dark Alliance allows for a few player-based choices. The main one is which of the three classes you wish to use for your journey. Archer, Sorcerer, or Dwarf. Each has unique skills, pre-set strengths, and methods of attack. You must select the one that best matches your gameplay style and try to make them as strong as possible. Like with most RPGs, earning XP and levelling up is a must if you wish to tackle the more powerful creatures. You can unlock traits that will help you en route, and at set intervals, you can choose to increase your attributes. The limited customisation helped to keep the gameplay balanced, but felt too restrictive and won’t be to everyone’s liking.

This short game attempts to increase its longevity with a range of difficulty modes. Four are available; Easy, Normal, Hard, and Extreme. There is also a mode known as “The Gauntlet” which only becomes available once the game is finished. The Extreme difficulty is accessed through a New Game Plus option and allows you to select an additional adventurer for the main story. Even with the extra settings, the gameplay doesn’t change, making the action feel repetitive in places.

Weapon choices and healing potions.

The Hack ‘n’ Slash element will not be to everyone’s liking. During the easy difficulty, you simply slash away, mowing down enemies and looting their remains. How you wish to take them down is up to you, and an array of close quarters and long-distance weapons are at your disposal. Depending on who you have chosen, you will use magic to help eliminate your foes. The battles can overwhelm you, and a poor approach can leave you fearing for your life. Oddly, using your shield was a pointless affair. It takes so long to swap between shield and weapon that you may block the first attack, but further blows are impossible to avoid.

This is where plenty of healing potions come in handy. Get battered by each enemy, swig from a flask, and carry on. The lack of tactical nuance lends itself to the Hack ‘n’ Slash model but leaves you feeling unfulfilled. This was further emphasised with poor accuracy and enemies that flee as you approach. You’ll quickly discover that you lose more health through terrible accuracy than an inability to fight. You’ll also chase foes around a dungeon-like something out of a Benny Hill sketch. Yes, it was amusing, but it was also frustrating as you and the computer enemy ran around like headless chickens.

Baldur’s Gate: Dark Alliance’s 4K upgrade doesn’t polish out the dated presentation.

Whenever we hear the phrase 4K upgrade, we instantly expect a modern aesthetic. Sadly, this isn’t always the way. Baldur’s Gate: Dark Alliance certainly has a crisper more polished look, but it can’t escape its dated approach. Poor lip-syncing, robotic animations, and NPC’s that spin in circles all return to the fore. Yet, I still loved its look. The tabletop perspective makes crawling each dungeon a wonderful experience. The dank colour palette adds a sense of oppression and doom, and the character models have a classic D&D appeal. Your enemies are varied and walk around unpredictably. Sure, it isn’t the modern spectacle I was hoping for, but it brings the old game back to life and makes it appealing for new gamers and fans alike.

The glorious thing about older RPGs was the ability to build suspense and atmosphere with little music. The silence is deafening, and only the wonderful acting and sound effects can be heard throughout. The cutscenes and narration help to tell and push the story on at a nice pace. Though the acting was a little wooden, the variety of characters you meet overcomes this slight negative. What I loved, however, was the sound of the eerie wind blowing, the screams of monsters, and the OTT noises that came from your magic and swords. This is what old-school RPGs are about, and though it may be lost on the new generation of players, veterans will adore what is presented.

The controls are still clunky!

When it was first released, I remember thinking that the controls weren’t as responsive as I’d have hoped for. There was always a feeling that it would be better with a Mouse and Keyboard. Unfortunately, time hasn’t changed these thoughts, as the remake is still as clunky as the original. Hitboxes can be a little off, and this impacts each fight. Yet these drawbacks won’t stop you from having a great time! The fundamentals are easy to learn, with a clean-cut UI, a simple inventory system, and an uncomplicated button layout. This is one game that you’ll master in no time.

The main positive is its four difficulty settings, and these truly add longevity to the gameplay. But this is also its major negative. The gameplay feels repetitive as you simply repeat the same story with no differences. Yes, the increase in the challenge makes you approach each act differently, but there are no surprises along the way. The achievement list also adds replay value, but will only interest completionists, or fanatics. If you wish to get 100% status, you must be prepared to make the ultimate sacrifice and try to complete it on Extreme! Best of luck with that.

Baldur’s Gate: Dark Alliance is a blast from the past.

With so many games concentrating on making non-linear open-world experiences, it was refreshing to be reined in by this old-school classic. Baldur’s Gate: Dark Alliance may be restrictive in its approach, but I loved how it pushed me along. With many short quests to undertake, a constant sense of achievement, and a modern polish, the developers have done a wonderful job in updating this much-loved title. I enjoyed my blast from the past and recommend you buy it here! It’s time to choose your hero, enter Baldur’s Gate, and save the world.

Review: Giga Lounger

Andrew Edney

-

May 16, 2021

0

Here is our review of the Giga Lounger – the first one-key automatic inflatable lounger.

Exclusive and innovative design with an integrated AirVorTech electric air pump, which can automatically inflate the air lounger with a simple touch. Very easy to operate by yourself, even kids can handle. It is easier to inflate than traditional air bed, takes only 60s. Relax and enjoy whenever you want.

Key Features

Integrated electric pump& power bank
Inflate with just one click and 60s fast inflating
150kg bear weight
Super foldable
Wear-resistant material

What’s in the bag?

The bag contains the Giga Lounger and a USB cable.

Operating the Giga Lounger

Operating and using the Giga Lounger is a simple 3 step process:

Step 1: Fold the vent to adjust the hardness of the lounger according to your preference.

Step 2: The top buckle is designed to strongly seal the air outlet.

Step 3: Start the AirVorTech electric air pump with one-click, and inflate quickly in just 60s.

