Recent reviews by Valithor

It's great, but pacing yourself is important since it can wear out its welcome and there's way more than enough side quests to hit max level before the final end game content

With the 2.0 update, the game finally feels as fleshed out as it should be on the game play front. Add in the excellent open world, plenty of meaningful side content, fun weapons, and secrets to find that was all there from the start, you have one of the best RPGs in recent memory

Best $3 rouge-lite bullet hell MTX free loot-box simulator ever

Its Devil May Cry the FPS. Tons of fast paced action with great mechanics that only get better as you increase the difficulty, come up with better weapon combos, and master your shots.

If you're a good shot, play at least on ultra violence as the game is much better balanced and rewarding that way.

4-word review? Baby's first dark souls

Here's the deal, Code Vein tries to differ itself from dark souls while trying to hurriedly copy its homework.

The result is bland, flat, uninspired levels where the Devs gave up on the whole surprise and shock factors that the souls-borne games do so well… about 3 hours in. Instead of finding awe and wonderment while carefully exploring the areas, Code Vein feels like its just telling you to put the petal to the metal while giving you relatively easy enemies to mow down. After the second area in the game, (area after the first major boss fight), the game felt pitifully easy outside of a few gimicky boss encounters. A lot of the charm of the Dark Souls games comes from the fact that the environment and enemy layout is a puzzle topped off by a more complex boss puzzle. In Code Vein, it feels like this game was meant to be some dungeon crawler along the lines of Path of Exile or Diablo but swapped styles mid-way through.

Another issue is the stats and build routes. You don’t have base stats. Instead the Devs came up with the idea to have several different “blood codes” that change base stats and provide a different arsenal of spells. A good idea on paper, but not well implemented. The major problem with this is that once you find a good set, you probably just stick with it as the game's easy enemies leave little desire to branch out. On top of that, spells are locked to blood codes until you use it enough with the blood code and become “proficient” with that spell. Don't want to grind? You can use items and “haze” (the souls currency) to become proficient in the spell so you don’t have to grind with it. However, as already established, there isn’t much reason to branch out, so if you find one that you want, paying for it will be the best option for most players. Beyond the poor implementation, it is hard to plan another build because the game isn’t clear how good equipment is if you don’t meet a baseline stat. Since you can switch codes to become proficient in that baseline, there is a lot of extra buttons being pressed that don’t have to be. Simply telling me that I lose X DMG or resistances because I don’t have B+ willpower or something would have helped a lot.

Another bright idea is the AI partner, but the problem is they are OP as hell. It may have been an issue if they would die all the time and be useless so the devs had the foresight to make sure they weren’t tied down by stamina and could dodge pretty much infinitely. OK, not bad, so I don’t need to worry about them, right? The issue is, that they can resurrect you with an ability that is on a 15 second cooldown (you can do the same if they happen to take on 5, but no fewer, enemies at a time or happen to get stun locked by a boss). This takes SO much tension out of the game. These partners can carry you through the game almost singlehandedly. If you’re a Dark Souls fan, this will make the game feel so damn easy.

Finally, bosses. The big bads in souls-borne games are some of the most memorable highlights because they force you to learn how the combat works, not only against them, but new enemies down the road. Things like how many swipes you can make with this weapon type, managing resources, and puzzle elements/status effects etc. They also tend to have memorable designs or gimmicks that make them interesting. There are two boss fights in Code Vein that do this, the Queen’s knight (fought twice) and the fire and ice duo near the end of the game. Everything else is a push over or completely uninteresting with two or three bosses that made me try more than 3 times (including the final boss going down on my third try). Without interesting attacks or tricks, pushover bosses take a lot of the magic and care out of what made Dark Souls so memorable so it feels odd playing a clone of it. Sure, you can say this is for a different audience, but odds are if you’re interested in a game like this, you’re coming at it expecting it to play a certain way and instead it just feels bland and uninspired.

On top of that, if you’re not a fan of anime melodrama and stunted performances with a script that feels like it was written by someone who was behind on three other deadlines for Saturday morning cartoon shows, prepare for a lot of cutscene skipping.

What does this game do well? Character customization. It’s a bit too much to go into here, but it’s certainly robust, but wont make up for the rest of the lackluster experience. There is a demo so you can try it out.

Should you pick it up? Well, if the above didn’t scare you off too much, it feels like the perfect $15 experience. There’s some stuff here that’s acceptable but its mostly cannon fodder and there are better games worth your time unless you have a Dark Souls itch that needs to be scratched.

Note: There’s a glitch with the elevators if you are playing at high refresh rates. Alt-tab after the elevators close to get them moving.

More of the same Hitman we know from Hitman 2016.

-Want more secenarios? Consider this a full sized expansion pack to Hitman 2016.

