Jonathan Lester
Tales From The Borderlands goes from strength to strength with another sensational episode. Catch A Ride brings revelations and gags aplenty, but more importantly it gives the characters quality time and room to grow without bogging down.
Tales From the Borderlands: Episode Two - Atlas Mugged is an excellent second chapter in what promises to be an absolute belter. Fun, upbeat and pacey, it pushes the story forward in satisfying directions while slowing down just enough to deliver some brash humour and character development.
How low can you go? Not content with mediocrity, Capcom Vancouver are on a crusade to singlehandedly destroy consumer confidence in next-gen season passes and DLC.
A handful of neat puzzles can't come close to making Deadfall Adventures worth £30-35. Its hopeless campaign, awful characters, frankly unnecessary multiplayer and horrible production values are a pitfall trap worth avoiding.
I hope that Gravity Badgers isn't trademarked, because it deserves a better game.
Project Root blithely assembles the worst parts of classic SHMUPs and exploration-driven shooters into a complete mess. Lacklustre presentation, an inappropriate progression system and clipping glitches on all formats round out a thoroughly disappointing package.
Concursion's genre-hopping Big Idea is magnificent, but each of its disparate gameplay styles falls apart in the execution on a mechanical and visual level. Definitely worth trying if you're curious to see how innovative indie developers are pushing boundaries, but difficult to recommend as an £8.99 videogame.
Hatred delivers some fleeting sadistic satisfaction and a gorgeous art style, but quickly becomes a tedious chore. After all the controversy, it's disappointing that the finished product is mechanically flawed and otherwise completely forgettable.
Another magnificent Saori Kobayashi soundtrack and some visually arresting scenery can't save Crimson Dragon from the mean-spirited cynical sickness at its core. What could have been a gorgeous and uncomplicated shooter has been hacked into tiny chunks in the name of microtransactions, butchered almost beyond recognition until you push through several miserable hours. Microsoft And Grounding broke their own game. Willingly.
Nether had potential to add compelling cooperative and social features to the DayZ survival experience, but ends up half-baked in almost every way. Released far too soon and crying out for several more months of development, it's hard to recommend this glitchy cut-throat package.
Natural Doctrine gets so much right. A strong premise, great top-level strategic mechanics, sensational skill system and ruthless tactical battles ought to have made this a left-field cult smash.
Half gleefully entertaining rail shooter and half primitive QTE-fest, Rambo: The Video Game ends up average. It's a shame that the OTT action is so often eclipsed by shonky production values and tragic instant-fail sections, but if you manage to find a competitive deal for the PC version, you'll find yourself having much more fun than you bargained for.
Munin may be savagely difficult, but punishment gluttons will be raven about this carefully-constructed puzzle platformer for some time. Sadly, it's also savagely difficult to recommend spending £6.99 on a game that will cost less than £2 on mobile devices very soon.
Another fortnight, another deeply average Dead Rising 3 DLC pack. Though more interesting and worthwhile than the pathetic Operation Broken Eagle, Fallen Angel is still not worth your money unless you really, really need to zap zombies with an awesome electric blaster cannon.
In an attempt to prove the viability of the GamePad touchscreen as a primary input device, Nintendo accidentally created an inferior sequel to a decade-old DS puzzler. Kirby and the Rainbow Paintbrush squanders much of its potential and achingly beautiful visuals, functional but lacking in lasting fun.
Shelter 2 has its moments. Playing as a lynx is disarmingly authentic, the art design is visually arresting and there's no denying that you'l feel... something... once your first litter of cubs survives to grow to adulthood thanks to your tender loving care. But the lack of threat and its big yet pointless open world robs the game of challenge, likely leaving you broadly unsatisfied after just a handful of hours.
ScreamRide's three modes and robust design suite are briefly entertaining, but the fun doesn't last. Lacking soul and connective tissue, this minigame collection never quite gels or comes together into anything particularly memorable.
House Of Wolves revitalises the Destiny experience. Prison Of Elders proves to be more than a match for a raid, while the new Crucible maps are a blast. The latest title update also brings several much-needed improvements to the way loot is handled.
Ultimate NES Remix brings brilliant pick-up-and-play action to the 3DS, blending heady NEStalgia with addictive remixed challenges. Sadly the ludicrously inflated price point, omitted content and lack of new features turns what should be an essential purchase into 'wait for a deal' wishlist filler.
In Sheep's Clothing exists solely to flesh out backstory and set us up for the finale, making this review and the number at the end completely pointless. But on its own merits, this latest episode feels like a step sideways and a frustrating tease, especially when much of it probably should have been incorporated into earlier chapters and lacks impact at this late hour. As ruthlessly gripping and stylish as ever, though. I'm still enthralled by The Wolf Among Us, but Episode 5 absolutely must deliver and prove that our choices really mattered.