Latest Reviews
Review Inertial Drift - Arcade Racing with a Twist
Neon dreams
It feels like ages since we’ve had a decent arcade racer on PlayStation. Quick thrills often take a back seat to realism and vehicle calibration. Thankfully, Belfast-based dev Level 91 has channelled the likes of Burnout and Ridge Racer for its neon-drenched title Inertial Drift. There are no comprehensive difficulty modifiers here;...
Review Marvel's Avengers - Crystal Dynamics' Heroic Risk Is a Game of Two Halves
Guardians of the GaaS
If anything, Marvel's Avengers has become the victim of its own marketing cycle. Pitched under the Games as a Service banner, loot to grind for, repeatable missions, bounties, daily and weekly tasks, and microtransactions are all very much a part of this superhero undertaking. However, it is also so much more than that. Crystal...
Review Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 1 + 2 - The Birdman Is Back with Fantastic Remake
Back to the old grind
Tony Hawk's Pro Skater is a series that defined early PlayStation just as much as Crash Bandicoot or Tomb Raider. The games are fondly remembered for their tight controls, licensed soundtracks, and endlessly replayable levels, although the franchise has certainly bailed a few times as well. Never fear, though, because Tony...
Review Control: AWE - An Intriguing Must for Alan Wake Fans, But No One Else
It’s not a lake, it’s a CONTROLcean
Alan Wake is a property of Remedy’s that has a pretty hardcore, dedicated fanbase. There have been promising signs by way of the spin-off American Nightmare or the more recent instance of Remedy buying back the right to the IP, but Control: AWE is by far the best indicator yet. Much like Control: The...
Review Wasteland 3 - Fallout Meets XCOM in This Engrossing But Slightly Buggy RPG
Power Armour Rangers
Wasteland 3 is one of those games that you can get completely lost in. Between its world building, its characters, and its player progression, it's an engrossing experience from start to finish. It goes without saying, but the veteran developers over at inXile really know how to make a role-playing game. Wasteland 3 is what...
Review Vader Immortal: A Star Wars VR Series - Star Wars and VR Are Made for Each Other
Be proud of this technological terror
Vader Immortal: A Star Wars VR Series came as a bit of a surprise. We'd expected a bit of a cash grab, but the actual product is decent if unorthodox package. We get a campaign spread across three episodes plus three waves-based challenge modes. There’s actually a surprising wealth of content when viewed...
Mini Review Ary and the Secret of Seasons - A Solid, Good-Looking Indie Action Adventure
A woman for all seasons
Something is amiss in the world of Valdi. The seasons are in disarray, meaning that fierce winter winds bellow in place of gentle summer breezes. It’s up to a girl named Ary to restore balance at the behest of a mysterious society, the Guardians of Seasons. Ary and the Secret of Seasons is an action adventure in the...
Mini Review Nexomon: Extinction - With an Update or Two, This Could Be a Solid Pokémon Clone
Nixomon
Nexomon: Extinction is the best Pokémon clone you'll find on PlayStation 4 -- but admittedly, that isn't saying much. The addictive quality of catching and training often cute, sometimes cool looking monsters is here, but the game as a whole is let down by some uneven design. Nexomon doesn't really care that it's a blatant Pokémon...
Review WRC 9 - A Compelling Rally Sim That's Gone from Good to Great
Don't confuse speed with haste
Annual games have a bit of a reputation for rehashing the same old thing year after year with only minor improvements. Some say it’s a license to print money. Rally is hardly in the mainstream, however, and neither is developer Kylotonn’s approach to the FIA World Rally Championship. With significant strides made...
Mini Review The Last Campfire - Cosy Puzzles from Hello Games
Marshmallow mania
If No Man's Sky is the ambitious, boisterous member of the Hello Games family, The Last Campfire is the subdued, charming one. Released to very little fanfare, this simplistic puzzler does enough to provide a weekend's worth of enjoyment. Just don't expect anything too impressive from those two days of fun. The hazy fairy tale...
Review Madden NFL 21 - Football Brings All the Boys to the Yard
Fumble
Madden NFL 21 finds itself in a particularly peculiar position this year. The football simulation’s launching less than three months prior to the PlayStation 5, and while there will be a free upgrade to the next-gen console, it really shows. Despite bundling in a potential series cornerstone in the Yard, this is a relatively low-effort...
Review Captain Tsubasa: Rise of New Champions - Anime Hijinks Liven Up Uneven Arcade Footy
Missed a sitter
We can't imagine there's a huge overlap on the Venn diagram for football fans and anime and manga and enthusiasts, but here we are. Captain Tsubasa: Rise of New Champions is aiming squarely for the demographic of people that have both a Sky Sports and a Crunchyroll subscription, and good luck to it, we say. If you're not familiar...
Darkened crystal
The original Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles on the Nintendo GameCube was nothing short of a nightmare to set up. If you wanted to play co-op, each player needed their own Game Boy Advance and link cable. The handheld would become your controller, and its screen would display important information, like inventories and maps. It was...
Review Project CARS 3 - A Somewhat Fun Arcade Racer Going Through an Identity Crisis
Change is good. Or is it?
Project CARS 3 is not a simulator. Those familiar with the series may be surprised by this, but it’s true. It doesn’t look or feel like a simulator, either on the track or away from it. There are over 200 cars with most of the big hitters on the roster, but there’s no celebration of them in the menus like you get in...
Review Street Fighter V: Arcade Edition - A Complete Package At Last
Round 2
Republished on Wednesday 26th August 2020: We're bringing this review back from the archives following the announcement of September's PlayStation Plus lineup. The original text follows. With its Arcade Edition update, Street Fighter V finally feels like a complete fighting game – a title that can fully appeal to both competitive and...
