Impressions Archives

Diablo IV Beta: Diablo II Part 2 Looks OK So Far

Impressions, Video Games | 23 March 2023

Yeah, I pre-purchased Diablo IV. I was tempted to buy it thanks to one of the Messenger group chats I’m in, which is full of aging gamers like me who still yearn for the nostalgia of old Blizzard games. A decade ago, Diablo III turned out to be a disappointment, not only due to its disastrous launch, but also because it didn’t have the same magic that Diablo II had. This latest iteration is perhaps the last gasp of a dying company or the beginning of a resurgence. I got my first glimpse of it with the early access beta from 17-19 March 2023. (more…)

Getting a Synology and My Past NAS Experience

by: Sonny Go

Impressions, Storage | 21 October 2022

In July 2022, I gave myself a belated birthday present of sorts by pulling the trigger on a longtime wishlist item. I finally acquired network-attached storage, which I’ve been coveting for years. While my wallet is now much lighter, I believe it’s worth the expense to have my own file server with multiple applications. This post chronicles my experience with the Synology DS920+ and what I’ve learned so far with it in the first few months, as well as my past history with data storage. Perhaps you can learn what to expect in case you wish to get your own NAS. (more…)

Elden Ring Surprised Me

by: Sonny Go

Impressions, Video Games | 14 March 2022

There are three popular things I haven’t been able to catch up with — JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure, The Witcher, and Dark Souls. I’ve been aware of the first one since the 2000s, but never really got into it as I barely watch anime since I got more into combat sports. I missed out on playing the second one, as I have with plenty of other games, so that’s not unusual at all. As for the third one, I had plenty of chances to get into it, but never caught the bug until now with Elden Ring. (more…)

I Made a Big Mistake by Starting Final Fantasy XIV

by: Sonny Go

Impressions, Video Games | 26 January 2022

That’s right. I gave into temptation and joined the fray. The last MMORPG I took seriously was Ragnarok Online, which I played way back from May 2003 to January 2006. While I would try out other MMOs later on like Tantra Online, Risk Your Life, RF Online, and so on, I never took it as seriously as the game that interfered with my college life. But this time, there’s no pressure for me to keep up. Final Fantasy XIV is known to be an MMO that actually respects the player’s time, but I’ll only believe it if I see it. (more…)

Disco Elysium Took Me Some Time to Get Into

by: Sonny Go

Impressions, Video Games | 15 January 2022

When I got gifted Disco Elysium by a friend during the Holidays, I knew I had no other choice but to give it a go. However, it took me quite a while to actually get into it, even though it’s the kind of game I’d be into. I’m not sure why. Perhaps it’s the period of time in which I chose to start playing it. To be fair, I also haven’t managed to finish its spiritual predecessor, Planescape: Torment. It does take a good bit of effort to play these games. (more…)

Despite It All, I’m Addicted to Cyberpunk 2077

by: Sonny Go

Impressions, Video Games | 08 January 2021

Never mind the obvious—this game is indeed unfinished and broken. So were many of my favorite games upon release—Arcanum, Vampire: The Masquerade Bloodlines, Fallout: New Vegas, Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic 2, Morrowind, Oblivion, Skyrim, and many more. I can add Cyberpunk 2077 into the list because I’m really having fun with it, flaws and all. (more…)

Prey is an Almost Perfect Game for Me

by: Sonny Go

Impressions, Video Games | 21 October 2019

There are two games named Prey. There’s one from 2006 that had gravity walkways and astral projection as a gameplay mechanic. Then, there’s the new one in 2017 that had people jamming surgical devices into their eyes to learn new skills, which turned out to be made from aliens. I got to play the new Prey recently, and it gave me the same feeling I get from Deus Ex, the Resident Evil 2 remake, and BioShock combined. (more…)

Shadow Tactics — Comparison with Commandos

by: Sonny Go

Impressions, Video Games | 15 January 2017

As of this writing, I’ve been enjoying the hell out of Shadow Tactics: Blades of the Shogun since the end of 2016. Since I’ve played it within 2016, it can technically be included in my Top 10 Games of 2016 list (which is coming soon). While you may say that less than a week isn’t enough for a thorough assessment of a game, I fell in love with this game right at the first few moments as it reminded me of Commandos—a series I played growing up. It was one of those franchises that truly made you think while you played. (more…)

Battlefield 1 Open Beta First Impressions

by: Sonny Go

Impressions, Let's Play, Video Games | 05 September 2016

For once, I actually get to the open beta of a game and actually make a video out of it, which is something I’ve been wanting to do for this blog for quite a while now. Then again, this is a AAA game, so it wasn’t that hard to remember to get into it. It was also not that big since it’s just a multiplayer preview available for a week, so it was just bells and whistles and wasn’t hard to download at all. Battlefield 1 was met with skepticism, but I have to say it could actually bring the Battlefield franchise back from the heaping pile of failure it had been in recent years (commercially successful but technically unsound). (more…)

Overwatch — A Good Kind of Black Hole [Impressions]

by: Sonny Go

Impressions, Video Games, Videos | 29 May 2016

After tons of hype and a fairly extensive beta period (as well as a minor controversy concerning the fictional depiction of female buttocks), the much-anticipated new game by Blizzard finally came out. It has been almost a week since the release of Overwatch, and it’s currently making the folks over at Gearbox Software have sweaty palms (and hopefully with Randy Pitchford unable to sleep at night). While it’s given that this may be a bit too late for just a first impressions post and I should put out a review already, I still have to put this up to wrap my head around my thoughts about this game. (more…)

DOOM First Impressions — Ultra Violence

by: Sonny Go

Impressions, Video Games, Videos | 20 May 2016

This post was only worked on four days after the video was made, but at least I’ve had a bit more time to think about what I like and don’t like about this game, especially without the rose-tinted glasses. There’s much to dig through with this game, especially with all the bad impressions the multiplayer beta gave. It turns out that the singleplayer is indeed good and fun to play, so I guess the beta only served to sow seeds of doubt about the new DOOM needlessly. (more…)

XCOM 2 First Impressions

by: Sonny Go

Impressions, Video Games | 13 February 2016

Since this post is already more than a week late, let’s just get right to it. XCOM 2 is one of the two games I planned to purchase on day one for the month of February 2016, the other being Street Fighter V. With so much money coming out of my pocket right now to play some good games (for a change) and get something out of them to put on this website (which I’m failing at so far), I might as well give my first impressions of this game more than a week after and with so many people already posting reviews of it. (more…)