Alone in the Dark 1 (PC) Review

This has been yet another franchise I have been waiting way too long to get into it, if not without good reason. To be honest, I am known for hating tank controls. Seriously, if a game uses fixed cameras and pushing up on the controls made your character go in the direction they are facing rather then up or away from the camera, I bowed out. But I always had an interest in this franchise despite that. It's direct connection to the works of H.P. Lovecraft always made it stand out to me, so when a remake of the original was announced, I decided that was the sign to start moving through the franchise. So I took the time to start my adventures with Edward Carnby.

Now before we begin, this entry surprised me by the fact that it did not ship alone. When I fist loaded it up, I was offered a menu with two games: Alone in the Dark and Jack in the Dark, requiring me to split this review between them. To this end, the links below will let you jump directly to the one you want ot read, but the bugs and final score will before the whole package, not just one game.  

• Alone in the Dark
• Jack in the Dark

Necrophosis (PC) Review

I have been waiting a while for this one. Earlier this year Dragonis Games dropped a demo to show off what they were working on, and I was instantly hooked. So I put the game on my wishlist, eager to get to the main game. Now as the game has been out for a little while, my schedual around game series has opened up to let me pop this into my PC. And while it was shorter and perhaps easier then I would have liked, overall it did not disappoint. Where it mattered, this game delivered.

Outlast 2 (PC) Review

Having absolutely loved the first game and it's DLC, I was honestly very excited to get back to Red Barrels' horror series. And while I can't say it's the best they have offered us, that doesn't make it bad. In fact this is yet another masterpiece in it's own right. Just not in comparison to what came before. 

8-Bit Adventures Anthology: Volume 1 (PC) Review

This has been a set of games I have been looking forward to playing for a good long while. After all, the collection includes both the first game I ever completed (and my first taste for horror gaming ever) and a second horror title I would have been all over had I known it even existed in my younger years. Add to this nostalgia blast that the OG development team finally got to make a direct sequel to their most famous game in the collections and there no way I couldn't play this set... so was it worth a visit down memory land and what might have been? OH.... oh yes it was....

Now please note that since this is a game collection, each game will get it's own review with a shared overall and bugs section. If you want to zero in on just one, please select the game from the list below.

• Shadowgate
• DejaVu
• Uninvited

Doorways: Old Prototype (PC) Review

And we finally have reached a point where in order to show off something new for Extra Life over the weekend, I had to roll the dice over my backlog. It has been a while, but the dice were kind and offered an handful of titles that looked pretty good for the most part. And when this one came up, I was intrigued. After all, I do still have to play the main games, so a little window into what's to ultimately come sounded pretty good. Well the window was certainly small... but through it I can see some real potential.

Outlast: Whistleblower DLC (PC) Revew

As soon as I finished the first game, I knew I was coming back for more. It would be serendipitous to make this choice as gog put the whole series on sale, however, and a twist of fate I was NOT going to say no to. Now another chapter is complete, and this series is on an upswing! Come inside!

Outlast (PC) Review

When I finished my first Amnesia game, I wanted more, so I had this immediately on my wishlist where it would be snapped up during a winter sale. Sadly since then it would sit in my backlog as I let the dice controll what was next and give every game a fair shake.... but this week it's wait would finally come to an end. And let me tell you right now, this is one game that has stood the test of time. Come on in.

Demons Never Lie (PC) Review

While I can not say this is the deepest dive into my backlog I have ever seen happen, here we do have a game that's been hanging out there a few years. In this case, it was an already cheap game that intrigued the hell out of me, and was made even cheaper as part of a Halloween sale on steam. Turns out, I found an oddball that wasn't afraid to get dark, but still had real heart and soul behind it. But enough of the puns, come on in.

Dark Fracture: Prologue (PC) Review

Once again as I show off a new game each week for Extra-Life, we come across another freebie meant to be completed in a single session just sitting around on Steam and waiting to be played. This time, however, it was a title that had waited a lot longer in my backlog. In fact it's possible this one waited a few years. And even then, I can only hope based on what I played we get to see more come of it. There wasn't a lot here, but what was here was some really good atmospheric work and signs of a lot of talent I would hate to see go to waste.

FORGOTTEN: THE GAME (PC) Review

It seems we keep coming up with brief free games I could finish in a single sitting to review as of late on this site. That is not a complaint, by the way. The past few of these have hit the idea right out of the park (pun intended in one of their cases). This, however, would not be one of those games. It was a passion project sure, but sometimes, that isn't enough to make it something great.

