Recent reviews by D1andOnly

Overall, it's a fun time-waster "idle game for mobile" ported to PC, but don't expect this to be like Stronghold. Though it's now available on mobile platforms as well. Yes, your accounts will be linked, as you must set up an in-game account to log in, which will work from Steam AND from mobile platforms.

Like many other games of this genre, you'll start with a basic settlement (suburb) in an outlying territory and learn the ropes from there. Everything is based on the accumulation of some resource/currency and then spending them to be able to perform some action: attack barbarians, upgrade buildings, construct new buildings, etc. These resources accrue automatically and slowly over time. You'll constantly be upgrading and constructing new buildings within your suburb to improve how quickly you accumulate these resources, since their cost for those same actions will increase as you progress.

Romans: Age of Caesar implements a similar "pay to win" strategy as most titles in this genre, as you can spend real-life money in exchange for "Trajans" which are the premium in-game currency. Trajans can then be used to buy "cards" in game which are either a time-limited buff, or an immediate supply of a certain currency/resource. So far I've not spent a penny on this game and have rather enjoyed it.

In the 40+ hours I've spent in-game (Steam doesn't take into account the time I spent playing on my phone) I have not yet experienced the PvP element- it's all been developing myself in a small city with two other players, working together to build the large common area in the middle, and wiping out nearby barbarian (NPC) tribes.

Since it's free-to-play, I recommend trying it out even if you're only mildly interested. It's definitely not what you'd expect from FireFly Studios since their flagship games are mostly the Stronghold franchise, which is more of a Realtime Strategy game. So if you come into it expecting a Stronghold experience, you'll likely be very disappointed.
As far as the PC version of this game goes, I can easily say the biggest problem is that the game has a significant memory leak issue. Upon opening the app in Steam, it starts up taking about 500MB of RAM for me. Within about 30 minutes of having it open and performing various actions, it's up to over 2.5GB RAM usage and extremely sluggish in response to clicks. As in, click and wait 3-5 seconds for a reaction. The only solution for now is to close and restart.

25 NOV 2024 UPDATE:
I've now uninstalled Fishing Planet due to the requirement that a third-party "anit-cheat" software "Denuvo" must be installed to play. I can no longer recommend the game while such an invasive third-party software is required for this to run. Denuvo requires the most invasive levels of permission on your PC, down to the kernel. For casual like players like me who don't cheat and aren't impacted if others do or don't (I don't do tournaments, so this isn't a zero-sum game for me), Denuvo is an "exceptionally high risk, no reward" deal breaker. Until such time as the developers remove the requirement to install this anti-cheat software, I won't be putting Fishing Planet on my PC. Otherwise, it was a great free-to-play title.
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ORIGINAL REVIEW:
I've spent many nights unwinding with Fishing Planet. This is an excellent title for anyone even remotely interested in fishing, especially considering it's free to play and there's little reason at all to ever spend any actual money. The game is well made and gradually walks you through to higher and higher difficulties, providing minimal hints as to what you should do next. This encourages people to explore on their own and experiment with all manner of rod/reel/tackle combinations. If you're on the fence about this game, give it a try. It's free and within an hour, you'll know if you're...hooked.

I'll see myself out.

An amazing classic RPG with a modern touch. This was the SNES game which got me into gaming and hooked me on RPGs. The modernized remake now implements voice acting and much improved graphics. There are a few minor inconveniences such as AI controlled allies not engaging until you attack and the menu for directing how the AI should behave is quite a bit different than the original. However the control is just as good and the final product is worth every penny. Even if you've never played nor heard of Secret of Mana, I'd highly recommend picking up this light hearted title. Keeping in mind the time frame in which it was released, I suspect even a modern gamer will appreciate this RPG for what it was and what it is.

A light-hearted title, Farming Simulator 2013 provides an extremely simplified overview of life as a farmer. The setting is based in Europe, but some of the names (e.g, International Harvester) are familiar to us Americans. There are tutorials to help get your feet wet, though they leave a little to be desired since many of my questions about gameplay went unanswered. Yourstarting equipment is basic at best and you have access to two small fields. Pick your crop (wheat, barley, or canola) and get sowing! Several hours later (fortunately, there IS a game-time speed control option) your crops are ready for harvest. Hop in your combine, pipe it out into a tipper, and unload into your silos until the time is right for selling! Now, go work your field and get it ready for the next crop sowing. The process is fairly simple, but there are many logistical and efficiency-based changes to be made. Your equipment will need to be upgraded, you will buy more and larger fields, and then there's the element of livestock to be considered... It's a fun game for those who are into simulators. The controls are not nearly as robust as polished titles such as EA's "The Sims", however Farming Simulator is a very enjoyable money grinder.

