Recent reviews by Astray

Resident Evil Requiem is easily one of the best entries in the series and a true 10/10 survival-horror experience.

Capcom finally nailed the balance between terror and action. The game shifts perfectly between slow, nerve-wracking exploration and intense combat that keeps your adrenaline high without ever losing the horror atmosphere. Every hallway feels dangerous, every bullet matters, and the sound design constantly keeps you on edge.

The environments are incredibly detailed and oppressive, the enemy designs are genuinely disturbing, and the story does a great job tying together classic Resident Evil themes while still feeling fresh.

What impressed me most is the pacing: the game never drags and never overstays its welcome. One moment you're carefully solving puzzles and conserving ammo, the next you're fighting for your life in chaotic encounters that feel straight out of the best moments in the series.

If you're a fan of survival horror, or just great games in general, this is an absolute must-play.


• Fantastic horror atmosphere
• Tight, satisfying combat
• Great pacing and level design
• Beautiful visuals and sound design


• You'll wish it lasted longer


• Resident Evil 2

• Resident Evil 3

• Resident Evil 4

• Resident Evil 6



Overall Score: 100/100

Verdict: A masterclass in modern survival horror.

Even Dark Mark would approve of this.

• Incredible character creation system (your character in the beta will transfer to the official release).
• Many quality of life changes not seen before or improved upon from previous Monster Hunter titles (more on this shortly).
• Stunning character models and tasteful soundtrack for both ambiance and hunts.
• You get a mount that can auto pilot you to a custom point or monster on the map (which is 3D by the way), which allows you to heal, sharpen weapons, top off ammo, etc. along the way.
• Just about every weapon was overhauled to make combat more fluent and beginner friendly (especially the less common weapons like lance, gun lance, charge blade, and switch axe.
• Focus Mode: A new feature that all weapons receive, which allows you to target specific weak spots to deal additional damage and adds to the immersion of the game, It's an easy mechanic to understand as well.
• Simplified weapon controls allows newer players to pull off and execute combos with little practice.
• The ability to start quests and claim rewards on the fly, no more loading screens, and reduces downtime.
• The monster behaviors are amazing, even better than previous iterations with their own dynamic personalities, further adding to the immersion.
• This game is cross compatible with current generation consoles (PS5, Xbox Series X/S, PC).


• Currently, a GPU/CPU intensive game and need some optimization love overall. I am running this game on a Nvidia 4060 Ti and ran into more than a few graphical glitches, and my client crashed on me on multiple occasions. Looking forward to future updates from Capcom.
• Fighting Polygon Team from Smash Bros. somehow made it in to this game. Sometimes, character models and monsters will look like they are stuck inside a PS1 time capsule.
• The overall difficulty is easier than past iterations. This is not a true "con" per se (we know our Hunter muscle memory doesn't go away) as this feels aimed towards a new player experience, but the overall difficulty of later/endgame hunts are just not there right now. This may change when G-Rank/Arch Tempered monsters are released.
• There is a learning curve to the controls and getting your settings "just right".
• External mods are available to fix the stuttering and poor graphical issues that I highlighted earlier. You should not need to rely on mods to have a pleasant experience with this game.


• Monster Hunter Rise
• Monster Hunter: World


Coming from the Open Beta Tests, I was incredibly excited for the full release of Monster Hunter: Wilds. From the opening cutscene, I was already locked in to this masterpiece. With a trusty friend or two, expect to have hundreds of hours of content and fun. Whether you are here to experience the story, hang out and game with friends, or give yourself the challenge of a lifetime, expect that and more from this one. This is an experience you will not want to miss out on.

After playing for nearly 200 hours in just under two weeks, I proudly stand by the fact that this game is truly a gem you will want to experience with friends. For veterans of the series, a lot of your favorite monsters have returned with a multitude of new challenges to keep you on your toes.

Overall Score: 95/100

Thank you for reading! Please leave a comment if you feel I have left anything of importance out or if you just want to share your thoughts. Cheers!

