SKALD: Against the Black Priory – Tentacle Island

Polish your sword, and stock up on the travel weed, because it’s time to explore the cursed islands of SKALD: Against the Black Priory. While I don’t have much of a personal nostalgia connected to the Commodore 64, the graphics still manage to warm me in its low-pixelated glory of the past. However, it’s not without issues, as the amount of detail can actually be a detriment on this somewhat humble scale. At times it’s hard to distinguish the environment, seeing where you can or can’t go. It means when playing with a keyboard, you will have to prepare yourself to slam into objects like a bumper car trapped inside a tiny arena with randomly placed walls all over. Outside of that, it’s a pretty fine party-based adventure in the style of classic Dungeons and Dragons fantasy.

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Xenonauts 2 [Early Access] – Round Five

Yup, I’m back to it. You can say that I’m a tad Xenonauts 2 addicted. I dream of one day in the far-off future playing the full game before I wither away of old age and die (and probably be repurposed as food). To be fair, while the release takes its sweet time, we are closing in on that date with the latest release. Version 4.0.0 (prototype edition) was recently published in the experimental branch and I just had to give it a go. However, there is one problem. I didn’t get very far, because one bug kept popping up, annoying the hell out of me. Sometimes the wraiths bug out with a permanent t-pose. You can target and kill them by pressing down CTRL and using the free-fire mode. But any action they do beyond moving, and if they trigger any form of overwatch from you, the game/turn locks up, forcing a shutdown of the game. So, you can see why this is aggravating and is a snag on the general enjoyment.

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Star Trek: Away Team – Vulcan nerve pinch to Victory

When I was younger I loved Star Trek: Away Team, but with age, my taste in games has changed – well, at least certain time-consuming mechanics, like games resting on endless save & reloading. It’s still somewhat of a charming experience playing it now, however, being a Commandos clone there is A LOT of trial and error involved. That is not all, as this title also has a bit of a quirky and archaic control system. It undeniably adds up when half of your attempts fail due to control issues. Yet, as mentioned, it’s still appealing since it’s set in the Star Trek: The Next Generation timeline (best timeline), has nice looking retro graphics, excellent voice acting and presentation, and a pretty good story to boot.

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The Drifter – Demo Impressions

It was a long time since I was so thoroughly impressed with a point-and-click adventure game. And not only from a visual, auditory, and technical perspective – the atmosphere and general writing are top notch too. The demo was rather short, but it sure as hell left me yearning for more. Unfortunately, I don’t see a set date for release on Steam. So, who knows when it will be released? It sucks as I want more of The Drifter, and to be able to dig deeper into the captivating story of the wandering vagabond.

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King Arthur: Legion IX – Pax Romana

It’s time to once again adventure in Avalon. However, this time around we are ditching the knights of the Round Table in favor of a long-lost Roman legion. Seeing as King Arthur: Legion IX is an expansion for King Arthur: Knight’s Tale made stand-alone, you will not be getting the same amount of game as the original. That is all fine and dandy considering it being a DLC with a lower price point, but what I didn’t expect going in, was the much more streamlined experience. Many of the cool “Xcom” aspects of King Arthur: Knight’s Tale have been cut, like for example tending to wounds, building up your colony, and maintaining a team in the form of picking and choosing whom to take on missions.

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