Recent reviews by Untold

I agree with other reviewers that Starfield is a failed experiment. It is worth the price of admission, though - At least on sale. At its core, Starfield is a procedurally generated game with hundreds of planets that are all pretty similar to each other, where nearly all of the places of interest are replicas of each other on the different planets, and space serves as a combat zone and loading screen. The immersion of games like Skyrim and Fallout 4 just isn't really here. The feeling of "Wow, this is a real place" from those games comes from the meticulous environment detail and random encounters, with the game world jam-packed with stuff to do. In Starfield, you spend your time running from one place of interest to the next, looking for things to do, with nothingness in between. There are very few random encounters in the world. Everything feels like it revolves around you, the player. Enemies wait for you to show up to their base. Enemy ships wait for you to fly to their space. The cities in the game feel so ridiculously small and uninspired that they serve more as a place to buy ammo/medpacks and leave than anything. I think using generative AI would have been a huge help in this game, but that technology isn't really "there" yet for the gaming world, at least. Gen. AI dialogue, notes, and computer files in the game would have made things more interesting. All that being said, I enjoyed Starfield and do think it will improve greatly in the future with the help of the modding community.

Two main issues I have with the game. The first is boss battles - I really don't think the cat-and-mouse style boss battles are suitable for Halo. The bosses are all way OP on legendary difficulty.

The second issue is the plot/main enemies are cringey and stereotypical evil villains. All the stuff about Cortana was not interesting to me at all. I ended up skipping most of the cutscenes. I definitely think that the plot was one of the worst of the Halo games (maybe better than Halo 4 and 5 but worse than the others).

Besides that, the game was a blast to play. I really enjoyed the open world gameplay. There's a ton of replayability here because not only can you replay missions, you can also re-populate bases with enemies after you've cleared them the first time and take them down again. And, you can just drive around the map killing stuff if you want.

Even though Halo Infinite's story/plot/characters aren't as good as most of the previous games, I'd say Infinite has pretty much the most replayability out of all the Halo games, so Infinite is well-worth getting into.

Good main story, beauitful city/environment. Shooting/melee was pretty fun, too.

Negatives: Incredibly dumb AI (worse than GTA San Andreas), dumb enemy AI, no police chases, city sometimes looks like a PS2 environment. Bad physics and attention to detail. Map is crammed full of icons and objectives and becomes overwhelming. Bad driving controls. Can't ride the cool futuristic train and can't pilot/ride the hovercrafts except for missions. I was expecting much more from this game. I think it would have been better if it weren't open world, because the open world to me felt quite lifeless and fake compared to other open world games. However, the story and environmental design make this game worth recommending.
6/10, try to nab it for $30 or less

This game is super fun. The AI is pretty good, even by today's standards. The gunfights are like Far Cry 2 on Infamous difficulty - Precision and tactics are key, and the enemies are about as deadly as you are. I really love all the maps and have so much fun playing the Terrorist Hunt mode. Definitely recommended. Keyboard + Mouse only (Xbox One controller didn't work).

I've really enjoyed the Metro series, and I liked Metro Exodus as much or more than the others. I wasn't a big fan of exploring the open world levels and usually went straight to the mission objectives, but there's definitely a lot of content here if you want to see everything. The game engine itself was a bit unstable in boot-up, but after that it was usually smooth-sailing. I liked most aspects of the game, but the enemy AI in this game are pretty dumb and predictable, and sometimes the combat felt a bit 'off.' But the overall story was great, and I really loved the two DLCs, Tale of Two Colonels and Sam's Story. Both had fascinating stories and felt like stories that needed to be told, not just random stories to justify a DLC and get your money. Definitely recommend this game if you're a fan of Metro 2033 and Last Light.

I've been a huge Halo Reach fan for years but only just played the other Halo campaigns this year. 343 Industries is awesome for bringing this to PC. After having played all the games, my least favorite Halo Games are 1 and 4. This review is for H4.
I was excited to see what 343 Industries would bring to the table, but Halo 4 is a complete slog, especially the Promethean things. Those battles were not fun for me. The story didn't make sense to me at all, as an average Halo fan. Why are we doing this? What's our goal now? I never understood WHY I had to press this button to remove this shield to shoot at this thing. And since I didn't know why we were doing things, I didn't end up caring much. In addition, most levels are completely repetitive, monotonous, and generally not fun. It really felt like a chore. Anyway, I ended up loving Halo MCC overall and am thankful to 343 for bringing the games to PC.

