Articles from GameswithDeath Article Feature Guide Impressions News Opinion Review Dec 10, 2025 Post Malone's Murder Circus Encore The Ringmaster Returns to the Bayou with New Features, Twitch Drops, and One Angry Bear Article 9 Mins by Death Dec 1, 2025 No, High-End Weapons Do NOT Need to be Buffed There's a lot Going on with the Weapons in ARC Raiders Article 6 Mins by Death Nov 17, 2025 Extraction Shooters are NOT Oversaturated Media Claims about Extraction Shooter Market Saturation are Grossly Inaccurate Article 6 Mins by Death Oct 27, 2025 100 Starter Tips & Strats For ARC Raiders Everything you Need to get Past the Initial Learning Curve Guide 30 Mins by Death Oct 9, 2025 THE EXPEDITION PROJECT REVEALED Embark Finally Details their Voluntary Wipe System for ARC Raiders News 4 Mins by Death Sep 23, 2025 Embark Drops Huge ARC Raiders News Preorders are Finally Available and Server Slam Announced News 1 Min by Death May 26, 2025 It Just ****in’ Works ARC Raiders carries the hopes of a stunted and underestimated genre Impressions 7 Mins by Death Nov 29, 2024 Immersive Playthrough Details All the Mods and Details for Death's Immersive CP2077 Run Feature 2 Mins by Death Apr 14, 2025 Death's Anime Watchlist 死のアニメ視聴リスト (This is Japanese!) Article 2 Mins by Death First Prev 1 Page 1 Next Last

Gaming Reviews, Guides, and Insights from GameswithDeath Post Malone's Murder Circus Encore The Ringmaster Returns to the Bayou with New Features, Twitch Drops, and One Angry Bear Article No, High-End Weapons Do NOT Need to be Buffed There's a lot Going on with the Weapons in ARC Raiders Article Extraction Shooters are NOT Oversaturated Media Claims about Extraction Shooter Market Saturation are Grossly Inaccurate Article 100 Starter Tips & Strats For ARC Raiders Everything you Need to get Past the Initial Learning Curve Guide Oct 9, 2025 THE EXPEDITION PROJECT REVEALED Embark Finally Details their Voluntary Wipe System for ARC Raiders News by Death 4 Mins Sep 23, 2025 Embark Drops Huge ARC Raiders News Preorders are Finally Available and Server Slam Announced News by Death 1 Min May 26, 2025 It Just ****in’ Works ARC Raiders carries the hopes of a stunted and underestimated genre Impressions by Death 7 Mins stream schedule Live on Twitch Hunt: Showdown 1896 w/ JonWright & Barittaneyyy Today, Dec 10, 2025, 9:00 AM UTC Hunt: Showdown 1896 ARC Raiders [SOLO] Tomorrow, Dec 11, 2025, 4:00 PM UTC ARC Raiders A Hunt Stream Will Happen... Dec 12, 2025, 9:00 AM UTC Hunt: Showdown 1896 An ARC Raiders Stream Will Happen... Dec 12, 2025, 4:00 PM UTC ARC Raiders Hunt w/ AngryTwitches & Davey Dec 13, 2025, 9:00 AM UTC Hunt: Showdown 1896

Death's Article on Hunt: Showdown 1896: Post Malone's Murder Circus Encore "The Ringmaster Returns to the Bayou with New Features, Twitch Drops, and One Angry Bear" Dec 10, 2025 9 Mins by Death Post Malone’s Murder Circus Encore The Ringmaster Returns to the Bayou with New QOL Features, Mechanics, and One Angry Bear Post Malone returns to the Bayou with vengeance on his mind in the new winter event for Hunt: Showdown 1896 (2018). Update 2.6 also brings a plethora of UI and gameplay improvements, a new way to customize your in-game profile, and a holiday-themed Twitch Drops campaign with new legendaries. Here’s everything you need to know. The Murder Circus Saga continues: Post, the former Ringmaster (now “Disciple of Death”) and Giggles are back to continue where they left off after the events of last year's Circus visit. Ursa Mortis, the escaped two-headed circus bear, returns as well and has been reworked to be much more deadly than before. She adds more chaos to matches, with more health and damage, and the ability to smash through the circus fences when chasing players; she's also immune to explosive knockdowns, so Hunter should prepare for the fight of their life. Shredder Rework (Event-exclusive) The infamous Shredder is back after a significant rework, requiring more skill to use this time around: Saw blades no longer “smart bounce” toward players – bounces are now pure physics, requiring players to carefully place shots or flood an area with blades to incapacitate enemy hunters. The Shredder must be manually charged after every shot, making the rate of fire much slower. There is no auto-charge on equip; the weapon must be charged manually by pressing X on PC or Up on the D-pad on console. The blade now spins down over time and unequipping no longer stops the spin. The Shredder will keep spinning when stowed, so it can still be “primed” for a quick shot; but this carries the risk the spinning noise will give away the user. Blade projectiles no longer pierce multiple targets; instead sticking into bodies like bolts or arrows. Event Traits & Troupes The Troupes return, each with a unique Trait bought with Pledge Marks — Hunters can now pledge to as many Troupes as they can afford. The Knifethrower Troupe features the Blademancer trait for two pledge marks. Hunters can use Dark Sight to pull retrievable ammo in front of them back into their inventory, up to 100m away. The Mystic Troupe gives the Communion trait for one pledge mark. While in Dark Sight, hunters can temporarily lose 15 max HP to heal a teammate for 75 HP and cleanse statuses up to 25m away. The Trickshooter Troupe gives Crack Shot for one pledge mark. Hunters have less weapon sway and higher ironsight zoom for rifles and stock pistols. These effects do not apply to shotguns or sawed-off variants. The Strongman Troupe muscles in with the Bruiser trait for one pledge mark. This trait lower melee stamina costs and reduce aim punch when taking damage. Finally, the Ringmaster Troupe brings back Corpse Seer for two pledge marks. Hunters gain one second of Dark Sight Boost when looting downed enemy Hunters. There’s also a new High Striker booth: smack it with any melee weapons to earn Event Points; your score is shared across all High Strikers in the current mission. Player Customization Cards The new patch also brings customizable Player Profile Cards. Each card can show an avatar (Hunters, monsters, etc.), up to 3 badges (item mastery, progression), up to 3 stat trackers (kills with specific items/Hunters, bounty earned, etc. – mainly Bounty Hunt and Bounty Clash stats), a title (item mastery titles, nicknames, achievement tags), and a cosmetic frame. An example of the new customizable Player Profile Cards coming with Patch 2.6. Most of these are unlocked through regular play, Story Challenges, and events; while others can be purchased with Blood Bonds. Most stats start tracking from 2.6 onward, with only a few using historical data. Hunters will see player profile cards on the death screen, on the last mission screen, in the lobby (by clicking on their teammates), and during the pre-match sequence. Hunters can create their customizations in the reworked Career tab, alongside Story Challenges. Check out the official Crytek News post here for more details. Story Challenges Story Challenges are a new, chapter-based progression track that mixes lore and gameplay tasks; they are found on the updated Challenges screen, which now houses both Weekly and Story challenges. Each Story Challenge line is broken into Chapters, with rewards tied to completing individual challenges and entire chapters. Two storylines ship with 2.6: On the Winds of Midwinter is a Premium, time-limited three-chapter storyline. Rewards include: Krampus (Hunter), Hoof and Horn (Legendary Terminus skin), Clamor’s Carol (Charm), Profile items (avatar, frame, title), and Event Points, Hunt Dollars, Bloodline XP, etc. An Acquired Taste is a free, permanent three-chapter storyline. Rewards include: Tennessee Morgan as a returning tiered Hunter (Rookie / Survivor / Veteran), Profile items (avatar, title), and Hunt Dollars, Bloodline XP, etc. These are not the only Story Challenges hunters will see, as Crytek has stated they plan to expand on this feature in future updates. UI, Ping & Compass Rework The map screen has been significantly reworked; traits are now ordered by “last acquired”, and traits picked up mid-mission are marked; the map background is now semi-transparent for better situational awareness; new map art, icons, and boss target borders provide players with more clarity; a widget now tracks weekly and story challenge progress directly on the map. The