Gotham Knights is the type of game you so dearly want to love, but time and time again it gives you a reason not to.
At its best, A Plague Tale: Requiem is one of the greatest narrative-focused experiences on PS5 to date. Technical limitations get in the way some of the time, but with improved stealth and combat mechanics, this is a really well-rounded game that excels at nearly everything it does. Innocence demonstrated Asobo Studio's potential in bursts; Requiem has absolutely realised it.
Overwatch 2 is not a full sequel in the way one usually is, instead porting over the original game and enhancing it with a bit of new content. It doesn't justify the number at the end, but that doesn't take away from what is still a terrific multiplayer experience. Removing the price point entirely, Overwatch 2 can now be considered one of the best free-to-play games around.
Steelrising is Spiders Studio's best game to date, but one too many bugs and tech issues hold it back from greatness. Its combat system remains engaging and enjoyable throughout, and the unique, mechanical take on the French Revolution means it'll live longer in the memory than previous FromSoftware tributes. It's one for the genre fanatics for now, but six months down the line, Steelrising may be in tip-top shape. It's more than worth playing at that point.
Inscryption is a great card battler, but to even call it that sells what is a truly unique experience short. If you're at all interested in what else it has to offer, close this webpage, boot up your PS5, and buy the game. Keep yourself in the dark. You're better off for it.
Soul Hackers 2 is a competent Atlus JRPG that will tick a lot of boxes for fans of the genre, but it falls well short of being that next breakout star from Japan. With awful dungeon design and little else to do outside of them, it falls upon the engaging combat system and interesting enough narrative to pick up the pieces. It's by no means the next must-play JRPG, but there's just enough to Soul Hackers 2 that warrants a playthrough.
If there's an award for game feel, Rollerdrome wins it by a country mile. Roll7 has crafted a short but supremely sweet experience that feels incredible to engage with.
Perhaps the only blemish, then, is the character design. The twosome don't really match up with the art style they're walking through; their depictions look simplistic compared to what's around them. However, they don't take away from what is a pleasant — if a bit too basic — adventure you could get through in an afternoon.
Maybe you'll find something to like if you've never played a horror game like this before, but for anyone well-versed in the genre, the ground MADiSON covers is very well-worn.
Resident Evil 7: Biohazard always faced an uphill battle in comparison to the two other PS5 upgrades, and the mountain has proven too much. While the game looks and runs better, it's still a long way off Resident Evil 2 and Resident Evil 3. It's like playing a really good-looking PS4 game rather than something native to PS5. Still, at least the game itself remains a cracker.
While a PS5 version of Resident Evil 3 could never rectify the glaring issues of the PS4 remake — cut content, very short run time — it does at least shine bright with ray tracing implementation and a native 4K resolution. Capcom was simply trying to make Resident Evil 3 look and run better on PS5, and it at least achieved that.
Capcom hasn't gone to any great lengths with its updated PS5 version of Resident Evil 2, offering fans and newcomers two imperfect graphical modes to choose from. Very speedy load times will have you immersed in a flash, though, and the support for the PS5's adaptive triggers adds another extra wrinkle on top. Resident Evil 2 is still every bit as good as it was three years ago; this PS5 version simply gives you the chance to experience it all over again with further shine.
For everything The Quarry does right, it has just as many glaring issues or niggling problems to bring it right back down to Earth. Supermassive Games has been trying to better Until Dawn for seven years now, and at this point, it looks like it's never, ever going to happen. The Quarry is just a bit dull, and that's the exact opposite of what these types of titles strive to be.
It takes nothing away from the real triumph Silt is, though, with stunning visuals, disturbing sound cues, and an enjoyable gameplay loop. Silt represents what's so special about indies: a great game just outside the norm.
A small amount of texture pop-in aside, a very strong visual style makes Road 96 a delight to look at. Striking character art enunciates facial features, while environments and background vistas look beautiful. With a great soundtrack to boot, the game has an incredibly strong style. When the characters you meet along the way are just as striking in their conversations and political and social beliefs, Road 96 succeeds at weaving multiple tales through the lives of teens that just want to get the hell out.
Lake is the perfect pallet cleanser after a heavier title. It's refreshing to not have to worry about an end of the world prophecy, or an out of control god hell-bent on destruction. However, it's also that simplistic nature that holds it back from a first-class stamp.
Ghostwire: Tokyo feels like a step back from what Tango Gameworks has produced in the past. While its combat system is fun in bursts, it becomes repetitive far too quickly. The open world is jam-packed with busywork, and the story doesn't go anywhere interesting either. Excellent PS5 DualSense controller support, haunting elements, and nice visuals aside, Ghostwire: Tokyo will have to go down as a miss.
Gran Turismo 7 is a game for everyone: the racing enthusiasts, the novices, and anyone in between.
Elden Ring is the definitive FromSoftware game. With a refined combat system packing new ideas and an open world perfect for exploration, it sets a new benchmark for titles of this ilk to strive for. This is the Japanese developer firing on all cylinders — far and away its best creation yet. Elden Ring is an utterly essential PS5 title.
Dying Light 2 is a super solid follow-up to the 2015 original, building upon its fantastic gameplay loop with new traversal options for even more parkour fun. It's extremely disappointing, however, that the narrative and open world promises Techland made in the lead up to launch haven't been realised. Your choices don't have nearly as much impact as we would like, and the map is much more rigid than pre-release footage would have you believe. Still, Dying Light 2 feels awesome and empowering to play, and that can go a long way.