Friday, December 31, 2021
Sunday, December 26, 2021
The Witness (PC) (2016)
Overview: You're on an island full of puzzles to solve. There are no instructions, but the puzzles are designed to be solved through a combination of trial-and-error and visual indications which lead to the solutions.
20211226:
I meant to play this game a while ago, but for some reason I didn't get around to it. Yesterday, however, it fell under my radar and I decided to prioritize playing it.
While playing the game, I was mostly reminded of Antichamber. However, according to the Wikipedia article, the game was inspir3ed by Myst. In any case, I feel like I enjoyed the variety in puzzles for Antichamber much more than those for The Witness. In particular, my attention with the game only lasted a mere one and a half hours. Though to be fair to the game, it's not exactly a fair comparison as it's been a very long time since I've played Antichamber and my general gaming preferences may have changed since then (I played it in 2014).
If I were to guess concerning my lack of attention, I would hypothesize that I no longer like the exploration aspect of the game - at least when it comes to solving puzzles. For example, having to walk around and look for puzzles is a different experience from a puzzle game where I could just pass from one level to the next.
Overall, I'm glad I got around to trying the game out, but it didn't have the spark needed to keep my attention.
Epic Game game time: 1h 29m 30s
20211226:
I meant to play this game a while ago, but for some reason I didn't get around to it. Yesterday, however, it fell under my radar and I decided to prioritize playing it.
While playing the game, I was mostly reminded of Antichamber. However, according to the Wikipedia article, the game was inspir3ed by Myst. In any case, I feel like I enjoyed the variety in puzzles for Antichamber much more than those for The Witness. In particular, my attention with the game only lasted a mere one and a half hours. Though to be fair to the game, it's not exactly a fair comparison as it's been a very long time since I've played Antichamber and my general gaming preferences may have changed since then (I played it in 2014).
If I were to guess concerning my lack of attention, I would hypothesize that I no longer like the exploration aspect of the game - at least when it comes to solving puzzles. For example, having to walk around and look for puzzles is a different experience from a puzzle game where I could just pass from one level to the next.
Overall, I'm glad I got around to trying the game out, but it didn't have the spark needed to keep my attention.
Epic Game game time: 1h 29m 30s
Friday, December 24, 2021
Babble Royale (PC) (2021)
Overview: Scrabble meets Battle Royale.
20211224:
A friend of mine was talking about this game and I decided to try it out straight away. Unfortunately, it was less fun than I thought it would be.
Steam Game Time: 58 minutes
20211231:
Decided to give the game some extra time. Ultimately, I don't think I have the ability to be good at this game. There's a lot going on and the strategy involved is just too much for me.
For the most part, the game mechanics are reasonable. I think the game would be more fun and better paced if an overload came with two new letters. Having letters in the way is a weird part of the game.
Perhaps one strategy I should try if I ever revisit the game is to play starting closer to the middle and just try and fence people out. Force other players to use bombs or overloads to get into the center.
Steam Game Time: 106 minutes (total game time) / 48 minutes (session game time)
20211224:
A friend of mine was talking about this game and I decided to try it out straight away. Unfortunately, it was less fun than I thought it would be.
Steam Game Time: 58 minutes
20211231:
Decided to give the game some extra time. Ultimately, I don't think I have the ability to be good at this game. There's a lot going on and the strategy involved is just too much for me.
For the most part, the game mechanics are reasonable. I think the game would be more fun and better paced if an overload came with two new letters. Having letters in the way is a weird part of the game.
Perhaps one strategy I should try if I ever revisit the game is to play starting closer to the middle and just try and fence people out. Force other players to use bombs or overloads to get into the center.
Steam Game Time: 106 minutes (total game time) / 48 minutes (session game time)
Monday, December 20, 2021
Loop Hero (PC) (2021)
Overview: To collect resources, the player character ventures out on expeditions that take place in a loop. Through cards, the player can affect the expedition by placing buildings and enemies onto the play area. Choose when to retreat to your base - bringing back a percentage of the goods collected based on the situation (e.g., 70% is lost when defeated).