Highly, highly recommended! I've virtually been playing this since 2004. I like this game better than Battlefront 2 but have been playing the latter since this game was not on Steam. BF2 has some fantastic maps, but I prefer this one's maps and gameplay. Also, the AI is surprisingly harder than I remember, and very smart, too! Also, you can prone, which is super fun. I prefer BF1's UI, character skins, and planet intros. You can never go wrong with classic Battlefront, so much fun.

When Corvo and I took to the streets of Dunwall in Dishonored 1, I would read the in-game books describing Tyvia, Morley, Serkonos, and Gristol and marvel at this excellent world of lore that Arkane has created. There was so much I wanted to see, and I could only dream about visiting a city like Karnaca.

For lovers of lore and world-buildling like I am, Dishonored 2 is extraordinary. Before, Dishonored meant Dunwall, but the addition of Karnaca in Dishonored 2 has transformed the Isles into a genuine world, and frankly, it's immensely exciting.

Karnaca is just as amazing as Dunwall. The colorful, decaying buildings and monolithic trees are a beautiful counterpoint to Dunwall's ashen, once-regal boulevards, towering whale oil refineries, and hagfish murals. Instead of hearing the deep horns of whaling ships on the Wrenhaven River, you'll listen to the insects and wildlife populating Serkonos. And taking the place of the Clocktower of Dunwall are wind tubes soaring over the city.

Every mission is just as good as or better than those of Dishonored 1. The impeccable level design we've come to expect from Arkane is here, and the environments of each mission are stunningly beautiful. Aside from virtual tourism, each mission offers intriguing enemies, a variety of choices that will impact the world, and sidequests.

Dishonored 2's combat is better than ever. I played Corvo Attano without powers on hard and ended up spending most of my time in lethal assault combat. If I had wanted to ghost the entire game, however, I'm fully convinced that I could have done so without powers and on hard. Combat was always intense; enemies were skilled at parrying and working together to surround or corner me, and even encounters with bloodflies and wolfhounds were exhilarating.

Dishonored 2 rivals Dishonored 1 in lore. The books scattered across Karnaca are well-written and interesting, and the voice acting in audiologs and NPC conversations is quality work and does establish believability. In addition, the voice actors behind Corvo and Emily are excellent, and their voices fit their characters.

The eerie music-- signature to the Dishonored series-- is here, and to be honest, there's nothing like it. It's still subtle and does take a backseat to the environmental storytelling, but I loved every bit of it.

The plot is an acceptable continuation of Delilah's quest for power. It's another tale of revenge, of course, and it works well in this sequel. However, it is easier to relate to Hiram Burrows, Pendleton, Havelock and Martin in Dishonored 1 than it is to Meagan Foster, Aramis Stilton, and Kirin Jindosh in this iteration, as Dishonored 2's characters are rather one-dimensional.

Arkane's Void Engine looks beautiful, but its performance has not met my expectations. My GTX 970 struggled with the game's object-dense locations (The Royal Conservatory and Kirin Jindosh's laboratory especially) despite running a medley of high and medium settings and having most of the bells and whistles turned off.

I love Dishonored 2. It's not perfect, but it's every bit as amazing as Dishonored 1, and I cannot wait to go back and play with powers. This world that Arkane has created is absolutely incredible, and I hope that the studio fleshes the Isles out even more with a journey to Tyvia or Morley in Dishonored 3. Wherever they decide to go, I'm on board.