A Closer Look

Final Thoughts

The Giga Lounger is small and very lightweight – it’s easy to carry when its in its carry bag. When the time comes to inflate it, its just a case of removing it from the bag, unrolling it, opening the vent and pressing a button. It really does inflate fully within 60 seconds.

All you then need to do is adjust the top buckle if needed and then just sit back and relax.

Deflating it is simple too, although not as much fun as inflating – just open the buckle and all the air will come out in a few seconds!

Charging the Giga Lounger is just a case of plugging in the supplied USB cable. A single charge works for about 25 inflations so you will get a lot of use out of a single charge.

There is also a USB port for use in charging your devices so you wont run out of power when relaxing. Obviously this will use the battery so you will need to charge the lounger sooner if you use the onboard power.

There is also a pocket for putting things in and a wind rope that you can use to anchor the lounger in place if needed.

The lounger is very comfortable and you can use it on grass, in a pool, on the beach and more, the choice is yours! It’s made of a hard wearing material so it shouldn’t tear or get damaged easily.

You should definitely check out the Giga Lounger if you want something comfortable and portable to use in a variety of different situations and locations.

The Kickstarter campaign is running now and until June 2nd, you can check it out here.

You can also learn more from the Giga Lounger website.

Review: Orbital Bullet (Early Access)

Charles Ombler

-

May 16, 2021

0

I bloody love roguelites. They’re a genre that I never think about when compiling lists of my favourite games because you play them completely differently to most other games: playing in relatively short sittings and taking a lot of runs at the same but randomised section and never really thinking about a story or ‘completion’ – which is remarkably similar to my opinion on my time at university. However, now that I think about it, there are so many roguelites (and rogue-likes, for the pedants) that I adore: The Binding of Isaac, FTL, Hades and, now, Orbital Bullet.

Roguelites are perfect for someone like me, with a short attention span and not a lot of spare time. You can sit down and play a complete experience, picking up from nothing and quickly being back in the swing of the game. This feature of the genre means that they have to be tight. They have to be perfect. They have to be well designed – they can’t have anything extraneous or pointless. They have to give you a reasonable cross-section of the whole game in a half-hour sitting, like an episode of Rick and Morty compared to one of Game of Thrones. All of this design comes together to provide a brilliant player experience and Orbital Bullet is no exception to this rule.

One key feature of a roguelite is the difficulty. They’re hard. You’ll fail time and time again so you’re forced to level up and face tougher challenges – in a harrowingly accurate representation of the real world. I used to think that I didn’t like difficult games but my love of roguelites and my recent time playing, loving and completing Bloodborne suggest that I might secretly be some kind of masochist. As a faithful example of the genre, Orbital Bullet is hard. You won’t get much further than the first level on your first few playthroughs and that’s all part of the charm. The enemies hit hard, you hit soft and you can’t heal at all until you’ve levelled up, meaning your health bar is all you’ve got. Any damage you take is permanent so you’re always on the path to a gruesome death (again, some hard-hitting parallels to real-life here).

The difficulty is compounded by some wonderful enemy design. It is highly varied so you need to learn the trick for tackling every single one of them. Some need you to double jump before attacking because they’re floating on the ceiling. Some need you to jump on them to remove armour before attacking them with weapons. Some have massive face-armour so can only be attacked from behind. It’s this wonderful collection of unique and detailed enemy types that makes every play-through different, with each combination offering a new challenge.

The way Orbital Bullet offsets some of this difficulty is through its progression system. There are two parts to this; the in-game upgrades that only apply to a particular run through, and the between-game upgrades that are permanent and affect every future run. Like the difference between trying to impress at a party by either wearing a fancy suit or getting a comprehensive sleeve of tattoos.

In the first category, there are in-game pickups that apply random effects to your character and weapons, such as a health boost on certain criteria or stun ammunition. That ammunition is remarkably ineffectual when thrown by hand so there weapon pickups throughout the game, allowing you to pick a pair of weapons that you like. The weapons also have types (bullet, explosion, etc.) which tie into the upgrade system. There are shops that allow you to buy weapons and other paraphernalia, along with unlocking weapon blueprints which we’ll get on to later.

Then, there’s the level up system which is 50% generic, 50% innovative, and exceptional. The generic part is a very standard tech tree, with 4 randomised options along the bottom to get you started. Upgrades are things like increased weapon damage, explosion radii, etc. However, the next tier of the tree is where things get innovative. Not only can you choose upgrade options from the tech tree, but you can also define the tech tree itself. At certain points of the game, you’ll find modules of the tech tree that you can slot into the next level. You’ll have a choice of two and then unlocks proceed as normal. It gives you a bit more choice to completely customise your character to your play style. The upgrade system also follows the normal upgrade rules, where you can only unlock things from higher tiers when you’ve unlocked the lower tier, meaning choosing a module with the upgrades you want in the correct positions, to buy them quickly, is also important.

All of the upgrading we’ve covered so far is just what happens within the game, with a new run starting you from scratch with all of those systems. However, like any good roguelite, Orbital Bullet also has permanent upgrades you can buy between games. These are more overarching level-ups – things like the ability to heal (thank the gods). Beyond this holistic system, there are also 4 classes to choose between, each of which has a specialist thrown weapon and class-specific level-ups. As mentioned earlier, there is a weapon unlock system. Once you’ve bought a blueprint for a weapon from a shop you can use it between games to add it to your arsenal of weapons that are possible to pick up in the game.

