Recent reviews by Hath #BringBackQuickplay

Holy f*ck this game is fun. I only started playing after April patch and it feel great!! Huge recommend.

The game is starting to feel like it suffers from the blueprint issue and specifically blueprint bloat. All progress is tied to scrap, and scrap is so hard to achieve when there are clans, cheaters, and general just bad actors. Originally, Rust rewarded players for grinding a bit and reinforcing, now we're forced to engage in combat to make progress or just get raided and lose the hours of progress you spent.

I used to enjoy Rust, and while I had some good times with the current patches, I don't like playing it as much as I enjoyed watching it. Call it a skill issue, but gaming it's my job and I don't want it to FEEL like one.

OUTSTANDING Demo. I still haven't gotten my fill of Multiplayer and Solo runs, yet. There is so much to enjoy, even with the product as unfinished as it is. The quality and depth of gameplay is just so fresh.

It plays like Risk of Rain X League of Legends X Path of Exile X Hades. If you think I'm wrong, try it out and let me know.

Yes. It is fun AND hard; I hope the devs continue with their current trend and take feedback on some of the things that need changing before the official release.

My biggest (spoiler-free) gripes: the late-game levels are too big, and the end-game maps are even bigger; there needs to be more mobility added to the game, or they gotta shrink the maps a bit. It was hell getting through the final two levels of the final act.

My biggest (spoiler filled) gripe is that the molten warrior boss, whatever his name was, runs back into the lava too damn much for Warriors to have a fair chance of fighting 90% of the time, ESPECIALLY if they built for Fire damage, like I did. Could be a skill issue, but I did eventually beat him solo after changing my build slightly with a new 2H Mace. Lastly, I think the second ascendancy bosses all having some form of flight is cancer. I hate standing on the ground while they fly away and having to find out where the hell he's landed afterwards. It feels like Monster Hunter without the mount or a whetstone.

TL;DR Great game with a few flaws, but we can trust GGG to iron them out.

Very good. I recommend playing blind (but with your eyes)

The negative reviews are only about monetization; the game plays fine. There are a few optimization problems, but that's bound to happen when they have no idea what your specs are. Outside of that, here are some gameplay comments:

Steep learning curve for those who care to actually learn the game. Relatively button masher friendly, but I've never found satisfaction in mashing. Lots of "random bulls*** go" as my friends and I like to call it. People send tons of attacks at you very quickly--it's very hard to process sometimes and can be infuriating at its worst. Generally, if you can handle learning your opponents patterns and moveset, then satisfaction is definitely within your reach.
If you're someone who would rather not be thinking when playing, the singleplayer mode has easier difficulties where you can safely mash.

9/10 - Rewarding game with plenty of depth for those willing to dive.

It just wasn't fun for very long. The progression feels too slow and the basic weapons feel useless on anything stronger than a basic bug. If you purchase the wrong equipment, you will quickly realize that you wasted your currency and will need to regrind for it.

I genuinely love the humor of this game, but the clips that people post online literally happen every single game; it's just not entertaining anymore.

Lastly, there are server connectivity problems and some issues with optimization at times. I tried playing the game today and couldn't connect, so I just gave up.

It takes some time getting used to all the options available to you; it can definitely be overwhelming when you first start. After a bit of time and some experience built up, you'll see just how much the game has to offer in replay value. Runs will always be different, but still feel familiar. The areas are creative, the music is phenomenal, and the visual design is iconic.

Get some friends together for the most entertainment. The game is definitely worth full price, but if you're tight on money, waiting for a sale is just as good.

Review at 21 hrs:
Optimization problems, but it's still super rewarding to play.

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Review at 213 hrs: (TL;DR at the bottom)
Definitely my favourite FromSoft game, to date. The characters are more memorable than before, at least for me, so I actually felt a great deal of sadness when "losing" some of them. I also love the addition of Ashes of War-- Weapon Arts that can be swapped out depending on what you're feeling or what you're fighting. Easily the best part of the game is just how much content there is to do and how good it feels to explore it all. I've nearly 100% the game, but I still have two more runs to do for all endings. Miyazaki, George R.R. Martin, and all developers knocked it out of the park with this game.

The only thing that could have made this game better would be the removal of Co-op invasions being the default. Anybody who is playing Online should be susceptible to invasions, extending the immunity timer, more like an hour or two hours rather than 15 minutes. These changes will also make a larger pool of players to be invaded. Co-op players will stop getting plagued with invasions, and invaders will get more invasions off.

Blue Hunters should also be on by default, that way a Solo only has to survive long enough for a Blue to come and assist. This could be potentially disabled by deactivating the Blue Ring. This will also make the Taunter's Tongue allow you to be invaded by multiple invaders while Solo.

Lastly, there are some balance changes that should be made to allow for more balanced combat. Bloodhound's Step and Rivers of Blood should get FP cost nerfs; Shield Turtles should get Stamina cost nerfs; Password Co-op with high level differential should scale the Furled Finger's stats down, heavily. Right now, it only seems to affect their Vigor, none of their damage (especially Bleed and Madness builds).

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TL;DR
Strong 9/10
A few issues with PvP being unbalanced can be solved with patches, and optimization is something I'm okay with when it only plagues a few tiny areas of this enormous game.

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Secret Word: Love
Worth my 2 dollars. Thank you for the introspection.