Recent reviews by Ray

On par with Resident Evil 4 if not better. Incredible game.

Silent Hill F is, overall, a mental rollercoaster. The story keeps you guessing, and if you take the time to read notes and explore, the narrative slowly comes together. Like other mainline Silent Hill games, there are multiple endings, but only one is available during the initial playthrough.

This is where the game starts to falter. I don’t mind replaying a game to unlock different endings, but the combat is its biggest weakness. Encounters feel sluggish and janky, with attacks locking you into animations that punish small timing mistakes. Combat requires a lot of patience, and because of this, I didn’t feel motivated to play through the game again. Instead, I watched the alternate endings on YouTube.

The puzzles, on the other hand, are very engaging. On hard difficulty, they require critical thinking and an understanding of the game’s characters and emotional themes.

Despite these issues, the game was enjoyable overall. The world-building is strong, the voice acting is top-notch, and the music creates a perfectly unsettling atmosphere, making it a solid addition to the Silent Hill franchise.

Way better than what I was expecting. Mage build feels rewarding with its slow power creep. Game is relaxing with friends. A great break from competitive games.

ARC Raiders: A Breath of Fresh Air for Extraction Shooters

When I first played The Finals, I was blown away by Embark’s attention to detail. The intuitive UI, the weighty sound design, and the overall polish. So, when I learned they were creating their own extraction shooter, my excitement skyrocketed.

ARC Raiders doesn’t disappoint. Its PvP is intense, the gunplay feels powerful, and the world-building is distinct and atmospheric. Even the AI demands respect, creating encounters that rival those against human players. Like all good extraction shooters, it’s unforgiving. Losing a gear set you’ve carried through several raids hurts every time, yet it’s exactly that risk that keeps you coming back for more.

Naturally, comparisons to Escape From Tarkov are unavoidable. While Tarkov wasn’t the first extraction shooter, it defined the genre with its realism and punishing mechanics. Having spent nearly a year’s worth of hours in Tarkov, I can confidently say that while the gameplay loops are similar, ARC Raiders and Tarkov diverge in design philosophy. Tarkov itself is brilliant yet demanding. Being difficult to run on older hardware, time-consuming, and endgame achievements being inaccessible to casual players. ARC Raiders, on the other hand, feels like the genre’s evolution: it opens the door to a wider audience without sacrificing depth.

With crossplay, a strong foundation, and Embark’s proven passion, ARC Raiders could be the bridge between hardcore and mainstream extraction shooters. If Embark continues to nurture it with the same care they gave The Finals, we might be witnessing the next defining title of the genre.

The atmosphere kept me hooked. Driving around while listening to jungle DnB with retro CRT style graphics is such a vibe. Purchased immediately after I saw the initial trailer and do not regret a single thing.

Great game with tons of content. Looking forward to Yotei

The golden standard of RPG's. Finally got around to finishing it with no worries that I would enjoy it all the way through.

Game was honestly way better than what I was expecting. Atmosphere and dialogue stay true to Robocop's original 80's roots as well as notable characters like Reed and Lewis making an appearance. Animations felt super clunky with some characters, but I believe this was due to them paying homage to the original stop motion animation. Combat was fun and the gun upgrades took a bit of thinking to get the most efficient combination. Game was not without its faults though. I crashed multiple times especially near the end, possibly having to do with a memory leak or alt tabbing. There also were a few instances where the game soft locked forcing me to reload a save to progress. Overall I had a great experience and will be picking up the standalone DLC.

Story was mid, but character development for all main characters was peak. Game splits you into two separate parties half way through the game. At first it is off-putting, but eventually you find new combos while mix and matching jobs. Game has tons of content and i really enjoyed the way they handled the bond system.

It is the perfect closure to the Yakuza series. You can tell the studio has taken all the good from the bad from the previous titles and incorporated it into this game. I am so glad I spent the time to play every single main title to get to where we are now. The main story is a bit shorter than what you would be used to from previous games, but there is no shortage of content. Kiryu finally gets his true ending and now its Ichiban's turn to be the poster boy. You would be doing yourself a disservice not playing this game if you are a true fan of the series.