Tom Hopkins's Reviews
Whether you're playing in VR or not, Tetris Effect is an incredible achievement. The familiar gameplay, stunning visuals, and beautiful music all come together to evoke a variety of different emotions. For a couple of minutes, you're captured by what's happening around you and it's magical. It's a near perfect puzzle game, but it's even closer to perfection in VR.
In its playful personality and incredibly inventive design, Astro Bot reminds me a lot of Mario Odyssey. It truly does sit alongside the best platformers of all time, providing some moments of pure magic and joy. Considering how smart and unexpected much of Astro Bot is, the possibilities for future adventures are endless.
God of War Ragnarok is the perfect sequel. With varied and spectacular action, a beautiful world to explore, and an epic yet intimate story, it improves on the first game in every single way.
As a complete package, Kingdom Come: Deliverance II is mind-blowing. The first game was an interesting foundation, but the long-awaited sequel stands easily alongside the best RPGs of the last decade. It tells an exciting yet emotional story, and the world is a joy to explore, but it’s the level of immersion that’s created by all of its interconnected systems that’s unlike anything I’ve experienced before.
Dragon Age: The Veilguard is a phenomenal return to form for BioWare. The story is well-paced and the cast of characters are the trademark BioWare staple of fully-realised, but it’s in the newly action-oriented combat where things truly shine.
While Night in the Woods does have the platforming and exploration elements that you would expect from a 2D adventure game, it is first and foremost a game about conversation and listening. The detailed characters and excellent writing tell stories that can be hilarious and heartbreaking and, as Mae, you develop some relationships with people you truly care about.
Thumper is an incredible assault on the senses when played in virtual reality. The speed at which you have to turn corners and hit notes in a stunningly designed world makes for an intense and enjoyable ride. Any PlayStation VR owner should pick it up, even if it’ll make you want to go to bed after one level.
Dirt 4 manages what very few racing games do. It's driving is challenging yet accessible, and it pairs this with an almost endless amount of content. The career mode is robust, and the stages are varied and beautifully designed, but the ability to create your own unique tracks using Your Stage is what sets Codemasters' game apart from every other rally game that has come before.
Although What Remains of Edith Finch is a short experience, Giant Sparrow's second game tells a beautiful and emotional anthology of stories, woven together by the titular characters equally touching tale. The allegories are unique and convey just what is possible from video games, in terms of storytelling and design.
Nex Machina is up there with Resogun as the best game Housemaque has ever released and is a great throwback to the arcade shooters of old. In terms of presentation and design, it is perfect and its smooth, brutal, and challenging gameplay makes it feel wonderful to play.
Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus is a fluid, brutal, and challenging first-person shooter and one that is insane and over-the-top from start to finish, but it is the unique cast of characters and the story they're a part of that shines. B.
Since the PlayStation 4 and Xbox One released in 2013, the gaming world has been pretty devoid of arcade racers, instead opting for open-world or simulation experiences. The likes of Motorstorm, Disney's Pure, and the criminally underplayed Blur have disappeared recently, but Onrush's blend of classic arcade racing, stunning visuals, and online team-based shooter ideas make it unique enough to stand out even against the competition of old.
While the underwhelming finale of Alex Hunter story and the lack of meaningful changes seen by some of the modes will be frustrating for some fans, FIFA 19 is generally a huge step forward for the series and shines in the ways that matter most. Ultimate Team has been made more appealing by a fairer and more rewarding structure, but it's the gameplay changes that add fluidity, precision, and reliability to the play that make FIFA 19 the best game the series has seen this generation.
Dead Cells is an incredible mix of well designed elements. The compelling die, upgrade, improve loop is complemented by a risk and reward Metroidvania-inspired level design, and each run is made to feel fresh with different layouts and varied weapons, but it's the excellent combat and traversal that stand out.
Doom Eternal is far more than gore, double jumps, and brutal executions. It’s an impeccably designed game that perfectly balances every single aspect of its action to create one of the most challenging, exhausting, and consistently fun shooters in years.
What The Golf? was a highlight of Apple Arcade’s launch lineup but it feels right at home on Switch. It’s a joyous mix of simple gameplay, hilarious situations and ingenious design, made even better by the inclusion of the riotous Party Mode.
Bayonetta 2 may not be appealing to everyone. Its sexuality and over-the-top tone may be a frustration to some. However, from a design and gameplay point of view, it is up there with the best in its genre. Bayonetta, the side-characters, and the world you’re fighting in are crazy and unique while the combo focused action is deep, yet accessible enough that you feel like an expert in no time. The Nintendo Switch version may not feature much that the Wii U original does not, but the console hybrid is the best place to play one of the best action games of all time. If nothing else, the re-release has made me more excited for Bayonetta 3 than I ever thought I would be.
Sitting somewhere between remake and remaster, the asking price is steep, but The Last of Us Part 1 is a beautiful version of one of PlayStation’s best ever games.
Assassin’s Creed Shadows in a nutshell is a more refined, polished game with more of the same formula. This isn’t a big revamp, nor are there any deep changes to the formula. However, it’s the best the series has been for a while. Fun combat, a pair of genuinely interesting protagonists, and a gorgeous recreation of 16th century Japan mean the flaws are easier to overlook.
It’s tough at times, there no denying that, but figuring out how to use each sector’s layout to your advantage will soon make you appreciate the subtly implemented progression system and impeccably designed rooms, adding to the pinball hack and slash gameplay that feels fantastic in all its forms from the moment you step foot in the mountain.