The Wolf Among Us
I’ve played through this game about 5 times. Each time was fun and engaging. Definitely recommend!
– Real player with 24.0 hrs in game
Read More: Best Episodic Noir Games.
A therapeutical game about Big B and his inner restraints holding him from killing everyone in this annoying town.
Snow white? More like hope she dead tonight!
Faith kinda kewl tho, “he’s not as bad as he seems 3”
10/10
– Real player with 23.4 hrs in game
Blues and Bullets
Game is dead like a beached whale.
My personal experience is probably a lot like most people on here. When a sale season hits, you go out a buy a crap-tonne of anything and everything that has had a price reduction on your wishlist. Like a hungry vacuum cleaner sucking up your wallet, purse, handbag, life savings, superannuation and assorted licorices, you just buy buy buy! without really looking at the forums or the latest info or even if the game is finished yet.
Which brings me to my point. This game wasn’t finished, and never will be.
– Real player with 8.7 hrs in game
Read More: Best Episodic Noir Games.
I do not really review episodic titles without having all episodes at hand with a complete walkthrough. With Blues and Bullets I did an exception as the title with its heavy noir atmosphere kept calling me. “A Crowd of Monsters” made an interesting and enjoyable game and I’m sure we’ll hear more about them in the future.
In the center of the game we have Eliot Ness who is based on the real Eliot Ness - an agent who enforced the Prohibition in the early 20th century and was famous for being part of the so-called Untouchables, a group tasked with getting Chicago rid of its corruption and - most notably - putting Al Capone behind bars. Here, the story is fictionalised - Eliot has already retired when he gets a visit from one of Capone’s henchmen. The kingpin wants to bury the hatchet and offers the agent a job most unexpected: finding his granddaughter as Sofia Capone was kidnapped.
– Real player with 6.2 hrs in game
The Outcast Lovers
I admit I openly ridiculed some of the dialogues in this game. Especially the part with “Werther’s Original”.
But that’s kind of the issue with Outcast Lovers. It is a narrative game, with pretty much the same pros and cons as it’s prequel, The Night Fisherman. But this time, instead of making us experience or feel the narrative, the game just force-feeds us it’s main message.
And since the main message (Immigration system evil and cruel, outcasts helping immigrants marginalized, brave and warm-hearted) is the same as in the prequel game, all the tension is gone. We know how the story is going to end. And we know why.
– Real player with 0.8 hrs in game
Read More: Best Episodic Atmospheric Games.
The premise of this game, and the other, is the treatment of immigrants. The story of this game was absolutely lost on the reader.
The title is “The Outcast Lovers,” but doesn’t even focus on them other than a conversation about adopting a kid they accidentally hit in a car crash (who is completely fine I guess?). One small fight between the interracial couple (which could have been an additional story element due to the times where that was even more looked down upon) does not make me care for them, or for the kid who randomly gets hit.
– Real player with 0.7 hrs in game
Beach Bounce
Beach Bounce was the second game developed and published by Dharker Studio, back in the summer of 2015. Since then, the game has been “remastered”, to improve several things, and it surely did.
Beach Bounce is the first game of the Bounce Series. Two other games are available, Beauty Bounce released in February of 2017, and Bunny Bounce, released in March of the same year.
In Beach Bounce we take the role of Tomoyo Oshiro, a young man who receives an invitation to be of assistance at his grandmother business, a resort named Beach Bounce.
– Real player with 15.3 hrs in game
Lacking in both the ‘visual’ and ‘novel’ departments. I cannot recommend it even if you’re just in for the adult content; there’s relatively little adult art and what’s there has little variety.
Without spoiling the plot, short story short you end up working at the resort after you arrive. Everyone there is female of course and they want you big time. While ‘working’ you make chit-chat (filled with blushy “hehe”, “hihi”, and “tehihi”) and end up going on dates after work, or just getting food and totally not going on a date. After realizing you are the epitome of the perfect man they throw themselves at you, leaving you the all-important plot choice of bang or don’t bang (which happens to make up the majority of decisions in the game). You may think this is a gross exaggeration and there’s lots of build-up, tension, seduction, perhaps even romance involved, but more than once you
! literally get a knock at your door and get propositioned on the spot. In the two currently present chapters your decisions make no difference apart from a few changed sentences. 5 out of the 7 women in the game’s banner art will offer themselves to you no matter what you do, the rest doubtless to follow in later chapters. The actual plot is brought up only occasionally and you just spend your time chatting up the ladies so far.
