[blog] JK's Backlog Battle

21/09/2022 - Doctor Who: The Lonely Assassins Completion.
Current Backlog: 508
Currently Playing: 17

Well, honestly, I'm not quite sure what to say about this one.
I haven't watched any Doctor Who ever, but I do know about the Weeping Angels from previously being interested in them specifically.
I think ... they did a pretty decent job at making the story and gameplay interesting,
but it was rather linear without any variety and the "puzzles" were not real puzzles at all,
just some number combinations, puzzle pieces, etc.

Not really sure if it's canon that the angels can enter phones as well? That seemed like a silly idea to me honestly.
If it is canon, then I guess it works out, but still seems silly. The acting was mediocre, not all that good,
the actors did their best, but they didn't really sell the tension and danger to me.
The writing was also... not so great, but it was still mainly enjoyable to read through!

I think they did an okay job, but comparing to their older games, Simulacra and Simulacra 2, it felt a little flat.
I wouldn't really recommend this game to anyone, but the price is cheap and if you manage to get your hands on the game at a discount,
it will be worth the few hours of gameplay. Still, going to mark it as not recommended for me.
- Marisa (JK)

22/09/2022 - The Silent Age Completion.
Current Backlog: 507
Currently Playing: 17

Time travel, puzzles and spooky atmosphere? sign me up!
I was pretty excited to start this game due to the artwork looking really nice
and my interest in time travelling.

Sadly, the story and puzzles were very lackluster.
It repeatedly mentions that it's about time travel, all the time.
You forget? Nah nah, it is about time travel, you know. It's weird, but also gets quite boring fast.
I did like the jumping from the present to the future mechanic a lot and using that for the puzzles was fun,
even though the puzzles themselves were very easy to figure out.

The artwork is really nice and I was surprised how amazingly this pc-port of a mobile game worked out so well.
The clicking did get a little annoying at times, I wished I could have used the arrow keys to move around.
The soundtrack of the game was also quite interesting, as it was pretty silent most of the times,
I guess hence the name, but there were some really cool atmospheric sounds used that gave the game an eerie feeling,
which worked really well with the story.

I do think this game is worth playing through,
but maybe get it at a sale? Very interesting game.
- Marisa (JK)

25/09/2022 - Mosaic Completion.
Current Backlog: 506
Currently Playing: 17

Alright, let me start this review by saying a few words of the "clicker" app called BlipBlop
inside the main character's phone and how ALL OF THE ACHIEVEMENTS are only related to that.
My few words are: Why on earth would you do that?! I feel like the clicker aspect was a good addition in theory,
and would have been fine if just a few achievements were related to it, but the fact that all of the achievements were related to it,
feels like a complete waste of time, but also ruins the actual experience for the story.

I started my journey with this game by skimming through an achievement guide,
as I normally do, and noticed that, Huh, they are all related to collecting things.
Okay well, I thought that's weird, was this game a clicker game and I wasn't aware of that?
I booted up the game, started my run, and I was a very depressed looking individual waking up in the morning to their alarm, relatable.
I picked up the phone and decided to go straight into tackling these clicker achievements. It took me approximately 9,5 hours,
with the aid of an auto clicker mind you, to get all of the achievements. I feel like I wasted a BUNCH of time, for nothing,
but for a person like me who wants to 100% a game, it just had to be done.

Well, after that whole mess, I actually played the story.
It's about this individual, male by the looks of them, who wakes up every morning from a nightmare where they are drowning and they go to work.
Every other person in this world looks the same and they all seem to work at the same place as well.
Main character's work seems to be some kind of information/material extractor and deliverer type of deal,
where they need to make extractors and guide information/materials towards "a milestone" each day. The milestone, and challenges with it,
change each day, but it's basically very monotone and repetitive, which as I understood it, was the point of the game,
to show you how lifeless and boring an individual's life can be when they do nothing,
but wake up, go to work, go home, sleep, rinse and repeat.

The main character eventually realizes with the help of a friend that they can't continue on like they have been,
and decide to break the cycle of repetition. There is a revelation at the end about why everyone is so monotone and lifeless,
but I won't mention it since I feel like it was a good story and having the ending spoiled wouldn't be fun.
This game was good, despite the weird clicker situation and the achievements.
I would recommend it, but just be aware that 100% this game will be a pain.
- Marisa (JK)

25/09/2022 - The Complex Completion.
Current Backlog: 505
Currently Playing: 17

I would call The Complex an interactive B-movie.