The thing that sets Orbital Bullet apart from other roguelites is right there in the name: the ‘orbital’ feature. I’ve never seen anything like it. It’s 2D but not. You spend the whole game on a series of columns, swapping between new columns for new levels, like an ancient Greek parkour enthusiast. Each column is divided into several floors and you’ll work your way up to the top of the column. On each floor, you play on a circular track around the column, like a 2D plane rolled up into a circle. Each floor has a couple of these tracks in concentric circles which you can swap between. This makes every floor feel like a distinctive combat experience which you need to complete before moving on to the next. The concentric tracks also add an interesting element to the combat. Generally, you’re safe from the enemies on the other track as their attacks follow the 2D plane. So you can wipe out one track without worrying about the other. However, in later levels there are enemy types that can attack between planes, adding a new dimension (quite literally) to the combat and whipping you out of your complacency quickly enough to give you whiplash.

All in all, I’m very impressed by Orbital Bullet. It’s one of those games that I went into with zero expectations and was completely blown away by. It’s a true roguelite and feels fantastic, with some great features to make it stand out from the rest of the genre. I don’t have anything negative to say about Orbital Bullet. It’s a rare 10/10 from me and its definitely joining my roguelite rotation.

Review: Meters Level Up! Gaming Headset

Andrew Edney

-

May 16, 2021

0

Here is our review of the Meters Level Up! Gaming Headset.

Designed to be used via USB for all PC’s, Laptops and PS4 (no driver required) for zero latency. Xbox via jack connection. The fully immersive custom designed Virtual 7.1 surround sound can be installed by an easy driver download via the Meters website.

Specifications

CHIP SET: CM108B
SOUND CHANNEL: VIRTUAL 7.1
OPERATING VOLTAGE: 5V
TRANSMISSION: USB2.0
OPERATING TEMPERATURE: -15o TO +70o
SPEAKER SIZE: 50MM
SENSITIVITY: 108±3DB
RATED POWER: 20MW
IMPEDANCE: 32Ω±15%
MAX POWER: 30MW
FREQUENCY: 20~20KHZ

What’s in the box?

The box contains the headset and detachable microphone, cables and a carry bag.

A Closer Look

Final Thoughts

One of the things you notice about the Level Up! headset is the functioning VU meters on each side of the ear cups. They can also light up and change colour too, which is a nice little touch, although you wont be able to see it yourself when you are wearing them.

Connecting the headset to whatever device you want to use is as simple as just plugging in the cable in and you can use it.

Putting the headset on and wearing it, even for prolonged gaming sessions was very comfortable and the headset itself is easily adjustable.

The microphone is removable and is easy to move around to suit your needs. The quality is very good and speech comes through very clearly. There is also a chat cable included but the quality of that wasn’t very good so I wouldn’t recommend using it.

If you are using the headset on a PC, you can download some software to enable 7.1 simulated sound. The software looks and feels a little outdated but it gets the job done.

Sound wise the Level Up! produces good sound – just not great sound, especially at high volume. The sound quality is better when listening to music rather than playing games, which is a little strange considering it’s a gaming headset.

The remote functions on the cable control the microphone, the lighting on the VU meter and also the volume, these are easy to use.

The Level Up! headset is a good headset, but it’s quite pricy for a wired headset with only good sound rather than great sound, especially that sound better listening to music than for gaming.

The Meters Level Up! Gaming Headset is available now priced around £99 and comes in Red, Carbon or Silver (which is the model reviewed).

You can learn more about the Meters Level Up! Gaming Headset here.

Review: Rabisco+

Daniel Waite

-

May 16, 2021

0

In life, several things must be presented as one; Simon and Garfunkel, Tom and Jerry, Ant and Dec, peanut butter and jelly (jam), and the moon and the stars. Can you imagine if one appeared without the other? How odd would that be? Well, Rabisco+ tells a heartbreaking story of when the moon lost her stars.

Developed by Green Dinosaur Games and published by Ratalaika Games, this is a 2D precision puzzle adventure title. You control a small alien-like blob who must avoid traps and enemies on its way to gathering all the lost stars.

Rabisco+ is super cute but quickly becomes a nightmare.

Other than the tear-jerker opening cutscene, you instantly note how cute Rabisco+ is. With simple hand-drawn lines, and a basic premise, this title doesn’t overcomplicate the matter. Instead, it offers an easy-to-understand game that slowly builds in difficulty.

With ten worlds to explore, and one hundred levels to defeat, there is plenty to keep you going. You start with simple level designs and helpful hints to teach you the fundamentals. You navigate multiple labyrinthine stages, each with unique enemies. You’ll face; laser beams, spikes, moving blocks, spinning fireballs, and more. The further you progress, the greater the combination of these foes you will see. It quickly goes from dodging one obstacle to avoiding multiple traps in a split second. In short, the peaceful experience soon turns into a hellish nightmare.

Multiple modes and collectables.

I enjoyed the gameplay, and style of Rabisco+. But what stood out for me was the amount of modes at your disposal. You are free to saunter along, taking your time, and slowly collecting each star. Or you can collect a stopwatch and change the dynamic to a speed run game. There are no penalties if you are slow, but the nature of a ticking clock adds pressure and a competitive edge. Finally, there is a hardcore mode that removes every checkpoint. This option is for the most hardy gamers out there, or the most insane. With everything wanting to kill you, failure was all but guaranteed.

So, you’ve picked your mode, know who your foes are, what else is there to do? Gather collectable items, that’s what! Each world has a gem hidden among its maze-like stages. Collecting them isn’t an issue, finding them is. With no hint to which level they are on, you must search high and low until you find them all. You must also find every star, keys to unlock doors, and a different coloured crayon. The crayons unlock the next world, and without them, your progress will be thwarted.

The stars are easy to find, as are the keys. The challenge comes as you attempt to gather them without dying. A logical approach must be taken, and planning is a must. You’ll need quick reactions to dodge every enemy you face. Even the best players will fail, and I admit this game made me mutter some obscenities.

Basic imagery and vivid colours.