• Fantastic character roster (Hopefully the DLC adds our favorites back, along with the story exclusives)!
• Not a GPU/CPU intensive game. Easily runnable and runs quite smooth.
• Beautiful cut scenes/visuals, gorgeous!
• Addition of History mode allows you to experience part 1 of Naruto all the way to end of Shippuden.
• The background audio is incredible, it does match better with Japanese over English but still a great job regardless.
• Simple controls allows newer players to pull off and execute flashy combos.
• A plethora of collectibles (skins, color palette swaps, titles, nameplates, and more).
• The combat system overall has been improved. Chakra recovery is much faster, parrying also no longer requires chakra, and each character has two basic jutsu and one ultimate that adds dynamic gameplay to each fight.
• For the completionists out there, you can knock out all the achievements fairly quickly (Around 20-25 hours).


• The world is not explorable as in past Storm games this makes the story modes quite linear.
• Storyline seemed to be lacking/repetitive. The premise of the special Boruto story was nice, but for the few minutes of build up that you do get, it leads you to replaying the same kinds of battles and experiencing similar scenes over and over again ("Oh my eyes hurt... I'm hungry.").
• The AI is far too easy. This is regardless if it is Free Battle (including "Super Hard"), History mode, or Boruto's story. It feels like the AI were barely play tested at all which is a shame because the difficulty ramps up appropriately in the previous game, NSUNS4.
• The voice lines/quotes for a large majority of the characters sound lackluster and at times, robotic. A vast majority of the voice lines/quotes could have been ported over from NSUNS4 and would have done wonders over the version we currently have.
• Too much overlap between Boruto's story and History mode (you replay many of the same battles in both).
• History mode disregards many pivotal fights and converts them to scenes instead (Play NSUNS4 if you want to experience those).
• Online mode is terrible as it is right now: You cannot leave lobbies, ragequitters are not penalized, and there is no way to play with friends. No other game modes aside from casual and ranked matches.


• NARUTO SHIPPUDEN: Ultimate Ninja STORM 4
• NARUTO SHIPPUDEN: Ultimate Ninja STORM Revolution
• NARUTO SHIPPUDEN: Ultimate Ninja STORM 3 Full Burst


I want to recommend this game, I really do. I even purchased this game for friends as they are fans of the series. Coming off NSUNS4, the trailers had roped us in pretty good, that is, until you actually experience the game. The cons section of this review says it all but the story modes seem rushed and half-baked at best. History mode does cover the entirely of Naruto, at the cost of poor cutscenes, omitting many iconic fights, and not allowing us to explore the world as was always the case in past Storm games. The same also holds true for the Boruto story, while narrtively good (the introduction of technology and the visuals/cutscenes as an example), it was way too linear after the beginning. Online mode is terrible at the moment as well for the reasons stated earlier. Hopefully the DLC can carry this game because it is a sad departure from NSUNS4. I would recommend you play NSUNS4 as it is a far more polished title and/or wait until this game gets heavily discounted/patched.

Overall Score: 65/100

Thank you for reading! Please leave a comment if you feel I have left anything of importance out or if you just want to share your thoughts. Cheers!

Initial review for Vestaria Saga I: War of the Scions.

Pros:

Created by original Fire Emblem scenario designer Shouzou Kaga.
Nostalgic throwback to GBA Fire Emblem. (Art style, characters, combat system)
Plethora of approaches to completing the objectives.
Excellent character development.
The maps are long, each with their own sense of fulfillment.
Built in saving every five turns. (Eliminates the "rage reset" factor.)
Bulit in soft reset via F12.
It's Fire Emblem.

Cons:

Lack of Full Screen Option. (Press F4)
Escape key instantly closes the game.
Controls feel "stiff" with controller. I recommend using keyboard instead.
Created in SRPG Studio, not the best engine. Especially the stock backgrounds for battles.
Soundtrack gets a bit repetitive fairly quickly.
Obscure character recruitment requirements.
The cut scenes and maps get really long.

