If you were perusing other 1980s IPs looking for something to fit into the Friday the 13th mould, Predator makes a lot of sense. The all-timer 1987 Predator sees a group of macho characters who already feel like they’ve been lifted out of a video game battling against a single powerful adversary - the ideal recipe for asymmetric multiplayer.
And so Predator: Hunting Grounds was born.
Unfortunately, Liberte has quite a few technical issues that bear down on a game that ends up feeling feels unrewarding and unfortunately – a missed opportunity.
Presented in a 1st-person POV style, Purpose 1951 is a very slender game in a lot of ways, you follow a mostly linear path – with the only branches areas leading to what are effectively ‘trophy points’ - as the narrator monologues as you trek.
But we all make mistakes.
Assisting them through the labyrinth of deadly traps and tricks is a young girl who can be guided by the aforementioned laser pointer. Working together, both must solve puzzles and make their way through the labyrinth, in a bid to survive the deadly trials laid out before them.
The opening chapter is all about putting as much ground between you and the mysterious enemy forces as possible, as fragments of the narrative are laid out. It’s here that the game sets out its stock, and I was initially intrigued due to several aspects of the design choices made.
But - and this is a big but - it’s interesting. And interesting goes a long way.
That is until you receive a message from a mysterious person who wants to meet, kicking off your adventure.
I had major reservations for this game from the start as more Lovecraftian horror is not what I particularly wanted, but I'm always happy to be proven wrong and so hoped this game would ease my tiredness of Lovecraft and bring my list of good games inspired by his bibliography to a whopping two.
A Way To Be Dead is actually set in the universe of the team’s previous 2017 game, Roots of Insanity https://store.steampowered.com/app/598440/Roots_of_Insanity/ which garnered some good Steam reviews and was also set in a chilling, skin-crawling hospital.
Truthfully, If I was playing this game without intending to review it, I would have stopped after forty-five minutes and put it down as ‘just not my cup of tea’. Though I do enjoy occasionally trying out games that I would tend to avoid - to see whether the game can win me over and possibly change my view - this game sadly didn’t and in fact, further cemented my thoughts.
As well-presented as the game is, it feels to tame to be titillating and too repetitive to be engaging.
Platform Reviewed: PS4
A cool idea based on real-life crimes marred by esoteric implementation and some relatively serious technical issues.
In a happy coincidence, I had watched David Fincher’s 2007 slow-burn thriller Zodiac only weeks before receiving This is the Zodiac Speaking for review and, having a close friend harbouring dark obsessions with serial murderers, I was already acquainted with the heinous, unsolved crimes that plagued California in the ‘70s.
In short, I was in the zone.
Platform Reviewed: PS4
Rating: 5/10 (MELTING)
This is not the review I wanted to write.
Upon booting up Cloudpunk, ION Lands’ voxel-tastic cyberpunk delivery simulator, despite some clear technical issues, I was HOOKED.
Sadly, eight hours into the game, the issues won out and I was forced to give up entirely. I can genuinely say that this would have featured in my end of year selection but in its current state, it’s a hard one to recommend and instead currently stands as one of the most infuriating gaming moments of the year for me.
