Latest Reviews
Mini Review Yakuza: Like a Dragon (PS5) - Not a Huge Upgrade, But Still a Brilliant RPG
A hero's work is never done
The tale of incredibly endearing protagonist Ichiban Kasuga shines brighter than ever on PlayStation 5, where Yakuza: Like a Dragon offers enhanced visuals. This next-gen upgrade lets you choose between 60 frames-per-second at a slightly higher resolution, or 30 frames-per-second with 4K support. And, well... That's about...
Review Maquette (PS5) - A First-Person Puzzler That's Just a Few Steps from Greatness
It's a small, small world
Maquette is a tricky game to explain in words, but here goes. This first-person puzzler is set in a recursive universe — meaning each iteration of the world contains within it a smaller version of itself. By extension, that means there are ever-larger worlds beyond your reach. It's one of those concepts that's easier to...
Mini Review The Sinking City (PS5) - A Re-Release That Struggles to Remain Afloat
Let it sink in
After months of publisher disputes, The Sinking City has resurfaced on PlayStation Store, alongside a new PS5 version. Based on the work of H.P. Lovecraft, the game places you in the role of private investigator Charles Winfield Reed, investigating the supernatural town of Oakmont. Using your detective skills, you'll uncover why...
Review The Nioh Collection (PS5) - Backwards Compatibility Causing a Conundrum
Death defies Nioh
A collection of last-gen games gussied up to be re-released on a new console is nothing new. This particular Nioh collection is perhaps a bit more unique in that it includes a supposed remaster for a game that was released a mere ten months prior, but that’s not even the strangest thing about this Nioh bundle. The Nioh Collection...
Review Destruction AllStars (PS5) - A Confident But Flawed Start for Chaotic Car Combat Game
Dodgy ignition
Destruction AllStars is quite a frustrating game. Not really because of anything the game does wrong, but because it clearly holds a lot of potential. As an idea, it sounds great: a destruction derby style title that keeps you in the action with on-foot gameplay when you're between vehicles. In practice, while it does succeed in some...
Review Werewolf: The Apocalypse - Earthblood (PS5) - An All Too Brief Adventure
Lots of bark and little bite
For a horror series based around tabletop RPGs, World of Darkness’ shared supernatural universe is making serious inroads on PlayStation this year. Between Wraith: The Oblivion - Afterlife on PSVR and Vampire: The Masquerade’s two new entries – Swansong and Bloodlines 2 – Werewolf
Review Control: Ultimate Edition (PS5) - A Great Example of What a PS5 Upgrade Can Offer
< A game/experience worth discovering/exploring >
Control’s road to release on PlayStation 5 has been a bit of a rocky one. Between the Ultimate Edition boxing out early adopters from a next-gen upgrade, certain users accidentally being given the upgrade they were told wasn’t possible, and now Control: Ultimate Edition releasing as a PlayStation...
Review RIDE 4 (PS5) - A Motorcycle Crash Felt from the Inside of the DualSense
Wheelie not very good
Next-gen upgrades are a fantastic way to give a game extra polish and enhance the overall experience by taking advantage of the more powerful hardware. Three months after the launch of RIDE 4 on the PlayStation 4, the game was given a new PlayStation 5 version. While there are glimmers of potential under the surface, especially...
Mini Review The Pedestrian (PS5) - Unique Puzzler Shines with Great Haptic Feedback
Anything but pedestrian
In a world with uncreative sequels and rehashed ideas, The Pedestrian stands out as a truly unique and memorable experience. At its core, the game is a 2D puzzle-platformer where your goal is to guide an unnamed stick figure to the door at the end of the stage. The twist though is that the entire game takes place on road...
Review Atelier Ryza 2: Lost Legends & the Secret Fairy (PS5) - Another Solid Alchemic Adventure
Cooking up a storm
Just two years after her first game, Reisalin "Ryza" Stout is back with Atelier Ryza 2: Lost Legends & the Secret Fairy. This time, she’s on an adventure from her home of Kurken Island and has travelled to Asha-Am-Baird to investigate mysteries surrounding some ruins while reuniting with some familiar faces. Atelier Ryza 2...
