Recent reviews by Chabs

Honestly, the game sucks. It always has.
It was always about "Can your PC run it".

And back then my PC couldn't. Like "15 FPS" couldn't.
So, it's 2023, cranked all the graphics to "Can it run Crysis", smooth as butter. I ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ won... I guess.

A very straightforward and simple game: mine, upgrade, defend, eventually die, and repeat.
There's no particular skill to hone, play long enough and you won't miss a thing.

You get persistent upgrades and temporary ones you find during runs at random. These temporary ones all have a upgrade tree, great for variety, but you won't need them all. There are clear winning strategies. It can be frustrating at times because a run's success could just be luck-based, but it ultimately doesn't matter much.

For the price point, I'd say it's a steal!

Very pretty on the outside, but bland as hell overall.
It's just the product of gaming standardisation.

It plays greats, looks great, is more or less bug-free (as far as I could see), but there's really nothing to keep you there.
I can't care about the story, I can't relate/empathise with the cast, and the world is pretty much an empty shell.
Shooting feels like previous Far Cry games, and honestly I never really liked it there either. Despite all the bells and whistles, it's really not satisfying at all.

It's still OK if you grab it at a heavy discount, but seriously not worth its full price... You'd basically be paying for Giancarlo's performance at that point.

Buyers beware: You may like what you see, but dislike what you'll get.

The primary aspect that is touted anytime Kenshi is mentioned is freedom.
Freedom to trade, to kill, to explore, to build, to (ironically) become a slave, to escape from slavery... You can "do anything" and "be anyone" in this game. And in many regards, it is true.

You see, there are no inherent goals in Kenshi. it is a subjective notion.
The world is your oyster, but good luck stirring things up on your first playthrough.

Kenshi only starts revealing itself after you invest time in it, because what Kenshi is not is a casual experience that you can just load up, play, and extract some enjoyment out of. You will get bored at first. You will feel lost and wonder what to do. And to be quite honest, depending on what you like, you may still feel like that after hours of gameplay.

Because therein lies the issue with all pure sandbox games: you can distract yourself for a while, enjoying the systems of the game, up to a point. With no overarching goal to direct you, only the most avid fans who can fill the void with their imagination will truly enjoy Kenshi.

For now, I appreciate what Kenshi is about. I enjoy the exploration for the sake of exploration, I enjoy recruiting and training people, I enjoy meticulously building my base of operation and expanding it.
What I appreciate less is the micromanagement that is sometimes involved, the different non-gamebreaking but still annoying bugs that inevitably come with sandboxes, the lack of a feedback loop and of a gamification of exploration.

All in all, I have spent 48h in Kenshi's world so far, some good, some just... Grinding, a few bad. Am I enjoying it? Heck yeah! But I wish the game felt less like a blank canvas you can only paint with 2 colors. It relies too much on this "freedom to do anything", but even said freedom is restricted. It hides the game's lack of depth. Or maybe said depth is too well hidden? Who knows... Will update if I see anything.

Get it already!

It's a 11/10 game.

It's repetitive, sure, but it is wholly embraced and exploited.
Repetitiveness is at its CORE, and it's what makes it so great.

You get:
- crisp gameplay
- compelling art style
- many different power-ups,
- a huge roster of bonuses (boons) that can mix together and form even greater bonuses,
- a small assortment of arms that can be upgraded in many MANY ways,
- a great storyline with thousands of lines of dialogue, very often reflecting your choices, achievements, advancements and failures too...

The game looks simple, but it's far from it.
There's almost never a dull moment.

The Forgotten City is a super engaging mystery game.
It's a solid unique and worthwhile adventure you can easily get lost in. I can't really add much without spoiling it, you'll have to dive in.

In terms of gameplay, it's very simplistic. Pretty much paint by numbers, meaning you'll hardly miss anything.
A+ for the voice acting, which greatly contributes to making this a solid recommendation as dialogues are a major part of the game.

If you're not into walking-talking games, then this really won't be for you.

A really fun and soothing puzzle game featuring a beautiful art style and soundtrack.
You can get lost for hours and not regret a thing!

If you've ever player the 1st, it's the same greatness but bigger and improved.

If you haven't, then you should!

D:OS2 is a massive turn-based RPG that gives unparalleled freedom when it comes to gameplay.
Seriously, I'm still mind-blown by the scale of the thing. You can pick up (almost) everything in the game world, you can learn tons of different spells and skills which you can combine together in very creative ways, along with environments that perfectly accommodate the chaos that ensues. There's almost always at least 2 ways of dealing with a situation. The game is quite literally a playground you can master your way.
And to top it all off, it's got great writing and a super engaging storyline.

Super easy 11/10 recommendation.

Same Death Stranding, but Director's Cut.

The writing's still cringe, and there's still plenty of walking to do (it's kinda fun okay...).
It does add a few fun gadgets and improvements.

If you want pew pew action and/or a solid story, it'll still be a skip.
If you don't mind something unconventional, crisp and relatively original, then go ahead.