-Didn't like 2016 as a GOTY but still interested? Hitman 2 is still worth a $30 buy.

-Didn't like Hitman 2016 at all? well... why are you reading this then?

Features:
*5 big maps with a smaller map (with new scenarios to be released periodically)
*Sniper assassin mini game which can be played solo or Co-op
*New competitive ghost mode
*Minor, but welcome, improvements to the UI and a new camera that shows what the AI is doing when the they find bodies etc.
*Works with Hitman 2016 maps through your purchase of 2016 or DLC
*More of the same Hitman

Pros:
*Fun as hell gameplay with satisfying sandbox mechanics. It's like a puzzle with a ton of moving parts with many answers
*Great level design on all of the maps.
*Tons of replayability even without the online modes or future content additions
*Free content to come
*Guided "story" missions to help you learn the map as well as find ways to access new places for future playthroughs
*Guided elements can be turned off in the options if that takes away from your enjoyment
*Still more of the same great Hitman

Neutral:
*Story still exists to string missions together. Not super exciting but not sleep inducing
*AI is still both a slight bit unpredictable and clunky but still conveys the classic puzzle feeling
*Confusing DLC structure. Some of it is free and will be added automatically, some isn't.

Cons:
*At $60, content is a little light as of launch if you're a value minded gamer or don't like the sandbox style of gameplay of replaying missions to try out new ways to assassinate.
*One less map than 2016, with 2 expansions with unknown amounts of content incoming at some point (promises new maps and sniper assassin maps plus other minor goodies)
*More of the exact same Hitman with no new real upgrades or innovations outside of the aethestic

Performance:
Specs: GTX 1070 with an i5 8600k OC

Runs around 90-110 FPS consitantly with dips into the mid 80's all on high (not ultra) settings. Feels rather smooth at all points in the game. Haven't used the updated drivers as of yet but it shouldnt improve the game much.

Pros:
Game feels tuned to the point where there is never moment you feel safe. You're never sneaking around for too long.
Perfect "modern day" game length of around 12 hr.
Interesting enviroments and enemies
Stressing horror survival gameplay that hits all of the high notes coupled with tense actions sequences.
Doesn't rely on jumpscares.

Cons:
Story and characters are weak. Major main plot details are hidden in the DLC.
Stealth mechanics are strange and enemy detection skills are odd.

The game plays like a horror version of Uncharted and is extremely reminecent of RE4.
If you like Uncharted or RE4, its an amazing buy for sub 10$.
Just dont expect rememberable story or one that really makes sense by the end.

If you're a fan of action games from Platinum this may be a step down in the gameplay department by a bit if you play the game on normal. However, it can be a bit punishing if you play it on hard which makes it a tough sell as a pure action game. All and all it's a great game with a deep philosophical undertone with some bad gameplay pacing issues.

That being said, the story is quite amazing and is probably the main draw for this. This game would be one of those games that would score high on a games version of a top IMBD list which is probably a bit more towards the "counisour" type of gamer.

There's also a ton of side missions and a lot of hidden bosses and side quests that make it interesting after the story, but it’s marred that you have to select the correct chapter for that mission while the game doesn't let you know if the selection you're selecting has access to it.

TL;DR: Turn it up to hard and take your time with it to get as many side quests done on your first go around.

While the game nails the atmosphere of the movie, the gameplay leaves a lot to be desired. The alien does not feel like something to avoid but rather to game. There are a lot of unexplained rules that even the steam guides didn't pick up on and a lot of the time it feels like a test of patience rather than stealth. There are no given indications to how hidden you are and some of the methods to hide that you expect to work don't and the ones that shouldn't do much better. Basically, the alien is on a timer, when he's in the vents you can walk as fast as you can to an objective and when he's out you need to hide behind a box for several minutes as he never looks behind said box and leaves. Overall, the first few hours were great, but after felt like a slog fest through boring point A to point B quests to where felt safe to start "step checking" the Alien and brute forced my way through. While the first few encounters were tense, after figuring out how it moves and thinks, it gets old fast. As a fan of good stealth titles, I'm left wondering how this got a game of the year award from anyone.

Pick it up if you like the franchise, otherwise it's not a good use of time.

It's so simplistic and conduluted that it's not worth the time or money to play. It has a fun premise but with little delivery. Each level is supposed to be like a scene from Hitman, except your goal is to kill everyone off in order to beat the level. None of the mechanics are explained up front and while this sounds kinda fun for a puzzle game that doesn't work when I don't know the rules. What sets people off and why the cops chase who they do is super confusing. Plus most of the levels are designed to be a waste of time and take way too long to complete. Since each level is randomized, it's nigh impossible to even know how long the trudge is going to take. Don't waste your money, there's more fun to had elsewhere.