Scott Ellison II's Reviews
Codemasters put more focus on graphics and presentation into F1 22, adding style to the substance. Make no mistake though, the core gameplay and racing is perfectly preserved and updated as it should be. The F1 Life mode is underwhelming and largely superficial, but it does flesh out the overall experience of the game to not make it as stiff, backed up by the EA Trax soundtrack. It has a few bugs and foibles, but none of them hold it back from greatness. The new rules put in place make racing these incredible machines more exhilarating. F1 22 is a masterclass in simulation, and one of the finest racing games that’s a must play.
Cuphead – The Delicious Last Course is another triumph of style and substance. At $7.99, you’re dining good at not only is a great price but a great reason to return to the Inkwell Isles. It’s a smorgasbord of content with so much new added, and can now be considered complete with this release. This last morsel of gaming greatness is something that should be savored. Cuphead – The Delicious Last Course is a required and essential piece of DLC that would make the rest of the game feel incomplete otherwise.
Rollerdrome is simply brilliant, and a worthy contender for Game of the Year. The fact that we’ve gotten two banger games from Roll7 in the same year of this caliber is astounding. The precise controls are what Roll7 does best, coupled with intense combat is pure excellence. The leaderboard chasing among friends and enemies is why you’ll stay, but the Out for Blood mode will be the reason you don’t put it down. Rollerdrome is an exquisite mash-up of maintaining a combo while killing to survive that’s pure kineticism, the de facto “skate or die”.
Marvel’s Spider-Man Remastered is one of the best open-world games out there. While New York City can be bland at times, it’s the playground that makes Spider-Man work so well. The PS4 game remastered for PS5 is now on PC, and it’s the definitive version of such an epic game. Spider-Man has been sorely missed on PC for years, and it’s a great return for the web-slinger. Everything you’ve heard about the game is true, and Insomniac nailed every element of it. Marvel’s Spider-Man Remastered is just incredible, and is one of those games that will stick with you, and you’ll return to often.
Off-Peak City is an off-beat city with a cast of characters of enigmatic proportions. You’ve not lived until you try to get a bartender to open up to you by either telling a joke or dancing, but perhaps jumping over the bar is more your style. This is one of the most surreal gaming experiences I’ve had, and it’s something I want more of. Having achieved four of its eleven endings, I’m contemplating my next run and what I can do differently. Roll the dice, and give Betrayal At Club Low your time and money, because it’s full of so many surprises and sagacious moments.
Whether its revisiting the game again or experiencing it again, Shatter Remastered Deluxe is just as revolutionary as when Shatter debuted in 2009. It’s a visual delight with sublime controls and the best pulse-poudning electronic soundtracks to-date. I love being able to revisit this game and experience it all over again, and the price is right to facilitate such a return. Shatter Remastered Deluxe is must-own, must-play, must-have on all platforms.
Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales is thankfully not an origin story, as that was handled expertly in the previous game. So what we get here is a fun and exciting game that just jumps right in without the painfully slow ramp-up that other games fall victim to. Once again Insomniac offers a refreshing take on the open-world game that’s never dull to engage with any and all of its systems. Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales is a massive achievement, showing that lightning can strike twice.
This version and reworking of Dead Space fixes all issues with the original, adds new content of substance, and quality of life improvements all-around. I don’t often replay games, but I’m eager to start my run in New Game+ on a harder difficulty already. Knowing that this was remade from the ground-up still manages to trick the brain into thinking this is how it used to look back in 2008, but couldn’t be more wrong. This is one of the best survival horror games ever, and sits in the pantheon of great remakes like Resident Evil 2. I hope Motive continue to be the caretakers of the Dead Space estate, as they possess the blueprint for what a remake should be. Dead Space is a horror classic for a new generation, and it’s better than ever.
While I still prefer the original Desktop Dungeons mainly for nostalgia, Rewind this is a refreshing and modernized reintroduction of the game will have a new generation falling in love like I did over ten years ago. Even if you haven't played it before, I think the price of admission is well worth it for a game that offers so much variety and longevity, being infinitely replayable in the truest sense. QCF Design offers a game that lets you peel back the layers like an onion, only to find that it's wrapped around another onion. And once you peel back those layers, there's yet one more onion inside that's offers more depth and surprises. Desktop Dungeons: Rewind is a lighthearted and challenging procedurally generated puzzle meets dungeon crawler roguelike, and is the coolest thing you'll play all year.
Age of Wonders 4 offers nearly infinite replayability with the built-in scenarios and ways to create your own, to include all of the included factions and ones you can manifest. This is a game that corrects past mistakes, includes expansions into its core, and has no shortcomings. This is an incredibly beautiful game that is popping with color and visuals. There’s essentially two to three games in here across its 4X, RPG, and tactical combat layers that offer variability and unpredictability. This is a massive game that is able to carry the weight of the series on its shoulders proudly, Age of Wonders 4 is purely magical.