Have you ever watched Gladiator and wished that you had been born in 100 AD? Do you wish that you could spend your time fighting for your life before a Roman emperor instead of working for Nationwide Insurance?
If so, I'd recommend that you play this game.
Gladius is not perfect, but it's the best gladiator experience on the market right now. As I booted up the game, I was immediately impressed by the graphics-- detailed textures and beautiful lighting and fire effects-- and thereby realized that this is a high quality game. I utilized the teleportation system to move around the training area, but walking with the trackpad is an option for people who want a more realistic experience. I discovered upon exploring the training area a collection of weapons and helmets that can be unlocked by beating different challenges in the arena, which does give the game some replay value.
Once I picked up the sword and shield and put on the helmet, I was ready to fight. I started round 1... and was literally dumbfounded by the scale of the arena. Granted, the environment is not perfect-- the audience looks like a bunch of cardboard cutouts who raise their hands at the same time in enthusiasm, breaking immersion-- but the arena itself is so huge that it truly feels as if you are there. The proportions of everything feel correct, and the arena is gorgeous, with godrays coming down from the sky and different structural details that make the world come alive. The enemies come quickly and are relentless, swinging fast with different attacks that challenge your reflexes. To help you, though, the developers have created a feature allowing you to slow time and set up the perfect parry or slash, and they have also made the enemies pause between each attack so you have a chance to launch into a counterattack. The combat feels good, and I am glad it does as it's the focus of the game. There are some problems with hit detection, and there are a few glitches (when my sword hit the tigers, the game made a clink sound as if I were striking at a shield), but the combat is excellent overall and becomes a workout.
As the blood splatters on the arena's floor, the audience screams in a wild frenzy, and sweat runs down my face, I remember why I invested in virtual reality in the first place. It's to visit exciting worlds both old and new, interact with the environments, and have fun, and this game checks those boxes. Gladius is a blast!

Edit 22/11/2017
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Still one of my favorite games of all time. Insanely fun every time I play, and more so with content mods and a good ENB (Olympus ENB). Worth every hour I put into it, and I suggest that you keep an eye on Fallout 4 VR (and Skyrim Vr / Doom VFR) in the future!
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Upon ascending to the platform above Vault 111, I remember seeing the beautiful world in a state of stupefaction. I had expected that like the worlds of other Fallout games, the Commonwealth would be a grotesque world of greys and browns, yet I saw at once that this one was utterly different.

The Commonwealth is as beautiful as Skyrim. The radiation storms of the Glowing Sea create lightning that dances in the distance as you circumvent Deathclaws and Supermutants entrenched in battle. In the night, formidable power armor-equipped raiders shine their headlamps on Boston's beaches, looking out for mirelurks and ghouls, and the impressive Mass Fusion building towers over all.
The world has true character. It has been lovingly hand-crafted, and it simply feels right. Whether you are exploring Corvega Assembly Plant, various crash sites scattered around the Commonwealth, or the Quincy Ruins, you'll find that each location seems to fit into the world perfectly.
Bethesda's characters are solid. Many of them are outfitted with extensive dialogue, and many are not, but this creates realism; players simply do not want every NPC who walks by to relate their life stories and engage in a lengthy discussion. I've had characters who aren't members of any faction refuse to talk to me or trade solely because they didn't like me. I was fine with that.
The gun and armor customization systems are truly impressive. Through them, you will create mods that you actually want; there is little filler in the game's entirety. You can rename guns as well. On that note, the gunplay is utterly satisfying and is fun.
Power armor is fantastic in this iteration. Near the beginning of the game, you will be handed a set of weak, low-tech power armor, and eventually you will work up to the likes of the X-01 suit and cool paint jobs and accessories for your gear.
Concerning followers, I have only played with Dogmeat and Piper, but both have been awesome to work with. It's fun to find bandanas and dog armor for Dogmeat, and Piper has tons of dialogue that add to the game's character. When we were at The Third Rail, for example, Piper appeared quite jealous as I was talking to Magnolia and would insert awkward comments into the conversation. I have heard that other followers are excellent as well.
The story is phenomenal. Your actions throughout truly have an impact on the post-story Commonwealth. After destroying the BOS's Prydwen and massacring everyone in the Railroad, their soldiers no longer patrol the Commonwealth. In fact, Institute coursers man the Vertibirds now, which is awesome. And riding in the Vertibirds is out-of-this-world cool.
Inon Zur's Fallout 4 score is one of my favorite soundtracks. But even if you decide to turn off the music, Fallout 4 has a myriad of ambient insect, bird, and wind noises that truly make the world come alive.

What I did not like:
Many of the buildings have incredibly ugly textures
The Inner City is poorly optimized
You are often expected to play the "good guy"
Most of the DLC is not worth the price, excluding Far Harbor.

Mods that you should get:
War of the Commonwealth (endless warfare between NPCs makes the world feel real)
Vertibird Overhaul (ride Vertibirds even if unaffiliated with BOS)
True Storms: Legendary Edition (better radiation storms- rain, snow, fog)
What's more, Bethesda (as of November 2016) is tweaking Fallout 4 to make the entire experience available to play on virtual reality devices sometime in 2017.

Put simply, Fallout 4 is easily one of the best open world experiences ever created. I heartily recommend this game.