Handsome & Humble: September Issue
Handsome & Humble is an ongoing series from Handsome Phantom about the games in the Humble Monthly Bundle. Humble Monthly is subscription service ($12 per month) from Humble that give subscribers a bundle of PC games each month. There are always some AAA titles, as well as a handful of indie games. The bundles are usually worth somewhere around $200, so we think its an awesome value for what subscribers pay.
Subscribers also have the option to pay for the next month’s bundle early, in order to get the “early unlock,” which is typically two or three of the games from the next month’s bundle. Handsome and Humble is the monthly series where we look at what you’ll get in the early unlock as well as a quick overview of the games from the last bundle.
This month is a little bit different than most months as subscribers have the choice between receiving Sniper Elite 4, Tales of Berseria, and Staxel as their early unlock games, or they can choose to receive Rise of the Tomb Raider as their early unlock game for the month of September.
Sniper Elite 4
Sniper Elite is back with it’s fourth installment! This game is set in Italy during World War 2, and players assume the role of Karl Fairburne, a lieutenant in in the British SOE (Special Operations Executive). Karl is given the task of assassinating a Nazi general and his officers who are developing a new weapon that could change the tide of naval warfare in favor of the Nazis.
Returning to Sniper Elite 4 is the beloved “x-ray camera” system. This brutal system shows you exactly how you have mutilated the Nazi you’ve shot, by showing you how the bullet passes through his body and which of his bones are shattered as a result. It’s brutal. It’s disgusting. And it is SO. DAMN. SATISFYING. Players who like semi-open world games like Metal Gear Solid 5 or Hitman will probably love this game, there have been quite a few significant improvements upon the previous installments of the series.
Tales of Berseria
Tales of Berseria is the sixteenth (and most recent) entry to the main titles in the Tales of series from Bandi Namco. This game offers more of the action JRPG gameplay that fans of this series have fallen in love with, with a much more polished story and gameplay. This game takes a break from the normal narrative of pure-hearted heroes. Instead, players assume the roles of a group of “bad guys” who are trying to figure out their role in the world and how to do good in spite of what society assumes about them.
This game has a really fun and challenging combat system which allows players to combine a balance of their own skill with each characters stats and playstyle strategies in order to be victorious in any combat situation. The open world also contains a great deal to engage players with hidden items and secret passages, as well as a number of other mini-games which can be played to obtain items to help in the main storyline. Tales of Berseria is an incredibly fun game, especially for those who typically enjoy action JRPGs, but be warned that this is a very long game. If you plan on completing it, you’ll probably have to invest 40 – 60 hours.
Staxel
Staxel feels like it is the illegitimate love child of Stardew Valley, Animal Crossing, and Minecraft. After creating a character, players are dropped into the pixelated world of modern farming wonder. After finding out that you’re the one who has been tasked with taking care of the old farm, the rest of the game is very open-ended. Even though there are quests to complete the game is, at its core, a farming game with a ton of extra mechanics to allow players to be as creative as possible in accomplishing whatever goals they choose to pursue.
Rise of the Tomb Raider
If you haven’t yet played the modern iterations of the Tomb Raider games, you have to try them. This third-person adventure game combines a great story with free climbing, puzzle solving, and a deadly arsenal of weapons, including everyone’s favorite bow and arrow. Rise of the Tomb Raider takes a deep dive into the character and inner demons of Lara Croft, seeing a little bit of a darker side of her.
This game take the puzzle solving aspect of this series to the next level, with some puzzles integrated into the main storyline, as well as quite a few challenge tombs that will truly test the player’s ability to problem solve (or their ability to use google, if they’re THAT kind of gamer). Players will find a lot to do in the open world and, if they somehow run out of things to do, they can switch over to the game’s challenge mode which will give players a customizable set of restrictions and bonuses to complete specific challenges. This game in and of itself is worth the $12 fee for this month’s bundle, so go ahead and give it a try!
And many more!
Each monthly bundles contains a handful of other titles as well – some that are well known, some that are not so well known. Since we can’t tell you about any of the other titles that will be in September’s bundle, here’s a quick overview of the games in last month’s bundle!
Conan: Exiles – The RPG/survival game set in the brutal wasteland of Conan the barbarian
The Escapists 2 – A 2D pixelated game all about escaping from prison
Forged Battalion – A futuristic RTS with customizable factions
A Hat in Time – A fun hat-based platformer that hearkens back to some of the most classic 3D platformers of our childhoods
Kona – The murder mystery game with a huge exploration component
Pathologic Classic HD – A very creepy adventure horror game that’s been remade
Sudden Strike 4 – A World War 2 real-time strategy game which focuses on huge-scale battles
The Surge – A Science fiction Dark Souls clone where you get to wear an exoskeleton and destroy robots
Check out the Humble Monthly subscription, an incredible value for PC gamers everywhere!
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