Warcraft III Reforged - Review

Many, many moons ago I remember purchasing Warcraft III Reign of Chaos, and the add on Frozen Throne. It was one of the best Real-Time Strategy games I have ever played and I have put so many hours into it over the years.  The first time I set up a LAN party was while playing Warcraft III.  We had three laptops connected up together in a small cold room on TV dinner size tables and it was awesome. Nearly twenty years after it was released Blizzard announced they would be remastering both the Reign of Chaos and Frozen Throne, along with The Founding of Durotar campaign.  Naturally, when it was released earlier this year I snagged myself a copy.


I love M&M's, there are so many different types and flavors, so no matter what mood you are in there is something for you. I have gone through bouts of eating bags and bags of them and made myself feel quite sick but loved consuming them all the same.  Playing Warcraft III Reforged made me wonder whether eating so many M&M's was a good thing?

Story


The Warcraft Universe is huge and highly detailed and that was way before World of Warcraft was released. Warcraft III Reforged has sixty missions!  It is hard to sum up everything that the story covers in Warcraft III Reforged but I will give it a try. There are multiple campaigns and races you get to play with; Humans, Orcs, The Undead, Night Elves, Blood Elves, and a Mok'nathal. A demonic race known as the Burning Legion is trying to take over the world, this is essentially the base story. Within that, each race has its own story, the Humans are trying to stop the Burning Legion's army known as The Scourge. The Orcs are trying to deal with being part of the Burning Legion for a long time and now being free to be their own people. The Night Elves are trying to stop the forests and essentially mother nature from being destroyed by not only the Burning Legion but also all of the races taking resources to build their armies. The Undead wants to claim the world for themselves but there are a lot of different ideas on how this is to be done and who should be in charge. The Blood Elves are dealing with no longer having a pure source of magic and are essentially a dying race being bullied by the humans. Finally, there is Rexxar, a Mok'nathal who is a lonely wanderer trying to find his place in the world.


There is so much happening in the story, what makes it interesting is that there are a lot of grey areas. The heroes are not always as pure as they seem and willing to go to extreme lengths to get what they want. The villains are not just simple one-dimensional characters but complex characters who often made me wondering who the real villains were.


Overall a fantastic story that still holds up exceptionally well especially for a game that is almost twenty years old!

Visuals


When it comes to RTS's visuals have never been that important to me. I grew up playing series like Command and Conquer and The Settlers. Over the years RTS's visuals have improved massively, great examples of these for me personally would be Halo Wars and Frostpunk.  The visuals have definitely been enhanced, remastered and upgraded since the release of Warcraft III in 2002. Each of the units looks a lot sharper and more defined, and when zooming in characters don't look pixelated. The levels themselves look really good (but being honest I always thought they looked good). I really love the visuals in the Night Elves campaign, the forests look lush and alive.  One thing Blizzard has always been synonymous with is their cinematics. They look so good in fact that it makes me excited for a day that games have the same visuals for the gameplay itself.


Overall the new visuals help make a good looking game even better and I never tired of looking at them.



Music


The music for Warcraft III Reforged is the same as the original Warcraft III Reign of Chaos and Frozen Throne.  It has a distinctly old school sound, it's not quite retro, perhaps the best way to describe it would be to say it is a more civilized music, from a more civilized time (yeah, I have kind of taken that from a New Hope and repurposed it). That isn't a knock on it but is definitely very different from modern-day video game soundtracks.

The soundtrack is composed by Glenn Stafford, Tracy W. Bush and Derek Duke, who between them have provided the sounds of Warcraft II, III, and World of Warcraft along with Starcraft, Starcraft II and Overwatch.

The soundtrack is just shy of two hours and my favorites tracks include; 'Comrade Ship', 'Doom', 'Human #1', 'Human Defeat', 'Main Screen', 'Night Elf #2', 'Orc #2', 'Orc #3', 'Orc x1', 'Undead #2' and 'Undead #3'.

Gameplay


Warcraft III Reforged is like many RTS games, build a base, manage resources, build an army, destroy the enemy.  Outside of the normal missions, you have ones where you have to defend an area or destroy one in a limited time. Then there is Defence of the Ancient (DOTA) style missions where you control one or two heroes and a limited amount of units, not hugely dissimilar to the mechanics of Diablo III.


Each race has its own strengths and weakness and you will get to explore all of them as you journey through each of the campaigns. The human race (ROFL) has well designed and strong buildings, mages and great siege units, the downside is that many of them are quite weak and can easily be killed. The Orcs have less refined and more tribal looking structure (which I really like), they don't tend to be very strong but make up for it in the strength of their units. The Undead have a big effect wherever they take up residence, a lush green area can be transformed into a deadly poisonous one. The base defenses are quite strong, while some units can be killed easily they are often cheap to produce and the stronger ones can easily take on multiple units with ease. Night Elves use nature to their advantage and rather than cutting down trees they kind of absorb the wood without destroying them?  Don't ask me, do I  look like an arborist?  Their biggest strength is that at night they appear or don't appear visible to enemies making it easier to sneak around.  The base structures are all living and can be moved around if needed which is really cool. The Blood Elves are quite similar to Night Elves, at least base structure-wise but I found their units to be a lot more battle-hardened and magic rich.


