Reviews by Caleb W.14

Expeditions: Rome
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Played this game three times in a row...*****

First I played this game blind, and I fell in love with the story and setting, the experience of immersing myself into events adapted from the lives of Pompey Magnus, Julius Caesar, and Caesar Octavian.

Then I played on the highest difficulty, and I fell in love with the tactical combat, which is challenging enough to make building powerful characters really rewarding.

The DLC and the few remaining achievements convinced me to play a third time. If you can be convinced to play Expeditions: Rome even just once, I think you'll really enjoy it.

by Caleb W.14, United States - Oct 7th 2024
Pillars of Eternity: The White March - Part 2
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The Perfect Midquel*****

The White March Part 2 greatly expands on the game's divine lore and the player's ability to interact with the gods, meaningfully preparing the player for Pillars of Eternity II, where these things are even more prominent. But the lore is fascinating in its own right, even for a player who does not intend to continue the series!

by Caleb W.14, - Mar 14th 2023
Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor Game of the Year Edition
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Mordor more than holds up!*****

Shadow of Mordor runs very well on my lower-end hardware and looks good doing it. Ziplines did cause several tragic clipping softlocks, however, but I can easily overlook that because, to be frank, this game is amazing.

The Nemesis System is just that good. Mordor may not fully live up to that system's potential, but it excellently proves the concept. Most everything else is good too, from combat to stealth to collectibles.

by Caleb W.14, - Mar 25th 2021
Hearts of Iron IV
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For me, it's good*****

As a history buff and a fan of emergent narratives, I am capable of enjoying Hearts of Iron IV despite its flaws. The player takes control of a nation in the late 1930's, with the goal of either staying or changing the course of World War II. It usually does an excellent job simulating the war, and has great replay value.

However, I cannot overstate how poorly the game simulates peace deals after large wars. The AI is unforgivably bad at making peace, to the point that a plausible peace deal can only be achieved by the player cheating (with mods or console commands; I have used both) to create one manually. This breaks my immersion, wastes my time, and almost ruins the game for me.

The game is still good overall. I like it. But I simply cannot give it a glowing recommendation.

by Caleb W.14, - Aug 28th 2020
Hearts of Iron IV: Death or Dishonor
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Minor powers are fun*****

Assuming you already like Hearts of Iron IV, I strongly recommend this DLC. The four nations expanded on here (Hungary, Czechoslovakia, Yugoslavia, and Romania) are in risky positions, but are therefore extremely rewarding to play. They provide real challenge in a way that the game's major powers don't. It is exhilarating to be engaged in an uphill battle for survival, both politically and militarily, and when at last costly victory has been achieved, it will feel truly earned.

by Caleb W.14, - Aug 28th 2020
Hearts of Iron IV: Waking the Tiger
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Good, but too broad*****

This DLC is a bit all over the place geographically: it adds content to China, Japan, and Germany. In my experience, all the added content is good. Unfortunately, it is all packaged together, so that in order to experience Germany's new content, you must also buy China's, even if you're not really interested in China's.

I think this DLC is still worth having, even if you're only interested in parts of it like me. Especially if you can buy it during a sale.

by Caleb W.14, - Aug 28th 2020