ping system is now more detailed with more ping types per player. Pings now indicate what type of object is being pinged, including, healing, ammo, toolboxes, caches, money bags, trait charms, blueprints, barrels, traps, tools, weapons, animals, clues, and more. Standard markers last 15 seconds, danger pings 2 seconds, and trap pings 24 seconds. New contextual pings will clear up some of the "confusion" in these parts. Marker visibility got buffed too. All ping icons show on the compass, lined up with their world position. Markers fade slightly when you ADS. Lighting no longer alters ping colors, so they stay readable. The compass UI itself has been redesigned to handle multiple icons cleanly. Gameplay & Balance Changes There’s a new Doused status that interacts with water and fire. Hunters become Doused when moving through deep water, and stay that way for 15 seconds. While Doused, Hunters are harder to ignite, recover charcoaled HP faster, have louder, easier-to-track, wet-sounding footsteps. Water Bottles will instantly kill Immolators. Water Bottle is a new world item that spawns randomly in the world. Throwing it creates a big splash and applies the doused status to Hunters and Immolators. Water bottles put out most flames and burning Hunters; however, hitting an oil fire creates a bigger flame burst instead of extinguishing it. Water bottles can be shot on the ground to detonate the splash, but cannot be stored and will break if dropped. Changes to Traits, Healing & AI There are also several significant changes to traits, healing, and AI in this patch: Recovery Shots and the Relentless trait now restore HP chunks with 24 points of charcoaling, slowing their immediate benefits. Burn traits, like Relentless, Remedy, and Rampage, no longer stack; Hunters can only have one instance of each. Beetle cocoons can now spawn any Beetle variant, reversing a previous change. Immolators will become Doused in deep water, heavy rain, or from Water Bottles; while Doused, they can’t ignite, are slower, and take more damage. Hives now moves more slowly in water. The Assassin has had his HP reduced to bring its TTK in-line with the other bosses. Weapons & Meta There are several weapons and meta changes, that will impact play this patch: The Centennial Wildland's spread has been increased from 17.5 to 22.5, making it less effective at range. Rare Locked Weapon Boxes, containing a Wildland or Homestead, can now spawn at watchtowers; unlocking them costs 3 Pledge Marks. Silencer volumes, occlusion, interior gun tails, melee flybys, and more now have improved positional audio and clarity. Rich Presence is now available for Steam and Discord; players who opt-in can now show more details about their in-game status. New Player Onboarding has been streamlined. Several bugs have been fixed, but some persistent issues remain. See patch notes for complete details. Hunt Winter Twitch Drops Campaign Alongside Update 2.6, there’s a Twitch Drops campaign starting on December 12, 2025 – 15:00 UTC and ending on December 24, 2025 – 15:00 UTC. Viewers can earn rewards by watching any Hunt streams after linking their Hunt and Twitch accounts. For the first time, Crytek is providing a way for viewers to support their favorite Hunt streamer with Support-a-Streamer Rewards. Subbing to any Hunt streamer during the drops period will give the following reward bonuses: 1 subscription of any tier, gifted or direct, to any live Hunt channel awards the Hunt Twitch Chat Badge. 2 total subscriptions to one or multiple channels awards the Hunt Twitch Chat Badge and the Head Taker Legendary Hunter. Details for the Hunt Winter Twitch Drops Campaign. Viewers will also receive rewards for watching every hour, up to nine hours. Each successive hour watched gives the following rewards and a Supply Crate: 1st hour – a Random Charm. 2nd hour – a Random Avatar. 3rd hour – a Random Legendary Equipment Skin. 4th hour – a Random Sleigh Ride (Legendary Ranger 73 variant). 5th hour – a Random Legendary Hunter. 6th hour – another Random Charm. 7th hour – another Random Avatar. 8th hour – Random Legendary Equipment Skin. 9th hour – Random Death’s Caroler (Legendary Krag variant). Each Supply Crate contains one random Rifle, one random Pistol, one random Shotgun, one random Special Weapon, three random Tools and/or Consumables, and a random amount of Hunt Dollars. Random rewards take into account what legendaries a Hunter already owns; see Crytek's Twitch Drops page here for official details on how to link accounts and claim rewards. Conclusion In all, update 2.6 is a big one; the Murder Circus is back in town with a nastier Ursa Mortis and a more skill-based Shredder; profile Cards and Story Challenges give Hunters new ways to customize their appearance and something to grind for; ping, compass, onboarding, and audio all get meaningful quality-of-life passes; and the Winter Twitch Drops campaign has plenty of rewards for everyone involved, streamers and viewers. If you’re thinking of returning to the bayou, 2.6 has plenty of reasons to do so. I'll be streaming the drops everyday from 9 AM EST on at twitch.tv/GameswithDeath , so come by and join the murderous fun. Otherwise, I’ll see you on the other side, Hunters. [The audio version of this article was generated using machine-learning technology.] Hunt: Showdown 1896 2018 Share Send Send Send Send Track Name 00:00 / 08:32 Link Copied! Post Malone's Murder Circus Encore The Ringmaster Returns to the Bayou with New Features, Twitch Drops, and One Angry Bear Article

Death's News on ARC Raiders: Embark Drops Huge ARC Raiders News "Preorders are Finally Available and Server Slam Announced" Sep 23, 2025 1 Min by Death Update 23 Sep: According to an event posted in the official ARC Raiders Discord server, the Server Slam will be 50 hours in duration, starting at 9 AM EST on Friday 17 Oct and ending at Sunday 19 Oct at 11 AM EST. The Server Slam Event in the official ARC Raiders Discord Server. A lot of huge ARC R aiders news dropped today! The game is finally available for preorder on all platforms; the Standard Edition is $40 USD and the Deluxe Edition is $60 USD, with cosmetics and raider tokens being the only difference between them. Standard and Deluxe Editions comparisons. From the ARC Raiders Steam store page. Summary of the ARC Raider Preorder and Deluxe Edition bonuses. From the ARC Raider Steam store page The accompanying preorder trailer also teased at least two new ARC Enemies; the first looks to be a quadruped as tall as a human; the other is of indeterminate size as we only get a brief glimpse of a tank-like cannon turret. We got closer look at the walker arc see in the launch date trailer, which looks to be the same size or bigger than a bastion or bison. Terrifying stuff! Embark teases new ARC Enemies in the new Preorder Trailer. Embark also announced plans for a Server Slam shortly before launch from the 17th to 19th of October. The Server Slam will be on every platform and is open to everyone, no purchase required. Embark is also going to have a booth at TwitchCon San Diego this year. So while all the other streamers are lining up to play the game there, I’ll be streaming it on Twitch, ( twitch.tv/gameswithdeath ) so be sure to come and check it out. I definitely can’t wait to get back into the ARC Raiders world. October 30th can’t come quick enough. See you on the other side, Raiders. ARC Raiders 2025 Share Send Send Send Send Track Name 00:00 / 01:06 Link Copied! Embark Drops Huge ARC Raiders News Preorders are Finally Available and Server Slam Announced News

