Neue Rezensionen von CorvusCorax

Seeing a HOG with cats in 3D is a rarity. Most are 2D and usually have a few levels. This one has just one with with a decent amount of rooms where 200 pets stay hidden.

It is a nice little HOG but not without issues. First off, when you drag your mouse to move the screen, you can see screen tearing. There are no settings for the graphics so you have to make do with the effect. For some reason dragging the screen puts our cursor in the center position upon releasing the right click. Additionally, some cats face us which means their body is difficult to spot.

Those we click on have a heart appearing on top of them. But those hiding do not have the same feature or the heart just remains in cover due to the 3D objects. I think a good idea would be to darken a room once all cats have been found. This way you click on already found animals way too may times.

There is a hint functionality which shows missing cats zoomed in. This is probably the easiest way of getting a hint. No directional help with sound... here you go, we show you exactly where the missing cats are! There isn't even a cooldown for the use of the hint feature.

All in all I was satisfied with the game but there is a lot more to do here to make it better. Hope the dev will release some fixes or new features / fixes will be added to their next project in the genre.

Foreword

This is my 1000th review. My journey began in 2012 with Left 4 Dead 2. I had one more review in that year and only two the next year. I really started writing regularly 10 years ago. I try to be informative (not always) but first and foremost these are just snippets of my gaming life. Mostly positive, rarely ranting about games but all in all I am really grateful for this feature offered by Steam. If you liked the words my brain managed to conjure up in a foreign language many of us use only as a lingua franca, if you took the time to read at least some of it or if you read all or perhaps gave an award... or in case you decided to make a purchase because of these lines then I thank you! It means a lot to me!

Allons enfants de la patrie

France. The perfect choice after Italy. v2 had way too many demolished buildings and dark colours everywhere, episode 3 was better but a little too bright for my taste. I really started enjoying the series with Sniper Elite 4. Now, with this one the resistance Karl teams up with has a different kind of accent. And the theme we hear regularly has been Frenchified.

Le jour de gloire est arrivé !

8 missions. The all too familiar number. Well, it is actually 9 with an added bonus you can consider as the boss fight. A short, straight-to-the-point scenario while the rest gives us the usual vast areas with lots of objectives and different ways to solve the ones designated as our primary ones. A returning optional objective is when, for instance, we have an officer to eliminate. Find where he is patrolling and decide if you want to proceed in the recommended way (by causing an accident) or just in the good old SE way. Complete every objective you have to and get the best rating after each chapter.

Contre nous de la tyrannie,

A tyrant is what Möller is! The new antagonist Karl needs to face. The story has him converse with resistance members and there are cutscenes showing Möller addressing his men. These mostly include phone conversations after missions where he desperately wants to stop The Shadow, the one who annoyed the bad guys by sabotaging their grand plans in previous episodes. Again, no special awards here for the plot but I liked how infamous Karl is, plus, there is the introduction of Jeff Sullivan. He is from the US Army Rangers and thinks Karl causes more harm and opposes essentially everything he does. It's nice to see how their relationship changes throughout the story.

L'étendard sanglant est levé

But what new things Sniper Elite 5 has to offer? It already looked beautiful in episode 4, Kill Cam already had many layers (organs, bones, muscles and veins). Well, Kill Cam now shows a lot of destruction done to the bone. Lots of pieces flying off. And even your SMG or a well-aimed shot from your Welrod can result in a slow-mo bullet path. In a way this wasn't really needed and hearing the exploding sound of a shot from a pistol with an attached suppressor actually looks (and sounds) pretty silly. Perhaps the most satisfying shots are those involving traps with the many flying shrapnels.

L'étendard sanglant est levé

And let's not forget about the new focus mode. A special vision that allows us to see through walls. Not very far though! Just to see where the silhouettes of those soldiers are who are fast approaching since they have just heard a shot. Focus is not needed for a win but its activation (that also elevates the footsteps of incoming soldiers) can definitely reduce the number of quickloads.

Entendez-vous dans les campagnes

What about the upgrades and the skills? They have been reworked and thank God for that! As we proceed with the story we get XP and eventually rank up. Upon reaching level 40 (which is the maximum in single player) we can purchase all skills. They make our focus use better, add extra slots for our special ammos or allow us to revive ourselves with a medkit. Nothing special but if you do all objectives and try to be as stealthy as possible you will reach max level by the last mission.

