Matthew Codd
I can only hope that Sarepta continues to work on Shadow Puppeteer post-launch. It's a tough sell right now, but given the time and resources it deserves, this could be a great game.
Destiny isn't a bad game, by any means. If you like sci-fi shooters, you'll get a good 20 hours of enjoyment out of this. But that's really all it is; a fun, forgettable shooter that plays it safe and sticks to what's been proven, with nothing to really set it apart from its peers.
It's Madden season, and this is the best Madden yet.
But therein lies the rub: Season Two is good, and great at times, but it never reaches the lofty heights of its predecessor. To be fair, the first season was a masterpiece that would be difficult even for its own creators to emulate, and while the second season doesn't quite hit that benchmark, it's still a tale worth telling.
The only thing being scared away by the Wayward Manor's ghost is this reviewer's patience.
So in the end, Valiant Hearts is something of a flawed masterpiece. But it's a masterpiece nonetheless. This is a game that definitely won't be for everyone, but it's something that the videogame industry has been in dire of need of. Being a steel-balled, Nazi-killing war hero is all well and good, but Valiant Hearts reminds us that there's more than one way to tell a war story.
Hilarious, but runs out of juice very, very quickly
I'm still looking forward to what Telltale has in store next, especially after the high note that this episode finished on, but - I hate to say it - In Sheep's Clothing is easily the weakest episode in the series.
Always Sometimes Monsters, like many of its indie brethren, makes up for its low budget with lofty goals that would be too risky for a big time studio. In some ways, it nails these absolutely spot on; when it's pushing forward, the story is captivating and the choices players are forced to make are complex and lifelike - a rarity in games. Despite this, though, poor pacing, clumsy scriptwriting, and an overall lack of polish (even by indie standards) make it all to easy to bow out before this monster can sink its claws into you.
This is certainly the most confronting chapter so far, which some will love, but may put off others (like it almost did me). Clementine continues to grow, and her strength is put squarely to the test, but in other aspects, Episode 3 just doesn't hold up to what's come before.
A Realm Reborn was already a great game when it launched, though it admittedly ran out of steam after a few months. Thanks to a bunch of content upgrades and a new level of sheen afforded by the PS4 hardware however, the game is easily one of the best on the market right now.
Now with that out of the way, it's time to go see what all this fuss is about these "Wills" and "Kate" characters, whoever they might be.
All that for $18.95? You'd have to be a Square not to.
[I]t doesn't seem to quite live up what we've been led to expect from the new Kinect sensor, resulting in a lot of frustration the ultimately gets in the way of the experience. It'll make a great rental for when you have friends over, but it's hard to recommend for anything beyond that.
Overall, Hearthstone is a well-executed and fun card game, one which lives the "easy to learn, hard to master" mantra to the utmost. If you like either card games or Warcraft, this is definitely worth checking out. And if you - like me - are a fan of both, you owe it to yourself to at least give it a try.
Yoshi’s New Island places almost all of its eggs in the nostalgia basket. It's a bold decision, but one that ultimately holds back the game by bringing with it some retro-inspired design best left to the 90s. Series fans will enjoy a trip back to this oft-forgotten Mario spin-off, and some of the newly introduced mechanics are good, if used too sparsely. Ultimately, though, Yoshi’s New Island is an enjoyable, but underwhelming, romp.
The first episode of The Walking Dead: Season Two was undoubtedly great, but definitely had its flaws - partially due to being a pilot episode, and partially due to the writing being, though damn good, not quite up to the par of sheer excellence that Telltale have set themselves. The same can't be said of Episode Two: A House Divided - this is some of the studio's finest work.
Tomb Raider: Definitive Edition, is certainly not a misnomer - if you're picking up the game for the first time, this is absolutely the one to go for. It's the same brilliant game that came out last year, all polished up and looking its finest. For returning adventurers, on the other hand, there's so little in the way of new content that there's not much point buying the new version unless you had an urge to replay it anyway.
How long do I have to wait for Episode 2?
Nihilumbra is a fantastic example of what can happen when developers are willing to try new things, and focus on just what it is that makes videogames a unique medium. Life may have no intrinsic meaning, but the team at BeautiFun Games seem to have found meaning in making games, and for that, I am grateful.