Recent reviews by Taurus#

Battlezone 98 Redux does a really good job combining several genres into one experience. It combines first-person shooting, base building, army management, and even tower defense elements in a really clean and enjoyable way. The mix sounds unusual at first, but it works surprisingly well once you get into it. I had a really solid experience with the game and I definitely recommend it.

The gameplay feels unique even today. Jumping between controlling vehicles yourself, gathering resources, building structures, and commanding units keeps missions engaging the whole time. The saving system is also really neat, which helped a lot during some of the harder missions.

I’ll mention a few things I didn’t really like though. The Red Brigade missions felt considerably harder compared to the Stars and Stripes campaign. I had to restart some missions multiple times before finally completing them. Thankfully, despite replaying sections and lowering the difficulty, I still had fun with it.

Another thing that felt lacking was proper group commands for units. It would’ve been much better if you could simply select all offense units at once and order them to follow you, instead of manually selecting every single unit one by one and giving the exact same command repeatedly.

The game also has an introduction/tutorial system that teaches the basics, but it doesn’t really explain all the important buildings and mechanics. For example, I had no idea barracks were needed to increase pilot count until I searched it online myself.

Still, despite those smaller issues, the game is genuinely solid and very enjoyable overall. Even though it feels old in certain areas, the core gameplay is still incredibly fun and unique.

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Unfortunately, a classic doesn’t automatically mean fun. I can respect Baldur's Gate for being influential, but actually playing it felt more exhausting than enjoyable.

Everything feels sluggish. Movement, combat, pacing - the whole game just drags. I kept waiting for something to finally hook me: a quest, character, mechanic, literally anything, but it never happened. There are a few interesting dialogue lines here and there, but that's about the only thing I genuinely liked.

The OST is good, but sometimes it goes way too hard for what's happening on screen. The funniest example was entering the barracks at the start, fighting 3-4 regular rats that die in seconds, while the music explodes like I'm facing the final battle for humanity. Even after clearing the room, the dramatic combat music just kept going. It was so absurd that I started laughing.

I get why people loved this back then, but for me it mostly felt boring, outdated, and weirdly overdramatic.

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Xmas Apocalypse is a decent casual game that I ended up enjoying more than I expected. The best way to describe it is basically Vampire Survivors in 3D, but with actual aiming mechanics instead of purely brainless auto-shooting. Your aim and positioning matter here, which makes the combat feel a bit more engaging and active compared to the usual survivors-like formula. It’s easy to jump into for a quick session, but still fun enough to keep you playing longer than planned.

That said, some of the upgrade design choices don’t feel fully thought through. For example, the game can offer you a healing upgrade even when you’re already at full health, which just makes the upgrade slot feel wasted. The bomb upgrade also sounds much better on paper than it works in practice. Since the bombs you stick can damage you as well, it’s surprisingly easy to blow yourself up during the chaos while trying to focus on enemies and movement. It turns what should feel like a strong upgrade into something frustrating to use at times.

I also ran into a few minor bugs, though nothing completely game-breaking. One strange issue was that even after disabling the music, sound effects, and voices, some glitchy music clips would still play whenever leveling up. Another, more frustrating bug happened after alt-tabbing, aiming down sights stopped working entirely until I restarted the game. Thankfully a restart fixed it, but it unfortunately ruined that particular run.

Overall, despite a few technical annoyances, questionable upgrade balance, and limited environments, I still had a good time with it. If you want a straightforward casual action game with a winter horror feel and more involved combat than most survivors clones, it’s worth checking out.

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If the first Slay the Spire was lightning in a bottle, then Slay the Spire 2 somehow manages to bottle the entire storm. It keeps everything that made the original endlessly addictive while polishing the rough edges and adding just enough new ideas to make every run feel fresh again.

The combat is still incredibly satisfying, with every card choice and relic pickup feeling meaningful. What I love most is how the game constantly pushes you to adapt instead of relying on the same broken strategy every time. One run turns into an unstoppable poison machine, while the next becomes pure chaos built around weird synergies you never expected to work.

The new visuals and animations give the game a lot more personality without losing the charm of the original. The soundtrack also deserves praise, and even in Early Access the game already feels incredibly polished.

What really stands out is how easy it is to lose hours without noticing. You tell yourself “just one more run” and suddenly it’s 3 AM. Few roguelikes manage to stay this replayable while still feeling rewarding even after repeated failures.

Slay the Spire 2 doesn’t reinvent the formula completely, and honestly, it doesn’t need to. It understands exactly why people fell in love with the first game and builds on that foundation beautifully. If you enjoy deckbuilders even remotely, this is one of those games that will completely consume your free time in the best possible way.

It’s a genre-defining game, and it absolutely deserves all the praise it gets!

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A certified classic and a true staple of the tower defense genre. Kingdom Rush Origins, the third installment in the series, builds on its predecessors with noticeably improved visuals and a refined presentation that still keeps the charm the franchise is known for.

The gameplay remains simple to pick up, yet consistently rewarding. Each level offers just enough challenge to keep things engaging without becoming frustrating. Having completed the main campaign on Veteran difficulty, the experience felt well-balanced. I had to retry a few of the tougher stages, but it never crossed into feeling like a chore.

