Latest Previews
October2023
Preview Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora Elevates the Ubisoft Formula with a Stellar Setting
We're not in Kansas anymore
We're in a room lined with a dozen PCs and a handful of press, just about to start our extended hands-on session with Ubisoft's upcoming Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora. It's hard to say if anyone else is particularly excited to try out the game, but we are. Immediate reactions to its gameplay reveal earlier this year judged...
Hands On Genki ShadowCast 2 Pro - A Seriously Powerful Capture Card
Perfect for your PS5
Via its growing stable of products, hardware maker Human Things is slowly but surely changing the landscape of gaming tech. It all began with the Genki wireless USB adapter for Switch, which was supplanted by the Waveform wireless earbuds. Then, the firm expanded into the realm of Switch docks with the
Preview Arizona Sunshine 2 Could Be the Next PSVR2 Must-Buy
PSVR2 is about to get bloody
Ask anyone that has a PSVR2 and they’ll likely tell you that the tech is great, but the library is lacking. Outside of No Man's Sky or Resident Evil Village, there are very few games that truly revel in the format of VR. However, a recent visit to Vertigo Games’ HQ in Rotterdam proved that VR is in the blood of the...
September2023
Preview EA Sports WRC Combines Codemasters Pedigree with Authentic Rally Racing
A rally good match
Codemasters knows rally. It's been making rally racing games since 1998, with the original Colin McRae Rally on PS1 being a hugely formative title for the studio. The series evolved into the DiRT games, which itself branched into two — numbered sequels with a more arcade-like nature, and DiRT Rally, a more serious, simulation...
Preview Hot Wheels Unleashed 2 Really Does Feel Like a Turbocharged Sequel
On course
Hot Wheels Unleashed was a distinctly pleasant surprise when it launched a couple of years ago, marking a much-needed departure for put-upon motorcycle developer Milestone. While the game handled like a dream – and had some stunningly rendered toy car models, particularly on the PS5 – it lacked variety and had a strange post-release...
Preview Genshin Impact, Honkai: Star Rail Dev Has Quietly Become a PS5, PS4 Powerhouse
HoYoverse's meteoric rise continues
In the opening hall of the Makuhari Messe this Tokyo Game Show was an enormous, monolithic tribute to HoYoverse, a company fast becoming one of PlayStation’s most important developers. While the juggernaut Chinese studio may not get the same recognition as the likes of Naughty Dog or FromSoftware, its games are...
Preview Dragon's Dogma 2 Feels Like a Remake of the First Game, in a Good Way
Heartfelt
Dragon's Dogma 2 sticks with the Dark Arisen template to a pleasant but almost surprising degree. Sequels often walk a fine balancing act as significant departures can alienate existing fans, whereas repeating the established gameplay often feels too safe. Capcom's anticipated sequel easily falls into the latter category but when the...
Preview Bandai Namco Is a Publisher Quietly on the Up
More like Funco, eh?
No one really talks about Bandai Namco, but the publisher’s doing a bang-up job. Last year it released Elden Ring, which not only proved a critical darling but also a break-out commercial hit. The action RPG ended up becoming a cultural touchstone for 2022, and it helped underline a really impressive run for the Pac-Man maker...
Preview Legendary Developer Level-5 Has Risen from the Dead
Two new PS5, PS4 titles show promise
Level-5 has an enormous booth at the Tokyo Game Show this year, rivalling titans like SEGA, Konami, and Capcom. This is significant because the iconic Japanese developer hasn’t really released a noteworthy game since Ni No Kuni 2: Revenant Kingdom. Admittedly, it has kept the lights on with a number of...
Preview Like a Dragon, SEGA's Once Embattled Yakuza Series, Has Never Been Better
Or stranger
If you’ve been listening to the clacking of leather shoes in SEGA’s glamorous – but often oddball – Yakuza series since the late PS2 days, you’ll know the franchise hasn’t always been in this position. For years a PlayStation exclusive, there was a point where Sony was reeled in to localise the release of PS3 late-comer...
