Ben Skipper's Reviews
One of the greatest video games ever made. A masterpiece.
In reinvigorating the Zelda series, Nintendo has rediscovered what gave it life all those years ago, capturing a spirit of adventure that flows through Breath of the Wild like the breeze on Hyrule's fields. Link and Princess Zelda's battle to save Hyrule and vanquish evil has rarely felt like such a personal journey, thanks to a masterful game defined by its peerless, charming and truly beautiful setting. A masterpiece.
Dontnod brings one of the best video game stories in years to a tense, powerful and satisfying conclusion. Life Is Strange has been a triumph. The surprise game of 2015.
Mario Kart 8 Deluxe takes the best game in the series and improves it. It looks better, plays better, the soundtrack remains an utter joy and the inclusion of a fully-featured and fiendishly fun Battle Mode is the cherry on top. This is the best Mario Kart game ever, and it's hard to see exactly how Nintendo will ever be able to improve upon it.
What Remains of Edith Finch is an astonishing patchwork of inventive ideas rich in unforgettable moments. This is interactive storytelling in its truest form. A narrative adventure game that serves as another nail in the coffin of the reductive and derogatory term 'walking simulator', imbued with the ideas of a talented team working at the peak of its powers. This is a game that needs to be played. It's an essential new text in the history of video game storytelling.
Nintendo proves once again why it is the very best at what it does, with the Super Mario game players have waited 15 years for. Rooted in an wonderfully absurd design idea, Odyssey is a glorious and jubilant adventure for all that, like its plump hero, revels in the freedom to explore, experiment and play.
The enormity of PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds' success will have surprised even its developers. This is a shooter that didn't invent the Battle Royale genre in gaming, but which certainly perfected it to the point that it found a massive, massive audience. With more than 30 million copies sold, PUBG is a bona fide phenomenon with an influence that will be felt in the industry for years to come.
Bluepoint Games has masterfully given new life to a masterpiece of the genre, making their Shadow of the Colossus feel in many ways like the definitive version. Porting and remaking the games of others isn't as trying as making something new, but doing so does come with significant pressure that Bluepoint have made their name dealing with. However, the studio's work wouldn't have been possible without the initial, groundbreaking efforts of Team Ico.Shadow of the Colossus is an adventure that's still every bit as breathtaking and astounding as it was over a decade ago.
Thoroughly engaging from start to finish, Her Story is a tour de force of interactive storytelling and a murder mystery for the ages.
Dontnod has something truly special here. All they have to do now is finish on a high.
The best in the series, and another Naughty Dog classic.
With The Phantom Pain Hideo Kojima has realised his Metal Gear dream.
This fault only prevents Hitman Episode Two from achieving near-perfection, it is still an exceptional example of the series at its very best. IO's strong start is becoming a hot streak, and all eyes will be on the third episode, set to be released in May.
Inside is a worthy successor to Limbo, that improves upon it in many ways. It's visually richer, less obtrusive with its puzzling elements and tells its evocative, grim fairy tale with a greater panache.
IO Interactive's new, episodic Hitman is a triumph. The developer knew how to revive its ailing series and did so with aplomb, crafting a robust set of core mechanics and designing superb levels around them. Reminiscent of everything Blood Money did so well, from its focus on gameplay over story to its cold, sardonic presentation and dark sense of humour, this is Hitman as it is and always should be.It falters when the game leans too heavily on optional Opportunities, but counter to this hand-holding system are Elusive Targets – a fantastic test of any Hitman player's abilities. While these one-chance contracts are only available for a few days at a time, IO's consistent, quality support of the game ensures many more will follow this first season's physical release.
This is a sequel that refines a formula rather than shaking it up, and while that does the job for now, the focus will soon shift to what Bungie can do to keep Destiny moving forward.
Rime is a beautiful ode to life, loss and childhood that's as much a pleasure to behold as it is to play. Genteel puzzling and exploration make for great bedfellows in a memorable adventure only let down ever so slightly by some minimal frame rate stutter and a final act that while emotionally resonant provides little challenge or escalation in terms of gameplay. Nearly four years on from its much-hyped debut, Rime proves itself to be have been absolutely worth the wait.
It's quite literally everything the first game was and more, which might not mean more revolutionary features but does mean a greater depth and variety of options for the new players it is sure to ensnare. With free updates promised for the best part of a year, the game will only improve, and this time it'll have the audience it deserves.
Celeste is an beautiful, optimistic game about how triumph can outweigh any number of failures . It's about reconciling your pain, frustrations and defeats. It's about getting better, in every sense.
Not perfect, but one of the most absorbing, challenging and fun games of the year so far, which makes the fact it was developed by just one person all the more astounding.