Deus Ex: Human Revolution – Sneaking is Life

Deus Ex: Human Revolution is a stealth-based first & third-person action/RPG, set in a futuristic setting where conspiracy is law, and enchanting your abilities through limb augments is as common as the regular cold. It’s made by Eidos Montréal, and it’s a prequel to the legendary PC game Deus Ex. While it does feel more serious compared to the original, the tone and thematic setting remain the same. This review will be based on the initial PC release, and not the sham and semi-abomination that is the later released Director’s Cut.

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A Plague Tale: Requiem – Are we the baddies?

A Plague Tale: Requiem is a stealth-based third-person action/adventure, made by the developers Asobo Studio. It’s a sequel to A Plague Tale: Innocence and the story picks off where the first one left off. Now, I like the Last of Us and its gameplay loop as much as the next guy, and this game is almost a carbon copy of it, at least when it comes to how it is structured, in theory anyway. So, I don’t mind the occasional narrative-driven AAA game, but when the pacing constantly turns the game into a walking simulator, we are going to have a problem.

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In Cold Blood – Best Served English

In Cold Blood is an adventure/stealth-action/puzzle game made by Revolution Software. I think it can be most likened to Resident Evil of old, and similar titles, going by the tank controls, survival mechanics, and the light inventory management with environmental puzzles. Right up my alley, except I had to play the game with my keyboard, since I couldn’t get the gamepad to work correctly. Not the most pleasant experience, unfortunately, but doable. So, while I do enjoy these old games with archaic controls, In Cold Blood would benefit from a remake, preferably in the Metal Gear Solid 5 engine (Fox engine), if we are allowed to dream.

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The Excavation of Hob’s Barrow – Cave Doom

The Excavation of Hob’s Barrow is a point & click adventure game by Cloak and Dagger Games. It’s set in Britain during the olden times with a story steeped in British folklore, faintly sprinkled by Lovecraft. Now, I don’t want to say everything occult, otherworldly must be Lovecraft, and I wouldn’t say this was inspired by it either, until the end that is. For it’s only a small segment of the game, time-wise, but it’s a huge part of the narrative – so, there we go.

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Eternal Darkness: Sanity’s Requiem

Eternal Darkness is a Lovecraft-inspired survival horror from all the way back in 2002. It was made by Silicon Knights and released for Nintendo Gamecube only. However, thanks to emulators (Dolphin in this case), it’s possible for even me to play it without too much trouble. I did try it out when it was released, though, since I borrowed a friend’s Gamecube to play this game specifically and Resident Evil (the remaster). I don’t remember the reason, but I never got very far – I can only assume my focus was on finishing Resident Evil before I had to return the console. Anyway, here we are, and I have just completed Eternal Darkness, and what can I say? It’s a great addition to the genre, even if a bit linear at times. It did feel good to once again have to use tank controls and experience fixed camera angles. It’s kinda ironic because nowadays developers are hell-bent on cinematic experiences, yet, have totally ignored fixed camera angles, which to me personally feels very movie-like. If embraced, it would make their lives much easier since the game director has full control over what you will see and how.

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