Reviews by T'hain Esh Kelch

Spiritfarer®
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Gorgeous adventure/management game about dying

Once in a while a truly a unique marvel pops up, and this is one of them. The story is simple; Charon of mythological legend is bound to move on into his next life, and you are the new ferryman of souls that needs to pass into the next life. You roam a large map in your little boat, visiting small islands, meeting and picking up unique characters that are bound to move on. As the story progress, you learn more and more about these characters backgrounds, and end up doing different kinds of quests for them, so they can feel finished.

The 2D style and animations are absolutely gorgeous, and oozes with character and life, making it a joy to look at. It has simple but captivating gameplay, with a good mix of sim style management of your boat, along with not too hectic platforming style gameplay. The soundtrack is great to listen to, with some very soothing melodies that fits the game perfectly.

There was a bit of a pacing issue at the end for me, with too many 'fetch quests', but nothing that ruined the overall experience at all.

Overall a game I can only recommend. If you enjoy getting your emotions pulled out of you, in a casual game that you can either play for hours on end, or throw in a few minutes when you have time, then this is for you. There's a lot of story to take in, so if you don't want to engross yourself at least a bit, then you might want skip it, as you are going to miss out on a lot of what the game can offer.

by T'hain Esh Kelch, Denmark - Apr 25th 2023

Nightmares From The Deep: The Cursed Heart Collector's Edition
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A fine puzzle game

A fine puzzle adventure game, with a fine story. You won't be completely lost in the puzzles, but they won't bee too easy either, hence a good balance.

My only complaint is that the cinematic sequences are REALLY heavily compressed, and thus VERY pixelated, which is quite a pity. My 6 year old daughter quite enjoyed playing it with me, although she got stuck on quite a few of the puzzles, so you will have to be older than her to play it alone. :P

by T'hain Esh Kelch, Denmark - Apr 23rd 2023

Nightmares from the Deep: The Siren's Call Collector's Edition
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Good puzzle game

A nice puzzle/adventure game, with a fine story, and a good mix of puzzles. They won't blow your mind when it comes to difficulty, but will have you scratch your forehead once in a while. A good casual puzzle game.

The cinematic sequences have been upgraded immensely compared to the first game, in that they are no longer pixelated to hell, which is a good thing. My 6 year old daughter enjoyed this game a lot, and it was a good bonding game to play, as she can't read yet. She did find it a tad scary at times, but not too much.

by T'hain Esh Kelch, Denmark - Apr 23rd 2023

1954 Alcatraz
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Acceptable noir crime adventure story

What we have here is an point and click adventure game about a couple in love, in the 1950's San Francisco. One of the main characters is shipped off to Alcatraz, and has to find his way off the island, while his girlfriend is coping with her friends and gangster enemies in the city.

It is a pretty straight forward point and click adventure game, with no major surprises.

Pros: Overall, a quite well written story that will keep you entertained throughout, with a hard gangster/noir setting to it. The game features some really well done 3D models that just oozes character, which really helps puts its mark on the overall feel of the game, and I feel these are the highlight of the game. You can at any time (more or less) switch between the two main characters, which makes for a nice change of setting once in a while, as their individual stories won't cross until the very last minute of the game.

Cons: Background quality designs are quite old by now, and the animations are also quite stiff, although both do the job. There are quite a few times where you are expected to do something that is absolutely not clear or explained, which takes quite a bit out of the gameplay, as you will likely have to use a walkthrough. I am used to puzzles in these games that can't be figured out easily, but way too many deus-ex-machina examples in this one to make it a great experience. Most puzzles are very straight forward, and not very complex.

Overall, a fine adventure with a great setting and awesome characters, hampered by a game that could have used a bit more polish. If you like adventure gams, chances are you'll enjoy this.

by T'hain Esh Kelch, Denmark - Apr 11th 2023

Hero of the Kingdom II
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Enjoyable adventure

A simple adventure, which boasts the largest number of fetch-quests, I have ever seen before, intermixed with hidden object gaming.

The story is simple: Your sister is captured by pirates, and you have to find her! This is the only story there is for the first half of the game, so storywise it is pretty bland there. Fortunately it picks up halfway through, but the beginning could be a bit more interesting storywise.

Gameplay is simple - You pick up things, sometimes hidden on each map, and give them to people in order to get other things. Repeat at nausea! It does sound boring, but it is actually very relaxing, and there's a soothing soundtrack to go along.

