REVIEW: In Rays of the Light on Xbox One

In Rays of the Light is the latest release from Sergey Noskov. A "first person meditative quest" game, whatever that means.

You start of the game in an abandoned Russian school/university. You have no idea who you are, nor do you seemingly know what to do, or where to go.

Within the first few minutes, you will figure out the general mechanics of the game, you will find a flash light, a pipe and keys. Flash light to see in the dark, pipe to open boarded up doors, and keys to erm... open locks. From this point on, you can basically go anywhere in the game, still no real instruction of what you are supposed to do, or where to go. And this is why I would assume the game is called a "first person meditative quest".

Around the school, there are a few buildings, a bus and some cars. You can't go much further than this. So what do you do? Well you wonder around, a lot. Slowly but surely you will start to figure a few things out, find a few puzzles to solve. For example a locked lucker with a 3 digit combination to work out, by looking at a few of the photos dotted about the location, you will realise that they have numbers on. I had already made a mental note of two of the numbers, so just through trial and error figured out the lock.

Eventually you will find yourself in the basement and turning on a generator, and without spoiling things further, you will find yourself aimlessly walking around in near pitch black, trying to figure out what to do or how to get out. Although this is supposed to give you a feeling of fear and dread, I just found myself frustrated, and only found my way out I am sure by pure accident. I kinda knew what I needed to do at this point, use some coins on a machine, to get out a part, that would then be used in a lecture room, to allow a projector to run. The only problem, I have no coins, and no idea where to get them, I have spent hours wondering around, searching every inch of everywhere without luck. I even did something I hate to do and checked out a walkthrough video, the only problem? The coins in the video are in a car, but in my game, they are not there. So that is it for me, I finally gave up. The walkthrough video was for the PC release from a while back, and I am playing the Xbox version, so obviously the coins are in a different as yet undiscovered location. At some point I will check out a walkthrough and then finish the game.

**UPDATE**

I found the coins, right near the start, next to the vending machine you kick to get a can of pop!

I finished the game, and watched one of the available endings, all good in the end. But missing one little thing really did drive me mad!
***********

The Good

There is a feeling of wanting to continue, to figure things out, and that is why I spent so much time on this game.

The music is really cool, very melodic. The graphics are decent, and there is an interesting story to figure out.

The Bad

The lack of ever really knowing what you need to do, or where you need to go, as well as the fact that if like me you get stuck, that's it, the game for you is basically over, if you have looked at every inch of the place and still can't find what you are looking for, this quickly becomes tedious.

Overall

An interesting concept for a game, but the lack of instructions will put a lot of people off. For as far as I did get, I enjoyed getting there, but beyond frustrated that I couldn't finish the game.

I score this game a fair 6/10 - A few tweaks, a hint system, a bit of instruction etc, a few more puzzles and this game could easily get to 7/10.

Review by Jon Donnis

#InRaysoftheLight - #XboxOne Release Trailer

I also reviewed this game a few weeks back, check out my exclusive review at https://t.co/qBbBfJkQhl pic.twitter.com/7MU3486xY9

— Gaming Couch Potato (@GamingCouchSpud) March 17, 2021

REVIEW: Orange Cast - PC (Steam)

Review by Jon Donnis

From Team Rez comes Orange Cast. A 3rd Person sci-fi shooter. You play as an elite space trooper, you will take on a "heroic, action-packed adventure throughout the galaxy" sounds fun.

The first thing you will notice as you play the game is that you won't understand what's going on, well not directly. Thank god for subtitles. The game is Russian made, so unless you understand Russian you will have to rely on the ability of the translators.

As I mentioned previously, you are an elite space trooper, you head off into the Universe to complete missions. You start off with the tutorial, and to be honest this is where the problems start, the aiming system just feels off, I tried with a keyboard and with a gamepad, and I just did not feel comfortable with either as a control method. The firefights with enemies are just not accurate enough, so instead of trying to fire accurately, which is very hard due to the control system, I would just run at opponents and try to fight hand to hand, as that seemed like an easier way to actually beat an opponent, the problem is if you are facing more than one, they will quickly overwhelm you. With that said the AI is terrible. 

Graphically the game has its moments, but there are also many issues with frame rates, and graphical bugs. This is acceptable on early access, but not on a game that has hit a proper release. Some of the areas are fun, and do look nice, but overall, you can't forgive one thing because something else looks pretty.

The Good

The terrible dialog, can actually be entertaining, so bad it is good if you know what I mean. Some of the areas look great.

The Bad

The gameplay is just quite boring, it's not a game that makes you want to get to the next area, you just kind of play, and it feels ok. And that is not enough in a genre that is absolutely full of top games.

Overall

The game is what it is, I hate to give bad reviews, because i know how hard people work on these games, and maybe not being Russian means, I miss a lot of the nuance in the game, but it is just not for me.

I score this game 4/10

Review by Jon Donnis

REVIEW: Death Tales on Nintendo Switch

Review By Jon Donnis

Can a game be too pretty? Too colourful? I don't know, but boy does Death Tales on Nintendo Switch push those limits.

You play as a new "Reaper" who has gone rogue, you will collect souls as you play, I don't think I have ever heard that as a description before?

Anyway, the game is a 2D plat-former, you will fight enemy after enemy, you will learn spells, collect equipment that allows you to customize your reaper, interact with characters who will give you quests. Spells include things like fireballs, freeze powers, angel wings, meteors, and stampeding unicorns. Now I have got your attention haven't I?!