Death's Review on Black Myth: Wukong: BMWK Attains Enlightenment "Incredible Boss Fights Make Up for a Narrative Designed with a Specific Audience in Mind. " Sep 17, 2024 15 Mins by Death After years of anticipation, Black Myth: Wukong (2024) was finally released in August 2024. On its first full day, BMWK reached a staggering 2.4 million concurrent players on Steam, with a reported gross revenue of $850 million at time of writing. This was the second-highest concurrent player count ever recorded, with Counter-Strike 2 (2023) retaining the top spot. By all accounts, this is a remarkable feat, especially for single-player games. Undoubtedly, one of the most significant reasons for this success is the game’s source material, the beloved Chinese fable Journey to the West . it's obvious that this is a work of deep cultural and artistic meaning to these developers. It is hard to overstate the role of Journey to the West in Chinese culture. From an early age, Chinese children fantasized about the stories of Sun Wukong, the fabled Monkey King, who arose from a stone and went on a series of incredible adventures, even attaining immortality. The myths act as a cultural touchstone in Chinese culture and are comparable to the works of Shakespeare or Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales in the West. At its heart, BMWK is an action game with an easy-to-understand but hard-to-master combat system and incredible visuals, thanks to Unreal Engine 5. BMWK is heavily influenced by games like God of War (2005) and Elden Ring (2023) and shares many of the same features with these games, like drawing on mythology for its narrative, the bonfire system, and punishing epic boss fights. The bosses of Black Myth: Wukong (2024) are truly something to behold. Despite the apparent influence of these games, BMWK still finds a way to create its own identity and is a strong contender for Game-of-the-Year on its own merits. But, as impressive as BMWK is, issues like an inaccessible narrative, questionable world design, and a poorly implemented camera keep it from achieving greatness. BMWK is a game that unapologetically assumes that the player knows Journey to the West intimately and relies heavily on this knowledge to build out the world. Knowing or not knowing these stories makes the difference between following the narrative or experiencing the disorientation of something like Lewis Carrol’s Alice in Wonderland . BMWK ’s narrative is grand and incredible, but it is intended for insiders familiar with its traditions; this game is not made for a Western audience despite being fully translated to English and heavily marketed in the West. Everything is strange and wonderful; it also makes no sense. Before playing this game, I highly recommend that players familiarize themselves with Journey to the West to maximize their enjoyment of the game. It is disappointing that Game Science hid the narrative this way; it’s like making a movie and telling the audience they should bring the book to the theater so they can understand the plot. There are themes of redemption, forgiveness, and self-awareness that arise from what I can understand, and I am interested in reading the stories myself. Still, not putting the actual tale of Wukong in the game seems like a missed opportunity. Whether you find the narrative enlightening or nonsensical, depending on your perspective, graphically, BMWK is one of the most beautiful games ever created and is a visual triumph. Every asset is beautifully crafted, and each area is stunningly detailed. The power of Unreal Engine 5 is very much on display in BMWK . I have never seen a game with graphical fidelity, detail, and jaw-dropping visuals like I saw in BMWK . During my playthrough, I must have stopped at least thirty times to marvel at the scene around me, even taking the odd screenshot in photo mode. Visuals to drool over. Unfortunately, as beautiful as this world is, it is empty. Between the boss battles, there is nothing to do except collect herbs, open chests, or wander aimlessly through the game’s all-to-frequent empty spaces. I encountered many beautiful yet dead areas that seemed to serve no purpose. After a while, moving through BMWK ’s world becomes tedious. The lack of an in-game map doesn’t help, and the game forces the player to navigate by memory. The verticality and similar visuals in many areas make getting lost frustratingly easy. In a later chapter, I received a cloud to fly on, and I was excited that my navigation frustrations were finally over. But, it is only usable in a single specific area. After about ten minutes of flying, I found only a few scattered bosses and many more empty spaces. Cloud flying quickly became a chore since I was again in these vast areas with little to do but slowly fly through them on my cloud. I appreciate the developer’s attempt to immerse the player and avoid an Ubisoft-like in-game map and icon system. Still, I was often frustrated by the lack of things to do or a direction to head in. Navigation was a definite low-lite of my playthrough. At least, it's a dry heat. Compared to a game like Elden Ring (2022), BMWK ’s world design sadly feels shallow and confined. In Elden Ring , every space serves a purpose or has a reason for the player to be there and a way to access it; you can go anywhere you see if you find your way to it. BMWK , however, is filled with invisible walls—a relic I thought games had ditched decades ago. Throughout my playthrough, I walked towards areas that seemed accessible, only to be stopped by an invisible barrier. Eventually, I gave up trying to explore off the beaten path, likely causing me to miss some of the game's secrets. Similar to Destiny (2014) at its release, BMWK tries to compensate for the world's lack of purpose with beautiful visuals. While the scenery is stunning, players will quickly become bored without any reason to be there. Much of the game’s world feels like it could be cut without losing anything meaningful—less is more, as the saying goes. More isn't always better, even when it is this beautiful. The levels also seem designed without enemy encounters in mind. Some areas are so large that the enemy population density was sparse, and their placement felt like they were just there as filler. One area was more reminiscent of 90’s MMOs than a modern triple-A action game; enemies were wandering around in plain sight, evenly spaced apart, with little thought to making the encounters unique. Regular enemy encounters were mainly bland compared to the boss fights, and I spent more time skipping them than engaging with them. Rendering this world, as empty as it was, was not an issue. I had no problems getting BMWK running on my primary gaming PC, with an Nvidia 4090 and 64 GB of RAM. With all settings on cinematic, ray tracing off, and DLSS enabled, the game ran smoothly at around 130 FPS with stunning visuals. DLSS introduces some blurriness for distant objects, which did not detract from my enjoyment; BMWK isn’t a competitive FPS where details at a distance matter. I strongly recommend avoiding ray tracing. It adds to the visual fidelity but eats up a lot of resources, even on high-end PCs. I experienced severe stutters during fights with ray tracing enabled, which got me killed more than a few times. The simulated lighting looks excellent anyway, so you won’t miss much. I would advise prioritizing a smooth frame rate over visual fidelity since BMWK ’s combat system requires split-second timing for success. BMWK ’s combat system isn’t doing anything other games haven’t done before, but it is doing a lot well, considering this game has a single character who only wields a staff. There is a surprising amount of customization for players to discover. Players are not confined to one play style and can tailor their builds using spells, stances, primary abilities, or transformations. There's a surprising amount of depth and flexibility to the combat system. Your build will flow from the unique abilities of the armor you receive from chests and defeated bosses. Each armor set comes with one or two of these abilities and activates if you wear a specific number of pieces from that set. Players can mix and match pieces from different sets if they want to utilize effects from other sets. It is an easy-to-understand system that hides a surprising amount of depth, which matters much more in the late game. In the early game, I did not have to think much about the armor I was wearing. The set with the highest defensive rating was usually the best. I mainly focused on learning the skill tree and doing damage with light strikes, trying to proc the critical hit chance and critical damage as much as possible. (This is how I play most games. I’m a burst damage one trick, and I feel no shame. I know who I am.) In the first few chapters, players will frequently receive new armor sets with higher armor ratings, making my old ones obsolete. Later on, there is a blacksmith who will upgrade armor sets to keep pace with higher-level ones, making all