Not A Game Review

Remind you of any other poster? 21st September, 2018.  While the people whose lives didn't revolve around waiting for the next episode of the final chapter in Clementine's story (yes, they exist) went about their daily routines unaffected, fans of the game - which had seen the first episode of the final season released less than a month ago to much anticipation - were left heartbroken upon hearing of Telltale's sudden closure. All planned projects were scrapped, and The Final Season was assumed to be in limbo. Enter Skybound. Taking charge, the game was finished up by Skybound Entertainment, and I am so glad everything worked out the way it did - it would have been crushing to see this story not have the conclusion it deserved.  Playing the game was a special experience - knowing this was probably the last time I'd be seeing Clementine in a Telltale game. As such, I cherished every single moment of it - be it an overly-familiar mini-game or action se...

You know the feeling when you go in expecting something and it turns out exactly the way you thought it would, and now you don't know whether you liked it or didn't? That is what Conarium felt like.  I am not exactly well-versed with H.P. Lovecraft's works (yes, shameful, I know. While we're at this, let me also say that I haven't played the Witcher series yet) so I can't say whether Conarium - said to be heavily inspired by his works - does justice to the atmosphere and content of Lovecraft's writings.  The story's ... good, the graphics are surprisingly well-done ... no major complaints, really. It's just that the plot really didn't grip me as much as I would have liked it to. Overall, I had fun except for a couple of sequences where I couldn't figure out what to do (if you've played it, you know what I am talking about - yes, the monster chase) and some puzzles proved a bit too tough for me.  Seeing it took me slightly l...

Once or twice a year, I end up playing a game that I just can't bring myself to write something witty/funny about. Infinite is definitely one of them. "Bring us the girl, and wipe away the debt." It's been 4 days since I finished it, and the OST (more specifically, 'Will the Circle be Unbroken') and ending just keep swirling in my head. I honestly have no jokes - that feels like belittling the great story that Infinite boasts of.  All the time - despite the gorgeous visuals (dated for many, but I enjoyed them) - I believed it was going to be just another Bioshock game. But the ending ties in all the threads neatly - it's a delight to watch everything come together on the screen - that one magical moment when things fall into place, a puzzle piecing itself together in front of you when you didn't even realize that you were staring at one all the time. I found the ending to be tragic and perfect at the same time - although it left me as...

       In the recent past, there was a time when I didn't leave the house for almost two weeks. I'd practically eat and work (big surprise - I don't play games all  the time) at my desk, and walk the two paces to bed whenever I wanted to sleep (it's a small room, what can I say? I wish it was two paces because I was taller), leaving the room only for base necessities. Concluse makes me want to do the same - only this time, out of an unshakable feeling of being unsettled. Also, it's way past 1 as I write this and I scare easily (no, mom, I don't sleep at 10; I'm not  eighteen  five anymore, ok?)  Concluse is a unique game, in the sense that it's the first title I have played spontaneously, in a totally unplanned fashion in a long while - effectively bringing to an end years of nitpicking and fussing over what game I'd play next. It showed up on my Steam recommendations unannounced and I just said 'Let's go for it.'  An...

                                                                                   Okay, I admit it. I have not played Limbo.  Well, I actually did play it, but I was far too young to appreciate what was going on, and probably stopped playing a few minutes into it for lack of an exciting, immersive open-world (looking at you, GTA: San Andreas). Inside makes me realize just what exactly I had missed out on.  Inside is a weird game. Not weird because of the total lack of dialogue - the atmosphere and beautiful artistic environments don't let you dwell on the absence of voice for a second - but because of the buildup to the ending, and the ending itself (more on that later). Now, just to be clear (and before anyone gets offended - because that happens a...

A really fast-paced action game with a gripping story (and subtle humour sprinkled throughout), Hitman: Absolution was a welcome return to the franchise for me after a long, long hiatus (the last game I played was Blood Money; I was a ninth grader at that time). Naturally, I was curious - and a bit nervous - about the newer additions to the game mechanics, such as 'Instinct' and 'Point Shooting.' The game didn't disappoint - far from it. This might be just because I am returning to a beloved franchise that I spent a lot of my early teenage life immersed in, but I think Hitman: Absolution just became my favourite Hitman game of all time. The aforementioned additions, in my opinion, do more towards breathing new life into the series rather than detracting from the core stealth that is associated with the Hitman games.  Without delving into any major details, I'd just like to say that the game has your favourite bald assassin protecting a girl who has ...

Highly, highly recommended.  The one thing I regret in this new chapter of my life is the inability to devote as much time to video games as I used to. I often feel that critically acclaimed 'best games of all time', such as The Witcher 3 (I can't wait to play it!) or GTA V (Do I think it is one of the greatest games ever made? Yes. Is it one of the greatest games ever made? Debatable, but let's not get into that right now) require a certain level of dedication in terms of time that I am not able to provide. Which is why I require games that a) have a well-written, engaging story and b) shouldn't take up more than an hour. And that's where the problem arises. There are few games that fit into this criteria - What Never Was and Marie's Room are two excellent examples of the type of games that I dearly loved and enjoyed. Though I love the occasional all-nighter to enjoy a game like Firewatch, those are becoming less and less frequent.  Answer Knot fits perfec...