Review - FROSTPUNK - Global cooling is real!

Frostpunk is an overly ambitious survival-RTS with a very unique setting.

Taking place in a fictional steampunk town, you have to help a community of frozen-ass survivors rebuilding their tiny society after the "global cooling" event, in a permanent blizzard and increasingly precarious conditions.
  
Get ready, has hell really has frozen over. Adapt or perish in the ruins of your civilization.

Review - STATE OF DECAY 2 - It's not just the zombies who are decaying

 
  In 2013, State of Decay was one of the best zombie/survival games experiences ever.
Managing the well-being of your community of survivors in an open-world environment was very satisfying(and also frustrating) and unrivaled at the time. 

  Since then, numerous high-quality zombie games like 7 days to die or Dying Light were released, and State of Decay is no more considered number 1 on the podium.

State of Decay 2 is trying to get the franchise back at the top of this popular genre.
Let's see if it succeeded.

Review - SLIPSTREAM - Try to drift, they said. It'll be fun, they said.

  Remember Outrun, fantastic arcade racing game for its time, released in 1986? It spawned countless sequels and spinoffs, until the genre slowly died because of an outdated and over-simplified gameplay.

  Since the past few years though, retro gaming fans have increasingly showed their interest for a revival of the genre, and today, we're reviewing what COULD HAVE been the best homage to Outrun, SLIPSTREAM. 

And no, it doesn't have anything to do with the 1995 racing game Slip Stream.😅

The Elder Scrolls Online - Let's go explore SUMMERSET!

The Elder Scrolls Online's latest "Summerset" expansion is out!
(Last time we went there was in 1996, the "Summerset Isle" in the old Daggerfall!)
Featuring  "shining cities, vibrant forests, tropical lagoons, coral caves, mysterious ruins and more", in the ancient homeland of the High Elves!

Let's list the pros and cons of this expansion!

UNREAL 20th Anniversary: GET IT FOR FREE ON GOG! + Recommended Mods

  Unreal Gold is 20 years old today, and GOG has decided to spoil you with a free download of this classic FPS! Hurry up as the offer will last only 48 hours! (offer until May 24, 5pm UTC!)

Review - PROJECT EDEN - The Lost Vikings in 3rd person view!

You feel tired of boring and unsavory action games?
Here's a healthy gameplay recipe for you!

- The meat of the game: Tomb Raider exploration and puzzles;
- Anachronox sauce to go with it;
- The Lost Vikings co-op gameplay to spice things up;
- And a Martini to wash that down. Shaken, not stirred. (Oh, this is just for me, nevermind.)

It'll take an hour or two of cooking to feel "well-done", and then you'll get used to that unique flavor, which the developer Core Design has named PROJECT EDEN!

Is Nightdive studios working on a remaster of EXHUMED / POWERSLAVE?

 
  Exhumed is one of the best - yet underrated and sadly forgotten - FPS of the 90s. 
You played an archeologist in Egypt, just going about his own business, but as it's often the case in such games, you awakened a very evil force which was sleeping in the depths of hell since thousands of years...

  Well, since you're a tired middle-aged archeologist , it means you feel very comfortable using heavy machine guns, so you know what you have to do! Just kill anything that moves on the screen! lol

Anyway, the whole thing was extremely fun shooting, and it had more platforming than any FPS released at the same period, to a point that it was almost frustrating in the end.

This is the version I actually played back in winter 1996! I didn't even a computer back then, so I was ok playing FPS with a gamepad... Oh god... lol As you can see, Powerslave was called "Exhumed" in Europe, which is better in my opinion, because it least it doesn't create confusion with Iron Maiden's masterful album, "Powerslave". lol

Powerslave EX actually looked AND felt pretty good!

  Unfortunately, this game has been lost in time for some reason, and it seems that nobody even knows who owns the rights of the game anymore.

  The game isn't abandonware either (legally, keep in mind that NOTHING is ever considered "abandonware" though! lol), and it's a bit difficult to play the old DOS game on modern computers, even using emulators.

Finally, even projects like "Powerslave EX", a semi-illegal recreation of Exhumed in a modern engine, has been shut down due to legal/copyright issues!

