PC Game Reviews

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Our detailed reviews help you make informed decisions about your next PC game purchase. We provide a thorough analysis of gameplay, graphics, story, and more.

Review: Scott Pilgrim EX Feels Even More Like River City Ransom Scott Pilgrim vs The World: The Game was a very River City Ransom- coded game that also felt strongly inspired by arcade beat’em ups like Streets of Rage. Pick a character. Fight through side-scrolling stages alone or with up to three friends. Scott Pilgrim EX ended up a similar sort of experience, only now the structure feels even more like Kunio and Riki could pop up at any minute. This sort of similarity comes up immediately as Scott Pilgrim EX begins. Like many entries in the Kunio-kun line, it begins with members of Sex Bob-omb and friends of Scott and Ramona abducted. Three gangs moved into Toronto, with their members being Demons, Robots, and Vegans. By facing bosses and reclaiming key items around town, as well as dealing with GCorp, we’ll come closer to freeing the city and discovering who’s behind these kidnappings and turf wars. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2vygm3XQUiE I must admit, I found myself a bit disappointed in the story. Bryan Lee O’Malley, the original creator of the graphic novels, is involved. The concept does offer a solid excuse for everyone to be running around on a new quest. However, the characterizations didn’t feel true to their established personalities in either that comic or the Scott Pilgrim Takes Off anime series. This isn’t to say that there aren’t some funny moments, but sometimes I felt like it was a more general action game that happened to feature folks who looked like characters from Scott Pilgrim , rather than it being a true Scott Pilgrim story. But then, that could also partially be because it is a rather short game that you could perhaps finish in a single day with friends. Now, essentially, some elements of Scott Pilgrim EX gameplay feel very similar to what we encountered in Scott Pilgrim vs The World: The Game . This is a side-scrolling, 2D beat’em up. We pick a character from the initially available roster and use their standard attacks, special moves, and items picked up off the ground to defeat enemies. After clearing out a space, there’ll typically be a clearly telegraphed “go” sign encouraging us to move on in a certain direction. These controls feel really tight, with easy to pull off combos that are fantastic for felling foes. Now, I will note that I’m also a little disappointed with the playable characters we can choose from as Scott Pilgrim EX , but it’s mainly a personal preference. While Ramona was someone I’d use in Scott Pilgrim vs The World: The Game, I liked fighting as Knives, Kim, and Wallace most, and none of them are ready to rumble. Instead, we got folks like Scott, Ramona, Roxie, Lucas, Matthew, and Robot-01. The roster that’s there is okay, but they aren’t the folks I expected or hoped to go fighting around the city with on this adventure. Images via Tribute Games When you’re not in the midst of clear the area or objective-related fights, you actually move around places in Toronto inspired by the series. This means entering and exiting stores to purchase healing supplies, stat power-ups, and equipment, popping in at the apartment to swap your playable character, or going to locations to advance the story. In some cases, these are locked away and require you to obtain a key item and a certain sort of The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time style short playable riff to advance. These aren’t actually well-explained in-game, so you’ll pass at least two before even being able to interact with one, but they’re very easy to figure out once you are able to go into them. While things generally worked well, even when playing online, I will note that I experienced both major and minor issues in Scott Pilgrim EX ahead of launch. The smaller ones involved the person I was playing with and I not being able to see when the other was holding things. It wasn’t the biggest issue, but it was odd when I brought up how psyched I was to be holding and fighting with a yo-yo, only for him to say my character wasn’t using one on his end. Or that when we gained access to bombs we could use, he said he was carrying one with us to our next objectives and on my end his character was holding nothing. It’s not the biggest issue, but it was odd. Worse was the game-breaking bug. I’m going to be vague in order to avoid spoilers, but at a certain point in the PC version of the game we found ourselves needing to follow Goth Neil. He went through to the next area, so we did as well. Things then crashed on my end, resulting in a black screen and no way to get back to even the title menu. The person I was playing with, who was hosting the session, said it looked like I dropped. We tried a number of combinations of things, which included things like restarting, and each time I’d rejoin with the party code, it would load up to a black screen for me and him being on the character select with it showing as me “being” there, but not choosing a character. This issue happened on Windows-based devices that were up-to-date with the most up-to-date build of the game at the time, but it hopefully is the sort of thing that will be patched. Images via Tribute Games While there are a few things in need of patching, one thing that is perfect at launch in Scott Pilgrim EX is the design direction. It is on-point. Tribute Games did a fantastic job of bringing the characters and their city to life. Everyone looks as they did in the comic and anime adaptation, and there are a lot of references to the series. Also, Anamanaguchi’s soundtrack is a treat, as always. I admire the fact that Tribute Games embraced the River City style with Scott Pilgrim EX, as it really makes this beat’em up more of an adventure. The artistic direction and soundtrack are perfect too, and the combat flows well. I do wish the story were stronger and some of my favorite characters from the previous game had been playable, and the presence of launch bugs that can affect multiplayer is a downer. But at the very least, after a patch or two, those gameplay issues should be fixed. Scott Pilgrim EX is available for the Switch, Switch 2, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X, and PC. The post Review: Scott Pilgrim EX Feels Even More Like River City Ransom appeared first on Siliconera .