those old abilities relevant again. Introducing armor this way is a clever way to nudge players to explore the armor sets' abilities without forcing them to stick to the set that appears to be best on the surface. This plants the seeds for late-game builds, which are needed when the difficulty spike comes in later chapters. This guys ability to upgrade your armor outweighs his incessent scarcasm. Around the middle of Chapter 4, BMWK goes from feeling like a God of War action adventure clone to one of the more challenging Souls games very fast. Refining your build and knowing what type of damage your enemies do becomes incredibly important, regardless of the fighting style you find yourself drawn to. I completed most of the game with my light-strike crit damage build, but eventually, I had to switch to an armor set that would give me a base damage boost based on a status effect while still offering a lot of damage mitigation. If you have cat-like reflexes and can time your dodges better than me, some late-game armors have more damage output at the cost of damage reduction; they also look really badass. You gotta admit, I look damn good in this. Overall, the combat system is accessible, allowing players to use their preferred playstyle. There is also a surprising amount of depth to explore, making NG+ runs worth it for those who want to hone their builds even more after their initial playthrough. As interesting as the combat can be in BMWK , the camera can sometimes ruin the experience, especially when fighting in enclosed spaces. The lock-on works well in open areas, but in enclosed areas, like the cells of the Pagoda Realm, the camera becomes your enemy. While fighting enemies in this area, the camera would zoom in extremely close, causing more than a few deaths and much frustration. Video: The camera is an enemy npc when fighting in enclosed spaces. If an aggressive enemy attacked my character against a wall or into a corner, the camera would pile on to ruin the encounter. This didn’t ruin my overall experience, but I hope it gets addressed before the DLCs are released. Thankfully, this issue didn’t affect the best moments in the game, the boss fights. I hate the Pagoda Realm, with a passion that will burn through the ages. At its core, BMWK is a game about fighting incredible bosses in dramatic setpiece battles that are so detailed it should be considered a privilege to get your ass handed to you over and over again. If one thing makes BMWK worth its admission price, it is the bosses. There are over eighty bosses, secret and non-secret, to be found throughout the game. Having fought about seventy-five during my playthrough, I was pleasantly surprised that no two bosses were the same; even if I did encounter a reskinned boss, they still felt like they had a unique fighting style and personality. I did face some similar skills, with minor variations in their timing and frequency, but this was infrequent enough that it didn’t affect the individual personality of any given boss. BMWK is undoubtedly not the first game with challenging bosses; any Souls-like game does the same. However, what makes BMWK different is the level of detail the bosses possess and their pacing. Traditionally, players only get to fight the boss after fighting through an army of boring lesser enemies. Failing a boss means making the ‘walk of shame’ from the last checkpoint and fighting everyone all over again, ad nauseam. Game Science does away with this tired formula and makes the interlude between the epic boss battles, the place the players would rather be, as short as possible. Shrines locations are placed with player convience in mind. It was appreciated. It is a simple enough spin on the traditional action game formula, but it’s a refreshing take on something no one has innovated for the last forty years. I spent more time fighting bosses than regular mobs. Almost every boss lair has a shrine close to its entrance, making return trips painless. It’s as if Game Science understands what the players want (i.e., to fight fantastical epic creatures in heated pitched battles) and provides it; it sounds so simple said like this. The boss fights deliver some truly incredible moments. On almost every encounter, some big moment would arise where my eyes would widen, and I’d yell out in excitement. I never knew what to expect from any individual boss, and even if a fight failed, I was mainly happy to return and reengage, even taking over twenty times to beat some bosses. (Except for the Yaksha King. That guy can go fuck himself!) Would you believe I lived through this? I didn't think so. As engaging as the boss combat is, it would only be half as engaging if not for the exceptional character design. The artistic design of the characters is the best I have ever seen in a video game. The character artists, modelers, and animators did their absolute best to make the characters look incredible and tell me something about their backgrounds. Above, I talked about how the narrative is somewhat inaccessible without knowing the source material; the incredible characterization on display partially recovers this. Every character model, weapon, item, and special effect is so detailed and exacting, down to the pixel, that it makes other action games look like they belong on a PlayStation 2. With Unreal Engine 5 powering these stunning visuals, this game sets a new industry standard for characterization and graphical design. This level of detail is impossible without a caring and dedicated team who is passionate about their work. The developers at Game Science should be applauded for what they have accomplished in BMWK , and I look forward to what is next to come from this first-time developer. With its engaging combat systems and obsession for detail, BMWK delivers some of the best-designed boss fights to grace your GPU this year. The game’s focus on big epic moments, when they matter most, makes it a memorable outing into the mythical Chinese countryside, one that will surely be on the minds of gamers and other developers going forward. Despite an inaccessible narrative and questionable world design, Game Science’s Black Myth: Wukong is a strong contender for Game of the Year. Black Myth: Wukong 2024 Share Send Send Send Send Track Name 00:00 / 01:04 Link Copied! BMWK Attains Enlightenment Incredible Boss Fights Make Up for a Narrative Designed with a Specific Audience in Mind. Review

Death's Review on Alive: Barely Alive "A Neglected Zombie Apocalypse Narrative Lacking Depth" Jan 31, 2024 2 Mins by Death Many films considered titans of the horror genre came from incredibly low-budget projects: Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974), Evil Dead (1981), The Blair Witch Project (1999), and Paranormal Activity (2007) were all made on budgets that are dwarfed by most films today. In horror, a lack of funds does not necessarily mean a lack of quality. Of all the genres movies are known for, horror possesses a unique and powerful ability to establish a deep connection with its audience without having to do much. The reason that horror can make such a connection is in our biology and evolution. Over millions of years, humans evolved survival instincts to protect us from danger like animal predation. This instinct is driven by one universal emotion in all humans: fear. Fear is a cornerstone of our biology. No other emotion except fear can motivate us to form social groups, create new technologies, and even build civilizations. Fear is also the most accessible and reliable human emotion. Bad actors in the media, in politics, and consumer societies rely on fear to manipulate our thoughts, cast our votes, and buy their products. Horror filmmakers are exceptionally aware of (or, at least, they should be) how easy it is to access our fears. Legends of the genre, like John Carpenter, accessed our fears by obfuscating scenes to fire the audience's imagination and make them question the shadows. This is why low-budget independent horror films can be so compelling; the special effects in billion-dollar movie franchises can never invoke the fear of a terrifying story and a darkened corner shot the right way. Sadly, Alive (2022), written and directed by David Marantz , foregoes these fundamentals and ends up being a production that lacks