Review Cyber Shadow (PS5) - A Stylish, Challenging Action Platformer
Ninjas vs. robots
If there are two things commonly found in retro games, it's robots and ninjas. Having one game throw the two archetypes together just makes sense, right? Cyber Shadow manages it rather well. Developed by Mechanical Head Studios and published by Yacht Club Games, this is a side-scrolling action platformer about saving a futuristic...
Review Hitman 3 (PS5) - The Ultimate Stealth Sandbox
Greatest hits
It’s almost impossible to review Hitman 3 as a standalone game. While this brooding conclusion to Danish developer IO Interactive’s excellent World of Assassination trilogy can be purchased individually, it’s intended to be enjoyed as a compilation: a collection of sublime stealth sandboxes spanning a glamorous red carpet event...
Review MXGP 2020 - The Official Motocross Videogame (PS5) - Not Just Another Scrub
Jump the gate
The MXGP titles have been slowly inching their way forward through the years, generally only seeing minor changes with each iteration. Luckily, Milestone has crafted a pretty solid bedrock upon which to build its racing titles, and this latest entry — the series’ first foray on the PlayStation 5 — represents the franchise’s...
Mini Review Maneater (PS5) – Shiny Bits and Bobs Make for a Fin Time
Let’s fin-ish this
Republished on Wednesday 30th December, 2020: We're bringing this review back from the archives following the announcement of January 2021's PS Plus lineup. The original text follows. One of a number of free next-gen upgrade titles being offered on Sony’s newest hardware, developer Tripwire has returned to its undersea all...
Review Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six: Siege (PS5) - Multiplayer FPS Is Only Let Down by Its Community
Intentional team kill
As of December 1st, Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six: Siege is five years old. Yes, you read that right. But how to celebrate such an incredible milestone for one of the only true Games as a Service success stories? Well, how about a shiny new version of the game that offers an array of improvements? Sure, there are still plenty of...
Review Destiny 2 (PS5) - A Solid Update for Hardcore Players
No time to explain
A lot has changed for Destiny 2 in the three years since release. After launching as a full-priced product, it decided to take the free-to-play route in late 2019. After teaming up with Activision to bring both the original game and this sequel to market, Bungie cut ties with the publisher to do it alone. And after expanding the...
Review No Man's Sky (PS5) - Divisive Survival Game Plays Best with This Next-Gen Upgrade
Galaxy brain
No Man's Sky is not the same game it was when it launched in 2016. The PlayStation 4 generation has seen the emergence of evolving software, and Hello Games' ultra-ambitious space survival adventure is a shining example of that. After enormous excitement, what we had on day one failed to live up to expectations. While the sense of...
Review Puyo Puyo Tetris 2 (PS5) - Everything's Falling into Place
One line at a time
Puyo Puyo Tetris was a revelation when it first launched. Giving us an unprecedented bridge between these puzzle franchises, Sonic Team created one of the smoothest gameplay crossovers we’ve witnessed in recent years. Originally released in 2014, it never received a western localisation until a few years later for PlayStation 4...
Review Madden NFL 21 (PS5) - Three and Out for Tired Football Sim
The NFC East of sports sims
It’s hard to find any optimism in the Madden NFL 21 community, but a few football fans with a glass half-full of Gatorade had hoped that this year’s PlayStation 4 game was so disappointing because EA Sports was all-in on the next-gen upgrade. Now the PlayStation 5 version is readily available, we’re afraid to say...
Review FIFA 21 (PS5) - Now This Is a Next-Gen Upgrade
Mmmmmbappe
When EA Sports announced that FIFA 21 would be getting an upgrade on PS5 — which is free if you already own the PS4 version — we kept our expectations low. We enjoyed FIFA 21 on PS4, but the footie sim was really starting to show its age. Compared to other heavy hitting sports titles like MLB The Show 20 and NBA 2K21, it was rough...
