Recent reviews by endril

The game coming out in parts over such a long time might seem like a drag, but it ends up working in its favor. Even a small reveal of information, after sitting on things for so many years, feels like such a big deal. It makes me wonder about people who play it all at once in the future; maybe they'll have a completely different experience than we did.

It gives the impression that it will get interesting and then doesn't get all that interesting

Singularity Poker

I played as Kiryu Coco, and she picked up a toilet and threw it at Yagoo. She would want it this way

Imagine playing rock-paper-scissors and, improbable thought it may seem, you lose 50 consecutive rounds. That's what it's like playing this game

It's got danmakus and a cool upgrade system and you play as patchouli knowledge

I am giving this game a positive review, while also spelling out what might be the most damning criticism possible.

To start on a positive note: I quickly became obsessed with this game and its very deep system of customization. My 90 hours played only scratches the surface of the effect it had on me. I probably spent 6+ hours a day just theory-crafting in my head, playing with the vast space of possibilities. I really enjoyed the time I spent with it and I retire from the game with no ill will. (Also: the music is very good, and the graphics have a kitschy charm to them.)

The criticism: A game with infinite rules is essentially the same thing as a game with no rules. As you advance to the higher levels, it becomes a herculean task just trying to comprehend what is happening in combat. There are 12 creatures in a battle, each with 3 or more traits, plus dozens of different buffs and debuffs, hundreds of character perks, hundreds of spells, artifact slots, realm effects, etc etc etc. The fights become like Rube Goldberg machines, where you select a single option from a menu, setting off some unknowable cascade of events, during which truly anything could happen. By the time you get to make another input, perhaps every creature on the field has died and come back to life multiple times, every stat on every creature has increased or decreased by tremendous amounts, some trait (somewhere) has triggered and now the enemy creatures are immune to everything you do. After a while, you stop asking "wait, why did that happen?" Trying to follow the logic behind it all is a fool's errand. You resign yourself to whatever the outcome is, and say "damn, that's crazy, all right." When you win, you just feel lucky that the enemy team didn't have some card up their sleeve to destroy you at the last second. When you lose, you shrug your shoulders; how were you supposed to know that would happen?

In spite of all this, I actually recommend the game still. There is a truly incredible amount of content, and it's extremely engaging, comparable to something like Magic: The Gathering, where seeing a single line of rules text can get your wheels turning, leading to anything from a modest improvement to your strategy, up to a completely new approach unlike any you've tried before. Eventually it falls over like a 15-dimensional house of cards, but perhaps that's to be expected.

You may think this is a game about monkeys throwing darts, which it is, but it is also about the capability of living beings to cultivate strength and surpass the difficulties of existence.

"Out of early access" ???
Nothing about this is balanced or well-designed. What cool ideas are here are not implemented intelligently.
You'd expect better from one of the best-known names in roguelikes.
Will this game be good one day? I don't actually know, it's too early in development to tell.

The good parts are good and the bad parts are bad.

Bad parts:
I was led to believe it was a huge improvement on 2016, but in fact it's not as good as 2016.
The writing gets even further away from what I think "DOOM" is. Old DOOM is an action/survivalhorror game drawing heavily on Alien. New DOOM you play something beyond even a superhero or a chosen one; you're like the cosmic avatar of retribution.
There are a few jokes in the game that have some really uncomfortable implications, but maybe it's best not to dwell on them.
There's an emphasis on multiplayer content which I have no interest in. It's surprisingly intrusive too, you're frequently alerted about unlocking new profile customizations and so on.

Good parts:
I actually enjoyed hunting for collectibles in this game. The fast travel option is a huge help.
Music is excellent and the environments are great.
The system of resource management is very interesting. It takes a while to internalize it all, but once you do, it's fun.
All the weapons are good. You develop a personal playstyle that depends which weapon upgrades you choose as you go.
I enjoy having a home base that you return to to gather your bearings, it has a comfortable feeling to it.
There's no enemy types that I became frustrated with. Even the marauders, clearly designed to be feared and hated by players, were not a problem once you discover their pattern.

Final verdict: For all my reservations, I do recommend it, primarily for gameplay reasons. If you want to shoot a shotgun, here you go.