The technical aspects of filming is done well and the setting is good and well set up for success,
but the acting is pretty cringe at times and the emotion that the actors should express doesn't always fully come through the screen.
The main character was also not very believable as a doctor/scientist and neither as someone who has worked on a battlefield.
It felt like she was a deer caught in headlights at most times and her personality was quite weak.

The actor who plays Rees gave a somewhat better performance, he was a more interesting character and was also great comical relief.
Claire, the tough-talking "Kindaran" was also a very interesting character and she was probably my favorite.
It would have been a stronger effort had the entire story been told from the perspective of Claire.

Honestly speaking, I think this was a decent FMV game and an attempt was made for an interesting story,
BUT I don't think I will recommend this game, since there are other way better FMV games out there.
Still, if you do decide to play the game, definitely don't get it at full price.
- Marisa (JK)

26/09/2022 - NEKOPARA - Catboys Paradise Completion.
Current Backlog: 505
Currently Playing: 17

NEKOPARA - Catboys Paradise is a Visual Novel with fully voiced characters and pretty character design!
There is 4 routes for each character, but sadly, there is no actual choices or different endings for any of them,
so you basically just read a story that is already predetermined. All of the characters were well designed and interesting looking,
but sadly none of them jumped out to me as a favorite. Usually I manage to pick one favorite from these type of games,
but here all of the characters were just average for me and not very interesting.

I was also not very happy about how the main character has no written lines at all
and they do her "dialogue" with nods and shakes. It comes of as unrealistic when the romancable character asks a question
and the MC just nods, and then they explain a really long answer, that wasn't actually said by the MC at all.
The nods and shakes were also usually unrecognizable from each other
and it was hard to tell what the shake actually meant.

I think a positive thing about this game was that the characters were really well voice acted,
but sadly all of the catboy sounds made me cringe really bad and I had troubles actually following what they were saying.
The artwork was very beautiful however and I really liked the CGs provided in the story.

I was told that there might be a fully-fledged sequel eventually, and I really hope there will be.
I hope that they will fully flesh out the characters and make them actually interesting.
Choices also are important in games like these, so I hope those will be added.

In the end, this game is free, so if you are at all interested, just play it!
I didn't really enjoy it that much, so I won't recommend the game,
but you might enjoy it, so you won't loose anything by trying!
- Marisa (JK)

26/09/2022 - Last Day of June Completion.
Current Backlog: 510
Currently Playing: 17

I am literally bawling my eyes out after the ending.
Last Day of June is an emotional roller coaster where you start happy and end up really sad.
The soundtrack is amazing and definitely enhances the feels you get when playing this game.
The game is about sudden loss, fighting the truth of that loss and eventually changing that loss to a different loss, but not removing it.
You should definitely play the game if you get the chance and definitely listen to the soundtrack after!
- Marisa (JK)

27/09/2022 - Cookie Clicker Completion.
Current Backlog: 510
Currently Playing: 16

But none of it matters, really, since I just sit collecting cookies.
- The Living Tombstone

After 4000 hours of playing this game, striving for 100% completion, I can finally say that I have done it.
At least for now, you never know when the evil Orteil will add more achievements, scary noises.
Anyway, in hindsight, I probably should have never gotten this game and started on this journey.
It took me way too long that I would have wanted and honestly the gratification for it is minor.
HOWEVER, Cookie Clicker is absolutely one of the most greatest clicker/idle games out there and I will recommend it to anyone and everyone.
You can play the game for free on your browser, or get the game on steam and support the developer,
who on their own has been managing this game for ages.
- Marisa (JK)

28/09/2022 - Disney Winnie the Pooh Completion.
Current Backlog: 510
Currently Playing: 16

Adorable, lovely little game about Winnie the Pooh and the crew at Hundred Acre Forest.
Pooh is probably my favorite character from childhood, so I enjoyed dabbling in this game a little bit.
It's definitely geared towards children and if I ever get children of my own, I'll show them this game!
Definitely worth it for a little bit of fun.
- Marisa (JK)

28/09/2022 - Disney Winnie the Pooh Completion.
Current Backlog: 510
Currently Playing: 16

Adorable, lovely little game about Winnie the Pooh and the crew at Hundred Acre Forest.
Pooh is probably my favorite character from childhood, so I enjoyed dabbling in this game a little bit.
It's definitely geared towards children and if I ever get children of my own, I'll show them this game!
Definitely worth it for a little bit of fun.
- Marisa (JK)

Yeah, it is a fun and cute little game!
Love pooh and friends games.

