Life Is Strange

Post-Launch Review

Life Is Strange (PC)

Developer: Dontnod Entertainment

Released: 2015 (first episode January, last episode October)

Played: 100% complete in 15h (all 5 episodes)

About

Max Caulfield returns to her home town to attend an art school for photography, but when she sees her childhood friend attacked, Max discovers an ability to rewind and alter time. Max initially uses her power to help people in minor ways but soon uncovers a dark secret lurking behind Blackwell Academy and the town of Arcadia Bay - and she believes that solving the mystery is the key to preventing a massive tornado that will destroy the town in five days.

Journey

Post-Launch Review

Journey (PS3)

Developer: Thatgamecompany

Released: March 2012

Played: complete in ~2h:30min

About

A robed pilgrim moves through the desert toward a distant mountain through the ruins of civilization, sometimes alone, sometimes with others.

The Walking Dead Season Two

Post-Launch Review
The Walking Dead Season Two (PC)

Developer: Telltale Games
Released: epidodic; December 2013 through August 2014
Played: complete in 8h:24min

About

After the events of season 1, Clementine ended up with Christa and Omid. The three travelled together for some time until bandits broke them up. Suddenly finding herself alone in the woods, Clementine encounters a new group of survivors - who, as it turns out, have problems of their own following them...

Among The Sleep

Post-Launch Review

Among The Sleep (PC)

Developer: Krillbite Studio

Released: May 2014

Played: complete in 97 minutes

About

It's your second birthday! Someone at the door wants to see you but mommy won't let them in. They left a present, though - a teddy bear! As you play with teddy you realize something is wrong in your house, and that night, mommy disappears. It's up to you to find her, but there's a scary monster following you...

The Vanishing of Ethan Carter

Post-Launch Review

The Vanishing of Ethan Carter Redux (PC)

Developer: The Astronauts

Released: September 2014

Played: complete in 2h:48min

About

Paranormal investigator Paul Prospero has received a plea for help from Ethan Carter, a boy who gets carried away writing stories. As he tries to locate the boy, Prospero's investigation slowly reveals that Ethan woke up something he shouldn't have, something that slowly turned his family against him one by one...

FarSky

Post-Launch Review

FarSky

Developer: Farsky Interactive

Released: April 2014

Played: Adventure mode complete in < 2hours; some survival mode

About

With his submarine destroyed and his pressure suit too heavy to swim up, Nathan is trapped at the bottom of the ocean. He'll need to gather resources and upgrade his equipment to explore the seabed and find the broken pieces of his submarine, all while being hunted by dangerous ocean predators.

Murdered: Soul Suspect

Post-Launch Review

Murdered: Soul Suspect (PC)

Developer: Airtight Games
Released: June 2014
Played: complete in 7h:12min

About

Ronan O'Connor, a police detective with a rough past, is thrown out a window and shot to death while investigating the serial murderer known as the Bell Killer. Trapped in Salem as a ghost, Ronan has no choice but to find and stop his killer before he'll be able to move on and reunite with his wife.

Pokémon Omega Ruby / Alpha Sapphire

Post-Launch Review

Pokémon Omega Ruby

Developer: Game Freak

Released: November 2014
Played: complete in 40h

About

A trainer in the Hoenn region sets out to be the very best, accompanied by their neighbour. Along the way, you'll encounter Team Aqua and Team Magma, who want to improve the world, but bite off more than they can chew when they awaken powerful ancient legendary Pokémon...

Octodad: Dadliest Catch

Post-Launch Review

Octodad: Dadliest Catch (PC)

Developer: Young Horses, Inc.

Released: January 2014 (PC) / April 2014 (PS4)

Played: story complete in 1h:50min

About

Experience a day in the life of an average dad... who happens to secretly be an octopus. Make coffee, do your chores, shop for groceries, and take your family to the aquarium while maintaining your cover and the angry chef dedicated to exposing you.

Amnesia: A Machine For Pigs

Post-Launch Review

Amnesia: A Machine For Pigs

Developer: The Chinese Room

Released: September 2013

Played: complete in 3h18min

About

In the year 1899, Oswald Mandus wakes up in is bed, wracked with fever. He does not remember why his manor is empty, nor the cause of the shaking and the racket of the colossal machine beneath. Haunted by nebulous memories of an expedition to Mexico and a campaign against the corruption of the Empire, Mandus delves into the bowels of the machine and the horrors within to save his children.

Saira

Post-Launch Review

Saira

Developer: Nicklas Nygren
Released: December 2009

Played: best ending obtained in 4h:12min

About

After a teleportation accident, photographer Saira realizes she's the only person in the galaxy. After two years on her own, she needs only a few more parts to finish the new teleporter she's been building to try to find out what happened to her. Saira will have to travel across seven star systems to find the parts she needs.

