Latest Reviews
Review Reanimal (PS5) - First-Rate Terrors Thrive in This Haunting Spectacle
Bigger and better nightmares
Reanimal is the best thing Tarsier Studios has ever done, and it’s not even close. While the Swedish outfit’s latest creation may look a lot like its previous series, Little Nightmares, it comfortably tops the two titles. The developer has fine-tuned its mixture of action and platforming to perfection, then...
Mini Review Dark Auction (PS5) - Compelling Visual Novel Makes Some Generative AI Missteps
X marks the trauma
In Dark Auction, it’s been three days since Noah last saw his dad His father is obsessed with collecting objects related to a World War 2 tyrant named Dictator X, and after setting off to take part in a mysterious auction he hasn’t been seen since. So, Noah decides to head to the castle where he was last seen only to get...
Review Romeo Is a Dead Man (PS5) - Absurd, Entertaining, and Tedious All at Once
Keep it that way
Suda51 games have a proud reputation of going against the grain, yet Romeo Is a Dead Man still manages to beggar belief. The latest effort from the No More Heroes lead is utterly baffling in some of the best and most frustrating ways possible. One minute, it delights with comical cutscenes and unique gameplay sequences. The next,...
Mini Review Aces of Thunder (PSVR2) - Immersive Spectacle Throws You to the Wolves
Chin up, you'll get the hang of it
If you’re familiar with War Thunder, you’ve got a good frame of reference for what to expect out of Aces of Thunder. In the broadest sense, this is a trimmed-down War Thunder, but in VR. Being a full-on simulation title, Aces of Thunder expects you to have a fairly thorough understanding of simulation aerial...
Review Yakuza Kiwami 3 & Dark Ties (PS5) - Colossal, Confident Remake Makes Controversial Changes
Black Monday blues
For many fans, Yakuza 3 would have been their gateway to the series when it first released back in 2010 for the PS3 — but returning to it now, or even booting up the PS4 remaster, highlights loads of older design elements that have aged rather poorly. And so this classic Yakuza experience has been handed the Kiwami treatment;...
Review Nioh 3 (PS5) - Superb Action Fronts a New Team Ninja Gem
Ninja in more than name
If FromSoftware can do it, then Team Ninja believes it can too. Having established one of the best Dark Souls copycats in the Nioh series, the Japanese developer is chasing its own Elden Ring moment. Nioh 3 isn’t quite that, but it still marks a new highlight for the franchise. This is all the best bits of the...
Review Arknights: Endfield (PS5) - Automation Turns Busywork into Bliss
Come for the waifus, stay for the workflows
Did the PS5 need another all-encompassing live service gacha game? Probably not, no – and so our expectations for Arknights: Endfield prior to release were relatively low. While we’ve always appreciated its industrial aesthetic, we simply didn’t feel we had enough time in our schedule for another...
Review Dragon Quest VII Reimagined (PS5) - A Tip-Top Remake of a Once Tedious RPG
Gone fishing
An infamously long RPG, Dragon Quest 7 has never quite been held up alongside the series' most revered instalments, but it's always been deserving of a second — or technically third — chance. Dragon Quest 7 Reimagined sets out to rework the adventure for a modern audience; many of its biggest alterations to the original formula...
Review Highguard (PS5) - Jack of All Trades PS5 Shooter Is Fine
Master of none
Have you ever played a game that has a nugget of something special in there, but just isn’t quite hitting the mark? That basically sums up our time with Wildlight Entertainment’s Highguard. This is a PvP raid shooter, which may sound like something new, but in reality, there’s a little something of most popular shooters stuffed...
Review Cairn (PS5) - This Uniquely Tactile Climbing Adventure Is Summit Worth Playing
Lonely mountain: uphill
Next to jumping, shooting, and dodge-rolling, climbing is an activity we spend an awful lot of time doing in modern games. It's sometimes surprising how few adventures dedicate themselves solely to this act, overcoming obstacles big and small by hauling yourself over them. While it's not the only game to ever do it, Cairn is...
Review Code Vein 2 (PS5) - Repetitive Vampiric Soulslike May Still Sate Your Bloodlust
Mostly mediocre
Code Vein 2 is the latest in a long line of action RPGs chasing the lofty heights of FromSoftware's immortal Dark Souls series, and like so many others before it, falls well short of the mark. Bland visually and uninspiring narratively, Bandai Namco's latest soulslike foray (previously publishing the aforementioned Souls series,...
Review Code Violet (PS5) - Gooner Shooter Can't Get It Up
Code Blue
Code Violet begins and ends with quotes by the renowned painter and inventor Leonardo da Vinci. That feels appropriate — not because this game will be remembered for time immemorial like the Mona Lisa, but because, much like one of Da Vinci's early flying machine sketches, the game is ambitious but never actually gets off the ground...
Review Trails beyond the Horizon (PS5) - Trails Takes an Impressive Step Towards the End
Don't look back
Right, first things first, do not play Trails beyond the Horizon if you haven't already beaten Trails through Daybreak and Trails through Daybreak 2. Even by Trails standards, Horizon is ridiculously dense; the events of this long-awaited sequel rely heavily on you having intimate knowledge of past titles, and so even if you have...
Another trip to Pandora
Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora - From the Ashes is a surprisingly great offering of DLC. It’s a standalone story that takes place after the events of the main campaign, following the Dog Tag Warrior, So’Lek (a former side character), as he faces off against the villainous Ash Clan. The Kinglor Forest from the base game is...
Mini Review Yakuza 0 Director's Cut (PS5) - A Questionable Cash Grab of a Classic
Hero to 0
Yakuza 0 remains one of the series' best games, and so you'd think that a PS5 re-release would be something to celebrate — but the circumstances surrounding the Director's Cut, and the new content that it actually adds, are questionable at best. Let's start with the objectively good stuff: Director's Cut enjoys a noticeable boost in...