PC News Category - SiliconeraMar 3

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IGN PC ArticlesFeb 27

Review: Gumball in Trick-or-Treat Land Has GBC Vibes Exquisite Laundry Pet’s Gumball in Trick-or-Treat Land is a love letter to Game Boy Color RPGs. It’s the sort of game that doesn’t take itself too seriously, sticking strictly to a silly Halloween theme. Which can be quite fun, thanks to unusual characters, turn-based battles, and clever writing. However, the limitations also mean it might get a little frustrating. Gumball is an actual gumball. They were in a machine, but after you select a flavor (color scheme), you drop into Trick-or-Treat Land. You want to get home, but the Chaos Sweets are ruining everyone’s day. If you want a mysterious Scarecrow to use magick to send you back, you need to reach every Hallowed Patches to restore it, dealing with unusual enemies and making the world safer along the way. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0tsOQlg5afQ It’s probably obvious after seeing some screenshots and that trailer, but Exquisite Laundry Pet went for a Game Boy Color aesthetic for Gumball in Trick-or-Treat Land , even adhering to those limitations so strictly that it is available on both a cartridge for Nintendo’s handheld and PCs via Steam . It’s the game’s greatest strength, I’d say. The restrictions forced the developer to get creative with its themes and gameplay, and when you keep that in mind with playing, it really does feel as though it’s calling back to that moment in time. The presentation and gameplay do remind me of what it was like to go through the Final Fantasy Legend or Magi Nation games. Still, even with needing to stay within certain boundaries, there is a whole potion ingredient and food and drink system and quite a few sidequests that unlock things like extra shops to add to its range. That is a bit of a double-edged sword, however. While Gumball in Trick-or-Treat Land is charming and features a surprising number of side quests in addition to the main storyline, it’s also very open-ended. You need to go everywhere and talk to everyone to figure out where the seven Hallowed Patches. On the plus side, finding quest items isn’t difficult and even the people you talk to who don’t offer valuable information have fun things to say. However, I do strongly recommend having a notebook nearby so you can jot down who wants what, where they are, and maybe even draw a lil’ sketch of their sprite to ensure you won’t forget their fetch quest. Images via Exquisite Laundry Pet While things are very open-ended and require you to pay attention, the Gumball in Trick-or-Treat Land combat system is quite simple and sticks to the theme. As you’d expect from a Halloween-themed affair, Gumball uses treats in addition to spells and skills when fighting. The “treat” action is a basic attack that may or may not land, the abilities are also candy-themed items you pick up as you progress through the world and are far more reliable methods of defeating foes at the cost of MP. You’ll even eventually recruit partners who can join in the fight and help you out! The downside to it is, as this is a very freeform game where you aren’t told where to go and when, it’s very easy to wind up in an area with too-strong opponents and perhaps get frustrated by a one-hit KO. Especially when you’ll have only a few points of HP at the very start. Gumball in Trick-or-Treat Land succeeds at keeping the Game Boy Color RPG vibe alive. It offers a lot to do while staying within certain limitations. However, those boundaries also mean it can sometimes be difficult to discern your next steps or running into fights you just can’t win at that point. Still, it’s a cute game and Exquisite Laundry Pet embraces that Halloween and GBC aesthetic. Gumball in Trick-or-Treat Land is available on the PC and Game Boy Color . The post Review: Gumball in Trick-or-Treat Land Has GBC Vibes appeared first on Siliconera .

PC News Category - SiliconeraFeb 27

'A Reputable Source for a Quarter Century' — Metacritic Pulls Resident Evil Requiem Review Over AI Slop Claims, Issues Warning to Other SitesMetacritic has been forced to remove a suspicious-sounding Resident Evil Requiem review published by a previously high-profile website, after claims that the outlet was now pumping out AI slop.