value unrelated to the budget. Alive gives the viewer the impression that it came into being because a community theater troupe was spontaneously interested in making a zombie movie. The end result is a disjointed, unprofessional mess that hopefully was at least a fun weekend for some of the younger actors. Before covering the film's shortcomings, let's cover where it exhibited at least some value: writing and cinematography. Marantz demonstrates good narrative ideas, even if they are somewhat derivative. The film's story focuses on Helen ( Ellen Hillman ), a teenager caught in the zombie apocalypse, accompanied by her boyfriend, Kevin ( Kian Pritchard ), and her little brother, Barney ( Andrew and Daniel May-Gohrey ). Helen's primary motivation is ensuring the survival of Barney, who has been infected by the zombie. Alive's plot has heavy overtones of 28 Days Later (2002), I Am Legend ( 2007), Warm Bodies (2013), and The Walking Dead (2010). Marantz combines narrative tropes from these influences in a way that is as interesting but only slightly more than the source material. The film's opening introduces at least eight possible protagonists before Helen becomes the primary focus. If audiences can get through the frustrating start, they will feel invested in a mildly compelling story focused on Helen. The focus on Helen makes it easier to endure the film in the second act. Still, it finishes on a narrative low note that disposes of a pillar of the zombie genre and deflates much of the previous tension. The narrative proves to be the film's best part, even with these problems. Neil Sheffield and Ellen Hillman in Alive (2023), Court esy of Gravitas Ventures Cinematographer Tom Allen does his best to support Marantz's story with a washed color pallet rooted in dark greens and sepia undertones. These choices complement the emotion of the scenes, making Alive somewhat enjoyable to look at. Unfortunately, the camera work is inconsistent, especially in the later acts. Marantz uses noir shots with heavy shadows to save on backgrounds and avoid inflating the budget. This means that the audience must watch the actors in close-up static shots against black backgrounds, which is very noticeable. This use of obfuscation works in some scenes, but it quickly overstays its welcome and becomes overbearing. The camera angles multiply rapidly in the film's action scenes, making these scenes difficult to watch. As turbulent as the camera work is, the actor's performances are weak and lack emotion. The zombies are unbelievable, with many extras just walking like normal humans going to their cars to retrieve their phones. The actors display no confidence in their delivery or characterization. Gillian Broderick , as Lucy, delivers a few good moments, but these only stand out because she displays a basic competence missing in the performances around her. The director and cast needed to take more risks. There is more potential beyond the performances on display in Alive . Issues holding the movie back were more than just the performances. Alive’s technical production was amateur at best. The audio engineering was terrible. Towards the film's end, a microphone track is laid only for the left channel, which completely ruins the scene. There are disembodied heavy breathing sounds in other scenes, which could have been a zombie, only there were none on the screen. It can only be attributed to a sound boom operator unknowingly leaving a microphone on and neglecting his cardio at the gym. Some of these issues, especially the one-channel sound error, could have been fixed in post-production, but they weren't. It raises the question of whether the filmmakers even watched their own film. Alive is a film that lacks any charms audiences look for in low-budget horror projects like this. It just doesn't work, and the narrative potential, which one can only assume motivated this group to make this movie, remains safely locked away. Despite interesting cinematography, Alive lacks execution, motivation, and inexcusable neglect. Even the infamous Plan 9 from Outer Space (1957) was unintentionally entertaining at some points; Alive could only hope for such heights. Note: A previous version of this review appeared on slayawaywithus.com on 4 Apr 2023. Alive 2023 Share Send Send Send Send Track Name 00:00 / 01:04 Link Copied! Barely Alive A Neglected Zombie Apocalypse Narrative Lacking Depth Review

Death's Review on Scare Package II: Rad Chad's Revenge: A Love Letter to Horror "A Satirical Critique and Love Letter to Horror" 3 Mins by Death [THIS REVIEW CONTAINS SPOILERS] On the surface, Scare Package II: Rad Chad’s Revenge (2020) is just another entry into the long line of horror anthologies that have proved popular in recent years. Viewers would be right to expect it to be what is typical of this kind of film: over-the-top characters, lots of screaming, and plenty of gore, garnered with a hearty serving of comedic suffering for our viewing pleasure. Yes, the film is all these things — for the most part. Unlike anthologies that came before, Scare Package II comes together to convey something greater than its individual parts can alone. Be it intentional or not, the film functions better as a nonsensical and satirical indictment of the horror genre than, as a horror-comedy, an anthology, or a sequel. Directed by Aaron B. Koontz , it is obvious from the outset, for better or worse that Koontz is obsessed with the horror genre. He does not spare the viewer the burden of his obsession either — the film is not for the horror uninitiated. There are so many references to horror canon and tropes that even the most seasoned fan may struggle to catch them all. It’s a film by horror fans for horror fans. Scare Package II opens in the aftermath of Scare Package (2019) at the funeral of titular ‘Rad’ Chad Buckley ( Jeremy King ), with several returning characters in attendance including Jessie Kapowski, the lone survivor of the Devil’s Lake Impaler’s recent killing spree. Things quickly descend into chaos as the attendees are captured by an unidentified foe and forced to play deadly games, à la the Saw franchise. This narrative encompasses most of the film, with the contributing segments acting as short intermissions to the pacing of it. Courtesy of Shudder, AMC Networks Featuring four segments, the shorts begin with Alexandra Barreto ’s Welcome to the 90s , starring Revealer ’s Shaina Schrooten is an examination of the transition of women in horror from needing punishment for embracing their sexuality during the 80s (Halloween, A Nightmare on Elm Street) to finding empowerment in that same sexuality in the 90s (Buffy the Vampire Slayer). The segment conveys its points effectively, if not in the most obvious manner, and sets the stage for additional meaningful critiques of horror tropes later in the film. Anthony Cousins directs The Night He Came Back Again! Part VI: The Night She Came Back , a sequel to a sequel inside of another sequel, which will probably get another sequel, because, as we are reminded, “Sequels are the lifeblood of the horror genre.” There’s a missed opportunity here to examine why a ‘horror sequel’ is almost contradictory, but Cousins wisely sidesteps the larger issues and effectively critiques the tired serialization that plagues so many horror franchises. Jed Shepherd , writer of the wildly popular Zoom horror film Host (2020) directs Special Edition , a segment that features the return of the Host cast and stars Jemma Moore . A group of women on the hunt for a ghost of a child who was killed by falling on swords on the set of Three Men and a Baby (1987) according to an urban legend that began circulating in August 1990. Shepherd’s effective use of light, obfuscation and CGI makes for the only segment in the entire film to stray from comedy into actual horror. More importantly, he asks the question we’ve all been wondering for decades, “Who the fuck is Ted Danson?” Courtesy of Shudder, AMC Networks Rachele Wiggins rounds out the selected offerings with We're So Dead , written by Koontz and Cameron Burns . It’s an ode to Stephen King film adaptations like Stand by Me (1986) and Pet Sematary (1989) with a side of The Fly (1986) and Re-Animator (1985). Of all the contributing segments, Wiggins most closely mimics the overarching