Review Terminator 2D: No Fate (PS5) - A Brief Blast of 16-Bit Nostalgia
You'll be back for more
Terminator 2: Judgement Day is one of those pop culture moments that may never fully die off. Since 1991, it's been endlessly referenced in all kinds of ways, and is probably the biggest reason why the series has gotten as many other movies and television shows as it has. The strength of that one film has endured long...
Mini Review Milano's Odd Job Collection (PS5) - A Quirky PS1 Time Capsule Reopened
All work, all play
We don’t know what we’ve done to deserve it, but we’re living in charmed times for retro re-releases. Case in point: PS1 minigame compilation Milano’s Odd Job Collection – better known as Mirano no Arubaito Collection in Japan – has arrived on Western shores for the first time, having debuted over 26 years ago...
Stick the landing
Once the exclusive domain of the PC, demand has seen hardcore sims like Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024 land comfortably on consoles like the PS5. This particular venture into Sony airspace arrives approximately a year after it crash landed elsewhere, with dev Asobo Studio bundling in all of its various bug fixes from the past 12...
Mini Review Skate Story (PS5) - The Most Unique, Most Stylish Skateboarding Game to Date
Hell is a halfpipe
We've played many great skateboarding games, but none have ever looked or felt like Skate Story. This isn't about chasing massive scores or finding crazy lines; it's a single-player journey through the underworld, playing as a crystalline demon on a mission to save himself. The Devil says he'll return the demon's soul if he can...
Review Thief VR: Legacy of Shadow (PSVR2) - A Disappointingly Thin Dishonored-Lite
Should have stuck to the shadows
Thief VR: Legacy of Shadow is disappointing. This latest from Vertigo Games, although developed by Maze Theory, had some real promise on the lead-up to launch. But having rolled credits, we don’t feel much beyond relief that it’s over. Thief VR: Legacy of Shadow is the continuation of a franchise that we last...
Mini Review Old School Rally (PS5) - Don't Cut This Retro Rally Throwback
Smooth ride
Old School Rally does what it says on the tin, and it does it well. Mimicking the look and feel of a PS1 rally racing game, it combines retro presentation and design with some modern touches for a fun, nostalgic drive. The visuals intentionally ape the original PlayStation's jaggedy, polygonal look very well, and coupled with some music...
Review Octopath Traveler 0 (PS5) - Perfectly Fine JRPG Action
Gacha made good
Now on its third entry in seven years, the Octopath Traveler series and the HD-2D art style it pioneered have quickly become RPG stalwarts. They entertain with retro charm, engaging battles, and cute storylines. On that basis, prequel game Octopath Traveler 0 is another solid dose of turn-based action destined to please — just...
Review Marvel Cosmic Invasion (PS5) - Marvel's Most Fun Beat-'Em-Up in Decades
Beta Ray Brill
Between the brilliant TMNT: Shredder’s Revenge and Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: Rita’s Rewind, retro beat-‘em-ups are enjoying a bit of renaissance. Marvel Cosmic Invasion is perhaps the highest profile effort yet, a sublimely presented four-player pixel art tribute to the arcade glory years, when smoky pool halls were ruled...
Mini Review POOLS (PSVR2) - Niche Horror Is a PSVR2 Showcase
There's something in the water
POOLS is more of an experience than a game. You can technically see it through to completion in about an hour. But amid the brevity of our time with it, there's a palpable sense of atmosphere that'll leave you on edge. POOLS is an off-kilter horror walking simulator where you must navigate complex mazes of tiled...
Mini Review Morsels (PS5) - This Gross Little Roguelike Is Tastier Than It Looks
Pet food
Morsels is one of those roguelike action games that feels impenetrable at first, but once you start learning its obscure language, it becomes more and more rewarding. You play as a mouse trying to fight back against the tyranny of feline overlords, and you do so with mysterious cards that transform you into various strange creatures...
Mini Review R-Type Delta: HD Boosted (PS5) - Glow-Up of PS1 Classic Shmup Still Has the Sauce
Don't let go of that trigger
R-Type Delta is a PS1 classic. One of the greatest shmups of its age, the title hasn’t received a port since 2009 on the PS3, so this has been a long time coming. As the first R-Type with 3D graphics, we were worried the title might not look great with proper HD graphics. This era of 3D gaming tends to look pretty...
Review Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 (PS5) - The Most Absurd Game in Series History
Back to the future
Call of Duty has well and truly gone off the deep end. In Black Ops 7, the latest Treyarch effort, any hint of realism the series may have once possessed is gone. In its place are controllable machetes the size of buildings, boss encounters on a scale that would make God of War proud, and friendly zombies. The campaign is so far...
Mini Review Neon Inferno (PS5) - Beautiful Layers, Chaotic Bullets
Bullet hell
Some games embrace their inspirations in an obvious display of affection, which is exactly what developer Zenovia Interactive has done with Neon Inferno. This 2D run-and-gun platformer has a ton of similarities to classics such as Contra, yet manages to achieve its own identity with an interesting narrative and engaging gameplay...
Help wanted
Developer Purple Lamp Studios has been honing its craft working on several licensed games, with more than one SpongeBob title under its belt. Its latest effort, SpongeBob SquarePants: Titans of the Tide, is another 3D platformer riding the wave of nostalgia caused by its remake of the fan favourite, Battle for Bikini Bottom Rehydrated...
Nice town, I'll take it
Age of Empires 4: Anniversary Edition is another excellent real-time strategy game from the now venerable series that popularised the subgenre back in the late 90s and early 2000s (with 'popular' being a relative term). Developed by Relic Entertainment and initially published by Xbox Game Studios in 2021, it's now the turn...
