Unlike some who may be considering picking this up, I was a fan of the original release of Patapon and, as such, found that despite my initial misgivings playing Patapon on the PS4 is generally just as fun as it was in portable format.
Although I had a ton of fun with Dead by Daylight, I have to admit that playing as a survivor did become repetitive far quicker than I expected. Whether or not this is just fatigue from playing through another similar title in such close proximity, I'm not sure there's enough on offer in this category to maintain my interest for the required levelling up of each character.
For the first time in nearly a decade it feels like the Tekken series has undergone an evolution of sorts, with the Rage Arts and Drive mechanics making for a decidedly different feeling game. Your mileage may vary in regards to these changes but to be fair you're never forced to employ Rage Arts and can elect to continue to duke it out old school if that's more your speed.
Although the often grimdark narrative could have done with the insertion of some levity, one has to admit that the team behind Dreamfall Chapters have a solid grasp on the art of storytelling, even if the game is steeped in seventeen years of history that's almost impenetrable to newcomers.
I initially mentioned my affinity for games like Ico and Journey earlier in order to quickly paint a picture in the reader's mind of what kind of game Rime is. Using comparisons is a simple, if somewhat lazy, way to easily convey a genre or narrative direction of a game, and, much like those games are their own entities, Rime shares as much in common with those titles as it does its own thing.
I really, really enjoyed Prey. A pitch perfect marriage of Science-Fiction and Horror, Prey is close to what I imagine a modern, FPS Dead Space would be like, with a liberal helping of System Shock sauce sprinkled on top.
Butcher never demanded too much of me, which is something I can't say about many games these days as responsibilities pile up alongside the years. Perfect for quick bursts of gaming, Butcher worked best for me as a palate cleanser between other games.
Little Nightmares is an effective little thriller that provides a breezy four or so hours of gameplay and some of the most intense scares of the year, high praise in a year where Resident Evil VII and Outlast II have also released. This short length might be a bone of contention for some but it ensures that the game is succinct and free from filler and doesn't run the risk of wearing out its welcome.
With four fresh maps in which to hunt down your buddies and a rollicking foray into undead ass kicking, Continuum may falter in places but it is still an easy recommend for fans. A pulse-pounding funk injection of pure adrenaline, Shaolin Shuffle in particular ticks all the right boxes for me… I always knew that the soundtrack to the Apocalypse would be Disco.
Playing through The Ringed City was a bittersweet experience for me; it felt almost like I was lamenting the end of the series whilst playing rather than allowing myself to truly immerse myself in the content. The Souls series has become one of my all-time favourite gaming franchises and, whilst I commend From with having the plums to pull the plug whilst they’re still arguably on top of their game, there’s a little piece of me that dies inside every time I hear that the Souls series is now considered complete.
Probably the biggest strike against Berserk and the Band of the Hawk is, paradoxically, that it got me into the Berserk franchise.
I adored Nioh. Like, straight up marry an inanimate object adore. Is it my favourite Souls type game? Well, no, both Bloodborne and Demons Souls pip it at the post for me. Does it now reside comfortable among my top ten of all time? You betcha.
Overall, I have no issues in recommending Sabotage for fans of Call of Duty; perhaps the most solid DLC offering from the franchise in a while, the quality of both the multiplayer maps and the new Zombie film can not be understated.
Okay, so it’s obvious that Digimon World: Next Order didn’t leave much of an impression upon me; personally I found the world to be devoid of any real life, the combat unsatisfying and the micro-managing of every aspect of raising my creatures to be an annoying contrivance rather than a rewarding experience.
Hitman: The Complete First Season offers up the entire homicidal experience in one tidy package and is an easy recommend if you dig the stealth genre or open-ended games with a myriad of ways to approach a mission.
A definite return to form for the series, Resident Evil 7: Biohazard is, to me, the most atmospheric entry in the series and, free from many of the narrative constraints of the early games, manages to forge out an entirely new chapter in the Resident Evil universe whilst still paying homage to classic tropes and even characters.
You may have noticed that I didn’t delve into too much detail regarding the plot – In titles like this, where the main draw is the narrative itself, I personally feel it’s best to come in as fresh as possible. Having played through Her Majesty’s Spiffing twice now, I’ve found that, much like a lot of Telltale’s work, the game operates under the illusion of choice rather than your decisions actually impacting meaningfully upon the narrative.
Look, let’s be straight here – The Ezio Collection is a fairly lazy port. Minimal effort has been made to improve the games either graphically or mechanically and there’s absolutely no reason to pick this up if you already own the previous gen versions of the games.
I really regret dismissing Titanfall 2 as easily as I did, for by doing so I nearly deprived myself of one of the most exhilarating and inventive FPS experiences available on the market today.
Xenoraid is competently built but lacks any real reason to actually compel you to play it. The gameplay loop quickly becomes monotonous and, aside from quick bursts here and there whilst waiting for a download, I can’t see many gamers putting much time into conquering the alien attackers.