Recent reviews by pretzel.

I played this because Pyro played the Doom II mod version of this game. I finished the mod as well, and I'll just compare it to the mod first:

SIMILARITIES/DIFFERENCES:
Character and monster designs remain pretty much the same, and the standalone actually made new enemy types and bosses in a few segments of the game. It's refreshing, and pretty much one of the strongest points of this game. Different enemies require a different way to deal with them, and in some cases, you might not even need to kill them. Plus, the enemies do look more detailed, but still remained that same, scary charm, like the mod.

The main environment and atmosphere felt at home compared to the mod, but it only stops in the main areas. The standalone added new locations and different scenarios, which made the game look almost new for me to play, with "in le head" locations where you're in a trance and the environment turns...gory.

The main character remained the same, with the same outfit, but there's a new side character which never appeared in the mod, kinda threw me off a bit, but a major turning point depending on your actions throughout the part of his segment. There are added sound effects whenever the main character interacts with enemies, swinging weapons, etc, but there are some delays in his panting, especially after killing an enemy. I find it odd.

The voice acting on the "Voice on the Radio" however, is a downgrade to me. The mod had the voice sounded really...emo, and just pessimistic in general, but in the standalone, he sounded like a regular Aussie. No offense, but the acting was subpar at best, and just lack enough emotion to convey his lines. Just a huge bummer to me.

The weapons in this game are "sort of" an upgrade, where you could reinforce most weapons, add wires/nails for more damage, and just added more variety and types of weapons to play with. The weapons in the mod are still present, so if you like to play it the good ol' fashioned way, it's viable to do so.

In my run however, if you're the type of person that conserves resources like a stingy mf, the backpack fills up REAL QUICK. There is a point where I have to drop half my backpack for a segment where you needed the speed to outrun a certain type of enemy, but even then, these materials still come at you like candy, and still fills up your backpack in no time. Right now, there are a dozen weapons still waiting for me to use, and I'm only halfway through the game at the moment.

SCARE SCALE:
Depending on your tolerance on horror games, I find this game really scary. Partially atmosphere, but the jumpscares of these enemies kept throwing me off for no reason. I find myself shaken a few times in the duration of my play already. In terms of tense-ness, I really enjoy the pressure of getting chased by some bosses, and especially with the apparitions of Leda. She was always a pain in the ass, but in the standalone, she got scarier by adding the "Panic" prompt so you can't dodge, and you can't put yourself in a corner for her to explode. Pure speed and tactics for her, and I LOVE that.

In other encounters, like the atmosphere, I find the game really nice to look at, and when the space is required to be scary, it does its job well. The representation of deep depression and sickness really shows in this game, and it blends well with its storytelling of the main character. It's bloody, gory and just...sad and melancholic.

PACING:
This game does pretty well in terms of pacing. There are plenty of occasions to recuperate, make weapons and syringes, but you can't do it in the inventory itself anymore. There's a crafting table to do that, and it appears...rather often, but not too rare that you are left with materials with nothing to build for it.

The map within the chapters are rather huge, which I find it overwhelming, which was why I cannot sit and play this game for hours. There are too many paths that you could miss, and when I first tried to get the good ending first try, I ended up missing some places to explore. I could come back after watching a guide, but it'll be quite unlikely. The maps are simply too large to circle around, and with a survival horror aspect, you just felt a bit rushed as the hunger meter keeps draining your food resource, and could be detrimental in your later stages of your run.

VERDICT:
I really LIKE this game. Not LOVE, but I really like it. Maybe because I'm a coward, which I am, I just cannot finish this game in one playthrough. But if you're a fan of survival horror, I could soundly recommend this game to you. If you're a fan of the mod beforehand, this game is still worth the current price after the 15% off deal.

You won't regret paying this amount as this game offers you a lot of playtime and replayability, and a challenge where there's no room for mistakes.

8/10! Might be my top pick on the "Indie Game of the Year" if the game was released earlier though. If so, it will definitely compete with Clair Obscur Expedition 33 in terms of competitiveness, but Clair triumphs over target audience.

This game is addictive. Lost sleep because of it, but it was worth the grind. Played this game because of Ironmouse and a secret character that exists that is worth smacking his head onto...hehe.

STORY:
Well, it's not much of a story, since you're your own protagonist and you make the water park.

