What's a rapid review you may ask? Or may you're not asking. I'm going to tell you anyway! It's a review of a game that I do not need to finish in order to write a review and a bloated review isn't necessary. Most of the time reviews are overwritten and I rarely read them. I figured, why not give people like me a review of games that right to the point and don't drag on to reach a certain word limit? I felt giving some quick reviews to gamers can help their game purchase decisions a little easier.
Uncharted 4 (PS4)
I've never played an Uncharted game. I've played a demo of the remake of the Uncharted series that's on the PlayStation 4. That's the extent of my Uncharted experience. With the series being considered the cream of the crop of what makes Sony's exclusives great, I had to play Uncharted 4.
Since this is a rapid review, this won't an in-depth review of Uncharted 4: At Thief's End. Having said that, Uncharted 4 may require me to expand upon this rapid review because the game is that friggin' amazing. Graphics, controls, blah blah blah. What makes Uncharted 4 great, without touching on anything else, is, without a doubt, the storytelling.
I've always hammered video game stories as laughable and dismissed them. Many are pathetically bad they're insignificant and I'm just looking to finish the game, hello any Halo game. Uncharted 4 is different. The way the story unfolds is told as perfectly as one can imagine in a video game. I don't have any history with a Naughty Dog game, but, if their other games are anything like Uncharted 4 is, they deserve the kudos they get. If not, they still deserve the adoration!
Uncharted 4, is, hands down, the best storytelling I've ever seen in any video game. I cannot speak highly enough about it. I want to know more about the story. Actually, I don't care that much about the eventual outcome, but I'm invested in how the story is told and how it all unfolds. Naughty Dog seems to have a knack on how to pace a story and keep gamers engaged. People praise Kojima's Metal Gear storytelling, eff that! He's not in the same league as Naughty Dog. Uncharted 4 is how a story should be told in video games. Well done Naughty Dog. You've absolutely nailed it with Uncharted 4.
A quick note on the other aspects of the game. The controls are ok. Nothing spectacular and run of the mill. Not a bad thing or a great thing. They're what you would expect. The graphics are something people have praised. I must agree. The graphics are the best I've ever seen... in the in-engine cut scenes. They're simply amazing. When the seamless cut happens to the action, graphics take a major hit. They're still good, but they're not the quality of the cut scenes. It doesn't make much of a difference though as the whole package of Uncharted 4: At Thief's End is untouched by any other game on any current gen system. It's that amazing. Simply, "Wow!"
Rive (Steam: PC/Mac/Linux, PS4, Xbox One and Wii U Later)
Rive will drive you bonkers. Absolutely bonkers. The game is hard... really hard. There are parts that will make you want to throw your controller across the room. You'll want to throw it, but you you won't. Why, because you won't want the game to beat you.
Indie games can be hit or miss. Rive is a hit. A resounding hit. It's another indie game that perfectly illustrates why we need indie developers in the video game industry. Rive is a side scroller with a twist. Think of it as Metal Slug, but sometimes you're a side scrolling space shooter and the next you're a side scroller platformer.
Enemies come flying at you reminiscent of 1942 when you're flying and Metroid when you're gravity bound. You kill enemies using twin sticks to move around and shoot. You feel like you're right back into the Sega Genesis and Super Nintendo era, but with better graphics. I love side scrollers from that time and Rive fits the bill perfectly.
Rive is one of the hardest games I've played. You start off relatively easy and then difficulty ramps up. Each level has slower parts followed by nearly impossible parts. Nearly... You'll get stuck, but you'll eventually get past a stick point. Maybe, just maybe, you'll get so stuck that you'll need some help to get past a certain area.
For $14.99 (PS4 and Steam) you'll get a lot of enjoyment out of Rive. It's not a terribly deep game. It doesn't need to be. Rive wants to be a throwback to the 16-Bit era and it does that quite nicely. If you're a fan of the genre/era like me, you won't regret getting Rive. You controller may regret it though.
No Man's Sky (Steam: PC, PS4)
We've all read the feedback about No Man's Sky by now. The game didn't end up being what it was touted to be, by a large margin. Lot's of people hate the game and demanded their money back. I purposely stayed away from the marketing and interviews with the developers. I did read a little bit and watch a quick video here and there so I didn't know much of what was promised until I read it online. Everyone knows I hate spoilers. For me, the 'missing' parts of the game had no effect on how much, or little, I enjoyed No Man's Sky.
Did I enjoy No Man's Sky, yes. Am I glad I didn't spend money on it, yes. If you're thinking those two statements are contradicting themselves, they do, but not in the case of No Man's Sky. I enjoyed exploring the planets. The scientist in me, and my thirst of knowledge in real life, played right into what makes No Man's Sky enjoyable. I loved looking walking around and discovering parts of a planet that I know no other gamer had ever stepped foot on. It was a cool feeling. That is what made No Man's Sky fun for me.
I'm glad I didn't spend money on No Man's Sky. While I loved the exploring, the game is bogged down by the hoarding of resources and crafting. It becomes too much of a chore when all you want to do is explore. I'm a poet and didn't know it. I digress... Too much time is spent examining the extremely limited plant varieties and collecting what you need than being Robinson Crusoe. That's another issue with the game, it all basically looks the same.
Space, I get, looking all the same. Exploring planet after planet, well, there's very little variety and the explorer in me got bored because of that. I know this game is large, or we were led to believe that, but c'mon, the first four planets, well, three, and a moon, were nearly the same. Rather than explore, time was spent gathering resource so I could get my ass out of there because it was becoming a chore just walking around.
In the end I'm glad I didn't buy No Man's Sky. I would have been pissed if I had. The day before launch I almost digitally pre-purchased it. Thank goodness I didn't. There's no replayability in it because of how repetitive it is and the limited variety in everything. I'm sure there's a lesson to be learned with No Man's Sky and it's production and subsequent marketing. I don't know what that quite is though.