Review PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds - Return of the Battle Royale King?
Royale lineage
Republished on Wednesday 26th August 2020: We're bringing this review back from the archives following the announcement of September's PlayStation Plus lineup. The original text follows. While not the first battle royale game, PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds (also known as PUBG to its friends) managed to kick-off a genre land grab in...
Mini Review Hypnospace Outlaw - A Literal Point and Click Adventure
Surfing in the 90s
Hypnospace Outlaw gamifies the structure and horrific custom pages of GeoCities. If you've any nostalgia for this chapter in the Internet's history, you're likely already interested in this obscure title. You're free to explore Hypnospace as you see fit, but your job is actually to scour the virtual space for rule-breaking...
Mini Review No Straight Roads – A Vibrant, Creative Experience Not Without Its Missteps
Mayday Parade
Stepping into the colourful, vibrant world of Vinyl City is a treat. A crazy, dystopian metropolis powered by “evil” EDM music from corporation NSR, No Straight Roads makes a spectacular first impression. Mayday and Zuke comprise rock band Bunk Bed Junction, and it’s up to you to bring rock back into the world. With a...
Review Train Sim World 2 - We're Loco for This Zen Railway Sim
Rail good
When you’re hurtling through the outskirts of Cologne, rain lashing the panoramic windscreen of your ICE 3, there are few gaming experiences quite as zen as Train Sim World 2. The sequel to Dovetail Games’ railway simulation has released at the worst possible time, with a certain aviation-themed title taking up transportation...
Review Descenders - An Addictive, Unique Roguelite Involving Bicycles
Started from the top and now we’re here
If someone pitched a roguelite to you, odds are you wouldn’t expect it to be an extreme sports biking game. But that's exactly what developer RageSquid has delivered with its procedural downhill excursion. An odd pairing at first blush maybe, but does the game deliver the goods? Descenders sees you...
Review Spiritfarer - Feel-Good Management Sim Is a Relaxing Cruise
Good grief
Games are so often filled with death, and it's reached a point where we don't even really think about it. Not only do we kill countless baddies, we also die multiple times in the process -- sometimes, it's even part of the marketing. Prepare to die. Of course, not every game is like this, and Spiritfarer goes one better than just being a...
Review Samurai Jack: Battle Through Time - Jack Returns in a Simple But Fun Brawler
He has a bad feeling about this...
Between 1995 and 2005, Cartoon Network gave us some of the greatest animation ever produced by any lone studio; Dexter’s Laboratory, Powerpuff Girls, Johnny Bravo, and the original animated Clone Wars is just some of the quality output of that period. Yet, towering above even those fantastic shows, was Genndy...
Mini Review New Super Lucky's Tale - Short and Sweet Platformer Charms Throughout
Foxing clever
We tend to think that platformers are at their best when they're forgiving in the beginning but tougher than our Nan's steaks by the finale. New Super Lucky's Tale never progresses to the point where it poses any significant challenge, but it makes up for it with bags of charm and a campaign that's short enough to never wear out its...
Review PGA Tour 2K21 - Sim Will Suit Golf Fans to a Tee
Green screen
If you’re the type of person who prefers their country parks to have 18 holes, then you’ll no doubt be familiar with The Golf Club series. Canadian developer HB Studios’ efforts over the course of this generation have been fascinating to observe from afar. The first game in its simulation series launched shortly after the...
Review Peaky Blinders: Mastermind - Strategy Spin-Off Falls Short
Feeling a bit peaky
We can't quite remember when we got distracted by something else and stopped watching Peaky Blinders. All we can say is that Scarecrow was in it, Bane wasn't, and the nice palaeontologist from Jurassic Park was a rotter. We'll have to go back to it one day. Anyway, tie-in video game Peaky Blinders: Mastermind is a prequel to the...
Mini Review Manifold Garden - A Real Visual Treat
Eden prime
Manifold Garden is one of those games that, in the same vein as Journey and Inside, can be considered an "experience" more than anything else. Sure, it's a first-person, 3D puzzler at heart, but defining it as that does a disservice to the game's greatest aspect -- its visuals and atmosphere. This is a real treat for the senses. You need...
Mini Review The Alto Collection - The Chillest Endless Runner on PS4
Hitting the slopes
Originally a duo of mobile games, The Alto Collection brings two beautiful endless runners to PlayStation 4. There are more words in this game's title than there are buttons to learn; press X to jump, hold it to backflip, and that's it. These ultra-simple controls will see you shredding snow or surfing sand as you slide forever...
Review EA Sports UFC 4 - A Strong Sequel That Knows What Players Want
Stand and bang
We suppose the biggest challenge that EA Sports has always faced with its line of officially branded UFC games is that players clearly prefer to box. It’s been almost a decade since the last Fight Night game, as the juggernaut publisher has coveted the more commercially viable MMA crowd. But play new entry EA Sports UFC 4 online and...
Review Mortal Shell - A Souls-Like for Hardened Veterans
The Stone Roses
All forms of art take inspiration from that which came before, but those that do must reflect on those forms and develop upon them to stand out. Done well, it can lead to even more interesting forms of art. Many have tried this in the Souls-like sub-genre of games, which has spewed out an increasing number of similar titles in recent...
Review Mobile Suit Gundam Extreme VS. Maxiboost ON - The Complete Gundam VS. Package
Maximum output
Mobile Suit Gundam Extreme VS. Maxiboost ON is pretty much the pinnacle of the long-running arcade series -- especially on console. It's an intricate, impressively comprehensive game that has so much to offer, whether you're playing solo, with a friend, or against strangers online. It's even a little overwhelming at first, but much...
