About the author: Scott Ellison II
- Profile
- Scott is a disabled Marine veteran, married to his wife Nicole and has three kids. Scott also has a full-time job with Fastly as the Manager of Tier 3 - CSE. Scott is most well-known for founding, and writing for Saving Content, but you can find his other work on G4@Syfygames (defunct) and GameCritics.com (active).
Posts by Scott:
Nightmare Reaper Review
Apr 18, 2022
Nightmare Reaper is a revelation of first-person shooters, one that successfully melds modern tech and ideas with nostalgic design. Blazing Bit Games have done the impossible by making a retro FPS, roguelite, and looter shooter all-in-one. This shouldn’t work as an idea, but it does greatly. If you were tiring on this sub-genre of retro FPS games, do not sleep on what is one of the most refreshing entries. Nightmare Reaper features several strokes of genius to be an unrelenting, chaotic, brutal first-person shooter that has it all, and more.
Weird West Review
Mar 31, 2022
Immersion doesn’t have to rely on the first-person perspective to be effective, and Weird West is evidence of that. WolfEye Studios, made up of former Arkane developers who know the genre, have made an immersive sim through the guise of an action RPG. This genre-bending oddity of a game shouldn’t work, but it thankfully does. This is due to the multiple protagonists and bizarre, yet engaging world that is molded by your actions or inactions. Weird West is every bit the isometric wild west Dishonored you think it is, but manages to keep some of its secrets to be discovered by experimenting through its gameplay.
ROCCAT Kone XP Review
Mar 23, 2022
Making any piece of hardware that matches or even exceeds its predecessor is no easy feat, but that’s ROCCAT’s strength. Their latest is the ROCCAT Kone XP, an excellent mouse for the gamer who plays everything from shooters to RTS’, and everything in-between to keep you competitive at every angle. The Kone XP is a direct follow-up to the Kone AIMO Remastered that released three years ago. I can say definitively that it has been worth the wait for a gaming mouse this good at what it offers. The ROCCAT Kone XP surpasses, just about everything to be one of the finest mice I’ve ever used.
Shredders Review
Mar 16, 2022
Shredders is made from a conjoining of two development studios: I-Illusions and Let It Roll, to become FoamPunch. Not only do they make games, but they snowboard in real-life and adapted that passion into their first game together. It evokes nostalgia without relying on it as a crutch, Shredders is a modern snowboarding game with a simcade take on controls and visuals. FoamPunch’s first outing isn’t everything I wanted, but it’s off to a good start. We’ve been spoiled by some snowboarding games over the years. And Shredders manages to be enjoyable, even if it is less than fully featured compared to its contemporaries.
FAR: Changing Tides Review
Mar 11, 2022
When I received code for FAR: Changing Tides, I had never played 2018’s FAR: Lone Sails from developer Okomotive. Once I sat down with it, I was absolutely enraptured by it and even completed it in a single sitting. While I’m glad I finally experienced it, I just wish I hadn’t been missing out all these years. Changing Tides is the long-awaited follow-up that adds meaningful new mechanics and depth throughout your odyssey. You’ll find that the FAR series has no spoken words, no text to display, yet says so much in spite of that. It’s a game series that shows, rather than tells. FAR: Changing Tides demands very little of you, but it will give so much in return for your efforts. Like Lone Sails before it, FAR: Changing Tides is also among my favorite games in recent memory, making both essential plays for anyone.
Shadow Warrior 3 Review
Feb 28, 2022
The resurrection of Shadow Warrior is one I never thought I’d see, and for it be so successful over the past nine years is a joy all its own. Flying Wild Hog was either predicting or echoing something in the first-person shooter genre, and always doing it better. With Shadow Warrior (2013) was DOOM (2016) before DOOM (2016). Shadow Warrior 2, this was a looter shooter like a mini-Borderlands, focusing on longevity and replayability. Now we have Shadow Warrior 3, a DOOM Eternal-like that’s more a continuation of the first game that chases its prior success. Unfortunately, Shadow Warrior 3 is a bit of a lo note for the series as Lo Wang and the gang go on a bloodthirsty yet ephemeral adventure.
GRID Legends Review
Feb 24, 2022
Codemasters are just that, experts at making games that cover broad strokes and niche corners of the racing genre. For GRID, the long-running series has really stepped into its own with the introduction of a story mode, and improvements on every facet with Legends. Codemasters have clearly heard the complaints about 2019’s reboot, and have expanded the number of locations, vehicles, and even types of disciplines. This entry smooths all of the rough edges of its predecessor. GRID Legends is exhilarating, exciting, and an enthusiastic arcade-based racer that is the series’ best entry to-date.
