The Coalition had a tall task in bringing Gears of War to a new generation for their first original game under the banner, and they mostly pulled it off with class. The competitive multiplayer isn’t much of an evolution from previous efforts, and the campaign drags for a bit, but the high points make it worth the ride and the new Horde mode is simply stellar. If you’ve enjoyed this franchise previously or have a few friends looking for co-op, give Gears of War 4 a close look – it’s definitely worth the time.
Chime Sharp is a good, fun puzzle game that builds upon the ideas of its predecessors in all the right ways. It’s gorgeous to look at, each level flows with the consistency and rhythm that you’d hope for, and the soundtrack is one of the best in video games. It does get a tad tedious, and there are a few things they certainly could’ve done a better job explaining, but it’s well worth the ride if you like your puzzle games to be fast and challenging.
Breached is a fun little game that derives a good portion of its charm from its minimalist and mysterious story. The drone sections are fun, particularly in the beginning, and there’s just the right amount of strategy involved in the choices you make. It does get a little dull after the first playthrough, and you can theoretically beat the game in less than 90 minutes, but at £4.49/$6.29, it’s still a cheap little bite-sized game that’s likely worth your time.
If you're growing tired of the franchise and were really hoping Microsoft and 343 would hold true to their promise to evolve the formula a bit, be wary that the newest stuff is where the game gets a bit shaky. However, if you've loved the Halo blueprint up to now and are looking for an updated current-gen version, there's more than enough here to offer a solid recommendation. It's not the best Halo game I've ever played, but it is good, delivering most of the Halo essentials without compromise.
How much mileage you'll get out of Gears of War: Ultimate really depends on what you're aiming to play. There's very little you haven't played before in the campaign and the new cinematics and voiceovers do little to assist the bare story, but the gameplay is still great, it looks and sounds fantastic, and fans will no doubt enjoy playing the formerly PC-exclusive section they missed the first time.
If you can get over that though, there's a great game to be found here. It's visually pleasing, the audio is top-notch, the writing is good, and outside of a few technical hiccups here and there, it performs pretty well. It's not for the faint of heart, but Galak-Z offers enough depth and fun that it will likely keep you coming back, even after you've died for the hundredth time.
It's hard to replicate Portal's success, and in the process of following a very similar narrative to that which can be found at Aperture, Magnetic: Cage Closed loses its way on more than one occasion. Thankfully, the magnet gun is fun to use, and most of the puzzles are smartly crafted with a great sense of accomplishment, pacing and difficulty. If you're only lukewarm on first-person puzzlers and need agripping story, better options exist, but if you enjoy the genre and can get over the short length, this is an easy recommendation.
For this type of game, I feel like the combat and puzzle solving should be the strongest aspect on offer, but they ended up being the worst part of the experience. Outside of the lousy checkpoint system, there really isn't anything too terrible about Rack N Ruin, it just doesn't have enough going for it for me to unequivocally recommend it. If you don't mind repeating areas and using the same few abilities over and over again, Rack N Ruin isn't a total loss, just weather your expectations before you enter.
Ori and the Blind Forest does all these things and is by nearly all accounts a masterpiece in video games. It has a little something for just about everyone, but more than enough to satisfy even the most galvanized platforming fans. Its difficulty might keep some from seeing the credits roll, but the sense of achievement and experiencing how the story ends makes any hardship along the way well worth the ride.