Preview Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth Has a Playable Sephiroth
Our PS5 impressions from a hands on event
After the love-it-or-loathe-it ending of Final Fantasy VII Remake subverted fan expectations for what Square Enix could be planning as it brings Cloud Strife and pals back into the modern era, it was anyone's guess what the publisher might have to show during a recent preview event. Case in point: Sephiroth...
Hands On Cyberpunk 2077 2.0 Update Is an Outstanding, Game-Changing Overhaul
Chippin' back in
Cyberpunk 2077 has come a long, long, long way since we gave the initial PS4 version the most disappointing 3/10 review this website has ever seen back in 2020. We'd go as far to say it's been a great game since its release on PS5, and now, having spent over 50 hours with the title's highly anticipated 2.0 update (prior to its...
Preview Marvel's Spider-Man 2 Plays Like PS5 Superhero Perfection
Our thoughts after three hours of play
Given the presumably mammoth sales projections Sony has for PS5 exclusive Marvel's Spider-Man 2, playing too fast and loose with the open world formula at Insomniac Games was probably out of the question. This is a franchise that shifts hardware, and after a year slightly lighter on PlayStation Studios content...
Preview The First Descendant Could Be a Decent Destiny-Like Co-Op Shooter on PS5
First!
Having spent a good few hours with The First Descendant on PS5 — ahead of its open beta release later this month — we're happy to report that this free-to-play shooter seems to have a solid base to build upon. Very reminiscent of Destiny in terms of structure, we didn't quite have time to dig into finer details, but the gameplay clicked...
August2023
Preview Like a Dragon Gaiden Feels Like an Evolution of the Yakuza Franchise
Erase everything, build it again, better
We’ve seen glimpses of Kiryu since his reported death in 2018 — his appearance in Yakuza: Like a Dragon is a perfect passing of the torch for the series, we reacquainted ourselves with the eerily similar looking Ryōma this year in Like A Dragon Ishin!, and the Judgment series has continued Ryu Ga...
Preview Persona 5 Tactica Is Shaping Up to Be More Than Just a Tired Strategy Spin-Off
Take your time
We've accepted the Phantom Thieves aren't disappearing anytime soon and Persona 5 Tactica reaffirms why that isn't a bad thing. Much like Persona 4, Atlus' phenomenal RPG took on a life of its own and since 2016, we've seen our favourite Phantom Thieves investigating jails, crawling through dungeons and
Preview Persona 3 Reload Shows So Much Promise Despite Missing Features
SEESing the moment
Persona 3 remains a groundbreaking RPG but we were slightly worried if Persona 3 Reload would live up to its legacy. It's been 16 years since the original game first appeared, introducing life simulation mechanics and a considerably darker storyline than its successors. As the game that reshaped Atlus' popular series, expectations...
Preview The RPG High Will Endure in Granblue Fantasy: Relink
Our first impressions of the PS5 demo
With Baldur's Gate 3, Final Fantasy XVI, and next month's Starfield in its back pocket, the RPG genre is on something of a tear at the moment. Enthusiast gamers could be losing 100 hours of their free time to a number of different universes right now, and the best part is there's always another enticing...
Hands On Red Dead Redemption PS4 Port Seems Solid, But Should Be So Much More
A remaster, but only just
The source of much criticism since its announcement, Red Dead Redemption — the freshly released PS4 port — admittedly isn't as half-arsed as we feared it would be. But at the same time, it's far from the remaster that such a beloved PS3 classic deserves. We've ran through the open world epic's opening hours in order to...
Preview Duelling Worlds Set Lords of the Fallen Apart from Other Souls-Likes
Our thoughts after three hours of play
FromSoftware is almost certainly waiting until next year now to release Elden Ring DLC Shadow of the Erdtree, so in the meantime, how about a more traditional take on the Dark Souls formula? Developer Hexworks is resurrecting the Lords of the Fallen IP following its forgotten 2014 instalment with a bigger and...
July2023
Hands On The Expanse: A Telltale Series PS5, PS4 Gets Off to a Strong Start
Kowlting gut, bosmang
The Expanse: A Telltale Series is a newly-reanimated Telltale Games' first outing since filing for bankruptcy in 2018, before reviving a year later under LCG Entertainment. Now, with many of the studio's original staff having returned in a freelance capacity, the first episode (of five) is available, and we were eager to dive...
