While Livelock's gameplay excels in its foundation, the challenge is inevitably stripped from it due to the pursuit of an arcade style feeling.
Overcooked capitalizes on its simple premise and easy controls to offer up a surprisingly challenging and addicting game. With a notable absence of couch co-op games these days for friends, this fills the hole perfectly.
The Technomancer had aspirations to become a noteworthy RPG, but fell short due to some poor decisions in key areas. Good ideas were muddled by poor execution, and the result is an experience that won’t keep players tuned in for very long.
Homefront: The Revolution is ultimately plagued by far too many performance issues than should be considered acceptable. While the game shows promising flashes, it falls in the shadow of its predecessor by failing to create a memorable tale of an occupied America.
For several reasons, the game is one of the most innovative shooters in years and should provide players with many hours of entertainment.
Skyling: Garden Defense is a good example of how preconceptions should not be based on appearances alone. The bright and innocent atmosphere here gives off a walk in the park vibe that is undermined by the game's deceptively challenging puzzles. With seemingly no incentive given to each level's time and unlockable stars, however, Skyling missed out on an opportunity to challenge the player to continually outdo past runs and perfect each level.
Despite a promising heavy metal vibe, Slain! is a mess of errors that I fear will not be adequately addressed no matter how many patches are thrown at it.
MagNets: Fully Charged is a dull and uninspired game that will ultimately be overshadowed by a marketplace that sees games pumped out at a constant rate. While the idea of creating magnetic fields to disrupt enemy robots is interesting, the game’s constant use of this mechanic with no real variation led it to feel far more repetitive than innovative. With a dull storyline, dated visuals and unreliable gameplay, MagNets: Fully Charged does not provide much attraction to return for more.
The Flame in the Flood does not afford the player leisure time to stop and take in the sights. The survival system here, complete with all of the afflictions that are actively working against you, is the high point of the game, and is something that continually presents the player with a real challenge throughout their journey. It's a constant battle of intense survival where planning for the present and future is always a necessity. If we're really talking about the end of society, that's exactly how it should be.
Zheros had clear ambitions of playing homage to classic arcade games, but focused too heavily on doing so. The gameplay is far too lacking to make up for the game's other glaring issues.
Rise of the Tomb Raider's "Baba Yaga" DLC is a relatively short return to Lara's adventure, but an enjoyable one nonetheless. While the story doesn't quite hook you as much as that from the main game, and the lack of a new challenge tomb was disappointing, you'll still be glad that you had the chance to return to the Siberian wilderness. Once again you'll find yourself wanting the next piece of Lara's story.
That Dragon, Cancer does not excel in its gameplay, but the story of Joel Green is one that players will remember for a while. This is as genuine as storytelling gets in video games.
In many ways, INK feels like an exploration game with an artistic side focus. By limiting the player's sense of sight, the game creates an enjoyable and unique platforming experience.
No Time to Explain is a nice blend of teeth-grinding frustration and nutty humor that platforming fans should enjoy.
Submerged's beautiful setting and sunken post-apocalyptic world were not enough to offset the absence of combat and challenge.
Despite having an enticing backstory and atmosphere, Traverser falls short of creating a truly memorable adventure.
Not a Hero is silly bloodbath whose gameplay and humor are best enjoyed in small doses. Sliding from floor to floor is a ton of fun, but, unfortunately, the entire game can be played through in a fairly short time.
State of Decay proved to be a massive hit when it released on Xbox LIVE Arcade and may very well follow up that success on the Xbox One. The mixture of resource gathering and base building provides for a deep zombie survival experience and the micromanagement is made easy by a streamlined menu system. With the inclusion of the two DLCs there is a lot here to keep players busy for awhile.
Ori and the Blind Forest is arguably the best game of 2015 so far. Visually it is gorgeous and has a beautiful soundtrack to complement it. The lack of load times helps the flow of the game, and the platforming gameplay is fluent and precise all the way through. Difficulty spikes bring a challenging edge, and the escape sections are some of the most hectic portions of any platformer game. Ultimately, I cannot recommend this game enough, it is a must play.
Hand of Fate is a shining example of what ID@Xbox can bring to the console. The game's ability to provide the same gameplay over and over again, while still making every encounter feel fresh and challenging, is what makes the experience completely addictive. I was so sucked into the game that I literally got off my couch and sat cross-legged in front of the TV so that I could concentrate more. For those who thrash through the game's Story mode, the never-ending Endless mode provides an extra challenge to see just how far you can go. I have a distinct feeling that this game will remain installed on many consoles for a long time.