PS3, PS Vita Reviews

Blue streak

The backlash against Sonic the Hedgehog 4: Episode I must have hit SEGA hard. Here was a game everyone said they wanted — a high-definition return to Sonic's 2D roots, and while it was a decent game on its own merit it didn't feel like a true continuation of those classic 16-bit adventures. It was almost like an athlete coming out of...

Brave new world

It’s a testament to Warhawk's longevity that almost five years after its original release, it still maintains a vibrant and enthusiastic community. Most other multiplayer titles shed their numbers at a worrying rate, but engaging core design and unprecedented post-release support has ensured the downloadable shooter a place amongst...

Not a bad shot

Sniper Elite V2 is a pretty single-minded game, when all’s said and done. The Rebellion-developed remake has grand plans of being a stealth action title with tactical frills, but in reality it’s much more content with being a profoundly simplistic shooter. With a limited arsenal and even fewer gameplay distractions, the success of...

Awesome or naut?

It's the year 3587, and two robot armies are in a galactic struggle for power. It’s up to the elite group of combatants known as the Awesomenauts to determine the fate of this cosmic clash. Gameplay in Awesomenauts revolves around a series of three-on-three battles as each team attempts to break through the enemy's defences and...

Goresome

Warner Bros. and NetherRealm Studios released Mortal Kombat on PS3 last year, returning the series to its über-violent 2D roots and right back into the top tier of fighting games. The lengthy story mode and robust online options were only the start of what the game had on offer, and that’s before the DLC started rolling in. With the Vita...

Perplexing petals

Don't try too hard to understand. Datura is bizarre, a short adventure designed to be played in a single sitting with PlayStation Move, seemingly intended to bewilder anybody who comes before it. Yet that's one of its strengths. With no background information whatsoever, you take control of a man who is apparently as lost as the...

A welcomed new touch

Omega Force gets plenty of stick for sticking too closely to the same old template with its Warriors titles, and while the aptly titled Dynasty Warriors Next sticks to its tried and true basics, it also shakes up the formula by making creative use of Vita's control inputs. The real-time hack-and-slash feudal warfare is further...

The weird warriors

2009's Street Fighter IV inserted plenty of coins into the ailing fighting genre, bringing it back to the forefront of competitive gaming. With six buttons on the agenda again, Reverge Labs is hoping to capitalise with Skullgirls, a new title aimed squarely at serious fighting fans. Skullgirls doesn't completely close the door on...

Pawn shop

With an extensive range of tutorials tucked beneath its board, Pure Chess is set to make a grandmaster out of the freshest chess newbie. There are unforced errors in its approach, however, that prevent it from matching up to the age-old game's traditional quality. Pure Chess is the work of VooFoo Studios, the team behind Hustle Kings, and...

High flyer

Sometimes a game comes out of nowhere and completely blows you away. Coconut Dodge – the first Minis endeavour from Brighton-based studio FuturLab – had that impact upon almost everyone that tried it. Simple in premise, but deviously addictive, the arcade mini-game was a captivating affair that still holds our attention today. Its...

Kill 'em again!

Years ago, gamers' weekends weren't filled with online multiplayer binge sessions. Instead, they filled local arcades with a pocketful of quarters, ready to show off their skills and hopefully land a top score on a cabinet for bragging rights. One series that made its name in these arcades is SEGA's zombie-infested light gun shooter,...

Heller good?

Prototype 2 is anything but subtle. The follow-up to Radical Entertainment’s 2009 murder simulator rarely gives you a moment to breathe without gunfire, rockets and tendrils of errant intestines bursting from the screen. Its anarchic approach to gameplay can grate on you, but without a meaty plot to hang its crimson hat on, it’s...

Gnome mercy

Defenders of the Mystic Garden (DotMG) takes elements from the tower defence genre and tweaks a few aspects to help differentiate it from others. Like most entries in the genre, you’ll control a limited number of units to fight against hordes of incoming enemies, but DotMG has movement on its side. Instead of units remaining...

No absence of depth

The Disgaea series has surged in popularity in recent years, mainly due to its nearly limitless degree of combat depth and heaped amounts of content. Disgaea 3 was originally released on PS3, along with a vast selection of downloadable content, so rather than create a brand new game for Vita from scratch Nippon Ichi decided to...

Spinster

StarDrone Extreme should be a mess: the game has a longer list of influences than an experimental electronica band. But somehow developers Beatshapers and Orb Games have managed to fuse the title’s extensive list of disparate inspirations into a cohesive package, and against all odds produced a tremendously enjoyable action puzzle...

Block-tastically magical

There’s no question that Vita's gaming experience can be called “magical,” but with the release of LEGO Harry Potter: Years 5-7, the enchanting experiences of the final films in Harry Potter’s epic adventures are charmingly downsized LEGO-style and placed right upon your fingertips, allowing the magical series to...

Keep the faith

You get lots of things if you're a cloud god. Your very own personal, environmentally friendly air transportation, the power to smite the mightiest of demons with only the tips of your fingers and the undying devotion of as many little old men as you like. It's not all lounging on beds of water vapour and gobbling grapes, though...

Transfer listed

The portable FIFA titles have come a long way since the days of Game Boy Advance, when pitched down versions were the norm. These days EA takes the portable market a little more seriously, going on PlayStation Vita from day one and launching FIFA Football alongside the new system. If you've played a home console FIFA title in the...

The deep end of the pool

After the original BlazBlue: Calamity Trigger wowed fighting game fans with its amazing depth and character variety, developer Arc System Works took things a step or two further with its follow-up, BlazBlue: Continuum Shift. Not only did the follow-up continue the in-depth fighting experience of the first release, it also...