Preview Sony's Next Great First-Party Game Is Media Molecule's Tren, Made in Dreams
All aboard the hype Tren
Media Molecule might be taking a step back from Dreams in the near future, but it's going out on a high note. One of the team's last major contributions to its community-driven platform is Tren, a game about a wooden train set that packs the same warmth, whimsy, and charm as any of its previous works. Spearheaded by...
Preview Armored Core 6 Could Give Newer FromSoftware Fans Whiplash
Our findings after three hours of play
After gaining absurd popularity in the hardcore space with its Dark Souls series and then capitalising on that with Elden Ring sales up the wazoo, FromSoftware had the Monty Python's Flying Circus thought process: "And now for something completely different." With five mainline instalments under its belt, the...
Preview Blue Protocol Might Be the Competition Genshin Impact Needs
We go hands on with Bandai Namco's online RPG
For as unfathomably popular Genshin Impact has been all these years, you could argue it's always had things a bit easy. There is nothing else quite like it on consoles, and consistent content updates along with new waifus to metaphorically marry every other month have turned a lot of fans' free time into...
Preview Tekken 8's Hyper Aggressive Gameplay Has Glorious Potential
Feeling the Heat
We only got to play it for a weekend, but the Tekken 8 Closed Network Test has us drooling over the potential of Bandai Namco's heavy hitting fighter. This sequel has been a long time coming — it's easy to forget that Tekken 7, although still quite popular, is over six years old on PS4 — and at first glance, the eighth...
Preview The Crew Motorfest Finally Hands PS5 Some Proper Arcade Racing
A new Horizon for PlayStation racers
The Crew Motorfest races onto PlayStation this September, and recently we were lucky enough to get extensive hands-on time with a PC build of the game. With an expansive Hawaiian archipelago to explore, various racing playlists to drift through, and plenty of sweet new rides to test out, The Crew Motorfest is...
Preview Everything You Need to Know About EA Sports FC 24
New name, same game?
EA Sports FC 24 represents a new era for one of gaming’s biggest brands. While this year’s release iterates on decades of investment into the flagship football franchise, it also ushers in a soft reset for the series, with a new name, branding, and goals. We were lucky enough to get the inside scoop on the soccer sim during...
Hands On Exoprimal PS5, PS4 Shows Early Promise, But May Not Have Staying Power
Dino crisis
Capcom has been on a winning run with critically acclaimed releases like Street Fighter 6 and the recent Resident Evil 4 remake. Oddball dinosaur shooter Exoprimal always looked like a risk to its unflinching reputation, however: the publisher doesn’t have the best track-record with online shooters – just look at the dour Resident...
June2023
Preview Sand Land Is Just as Fun as It Is Niche on PS5, PS4
We play the latest Bandai Namco RPG
Bandai Namco loves its anime RPGs, but Sand Land might be the most niche it's gotten yet. Comprised of 13 issues, it's a manga series from Dragon Ball creator Akira Toriyama that looks a lot like the famous anime, but is actually its own thing entirely. 23 years after its original run, the Elden Ring publisher is...
Preview Eternights Puts Some Indie in Your Persona
Teen troubles at the end of the world
Persona is all the rage nowadays, so it's no wonder independent developers have begun filling the gaps as we await the sixth mainline instalment. Eternights, the debut title from Studio Sai, represents the crème de la crème of this new push from the indie world, with stunning cutscene visuals that would look...
Preview It's Virtually Impossible for Armored Core 6 to Fail
FromSoftware swaps swords for joysticks
Not a single Armored Core game has sold more than one million copies, but that was before FromSoftware became the poster boy for hardcore enthusiasts. Nowadays, the Japanese heavyweight can sell 20 million units of Elden Ring with its eyes closed, and its latest game Armored Core VI: Fires of Rubicon is going...
