Recent reviews by Xanathar

I love this game so much. My dad and I found a boxed copy on a whim in the 90s at a swap meet. We got REALLY into it and he beat it with me watching. After that it became a faint memory that we would bring up from time to time "remember that quake rip off with the razor blade jesters?".

Years later, my dad is no longer with us and we now have a from the ground up rebuilt version of Chasm to play and I can't help feeling a bit sad. He would have loved the chance to give this another go.

This play through is for you, Chuck.

Devil Daggers II: Even Betterer

Vampire Survivors! It's your new leg of lamb, your new champagne, your new ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ heroin!!

A chill little simplification of the Ocarina of Time fishing mini game with some nostalgic, low poly eeriness softly encasing it. Wish it was a little more fleshed out overall(some control tweaks, more fish, etc) but I had a great, short time and found it calming.

The textbook definition of "unknown gem".

KotC is as hardcore as a turn-based tactical RPG can get and possibly the greatest implementation of D&D(3.5e) combat in a video game. The story is bare bones and exists solely to showcase the various combat situations you find yourself in. Perfect for small chunks of play before you gotta go somewhere or for hours of dungeon crawling late into the night. The main challenge comes from the developer's fascination with seemingly impossible, overwhelming surprise attacks and the small stable of classes(Fighter, Wizard, Cleric) and races(Human, Half-Elf, Mul) you have to create your small party of 4.

Looks and sound might divide some people here but I find it all so damn charming. The music reminds me of educational games from the early 90's and the graphics and controls are like Ultima 7!!!

If you are thirsting for the multi-layered battle-chess goodness that is 3.5 D&D combat then you have hit the jackpot here. If you are looking for a long involved story then that itch will not be scratched here. But if you give this game a shot, play ball with it and it's difficulty, you will find one of the most rewarding tactical turn based games of all time.

I never knew what Sir Lora's purpose was. He loved to give me recipes for items I didn't need and always was the first one to charge headfirst into danger. Even death couldn't stop him! I would have him ride by my side any day.

I HATE THIS STUPID ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ PIECE OF ♥♥♥♥ GAME SO ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ MUCH@!^!$&^*&#Y$@%~%~H*^$*$^~@%$H~(H$%~@*()(%#$H$H%

I'll be honest. When I first picked this up I was expecting nothing more than a cute little demake of our beloved DUSK; a novelty little side project to presumably help fund whatever the next BIG project for developer David Szymanski is.

I am happy to report I was VERY wrong.

What starts out simple soon gives way to some deviously creative puzzles that easily lets it stand shoulder to shoulder with old 2D puzzle game greats like Chip's Challenge. On top of the solid set of levels the Workshop scene and extremely user friendly Level Editor are absolutely ripe with potential for extending this games replay-ability long after we're all dead.

Quake has been whooping ass for over 25 years and will never stop. It's the shooter uncle that always has a crisp $20 bill that it hands to you slyly in the midst of a hug so your parents don't see.

Near perfect design, pacing, gamefeel, music. Pretty much everything!

You aren't even reading this. You know what Quake is and how hellishly radical it gets.

Does it look like one big meme? YES. Are most of the reviews here uninformative memes? YES.

BUT

Do not let that scare you off. What we have here is one of the most refreshing immersive sims in a minute!

Despite the complex, eyesore-ish visuals your goal is quite clear: GO KILL THE TARGET(in any way, shape, or form)

The insane visuals and matching audio really do wonders for selling this disgusting garboshite world you're inhabiting and the levels are bursting with secrets, multiple ways to take down your targets, an explorer's dream.

That's all I really wanna say because to share anymore on this brilliant game would ruin the fun of going in as dark as I did.
Give it a shot! It's got a bit of a learning curve and it's definitely not for everyone. But this is easily one of the best games of 2021 for me.