Recent reviews by Aya

Probably one of the best, if not THE best turn-based tactics games out there. Before I start with the good, I think I should look at the bad.

First thing that comes to my mind for what's bad about this game is its value for money. The Xbox 360 and Playstation 3 have what's essentially a Game of the Year edition (dubbed XCom Enemy Within: Commander Edition) which comes with the base game, the Elite Soldier cosmetics, the Slingshot Pack, and Enemy Within, all for an MSRP of how much you'd pay for the base game on Steam. Because of this, you're better off waiting until March 4 for the Complete Edition (Essentially the Commander Edition for PC)

Another issue i have with this game is that it does not illustrate your soldiers' line of sight. More often than not, I found myself moving a soldier to a piece of cover where I would think has a good shot at an alien, though I end up wasting his or her turn due to a lack of line of sight. This is even more of a nuisance for players who enjoy using Snipers with the early-game Squadsight ability.

And now for the good: While it's a difficult game in its own right, it certainly has enough content for several playthroughs. While you may get intimidated by the fact that you're often outgunned, you'll learn to get used to the combat. However, shooting aliens is only half of the game.

The other half of the game consists of the XCOM Headquarters, where you will need to research new technologies, arm both your soldiers and aircraft, shoot down UFOs, and manage global panic. Oh, and because you'll find yourself dealing with simultaneous abduction events, you'll find yourself having more problems with global panic than the actual combat, but this doesn't necessarily make the game unfair, as the resources to maintain panic are reasonably accessible.

The final verdict: GET THIS GAME

While by no means the best console to PC port out there, especially if you consider that it's a 60fps console game, the porting quality is far from what you'd expect from a Japanese developer's first PC port, AKA crappier than crap.

With all that said though, it's an excellent spectacle fighter, though some may argue that it isn't a proper Metal Gear game (which is probably why Konami dropped the name Metal Gear Solid: Rising, due to having little in common with the rest of the franchise outside of being in the same universe)

However, the only thing that I can say i dislike about this game is that optional objectives force you to play with badly implemented stealth mechanics, which I will say have no place in a spectacle fighter. Other than that though, the game is pretty damn awesome, having played it on PlayStation 3.

Also, if you want to see more games from this developer reach Steam, buy. it. Ae-sap.

Although it's by no means a Castlevania game in the truest sense, Lords of Shadow is a pretty awesome spectacle fighter that the PC definitely doesn't have enough of.

From what I played so far, you can already tell that this is a completely different interpretation of the Castlevania lore, though that really shouldn't prompt you to hit ALT+F4, since the combat is actually quite satisfying, as both the lesser and greater foes in these games are satisfying to kill, and the big guys, although challenging, don't feel like they're designed to sap the fun out the rest of the game. Outside of combat, the control mapping might not make sense, since most games often have you use the light attack button to interact with objects.

While some may be put off by the lack of proper keyboard controls, let's be honest: This is a genre designed to be played on a console. Depsite this, the porting quality is actually pretty darn good (though the graphics menu may tell a different story)

Although i can only see this game appealing to those who grew up with a LucasArts adventure game (i.e.: Full Throttle, Monkey Island, Grim Fandango...), TellTale's rendition of the Walking Dead definitely makes a loveable story in a setting that's used a little too often.

There really isn't much to say to it, though I'll admit that i was pleasantly surprised to see that Telltale actually managed to make an enjoyable point and click adventure game in a setting you'd never expect to touch into said genre.

However, I can only recommend this game to someone who grew up with a LucasArts adventure game. Those who haven't will likely find the lack of zombie slaying boring. (You do kill zombies, though only when such scenes are included for dramatic effect)

While I find it funny that the original Rise of the Triad pioneered the two-weapon system we love to hate, Rise of the Triad successfully invokes the twitch action and maze-y levels of 90s first person shooters.

However, you better hope your computer kicks about as much ass as this game, cuz this game is pretty high-end for a UE3 title

Probably the weakest iteration of the Scribblenauts franchise yet.

Sure, it's nice to be able to create your own freak of nature of your favourite DCU character. Unfortunately, whatever fun Scribblenauts has falls short due to a very short campaign, and the randomly spawned puzzles lose their appeal rapidly.

My final verdict: Just buy Scribblenauts Unlimited instead.

I'm a little hesitant about recommending this, despite having enjoyed this game a lot.

I can definitely see a few problems about this game.

First one being that nobody plays the multiplayer anymore, so the best course of action is to also buy extra copies to give to friends for private multiplayer sessions.
Second problem being that if you play this game before playing Dawn of War 1, DoW1's gameplay will be ruined for you.
Aaaand the third problem: With THQ being dead, i'm concerned that a good chunk of that money will go to Games Workshop instead of Relic Entertainment.

The positive aspects of the game would definitely have to be the combat system. While traditional RTS fans will dislike the lack of base building, i felt that the combat system was pretty well done, with shrubs and small pieces of rubble providing cover for infantry, vehicles taking extra damage from behind, and infantry suppression from weapon platforms such as the heavy bolter. In addition to the gameplay, the campaign is really about as good as it can get despite all the campaigns using the same map.

Final verdict: While I believe that you should play this game if you have the slightest interest in Warhammer 40,000, wait for a bloody sale. Do you really want Games Workshop to earn 20 buxx for every copy of this game sold?

Probably the buggiest iteration of Garry's Mod yet, as addons that shouldn't even conflict with each other do in fact conflict with each other (How does a lua addon break a ragdoll pack when the latter has no lua scripts?).

If you're buying this to make videos similar to the crap i made years ago, don't. You're better off using Source Filmmaker instead.

I generally dislike turn based JRPGs, though I felt that Square Enix handled the turn based combat pretty well in this game. Also, since they finally smartened up and drop the price down to ten buxx, I would definitely say buy this game.

Steam needs more titles like this, and it sucks that a sequel to this game is highly unlikely

Although a little hard to learn, getting the hang of it will let you have quite a bit of fun with it!

Unfortunately, I think it's only free because it's in beta