Recent reviews by BearOnABoat

One of the most fun climbing games to to play with your friends. Entertaining items, interesting biomes, just complicated enough mechanics... it's solid all around. The terrain generation can be a little weird sometimes though, so stay together and you'll PEAK!

Helldivers 2 has to be one of the best coop shooters on the market right now, not to mention one of the best examples of a live service game. The gun mechanics feel good and weighty, the difficulties are significantly more nuanced than "enemy has more health/does more damage," and the missions can be complicated enough to require some strategic thinking without bottle necking players into a meta. It's a blast to cobble together some crazy build that you think has zero chances of working, and yet it's a resounding success.

I'd highly recommend playing this with friends, or at least take a chance with randoms online. I've met quite a few fun people playing this game, and the same can happen to you. Remember, Helldivers together strong!

This game does just about everything right.

The mech customization is superb. It has less options than previous entries in the series and the shoulder weapons have way too many missile launcher variants, but if that is the only bad thing I can say about it then it's pretty damn good. Shotguns, machine guns, swords, shields, cannons...everything you need to make a kick ass build.

The story is surprisingly good. I was kinda expecting a more or less "big dumb robot, I shoot for money" kind of story, but there are moments that are refreshingly emotional/cinematic. I kind of wish certain elements of the story were less vague, but I think that's done on purpose.

Overall, if you like fun/fast paced mech combat then this is the game for you.

Don't you love it when everything seems to fall together just right? That's what this game does. You can play around in a rather large Hogwarts and surrounding areas sandbox and blast people away with amazing spells. The story is pretty good with certain plot threads being significantly better than others. I kinda wish the graphics were a little less muddy. Other than that, damn good game. Highly Recommend.

I'd recommend it regardless of whether you're new to the series or a long time fan.

This game is exactly what the series needed exactly when it needed it, really breathing new life into the franchise. The combat and theme has changed completely, swapping to a third person over the shoulder style combat. The narrative simple, but satisfying. The little character arcs everyone goes through are believable. Overall, the experience as a whole leaves nothing wanting. I'd say my only real gripe would be the weird gear level system seems needlessly convoluted. That being said, the epic scenery and beautiful soundtrack by Bear McCreary is enough to forgive anything. Definitely worth buying asap.

A goofy space janitor simulator. Lots of physics based fun, spilling mop buckets everywhere and tracking blood across the carpet. Better with friends!

This game is an absolute hidden gem.

I honestly never even heard of this game or its studio until I got it from a humble bundle. Looked fun, so I gave it a shot. It's got a simple, Saturday morning cartoons style narrative to it, fun character archetypes and a generally light/fun atmosphere to it. The bulk of the game will be turn based fights JRPG style, with great move combos and character synergy. I can't say it's breaking new ground, however everything it does do it does well and with great satisfaction. It's a decent enough length game too; not too much grind but also not done in a single day. I'd say if you're going to go full completionist you are gonna get about 60+ hours out of it.

Definitely worth a buy, pick it up asap.

TL;DR Aragami 2 is game worth playing, especially with your friends.
Now, here's a more in depth review:

PROS:
- Improved mechanics. The character movement is super responsive and fluid. It's a lot of fun to flip and teleport all around the map while stabbing everything in sight. Combat is actually a viable approach this time around since you can parry and defend.

- Customization! Now you can swap out armor pieces and color them individually, allowing for a more unique Aragami.

- Improved multiplayer. I think multiplayer is practically a must for this game. It's implemented way better in this game than the first, with limited respawns.

- Even more fun powers to play with. They balanced the broken ones and added several more that are super fun to use.

- Worlds have a decent enough level of complexity.

CONS:

- All the art direction from the first game is gone. I loved how stylized the first game was with it's animation and characters. This game throws it out for a much more generic Unreal Engine experience.

- The narrative is bad to the point of being completely forgettable. Remember that super engaging story from the first game with real characters? Gone. All of the new characters are bland, conveying only the most pedestrian of emotions. Big baddie doesn't even show up for most of the game. Feels disorganized and weak.

- They reuse the maps ALOT. Most missions will take place in the same handful of places, reusing them four to five times. Far too much padding.

- The experience grind is a nightmare. For how much padding they have in the game, you really should get powers faster.

In conclusion, the game is still fun but has many flaws. Definitely worth a play with your pals.

Hitman III is the final game in the "World of Assassination" trilogy, and boy does it live up to the hype. It's properly darker than the previous two titles, with story twists I couldn't predict. Of course, the game play itself is still the goofy duck-throwing comedy that we all know and love. Definitely worth your time. (Especially since all the other game's levels are updated to this one too)

Man, I sure do love pegging.