Jose, Author at Thumb Culture

Blasphemous 2: The Third Sin DLC – PS5 Review

6Jul

By JoseNo Comments

Blasphemous 2: The Third Sin DLC – PS5 Review

Blasphemous 2 is an action, metroidvania, roguelite from Sevilla-based game developers The Game Kitchen and published by Team17. Its second DLC, The Third Sin, was released on June 6th, and it is completely free. Blasphemy, Sin, and Penance The Penitent One returns to extinguish the sins of the Miracle and bring back peace and balance to mortals once again. In this beautifully grotesque and bloody re-imagination of Spanish catholic themes, the protagonist of this not-so-little expansion sets out to stop Asterion, First of the Penitents, in his fanatic pursuit to fulfill the Miracle's apocalyptic wishes. Get ready to slice, dice, squash, maim, stab, behead, disembowel, mutilate, and otherwise cut your enemies into tiny little pieces Spanish Inquisition style! Gameplay Yes, The T...

29Jun

By JoseNo Comments

PC Reviews

Gothic 1 Remake – PC Review

Gothic 1 Remake is an open-world RPG developed by Alkimia Interactive and published by THQ Nordic. The Barcelona-based developers have brought back to life this 2001 German jewel, which at the time of its release was considered one of the best European-made games. The project for the remake was first revealed in 2019. Seven long years later, devotees of the game are longing to know one thing: Has it aged like milk or like fine wine? Grab a pike and a shovel, we're digging for the truth in the ancient ore mines of Myrtana! Between A Hard Place And A Rock Gothic 1 Remake stays fiercely loyal to its source material. Not even as much as a cutscene has been altered from the original game. This is, of course, to be expected, since any alterations may provoke the fury of keyboard warrior...

17Jun

By JoseNo Comments

Gaming

Autobahn Police Simulator 3 – PC Review

Developed by Z-Software and published by Aerosoft GmbH, Autobahn Police Simulator 3 puts players behind the wheel of a German highway patrol vehicle. The game combines routine law enforcement tasks with open-world driving and car chases. Have you ever dreamed of speeding 200 kilometers per hour on a freeway to enforce rigid German traffic laws? This game might scratch that very particular itch for you! Polizei! Bitte anhalten! Autobahn Police Simulator 3 puts players in the role of a German freeway police officer who gets back to work after a long period of recovery from a bad traffic accident. Eager to catch the mischievous car racers who caused the calamity, the police governor suggests taking things slow after such a long time out. While on the chase of a bike thief, players...

Heroes of Might and Magic Olden Era – PC Preview

10Jun

By JoseNo Comments

Previews & Early Access

Heroes of Might and Magic Olden Era – PC Preview

Heroes of Might and Magic Olden Era is a turn-based fantasy strategy game developed by Unfrozen and published by Hooded Horse. It combines hero exploration, kingdom management, and tactical battles in the magical world of Enroth. It's out now in Early Access on Steam, so let's check it out. Lo, The Heroes of Yore Returneth After years of decline and neglect under Ubisoft, the long-running Heroes of Might and Magic series is making a comeback for its 30th anniversary. The IP-hoarding dragon Ubisoft was wise enough to restore the game to its classic name and partner with strategy-focused publisher Hooded Horse, known for recent hits like Manor Lords, to help revive the franchise. Developers Unfrozen have done a fantastic job at recreating the old-school, turn-based, hexagon-layered fantasy...

13Apr

By JoseNo Comments

PlayStation Reviews

Legacy of Kain: Ascendance – PS5 Review

Legacy of Kain: Ascendance, developed by Bit Bot Media and published by Crystal Dynamics, is a retro pixel-art 2D action platformer and the first original entry in the series in over two decades. The long-awaited follow-up arrives 23 years after 2003's Legacy of Kain: Defiance, the franchise's previous installment. After three remasters in recent years, Soul Reaver 1, Soul Reaver 2, and Legacy of Kain: Defiance, fans of the franchise finally get to explore never-before-seen characters, places, and timelines. Which, at first, may sound intriguing and interesting, but unfortunately, new personalities like Elaleth do not feel like an organic addition to the lore. Instead, the execution falls flat, burdening a beloved franchise with retroactive continuities, or rather, I should say retroact...