My thoughts:
As Fire Emblem is one of my favorite franchises on Nintendo, I was quite looking to this game when it was gifted to me recently as of this review. After nearly sinking 30 hours into it and over halfway done with the game, I have thoroughly enjoyed this game so far. If you have had that Fire Emblem itch but have longed for something new, then Vestaria Saga is definitely your ticket. The maps offer the right amount of challenge without being too easy, and strategy is paramount if you truly intend to keep everyone alive. As stated earlier, I recommend playing this on keyboard as using a controller feels "stiff". The menus and organization options could have been done better too, and if you have OCD like me, you'll want to keep your items as organized as possible as money is a bit of a scarcity in Vestaria. The character development is what drove it home though, you feel as though you get to know everybody closely throughout the journey and although I am about halfway done as of this review, I am looking forward to what comes next. The writing is on point and each character's personality is what sets this apart from other SRPG's.

Recommend: Yes! Especially if you have that Fire Emblem itch.
Score: 8.5/10

• Open world
• Not a GPU/CPU intensive game. Easily runnable and runs quite smooth.
• Beautiful cut scenes/visuals, gorgeous!
• Clean menu.
• Night/Day Cycle.
• Weather does effect how you take on a mission.
• You can easily get immersed in the game and play it for hours without even knowing it.
• Tons of missions and side objectives. Tnere will be plenty to do.
• Everything you do in-game affects the current and future missions.
• Those who can stragically plan better will have an easier time progressing through missions with a higher score.
• Various weapons/tools/items/gear to research. Lots of customization.
• Custmomizable "Mother Base" with soldiers and objects/items from the open world.
• You can infiltrate other players bases and steal soldiers/resources (FoB's/Events alike).
• Multiple companion's that you can bond with throughout missions. (You are not alone!)
• Intelligent and adapatable AI. They will deal with people using repetitive infiltration methods and the like.
• If you punch one of your soldiers in the face, you will recieve words of praise.
• Not a game you can just breeze through in just 10-20 hours.


• Mission checkpoints can have a large gap, punishing your stupidity and impatience.
• Not necessarily a "Pay to Win" option, but there are microtransactions in this game that 'enhance' your online experience. (MB Coins)


• Storyline seemed to be lacking/repetitive.
• AI and player pathing have a few bugs when encountering ladders or something of the sort in small places (Seldom occurs, but worthwhile to mention).
• Can feel repetitve at times during missions due to similar objectives (Go here and kill/rescure this person, etc).
• Hackers have been spotted while online. (FoB Attacks)
• You CAN NOT bind anything to a numpad key. Which blows for left handed PC gamers.


• Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes
• Metal Gear (General Franchise)


With the ingenuity of Kojima and Co. combined with the power of the Fox engine here is another gem to marvel upon- Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain. The game/franchise as a whole continues to be a lovely experience with a multitude of things to do online post-story. Seriously, you will always have something to do. The story is mesmerizing, leaving you with a feeling of wanting more. For the hardcore Metal Gear fans out there, many of your questions regarding to 'plot holes' will definately get (at least some) answers this time around!

Overall Score: 90/100

Thank you for reading! Please leave a comment if you feel I have left anything of importance out or if you just want to share your thoughts. Cheers!

Dungeons of Dredmor is a more laid back RPG and gives a typical 'dungeon crawler' feel when playing. Personally, I love the fact that there are endless combinations to beating this game, some requiring more skill than others, that really make this game unique. And if your looking for some nostalgia you'll find it here too, there's references and puns as far as... uh, the screen can stretch! (Sorry couldn't think of anything cool.) But you get the idea, it's a game that can consume many hours of your time and it's something that will make you come back for 'more'. I also highly recommend the DLC as well, it's worth every penny. If you still need something new to change things up a bit, there's plenty of player created content as well! (Items, abilities, etc.) So in short, there's tons to do and many ways to beat it giving it a unique feel each and every time!

Civilization V is a pinnacle for all strategy games out there. Great improvments in many areas compared to it's older cousins. The game itself is very addictive and like the previous versions, you tend to lose a lot of time out of your day to this game without realizing it. This just proves how mesmerizingly fun this game can be. At first, I thought this game would be difficult to grasp because of the idea of religion being abolished altogether, however, it was the exact opposite. If you have played the previous Civilization games, this one will be pretty easy to grasp and pick up on. For new gamers being introduced to strategy games, there is a very nice tutorial within the game itself that explains everything you need to know and to understand it easily. It's a great game to start with if your new to Civilization and/or strategy games in general. This is one of the best of best out there, there could be no better time to start Civilization than right now!