20211220:
Epic Games gave this game away and I decided to play it straight away. I put a couple hours into the game and found it mildly entertaining. However, I felt the game had too much of a grind to it. Worded differently, some RPGs do a good job of building up the fun of the game which later encourages the grind. But this game feels like a grind out of the gate without a clear reason to do so. I can kind of see how the game may be addicting to some, but it didn't manage to hook me.
Epic Games game time: 2h 41m 21s
20211222 Comment:
Today I thought about how a negative aspect of the game was the seemingly little low level of interaction between the cards.
On a different note, regarding the lack of addiction, I imagine if I put another two hours into the game, there could be a mechanic unlocked that would give me a power spike large enough to get me addicted to the game, e.g., a new class. And the fact that I'm on the fence about putting said two more hours into the game is an indication that the game does have a reasonably attractive base game mechanic.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Loop_Hero
https://store.steampowered.com/app/1282730/Loop_Hero/
20211220:
Epic Games gave this game away and I decided to play it straight away. I put a couple hours into the game and found it mildly entertaining. However, I felt the game had too much of a grind to it. Worded differently, some RPGs do a good job of building up the fun of the game which later encourages the grind. But this game feels like a grind out of the gate without a clear reason to do so. I can kind of see how the game may be addicting to some, but it didn't manage to hook me.
Epic Games game time: 2h 41m 21s
20211222 Comment:
Today I thought about how a negative aspect of the game was the seemingly little low level of interaction between the cards.
On a different note, regarding the lack of addiction, I imagine if I put another two hours into the game, there could be a mechanic unlocked that would give me a power spike large enough to get me addicted to the game, e.g., a new class. And the fact that I'm on the fence about putting said two more hours into the game is an indication that the game does have a reasonably attractive base game mechanic.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Loop_Hero
https://store.steampowered.com/app/1282730/Loop_Hero/
Sunday, December 19, 2021
Genshin Impact (PC) (2020)
20211219:
I installed it on the Epic Games platform. However, apparently I already installed the game independently (I realized after checking if I had a miHoYo account). I have no memory of this. With that being said, today was absolutely the first day I ever played this game.
First Impressions:
Thus far, I played the first four "temples" meant to familiarize the player with four characters/elements (wind, fire, ice, electricity) and I felt as if these areas could have been made a little longer and/or more challenging. It seems as if the game allows players to revisit these areas upon reaching a higher experience level, which would be a different experience from what I'm familiar with (e.g., The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time). As a side note, the bow character Amber seems underpowered.
Epic Games game time: 3h 15m 42s
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Genshin_Impact
I installed it on the Epic Games platform. However, apparently I already installed the game independently (I realized after checking if I had a miHoYo account). I have no memory of this. With that being said, today was absolutely the first day I ever played this game.
First Impressions:
Thus far, I played the first four "temples" meant to familiarize the player with four characters/elements (wind, fire, ice, electricity) and I felt as if these areas could have been made a little longer and/or more challenging. It seems as if the game allows players to revisit these areas upon reaching a higher experience level, which would be a different experience from what I'm familiar with (e.g., The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time). As a side note, the bow character Amber seems underpowered.
Epic Games game time: 3h 15m 42s
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Genshin_Impact
Saturday, December 18, 2021
DUET (PC) (2013)
Overview: The player controlling two orbs must dodge incoming obstacles. The difficulty lies in the fact that the two orbs stay diametrically opposed to one another. As such, the player may successfully avoid an obstacle with one orb, but run into an obstacle with another!
20211218:
I've played this game before on Android (see this post). Today I played until I defeated "guilt."
Steam Game Time: 40 minutes
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Duet_(video_game)
20211218:
I've played this game before on Android (see this post). Today I played until I defeated "guilt."
Steam Game Time: 40 minutes
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Duet_(video_game)
Saturday, December 4, 2021
while True: learn() (PC) (2019)
Overview: A programmer discovers his cat knows how to code, and sets out to understand his cat in this puzzle game that also aims to inform the player about machine learning algorithms.
20211204:
First Impressions:
The pace of the game thus far is slow. There were too many prompts. I was sleepy so perhaps that made it worse.
Epic Games game time: 22m 8s
20211204:
First Impressions:
The pace of the game thus far is slow. There were too many prompts. I was sleepy so perhaps that made it worse.
Epic Games game time: 22m 8s