IGN PC ArticlesFeb 27

Review: Scarlet Hollow Proves Black Tabby’s Storytelling Prowess Slay the Princess proved to be a stunning accomplishment for Black Tabby Games. The team crafted an exceptional story that defied expectations and felt like a refreshing addition to our visual novel libraries. Scarlet Hollow , an episodic follow-up, proves that wasn’t a one-off. The developer once again shows it knows how to handle compelling narratives with many possible outcomes. While there’s still The Final Chapters to close things out and we typically don’t review early access games here at Siliconera, I feel confident in already stamping a seal of approval on this already-impressive title. You’ve never been to Scarlet Hollow. You know the Scarlet came from there and is renowned, or rather notorious, but your mother Vivian never brought you to her hometown. After learning your cousin Tabitha’s mother and owner of the town’s Scarlet Mine died, you take the bus in to stay with her for a week to be there for her and attend the funeral. However, something you soon learn your mother had good reason for leaving, as things are off in the small town. It isn’t that it’s a dying community with a failing mine. There are otherworldly and supernatural things going on, and it seems things will only get more dangerous the longer you stay. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pjBop46lTn8 While Scarlet Hollow is a traditional visual novel in that involves reading the story and making choices at certain points that change the course of relationships and directions, there are a few elements to it that almost make it feel a bit more like going through a D&D campaign due to the way you establish yourself early on. You aren’t a default and predetermined individual. You select two out of seven traits at the outset, which can determine different responses or possibilities when exploring the town and dealing with situations. So Talk to Animals perk will let you talk to the critters around the area. (But at the same time, you need to be careful about doing so in front of people so they don’t get suspicious!) If you select Powerful Build, you’ll be able to get physical to solve problems. Going with Mystical as one of your innate abilities means you’ll be more aware of the supernatural elements. Another thing that makes Scarlet Hollow stand out is how involved the choices can get. With most visual novels, you make a choice and it sets you down a certain route toward a certain ending. (Black Tabby Games’ Slay the Princess worked like this.) But there’s so much going on here with a staggering number of variants that can affect certain outcomes, relationships with individuals, information you do or don’t possess, and possible options available to handle situations. I feel like sometimes it can feel more like an adventure game, given how often I’d need to think critically about how a choice might affect my character heading into future episodes in terms of their capabilities or potential allies and enemies. Images via Black Tabby Games This is especially true with Tabitha, our cousin in Scarlet Hollow . While there are some more friendly and even romantic-leaning relationships with other characters, there’s a sense of nuance to the dynamic with her that really makes the game stand out. There are many times when I felt like choices I made or responses I chose, even if they weren’t directly to her, shaped her opinion of me. Given the connection throughout the episodes and storyline, it results in some fascinating outcomes. Even better, the reactions made me want to know what would happen if I did choose other extremes or possibilities. Which is another plus about Scarlet Hollow , as it’s evident this will be another Slay the Princess style game where Black Tabby Games makes replaying seem so appealing that it’d be mandatory. The number of cogs and factors here seem staggering. Especially when you factor in the traits. Different combinations feel like they could be so fun! I have two save files going right now with different builds so I can (hopefully) see two different endings from different extremes, but I’m still tempted to go through even more. Images via Black Tabby Games Also stunning is the visual direction in Scarlet Hollow , as Black Tabby Games went with a similar artistic direction as Slay the Princess . There are occasional bits of color, which feel muted and sepia-toned, but it’s largely a monochromatic kind of affair. Everything looks hand-drawn and sketchy, like the kind of art you’d see used in dark, original Grimm’s Fairy Tales or the Scary Stories to Tell in the Dark illustrations. It’s eerie, haunting, and gorgeous. Between Slay the Princess and Scarlet Hollow , Black Tabby Games is fast turning into a developer whose titles you can’t afford to ignore. The creativity, character development, and world-building are excellent in this latest visual novel, and the degree to which our experiences can change based on our choices is astonishing. It’s so well-thought out and impressive, and a perfect example of “your choices matter.” Scarlet Hollow episodes 1-5 are available in early access for PCs via Steam , and the first episode is free in the demo. The post Review: Scarlet Hollow Proves Black Tabby’s Storytelling Prowess appeared first on Siliconera .

PC News Category - SiliconeraFeb 26