GAMEPLAY:
Mechanics are simple to understand, items are as straightforward as it can get, and at the early to mid game, man, you gotta WORK. With limited staff it's going to be back and forth. The ticket staff at the start was kinda buggy, where he just lingers around outside the park and not doing his job. I'm 4 stars in close to 5 (only money requirement left), and it works as intended. The end game was a bit better, you just have to catch the bad guests, clean up here and there, restock and that's it.

GRIND:
I think it's well balanced. It's not too hard, where you could get researches done and buying within 30 in game days if you're min-maxxing. But it's not too easy if you're blindly researching without knowing the priorities first.

CUSTOMIZATION:
I think it's one of the best aspects of this game. Almost everything is customizable, down to the stair railings. My only gripe is not able to customize your own character. There's a mirror, but it only generates random builds which is a bummer. But who am I kidding? It's Waterpark Simulator not Human Simulator LMAO.

Overall, this game is fun. I don't think I've enjoyed playing since Umamusume: Pretty Derby, and heck, no microtransactions to limit your way of having fun! 10/10 recommend!

How I think of this game? Addictive. I can't stop perfecting my Umas.

Gameplay:
No horse is the same. You cannot build the same exact horse twice with the same kind of stat distribution/skill RNG/sparks. That's what I liked about the gameplay loop. It isn't forgiving either, where gambling for a huge stat boost while tired could be viable, but not recommended. I really like where your decisions on your training affects your Trainees greatly and not just relying on RNG landing on the right training spots.

Gacha:
While I understand progressing in a kind of game like this requires in-game purchases, I find it a bit disappointing that the game isn't as generous when it comes with rewarding "Carrots". This is the first game where getting more Trainees aren't as important as getting their support cards. In my case, my early luck is insane: like getting multiple SSR Trainees that could be meta, despite blindly spending the majority on a Trainee pull that's just pretty hard to train in general. After that, the luck ran out and pulling other meta support cards just seems impossible at this point. This is "kinda" mitigated with their SR cards still being viable to use. I just wish the game would increase SSR drop rates as the game progresses. If you ask me if this game is free to play friendly? Yes, it is. Even when you have the worst luck possible, there is always a chance to re-roll, and it probably only took about 1-2 minutes and an ability to skip the tutorial.

Art/Music:
I can feel Cygames put in serious effort into making this game as close to real life as possible, to their stories to their style of play, making me interested into the lore and quirks of each horses. To me, it was worth the delays, even though it felt kinda long for that global release. Their concert musics are alright, some songs more significantly memorable as others, especially the debut anthem. That was stuck inside my head rent free. I also love that each Trainee have their own celebration animations in tandem to their real life personalities, and of course, that signature Gold Ship kick to your gahdamn face.

Verdict:
If you're not an anime/horse racing fan, just try it. I myself was kinda against playing gacha most of the time, but the easy entry really eases you into this game and it's challenging enough for you to look up some guides to get you into the actual ways to finish your first Uma Career mode. Plus, it's fun! 8/10 recommend.

I played this game on a pirated version, and decided to support the developers by buying it legitimately, for making such a great game.

Since I feel burnouts for playing multiple playthroughs, it's great to have options on downloading some mods to spice it up a bit. I had lots of fun, if not more compared to the pirated days.

10/10 Recommended!

This. Game. Is. Phenomenal.
(I'm not going to say how good the game is, you got reviewers saying the same ol thing)

If only I have the patience to hone my skills and find every single corner of the map for secrets it would take me a lot more hours on this game. (I modded the game to make it easier)

Now that I have finished the game, I just wish there is free roam so I can cloud around and explore.

Played possibly 300+ hours on different accounts, really got me hooked onto this game.

However, this game wouldn't be complete without the help of mods. I have 200+ mods installed (including clothes) and it sure made the game more made for personal enjoyment.

Need for Speed Unbound is a...almost great game;- but it really could've baked a longer time...

Let's get the worst points out of the way first.

Story:
It. Just. Sucks. I hate it. The story has no depth, antagonist being Yaz, Tess, or even Alec, is unknown to this day. The story just screams money, money, money; even the some of the soundtrack is about it. It doesn't make sense, there is no depth on characters, backstory, character origin, nada. It felt so shallow. Not just that, A$ap Rocky, the guest character, just acts as an activity host, rival and, that was it? He doesn't contribute much or even at all to the story, and is a waste of time and money. If he wasn't there, it wouldn't affect the story.

