Monthly Archives: April 2019

Grimshade Review

by Jason Parker (Ragachak)

Grimshade Review - 2

 

Grimshade is an interesting beast, that’s for sure. It has the aesthetic of a fantasy World War I era, but it also blends seamlessly races of anthropomorphic characters. I find this world to be terribly fascinating. Grimshade is a turn-based strategy game set in a world in a pitched conflict. The combat is easy to get into, and the game itself is visually appealing. For every good thing I’ve found, there seems to be something terribly frustrating to go along with it. Alister, our main character is a Champion and trying to defend the city of Brann. A foreign power is invading, and doing their best to overtake everything and kill the champions. Ultimately we will have to set out to save the day because that’s what heroes do. You’ll explore these maps, which is occasionally clunky, and once you encounter an enemy, it will shift into turn-based combat.

Grimshade Review - 3

It’s a hard life in this world…

It’s important to note that the game does not heal you between battles, and I’ve yet to see heal skills. You can pick up medicine to restore your team, but it’s a bit on the expensive side. This makes sense since we’re in a war, but I find myself holding my gold until I can purchase more. It’s easy to see how many medical kits you have, thanks to the cross on the top part of the screen. I do wish those menu items would have a bit of text to tell you what they are though. There are unique items for each character too, such as a flask for Charlie that when used, prevents his Preparation from being interrupted. Charlie’s an incredible marksman, and his first ability deals a great deal of damage but can be interrupted by taking any damage (or even if they move forward!), so crafting this when you can is very important. There are lots of things in the world to interact with too, so you can receive lots of crafting components from these items in the world, as well as from combat itself.

Grimshade Review - 5

Some of these tutorial fights feel brutal, but it’s worth learning the system.

Combat in Grimshade is solid but very predictable. The enemy AI is not very intricate or smart. The enemies with movement abilities will always move to your Guardian, so the other NPCs can shoot/stab your weaker characters with ease. Guardians prevent the units behind them from being hit by most attacks, unless they’re stunned. Once you’ve fought a few battles, you’ll almost always know how to handle the situation. The frustration comes with initiative and the “avoidance” or shield abilities. Some characters have an armor where they will avoid any non-magical attack sent their way (hover over them and look at the number next to the shield to see how much avoidance they have). This Avoidance recovers every turn, and you have to break through it all over again. Magical attacks don’t seem to do as much to these types of characters unless you can use Kiba’s abilities in conjunction. Kiba is the character you find yourself in command of for the most part, and his choices can influence the game.

Grimshade Review - 6

I’m torn – I’m glad that the enemies can’t move onto your half of the map, but I’d also love to flank.

Kiba uses a special magical power, where he can use both Light and Dark magic, depending on his level of Tension. Tension builds when you deal or receive damage, but it lowers every turn. When he hits over half Tension, his abilities shift and has a new set of abilities that deal Dark Damage. However, when a character’s Tension builds to the max, they are stunned. This game has a fairly intricate elemental strength/weakness system, but it’s not always clear what is strong or weak to what. The combat is fairly simple to understand, but after a while, it’s definitely gets repetitive, especially since you can head back to a haven on a map to fully heal. The enemies on the way tend to respawn, so you can try the fight again without taking as much damage. Occasionally you’ll have allies help you that aren’t in the party – you can’t control them, but they will aid you in battle. That does lead me to my next thought on what I think is interesting.

Grimshade Review - 1

Are you really a hero?

During the start of the game, when you just have Kiba and Alister, you learn that your choices have consequences. While the town is under siege, you’ll be asked if you’re going to help do battle against the invading forces. Agreeing to go these extra battles will give you useful items – say no, and the people will remember you. A powerful warrior/spellcaster, who lets innocent people die in the streets? That won’t go over well, and they’ll certainly remember you. It goes well with the aesthetic of the game. While navigating the areas can be annoying, and constantly redoing fights if you perform badly can be tedious, the actual aesthetic of the game is gorgeous. The characters are well designed, the hand-drawn art style is lovely, and the music really sets the tone for every area of the game. It’s a story well told, but it would probably do better with a little less of the ham-fisted dialogue.

Grimshade Review - 8

Can you guess where I am on this map? I dunno!