Yeah, it is a fun and cute little game!
Love pooh and friends games.

absolutely! it seems like the perfect game for kids!

28/09/2022 - Another Lost Phone: Laura's Story Completion.
Current Backlog: 509
Currently Playing: 16

Another relatively short review from me.
Another Lost Phone is a game from the devs of "A Normal Lost Phone",
a game which I did enjoy even though there were little to no guidance in the game.

This game doesn't really improve on it, still you need to click aimlessly
and TRY to find any information at all on what the game wants you to do to move forward.
The story is decent and touches on some important topics that should not be ignored
and I did think they did a pretty good job at making it seem realistic. The game, however,
felt lacking compared to the other game from them and I was utterly bored while playing.
At least the soundtrack was good, like last time.

Would I recommend this? Not really.
Is it worth playing if you get it for free/really cheap? I think so.
- Marisa (JK)

29/09/2022 - Icarus Completion.
Current Backlog: 509
Currently Playing: 15

So you like PvE survival games? Dope! Now how about getting to build your base over and over and over
and over and over and over again all from scratch each and every time you start a new mission? Probably not.

Honestly, the game is alright. The environments look cool, but are very empty feeling and repetitive.
The crafting is very basic, nothing new added to the genre. The enemies are just regular animals, but bears are b*tches,
it would have been more interesting though if the enemies in the maps were something more interesting and more alien, since the planet is not Earth.

I had a decent fun with the game, but it got very repetitive and boring quite fast.
I am not a huge fan of survival crafting games, so I am not the best to get opinion on these games, but take it as you will.
I think the idea is good, but the execution is not. They do update the game weekly (as far as I've seen), so that's something.
I think they are pretty good at listening to feedback and are taking the opinions of the playerbase into consideration.

In the end though, I wouldn't really recommend you to get the game,
even if you enjoy these types of games. It's just boring, plain and simple.
- Marisa (JK)

02/10/2022 - The Order of the Thorne - The King's Challenge Completion.
Current Backlog: 508
Currently Playing: 15

You join Finn the Bard on his quest to write 'the greatest ballad ever' as he undertakes "The King's Challenge".

The Order of the Thorne - The King's Challenge is an adventure point & click game from the developers of Quest for Infamy,
it's done in a retro-esque style that reminds you of the King's Quest games. The artstyle is a pretty pixel style with detailed backgrounds,
artworks and little less detailed sprites. The gameplay includes going around the world, gathering things,
using those things to do other things and get other things and playing songs on your lute.

The game is pretty fun and definitely worth investing the four hours it took me to complete the game 100%.
There were some annoyances, like not having an autosave and the fact that the game crashed on me multiple times,
which resulted in lost progress and repeated steps. Though, the game was quite easy to re-do steps in,
as long as you remembered the stuff you were supposed to do.

The soundtrack was lovely and I very much enjoyed the narration and the fact that all of the characters were voiced,
though some of the characters had very annoying voices that made me grind my teeth lol.
The songs Finn was playing were also very nice and I wish there were full songs of those clips.

In the end, definitely recommended to play this game!
I am super glad that I got this game from my streamer friend, VitriolPlays,
and she has told me multiple times how awesome the devs are as well.
- Marisa (JK)

03/10/2022 - ABZÛ Completion.
Current Backlog: 507
Currently Playing: 15

ABZÛ is a beautiful underwater adventure that evokes the dream of diving.
Immerse yourself in a vibrant hidden world bursting with color and life as you descend into the heart of the ocean.
As you dive deeper, the dangers lurking in the dark also come out and you'll have to swim to survive.

So many beautiful areas to explore in, cool animals to look at and you can do flips out of the water like a madlad.
Stunning orchestral soundtrack that deepens the emotions felt during gameplay.
You explore, create friendships, fight for your home and prevail.

