Welcome to the Game III

I had kept myself relatively spoiler free during its development, as I had been looking forward to this game for so long and I was not disappointed! I wanted to give a bit of time before sharing my review just to get a hang of it all and for any bugs being experienced to be ironed out. On initial release, I experienced very few crashes and some bugs, however a lot of those things have since been fixed due to Reflect Studios attentive patch work. I knew going into a Reflect Studios game that the learning curve would be steep, and tbh, I do not mind that as I’ve played previous titles. I’ve just been taking my time to enjoy the game and found the experience so far to be an enjoyable one. I also found the Easter Egg additions regarding a certain lil guy to be sweet too. [b] On the price: [/b] I feel it is fair, due to the number of ways/approaches you can play the game and the content involved. I didn’t go in hoping to beat the game first try i.e like some AAA titles charging £60+ for a couple hours of content that doesn’t feel challenging for me personally, though enjoyable. Whereas with this, I feel I get a lot of bang for my buck personally speaking. As mentioned above, Reflect Studios have been on top of delivering hotfixes and patches which has been greatly appreciated. [b] Gameplay: [/b] From going from a game (Wttg1) that was pretty much “on rails”, to this latest instalment where it gives a sort of sandbox-esk feel where you’re left to play/navigate the Game how you wish, allowing space to learn and test certain mechanics that just adds to the immersion. Having a checkpoint system for Normal mode makes the overall experience forgiving. I really think Reflect Studios is on to something here. I like the interactive elements of the chat systems. The atmosphere is solid (also the pause music is a lowkey masterpiece). Though if your laptop sounds anything like mine (a jet about to take off lol) I’d recommend headphones, especially with the game depending on certain audio cues that could be missed otherwise. It’s also worth noting that I am glad that the audio balancing has been considered. [b] Threats: [/b] I really like how the Threats are implemented, I think they work well in this environment setting. I did previously have some runs where I unknowingly had a bug with them not spawning, which freaked me out because it was a little toooo quiet and I’d anticipate getting the jumpscare of my life lol, but I am aware this has since been patched. I also think the Tanner skins are hilarious lol sort of breaks the tension and adds alil comedy, though don’t get me wrong, the game is still terrifying (more on the skins later). Also, unsure if it’s just me but I had instances where The Kidnapper would insta-k!ll me when going outside, despite not seeing him. I’d assume you’d have to have at least one camera installed or perhaps I’m missing something. Just r.i.p if you don’t have Cletus’ “stuff” lol. Regardless, I’m sure I’ll figure it out. The Noir I’ve found to be tricky to deal with. But again, I’m sure I’ll figure it out. [b] Feedback regarding the Threats: [/b] I sort of wish The Breather had a bit more presence (though I’ve taken into consideration that he has since been buffed). But I mean if he would occasionally ring the desk phone and if you don’t answer it (or at least listen to his voicemail in time), he delays your packages, nothing too crazy. Though, I do understand that there are a lot of other factors that must be considered and can’t just be [i] put it in [/i]. Similarly, I personally would have loved to see Mr. Delfalco in this instalment, especially him being a “professional cleaner”. Having him in this seedy environment would really suit. I can just imagine him turning up in a seedy van after a certain point in time where he’d whistle and roam around the external environment occasionally as the player would have to navigate the map staying out of his sight when active, before leaving. I duno, but I just believe this would add a whole other aspect of horror and creepiness. [b] Hack Feedback: [/b] I like the addition of the new hacking games. ShiftSeq is really fun. Tokenine is strangely one of my favourites although the difficulty spike I’ve witnessed for this in the harder difficulty is alil insane T^T I doubt I would have any chance to beat these going into it. I hope the difficulty with these are adjusted at some point or at least given a bit more time to take evaluate things. The addition of having plain text as part of the Kernel Compiler is a great addition, especially for those of us where programming doesn’t come natural to us. Although, I also sort of wish short bits of code (nothing too crazy) was sprinkled into the hacks too for lower difficulty, but that’s just me nit picking. Which leads me to……..! [b] Potential expansion regarding the WTTG3 Demo. WTTG3 Lite: [/b] Though the demo has been since been removed. I truly think there is potential there to turn it into a free expansion product where it’s essentially a Hacker Mode experience. These can be determined by difficulty selection. Normal, 1337. The same 2 Threats presented in the demo can be toggled on/off and the player (more so meaning new or causal players to the franchise) can be allowed to experience the WTTG lite vibe (navigate the web, practice finding the 2 keys) but more so have an endless mode to practice the hacks. Whether there is an option to practice just 1 form of hack, but also a toggle option to have the whole range showcased in WTTG3. [b] Why I personally think this: [/b] My favourite Reflect Studios game is Dead Signal for so many reasons and I believe it welcomed a lot of newer and causal players to the franchise as a whole. Considering the idea regarding the WTTG3 Demo would be a cool bridging step when coming into WTTG3 or previous titles. But overall, I just think it would be a good addition for all players, no matter the skill level. [b] What I’d like to see in the future: [/b] - Multiplayer PvP would go crazy. - Possibility of Skins for threats such as The Kidnapper and Lucas. As mentioned, I found Tanner’s skins to be hilarious. Though it would be cool if other threats had 1 or 2 skin options too. Nothing on the level of Tanner’s lol. Just generally speaking. - For an additional challenge, an additional Achievement ([b] God Gamer+ [/b] or something) if the player completes a 1337 run without gamba. - Or consider having the gamba locked at the start of 1337 until purchased for a medium DOS price. - Mr. Delfalco. [b] Overall: [/b] Despite minor frustrations that have since been patched out (and continue to be done so by Reflect Studios) I would recommend this game as it’s been a fun experience so far and believe they've exceeded themselves. Even if the run isn’t necessarily going the way I’d like, I just accept them as knowledge runs (which are key in these games, knowledge). Though enjoyable, I believe that after a bit more balance and tweaking this game could equal Dead Signal for me in my opinion or even better. I look forward to playing more. For newer players who haven’t touched a Reflect Studios game, I’d recommend trying Dead Signal perhaps first, but if not, be prepared to a steep learning curve (you’ll experience it though regardless with previous titles, just Dead Signal is a bit more forgiving on the lower difficulty specifically).