We Happy Few (PC) Review

I really wanted to like this game, but the warning signs were there right from the very start. The concept of a world gone mad and only kept peaceful due to a dystopian drug is one of those types of creepy that isn't on the surface, but done right permeates everything and makes you really feel the world it creates. I was hoping for something like that as a fan of horror, both creature features and (in this case) the more subtle kind with staying power. However, I can not say I was pleased with what I found. This game was never meant to be what it is, and sometimes, that fatal flaw kills everything because the supports from the old can never hold up what it ultimately becomes. So it is here.

Clive Barker's Undying (PC) Review

If you know me, you also likely know I take the archival side of this hobby seriously... seriously enough in fact I have begun making disc copies of games in my collection that I have previously finished and are DRM free so the discs just work. It makes for a nice looking shelf collection to boot. However, when I was showing a very good friend what I was working on, she recognized this game in particular. We pretty much decided on the spot that it would have to be one of the titles I stream for First Person Friday (one of my weekly Extra Life streams). And having absolutely loved it back in the day, I was more then on board and made it the very next one I played. Now as I finish it, I think this might have been one of those games where the glasses were a little bit rose tinted... not much, as the game was still fantastic, but, I could definitely see a few cracks in it I did not before.

Now before we begin I have to also be fair to this game. This was a return visit, even if from a MUCH earlier time in my life, so I chose to use a mod called Undying Renewal when playing this time which promised some QoL updates such as wide-screen support and control updates that would make the game more in-line interface-wise with what we have today... but it may have done a little more then I expected. As such, your experience may vary from mine this time around. But regardless, come inside. There is still a lot of great stuff in the Covenant family manor.

Alone in the Dark 2024 (PC) Review

I've been waiting a long time for this, especially as a fan of H.P. Lovecraft. With this in mind, I already was aware of how the entire series was supposed to begin with his work until Chaosium pulled the plug on that plan, leaving that original 1992 title breathing the mythos in all but name. So when we saw this remake announced I zeroed in and decided to start making my way through the entire series.

And I will admit, I can not recommend playing most of it, but was it worth the pain to reach where we are now? Honestly, yes! I would not tell you to do as I did (most of the franchise is NOT worth your time and this being a remake does no need them) but this game... this one right here... is something special. Please come inside.

Descent II (PC) Review

While I have incredibly fond memories of playing the first Descent game, it would not enter my home alone, When I picked it up, it was in a boxed set of both Descent, Descent II, an expansion pack for each, a level editor, and a few teaser pictures for the up coming and much anticipated Descent 3. Sadly we would wait several more years before we would hear about this third game again, and the expansions are a lot harder to get today then back then, but I was still excited to continue my revisit on this franchise. And it did NOT disappoint! Come on in!

Transient (PC) Review

When the dice called up this game, I had no idea what I was getting into, but the concept intrigued me. Turns out it was for good reason: it's been a while since a developer got the concept of Lovecraft quite this well... come on in.

Boltgun: Forges of Corruption (PC) Review

While our first run with BoltGun was overall satisfying, we did not complete the story just yet. For when Max Powers picked this one up for me, it was the deluxe edition, which included the DLC expansion pack and I knew I was coming back for it. And for better and for worse, it was everything I expected from more of this boomer shooter. Step inside.

MARVEL Cosmic Invasion (PC) Review

When this game was an announced, I was actually pretty excited to see it. It had been a good long while since I saw a beatem-up I was even interested in, but to see one clearly made to feel like the old games I grew up putting quarters in felt special. Add to this good cross platform play since my brothers and I are always looking for good games to play together (they are console players) and we were all in. This week, we finished up and yeah, it lived up to everything I wanted... and even made me smile with a few surprises on the way. Step inside.

Escape from Monkey Island (PC) Review

After how much I absolutely loved Curse of Monkey Islands, I was actually looking forward to this game. Well I can at least say it was an eye opener for how fast a franchise can fall. Avoid this one, guys.

Desecrators (PC) Review

On First Person Fridays for Extra-Life, I am trying to alternate between more action based and more puzzle based games. With the last game being more point and click then action and a craving for more games like Descent, I found myself picking up and playing a game I had never heard of, but a certain prominent youtuber pointed out during his review of my personal favorite Boomer Shooter. And while he was right about the game being straight up sadistic from time to time, I always walked away happy with my night and somehow wanting more.

Saga of the Moon Priestess (PC) review

I've been enjoying myself playing a lot of older games as of late, particularly on stream. So when the dice called up a game that promised to relive the old days of a certain green-clothed elf on his adventures to save a princess, I figured it might just be a fun time fueled by nostalgia... both mine as a child and a new developer. However this one proved more of a warning right from the opening screen. Come on inside: this won't be pretty.