Gamers are always looking for realistic graphics and something to push their next-gen consoles. You won’t get that with Rabisco+. I didn’t mind the simple imagery, in fact, I think it works perfectly with this style of game. The 2D tabletop perspective allows you to view most of the action. You can easily plan your route and calmly take on each stage. The hand-drawn images and varied stage design were interesting to look at and prevented a basic game from becoming repetitive.

What I found odd was the choice of music that accompanied this danger-filled world. When everything is out to kill you, you expect the audio to be sinister, angry, and to set a dark mood. Instead, you are treated to a Mario-esque upbeat and calm piano score. It was strange, but I really enjoyed it. Referred to by the developers as inspired by Bossa Nova music, the calming Brazilian tunes work brilliantly throughout.

The controls caused issues.

Whenever a game uses precision as one of its key elements, the controls have to be responsive. Sadly, this wasn’t always the case. You’d drift slowly after moving, causing you to hit spikes or be struck by projectiles. These loose movement controls caused much frustration and were especially bad when you attempted the hardcore mode. You can adjust to the issue so it’s an annoyance and not a game-breaker.

With the speed run and hardcore options available, there is plenty of replay value to be found. Twenty plus enemies are encountered, and the variety in stage design ensures you keep playing. An easy achievement list is unlocked early on, making this a completionists dream.

Rabisco+ is a fun indie title.

Though Rabisco+ won’t be to everyone’s liking, it offers enough to be appealing to indie fans. A gentle learning curve, the need to be accurate, and a good dose of luck make this an addictive casual title. I enjoyed my time with it and recommend you buy it here! The moon is lost without her stars, collect them all and make her feel complete again.

Review: Atelier Mysterious Trilogy Deluxe Pack

Alex Chessun

-

May 15, 2021

0

Review: Atelier Mysterious Trilogy Deluxe Pack

With 22 main series releases to its name, but the majority on prior console generations, KOEI TECMO set about re-releasing its PS3 ‘Arland’ and ‘Dusk’ stories in deluxe packages on newer consoles. The ‘Mysterious’ trilogy is its most recent with Atelier Mysterious Trilogy Deluxe Pack including improved versions of Atelier Sophie: The Alchemist of the Mysterious Book, Atelier Firis: The Alchemist and the Mysterious Journey and Atelier Lydie & Suelle: The Alchemists and the Mysterious Paintings.

The JRPG series is known for its relaxed and slow-paced alchemy-led adventures where the combining of items is the main ingredient for its RPG gameplay. The first game, Atelier Sophie: The Alchemist of the Mysterious Book DX, set in European-esque environs, has Sophie, a young alchemist with little ability, discover a talking book that has lost its memories and requires you to gain experience as an alchemist by synthesizing items from gathered ingredients, in a static tetris-esque puzzle game, in order to help it.

She’s talking to a book and she isn’t crazy. I promise.

Fighting enemies in turn-based battles while collecting resources for your cauldron-based creations is another element that plays a major role in the title, but despite its significance and quality is the story’s least important, showing the underlying issue with 2 of the 3 titles in the trilogy – the priority and mix of story and gameplay is wholly unbalanced.

Initially starting with Sophie’s two best friends as battle partners, your team expands as the story progresses and your bonds with the characters, built through its slice-of-life pacing, wills those who complete the game to soldier through it.

Unfortunately, Sophie’s relationships are unable to prevent the game from feeling like its narrative would have been better suited to an anime. The story’s central premise (of helping the book uncover its memories) hardly inspires excitement and the repetitive and unenjoyable gameplay loop – grind, create items, cutscene, grind again – constantly halts any momentum the relationships create. This loop is made worse by the fact that everything about it is generic and forgettable. Bland stock enemies in tiny non-descript areas accessed via a menu as well as concocting your creations soon lose their novelty and start to sour the experience.

The first alchemy mechanic seen in the trilogy, but not the best.

The biggest issue Mysterious Book commits, however, is that for a game with heavy focus on story, there is almost no effort made to present an entertaining story. There’s no tension, momentum or highs or lows to speak of. The gameplay also provides little challenge and consequences for failure which removes any sense of achievement and ultimately gives you little reason to continue playing other than to see the characters interact. It seems odd to say, but the inclusion of even a single boss character seems like a poor choice here. The narrative is so relaxed and so adverse to providing any threat to our characters that by the time he is introduced as the game’s main boss, he’s not only the first boss to appear, but his background and motivations are unsurprisingly meek, and defeating the scooby doo-like for can only make you wonder why this was released in the guise of something interactive.

Photo mode is a new feature for the deluxe version. Just a shame it hasn’t got many people to take a picture of.

Funnily enough, prior to the most recent Atelier release, Mysterious Book was actually the bestselling entry of the series! Perhaps it struck a chord with the younger audience it’s aimed at, but it still doesn’t forgive the slightly confused priorities of a title that refuses to fully commit to what it wants to achieve.

The 2nd of the series, also originally released on the PS3, Atelier Firis: The Alchemist and the Mysterious Journey DX, corrects everything wrong with its first entry, showing that 18 entries into the series has provided developer GUST enough experience and tools to switch out the features of their yearly releases as they see fit. Gone is the reliance on one town and an interface that overly encourages fast travel, and in comes an adventure game with numerous explorable areas, a non-linear storyline with large optional areas to explore and numerous ways to achieve the same goal. There’s also a countdown that the main goal needs to be completed by which means you can’t complete all the main and side quests within a single playthrough, making each one different.

Mysterious Journey‘s target audience takes a bit of a drop with a new younger female main protagonist, Firis, who’s clueless and irritatingly infant-like personality makes sense narratively for the growth necessary in the character but makes it no less palatable. Players hoping for a more serious, more in-depth take beyond the “I will do my best” repetitive mantra and feather pillow-covered failure might be disappointed here. This and the less time dedicated to introducing and developing new characters, now dedicated to exploring the world, are perhaps the only downsides to this vastly improved entry.

