Recent reviews by MasterDex

The problems with Overwatch and the reasons you should try to find a different game are the problems that have plagued it since the start. The easiest way to summarize the issue is: Blizzard. Their solution to reducing toxicity is their automated report and ban system that, in their own words, is "Community Driven". That sounds good but what it really means is that you're going to get into games with children, yes, children. Keep that in mind as an older PC gamer. These are children who will decide that you are trolling, throwing, being mean, weird, reportable for whatever brief annoyance or fancy that takes them, and if you play enough or use text or voice to communicate, you just increase your chances of the automated ban system catching up with all those petty reports, and then you'll realize that you've been doing the same thing, reporting children for petty bs. And you'll ask yourself, why am I doing this? And then you'll queue another game, and another, and suddenly it's not 2015 anymore, it's 2025, and your first, second, third, and fourth accounts are banned because of automated bans based on petty (mostly) false reports, and the hours you spent, and any money you spent is gone, because Blizzard wants a "community driven" report system in what is arguably, the most toxic community there is.

Yesterday, I was an egalitarian mollusc leader of a galactic federation, and a major galactic council member. Today I am a dictatorial human leader of a militaristic and xenophobic empire with the united nations of Earth on my borders, even they won't be spared.

Stellaris, even as a base game, offers many ways to play. Get it, especially when it's on sale and bundled with some tasty DLC

It's Baldur's Gate. 'Nuff said

The flame grows dim. Your party of daring adventurers have been through the ringer. Your healer has broken, lambasting every decision the party makes, getting jealous at others inflicting pain upon her dementers. Your Jester has been bitten, and scratches an itch that won't go away, your Shieldbearer is on the brink of death.

And now you must face the Wizened Hag.

Darkest Dungeon is a Dungeon Crawler with a Difference, reveling in its rogue-like sensibilities as much as it dares the player to embark once more into its depths. Your heroes go mad, fall ill, and die. You delete your save file and start again. You experiment with different party builds and upgrade your heroes. You go in stronger and better equipped than before. But then poor luck and panicked mistakes mount, and the cycle of madness continues.

Recommended for: People who like pain.

A promising and stylized aquaculture game - of which there are too few. The fish, plant, and hardscape selection is still a little bare in Early Access as I post this review but the existing selection shows promise. If you enjoy aquascaping or just want a nice chill game, check it out. Definitely one to watch.

A good game that's fun to play with friends and doesn't have all the salt of some other multiplayer games.

Red Dead Redemption 2 is a great game. It's a beautiful game. It's an exciting game. It's a game you could lose not just hours to, but days, weeks, and even months.

Red Dead Redemption 2 is a great game. When you get to play it. Instead, what I'm faced with is a convoluted launch regime that only half works, until it doesn't.

It goes a little something like this:

"Hmm, I think I'll play Red Dead Redemption 2."
> Click Play on its Steam Library Page.
> Watch the Rockstar Launcher start up (Rockstar heard we liked launchers so they put a launcher in your launcher, yo!)
> Watch as the game crashes inexplicably to desktop.
> But wait! We've been here before! Every. Damn. Time. We've launched the game. We know what to do!
> Unplug any attached controllers. Can't be launching a game with no darn controllers on a PC! Why would anyone want to use a controller in a game like RDR2?
> Try to start the game again.
> Once again, watch the Rockstar launcher start up.
> Success! The game is booting up!
> But wait! There's more! You bought the game but Rockstar's shoddy activation process is gonna fail! You're not entitled to this game you paid €59.99 for. Oh no!
> Go online to https://support.rockstargames.com
> Find a help article about offline mode.
> Scratch your head in confusion as to how you could be offline when, clearly (being able to browse websites while you chat to a mate on steam), you're online.
> Scratch head some more.
> Browse the depths of the steam forums, reddit, and elsewhere for an answer.
> Find only more confused and lost souls.
> Try again.
> And again
> And again.
> An hour passes. You're just about to give up but you say "One last try! By all the gods of gaming, let this be the one!" so you try again.
> Success! You can now play Red Dead Redemption 2. Until it crashes, presumably because Rockstar can't get their * together and the game has tried to "periodically check for activation" mid-game and crapped its pants.
> But hey! You can play the game now, right? I mean, it only took an hour to get it launched. After a year of waiting so Rockstar could intentionally double-dip.

If you like Final Fantasy and you like MMOs, you'll like Final Fantasy XIV. Just be prepared for a slow burn at the start. Stick with it though and you'll be rewarded greatly.

Playing against bots is easy. Then you try competitive. Then you learn just how bad you are. Then you start getting better. You start climbing. You start looking for White Painted Wheels and trading keys for a new Rocket Boost. Then you realise that you've spent as much time on the game as you have with your wife and kids.