ABZÛ is a beautiful masterpiece that sucks you in with everything it has to offer.
Stunning game worth playing and it's definitely worth every penny.
- Marisa (JK)

07/10/2022 - Hitchhiker Completion.
Current Backlog: 513
Currently Playing: 15

Hitchhiker is a mystery game set along lost highways, where your goal is to solve the puzzle of your own backstory.
As a hitchhiker with no memory or destination, you catch a series of rides across a strange and beautiful landscape,
tracking the mysterious disappearance of a person close to you.

The game is basically a walking simulator, but instead of walking you are the passenger of a stranger's car.
You're just there for the ride, trying your best to listen to the five drivers you'll be hitching a ride with
and figuring out the reason you are there. If you're not particularly fond of story and narrative games,
you won't find much enjoyment in Hitchhiker. Mechanically, Hitchhiker is very simple.
You can't move and your only way of interaction with the world is inspecting objects around the cars,
choosing dialogue responses and solving some very light puzzles a few times.

To me it felt like the narrative of the game started quite strongly from the surreal feel of the conversation,
but after the first car it fell a little flat and boring. It breathes in surreal and metaphysical, helped along by a dreamlike state of repeating scenery,
occasional on-the-nose road signs with warnings and philosophical meanderings, but breaths out repetitive, too weird and confusing.

In the end though, the game is very interesting and quite pretty to look at.
The game is quite short, so it's not a bad game to play and I would recommend it
if you get it off at a discount or from a bundle.
- Marisa (JK)

09/10/2022 - Everybody's Gone to the Rapture Completion.
Current Backlog: 512
Currently Playing: 15

I won this game through SteamGifts.

"We have each other.
We lived apart from them; we understand now.
Our failure to touch, to belong.
But it doesn’t matter anymore.
Everybody is gone, and we will join them."

Everybody's Gone to the Rapture combines elements of a walking simulator to a classic science fiction story
with added drama of a small town in an English countryside. You walk through the empty village of Yaughton,
learning the story bit by bit through telephones, radios and small specks of light that produce memories of the people that lived there.

The game comes from the same developers as Dear Esther, which piqued my interest right away.
Dear Esther was a great walking simulator, and I feel like this game didn't disappoint in the slightest.
The story is intriguing and the way everything unravels as you move forward is almost always unique to the person playing,
as the order you can do things in is entirely up to you. There is different side storylines you can follow that wrap around the main story perfectly
and as you go further into the area you learn more and more. I was quite disappointed however, that the walking speed was quite slow,
and the "sprint" button, didn't really help.

The graphics of the game are absolutely stunning! I just couldn't keep my eyes off of everything,
there were so many beautiful little details to look at and all of the scenery was wonderful.
Sadly there is some optimization issues which caused a lot of stuttering and dropping of frames,
but there were a few fixes in the community guides on steam. The game is definitely a screenshotter's dream
and well worth checking out in that regard.

The soundtrack was something I absolutely adored
and it often moved me to tears for how well they implemented the soundtrack with the story
and the memory points you were watching. It's a beautiful combination of sounds,
emotions and harmonic music.

Now, something that I did not like, was the achievements...many have claimed to have troubles with the achievements popping up,
I had no problems in that regard, but the content of the achievements itself were quite annoying.
If there were a way to walk faster, then perhaps it would have been more enjoyable,
but the slow pace and the fact that you can't complete the game 100% in a single playthrough, made me annoyed.
I did it however, and I feel like it was worth it in the end.

It's a game that you will enjoy if you are a fan of slow paced walking simulators with beautiful scenery and intriguing story elements.
If you are not a fan of that, I don't think this game is for you. For me, it was exactly what I thought it would be, and I enjoyed it thoroughly.
I 100% recommend this game to anyone who is planning on getting it.
- Marisa (JK)

10/10/2022 - Love Thyself - A Horatio Story Completion.
Current Backlog: 510
Currently Playing: 16

In the Endless Universe, Horatio is a race of clones of one man,
who considered himself perfect enough to warrant creating a whole race of himself.
You play as a failed Horatio clone, the memories of His failed to implement into you,
so you can now be anyone you like: Horatio or Horatio.
Meet and date a several lovely characters: Horatio 1, Horatio 2, Horatio 3 and, of course, Horatio 4.
It is literally a game about falling in love with yourself.
Great game.
- Marisa (JK)

11/10/2022 - Florence Completion.
Current Backlog: 509
Currently Playing: 16

Florence is a beautiful experience that isn’t afraid to tell an ordinary story.
You act out the simple life of Florence Yeoh, who feels like her life is an endless routine of work, sleep,
trying to keep your parents of her back and spending too much time on social media.
Eventually romance finds it's way into the mix, but relationships aren't always forever.

