DERELIKT – Playtest Impressions

I’m not sure this can be called a true impressions article, as I dipped out of DERELIKT very early—long before any real testing could be done. The reason for this is that the game is currently segmented in a way that drops late‑game areas right after level one, which spoils a lot of things I want to keep secret until my full playthrough. Apparently, it goes something like this: Level 1, then level 4, and finally level 5. However, what I did get to test felt and looked damn good!

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Clive Barker’s Hellraiser: Revival – Demo Impressions

Now, this demo was a surprise. I was expecting a linear moody walking-simulator, but Clive Barker’s Hellraiser: Revival is an actual game with stealth, machete-combat London-style and the blasting of foes with guns. It was also incredibly bloody, with breasts and genitalia on full display—so very Hellraiser and Clive Barker. I found the lady with the massive flesh-constructed tongue upsetting, but not in the pearl clutching way—it was more like: It’s time to get the hell out of here!

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Tenebris: Terra Incognita – 1.0 is Out!

Tenebris: Terra Incognita is almost a game I have forgotten about, since I wrote my very positive Early Access impressions article two long years ago—landing the game on a four-out-of-five in pure entertainment. Now finally—a year late—it’s out in a 1.0 version and it looks pretty damn good, like a deep turn-based RPG similar to Darkest Dungeon but in space (where nobody will hear you scream, except mom, of course). Let’s hope the grind has been adjusted to more tolerable levels. Anyhow, be sure to check out my Early Access article if curious, and the game on Steam—because I’m almost 100% certain this release won’t disappoint!

The Black Pits (Baldur’s Gate: Enhanced Edition) [Review]

The Black Pits is Beamdog’s arena expansion that came with Baldur’s Gate: Enhanced Edition when it was released years ago in 2012. And here I thought it was high time to finally try it out. Now, this little side-adventure isn’t much more than a string of fights put together, but it does have a story, and a prominent antagonist (Baeloth the Entertainer) that will make an appearance again in the future Beamdog releases (The Black Pits II: Gladiators of Thay and Siege of Dragonspear) and Baldur’s Gate: Enhanced Edition itself. Effort was made to at least have the main bad guy in a continuation of sorts, which is nice, as Baeloth is one of the best parts of this expansion besides the battles.

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Guillermo del Toro’s Cabinet of Curiosities: The Viewing [Film Review]

If you ever want to watch something mesmerizing that captures the essence of cosmic horror, I’ve got something special for you: The Viewing. The Viewing is part of Guillermo del Toro’s Cabinet of Curiosities, which is a horror anthology on Netflix. It only got the one season, and despite being quite entertaining, Netflix sadly decided not to renew it for a season two. The collection got a few horror gems, but the stand-out is definitely The Viewing, so I’m glad we at least got that story before being axed like a slasher victim.

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Jagged Alliance 3 – Abandoned? [Video]

One of the best franchise revivals in recent times was Jagged Alliance 3, which had its release three years ago. Time flies, huh? Jagged Alliance 3 was a good game, so naturally most of us expected that the franchise wouldn’t go dormant again so soon after such a strong resurrection, but it did. And honestly, it’s a complete and utter waste, considering how cool the series is, and how good a job the developer Haemimont Games did. Not one DLC, not even a single word about the future of the franchise. In this excellent video by Kordanor’s Gaming Lair—Kordanor (he kinda looks like a JA merc) talks about these issues: why things stalled, and what to expect.

It’s mostly speculation, of course, but he does clear up a few things. Such as who owns what now (IP, dev team), a fact that makes this much more complicated than one thinks. The future isn’t looking too bright though… Video after the jump!

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