Kirk McKeand's Reviews
Star Wars Battlefront II houses a decent single-player campaign and good multiplayer, but, like the otherwise slick design of its multiplayer maps, that accomplishment is often obscured by distractions.
Ubisoft were hoping for two things when they decided to give Assassin's Creed a gap year: they wanted to deliver a more polished experience, and they wanted us all to have time to miss shanking people in the neck in a gorgeous historical setting. They have achieved both. Assassin's Creed as a series has had a strange evolution, but going back to the start of the story, the place where the entire Creed was formed, has breathed new life back into it. Absence really does make the heart grow, well, stabbier.
It all feels worth it for those moments when there are a few seconds left on the clock and you are forced to take desperate action.
Absolver feels very special when it works as intended.
Dishonored: Death of the Outsider captures everything that's great about Arkane's assassination series, while also showing that it can still surprise.
A hostile, exciting and smart sci-fi adventure
If you look at it as a reboot, a starting point for the series, there's lots of promise in that future. The first Mass Effect had countless problems, far more than here, but that will always be remembered as a classic, despite leaving similar threads hanging. Ultimately, this is a story about laying the foundations of a civilization, and it feels like BioWare were doing the same for the future of the franchise. In that way, these RPG developers have become Pathfinders themselves.
Despite some minor annoyances, NieR: Automata is brilliant. It strikes the balance between RPG and action game unlike anything else in the genre. It’s a game you kind of have to meet halfway, with a story that gets more complex and interesting the more you prod at it. If you’re willing to commit, though, you’ll be rewarded.
If you went into Horizon Zero Dawn without knowing a thing about it, you would never guess that this open-world RPG comes from Guerrilla Games - the studio behind weighty first-person-shooter series, Killzone.
Despite some small niggles – such as stealth being so rudimentary it feels redundant, and the aforementioned uninspired late-game location – this is the best horror game since Creative Assembly's wonderful Alien Isolation. It's best if players slowly creak open the game's doors themselves, discovering the story and set-pieces on their own, as this is an experience that works best when it's free to surprise you, like a rotting doberman crashing through a window.
Despite the shallowness of the combat, you’re always being pulled towards something new, and you can’t help but be carried along by it. Whenever you tire of one thing, the next distraction or big set-piece is just a few minutes away – just be prepared to be offered pocket tissues, have a few scraps, and become someone’s agony aunt.
Last night I went to bed after starting my second playthrough of Dishonored 2, and I dreamed of Karnaca. Like the Outsider plucking those who interest him from their earthly existence, Dishonored 2 has invaded my unconscious mind, to the point where I can barely think about much else. I'm already planning my third run.
I’m genuinely surprised with how much I adore Watch Dogs 2’s world. Its satire works because it is always punching up, never down. As such, Watch Dogs 2 feels like it’s making a statement.
Titanfall 2 boasts the best FPS campaign since Modern Warfare, and it comes bundled with an exciting, hyper-fast multiplayer that will keep you entertained for months. This is proof that Respawn is still the best shooter developer in the business. Like a Pilot zipping along a vertical surface, I can only hope the developer maintains its impressive momentum.
Usually I would not recommend a Battlefield game on the strength of its single-player, but Battlefield 1’s War Stories have toppled this tradition like a well-placed mortar to a windmill.
Mafia 3 is a game with some brilliant ideas, but the execution falls flat. It's a huge shame, because the opening hours are full of promise, but it loses its way as soon as it embraces its open-world design. [OpenCritic note: This review scores Mafia 3 at 2/5 stars. Because Kirk McKeand has already published other scored reviews for Mafia 3, the score has not been recorded]
The city of New Bordeaux, from the 18th-century landmarks of the French Quarter to the damp swamps and open plains of the Bayou, is lovingly crafted and gorgeous to explore, while its attempts to show racism in all its raw ugliness is commendable. Yet unfortunately none of this is enough to make up for its myriad issues that just stop it being much fun. In a year of brilliant games, Mafia 3 is one of 2016's biggest disappointments.
Mafia 3 is the biggest disappointment of the year. It's a game with masses of potential, but unfortunately that potential is wasted on by-the-numbers open-world game design. [OpenCritic note: This review scores Mafia 3 at 2/5 stars. Because Kirk McKeand has already published other scored reviews for Mafia 3, the score has not been recorded]
The Painted World of Ariendel has a bleak beauty that’s begging to be explored, but it’s all over far too quickly. Drilled down to its basic components, this DLC is one great boss fight, some decent items and a PvP arena. Unfortunately, if you don’t care about battling other players online then you're unlikely to get much out of this.
Like a robot that's been cobbled together from spare parts, ReCore has a complicated identity. It's often a platformer and a third-person shooter, but it sometimes feels like a shoot 'em up or a character action game, and it's all underpinned by RPG systems. Because of this muddled personality, it never fully delivers on anything, leaving us with an enjoyable experience, albeit one with a few issues at its core.