Recent reviews by Beltway

Meh. Not a bad game at all, but it is an acquired taste. In addition to that it is a bit of a grind fest with a lot of replaying the same missions over repeatedly. In my opinion it's over hyped and not worth the $60+ unless you are an actual fan of the franchise. As a total beginner, it's fairly a mediocre game with clunky controls, game play and connections.

Game is dope. I did not expect to see my real home address let alone defend it from hordes of zombies. The game is fun, interesting, and has a ton of potential. Worth the buy in my opinion.

The game is fun, but it is SO unstable that it ruins the experience. I haven't had a single day where I've played this game and haven't crashed less than 5 times. If it wasn't for the instability, I'd highly recommend it. Still good in Nov 2024

Extremely relaxing simulation. One of my go to chill games.

Probably the best open sandbox game I've ever played. I've read reviews that claim you can be or do just about anything in this game, and they are absolutely correct. Want to be the lone ultimate bad ass? Sure. The best weapon smith on the planet? Cool. Open up a 5 star restaurant? Okay. Free hundreds of slaves and cause a mass revolt? Why not. Essentially the possibilities are almost limitless, and what can't be done with the base game can likely be done with mods. Easily worth $30, getting it for anything less is steal.

BE WARNED!

This game is not for people that need to have their hand held. This is a true open world sandbox game. You're not going to be told what to do, when to do it or how to do it. It's ALL up to you and you alone. Don't buy this game if you lack any kind of initiative and need some sort of rail to guide you through a game cause this ain't it.

I snagged The Red Solstice back in March of this year and had a blast despite it's tedious team management system and abysmal team AI. Once I heard about RS2, I knew I was going to pick it up, and so far I'm leaning more towards a positive review than negative. On release there were too many bugs to bother playing, so I waited until a hotfix which came less than 24 hours later. There are still some issues but nothing that I would consider game breaking.

What I like:

My first impression of the game is mostly positive. I like having AI that actually uses the skills that it's given. I was shocked to see my medic healing and reviving without being prompted. It was also nice seeing the assault class using his frag grenades, etc. I like the new array of toys that are given this time around and I love the XCOM-like campaign that involves building up your arsenal, traveling to different regions, researching, and even capturing specimens. The maps feel just as big, if not bigger than the maps in the original game. Speaking of the map, I love the amount of interactions available when it comes to the map. From blocking doors to opening up gas pipeline access on the street, everything has a purpose and can be used to escape the horde.

What I don't like:

While I do enjoy much of what I've experienced so far, I do have a number of issues with the game. My biggest issue is the lack luster tutorial interactions. I've pretty much stumbled my way throughout the game so far in terms of learning the game and how to utilize items, weapons, and upgrade my base. I'm still learning but it would be nice if the hints were useful. Next is the game seems too easy compared to the original. Maybe it's because I'm fairly early into the game but the volume of enemies seem underwhelming overall. My next issue is the side mission generation or lack there of. The timing of the side missions is so random that you can literally finish the main mission in less than 5 minutes and escape before you see any opposition. When you do get missions, some of them don't give clear instructions on what you need to do. Specifically the M.E.R.C.S supply mission. Also some missions will bug out and never end, but I'm sure that will be patched out with time.

Conclusion:

All in all I am enjoying the game and it's much improved from the original game, but there are still some things that the original does better. I'd like to see a few more elements of RS be put into this installment, such as the ambiance sounds, and the boss creature sounds at the beginning of certain waves.

Currently, I have 21 hours on record and I've been impressed all the way through. Considering EA's atrocious track record for the past 4 years, I decided to wait and see if they would sneak any bad business practices in the game. Once the game had been out for a month I was happy to see there were none in sight. Combine that with the positive reviews and holiday sale, I had no reason to put off purchasing it. I give the game a solid 9/10 Here's why.

The Story:

As of right now, I have not beaten the game (about 50% in) and I've been engaged the whole time. This one game has more plot than the last there Star Wars movies combined. Without spoiling too much, the game picks up 4 years after order 66. You play the role of a Cal Kestis, a semi trained jedi padawan that went into hiding after the order was eliminated. Due to unforeseen circumstances he's been found out and is a fugitive on the run. From bounty hunters and inquisitors to incredibly dangerous wild life, everyone is trying to kill you or capture you for a quick buck. As you progress through the game you'll develop new skills that will ultimately help you even the odds.

The Combat.

I think the combat of the game overall is decent. Fighting multiple opponents can be incredibly tricky and feel clunky at times. One on one fights feel amazing, especially considering that you can block and parry seamlessly with force and light saber based attacks. Boss fights are epic overall due to the combat system. I think it could be improved but not by much.

The Progression System.

The progression is a mix of experience gaining and scripted. You'll be able to learn over 30 abilities and augments. My only complaint with the system is that there is no variety. What I mean by that is the skill trees aren't large enough to where you can specialize. For example you couldn't focus on saber combat and avoid force mastery. You eventually learn everything in all skill trees. I think if they added the ability to specialize, it would give more of a personalized feel.

The Customization.

I don't think I've played a Star Wars game that allows you to customize a light saber in great detail. You're able to switch out color crystals, switches, sleeve, materials and even emitters. While all of these customization options are purely cosmetic, it adds a high level of personality to your game experience. Next to the story, this is by far my favorite part of the game. On top of light saber options, you can customize your ship, outfits, and droid companions.

The Down Sides.

Here is why I take one point off my final score. The length of the game seems like it is rather short. I was honestly surprised to see I was over 50% done with the game. That is the problem with high quality story games like this one. You get engaged and it just ends. However it's still an enjoyable experience that I recommend. I'm very interested in the protagonist and would love to find out how his story ends after this game.

Another issue I had was constant stuttering via video and audio. During my first two days playing the game, it was frustrating to the point I didn't play for more than an hour. However once I updated my video drivers, and turned Vsync on, I haven't had an issue.

TL;DR Buy it ...Hurry....HURRY!

Surprisingly fun and satisfying. I saw that they had this for a free weekend so I decided to give it a try. I was so happy with the trial that I ended up getting it with a DLC. I already had 38 hours clocked before the trial ended so it is worth the $16.

As a long time fan of the first three Resident Evil games, Part 2 was my all time favorite. This remake brought back a flood of memories that reminded me just how terrifying the game was. This is an instant buy for me on the 25th.