I and Me looks like a beautifully hand-drawn game that controls quite well. Its fluid movement makes navigating the stages easy, with no mechanical drawbacks. However, the promise of a deep and meaningful story is hurt by the hard-to-read cursive font used to present all the narration, thus losing all the appeal of what is supposed to feel like a haunting tale. Beyond that, though, the stages are pretty easy to figure out and complete, though playing around with the four main mechanics introduced with each new season is fun in itself, and allowing for experimentation strengthens them. The hints that the game offers up actually overstep their mark, and instead they solve the puzzle entirely; however, they hardly need to be used, as I and Me rarely lifts the difficulty metre at all.
Playing as a genie has never been more fun. Shantae: Half-Genie Hero is a wonder to behold, and can be enjoyed by players of all ages.
If Under Pressure was meant to serve as a platform to build up the third episode, then it surely succeeded at that.
It is unfortunate, because the atmosphere that Uncanny Valley conveys in every room, and around the intrigue of the vague story is spooky enough that this could've been a good game. However, the poorly executed gameplay mechanics really lets the title down. Once the game does away with the exploration, and becomes more of a survival horror, the health and gun mechanics fall completely flat, as uninspiring shootouts occur, and Tom more likely than not succumbs to the darkness due to the poor button mapping of reloading and shooting a gun. The story has enough intrigue to get the adventure started, but unfortunately Uncanny Valley just isn't worth it to replay multiple times in order to achieve the different endings.
Mantis Burn Racing: Elite Class adds four hovercraft racers to the mix in their own unique season. Race around in the same old tracks, but with added bonuses, such as extremely high speeds, and not having to worry about the surface of the track influencing the tyres or turns. However, the same core mechanics otherwise apply to these racers, as the turned up dial makes the already-frenetic game even more out of control!
VooFoo Studios' free DLC pack Snowbound for Mantis Burn Racing is a handy addition to have. Featuring four new snow-based tracks that can be troublesome to learn, as well as the ever-frenetic 'Spotlight' event, this is a great pack of content. There is plenty of fun to be had here, though it is not for the faint-hearted. There is a reason these tracks are packed into two additional seasons for the Veterans. It isn't supposed to be easy, so coming in with plenty of experience in the earlier races, as well as plenty of upgrades, is required to try to at least contend with the best.
Seasons After Fall is a beautifully crafted adventure title that changes the gameplay mechanics of a traditional platformer with the use of the four seasons. The story is simple, although the ambiguity of it all works in its favour, as the mysteries slowly come to light. While a few flaws creep into the latter part of the adventure, and there is some repetitive exploration, this is a great title for fans of the puzzle-platforming genre looking for another way to pass a few hours.
Tangled Up in Blue is an excellent pilot that does a superb job in introducing each of the Guardians to new players, while remaining very faithful to their source material.
Mantis Burn Racing is a fun racing game that throws out the simulation of modern driving titles, instead opting for the high speed, sand-kicking arcade racer. With nine cars ranging from light, medium, and heavy cars to choose from, players can compete against the AI or online to prove who is king of the racetrack. With a few different events to select from that vary in difficulty, and a host of tracks to race in, this is definitely one of the more enjoyable racers on PlayStation 4. While riddled with glitches and bugs, none is truly game breaking, and can be tolerated by those who are patient, although it is annoying having to constantly restart the game due to freezes and the like.
Has-Been Heroes is a funny and charming title that blends the age-old tale of heroes embarking on an adventure with the humour of them escorting the princesses to school.
Warhammer 40,000: Deathwatch is a typical tactical turn-based game seen many times before. While not delivering anything new in terms of gameplay, the squad-based teamwork that is required to power through the 40 stages is nothing short of grinding fun. At the beginning, it feels like a bonding experience for the space marines. However, the game quickly falls down the path of needing to grind in order to venture through the missions, as a tough mission could be waiting, spiking up the difficulty quite unexpectedly and sharply. Combined with the stage designs that really do not complement the turn-based style of the game due to the enclosed tunnels and rarity of large arenas to set up ambushes in, this port of the smartphone game leaves a lot to be desired.