Note!

I personally think that "Re-Exhumed"(a stand-alone mod for Gzdoom!) is at the moment the best choice, since it's based on the PC version of Exhumed, unlike Powerslave Ex, which is based on the PS1 version! 

What a shame that it's seemingly an abandoned project!

Well, GREAT NEWS!
Ever heard of Nightdive studios? They're the great guys responsible for countless re-releases of old games, and more importantly, even REMASTERS of classics like Turok 1/2 or Strife: Veteran Edition!

Nightdive Studios has trademarked both Exhumed and Powerslave, which could hint at a possible remaster, but we can't be certain yet!

On the other hand, when you consider that Kaiser himself (Powerslave EX creator, who is now an employee of Nightdive Studios!) is saying that "Powerslave EX Revival is not far", you're starting to be hopeful.

As you can see from the comments on Twitter, lots of people ask on what version the game will be based.

But Kaiser didn't reply to any of the comments, apparently. 😄

Like I said before, I really loved the Saturn version, but there's no question that the PC version was vastly superior to Saturn/PS1 versions. 

It had the most complex, artistic and immersive level design, while the console versions were much more simple, using the aging boxy corridor level style.

Keeping in mind that the original Powerslave EX was based on PS1 version though...😉

For now, just enjoy this incredible speedrun!

Review - SHANTAE: HALF-GENIE HERO - Ultimate Edition - Enchantment over the sea!

  Well, if you have never played Shantae: Half-Genie Hero before, here's your best opportunity to discover the game's greatness in this all-inclusive ultimate edition!

  It contains all of the previously released DLCs, and a few new unexciting goodies like a blue bathing suit for Shantae, among other things! I wouldn't have minded a fetish cosplay DLC, but anyway...😋

FELL SEAL: ARBITER'S MARK - Finally a good Final Fantasy Tactics alternative on PC in 2019?

I have never been much convinced by Final Fantasy Tactics "clones" or alternatives on PC.
Even the ports coming from the PSP like Disgaea 2 totally disappointed me.
  Some people recommended me Heroes of Might and Magic and King's Bounty games, but I already have them ALL, and they're completely different to me.
There's the incredible Jagged Alliance 2, but of course it's a completely different setting..
(The Shadowrun games were good though!)

No, what I'd like is a TRUE heroic-fantasy RPG/Strategy game a la Final Fantasy Tactics/Tactics Ogre, on PC!

Well, maybe for the first time ever, I think I FINALLY found something which feels as good as these games.😍 It's called "Fell Seal: Arbiter's Mark", and it's VERY promising.

KAZE AND THE WILD MASKS - A love letter to 90s platformers, coming in 2019!

 I just found out about a very cute 2D platformer which is being developed by Vox Games Studio!
It's called "Kaze and the Wild Masks", and it looks VERY promising, being a homage to the 90s 16-bit platformer classics such as the Donkey Kong Country games!

FALLOUT 4: MIAMI - New trailer for a massive mod - Get ready to play post-nuclear Scarface!

Fallout Miami is an upcoming grandiose DLC sized mod for Fallout 4!
Maybe one of the biggest mods ever created for Fallout 4, it'll feature a massive new landscape, plenty of new items & various quests of course! 

I know the Fallout lore is one of the darkest we can find, but shooting irradiated crazies while listening to Wang Chung's "Everybody have fun tonight" is very tempting, don't you think?😂

EASTWARD - A magnificent adventure/RPG is coming to PC! Earthbound meets Studio Ghibli!

  I just found out about a gorgeous 2D adventure/RPG game coming from Shanghai-based developer Pixpil, named Eastward!

Pixpil describes their first game as “dual character adventure RPG with puzzle-solving and dungeon elements” with a “visual style inspired by 90s Japanese animation.”

Review - INFECTONATOR 3 - APOCALYPSE - The best of the trilogy?

  I remember years ago, when I collected hundreds of free "Armor Games Studios" flash games... Mostly stupid so-called distance games...