Eternal Darkness: Sanity's Requiem

Post-Launch Review
Eternal Darkness: Sanity's Requiem
Developer: Silicon Knights
Released: June 2002 (NA)
Played: story complete in 11h:3min

About

As the only living member of the family, Alex Roivas is called back to her grandfather's mansion after his death. Edward was horrifically murdered, but the police draw a blank, so Alex is determined to find out why her grandfather died. But as she searches the mansion for clues, she uncovers a millenia-old plot to plunge the world into eternal darkness...

Gone Home

Post-Launch Review

Gone Home

Developer: The Fullbright Company
Released: August 2013
Played: complete in 1h:24min

About

Coming back from a year-long trip to Europe, Katie Greenbriar arrives at home to find the house empty, her family absent. Katie explores the house, searching for clues that will tell her where her sister and parents have gone.

The Stanley Parable

Post-Launch Review

The Stanley Parable

Developer: Galactic Cafe

Released: October 2013

Played: demo complete in 33 mins; game complete in 2h:18min

This isn't as "post launch" as usual, but I played the mod when that came out a couple of years ago and I've been excited to try the full version. So this review is a little early, comparatively.

About

Originally a free mod, the full version of The Stanley Parable follows Stanley, an office worker who realizes one day that all his coworkers have mysteriously vanished. Accompanied by a narrator, Stanley's investigation is a sidelong exploration of player choice and decision making in video games, in a very meta and surreal style.

Syberia 2

Post-Launch Review

Syberia 2 (PC)

Developer: MC2-Microïds

Released: March 2004
Played: story complete in

About

Picking up immediately after the first Syberia, Kate Walker has abandoned her New York life to help the eccentric inventor Hans Voralberg fulfill his dream of finding the legendary island of Syberia and the mammoths that are said to still live there.

Anna: Extended Edition

Post-Launch Review

Anna: Extended Edition

Developer: Dreampainters

Released: July 2012

Played: story complete with several endings, including "truth", in 3 hours

About

A man explores an abandoned sawmill to uncover his connection with a woman named Anna. As the man puzzles out the background of the sawmill and the area's history of cult worship for a forest witch or goddess, he discovers that the house is haunted and something wants to prevent him from finding the truth.

Syberia

Post-Launch Review

Syberia (PC)

Developer: Microïds

Released: January 2002

Played: story complete in 7.5 hours

About

Kate Walker is a lawyer working to wrap up the sale of an old clockwork toy factory on behalf of her firm. The deal is ready to go and requires only a signature, but upon arrival in Valadilene Kate finds that the matter isn't quite that simple - the factory owner has just passed away, and an heir has turned up. To track down the heir, Kate embarks on a journey across Europe, uncovering fantastic technology and myths along the way.

Luigi's Mansion: Dark Moon

Post-Launch Review

Luigi's Mansion: Dark Moon

Developer: Next Level Games

Released: March 2013
Played: 13.5 hours; completed story mode and found most collectibles; no multiplayer

I'm trying a different format this time - knocking off the categories and writing more like a "normal" review. Let me know if you like this more or less!

About

Luigi's Mansion: Dark Moon is an adventure game starring the taller, greener Mario brother. In the Evershade Valley, the Dark Moon - an artifact that pacifies the area's ghosts - has been broken, and the pieces scattered across the valley. Without the Dark Moon's effect, the valley's ghosts are causing all kinds of trouble. Professor E. Gadd calls in Luigi to round up the ghosts and reassemble the pieces of the Dark Moon, scattered through the valley's mansions.

Doctor Who: The Eternity Clock

Post-Launch Review

Doctor Who: The Eternity Clock

Developer: Supermassive Games

Released: May 2012 (PSN), November 2012 (PC)

About

Featuring Matt Smith as the 11th Doctor, The Eternity Clock is a puzzle-platformer game that begins when the Doctor is caught in a time storm that seems to be affecting the entire universe. The TARDIS plugs the gap, temporarily stabilizing the storm but preventing the Doctor from moving his ship. The Doctor and River Song have to figure out what's causing the maelstrom before it destabilizes and re-writes history.

Ico

Post-Launch Review

Ico (PS3 HD rerelease)

Developer: Team Ico

Released: 

About

Ico is a puzzle-adventure game where the titular character, a young boy with horns, is brought to an old castle and locked away because it's believed that his horns are a bad sign for the village. Ico escapes the prison and discovers a mysterious caged girl - Yorda - who speaks a language he does not understand. Together, Ico and Yorda explore the castle, hoping to find a way out before their dark pursuers can stop them.