The best game at SGF Play Days
We could have uploaded this preview as a headline alone, but then we don't think Push Square users would appreciate a three-word article. Cocoon is absolutely incredible, and it is easily the best thing we played at Summer Game Fest Play Days. Beating out heavyweights like Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Liberty,
Preview Viewfinder PS5 Demo Is an Excellent Proof of Concept, and Now We Need More
Look at this photograph
We've been rather taken with Viewfinder since we first caught wind of it, so we were very eager to try out the new playable demo on PS5. This first-person puzzler essentially allows you to turn two-dimensional images into full 3D spaces, and you'll use that unique hook to progress through the unusual, serene environments. The...
Preview The Crew Motorfest Is Forza Horizon on PS5, and It's Brilliant
A sweet taste of open world racing
If you fell off Ubisoft's The Crew series following its second entry or are too intimidated by its myriad updates, then The Crew Motorfest is the perfect opportunity to jump back in. Taking what worked in The Crew 2 — its big open world and vehicle variety — the third instalment opts for a
Preview Ghost Trick: Phantom Detective Demo Is a Short But Sweet Taste of a Cult Classic
Sissel do nicely
After bringing the beloved Phoenix Wright Trilogy and Great Ace Attorney Chronicles to PlayStation, it only seemed right for Capcom to follow them up with Shu Takumi's lesser-known work. Ghost Trick: Phantom Detective, originally released on Nintendo DS in 2010, is the definition of a cult classic. Held in very high regard by...
Preview Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Liberty Is the PS5 RPG You've Always Wanted
Jacking in again
It might have taken CD Projekt RED another two and a half years after release to get there, but Cyberpunk 2077 DLC Phantom Liberty is such a substantial addition to the PS5, PS4 RPG that it finally feels like it can meet those colossal expectations of 2020. This is more than just an expansion with a new story, quests, and characters...
Preview Ignore the Snark, Foamstars Is Good
Bubble trouble
If the Internet is already dead set on writing Foamstars off completely, then it'll be red in the face come PS5, PS4 launch day. Despite the comparisons it's attracting, this isn't really a Splatoon rip-off, and most important of all: it is really quite enjoyable to play. We had the chance to compete in multiple local matches at...
Preview Sonic Superstars Hands the Blue Blur a Hot Streak
We take Sonic and friends for a spin
Sonic Superstars is fun to play, and that's something this scribe rarely — if ever — associates with the SEGA series. Two acts playable at Summer Game Fest Play Days revealed an enjoyable return to the side-scrolling days after 2022's well-liked 3D entry Sonic Frontiers, proving the blue blur has got what it...
Preview Alan Wake 2 Will Be an Investigative Dream
We see more of Remedy's next game
Remedy would never be the type of developer to phone things in, but Alan Wake II is undisputed proof it belongs in the top tier of the games industry. Following the new gameplay trailer revealed during Summer Game Fest, we were treated to a significantly extended hands-off demo at SGF Play Days. This PS5 sequel is...
May2023
Almost four more hours with Square Enix's huge RPG sequel
Earlier in the year, after playing through a tailored demo designed specifically to showcase Final Fantasy 16’s combat systems, we described the action-heavy PS5 exclusive as a bonafide Game of the Year contender. With publisher Square Enix seemingly intent on showing as much of the sequel...
It's a knockout
We can all admit it: Street Fighter 5 was a huge disappointment. As a one-on-one fighting game, the release was exceptional, but Capcom completely forgot about the audience beyond pro players – and the sequel suffered as a result. While the Japanese publisher would go on to make respectable improvements to the release over time,...
April2023
Preview Humanity on PS5, PS4 Is Equal Parts Puzzle Game and Existential Nightmare
Dozens of us
After checking out the Humanity playable demo earlier this year, we now know what we're dealing with. What appeared to be so unusual and inexplicable before can now be handily described as a surrealist spin on Lemmings. Get this gaggle of folks from A to B using a string of well-placed commands. That summary holds up against a...
Preview Crash Team Rumble's Beta Delivers an Undercooked Helping of Wumpa on PS5, PS4
We're still waiting to rumble
Crash Bandicoot doesn't have the greatest pedigree regarding spin-off video games. Crash Team Racing is a bonafide classic and deserves that recognition, but titles like Crash Bash, Crash Boom Bang, and Crash Tag Team Racing are pretty forgettable. After playing the recent closed beta, while not as extreme, we feel...