Separate to all the races you have the Mok'nathal, well one of them, named Rexxar. A traveler who is always accompanied by his pet companion Misha. There is no base-building involved with him and he can be controlled solo. His role starts as the new Orc empire is being established, he helps complete small missions which when combined together offer many hours of gameplay.


The game features many heroes and villains, there are around twenty of them in total. The standout ones for me were; Thrall, Lich Kel'Thuzard, Illidan, Prince Kael'Thas, Lady Vash and Rexxar. Each of them can be leveled up and gain four abilities that can then be further upgraded.


Some missions will seem quite quick, there are some really tricky ones along the way that I had to replay a number of times before beating them but it was all part of the fun.  Overall the game holds up pretty well after all these years and the gameplay very solid.




Final Thoughts


So, after almost seventy hours (yeah, you read that right) how did I feel?  Pretty damn good. It was great to revisit a familiar world with a fresh coat of paint and some tweaks.  The main story and side stories are really interesting and are easy to see why there is so much literature on it.  The visuals went from good to great, the more refined, polished look really helps bring it closer to modern-day RTS visuals.  The music remained the same, I can't knock that but certainly feels a little aged or maybe I have just gotten too used to modern-day video game music.  The gameplay is good but is often not for the faint of heart or those not willing to dedicate some serious hours to it.  Overall this one gets a solid 4 out of 5

Gears Of War 3 - Review

Over the last while I have gotten Nolls (wife to be and an all-around awesome person) into Gears of War.  We finished Gears of Wars 2 recently and she was eager to see how the story ended (well for this trilogy anyway). I played Gears of War 3 when it was first released and at the time I felt a little underwhelmed, maybe it was because Gears of War 2 was so good. There was just something about 3 that just didn't quite do it for me, so I was curious how I would feel this time.


I like cakes, pies and generally anything that is bad for your health. One pie that I can be a little on the fence about is deep-dish apple pie.  If I am in the mood for deep-dish apple pie and eat it I'm usually amazed how good it is, but if I eat because it is the only thing available I'm generally underwhelmed.  I guess it just depends on my mood?  Playing Gears of War 3 I wondered was I in the mood for deep-dish apple pie?

Story


Last time on Gears of War it was decided that the best course of action was to sink the last major city in an attempt to stop the Locust.  Now, months on, Marcus, Dom, Baird, and Cole along with other COG and survivors are living on a ship.  The Lambent, the enemy of both humans and the Locust is slowly taking over the world. The Locust are adapting to the surface quickly and have already started amassing their forces. This time it is not just a war, it's a fight for survival for all life.


The story focuses on many interesting points, like life before the Locust and how so many of the COG used to just be civilians. Queen Myrah while slaughtering many humans is simply trying to help her people avoid extinction from the Lambent.


Overall the story is good, if not a little sad.  The world now is extremely bleak and really feels like extrication is imminent. I think maybe my reservation when playing it last time was that it really feels like the end of something. When something feels so good it can be tough to see it come to end.

 

 Visuals


The original Gears of War had very dark and gritty visuals, these were then massively improved in Gears of War 2.  For me, the visuals in Gears of War 3 have not evolved beyond Gears of War 2.  That doesn't mean they are bad.  There is a huge focus on character designs, the bulkier armor has been slimmed down.  This time everyone is wading into the fight, Anya is ditching her formal outfit for COG armor, we are also introduced to new characters, Sam and Jace. The Locust have more rugged armor and look more beat up. The Lambent have so many different forms, the stalks which birth enemies, enemies that can evolve into multiple forms and if that was not bad enough they also like to explode.


Overall the visuals haven't improved much from Gears of War 2 but the new character designs and variety of new enemies make it a lot of fun to look at it.



Music


The music in Gears of War 3 is dark, it feels more than just about war but also loss and the reminder that the world hangs in the balance. American composer Steve Jablonsky created the score along with Gears of War 2, Gears of War Judgement, Prince of Persia Forgotten Sands and Command and Conquer Tiberium Wars.


The soundtrack runs at close to ninety minutes and features some really great tracks, my favorites being; 'Restless', 'Meanwhile Below Deck', 'Bridge Too Far Indeed', 'Deadland Dance', and 'Corpser Ambush'.

Overall Jablonsky has helped create a very distinct sound for Gears of War that is easily recognizable. The soundtrack in my eyes has as big of a part to play as the story, visuals, and gameplay itself.

