March2023
Review The Dark Pictures: Switchback VR (PSVR2) - Lousy Rails Shooter Is a Supermassive Shame
Ride it out
Until Dawn: Rush of Blood, a rails shooter with a rollercoaster theme, was one of the surprise highlights of PSVR’s catalogue, so there was understandable enthusiasm surrounding the announcement of Supermassive’s spiritual successor, The Dark Pictures: Switchback VR. Unfortunately, this is a dour shadow of a follow-up, let-down by...
February2023
Review The Quarry (PS5) - Maybe Until Dawn Was Just a Fluke
One foot in the grave
Republished on Wednesday, 15th February, 2023: We're bringing this review back from the archives following the announcement of February 2023's PS Plus Extra and Premium lineup. The original text follows. Whether it likes it or not, Supermassive Games will always have its titles compared to Until Dawn. The British developer...
November2022
Review The Dark Pictures Anthology: The Devil in Me (PS5) - One for the Fans Lacks Ambition
I want to play a game
With four instalments under its belt, The Dark Pictures Anthology from Supermassive Games feels like a roller coaster. Following an underwhelming start in Man of Medan, the horror series was getting better and better with Little Hope and House of Ashes. It appears, however, the latter may have been the peak o
June2022
Review The Dark Pictures Anthology: Man of Medan (PS4) - An Unexplosive Opening
Until yawn
Republished on Wednesday 29th June 2022: We're bringing this review back from the archives following the announcement of July's PlayStation Plus lineup. The original text follows. Maybe it's just because our Dad let us watch Jaws when we were six, but we've always been skeptical of the sea. It's wet, and there's weird things in there...
October2021
Mini Review The Dark Pictures Anthology: House of Ashes (PS5) - The Best Game in the Series So Far
Trapped between Iraq and a hard place
After the crummy Man of Medan and the better-but-not-quite-there Little Hope, The Dark Pictures Anthology has finally started hitting its stride with House of Ashes. Set in Iraq in 2003, the invading United States army is looking for weapons of mass destruction wink wink. Satellite imagery has alerted them to a...
November2020
Review The Dark Pictures Anthology: Little Hope - So Much Better Than Man of Medan
There's hope yet for Supermassive
We don't need to tell you what game The Dark Pictures Anthology: Little Hope will immediately be compared to, so let's get it over and done with straight away. The second instalment in Supermassive Games' compendium series is the closest it has come to replicating the success of Until Dawn. It finally feels like the...
March2018
Squad goals
The elite squad of United States hotshots Bravo Team think they’re home and hosed: they’ve successfully escorted the president of a fictional Eastern Europe country safely back to her destination, and all that’s left is a pat on the back and a rousing round of ‘Oorah’. But a sudden coup sees the dignitary snatched away, and...
January2018
Wendigo prophecy
Until Dawn’s breakout success has spawned all sorts of spin-offs, none really capturing the essence of the original teen slasher. The Inpatient continues this trend with a straight-faced, narrative-based PlayStation VR experience set in the 1950s. You play as a patient sectioned in Blackwood Sanatorium during its final days of...
November2017
Crime scene investigation
So far, Sony’s new PlayLink initiative hasn’t amounted to anything more than a decent selection of casual party games. Both Knowledge Is Power and That’s You follow the Jackbox Party Pack formula of wrapping up trivia questions within a fun and humorous setting, while SingStar: Celebration allows editor Sammy Barker...
June2017
Mourning woods
Republished on Wednesday, 28th June 2017: We're bringing this review back from the archives following the announcement of July 2017's PlayStation Plus lineup. The original text follows. Until Dawn is much better than you may be expecting. The teen horror title – which was originally intended as a PlayStation Move...
October2016
Topple the blocks
Ah, humble Tumble – the underrated PlayStation Move title that really proved the power of Sony's motion wand. A little dull on paper perhaps, virtual reality revisit Tumble VR stands taller than the sum of its parts, using three dimensional motion tracking to turn tower building into world beating entertainment. You may just have...
Review Until Dawn: Rush of Blood (PS4)
Ghost train
The camp thrills of Supermassive Games' interactive horror Until Dawn elevated it to a status that few expected; the deliciously dumb drama out-Quantic Dreamed the real Quantic Dream, and the silly scare-fest still very much sits among the very best experiences that the PlayStation 4 has to offer. Until Dawn: Rush of Blood, a virtual...
June2012
Review Doctor Who: The Eternity Clock (PlayStation 3)
Doctor No
The world of Doctor Who has been just begging for a competent game. After all, aren't aliens, robots, destruction, time travel and awkward, often sarcastic, humour all great staples of the medium? It's exactly the sort of television show that could merrily hop over the gap without missing a beat. But despite a clear love of the series and...
November2011
Review Start the Party: Save the World (PlayStation 3)
Save the cheerleader
Start the Party was one of the original games announced for the PlayStation 3’s motion controller, launching alongside Move at the tail end of 2010. It was the first project from Supermassive Games, and while it wasn't particularly well-received it clearly sold well enough to warrant the team having another stab at a genre...
September2010
Let's get ready to Tuuumble!!!
When Sony began its marketing blitz for the Playstation Move, the ads focused on how Move differentiates from the competition, namely Kinect and the Nintendo Wii. The Move campaign began with a commercial featuring Kevin Butler as the "VP of Realistic Movements" attempting to persuade the viewer the Move can do things...
Review Start the Party (PlayStation 3)
We rock the party
Start the Party is every core Move owner's worst nightmare: a minigame collection, full of casual, family-friendly gameplay. Although the usual issues that hold back the genre are all present and correct here, it's still not a bad title for families and those wanting a silly but enjoyable introduction to the controller. You won't...
