Recent reviews by Empyrean

A solid, punchy horde shooter. I've mostly played Operations and the variance between missions keeps things fresh. It just feels so good to kill xenos scum. If you like Helldivers or Deep Rock, you'll probably enjoy this. A short campaign, but really good. Learn how to parry and you'll be basically invincible.

10/10

I am a long time fan and have played all the generations, with my favourites most likely being For Answer or Last Raven.

The peak of mech games, although it leans heavily on close quarters combat. If you like Armored Core, you will enjoy this.

If you have not played Armored Core, this is a good place to start. The story of the game is only potentially distantly related to previous generations of the series, so there's no need to play the others before this one.

It's got a great story featuring a wide cast of characters, who, through various playthroughs, are well-developed and charming. As in many FromSoft games, the greater lore of the world is not directly told to you, but instead constructed from notes you find in missions, weapon descriptions, and connecting the dots between what characters say and information known about them. Making these connections is always a great part of the experience.

The customisation is great, with many frame and weapon parts available, including a whole host of subsystems including boosters, generations, and fire control systems.

The addition of repair kits is a welcome change, as it both provides a little more breathing room playing through some of the longer missions, as well as the Supply Sherpa, which you will find at checkpoints before bosses.

To that end, checkpoints are a new addition to the series, which in combination with repair kits, allow for more brutal level design, and makes some of the harder missions a lot more fun when trying to S-rank them.

I think the stagger system is a nice addition to alter the flow of gameplay, but personally I think it effectively narrows down your choices when playing through missions, as you may find that your favourite weapons are ineffective against some bosses due to them almost requiring you to stagger them to get large amounts of damage off. Remember you can always go to the garage if you die in a mission. Either way, the gameplay is extremely tight, with so many ways to make fun builds.

I hunted all the achievements, and would suggest you do the same. I truly hope we get to see a sequel title in this generation, as iterating on the gameplay with new parts and just getting to see more of the setting would be excellent.

Vaguely, the game alludes to a breakaway from Core Theory happening as the story progresses, as parts specialized to long-range combat begin their roll-out, so it would be interesting to see combat doctrine changed within a generation in a possible sequel.

A Gundam game that plays good, but has terrible matchmaking and an extremely greedy gacha system. It is a lot of fun, and plays very differently from most games I would compare it to. I understand why everyone else is giving this game a negative review, and it really disappoints me to see the lack of care they put into this otherwise great game.

Spectacular.
10/10

Brilliant writing and a great shooter chassis make this another CDPR hit. It got bad press due to its poor release, but playing it through, you can tell the developer truly cared about this game. Night City looks so beautiful and is crafted so masterfully, despite lacking side activities. Many handmade quests and encounters piece together an awesome quilt of stories, overlapping and interacting with many layers. I had very little bugs in my experience, and the few that I had could be fixed by loading a quicksave or checkpoint, but on a less powerful PC, I can imagine problems will arise.

8.5/10

Get this game with a group of friends and engage in Napoleonic shenanigans.

When I heard that they were taking one of my favorite games and turning it 3D, I was initially apprehensive....
However, I am happy to say they nailed it. It's fun, challenging, and keeps the spirit of the first game. 8/10

If you like violence, this game is for you. Punchy and fun, you'll get a lot of hours out of it. 9/10

A really cool game that takes after the old Powder Game-types, with a dynamic spellcraft system, chock full of hidden secrets that pertain to the Finnish creation myths and ancient alchemical secrets. Seek to craft the Draught of Midas and complete the Work!

Also has received constant updates since release, keeping it fresh.

10/10

A fantastic experience, DMC5 has spirit and is a great continuation of the series.
Works well as a standalone story, but is enhanced by knowing some details of the older games.
Somewhat shorter (15 hours), but higher difficulties offer replayability. The combo system is easy to learn, but hard (and so satisfying) to master. With three (four if you get the Vergil DLC) characters, there's a lot to learn.

10/10