Dungeon Keeper 2

The classic RTS that took the early 2000's by swarm, highly recommend it for nostalgia reasons, I got this for £0.99

Great game, true classic. Though its technical nature seems a bit wonky at times with some effects being FPS-dependent, UI-text dissappearing at high resolutions, some creatures not spawning in some levels, relative low forced resolution etc. Could honestly use the remaster-treatment, but don't think that is likely to happen due to Dungeon Keeper 1 (and KeeperFX in extension) being much more popular in general. I personally prefer this game as I really really really like its art-style and humor. Also own it on GOG and played it there for hours, even before this game got released on Steam, hence the in-dept review with relatively low play-time here.

Somehow, this game holds up in quaint, cute, and often dated charm. The graphics are extremely 90s, very chunky, and yet... they communicate both the intent and the vibe they were going for. Difficulty also remains very 90s with one particular mission ratcheting up the insanity out of nowhere. Oh well, restart mission! This is how we used to play back in the day. In fact, the game's age and fresh thinking of what *could* be done instead of streamlining all the fun out of it with what *should* be done style of thinking, makes it refreshing to play in the 2020s era of gaming. And don't think this is slow either - even though you are quite limited in your ability to perform things within the game, that means you'll be clicking and panning as fast as you can. This is that Starcraft design thinking - no zoom in, pan out; Hell, even the camera rotation is... *gasp*... the Del and PgDn keys! How archaic... Yep, you'll be panning using the arrow keys, and your mouse wheel is useless here. Hotkeys? What are those? Must be some fancy new technology I've never heard of in the glorious year of our Dungeon Lord, 1999. 3D graphics had only just reaching their fullness here - remember, the monsters in DK1 were still just sprites. So, does the 'old jank' make it less fun? Hell no. There's challenge here, some thinking, and surprisingly DK2 doesn't waste too much of your time by padding things out. There's little nuances here and there that make you question the in-game mechanics (does a barricade block a cannon's shot?) ... and back then there wasn't much of an internet that you could just look things up on! Give it a shot. It's quirky, but surprisingly holds up quite well these days and provided me a welcome burst of refreshing, innovative gameplay and thinking. And besides, on sale it's like.... $2. That's my 2 cents anyway :)