Preview XDefiant Is a Fun Arena Shooter That'll Struggle to Stand Out
Delve into the "Ubi-Verse"
Ubisoft’s latest bid in the live service space comes in the form of XDefiant, a free-to-play first-person arena shooter. That might sound pretty run of the mill, but in a bid to stand out, it features maps and factions inspired by some of Ubisoft’s most popular franchises, like Far Cry and Splinter Cell, and mashes...
Preview Single Player Spell-Based FPS Immortals of Aveum Looks Like Pure PS5 Magic
Spellbinding first gameplay blows us away
What if Call of Duty was set in a fantasy world where wars were fought with magic? That’s the question new developer Ascendant Studios tasked itself with solving over five years ago, and its answer is the immensely promising PS5 first-person shooter Immortals of Aveum. We were lucky enough to be invited by...
Preview Firewall Ultra Proves There's Plenty to Look Forward to on PSVR2
We take on First Contact Entertainment in world-first demo
After a barnstorming launch bursting with software, PSVR2 is experiencing something of a post-release lull. The games have largely dried up, and enthusiast discussions have transitioned to whether the hardware is looking like a flop or not. The only way to reverse that narrative is with...
Preview Diablo 4's Endgame Has So Much Potential
Variety is the spice of life
A couple of weeks back, we got to sit down with Diablo 4 developers as they talked us through the title's robust endgame design. The roundtable touched on just about everything that you can expect from the action RPG once you've completed the main campaign — and we must admit, we came away from the discussion fairly...
Preview Trine 5 Takes You on the Series' Longest Adventure Yet on PS5, PS4
Back in familiar territory
The Trine series has been around for nearly 15 years, releasing four pretty puzzle platformers of varying quality in that time. The third game attempted to bring the beloved character-swapping action to a 3D plane. When that didn't work out, the follow-up returned to the side-scrolling action beloved by fans, and...
March2023
Preview Diablo 4's PS5 Beta Was Impressive, But It's Raised Some Concerns
Heaven and hell
The Diablo 4 closed and open betas have run their course, and we must admit, we're fairly impressed. Boasting a sizable amount of content alongside a level cap of 25, the beta provided the perfect opportunity to see how Blizzard's upcoming action RPG is coming together. For the sake of clarity, we had already played much of what was...
Hands On The Dark Pictures: Switchback VR Is Massively Underwhelming So Far
House of horrors
At what point do we consider Until Dawn a curse? UK developer Supermassive has been trying to better the PS4 narrative horror for the best part of a decade, with both its ongoing The Dark Pictures anthology and standalone The Quarry coming up short. Now, based on the first half of our playthrough, we’re sad to report that the...
Preview Dead Island 2 Makes Up for Lost Time with Fun
Almost 3,652 Days Later
Pretty much no game ever is worth waiting almost 10 years for, but when Dead Island 2 launches on PS5 and PS4 next month, it'll at least deliver on the comedic fun its reveal trailer teased all the way back at E3 2014. Having been passed between three different developers over the past decade, it's difficult to work out where...
Preview Capcom Showers Resident Evil 4's Late Game with Love
Island paradise
For much of the lead-up to this month's Resident Evil 4 remake, Capcom has focused its marketing efforts on the first 30 minutes of the survival horror classic. From Leon being dropped off on the outskirts of the mysterious village to his first proper encounters with its residents, we've seen how those first few steps into madness...
February2023
Preview Final Fantasy 16 Is Shaping Up to Be a PS5 Game of the Year Contender
Hit maker
Whisper it, but Square Enix may have an absolute zinger on its hands. There will be some long-time fans who will likely take issue with Final Fantasy XVI’s broadly action-oriented approach, but after approximately an hour of play during a recent preview event, we walked away with our jaw on the floor. If this extraordinarily high budget...
Preview PS5 Survival Game Pacific Drive Will Make You Fall for Its Busted Up Station Wagon
Round the bend
Developer Ironwood Studios really wants you to form a bond with the car. That's the main takeaway from a hands-off presentation of Pacific Drive, a run-based survival game. It's just you and a banged-up American station wagon inside the Olympic Exclusion Zone, a mysterious part of the Pacific Northwest that's riddled with supernatural...