Firis is born and raised within a village built inside of a mountain and whose only chance to fulfill her dream of escaping comes in the form of Sophie who blows a hole through the mountain town’s front door and in the same breath puts Firis on her path to her destined profession. Her town’s elder proclaims that if Firis can become a certified alchemist then she can leave home.

Firis’s Atelier. The size of a tent on the outside but bigger than any property I’ve ever rented on the inside. Jealous.

This ridiculous intro aside, the narrative propels the story ahead perfectly with Firis needing 3 letters of recommendation from existing alchemists to become certified. The game provides 5 opportunities to obtain a letter in whichever order you like, giving you the freedom to decide your journey, providing a thrilling tangible control of the story.

With more of a Dragon Quest-esque adventure experience, you can explore a world that brings with it some interesting features. Your atelier can be set up by any campfire dotted around the map, meaning your base can shift around with you and the world’s time and weather actually has significance this time around with rainy weather fogging up your minimap and NPCs going home and lock their doors at night. Sleeping also has a purpose this time as well, healing your party’s health stats, as well as their IP meter (also a holdover from Mysterious Book) which lowers with movement and ultimately can result in you fainting on the map if you don’t set up your atelier before it reaches 0.

The environments certainly don’t disappoint.

The battle system remains the same from the first game but synthesizing feels like a revelation in the second as its not only been improved, but the nonlinear nature of the story and the freedom afforded to you makes it feel less repetitive and enjoyable feeding back into a better-integrated gameplay loop.

While personal preference dictates this title is one decent protagonist away from being an excellent game, this RPG adventure has more urgency and purpose with varied environments, a good focused narrative with excellent adjustable elements and a well-adjusted gameplay loop making this a recommended entry to the world of alchemy and a great standalone option for a new fan.

The third title Lydie & Suelle: The Alchemists and the Mysterious Paintings DX is the third and last entry of the series and was the first to be released on the PS4. The protagonists are now two polar opposite female twin teens who run an Atelier with their comically useless father in a town that introduces an alchemist ranking system, facilitating the twins’ goal to run the most well-known and best Atelier in the world.

The slightly older main characters add a comical tone to the interactions and while it still lacks tension or any realistic threat to the relaxed atmosphere, it’s a welcome inclusion.

…to remove fast travel and allow for exploration….

Regrettably though, the gameplay reverts back to Mysterious Book‘s RPG fetch and synthesize style with an overbearing fast travel option for its tiny one-town map, but more importantly, omits one key feature – immersion. While Mysterious Book lacks the exploration of Mysterious Journey it at least keeps you and the majority of the characters in one area, justifying your time spent there and, to some degree, making you feel part of the town. Mysterious paintings, on the other hand, is the textbook definition of how not to design a town with a fast travel system as there’s no hub of activity and almost no reason to explore the beautiful but lifeless town outside of the fast travel points with few initiating events and NPCs. The number of fast travel points for such a small map would seem to suggest that the developers either knew of its lack of interaction or that the 50+ hour game is simply too long in the first place.

One of the beautiful paintings you can enter in Mysterious Paintings, which act as maps to find items and defeat meandering foes and bosses.

The 4 character fighting system with its accrued team combos is now replaced with a system of 3 attackers and 3 support characters that provide combos in pairs. With roles that can be reversed and with the ability to use your gathered materials to synthesize mid-battle, as well as certain environments providing boosts to attacks, there’s a lot more strategy and options for the player during battle.

The conundrum Mysterious Paintings finds itself in is that while it might have the best graphics, the most complicated fighting and synthesize systems and even the most entertaining protagonists, it lacks the flexibility to free its potential from the apathy-inducing gameplay loop and the lack of adventure that Keio Tecmo puzzlingly saw fit to return to.

Atelier Mysterious Trilogy Deluxe Pack is an inconsistent offering with three interesting narratives, with good character interaction and anime-styled visuals, but only one well-balanced game (Mysterious Journey) that isn’t beset by issues with variety and repetition. This, in addition to the lack of any overall story arc, makes it very difficult to justify the collection to anyone other than a fan looking for the improvements (QOL adjustments, full voiceovers, the original DLC and a photo mode) the trilogy offers over the originals.

Review: Bowfell Compact Bluetooth Soundbar from Majority

Andrew Edney

-

May 15, 2021

0

Review: Bowfell Compact Bluetooth Soundbar from Majority

It’s time to review the Bowfell Compact Bluetooth Soundbar from Majority.

Experience your favourite TV, films and media with the ultra-compact and slim design of the Majority Bowfell. Despite its small and sleek design, the soundbar can be easily connected to your television via RCA or Optical and also offers Bluetooth, USB and AUX connectivity to your devices.

Encounter a high-quality audio experience with the Majority Bowfell soundbar. Tailor your sound by selecting from the preset equaliser options on the provided remote to personalise the audio output for every occasion. The Majority Bowfell also comes with a built-in subwoofer to create a richer, deeper sound that brings your audio to life.

The Bowfell includes a range of ports and features to enjoy your own music and streaming services. Using the Bluetooth connectivity, you can immerse yourself in a spectrum of sound and enjoy your favourite songs from any phone or Bluetooth device. Alternatively, you can connect your device via the USB or AUX port and play music directly from a memory stick, MP3 player or audio device.

What’s in the box?

The box contains the soundbar, cables, instructions, remote control with a set of batteries and a power supply.

A Closer Look

Final Thoughts

The Bowfell can be used to listen to music from a variety of different sources, connect to your TV for wathing movies or using it to play games – the choice is yours.