– Real player with 10.8 hrs in game
The Walking Dead
TellTale’s gem. Too bad the company was shut down mid production of Season 4. Anyway, I 100% recommend this series to all. Pro tip, buy the definitive edition to access all seasons in 1 big game. It’s the biggest bang for your buck :)
– Real player with 1745.2 hrs in game
Bloody solid game best way to start a off a great game.
– Real player with 45.6 hrs in game
The Walking Dead: Season Two
I will be the first to admit that when I beat The Walking Dead: Season 1, I not only cried, but I cried like a baby. The story, setting, and, most importantly, the characters all pulled me into this world where no one is truly safe, and your decisions matter and go beyond the “choice 1 = good-but-risky, choice 2 = evil-but-conserative” trope. So when Season 2 was announced, I was eager to get my hands on it. Now, ten months have passed and the season is over, ending with “Episode 5: No Going Back”. Was it amazing, and how did it stack against Season 1?
– Real player with 26.6 hrs in game
A stirring and well-acted journey, Season Two of The Walking Dead may not deliver the breakthrough experience of the first season, yet it retains the emotional punch that makes this undertaking just as heartfelt and gut-wrenching as we all so fondly remember. Each episode builds upon the last, and we open with the slightly older and more experienced Clementine being once again ripped from the last vestige of Season One’s survivors. These initial scenes, when Clementine is truly at her most vulnerable, allow new characters and personalities to fill the void, and they are definitely a step up from those that we have love and lost before.
– Real player with 26.2 hrs in game
Batman: The Enemy Within - The Telltale Series
Batman: The Enemy Within is the second season of Telltale’s version of my favourite DC superhero. Obviously this game is mostly focused on story, so I’ll start with my overall recommendation, and then you can skip my detailed analysis if you want to avoid spoilers.
This is an essential must play for any fan of Batman. The story is fantastic, Telltale back to their absolute best form. Voice acting is outstanding throughout the whole cast, headlined by Troy Baker as Batman/Bruce Wayne. I advise playing season 1 first, because some decisions carry forward, which can impact the appearance of some characters, and their relationship with Bruce. It took me 9 hours to finish Enemy Within, which is longer than Telltale’s other recent games, and I think you can justify buying the game for full price or a small discount.
– Real player with 18.0 hrs in game
Gotham’s Finest
By now almost everybody knows who Batman is and most of the details surrounding him (parents‘ death, enemies and villains, Batman‘s codex etc.). So you would probably think “why should I play another Batman game? Will it be the same old story I already know?“. In case of Batman - Enemy Within you would be nicely surprised because many things are just not as you are used them to be. And this is good because it makes the story much more interesting than still playing the same song over and over again.
– Real player with 17.2 hrs in game
Dragon and Weed: Origins - Prologue
⣾⡇⣿⣿⡇⣾⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣄⢻⣦⡀⠁⢸⡌⠻⣿⣿⣿⡽⣿⣿ play it
⡇⣿⠹⣿⡇⡟⠛⣉⠁⠉⠉⠻⡿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣦⣄⡉⠂⠈⠙⢿⣿⣝⣿ It’s good
⠤⢿⡄⠹⣧⣷⣸⡇⠄⠄⠲⢰⣌⣾⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣶⣤⣤⡀⠄⠈⠻⢮
⠄⢸⣧⠄⢘⢻⣿⡇⢀⣀⠄⣸⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣧⡀⠄⢀
⠄⠈⣿⡆⢸⣿⣿⣿⣬⣭⣴⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣯⠝⠛⠛⠙⢿⡿⠃⠄⢸
⠄⠄⢿⣿⡀⣿⣿⣿⣾⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣷⣿⣿⣿⣿⡾⠁⢠⡇⢀
⠄⠄⢸⣿⡇⠻⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣏⣫⣻⡟⢀⠄⣿⣷⣾
⠄⠄⢸⣿⡇⠄⠈⠙⠿⣿⣿⣿⣮⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⣿⡿⢠⠊⢀⡇⣿⣿
⠒⠤⠄⣿⡇⢀⡲⠄⠄⠈⠙⠻⢿⣿⣿⠿⠿⠟⠛⠋⠁⣰⠇⠄⢸⣿⣿⣿
– Real player with 1.1 hrs in game
This is my opinion just for the PROLOGUE based on what I experienced and what I feel after finished watching.