  I also remember creating a "BEST" folder, in which I store two gems: 
Infectonator 1: World Dominator and Infectonator 2.
You can't imagine how many hours I spent completing them. They might be my favorite flash games ever!

  When I saw Infectonator 3: Apocalypse came out, I bought it without even looking. lol
Well... It IS good. Maybe even great. But also quite tedious and frustrating at times.

Review - TRAILBLAZERS - Wipeout + Splatoon don't go that well together

  Supergonk studio's first game, Trailblazers, is a promising fresh new take on the co-operative racing game genre, mixing Wipeout's hovercrafts, 80s anime characters, and Splatoon's coloring mechanic!

Well, color me intrigued...😜

  Although I'm a fan of realistic driving simulations myself(Assetto Corsa, Automobilista), I have been occasionally enjoying arcade racing games since the very first Outrun, so I'm curious to see how this turns out!

Review - PILLARS OF ETERNITY II: DEADFIRE - The epitome of pause-based RPG greatness?

You were disappointed with Pillars of Eternity 1 and you're still waiting for the true successor to Baldur's Gate 2?
Well, all I can say is that with its Fig funding ending with a staggering $4.4 Million, Pillars of Eternity 2 doesn't disappoint at all.
The Californians from Obsidian are offering us a huge old-fashioned C-RPG, taking place in a beautiful archipelago, on which you'll pretend to play explorers and pirates, and more importantly, get a very nice tan!

And that's exactly what POE was needing, a nice breath of fresh air.
Now let's see how really good it is...

Shantae: Half-Genie Hero gets its "Ultimate Edition"!

WayForward is finally releasing "Shantae: Half-Genie Hero - Ultimate Edition"!

  So, for those who missed this platformer(with some Metroidvania elements) gem, you'll get in this complete package all of the previously released DLC(all heroes, modes, and costumes), and also a few goodies, like a new blue bathing buit costume, which you can use in Beach Mode! (okay, not that exciting, but I admit, our favorite purple-haired Arabic girl looks good in the trailer with that new bathing suit!😊)

Jazz Jackrabbit 2 turns TWENTY today!

  Jazz Jackrabbit 2, crazy platformer of the 90s, featuring a heavily armed green rabbit,   turns 20 years old this week!
GOG and Epic are celebrating along with Jazz2Online(the official long-lasting fan club), lowering the prices of these two great platformers!

Review - CROSSING SOULS - It could have been so much better!

   It's obvious, the fantasy atmosphere of the 80s has never been stronger in this second decade of the 21st century.(I wonder if it won't be even stronger in the third decade...) 
In a way, it's a bit normal. The best music and movies ever made, the magic of the starting computer era, and the more positive people, who were more focusing on having fun than arguing with each other over politic!
And especially people who were THERE at that time (me first!) are very nostalgic of this era.

Strangely though...
This adventure game, which pretends to recreate all of this, feels like it was made by people who weren't born yet.
And it shows...

Review - STAR WARS - EPISODE 1 RACER - Very fun arcade game, but...

   When you were 9, did you dream about being Anakin Skywalker, knowing what it feels like to handle a podracer, flying a couple of meters above the ground, and racing at an insane top speed of 968km/h? (600mp/h)
 
  Well, in 1999, "Star Wars Episode 1: Racer" gave us all this pleasure.
And now, GOG has added this game to its collection to celebrate May 4th (quote: "May the Fourth be with you, a play on Star War’s famous “May the Force be with you” and now a day that serves as a celebration for the franchise". I prefer "May the Schwartz be with you" myself though😄).

Quake - Arcane Dimensions - Setup Guide

  I'm proposing to you two guides, one for nostalgic hardcore gamers who just want the real original Quake experience, and one for those who want something a bit more... shiny.😊

Review - QUAKE - Arcane Dimensions Mod v1.70 puts AAA FPS to shame!

  Arcane Dimensions is one of the biggest singleplayer "campaigns" for Quake 1(1996!). 
Now updated to v1.70 (supposedly the "real" final version, but something tells me they'll keep updating it... lol), it's huge, extremely polished, and simply one of best FPS experiences you can get in 2018.