Realms of the Haunting (PC) Review

Fresh of the joy of playing Descent as a First Person Friday game for Extra Life, I found myself wanting to continue with another MS-DOS title and immediately thought of this gem. While I was taking on my fellow gamers every week in the PTMC mines, I was playing this one on my own and loving everything about it. I don't think Im giving anything away telling you that, yes, I still loved this game. But at the same time, it wasn't quite what I remembered. Let's talk about it.

Filament (PC) Review

Here we have a game I picked up on a whim when Epic Games gave it away as one of their free titles of the week. It had that kind of trailer that suggested behind the bright colors and cozy vibe, it might just hide something darker for the observant gamer to pick up on. And to be fair, that kind of feel usually gets at at least a curiosity glance. This time, maybe I should have just left it at that glance.

The Curse of Monkey Island (PC) Review

It has been a long while since I played a Monkey Island game. In fact the last time I played one, I hadn't even started this website yet. The first two were fun, but the second one left me on a rather confusing note and not entirely sure I should continue. Today, I answer that confusion as the dice called game 3 from the depts of my backlog... and I waited WAY too long for it.

Silver Chains (PC) Review

This title has been a few years coming. During the big yearly sales I make a point to add titles that have been sitting in my wishlist for a while to my collection, and so I wound up with this in my library a few years ago. And while first impressions were absolutely amazing, I have to say as I put down my mouse, I am glad I got it at that steep discount. The bones are very pretty, pretty enough in fact to justify the game even with so little to it... at least until the very end.

Warhammer Quest (PC) Review

Recently in my nerd-talk conversations with my brother, we spoke about Warhammer and Warhammer 40K games and he told me how most of them are pretty awful. Between the fondness of the old HeroQuest game first impressions of this reminded me of and wanting to be optimistic, I was hoping this would be a game to prove him wrong. After all I have collected but not played a ton of these games yet. But this game really just puts a notch in the point he made.

Descent (PC) Review

Now THIS is a game I have some history with. Way back in my high-school days, I found this game like most did: by the shareware version. I loved playing it immediately, getting very good at those first seven levels on my own. I even got together with kids in my class once a week to take over the school library and have 8-player matches against each other. It was a blast! And when I finally got a the official collection with this game and it's sequel late in the life of that 486 machine, I found myself loving everything that followed. But the game would ultimately fall to the side as I found my all-time favorite games on my next PC during the Windows 98 era, including the legendary Deus Ex.

So now as I play First Person games for Extra Life every week, I had planned to open up a much forgotten title I played long ago, only to have it have some serious technical issues I am still aging the fix to as we speak. So I needed a substitute. Looking back far further into my gaming past, my eyes fell on this gem. Does it still hold up? Well.. ABSO-FUCKING-LUTELY!

But as a side note, I did not play the base game this time. Like so many FPS titles of the day, the game's code has since gone open source and as such there are several source ports you can use to make it run with some modern quality of life updates. I played this one using Dxx-Rebirth so my exact experiences may be different from yours. But I did include a link to get the port yourself if you wish. Just be aware I hold no responsibility for the software. Use it at your own risk and scan ANYTHING you download! Now with that out of the way, step inside.

Tales of Berseria (PC) Review

This is it, my first taste of the legendary "Tales" games. Its a series I've heard so much good about, and an entry where the main character had my curiosity, so when the dice called it out, I jumped in eagerly. But as I finish up, I look back and, well, if you know the phrase "more then the sum of it's parts" then you are looking at a game that feels like the absolute reverse of that. It has all the pieces, but somehow is less then what it should be.

The First Descendant (PC) Review

I have been watching this title since the first trailers were revealed. Right away the world itself pulled me in with an aesthetic that harkened to one of my favorite franchises, but with a realistic looking twist. So when this became the co-op game to play, I eagerly agreed. Looking back, it started with a bang and for a while did everything I could hope for. But as I put down the mouse for the last time, the game definitely feels like it ends with a whimper, especially compared to that strong start.

Warhammer 40K: Boltgun (PC) Review

Originally this was not the game I had planned on playing next for First Person Fridays (one of my streams I do weekly for Extra Life), but things both good and bad changed those plans. On the downside, the publishers who sell the game I was originally goning play are now on my shit list for their behavior around a very public murder and for the foreseeable future you will not see anything by them being added to my work: stream or review. But on the upward swing, my buddy Max Powers sent this my way, and how could I say no to a buddy? Having put the game down, yeah it was a great time for the most part, if not a perfect one.

Alone in the Dark 3 (PC) Review

And now we close the book on a classic PC game trilogy, but can we really call it all classic? Probably not, as I can not claim to have even really liked the previous title. Still the first absolutely was amazing, and I walked into this hoping to get close to those highs again... Well, I'm not sure we did that, but we definitely moved in the right direction for it.