Latest Reviews
Beautiful bandicoot
There's lots to like about Crash Bandicoot 4: It's About Time. A direct sequel to Naughty Dog's classic trilogy, this latest platformer takes the marsupial and his pals on a time-twisting adventure as they put a stop to the antics of Neo Cortex and N. Tropy. It debuted on PlayStation 4 last year, and while it's perfectly...
Mini Review Mortal Shell: Enhanced Edition (PS5) - Souls-Like Gets a Deserved Second Chance
Time to shell out for an upgrade
In an era where Souls-like games have become increasingly popular, Mortal Shell on PlayStation 4 gained a cult following for its expansive world and dedication to its Dark Souls roots. As The Foundling, your goal is to defeat The Unchained and the many difficult bosses in your way, all while inhabiting new shells and...
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...
Mini Review Kill It with Fire (PS4) - Enjoyable Chaos, But Not Much Bang for Your Bug
Spider-Manslaughter
Kill It with Fire channels your inner arachnophobe and tasks you with exterminating the world’s spiders. You’re armed with everything from a strimmer to a flamethrower in your quest to commit arachnid genocide. You’re also given a selection of non-lethal tools to attract the little blighters or slow them down with a fire...
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 Taxi Chaos (PS4) - Crazy Taxi Clone Is a Write-Off
Lazy taxi
TAXI CHAOS! That could be the name of a game simulating the experience of loitering in a Newcastle taxi rank at 4AM drunkenly nursing a tray of cheesy chips, and if it was, we'd undoubtedly be more excited about it than we are about this game which is just a Crazy Taxi clone. If the game were good we'd perhaps be inclined to call Taxi...
Review Farpoint (PS4) - Basic FPS Papers Over Cracks with Compelling VR Action
Starship gloopers
Republished on Friday, 26th February, 2021: We're bringing this review back from the archives following the announcement of March 2021's PS Plus lineup. The original text follows. Farpoint is both the most innovative and primitive first-person shooter you’ll play this year. The next tentpole PlayStation VR title, this sci-fi...
Review Final Fantasy VII Remake (PS4) - A Successful Reimagining with Stellar Gameplay
Make or limit break
Republished on Friday, 26th February, 2021: We're bringing this review back from the archives following the announcement of March 2021's PS Plus lineup. The original text follows. Well, here we are. The time has finally come for us to review Final Fantasy VII Remake, and it's surreal. We vividly remember the official...
Review Yupitergrad (PS4) – A Cheeky VR Platformer That’s a Whole Bundle of Fun
To space, comrades
PlayStation VR games fluctuate wildly when it comes to motion sickness. Some of the simplest ideas can be incredibly disorienting if everything isn’t calibrated perfectly. But what happens when you go to the extreme other end of the spectrum? Yupitergrad is a first-person momentum-based puzzle platformer that takes place on a...
Mini Review Neptunia Virtual Stars (PS4) – 10th Year Anniversary Doesn’t Quite Reach the Stars
Virtually famous
Neptune and the other three goddesses from Gamesindustri are back in a brand new action RPG to celebrate Hyperdimension Neptunia’s 10th anniversary. This time around the characters are transported to Virtualand where they are asked to help save all of the nearby worlds from the nasty villains, called Antis. The story aims 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...
Mini Review Curse of the Dead Gods (PS4) - Dungeon Crawler Lights the Way with Unique Mechanics
A curse and a blessing
In Curse of the Dead Gods, you explore randomly generated maps in a cursed dungeon. Light is your best friend, as you take more damage in the dark and traps are only revealed when illuminated. With a trusty torch, you can set braziers (and enemies) alight in each dangerous room. A variety of primary, secondary, and two-handed...
Review Persona 5 Strikers (PS4) - A Must-Play for Fans of Persona 5
Honour among Phantom Thieves
Before we get started, let's make one thing clear: Persona 5 Strikers is a direct sequel to Persona 5. It is not the kind of action game spin-off that we've come to expect from Omega Force — the Koei Tecmo studio behind the Dynasty Warriors series and the many, many 'musou' adaptations that have been released in recent...
Review Little Nightmares II (PS4) - An Artistic Exercise in Trial and Error
Maw than meets the eye
You can’t ignore the LittleBigPlanet in Little Nightmares II. Tarsier Studios may have turned to horror with its eerie 2017 puzzle platformer Little Nightmares, but the Swedish studio’s body of work largely involves Sackboy, and he hangs over this gloomy PlayStation 4 sequel like an ominous shadow. Mono moves like Media...
Mini Review Arrog (PS4) - An Extremely Short But Worthwhile Trip
30 minutes or less
We've typed out nearly as many characters for this review as there are seconds of gameplay in Arrog. Playtime isn't everything, though, and this half-hour long experience is well worth checking out. It's almost impossible to discuss without spoiling things, but this is essentially a bitesize point and click puzzle adventure...
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 Turrican Flashback (PS4) - Four Turrican Thrills in One No-Frills Package
X-Factor 5
16-bit home computer retro games are welcome on the PlayStation 4, especially as there has not been an abundance of Commodore Amiga games available, with a few exceptions being versions of Another World, Flashback, GODS Remastered, and Shadow of the Beast. Therefore, it's particularly pleasing to have the first two classic A
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 Habroxia 2 (PS4) - Retro Arcade Shooter Will Hold Your Attention
Beam me up
In an industry overloaded with choice, there’s a modesty to Habroxia 2 that’s easy to appreciate. The successor to Lillymo Games retro-inspired arcade shooter humbly thanks you for playing the PlayStation 4 and PS Vita release each time you load it up, and while cynics could hand-wave the gratitude and declare it disingenuous, we get...
Review Ys IX: Monstrum Nox (PS4) - Adol's Darkest Adventure Doesn't Quite Hit the Highs of Ys VIII
This cursed city
There's something dodgy going on in the foreboding stone city of Balduq, and seasoned adventurer Adol Christin finds that out the hard way when he's abruptly arrested upon arrival. Our red-haired hero escapes his captors with the help of a mysterious woman, but her assistance comes at a cost. Now saddled with a curse that prevents...
Mini Review Bonkies (PS4) - Co-Op Construction Game Is Simple But Satisfying
Planets and the apes
Think you've played every local co-op game on PlayStation 4? Well, have you built structures in low gravity as an ape with a robotic arm? Didn't think so, but don't worry — Bonkies is here to fulfil that very specific need. Playable alone or up to four-player co-op, this unusual little game puts you in the boots of a...
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...
Mini Review Olija (PS4) - A Lot Achieved with Very Few Pixels
Pronounced "oh-lee-ya"
Devolver Digital continues its love affair with moody pixelated action games with Olija. This one has you exploring a mysterious land after Lord Faraday and his crew are left stranded, and it's your job to find a way back home. Things become complicated once you come across a cursed harpoon that grants a sort of teleport...
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 Concrete Genie - Artsy Exclusive Is Worth Experiencing
Art attack
Republished on Wednesday 27th January, 2021: We're bringing this review back from the archives following the announcement of February 2021's PS Plus lineup. The original text follows. Of all Sony's in-house developers, Pixelopus perhaps has the most to prove. Its debut game, Entwined, didn't set the world alight, and so its follow-up...
Review Control - Remedy's Return to PlayStation Is Worth the Wait
Take back control
Republished on Wednesday 27th January, 2021: We're bringing this review back from the archives following the announcement of February 2021's PS Plus lineup. The original text follows. Control could, and probably should, have been something worth shouting about. It’s been 16 years since Remedy Entertainment last released one of...
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...