In Florence, you break the ordinary cycle of her life, you find love,
but eventually move on and in the end find new inspirations for her life and life goes on.

It's a simple game, with not much gameplay elements, some small point and click aspects,
but otherwise it's mostly just watching the story unfold. It's a very short game,
took me an hour to 100% with some downtime in between chapters.
It's a very impactful story nonetheless and it's quite intimate and raw with it's emotions.
Definitely a small little game worth playing, even at full price.
- Marisa (JK)

16/10/2022 - The Book of Bondmaids Completion.
Current Backlog: 508
Currently Playing: 16

The ruling royal dynasty of Conussia has been overthrown, and an undead Lich now sits on the throne.
As a hired mercenary to the previous regime, you were partly responsible for the coup, and as such,
your services have been retained by the Lich as your new employer.

The game is a visual novel styled NSFW game with a morally ambiguous story that lets you have fun times
with a few different kinds of ladies. However, the game should be called "The Book of Bondmaid"
since there is only one Bondmaid currently available in the base game, and second one added through the DLC.
Bondmaids are ethereally beautiful women bound to an ancient, worn book where they can be summoned to do your desires.
There is a lot of lore related to the Bondmaids so it's not just "a bordello book" with beautiful women,
though, I guess you could just use it as such if you prefer.

It has a very imaginative, well thought out game system, while at the same time being extremely easy to use.
Sadly, there is not really any tutorial for how to play the game and what does certain stats mean.
I had to search a guide on certain aspects, so I knew how to get the endings I wished.
The game is also not all about the sexy times, it's more of a bonus for a interesting story,
rather than being the main focal point of the story.

Quality wise, it's alright. The artstyle is great and interesting, though it varies from the main images that are detailed,
neat and painterly to "adventuring" backgrounds and art that are sketchy, less detailed and chaotic.
There is also a lot of great sound design in this game, but any "voice acting" from some ladies is quite literally bad.
It gets worse in the DLC where it sounds like the sexy sounds of some ladies sound like someone
were recording them in their bedroom with a crappy mic. It's also not consistent, where some ladies don't have any voice acting
and some have just one sound. There was also some grammatical errors in the dialogue,
but that was more rare and in general it was well written.

My final verdict on the game is that it's definitely worth it at a sale, the DLC is also worth it if you can get past the weird voice acting,
but I don't think the game is worth it at the full price, because there is not more than one Bondmaid and there is some inconsistencies in quality.
Still, good and fun game, had me laughing a few times, but also hot ladies.
- Marisa (JK)

17/10/2022 - Her Story Completion.
Current Backlog: 507
Currently Playing: 16

Her Story is a crime fiction game with non-linear storytelling, it revolves around a police database full of live action video footage.
You search the database and explore hundreds of clips to discover her story. It’s her story, but it’s also your story.

It's a fantastic story with a lot of mystery in it that you get to unravel with each clip you watch.
The search functionality is almost addicting, helping you feel like you're a genius for following gut feelings and ideas
instead of pushing you in a linear direction. At the end, there is a revelation, but the story itself through the clips
remains vague and mysterious, driving you to your own conclusions.

It's a great game, worth playing if you enjoy these types of games.
Though, in my opinion, it's better to get it at a sale,
since many people might find the slow build up and the vague ending boring.
- Marisa (JK)

18/10/2022 - Unpacking Completion.
Current Backlog: 506
Currently Playing: 16

Unpacking is a comfy and relaxing puzzle game that gives you the satisfactory feeling of unpacking
and placing your items on their rightful place when you move to a new place.
The puzzles in this game are mostly just block-fitting styled trying to include fun home decoration where over the course of eight house moves,
you are given a chance to experience a sense of intimacy with a character you never see and a story you’re never told.