The are a variety of connection options including cables for connecting to your TV, or Bluetooth if you want stream music from your phone. Setting up whatever connection you want is very quick and easy.

The remote is small and lightweight and easy to operate and has some specific listening mode buttons on it.

Size wise, the Bowfell is 38.8 x 5.4 x 7.2 cm and weighs around 1.5kg.

The sound quality was excellent – all different sources, be it music, TV, movies or games really sounded great and punchy and you could hear all the dialog clearly.

I found trying it in a small room worked great – I could really hear everything clearly, however when I tried it in a larger room the experience wasn’t as great, but it was still very good (it is a compact soundbar after all).

And for those eco-friendly purchasers out there, for every soundbar sold, Majority will plant a tree!

Overall this is a great soundbar for small size rooms and you are certainly getting a bargain, if you have larger rooms then this probably isn’t the soundbar for you.

The Bowfell Compact Bluetooth Soundbar from Majority is available now priced around £39.95 and comes with a 36 month warranty (and that tree planted for you).

You can learn more from the Majority website.

Review: Flowing Lights

Daniel Waite

-

May 15, 2021

0

No matter what your favourite genre is, I think everyone has a soft spot for Shoot-’em-ups. The arcade classics are fast-paced and addictive as hell. You can easily find time to have a quick blast on these casual titles, and half of its attraction is the mindless nature of its gameplay. How would you feel if this classic genre slowed down and added a tactical flair to its approach? Flowing Lights has done exactly that with its attempt at a much-loved gaming staple.

Developed and published by GfAuMnE this is a vivid retro Shoot-’em-up that kills you, spawns you back in, and demands that you take a logical approach. With a simple 3D bottom to top scrolling perspective, you must observe your enemies, create a plan, and clear each stage.

Flowing Lights has a deceptively simple premise.

What is undoubtedly great about Flowing Lights is its straightforward premise. From the first level, you are hooked on its mind-bending mechanics. Before you know it, your session has spiralled out of control and hours of your day have simply melted away.

The game revolves around an odd space theme. You control a purple triangular spaceship intending to clear each stage as quickly as possible. Your enemies, presumably aliens, fire an array of lasers and bullets toward you. You must observe the pattern, dodge the projectiles, and annihilate everything in your path. It all sounds simple, right? Wrong, its simplicity lulls you into a false sense of security, and failure is just around the corner. The ease of the opening levels is just the tip of the iceberg, and it soon gets much more complicated.

Long shots, combos and limited time.

Now, I opened by saying that Flowing Lights was slower-paced than your traditional Shoot-’em-up. This doesn’t mean the action is lethargic or there isn’t pressure from a ticking clocking. You are graded on how quickly you clear each of the two hundred stages. An S grade is the pinnacle award and takes an awful lot of skill and luck to achieve. There is no requirement to get the maximum score and if you don’t, it won’t affect the gameplay. Yet there is one constraint that will stop your progress, fading aliens! This group adds pressure, an exceptional amount of difficulty, and the desire to scream. Don’t say you haven’t been warned.

Other than the ticking clock, you must consider which weapon to use, the arc of your cannon shot, and killing multiple enemies to get combo bonuses. The surrounding world peaks and troughs to create hurdles that must be overcome. But they can be used to your advantage! Fire your cannon against a hill and watch its trajectory alter as it bends with the contours of the land. It was a brilliant feeling as you manipulated the stage design in your favour.

You will dip and swerve past enemy fire as you aim to position yourself perfectly. Choose between your forward focussed lasers or the booming pulse cannon. Both have their advantages, and you soon discover that you’ll die multiple times before you find the right combination and approach.

Flowing Lights has used an old-school genre with a modern look.

It’s easy for developers to stick to retro aesthetics when they choose a classic genre. Flowing Lights uses a modern style to create a colourful yet simple game to look at. The bright neon hues and pulsing lights give this a futuristic atmosphere. I was reminded of Tron with its clean-cut lines and garish tones. With four worlds to visit, the developers did a great job of creating interesting and unique backdrops for each one. The action is very similar throughout, but the change in landscapes prevents it from having that Deja Vu experience.

The audio plays the perfect supporting role. Its robotic tones and upbeat tempo help to enhance the futuristic vibes. It also has a dreamlike quality that seemed at odds with most of the gameplay, but somehow it merged perfectly. The sound effects, however, were very run of the mill. They worked well, but neither shocked me nor disappointed me.

Tight and simple controls.

With much of the gameplay requiring quick reactions and the negotiation of tight spaces, it was fortunate that the controls were easy to pick up, responsive, and well designed. There is nothing complex about playing this and you’ll spend your time working out how to solve each segment, rather than focusing on the controls.

Two hundred levels all requiring a perfect approach and lots of luck. If that doesn’t scream replay value I don’t know what does. However, if you ignore the glory of the S rank, you’ll spend hours completing every stage, and if you are a completionist, you’re in for a tough time! You must nail every level at the maximum rank to finish this, and that’s a task I don’t envy.

Flowing Lights was a pleasant surprise.

I’ve played plenty of indie Shoot-’em-ups and every one of them reverts to form at some point. Flowing Lights is different! It has designed its core concept around a unique slower-paced principle, and I absolutely loved it. Mindless shooting is one thing, but add in some tactical nuance, and you have an addictive game that screams, play me! You should have this in your library, so buy it here! Spawn in, get killed, and create a plan. Welcome to this unusual Shoot-’em-up title.

Review: Othercide

Daniel Waite

-

May 14, 2021

0

No matter how perfect your life is, at one point you will have to sacrifice something. Whether it be for your benefit or the benefit of others, it will be a tough experience that will stick in your mind forever. Othercide tells the tale of the ultimate sacrifice, good Vs evil, and losing loved ones.