I received the Chapter 1 for free from the developer giveaway itself but I haven’t watching it yet.
PROS
–Artstyle.
I like the type of the simple character and environment drawing artstyle.
–Dialogue/story.
For me at least, the story is good to listen. I’m quite curious to know next chapter.
CONS
–I think this game is buggy, sometimes after finished cutscene especially the pink purple galaxy with stars, it keep repeating after I click to the next cutscene, I heard the voice, but the image is stuck and repeat on the galaxy scene with no subtitles for more than 6 times. In other case, if I press spacebar which is pause and menu, and after return to play, the cutscene and the commentator also repeat himself spoke again from previous dialogue.
– Real player with 0.7 hrs in game
KARAKARA
This is a plaintext version of the full GameCynic review (with gallery)
Supported in part by a successful Indiegogo funding campaign earlier in 2016, Japanese developer Calme’s debut title is a short visual novel centered around the daily life of Leon, who struggles to keep his café open in a post-disaster era.
Visual novels — games which are essentially watching anime at your own pace, with little to no actual gameplay — are often a difficult genre to do well. Their simplicity means that storyline often makes or breaks a game, and a market saturated by home made, amateur titles can often overwhelm new developers. Luckily for KARAKARA, this isn’t a problem, thanks to strong personalities for the main characters.
– Real player with 19.1 hrs in game
If I had to describe KARAKARA in one sentence, I’d say “It’s Fallout meets NEKOPARA, but not as competent as either one”. Now if that intrigues you, please read on.
KARAKARA is a fully kinetic visual novel. That means there’s no plot choices, no dating sim elements, not even a petting button or localized earthquakes. It functions like a standard visual novel, with static backgrounds and slightly animated character sprites. I really like the visual style, particularly with how colors are balanced. If I had to complain about anything, I’d say everything is just a bit too bright, but it’s not bad. As for audio, the music isn’t exactly remarkable, but it makes for a good background. There’s also sound effects that get the job done similarly, and the voice acting was at least good enough that I didn’t mute it.
– Real player with 14.1 hrs in game
The Walking Dead: The Final Season
I wouldn’t give up on this game yet, TLT are not completely done. They have just received donation and they could get back on their feet. Not to mention the return of the Final season to stores. You just gotta have a little faith and not panic like everyone else ;)
So far, the first episode was pretty cool, it’s great to play as Clementine again in role as a protector of the young boy AJ. Feels like deja vu, but it’s completly different. You will get to meet new characters and new place. Final season comes with new stuff like:Secret achievements, collective items, but quiete interesting change is that you got camera from the right shoulder with free movenent, Just like in LIS.
– Real player with 142.0 hrs in game
Rest in Peace, Telltale Games
(UPDATE) Episode 3: Broken Toys will release on January 15th 2019.
(UPDATE 2) On January 15th they released Episode 3 and on the 26th of March, Episode 4 released, the season overall is one of the best out of all the games, especially Episode 3 which was easily the best episode since Season 2, Episode 4 has a very cliche ending that you cant change though which brings the story impact down by quite a bit, the whole objective is to raise the kid that Clementine has devoted her life to protecting by making choices that will determine the way he is. Kill someone as to protect AJ from becoming a psychopath, or spare them but run the risk of them coming back and killing or damaging your friends. But this entire part of the game doesn’t matter by the 1 hour long epilogue, in the end they completely disregard all of your choices and in the end no matter what everybody’s AJ will be exactly the same with minor altercations depending on dialogue choices you made. But the attack or spare choices (the big ones) don’t have an effect on the ending, Season 4 has 1 ending while Season 1 had 2 and Season 2 had 4, but your choices still do matter when it comes to lives and protecting people, there’s a scene in the game which I will avoid entirely spoiling but depending on which character is with you at a certain moment the other one will be seriously injured more so than any other TWD game. They had guts and didn’t pull any punches in Episode 3 but then chickened out of multiple endings and made the ending completely fan service. Overall though I thoroughly recommend this season and it’s definitely worth a buy, the only downside is that it’s no longer on Steam and has been moved to the Epic store, if you own a console then buy it on there, (Switch, PS4, XB1) but if not you can try to find a key for steam if you don’t want to use Epic, I also believe it may be on GoG but I haven’t checked.
– Real player with 46.8 hrs in game