Gameplay


Personally, I have always found the gameplay in the Gears of War series to be pretty solid. Gears of War 3 is no exception. It plays in third-person and continues to work well. The big change for me is the cover system - there is a lot more to hide behind but there is also more destructible cover.


There are a lot of old familiar weapons, along with some new ones like the Retro Lancer which, instead of a chainsaw, has a giant blade stuck on the end of it.  It can be a little unruly to pull off a kill with the blade but when you can it is a lot of fun. The executions are back in force, each weapon has its own unique execution.


There are truly dark moments in the game, seeing not only destroyed areas of the world but also how close everything is to the end.  Each battle feels like you have to prevail and push forward, not only for your survival but everyone else's as well.

Overall the gameplay is solid, things feel tougher than before but all help drive the point home as to how bad things have become.





Final Thoughts


 So, after around fifteen hours how did I feel?  Pretty good.  The story is dark, gritty and enjoyable and a good ending to the trilogy. While the visuals may not be much stronger than Gears of War 2 the new character designs of allies and enemies alike look really good.  The music is strong and Jablonsky has helped create a very distinct sound for the Gears of War series. The gameplay continues to be solid, offering some new challenges. Overall this one gets a solid 4 out of 5

Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order Review

It's my week off and it has been awesome! One of the best parts of it was getting to start a new game I had missed out on last year; Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order.  I am not a huge Star Wars fan but I have been entertained by some of the movies, and while not every video game with the Star Wars name attached to it has been good, I have also enjoyed some of them, like The Force Unleashed. I went in with an open mind and excited about using a lightsaber to take down bad guys.


Nolls and I went for lunch yesterday, I wasn't quite sure what to get so went for something that sounded pretty reliable. I decided on a puff pastry steak and vegetable pie, well kind of, it actually had a loose puff pastry top with the filling in a clay oven dish. It looked good but when I got down into it there were only carrots and a bit of steak. There was more gravy than filling and while it looked good there was not a lot else going on.   Playing Star Wars Jedi Fallen Order I found myself asking, was it as good as it looked?

Story


The story is set after The Purge at the end of Star Wars Episode III, for those not familiar with film this is where the Jedi are wiped out.  There is Cal, a young Padawan who manages to escape and a few years on is now working in a scrapyard pulling apart old ships and trying to keep a low profile. Of course, things get rough pretty quick and Cal finds himself trying to escape from Inquisitors who want to see him dead. Luckily before you get killed you get rescued by Cere (an ex-Jedi) and Captain Greez. Cere tells you about Jedi Master Eno Cordova who has a Holocron with the names of Force-sensitive children who could help rebuild the Jedi Order.  Shortly after befriending a droid called BD-1 who belonged to Cordova you find out he knew The Purge was coming (thanks for letting everyone know, oh wait he didn't). On top of that, he was obsessed with the Zeffo culture and has decided to hide the Holocron. Rather than simply giving it to you he wants to test you by traveling between a few planets and walk-in his footsteps to see if you are worthy.


Overall the story is a bit dull and a Master Jedi makes it as awkward as possible to get the Holocron just to see if Cal is worthy (because there is a surplus Jedi's to choose from don't you know!).  The story gets a little more interesting when the Nightsister comes into it, but with the exception of her and  BD-1 (a droid), I never felt very invested in the characters or the story until almost the end. Not the best story and the pay off was a bit weak.

Visuals


The game shines when it comes to the visuals.   The forests of Kashyyk were a particular favorite as the world is covered in lush fauna and feels very otherworldly. The outfits and armor of characters look like those you would see in any of the movies. The lightsaber effects look cool and the only real hang-up I had was with Cere's eyes which looked like they were about to pop out their sockets at any moment.


Overall the visuals are good and for any Star Wars fans, it will really feel like you are part of the Star Wars Universe.


Music


The music in the game is what you would expect to hear, what I mean is that it has a very John Williamsesque sound. It is hard to try something different when the Star Wars Universe has a very distinct sound and I have no doubt certain restrictions were imposed on the composers.  Stephen Barton is a British composer who created the soundtrack for Titanfall 1 and 2, along with Call of Duty Modern Warfare Remastered.  Gordy Haab is an American Composer who worked on Battlefront 1 and 2, Halo Wars 2 and Star Wars; The Old Republic.


It was hard for me to pick out any specific track as standing out more than any other.  Overall the soundtrack isn't bad but sounds like what I have heard before with nothing very unexpected.

Gameplay


The gameplay itself is a little bit of a mixed bag.  Naturally, as a Jedi, you will have your lightsaber and through flashbacks, you learn or relearn how to use the force. The force abilities work quite well whether you are using them in a fight or using them to solve a puzzle.  Lightsaber combat initially works well, but things fall apart a few hours in when it can be incredibly difficult to parry, especially when there are multiple enemies to deal with. In the end, I just started treating it like Dark Souls, lots of rolling, stab, stab, roll, stab stab, force push, roll, finisher.