Age of Wonders 4: Rise from Ruin DLC – PC Review

18Mar

By JoseNo Comments

PC Reviews

Age of Wonders 4: Rise from Ruin DLC – PC Review

Age of Wonders 4 continues to grow with Rise from Ruin, a downloadable expansion developed by Triumph Studios and published by Paradox Interactive. The expansion released on March 9th for PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox. Players who have already purchased the Expansion Pass 3 will be able to add this DLC to their game library for free as part of the season pass. Nomads of the Astral Barrens Age of Wonders 4: Rise from Ruin introduces players to a whole new world known as the Withered Worlds, where a cataclysmic magical disaster has twisted and turned the entire landscape into a sandy, inhospitable hell. From these sands of chaos, a new resilient tribe emerges known as the Harefolk, who have survived the catastrophe thanks to their keen instincts and adaptability. The expansion’s story ce...

26Feb

By JoseNo Comments

PC Reviews

Styx: Blades of Greed – PS5 Review

Styx: Blades of Greed is a third-person stealth-action RPG adventure developed by Cyanide Studio and published by Nacon. The game is available on PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X|S, starting February 19th. Weaponized Goblin Mode In this third entry of the franchise, players return as Styx, a cunning goblin thief with a particular set of skills, including silently infiltrating castles, eluding enemies' sight, and executing hushed assassinations in a smart mix of stealth and strategy. Styx first appeared as the smaller half of a smash-and-stealth duo in Of Orcs and Men (2012). He was obviously the stealth portion of that tag team. Since then, the little green gobbo has continued his mischievous adventures by himself in Styx: Master of Shadows (2014) and Styx: Shards of Darkness (2017). No...

20Feb

By JoseNo Comments

PC Reviews

Crimson Capes – PC Review

Crimson Capes is a pixel-art 2.5 D roguelike / roguelite developed and published by Poor Locke. The game is set in a dark-fantasy medieval Europe, where you can switch between four characters of the witch-hunting Crimson Capes guild. Retro Bloody Retro In recent years, the indie game industry has been flooded with roguelites, roguelikes, and metroidvania style games. Crimson Capes enters this crowded landscape with a realistic swordcombat "flow" that may be challenging at first but is highly satisfactory once mastered. This combat system relies strongly on the well-known formula of souls and soulslike games, patience, dodging, and precise timing. The story is centered around the adventures of Milon, also known as the Tempest, who has been ordered by the king to take down a conspir...

10 Premium MTG Commander Upgrades to Give This Christmas

23Dec

By JoseNo Comments

Features

10 Premium MTG Commander Upgrades to Give This Christmas

If you're looking for a last-minute Christmas gift for a friend or loved one who plays Magic: The Gathering, I've got a list for you. In the last piece, we talked about budget upgrades for Commander decks. Here, I'll be going over some not-so-budget upgrades for your Commander bestie. Let's dig right in! Flashy, Full-Art, Foils Commander players simply love to bling out their favorite decks. We know this to be true because of the secondary market on websites such as tcgplayer and cardmarket, where the price difference between foils and non-foils is substantial. The rarer the card, the prettier the art, the flashier the foiling shines, the more players and collectors are willing to pay for it. A prime example of this is the recent Final Fantasy set. Now, without further ado, I give you...

11Dec

By JoseNo Comments

PC Reviews

Marvel Cosmic Invasion – PC Review

MARVEL Cosmic Invasion is a pixel-art beat'em up developed by Tribute Games Inc. and published by Dotemu. Playable solo or with up to four players in local or online co-op, the game delivers fun and fast-paced combat where players will visit some of the best-known locations of the Marvel Universe. Retro Pixel Arcade Action Galore After the success of 2022's Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Shredder's Revenge, game developers Tribute Games have come up with another excellent retro, pixel-art, arcade-style beat-'em-up game. Marvel Cosmic Invasion uses the same action-filled formula as its predecessor but enhances it with a larger hero roster and adds another layer of complexity through its swap mechanic. This game is a deep cut to 90s pop culture, when home PCs and consoles weren't as ...