This subsequent sport was one that nearly slipped by means of the cracks. I performed it on a whim, not likely anticipating it to be that good, however I used to be blown away by how stable an expertise it was. It’s not life-changing. It didn’t conjure “I’ll obsess over this sport” vibes like Doki Doki or Silent Hill 2 did (or the final sport on my record). Nevertheless it did make me sit up and go, “okay, now this is an effective sport”. I can’t consider the rest this sport may have performed in a different way, and until my creativeness and sport design schools have simply determined to close down, I’m fairly positive that makes this one rattling good sport.
2) Crow Nation | SFB Video games
“My identify is Mara. Particular Agent Forest. Don’t mess it up.”
It looks like I performed this sport years in the past. A lot has occurred in my thoughts since then, a lot of it constructive – however I hold considering again to Crow Nation actually fondly. Crow Nation is a top-down retro horror sport within the vein of classics within the style. It’s a sport with tense taking pictures, useful resource administration, and a wholesome dose of secrets and techniques to search out. Messing round with the surroundings or wanting round rigorously all the time appears to provide you one thing, whether or not or not it’s a field of ammo, a key, or only a word concerning the bizarre eponymous amusement park you end up in.
I don’t know if Crow Nation does something notably revolutionary, however all the pieces it does is polished to an insane diploma. Each puzzle is sensible and is tons of enjoyable to resolve. Each line of dialogue provides depth to the broader story that surrounds purple-haired particular agent Mara Forest. The Resident Evil stylings solely make it extra spectacular that the sport finds its personal quirky identification. It’s humorous, with each surroundings by no means as soon as threatening to overstay its welcome. The park is split into distinct themes, a intelligent thought in itself. You’ll be able to discover a water-themed world, the place you possibly can go into an arcade, discover a sea-creature diner for youths, and do a taking pictures gallery populated by sharks and dolphins. You’ll be able to discover a Halloween world, the campiness of which is juxtaposed by the precise threats you discover wandering across the park. There’s additionally a forest surroundings, which has mushroom individuals, geese, and water nymphs to cope with. Then there’s the again areas of the park, the place all of the magic fades away, and stacks of apparatus and sterile white halls make the entire enterprise really feel distinctly flawed.
The layers of Crow Nation’s surroundings contribute to a rising sense of dismay. Because the story progresses, the park will get an increasing number of harmful, and the enemies you might be going through turn into an increasing number of deformed. The sterile white halls turn into booby-trapped and splattered with blood as you blast enemies together with your weapons. The taking pictures is so tight and responsive that I want each sport felt like this. You need to use a pistol, a shotgun, and a flamethrower (in addition to an unlockable grenade launcher) to carve your means by means of the park. Every weapon controls so delightfully, with altering them being a quick course of as nicely. As you progress by means of the park, it’s important to make each shot rely (notably on larger difficulties).
Crow Nation is not only a great survival horror sport. It’s a stellar instance of how a brief, polished expertise could be leagues higher than a big, bloated one. I might fairly play twenty video games like Crow Nation than dream of taking part in one sport that wastes my time. I might hate to be prevented from taking part in twenty Crow Nation-likes. It is a sport that appears comparatively innocuous however calls for your time. In case you haven’t already performed it, please do, critically – it’s a good survival horror expertise, particularly if you happen to’ve by no means performed a survival horror sport earlier than. For individuals who have, it’s a love letter to the style with so many moments of “oh, how cool”, you’ll kick your self for not taking part in it sooner.