There is a relatively small skill tree you can use to unlock new moves and extra health/force. While I unlocked most things I was never really excited by any of them, with the exception of double lightsaber related ones. Meditating not only lets you unlock new moves, but also rest and save your progress.


Playing Star Wars Jedi Fallen Order reminded me a little of Prince of Persia and Dark Souls. There is lots of wall running and some climbing.  When you get killed by an enemy they take your experience points and you will need to defeat them to get it back.


The gameplay is relatively linear, and while there are some areas you can explore for chests that provide visuals upgrades like a paint job for your ship or a different colour poncho (not a joke) there is little reason to explore.


There are bosses in the game which can be awkward enough, rather than looking cool parrying moves and counter-attacking it often felt like I was just rolling around and trying to whittle down their health.


Overall the gameplay was okay but not as smooth and sleek as it could have been. It was often a feast or a famine when it came to enemies, one or two enemies together, then none, then six or more.





Final Thoughts

Meh meh, meh meh meh meh meh, meh, meh meh meh, meh meh (saying that to the Star Wars Theme). So, after thirty hours I was left feeling pretty underwhelmed by my experience. The story was very underwhelming, the visuals were good. The music wasn't bad but was far from exciting and the gameplay really felt lacking sometimes. Overall this one managed to slide in with a 3 out of 5

Gears of War 2 - Review

At the end of last year, I played Gears 5 and I was surprised as to how good it.  Playing it reminded me of the first few games in the series and I had the desire to play them all again, but this time I would have a partner in crime to play with (Hi Nollsy!). We already completed the original Gears of War together, and as  I reviewed it previously there was no point doing it again.  But with Gears of War 2, I never reviewed it and was looking forward to it.


I like Snickers, there are reliable, tasty, a good bit of bite and they have nuts! The only thing better than a normal Snickers is a peanut butter one or an ice-cream one. Being honest, if it is a Snickers bar of any description I don't think you can go too wrong.  Playing Gear of War 2 I found myself asking was it as reliable as a normal Snickers or was it even better?

Story


The first installment of Gears of War introduced us to the Gears Universe but was sparse on a lot of details.  With Gears of War 2, it really builds up the Gears Universe and answers a number of questions along with asking a few more. At the end of the first Gears of War, it was thought that the Locust might be beaten, it turns out this could not be further from the truth. The Locust are eager to take over the surface of the planet, but before doing that they want to sink all the cities. But why? Well, you will have to play to find out, I'm not telling you.  There is more effort gone into character development , and not only between Marcus, Dom, Baird and Cole.  We also see Dom struggling to try and find his wife and Marcus hoping to find his father who seems to have a deep knowledge of the Locust.


Overall the story is really good and focuses on so many different things without it feeling jumbled.  There is a real sense of feeling like you are a team.  There are some highs but many sad lows which left me feeling a little emotional.  The story of Gears of War 2 is it all it could be and more.

Visuals


The Gears of War world is dark and gritty, not only because of the damage done by the Locust (and the humans) but also because the buildings have a very industrial feel to them.  When I found out we would be spending some time underground I was a little nervous.  Not because I'm afraid of the dark but because in the first Gears of War I found it a little tough on the eyes and while there were some cool visuals the lighting was so low it made it hard sometimes to work out where you were going.  This time is very different it well lit, you can enjoy the underground rivers and some of the Locust architecture which is very standout and ornate.  There are many more types of enemies this time, they are big, bad and won't go down without a lot of bullets.


Overall the visuals look really good and the developers have taken more risks and it has paid off.  The world feels much more organic than the original Gears of War and we felt more engaged with it.



Music 


The world is dark and the music in the game is a great reminder of this, and when it isn't doing that it provides some great battle music that helps you keep pushing forward.  The score is put together by American composer Steve Jablonsky. He has a rich body of working including; Metal Gear Solid 2: Sons of Liberty, The SIMs 3 and Prince of Persia: Forgotten Sands. On top of this, he also penned the scores for movies such as Transformer, The Island, Pain and Gain and a host of TV series.


The score is almost two hours longs and features some great tracks, my favourite being...all of them. It is one of the rare cases where I enjoyed the whole soundtrack. It is perfectly suited for the game and helps add to an already enjoyable experience.

Gameplay


The gameplay is in third-person and the mechanics are much improved in Gears of War 2, the cover system is much stronger and responsive. The weapons feel more varied and the constant looming of battle helps keep you on your toes.  The Lancer weapon now has a chainsaw that feels much more responsive than the first Gears of War.  There is now a range of weapons including the Hammerburst, Poison Grenades, along with bigger weapons like a minigun and mortar canon.


