MarkusRohringer

From the very first presentation of The Outer Worlds it was obvious to see that there would be a lot of the DNA of the beloved Fallout series involved. Fallout: New Vegas developer Obsidian Entertainment certainly delivered on that expectation. The Outer Worlds inherits the strengths, but also some of the flaws of its spiritual predecessor and struggles to find its own identity in certain areas despite the original space setting.

Developer Simulogics certainly doesn’t make compromises. Calling their games “expert games” and describing Prosperous Universe as a “space economy simulation”, you know to not expect an easy ride. As if this wouldn’t be already enough of a niche market by itself, Prosperous Universe is delivered as a browser game - in 2019. Yet, the game, which is currently in its so called first access phase, has quite a lot to offer to those who are willing to dive into a sterilely presented but deep, complex and fully player-driven economy.

Richard Garriott’s Shroud of the Avatar recently saw the final character wipe and the rush for lot claims was conducted. While the game is still in development, we decided this to be the right time for a first review – after all you have to purchase the game if you want to play and progression is now permanent on the servers. Since our first impression in the previous article we tried to look beneath the surface of this complex, yet unpolished sandbox.

With the recent Update of Shroud of the Avatar also the final wipe was conducted. From now on, everything the players are achieving in the game will persist. This is the perfect time for us to dip our toes into the game and share our first impressions with you and more will follow in the next weeks.According to the developers, despite the final wipe, Shroud of the Avatar is far from being released but then again, you can buy the game and your progress persists.

For a change, let’s start with a challenge: Can you find any article about digital CCGs (collectible card games) that doesn’t mention Hearthstone at least once? See, I already did it myself. However, even if you are not the biggest fan of Blizzard’s success game, it is hard to neglect how much it opened the door for a new generation of great digital card games. One of those is Duelyst, a Kickstarter-funded little gem that is so much more than just a CCG.

Dragon Age: Inquistion is an endless well of discussions. Benevolently received by the press, fiercely defended by its fans and disappointedly condemned by all of those who wanted the game to be something else - opinions couldn’t be more diverse. And now Bioware delivered us the first DLC, Jaws of Hakkon, and all those buried emotions are resurrected, as we get more of exactly those parts which have been the critiques' main target.

Four months after its original release and on very short notice, Bioware is providing us today the first DLC for Dragon Age: Inquisition. In fact, the lack of any announcement beforehand is almost as surprising as the rather steep price of 15 Dollars, which makes it the most expensive story DLC in the Dragon Age franchise.

When your first game as a developer was an incredible hit like Mojang’s Minecraft, this means unavoidably a hard life for whatever comes next. While it’s almost impossible to live up to expectations, at least you have the benefit of the spotlight. However, you are really out of luck when at the same time one of the industry leaders decides to release a game in the same genre – which happened with Blizzard and Hearthstone. Scrolls was unlucky enough to get overshadowed not only once, but twice.

MMOGs do not exist to be fun. They are bitterly serious, scenes of frustration and the best places to finally let out your inner scoundrel. If you didn’t grasp this simple fact until now, I warmly and urgently recommend this guide to you. I show you the ultimate tips how to eventually waste your time in games without this bothersome fun!