Whether you’re fulfilling a fantasy of being a driver on a famous team, racing your friends list with a custom team, or taking part of a Netflix-style docu-series; there’s lots of racing to be had. I can’t find anything about this package to be disappointed with, not even its price point, which feels warranted for once. F1 23 simplifies what didn’t work in prior years, continues a story mode that improves on the original, and expands on modes to make them more worthwhile than ever. Codemasters put on a clinic this year, and manages to top themselves year-over-year with F1 23 being the best entry they’ve made yet.
The Diablo series continues to be timeless, and Diablo IV is no different, becoming an instant classic. There are so many systems in play at any time, whether it be the skill tree, paragon boards, glyphs, or elixirs, it all comes together – the devil is in the details. There’s so much game here, and there’s hundreds of hours of content, without the Season Pass even being live yet. And with everything leading up to and after the launch of the game being so smooth, the game is set for success. The complexion of Diablo IV could change in a year, or even six months from now. Though, as it stands currently, Diablo IV is a hell of a good time.
Like the ocean itself, there’s so much depth to DAVE THE DIVER , as there’s more that’s hidden beneath the surface. The stunning graphics, mesmerizing sound design, and well-crafted gameplay combine to create an unforgettable experience. Whether you’re a fan of exploration games or simply have a love for ocean games, this is sure to captivate you for dozens of hours. Prepare to have your expectations blown out of the water, as it constantly introduces new and exciting things right up until the end. DAVE THE DIVER is a treasure of a find, so take the plunge on what is one of the best games you’ll play this year.
As someone who quicksaves vigorously, having a mechanic around that, tied to the game’s lore is so smart and encouraging. They absolutely own the stealth strategy genre, and they don’t miss. Mimimi Games is at their best when they are working with an original IP, and this being totally their own, makes this their best game yet. Mimimi’s third game with Shadow Gambit: The Cursed Crew is sheer brilliance, where little victories lead into big smiles.
Starfield doesn’t reinvent the RPG genre, but it does make it quite exciting. It’s a game that feels distinct from the studio’s prior work like The Elder Scrolls and Fallout , and even represents the best of both worlds. Bethesda Game Studios managed to incorporate streamlined systems to make exploring space fun, and never a chore. There’s nothing I dislike about it. Starfield is ambitious and magical, capturing the wonder and vastness of space beautifully, and feels like a truly next-gen experience.
Colossal Order offers an intricate deep simulation of a city builder. Aside from the taxing performance, it’s simply amazing to see in motion. For the price, you get a metropolis-sized game full of options. It’s also one of those things where I can’t wait to see what this game is like eight years from now. Cities: Skylines II offers the next-generation of the city builder that constantly impressed and amazed.
SteamWorld Dig: A Fistful of Dirt is still a great game, but it is undoubtedly a more compact game than what’s come after this game’s original release. SteamWorld Dig offers little exploration for curiosity as it is usually out of necessity to gather as much ore as you can find to sell for cash to then buy upgrades to make Rusty more effective. If nothing else, SteamWorld Dig serves as a reminder at how much Image & Form learned from this game when making SteamWorld Dig 2 – but thankfully there’s so much more to this game to appreciate. Whether you’ve played this before or not, Image & Form make beautiful looking, sounding, and playing games that deserve to have a place in your library.
FutureGrind is incredibly well thought out and designed. It understands what it is, and what it asks of you. The instant restarts are a feature it couldn’t live without, and it’s story mode is more than enough to carry you through. The game is wide open for DLC and expansions to do more of what it does so well. What this all amounts to, is that FutureGrind quickly becomes technically demanding for you to do mental and physical gymnastics with the controls. It never is anything insurmountable, but rather constantly forcing you to reteach your brain what bike you’re using, and what modifiers are on the track. This kind of thinking is necessary to reach the end, and work towards those diamonds. FutureGrind feels familiar and fresh all in the same breath, but it is certainly a standout title from Milkbag Games that’s the first must play of 2019.
Mother Russia Bleeds is a really interesting premise with a fantastic setting that delivers excellent combat. Le Cartel's vision of a brawler in 2016 with a retro aesthetic is executed beautifully for Mother Russia Bleeds to be one of the best beat'em ups in recent years.
While the game itself isn't a visual powerhouse, this is the best a Earth Defense Force game has ever looked. EARTH DEFENSE FORCE 4.1 The Shadow of New Despair is also the best-playing game of the series – combine this with the ability to play cooperatively online with a friend, and you've got magic in the making. EARTH DEFENSE FORCE 4.1 is not technically or visually impressive, but it makes a case for unadulterated fun being core to a game experience over the latter.