A Tale as Old as Time: 3/5

The characters are at first enjoyable; it’s fun to watch their banter. But that style of writing can become redundant. The game is incredibly narrative heavy, and you really have to pay attention everything that’s said in order to glean where you’re going to go next. While it’s useful that you can use the map to teleport to wherever your current Haven is, and then back to the last checkpoint, the map does not show you where you actually are on the map. There’s no blip that says “Hey, this is my party!” and that can be very trying on the patience. I’m grateful that the game doesn’t have you grinding constantly to level up, making the game more about skill and tactical know-how. Some of the fights are very difficult, but I’m more than willing to lower the difficulty a notch.

Grimshade Review 10

This is some powerful brew.

The difficulty comes with the Avoidance system, and little else. Not all enemies have Avoidance, just the guardians. This is coupled with enemies having very wide areas of aggro, so it’s difficult to avoid fights. Grimshade also auto-saves after every time you enter a map, and after you finish a battle. This could potentially put the party in a very bad position if the party is low on health and without medical kits. If a character passes out in battle they come back with a wound, so that medkit is now incredibly useful. The characters in your party are varied and fun to use, and once the party broadens a bit, you can show off your tactical prowess.

Grimshade starts a little slow, thanks to the lengthy tutorial, but it’s still worth playing. I’ve heard of people hitting bugs that force battles to restart or framerate issues, but I just didn’t have those problems. Being able to craft items and improve your powers is fun, though. Visually, this is a masterpiece to me, but ultimately, I found myself bogged down by the tedium of combat after a few hours of it. I love that acquiring new gear gives additional and new abilities to wield in battle. Figuring out the strategies required for some of the later battles are definitely fun, but the regular encounters? Those are all pretty cut and dry. Grimshade is a game that while I don’t love, I do like.

Note: A game key was provided for review purposes.

Grimshade Images Gallery:

Nowhere Prophet Coming to PC in 2019 from No More Robots

Developed by Sharkbomb Studios and published by No More Robots, Nowhere Prophet is an Indian-infused digital dustpunk card game and launches this summer. Nowhere Prophet hits PC/Linux/Mac in 2019, and console in 2020. There’s also a closed beta that can be signed up for here. Nowhere Prophet is a tale of hope and is set years after “The Crash”, where a complete technological collapse occurs.

There’s finally a bit of light in all of this darkness, and as the Nowhere Prophet, you must lead your convoy to peace. Nowhere Prophet is a card battler that uses card-based combat and a tactical battle board and humanizes the Prophets followers using the card system. Your hand and deck are your followers, and recruiting new followers (or losing them to the wilderness) will constantly shift how your deck plays.

Procedurally generated maps give you a new journey each time you play, while 10 different convoys, more than 300 cards to find, and four Prophet classes will offer different ways to approach each time you play.

Jurassic World Evolution: Carnivore Dinosaur Pack Now Available

The latest premium DLC for Jurassic World Evolution arrived today from Frontier Developments: the Carnivore Dinosaur Pack. This pack adds three new dinosaurs to Jurassic World Evolution and also has a free update for all players as well. This update comes with a new camera mode, for would-be dinosaur photographers.

The new dinosaurs include:

  • The Herrerasaurus is a well-adapted carnivore with a narrow skull and serrated teeth for tearing into flesh, along with an unusually flexible joint in its lower jaw, allowing it to pin prey with a vice-like grip.
  • The Proceratosaurus is small in stature but this carnivorous two-legged dinosaur from the middle Jurassic period is an ancient relative of the mighty Tyrannosaurus rex.
  • The Acrocanthosaurus is a large and muscular dinosaur from the Cretaceous period. Studies of its skull and inner-ear reveal it would have had an unusual posture, lowering its head when running to maintain balance.

S.W.I.N.E. HD Remaster Receives PC Release Date

Assemble Entertainment announced today that their porcine military RTS title S.W.I.N.E. HD Remaster has a release date: May 23rd, 2019! It’s arriving just in time for the Bay of Pigs invasion anniversary, and it takes players back to the good ol’ days of war between pigs and rabbits. In the very first gameplay trailer of S.W.I.N.E. HD Remaster, Assemble Entertainment spotlights the most impressive scenes from the dirtiest of all dirty wars. You could call this one a bloodbath … or a mudbath.