So, let's get to the nitty gritty. You have 30 levels to beat and souls to collect for "Death". That is the basic game, but is it any good?, first the visuals, as I mentioned earlier, this game is colourful, very colourful, like completely and utterly colourful, but with that said, it never becomes a distraction, everything is smooth, everything looks great. The soundtrack fits nicely with the game-play, it is also not distracting. Fighting against enemies is very hack and slash, one complaint would be that enemies do not have any power bar, so there is no way of telling if an enemy needs one more strike to kill, or a few. Only a small problem but one that should be fixed for enemies that need more than 2 hits to kill.

The cut scenes and events are nice but I couldn't figure out how to skip them or even if you can, unfortunately this means if you are replaying levels to get all of the rewards you find yourself having to sit and watch things over and over, frustrating, but not a deal breaker.

The Good

Did I mention the graphics were really colourful? The game-play is fun, easy to get used to, pretty simple hack and slash 2D plat-former, just from that description you know what you are getting.

The Bad

Some of the in-game menus could be better.

Overall

A simple game, with a somewhat original premise, it only costs £7.99 on release in the UK, so won't break the bank.

I score the game a solid 7/10

Worth a look

https://www.nintendo.co.uk/Games/Nintendo-Switch-download-software/Death-Tales-1879284.html

Review by Jon Donnis

PREVIEW: Early Access version of Ultimate ADOM: Caverns of Chaos

Preview by Jon Donnis

I got my hands on a copy of the Early Access version of Ultimate ADOM: Caverns of Chaos. A sequel to a game called ADOM (Ancient Domains of Mystery) that was released back in 1994. ADOM is wat is known as a "Roguelike" game, a subgenre of the RPG game that usually finds itself in a dungeon as you crawl through procedurally generated levels, turn-based gameplay, tile-based graphics, and permanent death of the player character. Ultimate ADOM brings that concept to 2021.

The idea of such a game is that it should have unlimited re-playability, since the levels are different every time you start a game. You will face an endless amount of monsters, you will craft items, explore and improve your skills.

Here is a quick look at the Synopsis

"Evil has been vanquished. Peace has returned to Ancardia, and the peasants dare to dream once more of prosperity. Seven very different factions vie for control over the cataclysmic aftermath left behind by Andor Drakon's defeat. And somewhere, deep down in an inhospitable cave, ChAoS is stirring again.

Pick up your blade, prepare your spells, check your daggers and ready your bow, for you are about to enter the ominous Caverns of Chaos. Choose your allegiance carefully, for you are nothing more than an expendable asset to the masters you choose.

Fight for a mercenary's glory and purse, for the justice of a folk in decline, for the light of purity or even for ChAoS itself. Every choice you make will determine how you approach the ever-changing Caverns of Chaos before you."

As you play you will soon realise that everything can be interacted with, whether that is breaking through a solid wall, pushing coffins to reveal all sorts, smash through doors, turn doors into monsters who may then serve you. And so on.

There are plenty of different characters, classes, genders, races and so on to choose from. Magic to learn and master, spells to cast and hundreds of skills to unlock.

As first mentioned, this game is an early access version, so in its present state it feels quite empty, but with that said the game makers are very clear in their objectives, and they want and need feedback as a way to help the game grow and improve.

The game is a long way from being finished, but it has potential, whether that potential is fulfilled, only time will tell.

If you are old enough to have played and enjoyed the original, then I think you should check this game out, and even help it grow by being a part of the community.

If, however, you never played the original, and are perhaps not aware of the term "Roguelike" then you might want to wait until the game is finished.

For now, it looks promising. Good graphics, simple game mechanics. Could be something special.

Preview by Jon Donnis

Available on Steam

https://store.steampowered.com/app/1266820/Ultimate_ADOM__Caverns_of_Chaos/

REVIEW: The Uncertain: Light At The End on PC (Steam)

Review By Jon Donnis

The Uncertain: Light At The End is a 3rd person adventure game, but more in the mold of Life is Strange than say Tomb Raider.

Officially this game is the second of a 3-part series, but from what I understand this game has it's own story and as such you don't need to have played the previous game to know what's going on. So, what is going on? Well you find yourself in a post-apocalyptic world, (don't you always?), the world is seemingly over run with advanced robots who apparently don't like humans.

You play as a young woman called Emily, part of a group of survivors, and you take part in missions which range from fixing things around the safe house, to full on scavenger missions. As I mentioned earlier although this is 3rd person, you don't really have as much freedom as you perhaps would think you would, this is a linear game, so you can't just go where you want. Which is a shame as some of the backgrounds and areas look really pretty. Now there are some graphical issues, but keep in mind this is an Indie game with a limited budget, and the game makers are constantly pushing out updates and improving things.

You will probably complete the game in 5-6 hours, and as you play you will soon realise that the various environments you find yourself in are varied, and the tasks you need to do are also as varied, you will need to solve puzzles as you play, and these are no easy puzzles, so you will need to use your brains, however it does give you the option to just skip them.

You won't really need to worry about fighting the enemy, the only interactions you will have with the evil robots might be a quick time event, which may come from a choice you make in the game, one of the first is whether or not you go back for your partner, or flee. If you go back for him, you will have a quick-time event, press the right button and you will take out the robot. Other than that, most interactions will have you trying to avoid being seen, this comes in the way of timing your movements to avoid cameras, robots and so on. If you do get caught, you get to try again.

The game does feel short, and you are left wanting more, but I guess that is why you have chapters. So if you do like this, then you can go get the first chapter.

The Good

Easy to play, easy to get into, some nice tricky puzzles, and decent graphics for an Indie made game.

The Bad

As I said the game is short, and sometimes lacks a bit of a challenge outside of the puzzles.

Overall

I enjoyed the game, it won't set any records or change the world, but it did keep me entertained for a good while.

I score the game 7/10

Review by Jon Donnis

Available on Steam

https://store.steampowered.com/app/925570/The_Uncertain_Light_At_The_End/