Down but not out. This is big thing in Gears of War 2, your allies will pick you up if you are down but enemies will also help each other.  This time you can carry out executions on downed enemies which can vary depending on what weapon you have. It's pretty fun and nasty at the same time especially with the noises being made.


There are some larger enemies like the Brumak and Reavers which offer tough resistance but offer more fun when you can actually use them yourself. Yep, that right you have a mount, kind of, it is short-lived but a lot of fun.


Outside of the main campaign is Horde Mode which sees you take on wave after wave of enemies. It can be done solo but is not as much fun.  There are a number of maps to pick from Avalanche being my favourite by far.  If you just want some mostly mindless fun for a short time this will suit you down to the ground.


Overall the gameplay is awesome and much improved over the original.




Final Thoughts

So, after twelve hours or playing how did we feel?  Pretty damn good. The story was really good, as were the visuals, music and gameplay. I am really happy and getting to play it with someone else was a lot of fun.  Gears of War 2 still holds up well and gets a solid 5 out of 5

Death Stranding - Review

Last year Kojima Productions released their first game, Death Stranding. There was a lot of hype around it, primarily because it was created by the mastermind behind the Metal Gear Series, Hideo Kojima. Sometimes the hype is validated and other times not so much. I was hesitant to purchase when it was first released so I said I would hold off and pick it up in January, which actually ended up being February.


Ever tried a Portuguese Tart?  They are pretty damn good, especially with a coffee.  The strange thing about them is that the two main parts; the custard and tart by themselves they are okay but kind of dull. Somehow though when you put the two together they form something amazing.  Playing Death Stranding I found myself asking was this the perfect combination of custard and tart?

Story


America has changed after an event referred to as the 'Death Stranding' and now beings not of our world roam and destroy humans. If that wasn't bad enough they bring with them rain called 'Timefall' which even a mere drop of can cause aging and decay, and can kill humans, animals, and plant life.  President Bridget Strand (Lindsey Wagner), the last President of America has the vision to reconnect all the towns and cities spread throughout the country. Unfortunately, she is close to death and needs help, enter Sam Porter Bridges (Norman Reedus).  A courier who just wants to do his job, survive the day and be left the hell alone. Unfortunately, fate has other things in store for him. His mother is President Strand, and she has two final wishes; to help complete her vision and to save his sister Amelie. Reluctantly Sam agrees to help. He won't have to do it alone as he will have people who want to help him along with what is the most important delivery he has ever done.


When I started I wasn't sure what to think, it seemed interesting, but there were characters called Mama, Die-Hardman, Deadman, and Fragile. I thought are these just gimmicky names attached to characters who are just background figures.  But no, they are all so much more than that.  Each character gets their own episode, you get to learn who they are, what their story is and quickly they became real people to me who really mattered and I felt connected to and I think essentially at the heart of it all that is what the game is about. One of my favorite characters in the game is Cliff Unger played by Mads Mikkelsen, who just fantastic.  There are side missions that provide some extra stories which help show you what is left of America and what you are fighting for.


Overall an amazing story that is very different from any game I have played before.  Watching the final credits roll I really felt like I had been on a journey and while I enjoyed my time I was sad it was over.

Visuals


The visuals are not good in Death Stranding, they are amazing. It is such a beautiful world - well, apart from the constant threat of death, beings try to kill everything and the bad weather. But hey, you have to take the rough with the smooth.  The open world you traverse is filled with lakes, streams, low rolling hills, cliffs, and snow-capped mountains. There are so many times playing the game I had to take a moment to just take in my surroundings. The snow effects were probably my favorite as it really looks and feels like you are moving through the snow. Everything looks so sharps and there is so much detail that it is hard to fathom how much time Kojima Productions must have spent on the game.


Overall the game is and was easily the best looking game of 2019. I am curious to see if in 2020 anyone can match the visual wonderment of Death Stranding.


Music


The music of Death Stranding is separated into two very distinct sounds; there is the tranquil, and melodic sound that helps provide a relaxing vibe when traversing America. Then there is the futuristic, often intense and foreboding sound that is ever-present. The chilled sound is provided by the American-Icelandic folk band Low Roar. Kojima is a fan of their music and getting them to create songs for the game essentially helped save them from going broke. 

The rest of the soundtrack was created by Swedish composer Ludvig Forsell who worked on Metal Gear Solid V The Phantom Pain, Ground Zeroes and Silent Hill 10.


There is hours worth of music and for a game this big it makes sense.  The music is really good, and some of my favorites tracks are; 'Don't Be Serious', 'Patience', 'Beached Things', 'Chiral Carcus Culling', 'BB's Theme', 'The Severed Bond', 'Claws of The Dead', 'Stick vs Rope', 'Strands', and 'Flowers of Fingers'.

