Gabs Tanner's Reviews
Tales from the Borderlands – Episode Five: The Vault of the Traveler is a journey packed with action, laughter, and tears. Emotions are high, as players and characters alike question whether or not they made the right choices. Telltale has certainly created a powerful conclusion to the episodic series that successfully ties up all the loose ends.
Masochisia immerses players into the world and thought process of a young boy, on a very unstable and difficult road. The title is lacking in player agency, but still draws them in through the clever writing and unsettling art style.
The art style and music in Read Only Memories does a great job of drawing the player into the game. However, too much attention is centered on the complex lore of the cybernetic future world, so characters spend more time explaining the features and practices that are available than furthering the plot.
Prison Architect takes a while to get the hang of, but once the basics have been mastered, it offers multiple options for experimentation in its impressive sandbox. The Campaign and Escape modes give a good change of pace, while the quirky art-style and dark undertones grab the player's attention.
World of Warships is a game that most players will be able to pick up and play due to the simple controls. Fans of the franchise are sure to have fun with the levels of strategy and assortment of ships to switch between, but there possibly isn't enough to entertain players with no real interest in naval warfare.
Blood Bowl 2 features a lot of customisation, with a focus on the player building the perfect team for their gameplay strategy. There is a heavy 'luck of the dice' element, which may frustrate some players, but serves to add to the board-game feel that the game is emulating.
Gunman Clive HD Collection includes both Gunman Clive games. The art style may put some players off, and the game is very short, but the level design is both challenging and fun, with some huge bosses thrown in for good measure.
Trine 3: The Artifacts of Power is a puzzle platformer with stunning 3D environments. Players will enjoy finding the solutions to puzzles by switching between the three playable protagonists, but may find frustration with the necessity to find most of the collectables in order to progress.
Tales from the Borderlands – Episode Four: Escape Plan Bravo may disappoint some players with its lack of in-depth story and character development. However, the episode makes up for any faults with the constant character banter and some truly emotional moments.
Tales from the Borderlands – Episode Three: Catch a Ride builds upon the set-up from the previous episodes and delivers a more intense atmosphere and deeper story development. Players who dislike quick-time events may get frustrated at times, but the majority give plenty of reaction time and serve to both hold attention and up the action.
Tales from the Borderlands – Episode Two: Atlas Mugged continues where the first episode left off, with a return of the fantastic humour and intriguing story line. There is a focus on conversation between characters over action, meaning that there is little plot progression, but the use of humour combined with an investment in the characters makes playing the game worthwhile.
Tales from the Borderlands – Episode One: Zer0 Sum does a brilliant job of drawing the player into the world of Pandora. Both fans of the franchise, and players being introduced for the first time, will appreciate the engaging characters and their story.
While the mystery and intrigue can only be obtained during the first play-through, Her Story makes use of a simplistic concept combined with FMV to create a personal and rich atmosphere.