Dominic Leighton's Reviews
My Hero One's Justice 2 is a great brawler. It carries on the fine work put in on the first game, wraps the more recent story beats into a playable form, and buffs the already excellent visuals up to a new Shonen shine. It's not a great jumping on point for newcomers, at least story-wise, but it remains a fun, approachable fighter based on one of the best anime shows of recent years.
There's a sense that this is Splash Damage and The Coalition playing to the crowd with Gears Tactics. It undoubtedly captures the look and feel of the Gears universe, squeezing it into a slick turn-based tactical game, but while I can see a few genre fans attracted to its more cerebral form of warfare, it's the series fans who are going to get the most out of it.
SnowRunner is a game thoroughly, single-mindedly, in love with the open road. It just happens that it's the kind of love that's bred by getting that road so thoroughly under your nails, you occasionally have to wonder whether it's actually hate. Care, attention and time will show that SnowRunner is a passion project worth putting the extra mile in for.
I love that Freedom Finger sticks it, quite literally, to any expectations or tropes of the shmup genre. It's tough, puerile and loud, while being thoughtful, creative and satirical. The music is fantastic, the challenge rewarding, and its only real hindrance is the ability of your fingers and thumbs.
The Panzer Dragoon Remake marks a welcome return for one of Sega's most enigmatic series. Although this first game is slightly hamstrung by its own position in history, it implies that the return of Panzer Dragoon is in very good hands.
Gigantosaurus is exactly the kind of licensed tripe that made licensed games practically extinct in the first place. There's the occasional glimpse of fun, but it's hidden amongst a cretaceous tar pit of mundanity.
Lost Words: Beyond the Page tells a tender, emotional tale, but you'll find yourself wading through the fantastical and mechanical elements of its secondary one in order to reach its conclusion.
Bleeding Edge has all the components in place to be a genuinely entertaining multiplayer mainstay, there just needs to be more of it. With only a couple of maps and modes, and far too few skins and emotes, Ninja Theory will need to roll out more content to keep players engaged.
Down The Rabbit Hole is a perfect example of a VR game utterly beholden to its format. It builds an incredible vision of Lewis Carroll's Wonderland, and lets you interact with it, but completely forgets to give you any reason for being there.
If Where's Wally is your kind of jam, Hidden Through Time is a lovely digital recreation of that genre. With a cute aesthetic and pleasing creation and sharing tools, there's a lot here to keep the whole family entertained.
Ori and the Will of the Wisps builds on its predecessor's near-perfect Metroidvania platforming and grows the concept to wonderful effect. A game that's as much about rebirth, hope and wonder as it is death and decay, Will of the Wisps is a beautiful, enchanting piece of fantasy, and an instant classic.
A pulse-quickening, reaction-testing and sweat-inducing piece of fitness software, BoxVR is amongst the best VR experiences out there for those looking to get active.
Despite the fundamental changes to the series' viewpoint, Darksiders Genesis feels like a true Darksiders game, and banishes any memory of the lacklustre third entry.
As a collection, or individually, Bayonetta and Vanquish remain perfectly formed examples of PlatinumGames' exquisite mastery of action gaming. Here, in 4K, they've never been better.
Devil May Cry 3 Special Edition has learnt some new tricks on Nintendo Switch. It might be a bit creaky in places visually, but with the new Freestyle Mode spicing up its already brilliant action, this is the new definitive version of the game.
As an experiential piece of software, and one with a fantastic sense of place, Eclipse ticks a lot of PSVR boxes, but don't be surprised to come away wanting for a bit more.
AO Tennis 2 is a bright, likeable tennis sim with bags of room to grow, and as it stands is easily the best tennis game of this generation.
An enjoyable addendum to The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance, Tactics offers hours of strategic fun, though those familiar with the source material will get the most out of it.
A fun and funky sequel, Patapon 2's bolstered roster of cheerful eyeball folk make for another welcome trip soundtracked to the beat of Pata Pata Pata Pon. It's a shame then that the remaster feels incomplete, offering an experience that's fundamentally less comprehensive than the PSP original.
A rollicking space adventure, Journey to the Savage Planet has the smarts to make you laugh out loud while taking shots at consumerism and big business.