OlliOlli World Review
Feb 03, 2022
We haven’t had a new OlliOlli game for 7 years, but thankfully that drought is finally over. OlliOlli World is the third installment in the skateboarding platforming series, and is easily the best so far. Roll7 has revived the series with a new look, a new publisher, but have left the gameplay largely untouched. This is one of the finest skateboarding games out there with incredible depth and detail. OlliOlli World is simply sublime, carefully balancing accessibility and challenge in one magnificent game that’s not to be missed.
Dying Light 2 Stay Human Review
Feb 02, 2022
Christopher Cross sang, “Don’t surrender to the dying light; don’t take it lying down.” The world has changed as the first cutscene plays before getting to the main menu, catching us up from where we left off from Dying Light, and things are not entirely for the better leading in to Dying Light 2 Stay Human. Humanity is put to the test, possibly its last; so there’s an undying hope, an unwavering passion to persist against the face of extinction. Techland has been doing the zombie thing for a while now, and I’ve yet to tire of their vision of a zombie apocalypse – I’m fascinated by all the dimensions that they explore. While there’s a deeper focus on relationships, actions, and consequences, there’s no forgetting what this game is really about: zombie slaying with inventive melee weapons, utilizing a now expanded parkour moveset, a larger focus on role-playing, and even a city to save.
Serious Sam: Siberian Mayhem Review
Jan 25, 2022
It may not be apparent that Serious Sam: Siberian Mayhem is a standalone expansion to Serious Sam 4, mainly because it doesn’t have four in the title, but it is. Inserting itself into the main game as a lost episode opens the door for creativity without fitting into a mold. Timelock Studio (the developer formed out of making this expansion) offers up a challenging and memorable game, a rare case where it exceeds its predecessor. Croteam put hundreds of enemies onscreen and worked it around the gameplay. Timelock Studio instead built gameplay around the hundreds of enemies onscreen, and that’s the key to its brilliance and brutal difficulty within it.
God of War (PC) Review
Jan 21, 2022
Boy! It feels good to have more PlayStation games on PC, though I’d like to see PlayStation 5 games and not just several years old PlayStation 4 games. Santa Monica Studio re-invents Kratos and the God of War mythos to an exceptional degree, while still having threads tie back to the original series. Every element of God of War is so carefully thought out and well-executed. It’s all punctuated by punishing combat and powerful moments that simply have to be experienced for yourself. Nearly four years after its original release, those who don’t have a PlayStation for one reason or another can now enjoy it. God of War is an essential PlayStation game that’s now an essential PC game, as well.
Nobody Saves the World Review
Jan 18, 2022
DrinkBox Studios always delivers a twist on a well-worn genre to rework the formula. In Tales From Space: Mutant Blobs Attack, it was a terrific puzzle-platformer with a B-movie backdrop. And in the Guacamelee! duology, it was a Metroidvania soaked in Mexican history with luchador action. Now with Nobody Saves the World, it’s an action RPG where instead of rolling multiple characters, you play as a single character that’s comprised of multiple classes that you can switch to on-the-fly. DrinkBox Studios demonstrates how sure-footed they are in what they’ve made, because there’s such an enchanting world with delightful role-playing elements and varied gameplay you’ve gotta play.
The Gunk Review
Dec 16, 2021
The Gunk comes from Thunderful Development, formerly known as Image & Form. While not a SteamWorld game, it has the intimate characteristics that have made those games such successes: tight gameplay, a rousing story, and unmatched exploration. While the story beats are formulaic and well-worn territory, it maintains your interest throughout to uncover this wide-reaching mystery. Cleaning up has never been so fun or as satisfying, and in The Gunk, you might just even save a civilization and the whole planet.
Thrustmaster TCA Yoke Pack Boeing Edition Review
Dec 14, 2021
Thrustmaster has been at the forefront of flight hardware, up until now releasing HOTAS (Hands-On Throttle And Stick) systems. For the first time Thrustmaster has, in partnership with Boeing developed a yoke system, and their first entry is a home run. This is the de facto way to play flight sims if you’re going for complete accuracy in your flight sims. The Thrustmaster TCA Yoke Pack Boeing Edition is simply in a league all its own, highly customizable, and feels like you’re flying a cloud.
Firegirl: Hack ‘n Splash Rescue Review
Dec 13, 2021
$17.99The concept of a firefighting game with a woman as the lead is immediately attention grabbing. Developer Dejima does well at making a great looking, playing, and feeling game centered around Firegirl. However, Firegirl: Hack ’n Splash Rescue fails to spark any long-term interest despite having a metagame for improving yourself and the firehouse you work for, the more you play. There’s some interesting story beats, but they’re predictable. Firegirl: Hack ’n Splash Rescue has the embers to start something big, but never fully catches fire.
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