As for weapons: no silly requirements to eliminate tons of enemy soldiers. There are many attachments available and we get them as we find workbenches. Consider them secret places and add them to the list of already vast collectibles such as personal letters, orders, level-specific items we can pick up and stone eagles we need to shoot from afar. Karl can also be replaced by resistance members and his clothing can be modified along with his hat. I noticed that when you pick another character that one does not make any comments on story progression. Too bad as it would have been nice listening to their different comments on the tasks ahead when you do another walkthrough. I picked Marie Chevalier but she mostly remained silent.

Mugir ces féroces soldats ?

Now, hardcore fans will hate Sniper Elite 5. There is Authentic but there is no Authentic Plus. Naturally, this difficulty setting removes the focus ability since this is also considered an aid during a mission, but saving regularly remains a possibility. If you want, you can change the setting in a very detailed way and create a mix between, let's say, Hard and Authentic. This is a fully customisable feature!

Ils viennent jusque dans vos bras

Multiplayer and Survival modes return. And of course the cooperative mode. But Overwatch is nowhere to be found and while Invasion mode is interesting I wasn't interested in it, at all. In this mode you join in on another player's campaign but as an enemy sniper! Making eliminations in such way unlocks some character and weapon skins. It's interesting how the achievement system has been reworked in favour of this. No coop achievements, at all. One you get for doing a lot of waves in Survival and one for completing a match in multiplayer. Perhaps the creators pulled a report, looked at the numbers and realised Sniper Elite is best played alone. I heard the Invasion mode is something that Elden Ring has, too.

Égorger vos fils et vos compagnes !

What else? Some new enemy types such as the Vampir Jägers. They are snipers with infrared scopes, tailored for night missions. They have more health but if you don't go guns blazing but do everything in a stealthy way you barely notice their presence. And, naturally, the game comes with lots of DLCs. 5 missions in 2 packs labelled as seasons. Weapon and skin packs, too, and the usual mission for eliminating Hitler. This is perhaps the funniest of all!

There are many achievements but to increase the game's longevity we can acquire medals if a given challenge is completed or ribbons that can be regularly obtained by killing enemy soldiers. Oh, and soldiers can now be pacified. Making them unconscious means extra XP at the end of each level. I hate the mastery achievements that require enemies killed by pistols, rifles and our secondary weapons. All of them! Now, that's the real grind in SE 5.

Aux armes, citoyens !

Sniper Elite 5 is a fantastic game! Rarely do we see improvement constantly in a series where episode 5 is pretty much the best Sniper Elite has to offer. It has semi open-world missions with great replayability, decent DLC packs and some extra modes if you are tired of picking up your rifle alone. I had fun with the game... I have had fun ever since I launched v2 many years ago. And while the zombie titles can also be fun this is the series with the real sniping experience!

This is the 2nd and - in my opinion - the better mission in the Season Pass 1 pack. Conqueror is still decent but I think Landing Force is superior in every way. What I was missing from Conqueror we get here: the usual briefing that shows the table and Karl provides the back story. And the same at the end as an outro. I get the feeling that the map could have been included amongst the regular 8 missions. What if they did that but decided to pull it out to make it a DLC instead later?

First off, the map is huge. The beach looks fantastic but even before there is a cave we leave at the beginning. The playable area includes a harbour, a small village, a lighthouse, a fortress and the most important part, the central area with the base containing the guns we need to destroy. Once again there are several options at our disposal to do this. And 3 gunboats patrolling the area to stop us from doing stealth.

The new weapons are OK. The shotgun was more interesting in Conqueror. This time, we do not have anything special. Now, we have optional objectives as usual and that includes an officer to kill. Too bad the solution to our problem is poisoning that we have seen already in one of the campaign missions.

Overall, I was satisfied with Landing Force. It is a great map with room for replayability and the normal length of the map is also decent. For some reason only one achievement was added to this DLC and that requires map completion only. No 2-star rating or playthrough on authentic. Perhaps the latter would be too difficult on such a big map. Highly recommended!

