Recent reviews by Sam Dynes

Great sequel to a great game. Love the 70s setting and the new painted art style.. Lots of small changes in gameplay from the original that make this one a slightly smoother experience.

Has about half a dozen more levels than Case of the Golden Idol but also doesn't really get hard like the later levels from the first or any of the levels from the DLCs until very late in the game. Mostly just one/two panel investigations until the final stretch. In some ways this is welcome, because those levels in the original were quite overwhelming and messy, but it does feel like ROTGI is wasting too much of its time not getting to those difficult levels more gradually over the course of the game, instead settling on these remarkably easy, smaller levels for hours.

Whilst it goes in some places that are perhaps more interesting than the first, the plot here is also a bit weaker than in COTGI. Where that game had a solid cast of recurring characters, recognisable faces, manners of speaking, in service of a conspiracy that unfolds naturally and clearly, in ROTGI, there are constantly sets of new characters being thrown out every few levels, often times in ways that don't really serve a purpose in that overarching story, and are just there to repeatedly exemplify the way the Idol or the various groups in this operate. It often feels like plot threads are left open and dropped purely so they can be explored later in DLCs, which is fine, but undermines the tightness of the story proper.

Incredible

feels less like a DLC and more like a semi-sequel to the original game. plays much better if you've already completed the game at least once, especially in its ending moments. speaking of which, on top of the branching endings for the DLC story itself, there's also one final additional ending to the main game, one which completely ends your save, unlike the rest of them, which instantly throw you back in the world again. it's just as melancholy as the original ending paths, but much more final and feels like a reflection on the game itself, now that it's been out for a couple years, and it's a real, definitive end to the story, as sad as it is.

phantom liberty isn't all about the endings though, obviously, and the rest of this is really great too. story is of a similar quality to cyberpunk's main storyline, swapping out the city-trotting gang and espionage filled quests for a streamlined 'spy' story, which takes obvious cues from james bond and mission impossible in some of its most memorable moments - and even takes a survival horror turn at one point towards the end. the characters are all interesting, the visuals are as great as ever, the new city region is fun, albeit small, and there's a new array of weapons to try out. it's a shame that so much of the egregiously lame slang undermines the dialogue in those less meditative moments though. i don't ever want to hear the words 'choom', 'gonk', 'eddies' or 'preem' ever again. just obscenely corny

wonderful game. ending & lead in to new game plus is thematically interesting and metatextual in a way that few games are. looking forward to another run through #true

best horror game in a while. incredibly rewarding gameplay loop

good game