Overall the soundtrack is both diverse and interesting, it really stands out in the not only in the game but against many other games where the music is simply there rather than being part of the game as a whole.

Gameplay


If you are like I was at first glance, you could say the game is just you being a courier and what makes interesting is the backdrop. As the hours flew by the less I felt this way.  Of course, you will may a lot of deliveries as you are a courier but it is often not as simple as that. Going from A to B often involves you traversing difficult to reach areas, stealthily trying to move around enemies and other times having to all-out fight.  The game has a lot to offer but this isn't evident in the first couple of hours, but in many ways, that is a good thing.  The slow build-up helps you get used to the world before getting too crazy.


First, there is Sam, he is pretty tough and carries a lot on his back, facilitated by his suit, but that doesn't mean it's easy.  Move too quickly, don't watch where you are stepping you can end up losing your balance and falling over. It is possible to shift your weight to stop this happening but if you get sloppy you fall, hurt yourself, damage your packages and upset BB.  Who's BB? Well, he is a baby that lives in container attached to you. I know that may sound weird but you get used to it and it does make sense in the context of the story. He helps you detect danger and plays a bigger role in the story later on. When BB gets upset you need to soothe him by rocking him and this helps increase your bond with him.


Sam is special, he along with a few other characters in the game have abilities called DOOMS.  It allows him to sense BT's (Beached Things) even without BB. What makes him really special is that he is a repatriate which means he can come back from the dead. On top of this is that his urine, sweat and blood can harm and destroy BT's. These can be infused into bullets and grenades and is really necessary later in the game. BT's themselves can be avoided if you are careful but if they catch you and pull you into their place tar they will drag you away and lead you to a mini-boss.  While the bosses are never too tough you equally don't have time to stand around enjoying the view. Another enemy in the game are MULE's they are human enemies who like to steal packages, generally, you can give them what for.


There is no leveling up system as such. When you do something good, you get likes, the more likes the higher your level - by the end I was over 200.  The higher your level the more upgrades you unlock which gives you materials and helps increase your stamina.  In most games, I like a leveling system as I find it really helps me focus, but it was quite refreshing not having the same pressure that I might ordinarily and helped me put my focus into other elements of the game.


Weapons and even transport can be fabricated by using materials you find in the world or by completing missions.  I mainly used materials to help build new roads, bridges, generators and even safe houses. While Death Stranding is not strictly a multiplayer game (you won't see anyone wandering around) you can see things that others have built and vice versa. Make sure to leave a like when you use something as this helps everyone level which is really cool and gives the feeling of being part of a community.


There are side missions available in the game and while they help you level and gain more materials I generally did not complete them unless they happened to be on my way to another delivery.  I think they are designed mostly for the completionist, at some point I might try them all but that won't be for a while.


Overall the gameplay is really really good, it took me a while to get the hang of everything. It is very different from anything I have played before, and I mean that in a good way.  I enjoyed my experience and one day look forward to doing it all again.





Final Thoughts


So, after forty hours plus how did I feel?  Shocked, amazed and really taken aback it was like no other game I have played before. The story was immersive and interesting, I cared greatly for the characters. The visuals were absolutely stunning and I feel it will be a while until I see a game that looks that good. There was something really special about the music and it felt almost as important as the story itself.  The gameplay could be challenging at times but never really stopped being fun and rewarding. It's hard to even after writing this to fully do the game justice. There were three games released last year that I gave 5 out of 5; Katana Zero, Observation and Gears 5. I now give Death Stranding the same score and think it might be the best game of last year. 'Keep on keeping on'.

The Witcher Enhanced Edition - Review

It's 2020, whoop whoop!  I have a clear vision for the year, my eyesight is now 2020! Well, now that is out of my system let's get on with it.  Since the popularity of Netflix's The Witcher, I have been pumped to play the games again. I realized I had never played the first one and I like to play the whole series of a game franchise.  When Uncharted 4 came out I went back to the beginning and played them all. Apart from getting to see the whole story, it helps give me a greater appreciation for how far a game has come. The first time I felt this way was with Half-Life 2, and relatively speaking it still holds up well.


I am a sucker when it comes to cakes, biscuits or chocolates with coconut in them. There is a chance if I see one of those things with coconut in it I have already tried it or I'm going to try it.  A recent enough purchase was McVities Digestives Twists Chocolate Chip and Coconut biscuits.  I was excited to try them. Unfortunately, the experience was a bad one, they were super dry, tasted like a combination of low-grade chocolate, carob, and dark chocolate.  On top of that, there was barely a hint of coconut.  I learned my lesson though, just because I like coconuts snacks doesn't mean they are going to be good.  Playing The Witcher I found myself asking was this a great coconut treat or one I would end up regretting?