You get to discover the story through the items you place, arranging bookshelves, cabinets and even fridge magnets.
There is no rush, no timers and almost full control over where to place items.
There are some items that are only allowed in certain rooms and places, but it's quite realistic and I had no problems with most items.
I was a little annoyed that some rooms seemed to have not enough space to fit the items aesthetically.
There is also very little replayability with this game, and it's finished in just four hours.

I do think the game is worth to be played, since the experience is really good, BUT I don't recommend getting this game at full price,
since 20€ is a little much for the amount of content you get, unless they do decide to add more rooms.
So get the game at a sale and you'll enjoy a lot of fun times organizing items to your liking.
- Marisa (JK)

22/10/2022 - INSIDE Completion.
Current Backlog: 505
Currently Playing: 16

INSIDE is a wonderfully dark, narrative-driven platformer game from the makers of Limbo
that combines intense action with semi-challenging puzzles and hidden collectibles.

You start the game by being thrown into it right away without any menu or anything.
You are a young boy in a forest, why are you there? What is happening?
The game keeps you on your toes from the start all the way to the end, the soundtrack is spooky and intense.
You keep going and it becomes quite clear that you are running away from someone.
From there it keeps building up as a dark story with an intense and intriguing ending. It never disappoints.

INSIDE is definitely a game I would recommend everyone to try out, it's a shorter game, but still very good.
Definitely recommend it even at full price.
- Marisa (JK)

23/10/2022 - Never Alone Completion.
Current Backlog: 504
Currently Playing: 16

Never Alone is a beautiful game that shares real history and traditions of the Iñupiat people of Alaska,
told through Nuna and her friend Fox, as they search for the source of an eternal blizzard,
that threatens the survival of everything they have ever known.

The game is a simple platformer with slightly janky controls that can give more than your fair share of annoyances while playing,
but it shines through the collectible videos called insights, that consist of the Iñupiat elders, storytellers,
and other members of the Alaskan Native community sharing stories and wisdom about their culture, values
and the amazing Arctic world that you encounter through the game. It also has a message about global warming,
and how it has affected the people of Alaska and their day to day life.

I very much enjoyed the experience that this game offered, even though I had some troubles with the Bola controls.
Despite that, I was fully enjoying my time and always found it exciting to hear more about the Iñupiat through the video insights.
The game is beautifully crafted, with a strong message and it's culturally impactful.

Definitely recommending the main game,
but also the DLC, which was a nice little addition.
- Marisa (JK)

29/10/2022 - Paradise Lost Completion.
Current Backlog: 512
Currently Playing: 16

Paradise Lost is a great example of a walking simulator game that lures you in with pretty graphics
but in the end has no content behind those graphics. The story is quite predictable and boring,
with the ending kinda trying to be interesting and shocking, but still failing at it.

The game does refer to some of the horrible stuff the Nazis did, like in example the lebensraum programme,
so be prepared for that. It's not fun, but it does add something interesting to the game.

The gameplay is tedious and slow, the ending is predictable, but alright in the end,
so it's not a game that I would recommend at full price but if you can get it at 50% off or more,
then I guess it's a good investment.
- Marisa (JK)

31/10/2022 - Paramnesia Completion.
Current Backlog: 511
Currently Playing: 16

I was actually looking forward to playing Paramnesia,
because the artwork seemed really interesting and the videos also gave it a very cool vibe,
which I wanted to experience myself. Sadly, it was rather confusing and bad experience.

I opened the game and clicked "new game", the game started with a cool bird flying in the clouds and dope music,
I was ready for the cool story! I got little bit forward and the game crashed. I thought, alright, maybe it was just a one time thing.
I opened the game again and it crashed...again.

Alright. That was a bad start. I opened the game up again and noticed there was a "continue" button.
I clicked that and some weird route map came up on the screen. I clicked on one of the circles and it plopped me in, what I assumed, was the story.
I knew it was not the start, because stuff was happening that I was not aware on what it was,
I met characters that were not "introduced" and it was all around confusing.

I "played" though these scenes that were on the route map about three times, getting different endings,
but I still have no idea what is going on and why there is a "new game" button that does nothing,
but the "continue" is how you "play" even though I have not started a game. I think I managed to play all the endings,
but I can't really be sure as it was confusing to begin with.

It's a game that I can't recommend. It's really short, really confusing, not interesting,
because of the confusing aspect and even though it's really cheap, it's not worth it.
- Marisa (JK)