With Defense Grid 2, you get a solid console edition of a tower defense game that you very well could be replaying for years to come. The story is worth-while, the balance of tower types, upgrades, and aliens gives you a lot to test your skills against. I thoroughly enjoyed this game because it took what all of us are familiar with in tower defense and made each aspect smarter, higher quality, and better than the usual fare. Now can I go play it some more?
Minecraft PS4 Edition is a tried-and-true game in a solid console format. Couch co-op is extremely fun and easy to jump into, — it's like the video game version of the perfect playground. It's a game unlike any other for the PS4. Countless activities await you, and you never know what could happen. Dig in, and watch out for creepers!
Most games I have been playing lately can't even begin to match the velocity of this game (no pun intended, it's the perfect word!). I could almost feel the wind in my face as I played it. I was even compelled to redo some of the levels that felt really fluid to me, just to see if I could do it even more flawlessly. I wanted to feel that rush once I got each section down, and I truly think this game is meant to be played fluidly, especially the side-scrolling sections. The joy of running through the entire level, shooting and phasing perfectly, without stopping to catch my breath, was immense. You'd think the scenes between each level would be a nice rest, but they were like a fleet-footed jig in between mad break-dancing. They did a great job at smoothly connecting the gameplay parts of the game to the story parts so it doesn't seem forced or unrealistic. Velocity 2X is a game that, once you play a bit, guides you into a sort of rhythm. Much like music games, it's a very seductive effect.
I really enjoyed this game because it has a lot of historical commentary delivered with subtle humor, and the unique DEFCON system challenges you to be smart about how you complete each mission. Playing as a spy who doesn't align with either side and also questions the agency he works for makes for an engaging PSN title. CounterSpy touches on the gravity of the cold war while presenting it in a polished game that many will enjoy, if they choose to accept the mission.
I enjoyed the idea of Surgeon Simulator, but the difficulty made the game futile more than entertaining. Flinging internal organs about was fun (and quite disgusting), but I personally can't think of anyone I know who would enjoy trying so hard to score decently on a game like this for all of the many levels– except maybe my crazy husband. Even with its frustrations, I'm glad I own it, played it, and can refer to it as a "hilarious, crazy video game" in conversation.
Hohokum is a great, joyous escape into a well-polished, artistic video game. I felt very happy playing it. I felt an innocent kinship with my fellow eye-kite beings, and I had fun trying to find them. Over the course of playing the game, you gain a simple respect for adventure with friends. Any screenshot taken from this game could serve as a desktop background, and any person could find something to like from the many worlds, sounds, and little narratives. Hohokum is a game of many colors.
Road Not Taken proved to be a very unique game for its genre, or genres actually. The interesting marriage of what could feel like a mobile title, with the punishing difficulty and creative narrative of a console indie makes Road Not Taken a great game to have in your PS4 library. Also, in the Book of Secrets, this is the note under goat says "Goats eat flowers and then poop. Why? Because they are goats. Stop trying to change the world," and how can you go wrong with that?
The bottom line is, I thought this game was very much worthwhile even after being doubtful before I played it. Speaking to those who have already played the PS3 version, if you really loved it back then, I would suggest getting this version for PS4 too. It has a lot of extras and it looks really beautiful with the 1080p, higher frame rate, and updated graphics and character models. To those who are interested in diving into The Last of Us for the first time, what are you waiting for?!? The Last of Us Remastered is just a perfect game made even more perfect.
I give Blue Estate a little credit and weigh it more on the side of challenging instead of on the side of failure, just because there were some fun parts and some people might love the long levels, testy controls, and the crazy story. Personally, I was just tired of fighting with my crosshair through 20-30 minute long levels by the end. So if it's ever on a great sale and you really love rail shooters, you likely won't be disappointed, but no alternate methods of control and overly long levels killed my experience like a flood of gangsters getting in the way of Tony Luciano.
This game made me shed more tears than any game I have ever played before, and I find that I am not alone in that sentiment. I even think this game communicated parts of WWI so well that it could be used as an educational tool, though the characters' story is fiction. I want my friends and family who don't seek out history for fun or play video games to play Valiant Hearts. I want to show this game to my favorite history teacher in high school– who was also a soldier and a lover of fine art, to see what he thinks, though I feel that I already know the answer. I want to tell everyone how wonderful and important the complete experience of Valiant Hearts: The Great War is so that many more people can enjoy it. Oh wait, I think I just covered that last thing.
So, if you really love this type of game (tunnel/artistic), you may enjoy Entwined. But I ended up hating the mechanics, and that ruined the experience for me. The emotions didn't come through, and the colorful visuals didn't make up for it. I've played much better, simple, artistic games than this. The cinematic trailer and the actual game don't quite match each other. It feels more like a game demo meant to showcase the PS4 and Sony's support of indie developers. There are good aspects to Entwined, but being a frustrating, arcadey, tunnel game completely overshadowed any kind of art and emotion I was meant to feel, and that was the biggest let down of all.
Murdered: Soul Suspect is a really great idea for a game. It could have been really high quality all around, but maybe certain things were overlooked while focusing on the story rather than getting feedback about gameplay during development. This title feels like a tween game (to use Dan's term). It's in between console generations, where it could have been a lot more but still had some good points. I feel like I could have bought this game in 2011 just the way it is, But now it's 2014, and I expected a lot more. So, if you are usually interested in the stories that games have to tell more than anything else, go ahead and try this game out (maybe once it goes on sale), but if you don't think you can overlook somewhat boring gameplay just for an intriguing mystery, you might want to move on to the next game and leave Murdered an enigma.
Editor's Note – Check out our interview with Transistor's Creative Director.
I want everyone to play this game! Child of Light is a great example of a modern RPG that bridges gaming with other forms of art. I will be showing this game to any friends and family who are not too familiar with what gaming can be, or who have some uninformed stereotypes about what all video games are like these days. Beautiful painting-style art, moving music, refreshing and simple gameplay, and a multifaceted, emotional storyline make this game well worth the time and money.