I enjoyed myself, and the repetitive nature of the game made me play for much longer than I should have, because I could just do juuuust one more thing before finishing. :P

Graphics are simple, but suit the game very nicely, and while detailed they are never so complex that you can't find things.

I recommend it for people that don't want something filled with action, and something you can jump in and out of at any time.

by T'hain Esh Kelch, Denmark - Sep 13th 2020

SPACECOM
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Skin deep strategy with limiting interface

Spacecom is a scifi strategy game, where you use three different kind of ships (Ship to ship combat, bombardment, or invasion), to wage warface across solar systems.

You start out with a few planets, who may or may not be able to produce more ships, and a few space ships. You then move your spaceships between solar systems, and fight local ships (Happening automatically), or destroy or capture the planets. A few planets are capable of reparing ships, a few can build ships, and some can produce materials for building things. Most planets can do nothing, other than building battle stations, shields, and troops, to protect them.

It is not very deep, as that is all you can do. Every level has a main mission, usually capture or destroy a specific planet(s), or don't loose X number of planets to waves of enemies. There's also 1-3 extra missions, which is usually 'don't loose X ships or planets', 'don't let enemy get X planets'.

It was okay strategy, as some levels were harder and required you to micromanage your ships around, while a few of them was merely (im)balanced to allow you to select all your ships from the start, click enemy planet, and go invade it, and thus finish in 1 minute.

Graphically it wasn't too special. Representative round images of planets, with lines between them. A bit too simple for my liking, but that just made the game all about strategy. I could have liked better differentiation between the ships (A triangle with line above, in the middle or in the bottom!).

I did feel the user interface was hindering me a bit, as there was no overhead map, you had to select individual planets after sending ships to them and then tell them what to do, and the 'Invade' and 'Destroy' buttons were crazily close together given that you are playing in real time! And they were moving depending on what ships you had in your fleet, which was just a BIG no-no! The invade button should stay where it was, and not get replaced with 'Destroy' if you have a single bombardment ship in the fleet!
And I was really lacking a 'you have idle ships waiting here', so I didn't have to scour around large maps looking for small triangles sitting still!

Soundtrack was soothing, although nothing too special. Sounds otherwise were almost non-existing.

I played it on a 2011 Mac Mini, so max resolution was 1344x1008, which was the weirdest resolution I have ever seen.. :D But according to MGS, the game wasn't supposed to be running, which it most certainly was, so I can live with that! So it did look quite old for me, but I again assume that's because my machine wasn't supported. No bugs encountered at all. I didn't try out multiplayer, because the game wasn't that interesting, but I guess it could actually be nice if you want something simple vs. a friend. The multiplayer ranking board didn't work though.

All in all a simple strategy game worth a couple of hours of gameplay. Acceptable, nothing more, nothing less.

by T'hain Esh Kelch, Denmark - Sep 11th 2020

BIT.TRIP Presents... Runner2: Future Legend of Rhythm Alien
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Nice presentation, but boring gameplay

It is a basic runner, going from left to right, while jumping, sliding, kicking, etc. each time an obstacle comes on screen.

It is presented very nicely, with good artwork, great narration, backgrounds and animations that have been caressed for...

But, ultimately, the gameplay just falls flat for me. I didn't find it very interesting. Way too simple for me.

by T'hain Esh Kelch, Denmark - Aug 6th 2020

Luxuria Superbia
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Is this a game?

So that was the weirdest and most psychedelic experience I've had, playing a game. Or was it a game? I don't know. You just click, trying to make four lines of color grow wide. At some point the game told me I lost? I tried again. I clicked more, that game liked that. I didn't.

Weird music. Colors. Eyes. Flags. Being inside a flower? If that's your thing, go for it.

by T'hain Esh Kelch, Denmark - Aug 6th 2020

Anna's Quest
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Excellent adventure game

A hand drawn adventure game, about a young girl who lives with her grand father, until the latter becomes ill and she leaves their home to find a cure. She gets caught by a witch, and a grand adventure unfolds with her in the centere.

Nice hand drawn backgrounds and animations, great characters, nice voice work, good music, and a top notch adventure game with an excellent plot that unfolds as you play the game.

Highly recommend for adventure game fans!

by T'hain Esh Kelch, Denmark - Mar 9th 2020

Type:Rider
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Interesting way to learn

At its heart, this game is about information on typography. You learn about how writing was initially invented, how the printing press became important, and then move on to typography at its core.