Wasteland 2: Director’s Cut Now Available in North America

Wasteland 2: Director’s Cut is now available in North America for the Nintendo Switch at retail for 29.99 USD; it’s coming to Europe at retail on May 17th, 2019 as well. Brian Fargo, the producer of the original Fallout, has partnered with Nintendo to release Wasteland 2: Director’s Cut, the sequel to the first-ever post-apocalyptic computer RPG.

“Many of our fans have old school sensibilities, so when we announced the arrival of Wasteland 2 on the Nintendo Switch, we immediately began hearing requests for a physical version of the game. Many players love the collecting element of games – having the game in-hand, displayed on a shelf, and ready to be plucked off that shelf and played at any moment. We investigated the possibility, and thanks to a partnership with U&I Entertainment, are delivering this physical version of the game for our fans to have and enjoy,” said Brian Fargo, CEO, inXile Entertainment.

DAYMARE: 1998 Reveals Story Trailer

DAYMARE: 1998 will arrive on PC this summer, but today we get a sneak preview of the story and learn a little more about what H.A.D.E.S. is. The Hexacore Advanced Division for Extraction and Search reports directly to the DoD (Dept. of Defense) and deals with the most delicate of incidents. Agent Liev is a former Spetznaz who left Russia for greener pastures and now lives the American dream as a member of H.A.D.E.S., but a routine security breach may be far more than it seems.

DAYMARE: 1998 is an upcoming third-person survival horror, that also features hardcore survival mechanics and enemies that are sincerely hard-to-kill. It will require a tactical approach to combat, and offers a multi-character point of view to the story, unveiling deep and obscure lore. Backtracking, ammo conservation, environmental puzzles and much more await players in this daymare.

DAYMARE: 1998 MAIN FEATURES:

  • Multi-character POV – see the story from different angles and discover the truth;
  • Fearsome enemies – rendered in detail with lifelike animations and dismemberment;
  • Realistic HUD – check inventory, health and position on a given piece of equipment;
  • Environmental puzzles – finding your way around is not always easy, so look for clues;
  • Classic mechanics – limited ammo and save points, backtracking, collectibles, tough enemies and more;
  • Modern graphics and effects – not everything is old-school, thanks to Unreal Engine 4;
  • Experience the 90s – the game is a homage to the era, with tons of references.

Siege of Centauri Begins Steam Early Access

Siege of Centauri Founder's Program News

Stardock’s massive tower defense title, Siege of Centauri has officially begun Steam Early Access, for 9.99. Set in the Ashes of the Singularity universe, players will take the role of a defender of Earth’s first colony on Proxima Centauri.

“With tens of thousands of enemy machines pouring toward your base, we want to give players a very new experience of what it means to defend themselves against overwhelming odds,” said lead designer Derek Paxton. “The benefits between a rail gun that fires one deadly round every ten seconds and a high-speed plasma arc array that does low damage, but to dozens of enemies at once is obvious to players, especially when they see a huge mothership surrounded by hundreds of escorts coming at them.”

In the early access period for Siege of Centauri, players will:

Defend Centauri: Gain access to new technologies and fight off enemy invaders from region to region.
Deploy your Defenses: An arsenal of emergency rapid deployment defenses are at your disposal. Use them in strategic locations to halt the swarm’s progress.
Strike From Above: When all else fails, use your ship’s formidable capabilities from orbit to destroy your enemies.

Webzen 10th Anniversary Coupon Giveaway

We’ve partnered with Webzen to celebrate their 10th anniversary with a coupon giveaway!

Webzen 10th Anniversary

Your coupon code will let you select one of WEBZEN.com games first, and give you a free item pack for the selected game.
A code is limited to only one of WEBZEN games, including MU Legend, MU Online, C9, Flyff, and Rappelz. A code is limited to one use per account.

How to redeem your code:

  1. Go to http://www.webzen.com/Coupon
  2. Log in with your account
  3. Select your server and character, and enter the Coupon Code (without hyphens)
  4. Click “redeem coupon code”

If you are new to WEBZEN, please see the following:

  1. Create a webzen.com account.
  2. Go to http://www.webzen.com/ to download your game client and install it.
  3. Choose a server.
  4. Create a new character.

Note:

  • Coupon codes can only be used with an existing WEBZEN account
  • Coupon codes are limited to one use per account unless stated otherwise

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