REPLACED is out!

REPLACED was just released on Gog and Steam, in which I bought a copy on Steam. I wasn’t entirely sure at first, but I figured I needed some dystopian cyberpunk in my life—and well, I enjoyed the demo. I have been playing for about two hours by now, and my first impression is positive. It seems to be a well-defined cyberpunk world set in the 80s—and the story has that conspiratorial vibe that I love.

Who knows if the story will hold up until the end, but so far it has been intriguing. The visuals are spectacular for a 2D platformer, leaning hard into Blade Runner -esque aesthetics. The gameplay, the jumping and the free-form combat is fun as well, and I can only assume it will become more and more difficult to survive the brawling of death. You will find the release trailer below!

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Swordhaven: Iron Conspiracy – IS OUT!

After about a year in Early Access on Steam following its successful Kickstarter campaign, Swordhaven: Iron Conspiracy is finally out! I have invested a few hours into it, but it was a while back (about a year ago). I remember being entertained in a low-level RPG way, similar to Baldur’s Gate, which I just love. Funnily enough, this was said back then too, but I’m sticking with it! I don’t think much has changed in that regard, though—except that we have a full game on our hands now. So, it’s a pure Christmas joy, as I didn’t actually know it was this close to release, yet, here we are. Make sure to take a gander over at their Steam page, if you want a cozy, grounded adventure during the winter months. And the price is not too shabby, just a bit over twenty euros, making it a steal!

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Assassin’s Creed Chronicles: Russia – Borscht for the Masses

It’s time for the final game in the Assassin’s Creed Chronicles series. We are now in Russia, and we will get to stick our bayonet into both proto-commies and Brotherhood members. A welcome change, indeed. Unfortunately, Assassin’s Creed Chronicles: Russia is probably the worst of the lot, despite it having the coolest setting, and probably the best narrative. It starts out relatively well, but then it embraces all the painful mechanics of the other titles in the series, and turns it up to eleven.

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Assassin’s Creed Chronicles: India – Punjab Adventures

The Assassin’s Creed Chronicles continues with Assassin’s Creed Chronicles: India. While it’s a better game on a technical, story and gameplay level, I’m not sure if I appreciated the added difficulty in the form of assassination immune units, multiple timed events, and forced stealth segments. Specifically the last one, which I think ruined a unique aspect of Assassin’s Creed Chronicles: China. The mechanic that lets you continue despite your failures, but punishes you with a lower score. Now, that is still a thing, yet, way too many levels suffer from insta-restart if you make the tiniest mistake.

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Assassin’s Creed Chronicles: China – Mongol Prevention

It’s once again time to assassinate a bunch of folk. From people of history to the lowly unknown guards, just doing their boring job of walking back and forth, thinking about their life decisions. To eventually not change one thing, so the Templar-Assassin’s Brotherhood war can continue in perpetuity. Yep, I’m going into Assassin’s Creed Chronicles: China a bit salty. It’s because of the drawn out modern-time plot of the Assassin’s Creed franchise that never seems to go anywhere. However, I’m pleased to say that the gameplay is top-notch, even if the story is a standard revenge type of thing, in the usual Assassin’s Creed manner.

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