August is quite a filled up month for games releases, and that usually is never the case, because the majority of games come out after July and August, because the major games come out in September and the following Holiday season. But 2022 happens to be the exception to the rule, a big one. I already played 3 different games, and so I thought, "man, wouldn't it just make it easier if I do an impression on 3 games together?"
These releases are pretty interesting titles, some exude charm, addictive gameplay, absolute carnage, and most important of all, fun. I didn't find these games to be my GOTY, or ones that I'll very fondly remember, but for now, they're something else pretty intriguing. It's as if the middle-market games have come to fight real hard against major market releases, which they do constantly.
Each segment will be like short reviews of the game, but opinions based on just the first few hours of playing them. I have quite a number of things to say, so this post will be pretty lengthy. Keep up if you can.
John Wick And The Ninja Turtles
I'd say John Wick would wish he met this guy, not only does he encounter thugs within the shadows of urban society, this dude is also battling out all kinds of mutants and abnormal foes deep within. The protagonist watched too much fight club, read vigilante comic books, and thought "hey, violence IS the answer to our problems".
You attack, parry, grab enemies, throw objects, use objects as melee weapons, and shoot enemies with the firearms you hold. Everything is combat is done to create a continuous streak of violence and mayhem. Pummeling enemies while keeping the score meter high.
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It got crazier the further I went into it. I literally got a permanent handgun that blasts enemies into smithereens, an option in case fights do get very hectic and crowded. A crazy isometric brawler game that matches its style with the beatdown in each fight. It's not a perfect game, since the story and dialogue are trying too hard to get anyone invested in it, and I've come across some bugs too, the kind that of dampens the experiences.
It requires a lot of focus and action, it also has a nice skill system where you unlock new moves and abilities. Both this game and Sifu are about fighting with your surroundings and use tactics to avoid being overcrowded with enemies. And believe me, the game is daring you to try harder, better even because the score meter is important to notice as it displays your performance and the rewards you get.
Odd story notwithstanding, it's a pure adrenaline rush. Level after level, you'll be learning how to best your enemies while being an unstoppable fighting machine. That, and trying to save the city being torn apart by big time criminals on an all-out war.
Thine Neighbor Needs A Probing
Is it ok for me to like a game that is outdated in numerous aspects? Like gameplay, and open-world? Yeah, well, I guess that depends on if I like playing an alien invasion game where the aliens have already invaded, won, but now have to deal with fighting human wars, and get into other shenanigans like figuring out whether an alien clone can mate with ahh.....you get the idea.
This is a remake of a sequel to a game that was also remade. It's brighter, more exciting to look at, but most of all, it's just good fun. But there are funnier games than this, with more enjoyable sandbox and gameplay design, offering the best of what current gen game has to provide. The jokes got a bit old, and lack the punch that usually jokes do these days.
So, why am I talking about this? There are negative points in this game, yet there's just something that just kept me going. I guess I miss the times when irreverent humor thrived and developers going full carte blanche with whatever they made. If you don't know by now, the original was made by Pandemic Studios, the one EA bought with BioWare and shutdown a few years after.
You get to destroy buildings and watch it burn down in glorious reckoning, hypnotize and make people follow you around, take disguises, read their thoughts, make them dance in disco fever, and most importantly, take their brains, but also other cool stuff. There's a lot it provides as you progress and unlock things. There are multiple locations to play in too outside Bay City, US like London, Tokyo, Siberia, etc.
The sequel of the original made numerous improvements and additions, the developers kind of copy-pasted that, but they also added their own things too, and on top of that, made life improvements over what was already considered a great game. If you don't analyze nearly everything about it, there's plenty to enjoy. It's just they could have taken examples from other games and done even better with what they have.
Tiny Overlord
Charm, sometimes that's the one thing that a game needs, games like Kena where it exudes so much of it, that you just keep playing and let the experience suck you in. Why is nobody talking about this in Steam? Well, I guess it probably has to do with it being part of Game Pass too. I've been playing it from there since.
You read the title and what it suggests is correct, it takes elements from Overlord and creates a game that has a need for exploration. What's the story about? You are a tiny humanoid extraterrestrial who visited Earth to explore his origins. Where true humans came from? Why is he so tiny? Who are these guys that keep following you?
It's a minion control game where you just help out the tiny inhabitants, turning a normal suburban house into an interconnected kingdom for all critters dwelling. You do quests, you get rewards, sometimes those rewards help you reach places you usually can't, by adding stuff to your overall gear.
The NPC's are fun to interact with, thanks to good writing. They put you in several quests that are range from being wacky, serious, to sometimes quaint. The art style, level design, how occupied they are give this lively feel of the areas.
The little minions you have come in different types, I managed to get the ones that explode next to the basic worker ones. Who knows what the others would be like, I wish I played more to find out. They help you do the quests by carrying items you find, and doing the heavy stuff like moving a giant camera. You see, that's what I mean by how familiar it is with Overlord.
You're not engaging in high stakes set pieces, nor battling anyone. It's just a game that offers serene, blissful experience of just exploring a world that is yearning to be found out. It's like being in a good after school cartoon show that is this endearing.
So these are the 3 games I've checked out, I think some of them I'll come back to, I mean, one of them I just purchased, I have to. I hope the rest of 2022 is kind of like this, just giving us games to keep us busy from a very depressing time of our lives.
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