Recent reviews by D Tempest

It's just not for me. I've already got Warframe.

It's not at all badly put together. It's a competently put together game. Where Warframe has a Primary gun, a Secondary gun, and Melee in terms of weapon slots, this game just has three slots that you can put whatever gun you want into, and has nothing comparable in terms of close-range combat.

Other than that, the primary difference is that it has loads of hot humans, and maps are pre-fabricated set-pieces like in Destiny, rather than mostly procedurally assembled tile-sets like in Warframe.

I can't speak to the monetization, I didn't partake of it. Gameplay-wise, it's FAR from bad. I just already have games that accomplish for me what First Descendant is trying to do. It's a niche that's already filled, if you will.

I haven't played an Armored Core game since the Xbox 360, and ever since then, mech games have been pretty scarce. I've bided my time with Titanfall2 and Daemon X Machina, but at long last, an Armored Core sequel is delivered to us in the year 2023!

I have exactly ONE (arguably) legit complaint about the game, and it's that the new melee weapons can't be doubled-up on. You can only wield melee weapons with the left hand, and you can technically pack two melee weapons once you've unlocked the shoulder-mounted weapon bays, but you cannot just go in dual-wielding melee weapons. Also I guess you can't exit your mech at will, a'la Daemon X Machina, or Titanfall, but that has ever been the case with the Armored Core games, so there's NO reason to expect otherwise.

I love everything else about this game. The sense of scale frequently shocked me, the game performed smoothly and I hesitate to describe the action as anything short of elegant. The sound design is appropriately heavy and chunky, with the speed of rapid boosts rivaling the anime absurdity of Gundam.

Weapons hit hard, shoulder-mounted SONGBIRD cannons SLAM backward as they launch massive explosive rounds at hefty quat-legged walking bulwarks armed to the teeth with missile salvos.

Please bear in mind, however, that this is NOT a Soulsborne game. There are no i-frames. and the primary solution to all problems is not just "git gud," but also "build and prep for the situation." In a way, that makes this immediately either more or less accessible depending on the gaming background you're coming from. The time you spend in the garage tinkering with your Core is just as important, if not MORESO, than the time you spend piloting said Core in a given mission.

I'm hoping this game's success brings us more titles of like design, takings risks and doing exciting new hybridizations and things with the mech genre. I'm also keen to see if we get any DLC in the future, particularly featuring more quad legs and treads. I swear, every time I finished a chapter and received a notification that new parts were available for purchase, I'd run to the in-game shop like a kid on Christmas.

Until then, have fun customizing with loads of parts, custom paintjobs, and an extensive custom decal toolkit.

See you out there, Raven!

There really aren't enough games like this, either mechanically or thematically. Directing a large combat force whilst taking part is really cool, conceptually, and this game achieves that with a very elegant flow.

I really wish more games would approach necromancy or minion army mechanics with this game's feeling and style in mind. I haven't enjoyed being a necromancer this much since the mastermind specialization in City of Villains.

Back when I first reviewed this game, I left a far-too-long post that would have better served as a forum-post feedback.
This game is excellent for me both in single-player and multiplayer. I've yet to do anything relating to PvP, so I can't speak to that aspect of it.

I have but one complaint, given the present structure of the game, and it's that as far as your ability load-out goes, you're limited to two spells and a dash/dodge augmentation. They've made significant changes and updates since early access that addressed the gargantuan majority of my previous gripes. Multi-story castles, better visuals, so much style, DEEP character customization, and a satisfying gameplay loop amidst loads of adjustable options to customize the difficulty of your campaign to become the new Lord of these lands.

Truly couldn't recommend this game more than for the edgelords and wanna-be Castlevania Draculas that hide amongst the shadows and arcades in the oppressive sting of daylight.

Given it comes at the low price of "free", it's a good get. A little inaccurate, though.

While you never do seem to get rid of Mitch McConnell, no matter how many times you stomp on them to eject them from their shells, it is appreciated that they at least paid proper respect in regards to his neck and general lack of spine.

The crying MAGA hat wearers that pop out of trash cans are surprisingly on-point.

Texas being depicted as a cold, dank boss dungeon is definitely hard to believe though. Ruined my immersion.

I missed Halo Reach really badly. I didn't appreciate that this collection required participating in "season" activities to unlock cosmetics I spent time grinding credits to obtain a decade ago, but thankfully they happily released this game with an option to launch without anti-cheat, allowing you to mod the game to your heart's desire.

What's more, while it gates matchmaking to keep the playing field fair, it fully allows you to throw together games with your friends however you wish. We've all got the gear we unlocked years ago, we're all back on Reach, fighting the Covenant. We're all dying like idiots while my nostalgia grapples with the change to keyboard/mouse controls.

I love it.

Sometimes you maybe imagine a situation where you brawl your way through a gruesome prison riot or brutal bar fight, yeah? This does an unusual-yet-effective job of simulating what would happen if that day dream of yours collided with a minecraft knock-off, but someone forgot to remove all the fun.

Comes loaded with all sorts of modes and cheats so you can go on a total power-trip to blow of some steam and creatively redecorate countless settings with a more macabre aesthetic. Like painting it a particular color or something.

I really enjoyed the concept, world, and writing. It was very engaging and I'm looking forward to seeing me.

That being said, I found the controls held me back from having a really great time with this. Perhaps there was something wrong with my mouse, or I'm just no good at swinging a sword around madly with my mouse to deflect bullets, but it just kept me from enjoying it as much as I would've liked.

I can't understate how much I dig the atmosphere, though. Check it out if you've got a free hour or so!

I had a dream where I was playing this game, but it had the graphical stylings of Wind Waker.

It was a bizarre dream, certainly, but waking up from it was disappointing.

This game isn't disappointing, though. Accept it. The futility of resistance can't possibly be lost on you. Imbibe the game.

This game's wit and charm alone are enough to merit a recommendation, but even with my terrifically bad puzzle-solving skills, I must celebrate its gameplay.

Imagine if Inspector Gadget were fused with Dirk Gently, and the resultant amalgam was a really big fan of the Oddworld games back on the Playstation. If I'm not being clear, or if those references just mean I'm old and crazy about three decades ahead of time, just buy the damn game.

It make laugh real good.