January2023
Preview Has Like a Dragon: Ishin's Journey to the West on PS5, PS4 Been Worth the Wait?
SEGA's historical period drama finally arrives overseas
It’s as ancient as Like a Dragon: Ishin’s backdrop, but there was a time when Yakuza fans had to fight tooth and nail like Kazuma Kiryu for Yakuza games. Back when Yakuza Ishin released as a Japanese exclusive launch title for the PS4 in 2014, PlayStation’s third-party evangelist Gio...
Preview Why Horizon Call of the Mountain Is a PSVR2 Showpiece
We demo the flagship launch title
Cast your mind back to October 2016 when everyone was showing off that shark tank encounter in PlayStation VR Worlds to try and justify why they've suddenly started strapping a piece of plastic to their face. While there wasn't really much to it, the demo did a fantastic job of showcasing the sort of experience you...
Hands On PSVR2 Represents the Next Big Step for VR
Our first impressions having played it
For the time, Sony's PSVR headset was competent and functional. It didn't push the boat out compared to other devices, but by making itself at least somewhat affordable, Sony struck gold with the best-selling VR headset to date. The firm is now looking to beat the sales of the device with PSVR2, except it's...
Preview Forspoken on PS5 Feels Like a Weird Tech Demo
But it does have potential
As you may have already read, we were not sent early review code for Forspoken. This means that we won't have a full review for you to read in time for the game's launch on the 24th January. However, having spent most of the day with the PS5 action RPG, we wanted to write up some first impressions, which will hopefully...
Preview EA Sports PGA Tour Makes a Promising Swing at a Familiar Golf Sim
Hole in one?
It's been seven long years since a golf game had the EA Sports logo on the box. Dominating the genre since 1990, the publisher took a step back after Rory McIlroy PGA Tour in 2015, letting 2K Sports shoulder its way to the front of the pack. Now, the licence switches hands again on PS5 with the simply named EA Sports PGA Tour, boasting...
December2022
Preview Forspoken PS5 Feels Like a More Magical inFAMOUS
Our impressions after four hours of play
Please note: This preview is not based on the recently released Forspoken PS5 demo. It’s based on a much bigger build played at a recent event. Sucker Punch Productions might not be interested in making a newinFAMOUS game any time soon, but Square Enix has you covered: its upcoming PS5 title Forspoken...
Preview 20 Hours of Diablo 4 on PS5 Has Us Believing in Blizzard's Latest Trip to Hell
Heating up
Over the last week or so, we've spent around 20 hours with a preview build of Diablo 4 on PS5, with near full access to a generous (and mostly snowy) chunk of the game's open world map. Complete with a series of main story missions and a range of side quests, it's fair to say that we've developed a decent idea of what the upcoming action...
Hands On Is Marvel's Midnight Suns Any Good on PS5?
Strategic superheroes
In the aftermath of Cyberpunk 2077, any game that leads solely with PC reviews is right to arouse suspicion. We only received PS5 review code for Marvel’s Midnight Suns today, and have been eager to put the release through its paces in order to bring you some early hands-on impressions. The good news is, so far, we’ve had...
November2022
Preview Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII Reunion Is a Great Remaster of an Awkward 2007 Spinoff
Zack in action
Crisis Core: Final Fantasy VII Reunion is a really good remaster. We've played through the game's first three chapters on PS5 for the purposes of this preview, and we're confident in saying that Square Enix has done a fantastic job of bringing the PSP title up to speed. Character models and environmental assets are a massive step up,...
October2022
Hands On Crunchy Combat Shines in PS5, PS4's Wildly Impressive The Callisto Protocol
Prison break
You’ve got to feel a semblance of sympathy for Striking Distance Studios. Fronted by Dead Space’s executive producer Glen Schofield, the team has clearly designed The Callisto Protocol in direct response to the clamours for a return to EA’s iconic sci-fi horror. But on the eve of the gruesome debut’s release, Motive has started...