To my knowledge, there is no "winning" objective. You simply continue to grow your farm and see just how large of a farming mogul you can become. There are no limits- as long as you can project manage your way to more and better equipment and maintain the upkeep for it. Proper management skills will keep you moving from one task to the next: sowing, fertilizing, harvesting, cultivating, plowing new fields, delivering loads to buyers, working silage, keeping the livestock tended, moving equipment between fields, and so on.

There is also a multiplayer aspect available at no extra charge. You may host games for up to 16 players or join others at will. There appears to be an open field of mods to be downloaded or developed at your leisure, though I have not personally delved into that facet.

In summary, if you catch this title on sale, it's worth considering!

If you're a fan of WWII Flight Sim games, listen up. Right now, War Thunder is in open beta and is a mostly light-hearted WW2 Aviation simulator. Arcade mode features mouse-centric flying where you move the focus with the mouse, and the plane automatically adjusts the controls to get you there. The realism is out until you get into the harder difficulties where mouse control is disabled and you pretty much MUST have a joystick and preferably some analog throttle controls as well. As with most Freemium games, you start with some pretty basic aircraft: biplanes. Successful missions and dogfight matches will net you extra in-game points to potentially upgrade your bird and... as a nice little feature.... your crew. That's right, you maintain a crew for your aircraft and can use them to make minor adjustments to your planes to fit your particular approach in combat. If you're even remotely curious, I'd highly recommend checking out this FREE DOWNLOAD and poking around for a couple hours. You might become hooked.

Final Fantasy 7 is a classic by all accounts and has defined the Final Fantasy series for many of the devoted followers. This installment got me hooked on the series, but FF8 turned me away, as I felt it was an enormous step backward. I wasn't inspired to pursue the series any further afterward. But back to the game at hand...
FF7 has an engrossing story with a few memorable characters. Having played 7 and 8, I see a distinct pattern with Final Fantasy games where the main character is distant, emotionless, and almost "too cool" to deal with anyone else. The materia or "magic" system in FF7 is fairly unique, especially with the junctioning system which uses those magics to bolster other effects and actions. If you've never played the Final Fantasy series, I highly recommend this as a starting point and I also recommend avoiding FF8.

Natural Selection 2 is a very cool concept "indie" game which melds first-person shooter with real-time strategy. It's essentially strictly player vs. player, as the tutorial/training which implements AI is very buggy. NS2 is otherwise your run-of-the-mill humans vs. aliens game with the typical offsetting balances. Playing as the commander provides a different feel from any other RTS game, as the performance of your field units is not consistent, since player skill varies from one player to the next. Also, the commander can provide a small amount of direct support to field units, other than simply providing leadership and direction.

Although I do recommend Natural Selection 2 for those who enjoy RTS and FPS games, be advised that there is a steep learning curve since the game is almost entirely PvP. There are rookie friendly servers, but that doesn't guarantee anything. For the most part, you'll be jumping in head-first into a gauntlet of experienced soldiers in a slaughterhouse. Expect to do poorly up front unless you have amazing luck and repeatedly land on elite teams which can carry you.

Bethesda's latest installment of "The Elder Scrolls" series certainly lives up to the reputation of its predecessors. Skyrim features excellent graphics and controls, as would be expected from a new installment. The quests are seemingly endless and there's no predefined order, nor time crunch, which allows you to play the game at your pace. You can play it over and over with different skill sets and it feels totally different each time, so the replay value is great as well. Still no multiplayer, but ESO will be out before long. There are countless parodies online featuring some of the numerous nuances which come as a side effect of the openness of the game and the robust AI. It can get comical at times and frustrating at others, but all in all, it's a solid buy. This title is among my favorites.

Great game with solid replay value. Good teammates make this a fun co-op game but the vs. mode can get frustrating when you come across angry players. All in all, it's addicting and definitely worth a shot for fans of FPS games- especially involving zombies.

Rockstar delivers another great storyline. My previous experience with their titles includes Red Dead Redemption and L.A. Noire. Both great benchmarks for their respective genres. Rockstar seems to do exceptionally well with control, story writing, and originality. I highly recommend Max Payne 3.