Echoes of the Living – Early Access Impressions

Let’s just start by saying: Wow, what a conflicting experience Echoes of the Living has been. While the devs (a couple) behind the game really poured everything they’ve got into the game, and succeeded going by classic survival horror standards—I can’t help but feel a peculiar tedium wash over me after giving it eight hours. Hence, my inner conflict. See, I recognize it’s a well-made game (especially after the major 0.1 Save update), but my mind just constantly wanders off during play—hitting me with questions like: Am I wasting my time here?

Continue reading “Echoes of the Living – Early Access Impressions” →

Star Wars: Republic Commando Intro Remake [Animation]

I’m a bit ambivalent when it comes to game remakes, since it’s mostly old hat, with a new, “supposedly” improved skin. However, if there’s one game that would probably benefit from a remake, it’s Star Wars: Republic Commando—if it were more than just a surface-level improvement, that is. It could use an upgrade in mechanics and especially in size, since it feels overly cramped in places where it shouldn’t. Sadly, the video by Oleksandr Maziura is just that: only a video—but he provides a great visualization of what a remake could have looked like if we lived in a better timeline. Video after the click!

Continue reading “Star Wars: Republic Commando Intro Remake [Animation]” →

NORSE: Oath of Blood – Viking Retribution [Review]

The Viking saga NORSE: Oath of Blood is here, and it’s primarily a bitter tale of revenge—fitting for the historical theme of the game. When I tried the demo, I came to like it, but it was clear to me that it needed a lot of polish and optimization. Did they succeed? Not quite, in any real sense to be totally honest. I was expecting a Viking X-com, but instead got a very linear experience with a heavy focus on narrative and cutscenes.

Continue reading “NORSE: Oath of Blood – Viking Retribution [Review]” →

Occam’s Sponge: Mapping the Timelines of the Command and Conquer Canon [Lore Video]

Here we have an excellent video by the one-hit YouTuber Ictiv. The reason I call him “one-hit” is that he released this exceptional summary of the confusing Command & Conquer timeline four years ago and then just disappeared. Almost like he had his own chronosphere. The reason the Tiberium series of C&C are a tad messy is because of its connection to the Red Alert series. The Red Alert games use time machines and split timelines as important plot points, so there isn’t an easy linear progression to follow.

This naturally won’t bother 99% of players, but for those of us who love lore and obsess over story details (serious gamer autism), it’s a fascinating video that tries to make sense of it all and establish a canonical timeline. An underrated lore video for sure—so make sure to check it out after the jump!

Continue reading “Occam’s Sponge: Mapping the Timelines of the Command and Conquer Canon [Lore Video]” →

Cthulhu: The Cosmic Abyss – Demo Impressions

Now, there is a name that proudly says what kind of game this will be. And for the smart ones of you, dear readers, as you might be able to tell Cthulhu: The Cosmic Abyss, will be yet another title set in the Lovecraft universe. I don’t mind, as long as it’s good. The more, the merrier is my motto, but Lovecraft being public domain, there is bound to be a lot of crap. So how does the demo of Cthulhu: The Cosmic Abyss fare? I’m glad to tell you it had me intrigued as far as adventure games go.

Continue reading “Cthulhu: The Cosmic Abyss – Demo Impressions” →