Review Immortals Fenyx Rising (PS5) - Formulaic Open World in Ancient Greece
Gods & Monsters aplenty
Immortals Fenyx Rising is what happens when Assassin's Creed Odyssey meets The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. There are some ideas the latest IP from Ubisoft can claim as its own, but it's impossible to deny the comparisons between it and the two open-world juggernauts. As such, it feels like the French publisher has...
Review Haven (PS5) - A Refreshingly Romantic and Unique Sci-Fi Adventure
Yu and me forever
Very few games attempt to tell stories about established romantic relationships, but it's this angle that sets Haven apart. It's easily one of the more intriguing indie titles that we've played in some time, telling the tale of two lovers who have essentially ran away from home together. The sci-fi setting sees them stranded on an...
Mini Review Worms Rumble (PS5) - Simple But Successful Spin-Off Proves the Series Has Wriggle Room
A new species
The Worms franchise has more or less stayed the same across its 25-year history, so it was due a shake-up. Worms Rumble is an offshoot that ditches the strategic turn-based gameplay in favour of more immediate, real-time action. Fans may well wrinkle their noses at this, but honestly, it works better than you might think. Up to 32...
Mini Review Tesla Force (PS5) - Twin-Stick Roguelite Needed More Time in the Lab
The greatest minds in history cannot save this game
In an already bizarre year, Tesla Force’s absurd concept of pulling famous people from history and making them fight monsters seems right at home. Tesla Force is a roguelike twin-stick shooter starring Nikola Tesla and Marie Curie, fighting waves of monsters with over the top guns and powers...
Review Spirit of the North: Enhanced Edition (PS5) - A Beautifully Brief Adventure
Foxy
It’s been a year since Spirit of the North first took us on an adventure on PlayStation 4, but with the PlayStation 5’s recent launch, Infuse Studio has brought it back for a second round. Set within Iceland, we find ourselves playing an ordinary Fox, guided by the Guardian of the Northern Lights after the land and skies become stained by...
The storm is here
If you're the kind of player who spent hours upon hours coming up with absurdly cool combos in Devil May Cry 5, then this expanded re-release is for you. Likewise, if you're totally new to Capcom's bombastic action title, then this is the best version of an already exceptional game (you can read our original Devil May Cry 5 PS4...
Mini Review Overcooked: All You Can Eat - Remastered Culinary Co-Op Is Still a Tasty Treat
Fill your plates
Overcooked: All You Can Eat is like enjoying your favourite meal while wearing newly prescribed glasses. Sure, you've had this plenty of times before, but it tastes just as good, and it looks better than ever. This is a PlayStation 5 re-release that brings together all the content from the two games along with all the DLC. However,...
Review Observer: System Redux (PS5) – A New Coat of Paint Can Do Wonders
What’s old is new again
Observer was a polarizing title for us when it originally launched on the PlayStation 4. It was an experience that was maybe a little too bloated and more importantly it was absolutely littered with technical problems that made playing it a chore. This time around, we have some bad news for you and some good news. The bad...
Review DIRT 5 (PS5) - Raucous Arcade Racer Looks and Plays Best on Next-Gen
Mucking around
We've already delivered our main verdict on DIRT 5 with the PlayStation 4 release, which you can read about through the link. However, Codemasters has graced us with a PS5 version as well, and as you might expect, it's the optimal way to play this arcadey off-road racer. Everything we liked about this game is either the same or...
Review WRC 9 (PS5) - Haptic Feedback Helps Bring the World Rally Championship to the Next Generation
Good vibrations
WRC 9 is a superb rally sim. We said as much when we first reviewed it on PS4 three months ago. Bringing keen improvements to handling, lighting, and graphical fidelity – in addition to a selection of new rallies in Japan, Kenya, and New Zealand – such refinements in key areas helped define it as one of the best rally sims of the...