Story


The game has you take on the role of Geralt of Riva, a Witcher, experimented on a child and made into a monster killing machine just like all Witchers before him. The opening scene sees you unconscious on the ground, found by your fellow Witchers and brought back to your home Kaer Morhen. Shortly after waking up your secluded and secret home is invaded and after a skirmish, some powerful Witcher making materials are stolen. Geralt, along with the remaining Witchers go in search of those who attacked and robbed Kaer Morhen.


This is the basic outline of the story, along the way you will have to deal with a deadly group known only as Salamander.  The Scoia'tael,  non-humans that are being pushed to the brink of extinction and are willing to do whatever it takes to get what they want. Outside of that, you will have to deal with Royalty and navigate the twists and turn of politics.


While all of what I said sounds good the pacing can be extremely slow and sometimes drawn out. Friends of Geralt tell him they saw him die.  This is never really explained that well and there are only some small breadcrumbs handed out near the final scenes of the game.  The side missions help fill out the world and are often more exciting than the main narrative.


Overall the story was okay, but I don't feel the experience enriched the world of The Witcher for me.

Visuals


Originally The Witcher was originally released in 2007 and was released as an enhanced edition in 2008.  Considering the age of the game the visuals look surprisingly good. There are little frogs you see jumping around the place, a monkey/squirrel/pokemon creature that runs after you sometimes.  The background is pretty lush and can be quite varied. The finishing moves are purposefully in slow motion and look pretty cool.


Frame rates can be poor and sometimes take a bit for slightly more distant objects to load, but in fairness considering the age of the game, it is to be expected.  The 'romantic' cut sequences (one eyebrow raised) are fairly tasteful and don't really show anything, especially by comparison of the second and third games. The voice acting is a little overacted and is not always synced correctly with the character's facial movements.


Overall considering the age of the game it holds pretty well but would benefit massively from a full remaster, although that is easier said than done.



Music


The music definitely has an old school sound, and reminded me very much of Diablo and Warcraft 3 which is kind of cool. The composers are Polish composer Pawel Blaszczak and Adam Skorupa, who between them have worked on Dying Light, Call Of Juarez, Witcher 3 Wild Hunt, and Witcher 2.

The soundtrack is over an hour long and features some standout tracks including; 'Dead City',
'Last Battle', 'To Arms (Rebellion)', 'Do You Remember', and 'Tavern At The End Of The World'.

Overall the soundtrack was good, but due to the long, long, hours of playing, I found I had to mute it due to some track repeating over and over (not a fault of the composers, but added a niggle to an already frustrating game).

Gameplay


Many moons ago I used to play quite a few PC games but nowadays I enjoy the comfort and ease of console games. Going back to a full-on keyboard and mouse game was a little daunting, but I needn't have worried.  Almost the whole game can be played with the mouse which was great.  However, sword attacks can miss their mark even when targeted correctly, this got much worse during the epilogue. Additionally, in the epilogue magic spells (activate by pressing the right mouse button) would not always work.  This was incredibly frustrating especially at such a critical time in the game.


There is quite a cool leveling system in the game which rather than just focusing on level 1-20, for example, they use titles like 'Novice Witcher' and 'Skilled Witcher'.  Instead of the normal leveling points, you gain bronze, silver and gold talents each time you go up a rank.  I really liked this as I really had to think about what I was leveling up and wanted I needed.


There is a lot traveling to be done in The Witcher and all of it is on foot.  In place of a horse or a proper run, Geralt does what appears to be a type of prance. This is a pretty inefficient way of travelling and the game could have been completed much quicker with a proper run or some transport.


The missions can be a lot of fun, while there were main quests that I liked my favorites were the drinking ones. Drinking with Dandelion and Zoltan was always fun, especially when it ends up turning into a party. It reminded me of the mission Red Dead Redemption 2 where you get drunk and ends up with everyone looking like the same character. Another shoutout is to an old lady in the house that keeps kicking you out for no good reason over and over again. This got old quick until one point where you can select the answer 'Die you hag!' and she drops dead. There was the occasional issue where if I had multiple missions to be handed into an NPC none of them were recognized, or better yet one gets accepted and the other fails.


There are other activities for Geralt to complete when he isn't slaying monsters including; fist fighting, dice, drinking and 'romancing' humans and non-humans alike. So there are many characters Geralt can romance, and when I say romance I mean have a one night stand which often doesn't last that long.  I guess Geralt just isn't into pillow talk.


Up until the epilogue, my frustration with the game was relatively low but playing the epilogue became so brutal I almost had to throw in the towel. And when I say throw in the towel I mean break something.  It felt like the game just wasn't completed correctly, everything from sword fighting, casting spells and even not having a merchant in the epilogue was crazy when it was so long.


Overall the gameplay left me feeling frustrated and confused as to how things could take such a downward turn?




