Ring of Pain probably isn’t something you’ll sit and play for hours at a time. It’s the sort of thing you’ll enjoy a few rounds of before turning it off, more than likely feeling defeated. But it won’t be long before you’re itching to jump back in and try again. There’s something infectious about its simplicity; it’s a roguelike dungeon crawler like no other, and despite the lack of action or actual dungeon-crawling, it’s huge amounts of fun. Even when you’re exploding left, right and centre.
All in all, there’s a decent amount of depth to Zoids Wild: Blast Unleashed despite its simple appearance. There’s plenty of single-player content, thanks to the hefty Story mode, but seasoned fighting game fans will notice the absence of online multiplayer. Still, there’s an enjoyable fighter here – and getting to control a giant dinosaur-shaped mech is a novelty that doesn’t quickly wear off.
So a masterpiece it is not, but Dustoff Z has its merits. Its polygonal art style is cute, and its easy pick-up-and-play level system means it’s the ideal game to stick on for a few minutes while you’re waiting for an update to install elsewhere. It might feel like little more than a mobile game, but it’s an entertaining way to pass the time in between more engaging endeavours.
But as annoying as the decision to completely separate single player and multiplayer is, there’s no denying the actual gameplay of Torchlight III is a joy. It’s very polished; we’ve encountered a few hiccups, but nothing too frustrating – when passing through a portal, we’ve occasionally been taken back to the entrance of an area rather than where the portal opened, for example. But that’s about it. Very few – if any – Diablo-likes have been able to grab our attention like Torchlight III has. It’s the type of game that begs you to explore just one more area before turning it off; and when you succumb to the ‘quit game’ option, you’re already looking forward to being able to jump back in again.
It may be old-fashioned in its design, but The Uncertain: Light at the End has enough charm to see you through its five-or-so hour adventure.
Ben 10: Power Trip is a game squarely aimed at a younger audience, so don’t expect to find a challenging and deep experience. In our opinion, though, it absolutely nails it as a kids game. It offers an engaging story mode packed with fun and varied missions, as well as a big open world that’s ripe for exploring. Throw into the mix the well-voiced familiar characters, the range of skills offered up by Ben’s aliens and the wealth of side content, and you’ve got an excellent entry point into the genre of open-world adventures.
As far as karting games go, Nickelodeon Kart Racers 2: Grand Prix is one of the better entries in the genre. If you’ve played the first, you’ll appreciate the extra work that’s gone into making this a bigger and better sequel. Extra characters, improved visuals and a whole host of extra content are all very welcome. It’s just a shame that there’s still no real personality coming through from any of its included franchises. Still, if you want to play a fun racing game, solo or with friends, you can do a lot worse.
I applaud Bithell Games’ efforts to make a classic card game something more. There’s no denying its presentation is compelling, even if the story may feel rather unnecessary. But regardless of how you feel about the over-the-top dramatics, there’s an excellent game at the core of The Solitaire Conspiracy. Its Countdown and Skirmish modes are something that players will find themselves going back to time and again – if only for a welcome change from Freecell or Spider Solitaire.
But it is a beautiful-looking game, and fans of the series will undoubtedly get a serious kick out of being back in control of Crash – even if they will need god-like patience for some of the game’s more trying sections. Its extra content is a let-down though, and the full RRP for a game that most players will be done with in around eight hours leaves a big question mark over whether Crash Bandicoot 4 is a worthwhile purchase. Ultimately, it comes down to how strongly you feel about the franchise.
Perhaps Nexomon: Extinction will always live in the shadows of the Pokémon series, but it has enough of its own personality to stand on its own two feet. Its world is beautiful, its story is humorous and captivating, and its budget price makes it an absolute steal. When you’re done with the Kanto and Galar regions and everything in between, you might find the world of Nexomon surprisingly charming.
There’s a lot of layers to Port Royale 4. Its gameplay is impressively deep, and to truly succeed at it, you need to excel at multitasking and strategising. Like any sim game, it’s not something that just anybody is going to enjoy. But if you are a fan of deep simulation games, there’s a lot to love here.
But Trollhunters lacks the polish and finesse of Shantae. Like the majority of TV or movie tie-in games, it ultimately feels a bit soulless and hollow.
On the whole, Super Mario 3D All-Stars is a decent collection. It doesn’t try to impress with extra features or fancy padding; it simply puts three games from the past in a simple collection for old fans to enjoy.
Running around Going Under‘s dungeons is a joy, and you’re never quite sure what will be waiting for you behind a new door. Every time you die, you’ll be keen to jump straight back in and see if you can get just that bit further. It might not be the deepest Rogue-like game out there, but you’ll be hard pushed to find another quite as fun as this.
Whether you’re an avid Marvel fan or simply enjoy sinking numerous hours into action RPGs, there’s a lot to love about Marvel’s Avengers. Its characters and its world have been brought to life with a lot of care and detail, making it a pleasure to spend time with.
Lair of the Clockwork God is funny and one of a kind, but it’s also far from perfect. It’s let down somewhat by its random bugs and lack of polish, but if you can look past them, there’s fun to be had here.
Journey to Batuu is by far one of the most interesting expansions to come to The Sims 4; if you’re a Star Wars fan, it’s worth paying a visit to just for the fantastic atmosphere.
There are very few murder mystery games that give you as much agency as Paradise Killer does. Although it takes a little while to get into the swing of things, when you’re deep in your investigation, coming across key pieces of evidence or catching your suspects out in a lie, you feel unstoppable.
If the gods of random generation line everything up in your favour, Windbound could be a truly captivating adventure. It’s unlikely to happen that way though, and sadly its many frustrations outweigh the beautiful game it could have been.
I’ve no hesitation in saying that Tell Me Why is Dontnod Entertainment’s best game yet.