Recent reviews by zeracool2k

Fast paced "tactical" real time strategy game that is, to all that matters, still one of the best Warhammer 40,000 experiences out there.

Although factions are not really balanced, the fluidity of battles, immersive music and superb tongue-in-cheek voice acting makes this game one of my all time favorites. And now it has achivements!

I love this game, but it only brings me sadness.

The game has a good story, (re)playability, cool mechanics, fantastic locactions, a relatively large playerbase, several active guilds, most content is soloable, and instances are run on a daily basis... although for endgame content most groups will ask you to present proof of a raid doctorate, three letters of recommendation from elder players, and passing results on a qualification tests to even enter the queue). The music is superb, and while the graphics are a bit outdated, it's not ugly.

I was there almost 10 years ago, on the day the anchors fell for the first time, way before TESO came to Steam. Back then you couldn't skip the story, you couldn't leave your banner's territory, you had to actually grind content... good, well written, fully voice acted content. But that time has passed.

Now you can't really progress unless you are VIP due to inventory limitations, especially when crafting. The megaserver is ridden with grumpy veterans who want to play perfectly timed ballet battles and get mad when you don't know your dungeon/raid mechanics; speedrunners that skip content like they suddenly had diarrhea when entering the instance, scammers, and farming bots. But not all is darkness, for there are communities and people that are friendly and helpful to newbies and oldies alike.

But it's hollow now. Content was "dumbed down" to be accessible to all player levels, which messes the sense of progression and the storylines consistency (you actually feel stronger at lower levels, and if you skip an area, the game will progress the story asynchronously). Too many mechanics are thrown on new players, overwhelming them. I've tried to hook my friends on the game for years, to no avail. I've given away copies of the game, sent messages when the game was free to play, and nothing. Nobody stays, and you can't do higher level content alone. So I roam Tamriel alone, helping newbies and puggers as I can, warning them:

I 100% recommend playing the game, but it'll make you sad on the long run.

[EDIT] It's almost 2025, and still playing, Damn.

Game is good in terms of story, although its mechanics have become increasingly complicated over the years.

The main issue is that some servers have low populations, and it's difficult to get into actual working guilds or even make friends, as it is a very niche game, and player hierarchy has already been established. I've played on and off since launch, and I get called a noob every now and then by so called "experts" for not knowing a mechanic.

Still, it's a good game if you play with friends and like Eberron (or D&D), and its even better if you pay the subscription, for the benefits it provides are worth it.

10/10 - Fun game for friends, not so much with strangers.

One to three players in a game of up to ten people can be "imposters", aliens bent on killing everyone; if all but one of the crew dies, they win. The crew, on the other hand, have to fix stuff across the map in order to survive, and win. When anyone has suspicion on who is an impostor, or when a body is found, a meeting is assembled, amd votes are cast to throw away someone.

It's even better when used with Discord or Zoom or whathever you use to talk to people, as long as nobody rats away on the Impostor's identity, or gives hints on their identity.

The same game from hundreds of years ago, remastered in its entirety. Although it looks way better than the original, the soul of the game is the same... with a few differences.

I'm not sure if it's just me, but I find interactables are more easy to spot. Valves, switches, buttons; the original HL had me going back and forth looking for whatever I had missed, something that has not happened this playthrough. Perhaps I subconsciously remember everything from my las play 15 years ago? Nah, more likely the improved graphics are the cause.

The game also feels more "spacey", as in labs and feel bigger, offices less cluttered; this could be due to maintaining area ratios while scaling to more powerful graphic engines, and scaling to higher resolutions. This is not exactly a problem, but makes some places awkward (think of going-into-a-room-that-has-had-furniture-slightly-displaced discomfort).

Finally, enemies are not as scary as in the original. Probably because spaces are bigger, or that enemies themselves are "skinnier" or "prettier", the fear factor of a walker seeing you, the initial shock of a crab jumping you, all are reduced in a way. In HL when a crab jumped you while bowels were full, they wouldn't be anymore; here it is a jumpscare at most. I think the sound has something to do with this too.

All in all, the game remains faithful to the original while improving in several aspects. Just don't expect the game to be HL3, and you'll have a good time.

8.5/10 I'm not really into survival games, but for some reason Conan Exiles got me, hard.

I've never actually played it online, and I've heard it's both fantastic and awful, depending on who you ask, For me at least, single player is highly rewarding. The feeling of having to traverse the desert to gather components, the living sandstorm coursing through the biomes, the lore... everything is its own reward.

The thing I like the most, and sadly the most difficult to attempt while playing solo, is building. I honestly love the system, although I've been told there are better survival games. I've spent literal days building castles, towers, and cabins all around the Exile lands, gathering followers (or rather, slaving them), and capturing creatures to guard them.

Everything meshes almost perfectly into a real, tangible Conan adventure... except there is barely any Conan.The beloved (admired?) barbarian is but an afterthought, leaving the main stage to a different character, whom you meet quite early in the game :wink: :wink:

I highly recommend the game if you enjoy survival games and/or building castles or any architectonic marvel. Or nudity... both male and female. Dong physics is quite funny while climbing or falling.

EDIT: Several years later and a couple of major updates, I still feel the same about this game. Although the new store system is an obvious cash grab.

10/10
This is a fun game, if a little silly. It's basically "Where's Waldo", except it's black and white and you have to interact with the environment to find the characters (or fulfill the goals).
Nice and relaxing, recommended for a break from fast-paced shooters or otherwise stressing games.
BTW, every sound in the game is a mouth-made sound, from doors opening to clicks to ambience sounds.

I got Conan Exiles on a monthly Humble Bundle, and got hooked with Hyborian lore. Having "finished" Exiles at least twice, I turned to other Conan games... and that is how I found about a 10 year old MMO which had "Conan" and "Unchained" on its name.

I must admit I was reluctant at first, due to me being mainly a loner (even in MMOs), but the game surprised me. Graphics are aged but still good, music is somewhat-meh but still lore-friendly, but it is the story that got me. You *can* play most of the game solo... you only need to group to defeat certain elite enemies and to clear most dungeons, and of course, world bosses.

The community on the PvE server is quite nice, always helpful and made up mostly of veterans. Although some people calls the game "dead", it is very much alive, although not as it used to be (if the stories are to be believed). There are always raids and stuff, but mostly on later content; the most populated area is Tortage, filled with new and returning players.

If you are into MMOs, you might want to give it a try.

I've played this game several times, but never managed to finish it due to various reasons (disk loss, graphics card death, lack of disk space, etc.). But it always draws me back.

The atmosphere, the setting, the enemies... it is truly a masterpiece. It has good playability, a somewhat intuitive "sinergy" system for damage (e.g., lightning + water = electrocution), and the levels are well constructed in the sense that they are consistent with the events of the story.

Perhaps one day I will finish it. Or not, and I will keep coming back to it.

An "enhanced" Skyrim experience, although not as much as you would expect.

The game has lots of highlights over the original, although most of the bugs are still there... but it wouldn't be a true Bethesda game without bugs, right? In any case, the Nexus[www.nexusmods.com] has got you covered for any special needs you might have.

If you are new to Bethesda's, be sure to go to the Nexus and:

1. get the Nexus Mod Manager (NMM)
   
2. install the Unofficial Patches (using the NMM)
   
3. install LOOT[loot.github.io], a mod order tool
   
4. run LOOT and apply the recommended mod order
   
5. play!

Oh, and stay away from Creation Club... you can get basically all that stuff (and even better) at the Nexus.