Art:
Straight up ripped off from "Into the Spider Verse", it almost felt like a carbon copy, but I love it personally. It is fresh, inspiring and just out of the world kind of level of special and iconic. If nowadays we're talking about racing games, the first thing that comes out would be this game. Though great, the visuals could be distracting for some, and I really wish there is an option to opt out the visuals; but it would also remove the main selling point of the game.

Gameplay:
The gameplay mechanic really revolutionizes the racing scene, and giving more depth and options for different types of racers. However, the balancing is kinda leaning towards grip, giving more rewards than drifting. Drifting is a downgrade from NFS Heat, and I would really do anything to bring that back. Other than that though, the diversity of driving really helps people to master different styles of racing, and Criterion really did it almost perfectly.

Quality of Life:
The garage itself is an upgrade from Heat, giving it a more realistic, typical garage look, BUT, really didn't give the option to expand the visuals more. The only option is to just direct you to the style and performance sections, or just to race. I would really love to explore to garage, or wanting the option to put more cars in it, which what Heat had in their previous garage.

The Online Multiplayer and Story progression separation really baffles me. It really felt like I have to play the game twice, and really demotivates me personally that I almost wanted to stop playing after finishing the story, which it was bad on its own. It is more acceptable when money was easier to earn in Online, as the story mode only rewards you more on S+ class races. For me, I would like the money system to be spread evenly towards all car classes, so you can race in any race class for equal rewards.

VERDICT:
Overall, it was almost a great racing game, with amazing depth and captivating visuals, but really ruined it with its lackluster story and separated progression. I would not recommend paying full price for the game and really go for the discount. Also, don't buy the Palace Edition. I don't think it's worth buying. Other than that, if you're interested with the visuals, I think it's worth giving it a try.

this game is like a batman game but japanese har har har

Worth a try. If you're a beginner horror gamer, this is a good one to start with.

Pros:
- This game really puts a lot of effort into the graphics and aesthetics. This does not feel like a $10 game. It is way more. The art style collides with old 3D from the good ol' console days and pixel 2D platform game is what makes it so special. The atmosphere fits really well with the story and I am enjoy exploring every single corner of the maps. It is well-thought-out; with not too long paths to backtrack and if you have a sense of direction (which I don't), this game will be more smooth sailing for you.

- Really good mechanics on the UI and easy-to-understand controls. If you're stuck, try the manual, which is simple and you'll get the hang of it in no time.

- Inventory management is KEY. Do save your ammo at times and manage your inventory when possible. This really immerses you into a situation where most people can only hold a certain amount of ammo/items.

- Having a variety of enemies (with their relative functions and lore) does help with the difficulty a lot. If you're not ammo efficient or carrying enough ammo, you'll be pretty much screwed. They are avoidable though, do that whenever you are capable. While you have a variety of guns, each enemy does not die to the same amount of bullets, which really got you worried if you have enough ammo or not, which is a good plus on the game.

- Story-wise, it is pretty amazing. This game also encourages replayability if you're not satisfied with the first ending. Won't spoil this one though, you'll need to explore this yourself.

Cons:
- Too many languages colliding. Having English, Chinese, German, Korean, and sometimes Japanese directions do make the experience a little inconsistent and when people are not multilingual, this will be a struggle. Do stick with 2 languages max ideally.

- Health packs do not show the amount of health you'll get (color-indicated), which is kinda hard for me to understand Repair Sprays at first. Do mention color change in the description, that would be nice.

- The relics that contribute to your achievement, do work with Steam for it because I had one of the items in my inventory and was wondering what it does until I checked the "Achievements" section. It affects the style of play and burdens inventory management without a good description of what it actually does.

- Enemies, especially bosses, do have a little tougher time to figure out as they are only hitboxes to show if they are damageable or not. The first boss; MYNAH, was inconsistent with the hitbox and she only exposes the weak spot sometimes when kneeling down. Once that's done though, it is the same after that.

VERDICT:
- Really recommend this game. If you're a gamer who's into stories, immersing into the world, and just action thrillers, this one is for you. Especially games like this with pixel graphics and retro 3D effects do make this game unique in their own way.

9/10 for me.

wanna break from the bad games? come back to this one.