Lessaria: Fantasy Kingdom Sim – Playtest Impressions

If you are missing a comfy game like Majesty 2 in your life, I got a treat for you. Lessaria: Fantasy Kingdom Sim is a spiritual successor to Majesty 2 coming out this year according to Steam. I was invited to playtest the game, where I tried out three campaign missions and an endless mode. My first impressions are very positive. It retains that cozy approach to gaming where you just feel relaxed (just like Majesty 2), due to its presentation and gameplay. Even the original narrator returns! However, even perfect weather comes with a few clouds of rain.

Continue reading →

The Temple of Elemental Evil (Rediscovered)

I have been playing the semi-forgotten party based D&D RPG Temple of Elemental Evil from 2003 with the mods Temple+ (engine fixes) and Circle of Eight (more engine fixes, + extra game content). The reason I mention the mods so early in the article, is that when I played Temple of Elemental Evil the first time, none of these mods existed. And Temple of Elemental Evil was not a stable game, at all, at release. However, it showed serious potential, which these excellent modders saw and started to work on. These mods are now, as I can see it: essential. Temple+ for the numerous fixes, and Circle of Eight for the additional quests, that makes the first part of the game much more enjoyable.

Continue reading →

Dungeons & Dragons Neverwinter Nights 2: Enhanced Edition – Impressions

I’m not a Neverwinter Nights 2 expert, since I never gave the original release much more than about twenty hours or so for the first main campaign. That’s a minuscule amount of time, considering the collection on GoG, and now this Enhanced Edition comes with several expansions, and a whole sea of player made custom adventures. However, I do know why I never finished it. It had camera issues, party-control felt messy, stuttering, questionable story beats, and overall jank that brought the experience down. It has always been my plan to play again one day though, so why not now when the golden opportunity presents itself? With that, the only question remains: has the Neverwinter Nights 2: Enhanced Edition remedied any of my concerns?

Continue reading →

The Blood of Dawnwalker – (strange) Gameplay Overview video

Boy, this is a weird one! While the game looks somewhat interesting thanks to the setting (medieval Europe setting with vampires) and it being an RPG – The Blood of Dawnwalker feels extremely derivative of the games The Witcher 2 & 3. I don’t mean tiny bits of general gameplay here. Everything feels and looks like it has been copied directly from those titles. The UI, the map, and icons, the investigation mechanics, the floaty death-of-thousand-cuts combat, Hex magic and then the visuals itself. What the hell is going on here? I have never seen a presentation like this before, where every segment of a game being showcased reminds me exactly of an older title.

Continue reading →

Eriksholm: The Stolen Dream – Demo Impressions

My next title on the Steam NextFest repertoire is Eriksholm: The Stolen Dream. It’s a beautiful stealth game viewed from an isometric viewpoint. The premise and setting reminds me of A Plague Tale: Requiem, but with a brother sidekick that isn’t the bearer of rat demons – yet. The visuals and the story are very charming, and detailed. But what about the gameplay?

Continue reading →