absurdity and nonsense of the main narrative. The segment plays out in such a ridiculous fashion that makes one wonder if the kids on the set of these films are going to be okay or if they are going to keep weird things in their fish tanks years from now. There are some issues with Scare Package II’s execution: the pacing in some scenes drags and for every reference intended as a nod to horror fan solidarity, there is a dialogue that almost makes audiences want to go watch the films referenced instead. None of the characters evoke attachment or concern and many of the actors feel detached from the urgency of their predicament. The film is not entirely successful as a horror-comedy either. A lot of the jokes get lost in themselves or esoteric references. Koontz tries to rescue these moments with a gratuitous injection of gore and violence, but these seem like transparent attempts to make us forget how they were just laughing. There are a few humorous moments, but these are sparse and likely won’t land for some viewers if a horror film reference is missed. Scare Package II is more aptly described as horror-nonsense or horror-satire if such sub-genres exist. It is so shameless in its self-awareness, so willing to break the fourth wall, and so absurd in its devices, that it ends up subverting its very subject matter. Which forces us to examine the irrationality of horror itself. At times, the film would have made even Lewis Carroll pause. Courtesy of Shudder, AMC Networks Throughout the film, Koontz concedes that horror is tired, predictable, and mostly rehashed from the glory days of the 70s and 80s but, at the same time, attempts to comfort weary horror fans by saying what we already know, “Yes, they could have just gotten in the car and drove away the whole time, and, yes, Laurie could have run out of the house instead up the stairs, but isn’t it just better that she didn’t? They may be idiots, but they are our idiots, right?” In the end, the film comes together to be something more than even the filmmakers intended. By unconditionally embracing the horror genre, faults and all, it manages to reinvigorate the audience’s suspended disbelief and remind them why they became fans in the first place. Scare Package II is an effective satirical critique of the horror genre that audiences are unlikely to have seen in a very long time. Note: A previous version of this review appeared on slayawaywithus.com on 22 Dec 2022. Scare Package II: Rad Chad's Revenge 2020 Share Send Send Send Send Track Name 00:00 / 01:04 Link Copied! A Love Letter to Horror A Satirical Critique and Love Letter to Horror Review

Death's Article on Steam Deck: A Steam Deck Revolution? "A Christmas Day Surprise Changes Death's After-life Forever" Sep 17, 2024 3 Mins by Death If you're like me, a North American semi-hardcore PC gamer with disposable income, no impulse control, and a fiber internet connection, you likely have a Steam library with hundreds of games that have sat unplayed for years. For those who don’t know, Steam is a PC gaming service from Valve Software, the makers of Portal (2007) and Half-Life (1998). Steam is a juggernaut of the online gaming industry and, in 2021, had 133.0 million active users, with 69.0 million daily active users. [1] In 2023, Steam had an estimated revenue of $8.5 billion, down from its 2021 high of 10.0 billion. [2] The Valve Steam Deck was released on 25 Feb 2022. One method Valve uses to create this much revenue is the seasonal Steam sale. Steam sales are an excellent opportunity for most gamers to get a discount on a game they have been waiting to play; for gamers such as myself, Steam sales drain my gamer wallet every time they happen. For almost every sale, I fall prey to the cute marketing art on the Steam store front page and those little green tabs advertising 75% or 80% off some critically acclaimed titles I have yet to try. Oh, you didn’t play Death Stranding ? It's weird, but good. Kojima, right? 50% off! Red Dead Redemption II was on PlayStation, and you didn’t get to play it? How about now for $20? Art for the 2023 Seasonal Steam Sales. Objectively, Steam Sales are, more or less, a pretty good deal. If you are interested in various games and genres, you can save a lot of money, which is good for the consumer. Typically, a good Steam sale will contain significant discounts on games that generally cost $70-80. These discounted games are suitable for gamers with finite resources and generate extra revenue for products nearing the end of their natural life cycle. The problem with Steam Sales is that they are almost too good sometimes. Oh, are they discounting an entire franchise this time? What do you mean by all Bethesda games being on sale? Skyrim , again? How can you not buy every game in the Resident Evil series for less than $15 each? It's one of the most incredible video game series of all time. You'd be losing money if you didn't. Capcom executives would be justified in showing up at your front door and guilt-tripping you on why you hate them so much. Did you want every Dark Souls game on PC and their corresponding DLCs you didn’t play for less than $50? Here you go. Have an excellent time repeatedly kicking yourself in the balls, gamer. And remember how much Our Lord and Savior Gaben loves you. Gaben, Our Heavenly Father. I have tried in the past to resist the temptation of these sales. Still, every year, I finance a no-small portion of Gabe's lavish island sex fortress hidden somewhere in the South Pacific with my hard-earned gamer dollars. (He's a billionaire. They all have them.) As sure as the tide comes in and out with the movement of our flat disc-shaped planet, I knowingly buy several games that I know I will not play. Steam sales have gotten to the point where there isn't much I can even buy anymore. For most sales now, see the blue "in-library" tag more than the green sale tag. Even during the vanilla weekly sales, if I filter out the garbage games with less than very positive reviews (I'm not playing a game with mixed reviews; I have some standards), I have to scroll far until I see something that interests me and is not already in my library. I often see the blue "in library" tags during Steam Sales. I am sure some of you are thinking, “This man has a massive spending problem, and his wife needs to disconnect some credit cards fast.” And, I agree... but not for the reasons you think. Yes, husbands left unsupervised with credit cards is never a good thing (There are plenty of reasons why my Amazon account should have parental controls enabled.), but buying games and not playing them is not bad because it wastes money. (We’re a double income and no kids couple. DINKS4LYFE, baby!) No, the real problem that keeps me awake at night, that burns in the core of my self-centered, oblivious to the pain of other, self-gratifying, entitled lizard-brained soul with the power of a thousand suns set on fire by even more suns, is that I am being deprived of the one thing that sustains the reason I exist, my very essence. Yes, dopamine. And not getting my dopamine is fucking unacceptable! To fix this problem, we first need to understand it. Specifically, I need to know how much time and money I spend on my gaming obsession and if any optimizations are possible. (‘Obsession’ is the right word here. This train passed ‘Hobby’ station about three decades ago and has not looked back. Full steam ahead!) Looking at my Steam summary for 2023, I played thirty-eight games and bought twenty-four new games. I played more games than I purchased, which is good. However, I spent 95% of my playtime on only two games: Hunt: Showdown and Baldur's Gate III. (I’ll argue that +700 hours last year on Hunt is justified because I main it for my content, and 500 hours on Baldur's Gate was because of… well... Shadowheart. If you know, you know.) While I have more fun (i.e., dopamine) per dollar spent on a few games, much more potential fun is locked away. In my mind, money spent on a game is justified if I get one hour of game time per dollar spent (I would love to say one hour of ‘fun’ per dollar spent, but given the current state of modern gaming, you can spend a lot of time having something I like to call ‘negative fun,’ but that’s a discussion for another time. Looking at you, Diablo IV.). Over the