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2026 midpoint video game reviews - Part 2
Jun. 3rd, 2026 06:59 pm6. Esoteric Ebb - There are a lot of games inspired by Disco Elysium, some of them are pretty good. Most of the ones I've played have had the spirit but lacked something in the execution for me. This one is not only Disco Elysium inspired, but is also DND based in its mechanics, and it really worked! I loved the world and the writing. I loved little things like a character saying "jeez" and the in-game explanation of the origin of the word jeez in a fantasy world where Jesus isn't a thing. I think at times it leaned a little too far into the DE world in the sense of trying to really replicate the Harry and Kim dynamic, trying hard to replicate the fondness you come to with Kim, etc etc. I really did like the companion character very much and would have even without attempts to replicate the Kim Kitsuragi vibe. Loved it though!
7. Resident Evil Requiem - I never played an RE growing up like a lot of people in my age group, we had a nintendo so we were playing stuff like mario 64 and not some of the other classics out there. This game might have a vibe like it counts on some nostalgia but it works without having the nostalgia there! Was it extremely scary? nah. it had tense moments but I liked swapping between two main characters and it was overall super fun. I'll probably replay it at some point.
8. Resident Evil 2 - I wish I'd thought to play this before requiem! In that one you revisit a bunch of stuff from 2 & I knew a lot of it just from it being so old and iconic, but still only vaguely. What's crazy is that this one was WAY scarier than 9! It was the scariest game I've played in a long time. 9 had scares but they felt controlled, planned, on rails. A scare would happen and I knew that would be it for a minute and I could be pretty safe. In 2 though, you're just being slowly, constantly pursued by a giant scary man. You can hear him, but you don't always know where is or how far he is from you. You'll be in the middle of a puzzle and there he is. You think you killed him and haven't seen him in an hour? There he is again. It was fun but I was glad when I was done too.
9. Control - I watched a friend play this one previously, but because I was only watching I missed a lot of the plot parts of it all. The world is very cool, I love the idea of a shadowy group out there, capturing and controlling anomalies that threaten us that we don't even know about. I guess it appeals to a kid who liked men in black, you know? It had a classic Remedy feel that I love, and it's neat to play it now after having seen alan wake 1 & 2 and seeing how they overlap. I can't wait to play 2 when it comes out. My one downside was that the combat I found to be painfully difficult at times and not fun enough to make the effort feel rewarding. Thankfully they include some options in the menus to adjust the combat, and I elected to use those. After that I had a blast!
10. Eriksholm: The Stolen Dream - This was a cute stealth puzzle game! I forget where I originally heard of it from, some game trailer show or something I think. The story was cute and the game mechanics were fun. I loved the puzzles and the voice acting as great. The maps were STUNNING I loved the world.
In progress:
Subnautica, Cronos, Quantum Break. Cronos is so hard it's pissing me off.
7. Resident Evil Requiem - I never played an RE growing up like a lot of people in my age group, we had a nintendo so we were playing stuff like mario 64 and not some of the other classics out there. This game might have a vibe like it counts on some nostalgia but it works without having the nostalgia there! Was it extremely scary? nah. it had tense moments but I liked swapping between two main characters and it was overall super fun. I'll probably replay it at some point.
8. Resident Evil 2 - I wish I'd thought to play this before requiem! In that one you revisit a bunch of stuff from 2 & I knew a lot of it just from it being so old and iconic, but still only vaguely. What's crazy is that this one was WAY scarier than 9! It was the scariest game I've played in a long time. 9 had scares but they felt controlled, planned, on rails. A scare would happen and I knew that would be it for a minute and I could be pretty safe. In 2 though, you're just being slowly, constantly pursued by a giant scary man. You can hear him, but you don't always know where is or how far he is from you. You'll be in the middle of a puzzle and there he is. You think you killed him and haven't seen him in an hour? There he is again. It was fun but I was glad when I was done too.
9. Control - I watched a friend play this one previously, but because I was only watching I missed a lot of the plot parts of it all. The world is very cool, I love the idea of a shadowy group out there, capturing and controlling anomalies that threaten us that we don't even know about. I guess it appeals to a kid who liked men in black, you know? It had a classic Remedy feel that I love, and it's neat to play it now after having seen alan wake 1 & 2 and seeing how they overlap. I can't wait to play 2 when it comes out. My one downside was that the combat I found to be painfully difficult at times and not fun enough to make the effort feel rewarding. Thankfully they include some options in the menus to adjust the combat, and I elected to use those. After that I had a blast!
10. Eriksholm: The Stolen Dream - This was a cute stealth puzzle game! I forget where I originally heard of it from, some game trailer show or something I think. The story was cute and the game mechanics were fun. I loved the puzzles and the voice acting as great. The maps were STUNNING I loved the world.
In progress:
Subnautica, Cronos, Quantum Break. Cronos is so hard it's pissing me off.
