Tag Archives: video games

May 20 2026

Mel’s Game Review: Elder Scrolls Online

So, I’d been a WoW player (World of Warcraft) since the game came out in.. 2005, I think? I tried other mmo’s while I was playing but, without exception, I always came back to WoW. But last March I started getting that itch to play something else and went hunting on Steam. They were having sales on many games including one called Elder Scrolls Online. I’d heard of the world the game is in (I played Morrowind when I was younger, and knew people who played Skyrim), but I didn’t know they had an mmo. So both the base game and the previous 8 expansions were on sale, ridiculously low. The base game was like 6 bucks, and the expansions were 27. So I gave it a go, and never looked back.

ESO is just better in every way. I had to get used to the controls, though. It’s WASD to walk around, but you need to use the mouse to navigate. It took some getting used to, but once I had it, it’s super easy. The characters all look better, the character creation is wild, so many options. You can even change the size of your boobs and posterior for heaven’s sake! Everything took some getting used to, there was a learning curve, for sure (especially with crafting). And I’m sure I don’t even know everything yet. Even after over a year, I’m still not done all the story zones.

I created one of each class, there’s 7 of them: Sorcerer, Necromancer, Warden, Arcanist, Nightblade, Dragonknight, and Templar. My favourite is probably the Sorcerer, but honestly I like them all (Necromancer maybe a bit less). The gameplay for each class is quite different. So depending on what sort of gameplay I’m in the mood for will determine what I play. Today, for example, I was playing my Warden, which means I use a bow and have a big bear as a helper.

The character models are all cool, as I said, and there’s a lot of different races to choose from: Khajiit (which is a cat person), Dark Elf, Argonian (which is a lizard person), Orc, Wood Elf, High Elf, Redguard, Nord, and Breton. I have one of each except the Redguard and Nord. I’m playing a fantasy game. I don’t wanna be human. Here are my characters.

Left to right: Arytiss Miirik (Orc Dragonknight), Deadly Song (Wood Elf Necromancer), Dirise Miirik (Breton Dragonknight), Eirena Song (Dark Elf Warden)
Left to right: Light’s Song (High Elf Templar), Llewmauryn (Khajiit Sorcerer), Lucy’Fur (Khajiit Templar), Nocna Sjena (Wood Elf Nightblade), Shadow’s Dream (Argonian Arcanist)

Ok, maybe just one human… And yes, I like red and black, hehe. Two of them are of the same classes, but that’s cause I already play them with my mom (yes, I got her to play too!) and wanted to try them alone.

So, do I recommend it? If you like mmo’s then yes, absolutely. I don’t even have a WoW subscription anymore. The new expansion came out, and I didn’t even contemplate going back. I obviously give it a 10/10.

M.

Dec 4 2019

Mel’s 5 Second Game Review: Grim Dawn

Grim Dawn is a fantasy/horror ARPG (action role playing game) in the style of the Diablo franchise, released on Steam by the indie company Crate. Called hack and slash games for their rather simple game play, they’re actually some of my favourite games. I have about 500 hours clocked into Grim Dawn, and I don’t think a minute of that was time wasted. The initial game came out in February 2016. There are two expansions, The Ashes of Malmouth, released in October 2017, and Forgotten Gods, released in March 2019.

The story is simple enough (the world “ended” and there are monsters), but it’s so well crafted that it doesn’t matter. And if you take the time to listen to the quest givers and read the lore, you’ll realise just how dark they went with this. There’s a man who locks his family in his house and is about to set them on fire, rather than face this new world. There are journal entries laying around one of the zones, telling the story of a family of cannibals who are becoming less than human. There’s no swearing or nudity, but I still think this is one game that’s not for kids.

The game-play is standard for this type of game. The camera is above your character and you click the mouse to move around and cast spells. Some spells will require the use of the number keys. The looting system is also standard. If playing with a friend, you each get your own drops, which is nice (Path of Exile could take a page out of that book). What’s not standard is parts of the skill tree. There are shrines all over the map that you have to restore and that gives you a Devotion point. You can then use this point to chose stars on a constellation tree. Each constellation gives boosts to different builds (spell casting, melee, ranged, minion build, etc). I’m not sure I’m explaining this right, so let me show you.

That was the most complicated skill tree I’d ever seen since I started playing Path of Exile last week. But once you get used to it, it’s not so bad.

So if you like Diablo-like games and aren’t afraid of a little horror, then I definitely recommend this game for you. As for me, I give it an 11/10. Bloody perfect!

M.