past thirteen years on Steam, I have spent $3,339 on games, which is all things considered (not bad). That equates to roughly $250 per year on gaming, which is quite reasonable. If I include microtransactions or in-game purchases as Steam lists them, the total comes to... $10,947. That’s $7,608 on microtransactions alone. (…I already deeply regret writing this article.) Moving quickly to any other topic, I have roughly 10,805 hours played on Steam. This makes my current dollar-per-hour-played ratio $1.013, or about a dollar an hour, which is on target, but since it is my duty to min/max everything, this could be much better. (It’s a gamer thing. If you know, you know.) Of the 417 games in my Steam library, 118 (or 28%) remain unplayed. About 50 or so other games with under an hour of playtime could be counted as unplayed. (I go where the ADHD tells me to, folks.) There are thousands of hours of quality gaming to be had without spending additional money. (In-game cosmetics aside, cause baby needs that drip in Guild Wars 2 . Again, if you know, you know.) So, there's a lot of room to drive down the dollar-per-hour-played ratio; the only real issue is how. How do I find a time-effective way to play all these unplayed games while maintaining my marriage, friendships, and work commitments? Guild Wars 2 shop outfits are absolutely worth my money. Thankfully, I found the solution on a quiet Christmas morning late last year. Or, more accurately, Mrs. Death did. “What is this solution?” you ask—first, a little context. Besides being amazingly sexy, super successful, and highly intelligent, Mrs. Death has another quality that sets her apart from every other woman: she is a gift-giving god. Mrs. Death has an uncanny ability to know what you want before you even know you want it. Being a literal Saint, Mrs. Death uses this superpower for good, specifically, spoiling her loving and adoring husband, who happens to be me. I will agree that her power is a little scary. I could be browsing Amazon, looking at some item that is tangentially related to something else I want, and, like magic, Mrs. Death will have that very same item months later when I least expect it. Sure, her ability to know you better than you know yourself is like living with an NSA agent who is constantly profiling you, and, yes, I should probably clear my browser history more often. But, even if my marriage is similar to living in a dystopian surveillance state, should I care if I receive the perfect present every 4 to 6 months for years on end? So, on a quiet and cozy Christmas morning last year in the Democratic People’s Republic of Marital Bliss, I was completely caught off guard as I unwrapped a brand new Valve-made Gaben-approved, nay Gaben-blessed, Steam Deck with a 1TB of internal storage and a state-of-the-art OLED screen. And when I say “off guard,” I had no idea. I still don’t know where she got the idea from. I think I mentioned in passing that the Steam Deck looked cool, but other than that, I have no idea. Putting aside that mystery, it was an extraordinary Christmas morning. That was until the initial surprise wore off, and I was sitting on the couch, new Steam Deck in hand, wondering, “What am I supposed to do with this thing?” The OLED version of the Steam Deck. - Serenkonata - stock.adobe.com As a PC gamer, I don’t equate handheld gaming with real gaming. (Sorry, not sorry, mobile gamers.) For me, the true peak of gaming is sitting in front of my 1440p 240 mhz ASUS ROG monitor, Logitech G502X mouse in one hand, and a Corsair k70 tenkeyless keyboard holding up the other, eagerly waiting to suck down all the juicy visuals that my GIGABYTE AERO 4090 can shoot all over my wanting face. By their nature, handhelds cannot deliver graphically intense experiences like a PC can. (Not to mention how awkward that would be in public.) I have always thought of handhelds as stand-ins for real gaming while traveling, the methadone to the real smack if you will. Handhelds are for disgruntled teenagers in the back of mom’s minivan who want to be anywhere else or for sedating iPad kids on airplanes who have no clue what the hell they are doing in Super Mario Bros. Wonder . (How is this 8-year-old kid going to survive life if he can’t even hit the first Goomba?) Or better yet, they are for introverting in the corner of your in-law's living room as your wife tries to justify her marriage to your mother-in-law, who openly ponders whether or not you are on the spectrum somewhere. (I may not make eye contact, but I have ears, Susan.) Honestly, as someone who has not ventured beyond the end of the driveway in over two months, why would I want any handheld, let alone something that could make me spend more money on Steam? For a while, I thought this gift, like all those games in my Steam library, would be a colossal waste of money. But, I could not have been more wrong after using the Steam Deck for over a month. Steam Deck 2022 Share Send Send Send Send Track Name 00:00 / 01:04 Link Copied! A Steam Deck Revolution? A Christmas Day Surprise Changes Death's After-life Forever Article

Death's Review on Pearl: Pearl is a Powerhouse Film "An Exploration of Sexual Rebellion and Cultural Legacies that Resonate beyond its Setting" Sep 17, 2024 2 Mins by Death Note: A previous version of this review appeared on slayawaywithus.com on 26 Jan 2023. Pearl , a prequel to the acclaimed X (2022) and the second movie in the X film trilogy, opens on a beautiful and idyllic Texas farm reminiscent of Hollywood’s silver screen era pictures like Gone with the Wind (1939) and The Wizard of Oz (1939). Director Ti West uses technicolor saturation levels, sprawling camera angles, and a sweeping soundtrack to evoke a sense of grandeur typical for depictions of rural life on film in this period. West co-wrote the script with star Mia Goth . Out of this pastoral paradise, Pearl (Goth) appears as an innocent farm girl with ambitions beyond the confines of her family’s property. She preens privately in her room, sneaks off to see forbidden ‘moving pictures’ in town, and dreams of dancing on stage to adoring audiences, all out of the eyesight of her domineering German mother, Ruth ( Tandi Wright ). However, her dreams encounter opposition as the realities of her life come into view. Beyond the usual demands that one would expect living on a farm, Pearl is also responsible for helping her mother care for her ailing father ( Matthew Sunderland ). Goth and West skillfully build sympathy for Pearl in the opening stages. However, this sympathy is tested when Pearl’s capacity for violence emerges, and the carnage begins. Pearl's violence is terrifying because of how her femininity is portrayed. She is childlike and dependent on the love of those around her, which aligns with traditional agrarian values. Unfortunately for Pearl, she only experiences love when her actions align with the expectations of others. She is loved for the utility of her gender and only in the way that others choose to recognize it. When she attempts to use her sexuality to fulfill her desires, she finds punishment or abandonment. As frustration mounts, Pearl states, “… you have no idea what I’m capable of.” This foreshadowing exceeds all expectations as Pearl descends into cruelty and malice. Her eventual brutality exceeds even the worst that Lizzie Borden was only accused of. Like Borden, Pearl’s violence resonates that much more, not only because of a natural distaste for murder but because it rejects an entire value system, one based upon her fertility and expected female roles. Serving as backdrops to Pearl’s sexual rebellion are the influenza pandemic of 1918-1919 and the First World War. Both events combined killed millions of Americans and fomented widespread anti-German sentiments. Germans, historically one of the largest immigration groups to the United States, were accused of being spies for the ‘Vaterland,’ intentionally spreading the pandemic, and were frequently attacked violently. German families who did leave took measures to hide their heritage by changing their family names, claiming another acceptable European ancestry, and refraining from speaking German in public. Mia Goth makes the dichotomy of Pearl's innocence and brutality look easy. Given this backdrop, Goth and West are not just writing