Alec Meer

Rock Paper Shotgun

Alec Meer·Jul 8, 2016

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Replica is a strong concept played out a bit too broadly for its own good, but it’s just smart – and certainly timely – enough to get away with it.

Rock Paper Shotgun

Alec Meer·Jun 21, 2016

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I happily add 35mm to the swollen pantheon of RPS’ highly-recommended games from the first half of 2016. It is janky at times, but it is something special.

Rock Paper Shotgun

Alec Meer·Jun 16, 2016

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I unlocked a pug with a Santa hat! (Which is odd, given this game was released in May, so Christmas branding seems rather premature).

Rock Paper Shotgun

Alec Meer·Jun 15, 2016

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It’s a lovely thing, is Captain Forever, full of gentle tactical cleverness and aesthetic wildness.

Rock Paper Shotgun

Alec Meer·Jun 3, 2016

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It’s not Mechwarrior, no, but it scratches pretty much every other mech itch going, and with style.

Rock Paper Shotgun

Alec Meer·May 16, 2016

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Propulsive, thrilling and breathless, DOOM is the triumph I never expected. I just can't see there being a better shooter this year, I really can't.

Rock Paper Shotgun

Alec Meer·Feb 4, 2016

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American Truck Simulator is a simulation of driving a truck across America, and while it can claim many successes in terms of mechanical authenticity, its most effective simulation is state of mind. That zen-like focus and calm of driving, when every other worry evaporates from your mind. Only the road. Only the music. The music and the road as one.

Rock Paper Shotgun

Alec Meer·Jan 21, 2016

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Homeworld: Deserts of Kharak is a prequel to the legendary Homeworld space real-time strategy games, but this time - heresy! - set on land. Here's our review.

Rock Paper Shotgun

Alec Meer·Jan 13, 2016

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The thin storyline around it is entirely superfluous, I'll admit to tiring of the spaceship looking identical every single time I play and it's fair to say there's less motivation to keep on going back once you finally beat it, but even if you only get a few days out of it, right now the price is right.

Rock Paper Shotgun

Alec Meer·Jan 12, 2016

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It'll keep you busy for a long damn time too, even if you only play it once – though, of course, for many there'll be later playthroughs in co-op or at at unlockable higher difficulties. I think it's the (admittedly presumed) desire to be the spiritual sequel to Diablo II which holds me back from heaping breathless praise on Grim Dawn, though.

Rock Paper Shotgun

Alec Meer·Dec 23, 2015

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It feels like a game which knows exactly what it wants to be. And like a game which someone really, really wanted to make.

Rock Paper Shotgun

Alec Meer·Dec 10, 2015

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It doesn't have the cleanness or the slow-burn escalation of your old-school C&Cs or the first Warcrafts and StarCraft, so certainly don't approach it as a return to the old ways, but if you want a giant sci-fi army bashing buildings and monsters to death while a crazy lightshow rages, Legacy of the Void is hard to argue with on that basis.

Rock Paper Shotgun

Alec Meer·Nov 25, 2015

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It just adds to that sense that Hard West is a turn-based strategy game with a strong core surrounded by a fragmented, uncertain exterior. I'd say it's definitely worth picking up if your XCOM and Jagged Alliance itches currently feel unscratched, but expect something to dip in and out of, not some grand timesink opus. The best times with it will come from playing it on maxed-out difficulty in Iron Man mode, and its wounds system – whereby the injured are weaker in the short term but even stronger in the long term – turned on. Make the central battles as long as involved as possible, because that's where Hard West has the surest footing.

Rock Paper Shotgun

Alec Meer·Nov 19, 2015

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While the destructive potential of weapons and cards alike in some cases increases as you level up, it's much more about finding the ones you like best rather than having a de facto edge. Sadly, this in turn means that unlocks can be quite underwhelming, especially as weapons are all bound to obey the movies' pew-pew and dead behaviour. A new pistol or rifle might look different, but bar a few explicitly short-range/higher damage variants, it feels broadly the same as anything else. You don't feel empowered by your new toy, but instead have to get on back out there and keep doing the same thing.

Rock Paper Shotgun

Alec Meer·Nov 9, 2015

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Right now I feel there is still tons to mine from the game; if nothing else, despite hitting level 28 after 50 hours, I can see skill unlocks which require me to be almost level 50, and most of the in-game map remains unexplored. If I want it to, this is going to keep me busy for at least the rest of the year.