The lesser of the two maps / missions that are included in Season Pass 1 but still very enjoyable! The third one (Wolf Mountain) belongs to a different category since it is about killing Hitler so I am comparing this to Landing Force only. The shotgun is a nice addition to the series but I think it is mostly useful in multiplayer. As for the Oak Leaf Paint: I was using it for every weapon as soon as Sniper Elite 5 booted up and I began the regular campaign.

Now, about the mission. The map wants you to infiltrate a castle which seems bigger than it actually is. It takes a while till you get there. Facing the castle early on you see a farmland with a lot of trenches with several places to be spotted. It's best to avoid this entirely and go around and explore the village surrounding the hill. It is quite vast and also includes some optional objectives and many collectibles.

Collectibles for some reason are lowered this time (from the usual 19 to 13) but at least you find the same categories available. You have other routes to the castle, of course, in typical Sniper Elite fashion. For some reason I preferred cleaning up the village as that part was the highlight for me including the elimination of an officer. As usual while a lot of options are available at your disposal, it's best to make it look like an accident.

Overall, a great mission which lacks the briefing introduction we got used to in the campaign. Karl does have his usual comments as we make progress and in the end we get a nice outro once the job is done. Coupled with Landing Force buying Season Pass 1 is a good decision if you still long for something after completing the main campaign at least twice.

Of the several DLCs (extra missions) this series has always had one related to the Führer has always been the odd (or the funny) one. I say odd because the replayability is not just tied to the missing collectibles or the additional walkthroughs on increased difficulty (such as the notorious "authentic). No, here you return to redo the mission since you are interested in changing history once more by eliminating Hitler in another way.

A level that could easily be called Sniper Elite's very own Hitman since there are several ways to find a solution to our problem and said solution is often perceived as an accident. A misfortune that sees the Führer getting an explosive type of food for dinner or reading a book in the library on a very combustible topic. And while he can enjoy playing the piano due to the mine we planted, it can actually be music to our ears. He has the opportunity to eat a sandwich or drink something - both of which he'll find rather (fatally) toxic.

The list goes on. Hitler can be eliminated in the usual ways we do the killing in Sniper Elite but anything special (mission-specific) you find will be rewarded by a cutscene. The surprise on his face and the sound he makes are both very much comedic. And the setting is something that actually exists - Berghof was indeed his holiday home and some pictures I found on the internet I could recognise in-game (such as the great hall). I do not know if he really had a bowling alley in the basement there but one thing is for sure: eliminating him with an explosive pin is definitely the funniest of all options available. You do it with a pin without pulling any safety pins? Got that, right?

Now, you start off in the Southern section and your job is to make your way to the North-Western part where the mansion is situated. The optional tasks of destroying the radio and the AA guns along the way are already familiar territory and since you are here to kill the Bohemian Corporal, you might find these boring. The new starting locations (campfires) you unlock put you much closer to the residence so during your follow-up walkthroughs you can immediately start focusing on your beloved Adi.

But there is more! Collectibles! Letters, orders and the usual stone eagles you need to find. Plus, some items you can pick up. Some DLCs come with 13 of them but Wolf Mountain sports the usual 19 collectibles. The mansion has a lot of crates for hiding bodies so you won't have problem with following the stealthy approach. I noticed a couple of bugs: if you follow Hitler in the residence he keeps talking to two bodyguards even if you already eliminated them. Also, some of the guards inside do not hear explosions occurring upstairs. Even those outside have difficulty of hearing what a mess your grenades and mines did.

I was fascinated by this DLC! I found it really funny and while I think it is a tad bit expensive, it is a great purchase if you get Season Pass 1. Definitely the most light-hearted of all and it wouldn't be a proper Führer DLC without an achievement tied to his (single) testicle.

A new entry in the category of liminal games where our objective is to look for anomalies (differences). The setting is floor 9 in a hotel - essentially, you exit the elevator in the centre and you can move left and right in the corridor to observe everything in the playable area.

Is there something that wasn't there before? Something that is out of place? Like a coffin that suddenly appears or a book with a pentagram on its front cover that is between the detergents on top of the cleaning lady's cart. A painting can suddenly fall off or blood can pour from under one of the doors. Some anomalies are very easy to spot while others are quite subtle.