about denied female agency but also reflecting on contemporary reactions to the recent COVID pandemic. If sympathy exists for Pearl and her forbidden dreams, then compassion should also exist for Asian Americans who recently experienced the same discrimination. In a way, Pearl is an ethnic anti-hero struggling against the world’s injustice due to no fault of her own. She is a prisoner not only to her gender but her ethnic heritage as well. Goth navigates Pearl’s predicaments and skillfully transitions her from dutiful daughter to merciless killer in an authentic and nuanced performance. She conveys Pearl’s sexuality and rage equally, making these characteristics equally impactful. She makes Pearl feel sympathetic, even while carrying out her heinous crimes. Right up to the closing shot, it is evident that Goth has poured all she has into Pearl. In all, Goth’s performance deserves recognition at the highest levels. West supports Goth’s performance with outstanding direction, cinematography, and storytelling. The tempo of the film never fails to engage the viewer’s attention. West’s framing of each scene effectively builds tension, even if no pitchforks are flying at a given moment. West’s use of red is worthy of special mention; red features prominently in almost every scene and is unusually visible due to the heightened saturation levels. Like his use of animals as emblems for violence, fertility, and decay in other parts of the film, red visually embodies the power struggle between characters on screen. West’s skill as a storyteller is on full display and is a pleasure to watch as the film unfolds. Pearl is an outstanding and masterfully crafted horror film. Goth’s performance shines simultaneously with sympathy and brutality. She delivers one of the best performances of the past year, and not just in horror. Note: A previous version of this review appeared on slayawaywithus.com on 26 Jan 2023. Pearl 2022 Share Send Send Send Send Track Name 00:00 / 01:04 Link Copied! Pearl is a Powerhouse Film An Exploration of Sexual Rebellion and Cultural Legacies that Resonate beyond its Setting Review

Death's Review on V/H/S/99: The End of the 90s Zeitgeist "V/H/S/99 loses the 90s nostalgia in translation at times, but is still a fun collection of frights." Sep 17, 2024 2 Mins by Death Note: A previous version of this review appeared on slayawaywithus.com on 21 Oct 2022. V/H/S/99 is the fifth installment in the V/H/S anthology series and platform for myriad horror filmmakers since the original was released in 2012. Like previous installments, it features five segments from various directors of different styles within the found footage subgenre. For its own efforts, the collection does not stray from the formulaic structure the series is known for and delivers a predominantly successful entry, although it may grossly misinterpret the late 1990s in many ways. I don't know if we were as cool as we thought we were in the 90s. Courtesy of Brooklyn Horror Film Festival. The collection opens with Shredding, written and directed by Maggie Levin , a segment that seeks to capture the 90s punk era’s Zeitgeist. It features a band of misfits trying to aspire to the greatness of their now-dead (or undead) rock idols. The music is ostensibly inspired by the early 90s grrl punk rock trend, but with heavy corporate pop punk undertones, despite the fervent claim to the contrary. The music definitely isn’t punk if one actually experienced the west coast 90s punk era firsthand, but it works for the story’s setting. (Also, mosh pits were not about violence; they only looked that way. Guess you had to be there.) Levin is guilty of telegraphing some gags, which is bound to annoy the audience, but she delivers in setting a ghoulish tone. I was as confused as they look watching this segment. Courtesy of Brooklyn Horror Film Festival. Second in the line-up (and first in how to commit involuntary manslaughter) is Suicide Bid, written and directed by Johannes Roberts . The story follows a young college student making an all-or-nothing play to join her dream sorority. The one-dimensional cruelty of the antagonists is the worst thing about this short. The over-the-top and overused mean girl trope only serves the audience’s desire to see pretty girls getting killed by monsters. There are some strong The Craft (1996) and Mean Girls (2004) vibes at certain moments, which gives audiences hope initially, but it quickly devolves into confusing and inexplicable plot jumps, resulting in the weakest segment of V/H/S/99 . Steven Ogg will always be GTA V's lovable meth head Trevor to me. Courtesy of Brooklyn Horror Film Festival. Thankfully, despite its shaky start, V/H/S/99 offers some solid storylines and scares worth watching. Ozzy’s Dungeon, co-written and directed by Flying Lotus and Zoe Cooper , harkens back to cable television hell that was the Nickelodeon game shows when parents were all too willing to have their child risk life and limb for a slim chance at fame on clearly unsafe obstacle courses. Strong performances from Steven Ogg and Sonya Eddy carry the story, and Flying Lotus comes the closest of any of the filmmakers to saying something profound. There is a moment when the exploitation of these shows collides with racial wealth disparity in an attempt to say something much bigger than focusing on the OSHA health and safety violations on display. However, it is lost when the segment plunges into cynicism and the need to complete its horror movie checklist. This kind of video streaming was just not possible in the 90s. Courtesy of Brooklyn Horror Film Festival. The Gawkers, co-written and directed by Tyler MacIntyre with Chris Lee Hill , provides the interlude for V/H/S/99 and delivers some potent scares when it finally comes into the foreground in the fourth act. Of all the other segments, it feels most anachronistic, belonging to the 20s rather than the 90s (the internet could barely handle text-based communication in 1999, let alone high-resolution video, CRT monitor or not, let’s be honest here). This segment may look like the late 90s in fashion and style, but it reads like YouTubers found a box in their parent’s garage marked ‘90s stuff’ and decided to make a horror film with the contents. MacIntyre salvages the segment by employing some very nice special effects to tell a hormone-soaked peer-pressure story about adolescent boys, this amazing new invention called ‘the internet,’ and the hot girls next door. Admittantly, some Y2K New Year's Eve parties did get kinda crazy. Courtesy of Brooklyn Horror Film Festival. To Hell and Back, co-written and co-directed by Vanessa Winter and Joseph Winter , closes out V/H/S/99 with the most intentionally hilarious segment on offer. Clearly influenced by films like Army of Darkness (1992), the Winters skillfully deliver a Raimiesque whirlwind of peril, guts, and comedy—pulling together summoning demons and the fear of Y2K to greater effect. The banter between characters and matter-of-fact treatment of the subject matter really works as short-form content. It is a refreshingly comedic end to an otherwise serious and cynical outing for the rest of the anthology. The only issue with the short is that there isn’t more of the film to enjoy. (Extra points are awarded for keeping the party hat on the entire time.) While some stories falter in V/H/S/99 , the rest pick up the slack and make a serviceable, if not innovative, addition to the V/H/S series. The collection doesn’t exploit the greater potential of some of the displayed themes but mostly accomplishes what it sets out to do. Even though it loses the 90s zeitgeist in translation in some places (something every generation is guilty of when reflecting on the previous one—don’t fret too much, Zoomers), the shorts make up a fun collection of scary stories in time for Halloween. V/H/S/99 premiered on the East Coast at the Brooklyn Horror Film Festival on October 14, 2022 , before its exclusive streaming premiere on Shudder on October 20, 2022 . Note: A previous version of this review appeared on slayawaywithus.com on 21 Oct 2022. V/H/S/99 2022 Share Send Send Send Send Track Name 00:00 / 01:04 Link Copied! The End of the 90s Zeitgeist V/H/S/99 loses the 90s nostalgia in translation at times, but is still a fun collection of frights. Review