Developed by Lightbulb Crew and published by Focus Home Interactive. Othercide is a turn-based strategy game with rogue-like elements. This mainly monochromatic experience is not for the faint of heart. You must plan every move, seek your enemies weaknesses, and be prepared to lose it all.

Othercide teaches you that loss isn’t the end.

Rogue-like titles have grown on me in the last couple of years. From detesting the thought of them to relishing the challenge. I finally understand why gamers enjoy the tough but enjoyable gameplay. Othercide is a different beast altogether! Its use of the rogue-like genre feels like you are being kicked in the balls. Everything that you have worked towards and the progress you have made gets wiped the moment an error is made. It’s heartbreaking and it’ll make you angry. Yet, this harsh approach is addictive and rewarding.

Set is an alien place known as The Inner Void. You are assisted by a mysterious being known as the Red Mother. This powerful entity births your army of Daughters. These weapon-wielding warriors work together to eliminate the evil master known as the Suffering. With four bosses and the master to defeat, you have a tough task on your hands. Death is guaranteed and is a key component of the gameplay. You may look at this as a failure, but in reality, it allows you to learn from your errors and come back stronger.

Perfect planning and puzzling bosses.

Unlike other titles in the genre, going out all guns blazing will not work. Othercide requires; patience, an understanding of your foes, and knowing when to stop, in order to be victorious. Each character is allocated 100 Action Points (AP) at the start of a turn. The more you use, the longer you must wait to be ready. This timescale is shown using a timeline in the lower portion of the screen. You will see in real-time how your plan impacts you and your enemies. You must decide when to hold off, and when to finish each foe, and this decision is easier said than done. Mistakes are hard to recover from, and when your team loses health, you know there are consequences.

Alongside the constant requirement to plan, you soon note that each boss fight is unique and brutally difficult. Each one has its own array of minions that slow you down and ruin your approach. It isn’t a case of slashing away until you are victorious. No, it’s a conundrum that must be solved, and you accept that you’ll fail to defeat each one numerous times before you find the correct solution.

The Red Mother and Elton John both know the pain of sacrifice.

The Daughters use; swords, shields, or pistols as their weapons of choice. These battling maidens can only face one fight per day before they need to sleep. Each day comprises missions known as a Synapse and these are broken down into three objectives; Rescue, Hunt, or Survival. During each battle, you may use any combination of fighters to make up your party. You will face the many horrendous beasts that the Suffering sends your way, and you must defeat them all to win. Once you are successful, you can level up your team, reap your rewards, and plan for your next outing. However, what you cannot do is heal your team in the traditional sense!

The Red Mother may have given birth to these girls, and they may have killed countless foes on the battlefield, but to keep your team healthy, you have a difficult decision ahead of you. You must sacrifice an equal or higher levelled Daughter to heal up another. Your heart will weigh heavy, and you’ll hate doing it, but remember death strengthens you. The healed warrior will be imparted with an element of the sacrificed child, they will gain skills so their loss is not in vain.

It’s all about the resources.

You will use these new powerhouses to continue your winning streak, and the success in battle will reward you with resources. You will earn Shards, Vitae, and Resurrection Tokens. Each plays a pivotal part in making your team as strong as possible. Vitae is used to create more Daughters, without it you are likely to fail, and a new Remembrance (playthrough) will begin. The Shards allow you bonuses at the start of each attempt, these vary from health and melee boosts, to extra resources. They reduce the difficulty of the game considerably and are a useful tool to overcome the most stubborn of situations. Resurrection Tokens are the hardest element to come by. They bring Daughters back from the cemetery and can allow you to be reconciled with your best warriors from previous run-throughs.

Othercide is a beautifully gothic game.

The subject of fear and loss is emphasised fantastically with the dark gothic style. A monochromatic palette is mixed with splashes of vivid red colour. This dramatic look combined with the stylised cutscenes makes it a great game to play. The bird’s-eye perspective gives you a clear view over the battlefield, and the variety of monsters that you encounter were both weird and wonderful to look at. My only complaint is aimed at the repetitive nature of the level design. Each stage has a distinct Deja Vu notion, and this wasn’t helped by the many playthroughs you must experience to make it to the end game.

The disturbing atmosphere was enhanced further by the creepy audio. Using echoing footsteps and the howling wind made you feel uneasy. Mix in the murderous narration and deep and sinister voiceover work, and you have the recipe for an eerie game. The sound effects then took it one step further. Crunching sounds blared out as bones were destroyed and the bullets roared as they were shot from each gun. It was brilliantly simple in design, and I loved every horrendous minute of it.

The battlefield is a dank place to reside.

It appears more complex than it is.

I’ve played turn-based strategy games for as long as I can remember. Yet, I worry whenever I start a new one. Learning all the mechanics, the control system, and the different strategic approaches, can overwhelm you. As I loaded into my first twenty minutes, I thought my worst nightmare had come true. An information dump made the game feel overly complicated. Yet, in reality, it’s one of the easiest turn-based games to get to grips with. The control setup works perfectly for console gaming. A clean-cut UI keeps the screen from becoming cluttered, and the repetitive nature of the gameplay ensures that you quickly get to grips with it.

Othercide is an addictive game that’ll keep you playing for hours, if not days. The rogue-like elements will drive you mad, and make you want to scream, but it will demand that you want to try it just one more time. A challenging achievement list will force you to perfect your approach, and master each element of the title. Once you play this, you will forget every other game until you defeat the Suffering.

Othercide is dark, difficult, and fantastic.