Interspaced between these short snippets of information, there's a simple physics driven platforming game. There are some nice backgrounds, really sothing music, and some clever letter-based levels.

I enjoyed it. It is very simple, but does the job. Don't go into this expecting a deep platforming game though, go into it expecting an interactive Wikipedia article on typography. Although, some of the characters you have to find on each level, can be quite hard to get to.. Especially at the later parts. And then there's the secret level.. Oh boy, that's definitely for us hardcore platformers! 8)

Recommended for anyone looking for something relaxing and informative.

by T'hain Esh Kelch, Denmark - Feb 18th 2020

realMyst: Masterpiece Edition
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A masterpiece

Myst is an old classic, which certainly holds up today. It is a masterpiece of exploration, puzzles, clues, and amazing visuals (Well, they were somewhat more amazing back then, but still looks fantastic in many places). It certainly has aged, but gameplay wise it still holds up.

It has this special tranquil and relaxing feel, that no other games have matched I believe. Puzzles are just right in how hard they are to solve, and the story is actually also quite interesting.

The game was a bit weird with the graphical performance, but ran acceptable on my 2011 iMac with 2GB Radeon 6970M. One of the graphical options created black boxes on my screen, but other than that, no issues encountered at all, despite running it under macOS 10.13.6 which MGS says isn't supported.

Highly recommended.

by T'hain Esh Kelch, Denmark - Aug 4th 2019

PixelJunk Monsters
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Too simplistic

A slightly different take on your normal tower defense - You control a being that runs around the map and builds the towers, and collects gold after each monster that dies.

Graphically, it looks like something hand drawn by a child, mixed in with CGI coins whenever a monster dies. It has cutesy look overall, but the simplistic drawings and extremely simple animations are not very interesting. The music is also very simple, repeating, and gets boring very quickly. Explanative popups come up all over the screen, which is quite annoying. To start a map, you have use your action button, instead of the logical approach, which is clicking with the mouse.

Gameplay wise, I don't think it adds much to have a hero run around the map. If I was 10, I might think this was a better game, since I would likely be more challenged. Often you can't see the coins you have to collect, so you have to run around in huge areas of each map constantly. The monsters are the same on each map, and not very imaginative. Not many towers to select from, and very generic at that. Upgrades for the towers are not explained at all, so you don't know what you get for upgrading them.

Overall, not very interesting and too simplistic in its presentation. Good for young people or those that doesn't want a complex game.

by T'hain Esh Kelch, Denmark - Oct 20th 2018

SteamWorld Dig
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Wonderful game

If you are looking for a simple, yet somewhat challeging game, oosing with charm, then this is the one you go for.

You play a robot who arrives in a small town in a desert, looking for his uncle. You start digging below the city, and find all kinds of wonders! Armed with only a pickaxe, you have to work your way through minor puzzles, easy enemies, and dig to find gems and other treasures. Along the way you'll get various upgrades and other stuff.

Graphics are really well done, cute, bot not too cutesy, and really fits the world. It is oosing with charm! Gameplay is great, with an emphasis on platforming and minor puzzle solving. Game is quick to load, and easy to learn. Story is not the important part here, but it does the trick.

Highly recommended!

by T'hain Esh Kelch, Denmark - Oct 6th 2018

Shelter
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Beautiful, relaxing, but not much of a game

You play a badger mom, who has to take care of her 5 young, while moving them to a new shelter.
The game looks beautiful, and has a very relaxing setting, but you don't actually do much. You just keep moving from place to place, while picking up the occasional vegetable for the young, yipping at a fox, or duck from an eagle.

If you need to turn off your brain while doing something relaxing, this is your game. If you expect anything with more action than Tetris, this is not the one.

by T'hain Esh Kelch, Denmark - Oct 6th 2018

Building the Great Wall of China Collector's Edition
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Okay as a simple time waster, but it's a childs game

A simple time management game, meant for children age 5 through 12, would be my guess. It is simple, builds up nicely in how hard it is, with very simple mini games scattered in between.

Pros:
• Simple to understand.
• The skill level required advances at a good and steady pace. Game is good at explaining each new element introduced.
• I didn't encounter any bugs.
• Nice introduction drawings, although the story is quite simple and been redone a billion times before (You come to the capital, fall in love with the emperors daughter, you have to finish game to marry her).