Toy Odyssey: The Lost and Found is a special type of game that has a really wonderful and childlike atmosphere, with an overlying grim darkness that engulfs the house, and poor Felix's nightmares. Brand is a likeable toy who just seeks to rid his owner of his nightmares, and try to banish the darkness from the house. Memoirs and diary entries from the various family members further pry open the dark mysteries of the situation. While counterbalancing the base defence element of the game, it can become annoying due to the high cost of the defences, and considering that many runs don't produce a lot of cogs until later in the game when Brand is highly powered, it can be a frustrating beginning. Once the early stages have been passed, though, and Brand has started levelling up and completing quests, an amazing experience opens up in what is one of the better action-platformers available on the PS4 in recent times.
Yesterday Origins is a fantastic point-and-click adventure that features comic-styled panels to showcase the story of John trying to find a cure for his memory loss.
8DAYS tries to replicate the thrill and aggressive nature of a twin-stick shooter and apply it to a mercenary gunning down enemies, but forgets about the part where an endless supply of ammo would've been useful. Having to rely on using stealth to traverse the chapters out of fear of wasting ammo kind of defeats the purpose of calling it a "shooter." While the cheap enemies and finite supply of health packs mixed with the extremely reflexive gameplay further dampens the product, 8DAYS leaves a lot to be desired, as it is a constant reminder of what could've been a really fun game.
While the opening sequences plays out quite forced, with Max awkwardly needing a reason to begin exploring, the game gets a lot better once it gets going. With no real gameplay required, this is, at the end of the day, a visual novel that works well at times, though some head scratching moments disrupts the flow of the game.
The Rogue One edition of Zen Pinball 2 may not contain multiple tables, but the one that it does contain is a fun little excursion into an alternate Star Wars table. The open table leaves little room for forced errors, allowing for easy point multipliers and mission completion. Falling on the spectrum of one of the easier tables, this is a great way for newcomers to the pinball series to begin, while fans of Star Wars will find plenty of missions and mini-games here to let them relive the key moments from the Rogue One film. This great addition continues the trend of excellent tables that the developer has been creating.
Pac-Man Championship Edition 2 is an addictive throwback to the original classic; however, there is a lot of new game mechanics that work well to modernise the formula, without taking away any of the nostalgia. Those looking for a new Pac-Man game will find plenty to love here, including the pellet eating and the ghost trains, combined with the fruits meter, the bomb jump, the jump pads and the ability to bump into the ghosts. Each stage features a sequence of mazes in Adventure mode, while Score Attack tests even the toughest of Pac-Man players who are looking at posting up some high scores. This is a fun adventure that can be enjoyed by fans of the old, as well as younger fans being introduced to the franchise for the first time.
Darksiders: Warmastered Edition sees a refresher on the famed franchise, which upscales the visuals to look right at home on the PlayStation 4. While the gameplay elements that hindered the previous iteration of the game still haven't been fixed, this is still a great game to own. While fans of the series won't find anything new except a chance to port over their old library to the current generation, newcomers to the series will find this and the Darksiders II remaster a great entry point into the series. This is a brutal hack and slash adventure game, where War finds a range of new ways to rip enemies apart with QTEs, while employing the various abilities learned throughout the game, in his quest to restore order between the balance of Heaven and Hell.
This latest trilogy pack from Zen Studios is a blast to play, and is a worthy addition for pinball enthusiasts.
The main attraction to Carmageddon: Max Damage is the variety in running over pedestrians while also ramming into opponents' cars. While there are five more game modes that are just different variations of the formula, the graphical limitations hold the game back from what it could've been. Carmageddon: Max Damage is a perfect throwback to fans of the series wishing to take another nostalgic hit, but there is nothing here to draw newcomers into the franchise. It feels more like a glorified side story of a larger Grand Theft Auto title, which makes it difficult to justify a purchase, coupled with the roughness of the gameplay and the animations.