Hands On God of War Ragnarok on PS5, PS4 Is PlayStation At Its Pomp
Impressive, boy
After several hours with God of War Ragnarok there are some things we can tell you and much, much more we cannot, but we’ll begin with our overriding sentiment so far: this is why we love PlayStation. The reality is, biased as we may be, no one does it quite like PS Studios. Nintendo may be the kings of gameplay – and, to be...
Hands On Resident Evil 4 PS5 Makes a Masterpiece Even Better
We played the remake's first 30 minutes
In 2023, there won't be a safer full-price purchase than the Resident Evil 4 remake. With the 2005 original still judged to be one of the best games of all time, it's extremely difficult to see how a PS5, PS4 modernisation could go pear-shaped. A recent Hands On session at Capcom's UK headquarters revealed to...
And the community is playing a huge part
We shouldn’t forget that Media Molecule makes amazing games. The likes of Tearaway and LittleBigPlanet were award-winners, but Dreams’ post-release discussion has centred squarely on its community. This will please the modest Guildford-based first-party, of course: it has one of the most collaborative...
First Impressions Wild Hearts Has Big Potential as a Deep and Engaging Action RPG on PS5
The bigger they are
This partnership between EA and Koei Tecmo is a fairly surprising one, but during a recent preview event for upcoming action RPG Wild Hearts, we were told that the collaboration is all in service of realising the game's potential. Koei Tecmo, the Japanese publisher best known for the likes of Ninja Gaiden, Dead or Alive, and...
September2022
Hands On Side-Scrolling Multiplayer Shooter SquadBlast Is Like 2D Overwatch
And it has potential
It's difficult to stand out in today's overcrowded games market, especially in the highly competitive, make-or-break multiplayer landscape. We don't envy any developer currently crafting a game that needs thousands of players logging in each and every day. However, the right combination of interesting concept and good execution...
Hands On You Know What? Sonic Frontiers Might Actually Be Okay
Maybe
We played Sonic Frontiers at EGX not once, but twice. Normally, we wouldn't put ourselves through a Sonic demo more than necessary, and the queue was, as you'd expect, constantly lengthy. The trouble is, after playing the 15-minute slice of the "open zone" experience for the first time, we realised something rather shocking. Had we really just...
Hands On Goat Simulator 3 Doubles Down on the Dumb on PS5
Goated
As the playable demo for Goat Simulator 3 got started, we had to ask: what's the real reason Coffee Stain North labelled this as the third game in the series, when it is, in fact, the second? Stuart Docherty, sound designer and composer, provided a simple, honest answer. It turns out the team just thought it would be really funny. This would...
Hands On Modern Warfare 2 Scraps Red Dots, But This Is a Great Beta
Mini-map mysteries
"Welcome to the new era of Call of Duty," the Modern Warfare 2 beta very proudly proclaims on the PS5 home screen. Is it, though? Infinity Ward's latest looks a lot like the other 18 mainline instalments before it, but with Warzone 2 alongside the main game, we could be about to enter another generation of Call of Duty dominance...
Hands On Shadows of Rose Turns Resident Evil Village into Magic
Return to Castle Dimitrescu
If Resident Evil Village was proof Capcom isn't afraid to change the sort of enemies its survival horror franchise has to offer, then DLC Shadows of Rose is evidence the developer can do the very same for its main character. Ethan Winters' daughter Rose may use the same weapons her father became accustomed to, but she has...
First Impressions Cartoonish RTS Warpaws Pits Dogs vs Cats on PS5
Modern War-fur
We don't want to generalise too much here, but real-time strategy games tend to be pretty straight-faced. They're usually attempting to emulate reality, or lean into hard sci-fi. While there's obviously nothing wrong with that, it's always great to have some variety. Warpaws, a brand new game from 3D Realms and Slipgate Ironworks...
Hands On Street Fighter 6 Makes It Fun for Newcomers
Quick Step to victory
Every game genre comes with some level of complexity, but fighters perhaps struggle the most with their onboarding process. With more complex controls to master and a hardcore community to get up to speed with, it's no surprise many newcomers fall at the first hurdle. Street Fighter 6 attempts to streamline those first few...