I think the game does its job well since it is designed in a way that it emits a sensation of constant eeriness. Either you find an anomaly or you don't, your job is to get back into the elevator and press the appropriate button. If you succeed then you find yourself on floor 8. Since this is a prologue the last floor is number 6 which already represent the ending. And this is my only problem with this game - it is way too short.

It gives you a number at the end listing the sum total of anomalies you have found (via multiple playthroughs) and it's nice that there are 15 of them but after finding half I just didn't want to stay longer. They punish you for starting on floor 9 again if a mistake has been made but since 3 right choices means game completion, it doesn't make a walkthrough very long and you don't feel like becoming more careful / less risky with your decisions.

If you like these anomaly-based games, I think you'll like Floor 9: Prologue. I'm grateful that the team gives us a teaser before the release of the full product but is it really necessary? I'm sure the full game will not be that expensive as an indie title so it will be an instant purchase for many.

Such a strange thing it is when you go back and pick up the first title in a great series only to see how it all started. The first one that preceded episode 2 by 7 years. Where you fight Soviets instead of Germans. But the setting is still Germany just like it was in the sequel. And Karl has been the protagonist since day 1 just not voiced by Tom Clarke-Hill, yet.

The camera is positioned slightly above us in good-old TPS fashion and the so-called "Kill-Cam" does follow the bullet but completely omits the gore aided by the X-ray vision. I found it difficult to learn the controls as this one had different key bindings and running seems like "sliding" as stopping takes a couple of microsecs when you release the button. The game looks outdated and quite ugly but cutscenes are regular and there are many missions (or perhaps it would be best to say missions are divided up into more parts).

The emphasis is still on the stealth and beside our sniper rifles the same secondary weapon and pistol categories are available. And, of course, we have grenades and mines as traps. There are a lot of things you can find familiar if you return to see where it all began. You can't help but notice that v2 did everything much, much better later and that is the reason why the series was eventually propelled into fame.

Do I recommend this title? Yes and no. Only diehard fans of the series should pick it up and play it on the hardest difficulty setting if "authentic" has always been your bread and butter in later instalments. If you are looking for a great sniping game taking place in WW II then odds are you are better off by picking any of the sequels (including the zombie titles) and leaving this be.

This is the 2nd game of Cintila Games after Cats Everywhere. It's your typical HOG with relaxing music and lots of (300) cats to find. As opposed to the previous game we do not need to return to already-completed levels to find special cats. Every level has its own special pet demanding that we first find an object - this can be a bowl of food, a ball of yarn or a special book in the library. In fact, we need 4 or 5 of these before we can finally click on the "owner".

Once all 4 levels are completed a 5th one becomes accessible with even more cats and this includes the availability of the special kitties again with their unique objects as a returning task. Personally, I liked the levels taking place indoors such as the museum and the library. Some mousers are a tad bit difficult to spot so the zooming function is your best friend. And if all else fails use the hint feature (without any penalty). Sometimes the cat's body literally blends in and you can only fully see it when you have finally clicked on it (thanks to a body part sticking out). Beside the colours they get their appearance becomes more vivid in some cases.

Great little HOG! Recommended! Fun and relaxing in the melting summer heat!

I am always happy to play indie games that were developed by just a few people. Szikra (or spark in English) is a short side-scroller where we have to find a friend who was taken captive by the circus. The game takes place in a magical world filled with forests, fields and factory-like establishments that give it a steampunk look.

Controlling our protagonist is easy and beside jumping we can interact with switches, pull boxes and crouch to be able to proceed. Puzzles are not that difficult, yet, interesting enough (special mention goes to the many portals in the forest) to make us push forward throughout the 3 chapters to rescue our captured friend.

Along the way we can collect paintings of a Hungarian painter called Anita Toth. The paintings themselves were incorporated into the final game seamlessly. In the gallery menu we can check all 11 of them. Do give this one a try if you have an hour! It's well worth the time!

Fantasztikus lett a játék! Örömmel vásároltam meg a hozzá kapcsolódó zenét, hogy ezzel támogathassalak titeket! Időközben megnéztem Tóth Anita munkásságát - lenyűgöző, ahogy a festmények megelevenednek a játékban! Csak így tovább! Mindjárt írok a játékhoz egy ismertetőt angolul.

Üdv,
Péter (Budapestről)