Final Thoughts

So, after nearly fifty hours how did I feel? Frustrated and let down.  The story wasn't bad and certainly had highlights.  The visuals were pretty good especially for an older game, the music was good.  The gameplay turned from okay into a total car wreck, I am shocked to see that it got such high ratings when it was released. This one gets a disappointing 2 out of 5.

Evil Within 2 - Review

I am fresh off the back of playing The Evil Within, which was a really great horror game.  Luckily enough Ivan who loaned me The Evil Within was eager to loan me the sequel, thanks bruh. I was excited and couldn't wait to play it.


Celebrate good times come on! It's Christmas! Well, almost the end of it but doesn't mean I have stopped indulging in the consumption of too much food and nice things.  No home is complete without at least a few tubs of Celebrations. There is variety and it's chocolate so can't go too wrong. Plus I love Bounty so there are never any left behind.  Playing The Evil Within 2 I found my asking was there enough variety or did it matter as it was all chocolate anyway?

Story


Poor Sebastian Castellanos had a rough time after the events of Beacon, and finding out his wife's conspiracy theory may not have just been a theory.  We find him in a bar at the bottom of a barrel when Mobius agent and ex-partner Juli Kidman turns up.  It turns out that maybe his daughter Lily isn't dead and the evil shadow organization Mobius has set up a new STEM system that has gone awry.  Despite himself, he decides to help them for no other reason than the chance to see and possibly rescue his daughter.


This time things are different, you are in the small fabricated town of Union, you have the support of Mobius agents along with Kidman giving you words of encouragement. The story is less fear-inducing this time and is focused on redemption and dealing with the past.


Overall the story is really good and the inclusion of side missions helps mix things up along with providing more information about Mobius and the world you find yourself in.

Visuals


The visuals were not exactly poor in the first The Evil Within, but this time Tango Gameworks have really stepped it up a notch.  The visuals are sharper and rather than simply rehash the first game they have taken the best parts and on top of that have created an open world of sorts.  Don't get me wrong there are still plenty of horrific moments throughout the game though. The town of Union feels dead and broken, parts of becoming detached and floating in the air, it feels familiar, yet very different.


Overall, I like really liked the visual direction Tango Gameworks took as it would be all too easy to create the same game twice.  Variety is the spice of life after all.


Music


The sound is very different from The Evil Within, this time there is a focus not only on the horror aspect but also redemption and some epic battle tracks.  The composer is Japanese composer Masatoshi Yanagi who worked on the first game and The Killer Is Dead.


The soundtrack is much longer this running at over two and a half hours that feature some really great tracks.  My favorites tracks were; 'A Memory', 'Tredwell Trucking', 'The Artist's Domain', 'Psychoplasm', 'A Bouquet of Flesh and Blood', 'Unspeakable Things', 'The Harbinger', 'You Have To Stay Strong', 'Climbing The Stronghold', 'The Evil Within' and 'An End To All Of This'.


Overall it is a really solid and powerful soundtrack that suits the story perfectly along with the world you traverse.

Gameplay


Much the same as it's predecessor the game is a Third-Person Survival Horror, the gameplay is much more refined in the Evil Within 2, everything from the combat to the way you purchase upgrades.  There are a slew of weapons in the game, some much more powerful than others.  This time you don't need to decide whether you use your green gel on upgrading your abilities or your weapons.  The green gel is used for your abilities and you find weapons parts to upgrade your weapons.  Additionally, you can find supplies to make ammunition on the fly or at your workbench.  My favorite weapon was the sniper rifle, a well-placed shot with this was toppled almost any enemy.  Melee combat is much smoother now and going one on one with an enemy doesn't feel overwhelming.


There are a number of side missions in the game that are very worthwhile.  Not only do you get to interact with other people that I felt invested in but the rewards were always good.  Most of the time they would be simple enough, kill a few enemies, and then turn on something.  It was a new direction and added variety to the game.  Each side mission could be found in a Safe House, drink some coffee, upgrade your weapons and take some time to escape the craziness.


There are a number of collectibles in the game. There are memories which are echoes of events that have already passed, files providing information on Mobius, the citizens of Union and more. There are also slides you can collect and view in a projector which was really cool.


There are a number of bosses throughout the game, nothing unbeatable but still providing a challenge. One of my favorites being the second last boss, can't say more without giving away spoilers but rather than just being a boss it sees Sebastion overcoming his mental restraints.


I have to give a shoutout to Chapter 17, it was so well done, so enjoyable and was the perfect way to finish off the game.




Final Thoughts

So, after eighteen hours how did I feel?  I wanted more and was sad there was no DLC or any news about The Evil Within 3.  The story was great, I felt invested in the characters and cared what happened to them.  The visuals were impressive and the open-world sections really added a new element to the game.  The music was powerful and evoked feelings of horror and redemption. The gameplay was so much more refined and improved while still making it feel like a challenge. Overall this one gets a solid 4 out of 5