DanganRonpa 2: Goodbye Despair (PC) Review

Finally I get to say again that this has been a long time coming. Almost 5 years ago, I had played a little visual novel/Pheonix Wright clone called DanganRonpa: Trigger Happy Havoc, and I loved it. But I have a lot to play so the rest of the series fell to the wayside for quite a while until I happened to find the rest of the series on sale recently. The series was back on and the next game is now completed. And yes, I waited too long to get back to this glorious madness.

Indigo Park: Chapter 1 (PC) Review

As per my tradition, I make a point every weekend to show off something new and interesting that you might see someone play for Extra Life during the big 24 hour marathon. However, this weekend it would play out a little different. Rather then let the dice decide, my buddy Max Powers convinced me to give this game a go... and I am glad he did!

Kraven Manor (PC) Review

I remember when this game first grabbed my attention. At the time, youtube had a lot of people in the gaming scene now that were only starting to become popular and of coarse horror games became a focal point. This is how it drew my attention... and how this game did as well. One of these youtubers played it long enough to show the way you can literally change how the mansion is laid out, and it was too intriguing for me to watch any further since it was going on my wishlist. I would pick it up later on a steam sale... only for it to sit on my backlog for years... long enough in fact for it to go completely free before I played it. Oh well, my fault there, but don't you miss out. Horror fans, come on in and enjoy.

Seybul Tech (PC) Review

As per my tradition, every weekend I pick a game from my backlog and show it off as something you might see on Extra Life. It's a variety hour to help sick kids if you will, and something I have continued to do for years now. But a backlog is a dangerous thing, and sometimes you show off gold, others you show of crap. This time we showed off (and in a single session finished)... a game. It wasn't great, but it wasn't terrible either... and it definitely lived on it's atmosphere FAR more than anything else, which in it's own was actually really good. But was it enough? Step inside.

Diablo IV (PC) Review

When this game launched, it was not accepted very well by many gamers. And between Blizzard driving their reputation straight through the mud in how they treat both their audience (Overwatch 2 anyone? Diablo Immortal?) and their own employees, I can perfectly understand that. I myself watched this one come out with little interest, especially as one of the games to spearhead big game developers' campaign to increase the price of AAA games to $70. And to this end, I passed it up at launch.

However, months later, the game was already starting to show up on sale. Add to this a few people who wanted to play with me, and I decided it was worth a shot. It was not a bad choice, despite everything stacked against it.

Pony Island (PC) Review

Once again we have a game that's been hanging around in my backlog for a long time. In this case, it was a game that was on my radar when it launched, but actually came to me as part of a HumbleBundle back when I was subscribed. It would sit unused in the backlog for years until the dice decided it's time had come. So like the old arcade in the game itself, it's time to dust off the cabinet and click power...

Ghostwire: Tokyo (PC) Review

This is a game that has a bit more of a tumultuous history with me. When it came out, it had my curiosity, but there wasn't a lot coming out about it. Add to that playing on a PC that looked dangerously close to the minimum spec at the time while sitting on my massive backlog, and I held off... deciding I dodged a bullet with a shady dev when they added Denuvo to the game a year after it came out.. 

I didn't give it any more thought after that until this Christmas came along. As per usual, all the major game stores had their Christmas sales, including Epic. And while I honestly have yet to want to spend cash on this store, I've hung around for the freebies Epic is always giving out... and this sale always comes with them going fast and furious. Christmas Eve, they gave away this game. Without dropping a dime, I grabbed it.

Now as I finish playing, I believe I would have been happy with it had I bought earlier... and seeing them remove the DRM again so soon only makes such joy playing it that much sweeter.

Golden Light (PC) Review

Here we have another game I probably would not have picked up had I bought myself. However, when Epic gave it away for free, I figured it looked just strange enough to give it a shot and a home in my backlog. Well, it definitely proved strange, but it was missing the staying power to really recommend you follow me through it.

Into the Dangerous World I Leapt (PC) Review

Once again we find ourselves at the end of a game picked to show off for Extra Life, but turned out to be a single sitting game. In this case, we sat down to a class project that looked like it was going to be an intriguing little horror game to play for the Halloween holidays.... I was hopeful since I have played other school project games that not only left me ecstatic, but hyped to see the game read a full release (incidentally since they treated it as an update, that game is back in my backlog now). This time, however, while I can appreciate what was attempted and even achieved, it didn't hit nearly as well.

Shadowgrounds (PC) Review

Today we get to visit an old game that hasn't spent very long in the backlog. Rather I picked it up for little more then I might have spent in the arcade to play a game of Mortal Kombat as a kid, so it was a no brainer to pick up and try. And promising to be "Doom 3 meets Smash TV" it sounded like it could be a really fun time (I love both games). I can't say I was wrong, but I also wouldn't call it as good as either individually. Come on in.