The turn-based genre is difficult to crack. With many much-loved titles, you have to do something special to be noticed. Othercide has done that with its wonderfully dark gothic style, atmospheric audio, and easy-to-use control system. I loved my time with it, and recommend you buy it here! Defeating evil would never be easy, but sacrificing everything to be victorious is a big ask. The Red Mother will give everything to overcome the Suffering, but will you?

Are You Prepared To Deal With A Car Accident?

Andrew Edney

-

May 14, 2021

0

Are You Prepared To Deal With A Car Accident?

While driving is an experience that many people enjoy and do every day, it’s also very dangerous and many people are caught in accidents every day. Not every accident results in serious injuries, but serious damage can be done regardless, and it will have an effect on the people involved in an accident.

If you ever are in an accident, you know that there is a car crash lawyer just waiting to take your call so that you can get compensated for the losses that you have suffered. The thing is, you need to be as safe a driver as possible so that when you are on the road you are not the danger. This way, you could just concentrate on ensuring that everybody else doesn’t get in your way.

One of the major problems with driving on the road is that everyone has to be aware of what’s going on around them. Even if you’re the most cautious driver on the road, you have to be able to trust all of the other drivers around you. Others can be unpredictable, and that’s what makes driving so dangerous.

Covering Yourself

If you’ve been in an accident, it can be hard to tell who is at fault, especially if the accident was serious. Everything happens so fast, and recounting the events can be difficult and unclear, so it’s best to put something in place to help you with that. Usually, if there are authorities involved, camera footage from the area around will be used as evidence, but there won’t always be cameras around. Having a dashcam installed into your car can be perfect for proving your role in an accident, and can save you from unnecessary charges and costs.

Was it your fault?

If you’re found to be at fault for the accident, going forward can prove difficult. There are going to be a number of consequences for the driving that caused the accident, and many people will have to either deal with higher insurance or find a new insurer. Many after finding themselves responsible for causing an accident will look for “cheap sr22 insurance near me”, which is going to be your best bet for getting insured. Dealing with a car accident can be difficult enough as it is, and you’ll want to make sure you’re prepared going forward.

Preventative measures

There are a lot of things you can do to help prevent such an accident from happening, and you should if you’re a cautious driver. There are many additional safety features you can have put onto your car to help make sure you’re at less risk of colliding with another vehicle.

Blindspot mirrors are a cheap and easy to install safety measure and help you get a little extra vision behind your car. Your blind spot can hide more than you think, and being able to expose even a little of it can be a great help. You could even have a rearview camera installed to help you keep an eye on the road behind you, perfect for when you’re backing out of tight spaces and cannot see clearly behind you.

Many drivers who have been in accidents on the road struggle with confidence while driving afterward. It’s difficult to move past, and you should make sure that you never have to deal with it. Being cautious of other drivers on the road is important at all times, as even if they are in the wrong, being involved in an accident that they have caused will still affect you.

In such situations, many users of the interpollawfirm.com platform turn to their already verified lawyers for help.

Review: Unto the End

Kara Phillips

-

May 13, 2021

0

Unto the End is a gorgeous take on a combat game based on an adventure style platformer. Players are left to their own devices when taking on the journey, and each decision must be carefully chosen. Your adventure is told through all your actions, so make sure you are deciding carefully.

Unto the End is by no stretch of the imagination an easy game. You are challenged and pushed back endlessly by the game, be it in combat or casual exploration. Hours of frustration poured into this game before I even fathomed finding my way home. I am not someone shy of a challenge, but this game seems to be critically unfair. As the player, you follow a strict set of combat restrictions. You hit high or low, and block in a routine way. The monsters you face however, do not follow these rules.

Even if you land a perfect hit which is expected to knock a monster back, they can hit you twice as hard almost immediately. The combat, although designed to be challenging, is outrageously so. Each move you do feels heavy and there seems to be a lag, so before you realise it your health has been pummeled out.

Clunky combat

Although the first introduction seems intriguing and exciting. Your swings are heavy to match your weapon, and for a small amount of time it feels right. But eventually this novelty wears off and as you progress the inconsistencies of this game come forward. These attacks are followed by a hefty amount of lag, and blocking is slow. But letting your guard down is almost immediate. The changes in speed for your character’s actions is agonising and no matter how long you sit and play for, you’ll never quite learn how to fight effectively. Half the time you heavily rely on the chance to land a hit that might end an encounter.

No time to die/heal/anything

Even when mob encounters finish, you are affected long after. Fighting exhausts you, and if you don’t fight effectively enough, you’ll bleed out and eventually die. Having to face everything again. There is obviously a stamina system in place, but nothing during gameplay to give you any indication of how exhausted you’re getting. Although this game has a lot of potential, there seems to be a large amount of inconsistencies and annoyances. The time between finishing a fight, having to heal, and encountering another mob, also means pretty much instant death. There is an extreme lack of middle ground to help the player out.

There is little to no tutorial at the beginning of the game, but players are able to revisit a fighting mode to learn combat. Even this, although helpful at the time, doesn’t help as you progress. Even if a mob hits low, and you block low, occasional damage is caused to your character. Some mobs produce unblockable moves which once again leaves you on your last legs. For a game centred around it’s combat, you’d think there would be more of an understanding on how combat actually works.

Aesthetically empty

Visually, the game is beautiful. You explore several landscapes which follow a minimalist design and mimic an origami style almost. To say it’s not visually pleasing, would be a total lie. Occasionally though, it just seems empty. There are a lot of block colours and spaces left blank throughout gameplay. On more than one occasion I stopped to question if I was being too harsh on minimalism, but it just appears as lazy.

Final thoughts

As a whole, Unto the End isn’t a game I plan on picking up again. Although at first it’s exciting and you plunge into an adventure completely unknowing, it just feels unfinished. It has potential, for sure, but it’s not one I’d recommend to anyone looking for the next exhilarating title.