Cons:
• Graphics are somewhat low quality. Cute, but of very low resolution. Reminds me of a ported Flash game. Too oversaturated in most cases too.
• Animations in the game are very crude. Again, seem like it is a ported Flash game from the 90's.
• Very hard to distinguish unbuilt buildings from each other, without hovering mouse over them.
• No explanation what so ever for some buildings (Warehouse? No clue, and I am a veteran at these time management games).
• Mini games are extremely simple, to the point of pointless (Dragon attack = Spam the mouse button).
• Game is way too easy, unless you aren't very old or a very inexperienced gamer.

Bottom line, if you completely new to Time Management games, or a child, you'll like it. Otherwise not really worth it.

by T'hain Esh Kelch, Denmark - Aug 28th 2017

12 Labours of Hercules V: Kids of Hellas Collector's Edition
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Same old stuff

Good, but more of the same. Same mechanics as the prevous game, same graphics, new levels, and surprisingly, an even more lame story than the previous game (Do they have 6 year old to come up with these?).

I do find the levels a tad less tedious than in the previous game. There are not as many levels where you completely loose the overview like in the 4th installation, which is a good thing.

Bottom line, if you liked game 1, 2, 3 and 4, you'll also like this one. One thing I can say though, is that there's a few *really* hard levels in this one, more so than ever before. So if you are the one that goes for 3 gold stars, you'll have a challenge in this game.

by T'hain Esh Kelch, Denmark - Aug 26th 2017

Broken Sword: Shadow of the Templars Director's Cut
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Very good adventure game

I quite enjoyed it. It has the classic adventure game feel, which one can only love.

Pros:
• Gorgeous hand painted backgrounds and animated characters gives this game a unique and amazing feel.
• A good and complex story, with nice and varied settings, and many different characters to meet.
• A mixture of easy and complex puzzles.
• An excellent built-in help system so you don't have to rely on walkthroughs in case you get stuck. And it even gives clues at various levels so you can first get hints without getting the solution.

Cons:
• Sometimes the story skips a bit around.
• A few puzzles are too hard, due to the nature of which they were developed. They didn't port well.
• A few minor hickups in the animation here and there, nothing major.
• Somewhat too linear.

by T'hain Esh Kelch, Denmark - Feb 18th 2017

Botanicula
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Quite good

Very unique setting with gorgeous backgrounds and animations. Some good puzzles, although not too hard. Story not very complex.

Very recommended as a casual game to get away from everything.

by T'hain Esh Kelch, Denmark - Feb 18th 2017

12 Labours of Hercules IV: Mother Nature
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More of the same

If you've tried the previous 3 games, then you are just in for more of the same. There are a very few minor mechanical additions, but other than that, it is the same.

Even though the previous entries hasn't really been Charles Dickens level writing, the story this time around is incredibly silly and pointless. 4/5 of the game you spend battling bad guys which hate you for no apparent reason other than you are you (Hercules), and the last fifth of the game, you're chasing a jumping egg. Yes, a jumping egg. Why? It destroyed a hotel. Yes, really! I don't know. It was so ridiculous.

I'd wish I could just click my way though the cutscenes, instead of having to wait for the spoken test. Of course, you don't need to text.

Anyway, the time management stuff and gameplay is still great, and it looks good too, so 4/5 here.

by T'hain Esh Kelch, Denmark - Nov 26th 2016

Call of Duty 2
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Tense and still good

Even though it is old by now, it still holds up just fine. The graphics are fine and definitely good enough to keep you on the front of your seat when the action heats up.

Stories are so-so, since they are sorta short and broken up. I would have preferred one long campaign, instead of multiple small ones. I can see why they did it though, as you get to experience different armies and settings, from snow covered Stalingrad, to deserts in Africa, over to the traditional french countryside. Maps are varied and quite well designed in my opinion. Large amount of weapons to choose from, and different way to approach each minor battle, and it is clear that they have thought about the design in ways, so you don't have to go the same way each time you try a map.

Gameplay is quite tense when you are doing house-to-house battles (And playing on the higher difficulties) and extremely fun!

So if you are looking for a regular shooter, with a little bit of history served on the side, here's a good game to pick up.

As expected, the game ran perfectly on my 2011 iMac with Radeon 6970M, OSX 10.11.5, and I didn't experience a single bug or crash.

by T'hain Esh Kelch, Denmark - Jul 5th 2016

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