Tag: Software

I was exactly four dollars short on my last run. It was the third week, my employees were delivering value at a decent pace, and I was pretty sure that we would hit our goal while banking a little reserve. And then an event hit that meant the 15 cubicles I have lined up would not generate any value for the day. I pushed by using the black hole to get new and better employees, to produce more during the remaining two days. But it was clear I needed a solid upgrade to my multiplier to make the target. The R&D boys delivered, but none of the three options offered were what I needed. It’s time to try again and hope that incoming upgrades suit my strategy better. MANIFESTO is developed by Breakpoint Games and published by No More Robots. I played a preview version using Steam. The video game takes a long page out of the Balatro playbook and combines easy-to-understand mechanics with a colorful presentation. The game takes players to a capitalist Hell dimension where th...

There are too many aliens who make the furniture rattle. I’ve gone through all the rooms quite a few times, paying attention to all the weirdness happening around it, evaluating where I should place my tools, and thinking about what alien species might be visiting. I got abducted once, and I would rather avoid that happening again. So, I use all my tools to nail down the alien type, consulting the laptop to get a clear idea of how each affects the world. I’m hoping it appears in a room where I have space to sneak up before attempting to take the four photos needed. I’ve learned to keep my distance and move slowly, but I suspect plenty of luck will still be required to secure the images. UFOPHILIA is developed by k148 Game Studio and published by JanduSoft. I played it on the PC via Steam, and the title is not offered on any other hardware. The video game mixes together horror elements, high-tech investigations, and a variety of alien visitors. The game takes place...

It’s almost always a bad idea to shoot at the enemy vehicles. Sure, with enough firepower and some luck, you can hit them just right and destroy them and their infantry squad. But it’s better to stay low to the ground and prepare, making sure that when enemy soldiers show up, they will not like the amount of bullets coming their way. When aliens are involved, engaging quickly is more important. Two squads, with preferably one vehicle, can eliminate three xeno groups in two turns, at peak efficiency. Of course, much depends on the battlefield and the deployment limit. Having to choose between taking a mini-gun and solid armor or adding another barebones squad of eight is always hard. MENACE is developed by Overhype Studios and published by Hooded Horse. I played it on Steam on the PC, where the title is in Early Access. The video game combines turn-based tactical battles with a campaign structure and light squad management. The very name Republic Marine Corps will ...

The biggest misconception about Nioh games is that they’re soulslike. It’s often the reason that many gamers stay away from the franchise, and something that needs to be addressed so that the Nioh series can be seen for what it is: an action-adventure game with a strong focus on combat. With the third installment in the series out now, the Nioh series seems to have reached the pinnacle of Team Ninja’s work. Having played both Nioh and Nioh 2 for hundreds of hours, I can definitely say that Nioh 3 is the best game in the series by far. Everything has been streamlined to make much more sense, and the classes have been reduced to just two, which can be played in parallel with a click of a button. That doesn’t mean that Nioh 3 lacks the variation that the previous titles offered players in terms of classes, weapons, abilities, and other such mechanics that made the series so popular among fans. It’s just that with Nioh 3, players can play as any character they like wi...

The problem with mercenaries is that they care more about their own hide than about their battle buddies. Newbies don’t even carry medkits, which is a big problem when they have to clear out an entire level filled with both closer-quarters specialists and at least one capable sniper. So far, only Rogue and Viking are untouched by enemy bullets, which means that they are leading the line. Samurai, true to his name, got downed when a Da’amat terrorist closed in and forced a knife fight. Seagull was out of action points and dealing with two enemies when she was shot once. These two are staying back, although they still have grenades that might be needed soon. The final enemy cluster includes the sniper. Rogue goes toward him head-on, using a building for good cover, while Viking tries to flank. He gets shot but is not down. It takes two overwatch shots and one well-thrown grenade to deal with the threat and two normal goons that arrived to back him. Warhounds is deve...

The plants hit hard. I’ve already switched out the bard wolf for the dragon, but my pair of fighters is struggling to execute the parry moves that will decide the outcome of the fight. There are five overgrown vegetables that are determined to take us down, and the different timing of their attacks is testing my ability to negate incoming damage. I use some Mocha Points to launch an attack that can deal damage to multiple enemies, and follow that up with another special move to burn opponents in the two front rows. Then it’s time for them to strike again, and I only manage to parry two of their attacks. It might be time to turn on the timing indicator in the Options. In the end, solid use of team synergy and the use of some sweets allows me to take down the annoying plant life. Now I need to use the key I have to open up a mill, find a mouse, and then burn down the Three Little Piggies’ construction site, which will also involve a big battle. Escape from Ever Afte...

VValak isn’t afraid to kill people in the service of his righteous quest. After all, the fascist jackboot that’s currently interdicting access to his lovely planet is much heavier than the semi-authoritarian jackboot that he was deploying a few months earlier to control his citizens. He might not be a hero to anyone who has interacted with him, but he’s ready to try to change that perception. Destroying Earth is quite the job. More so for a former tyrant who doesn’t know much about the universe, has no idea of the technology he needs to work with, and cannot rely on much help because almost everyone despises him. Reining in his instinct to insult people to their face might help, even if it's not in his nature. After murdering someone for the second time on screen, VValak has to consider the rules of time travel. Presumably, another human will discover the mangled body and clean up the scene. When that happens, the Shepherd plans to be in orbit, searching for a way ...

If you enjoy reality TV shows, you most likely saw or at least heard of Storage Wars. It’s an interesting show where the premise is simple: you follow certain people that bid on storage lockers that were abandoned, and whomever pays the most wins the locker’s content and owns all the items. Storage Hunter Simulator is pretty much the videogame expression of that, and it manages to make the experience even better. When you first hear of the game’s premise, it seems like any other simulator out there. But after playing it, this is truly a gem, for many reasons. For starters, you get to create a business out of acquiring and selling items left by other people. Sure, you can sell stuff like scrap if it’s destroyed, or you can repair it and make hundreds or thousands on something that other people didn’t find useful. The game has a beautiful open world with multiple cities, each with their own storage units where you can go and bid and hopefully win. There are multiple ...

You would think that the publishers of a long-running journal with academic pretensions would make sure they drop one issue every year, preferably on the same month. I need to track all of them down and catalog the books that are referenced in each issue. It’s probably the easiest way to get the 50 book names that will, in the end, lead to the unique text that exists only inside this computer and can change the world. There’s probably a clue about numbering and years somewhere in the already deciphered entries. I should go back and carefully read connected pages. But I’m feeling lucky, and I already have the two letters I need to input, and I decide to guess the numbers. It’s an educated guess because I’ve already linked older issues to their codes. I could also return to older entries and scan them for new details. I need to see how various theories about the power of thought influenced each other. I should create a clearer timeline that involves the major charact...

How would humanity look in the year 10.000? Is there even a planet where we can survive on so many years into the future? Kentum is a very interesting game that tries to respond to that question, while also testing our skills and wits, all in a very cool environment. We play the role of Kent, who was left in a hypersleep chamber for multiple thousands of years. What happens is he crashes on a planet, he has no idea where he is, but he knows his mission. And in this case, his focus is on restarting the human race, while trying to survive on a very dangerous planet. What’s cool about Kentum is that Kent can be cloned, so even if he dies, another clone takes his spot. Once you land on the planet, your focus is on trying and getting by the best way that you can. You’ll find yourself exploring the planet, trying to accumulate more and more items and build up your base. As always, when you start exploring in a survival game, it’s actually very scary. You don’t have that ...