Overall, Kingdom Rush Origins delivers exactly what fans expect: polished mechanics, satisfying progression, and a difficulty curve that respects your time. A must-play for anyone who enjoys tower defense done right.

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Heat Signature is, at its core, a really fun game and that’s worth stating upfront. But before getting into the praise, there are a few issues that held it back for me.

One of the biggest is the zoom mechanic. It works well while piloting your ship, but inside enemy vessels it feels overpowered and immersion-breaking. Being able to zoom out and see every enemy at all times removes a lot of the tension. I can understand why it’s there, but personally, I think the game would benefit from limiting it, perhaps keeping full zoom only in space, and using something more restrained during boarding, like a couple of fixed zoom levels similar to Hotline Miami. As it stands, it takes away from the game’s charm.

Level design is another area that could use improvement. While functional, it lacks variety, and the visual clarity isn’t always great. Early on, it can be hard to tell what’s interactable and what’s just decoration. You do get used to it, but better readability would go a long way. Some mechanics also aren’t explained clearly enough. Enemy shields, for example, can be confusing at first. And while there’s a decent selection of gadgets, I found myself wishing for a wider variety of firearms, which feel a bit underrepresented.

That said, there’s a lot to like here. The gameplay loop is genuinely engaging. You take on missions, upgrade your gear, and break into enemy ships in increasingly creative ways. It’s the kind of game that’s easy to sink hours into. The stealth missions, in particular, stand out as a highlight. Despite its repetition, it captures that roguelike “just one more run” feeling really well, constantly pulling you back in.

I can clearly see the effort and creativity that went into Heat Signature, and it would feel wrong to dismiss it outright. At the same time, I can’t fully recommend it to everyone due to the issues I mentioned. It’s definitely worth checking out, but I’d suggest watching some gameplay first or picking it up on sale to see if it clicks with you.

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The Lost Keepers is a great DLC that expands on the base game in all the right ways without overcomplicating the core loop.

The new characters are the highlight here. Each one feels distinct and adds meaningful twists to how you approach runs, which helps keep the gameplay fresh even after many hours.

The new OST didn’t fully click for me. It’s not bad, but it doesn’t quite match the impact of the original soundtrack.

The biggest addition overall isn’t even part of the DLC itself, but came alongside it - multiplayer. It was the most desired feature and something I specifically mentioned in my initial review. Co-op and versus are finally here, and they feel like a natural fit for the game. There’s even split-screen, which is a nice touch and something you don’t see that often anymore. It’s a feature that was clearly missing before, and it’s great to see it implemented properly.

Overall, a strong DLC that adds variety and gives you a great reason to jump back in.

• ⭐[Base Game] Dome Keeper - review.
  
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I wouldn’t say visual novels are really my thing, but VA-11 Hall-A: Cyberpunk Bartender Action definitely leaves a mark. The characters are really interesting, each with their own quirks, and the main story around the protagonist is emotional and engaging enough to keep things going.

But for me, the cherry on top, and easily the highlight, was the humour. Some of the quirky jokes genuinely brought a smile to my face, which made the whole experience feel even more enjoyable.

If I had to nitpick something, it would be the jukebox system. Previewing each song takes a few seconds and you can’t skip through them, which makes going through 30+ tracks a bit of a chore. I just set my playlist once at the start and never touched it again. It’s a minor issue, but noticeable.

Overall, a great experience, easy to recommend to anyone who wants to unwind. Thanks Platinum for buying this little gem for me, really appreciate it :]

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I’ve been playing the open beta and following the development pretty closely, and honestly I’m having a good time with it. I haven’t played the first Wizard of Legend, and I’ve seen a lot of comparisons saying it’s much better than this one. That might be true, but I’m judging this purely as a standalone experience.

At its core, it’s a really entertaining roguelike hack-and-slash. It hits that fast-paced, ability-combo gameplay loop that’s easy to get into and hard to put down.

That said, the negatives are definitely there. There are some bugs here and there, and certain arcana combinations feel a bit cheesy or unbalanced. It’s not something that completely ruins the experience, but it’s noticeable.

The best way I can describe it is: it feels like a less polished version of Hades, but with multiplayer co-op, which is a big plus. Playing with friends adds a lot to the experience, and we genuinely had a great time with it.

Overall, I do like the whole package. It’s not perfect, but it’s fun where it counts. I’d probably recommend picking it up on a discount rather than full price, but if you enjoy roguelikes and co-op gameplay, it’s definitely worth checking out.

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Nostalgia aside I installed CSGO just to play Danger Zone with friends, and it reminded me how fun this mode actually is. The fast pace and chaotic teamwork make every match memorable.

Valve really nailed the concept, and it still holds up today. Danger Zone is honestly the best battle royale mode I’ve played in any game. It takes the core gameplay of CS and turns it into something fast, intense, and incredibly fun with friends. Compared to other battle royale games I’ve tried, nothing matches its pacing and the constant tension of every match.

Hopefully they bring Danger Zone back in Counter-Strike 2, because it definitely deserves a return.

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