Dene Benham
Funny, smart, and all about the flatulence.
Dene received a physical copy of NHL 18 from EA for review.
Dene received a digital copy of Madden NFL 18 from EA for review.
F1 2017 is an impressive game. It not only retains the feel and flavour of Formula One racing, it makes it all accessible.
Dene received a digital copy of Rugby League Live 4 from developer Big Ant for review.
Offers hours more Elder Scrolls, for those who want hours more Elder Scrolls.
Dene received a digital copy of MLB The Show 17 from PlayStation NZ for review.
It’s slow, deliberate, complicated and, without any cynicism, that may be the best thing about Don Bradman Cricket 17.
A jarring contrast between epic beauty and controller destroying frustration.
There is plenty for fans of wrestling to like in WWE 2K17. There is a lot that I found enjoyable. While I’ve been on the verge of giving the game the people’s elbow, especially sitting through the long load times and when I lost a match because I couldn’t tag back into a tag team match; it’s a ‘tag’ team match, and I couldn’t figure out how to ‘tag’. It’s in the bloody stupid title. But, I’m going to keep playing. I love all the bluster, all the blood, and I want to eventually get a win by submission. And I will keep playing until I finally get Mr. Perfect to win the Royal Rumble.
But, it all lends itself to the challenge of the game. EA’s NHL has always been my favourite sports sim. It is a beautiful game (with apologies to that other beautiful game). Speed, power, finesse, toughness, and teamwork. I am just glad it’s time to drop the puck on a brand new season of hockey.
So, it is a very good thing that core gameplay is the most important feature of a sports sim, because, playing football in Pro Evolution Soccer 2017 has never been better. The argument could be made that playing football has never been better in all gaming. While there are plenty of issues, if you’re willing to work around, or ignore them, there’s an awesome, accessible, and complex game that won’t match FIFA in everything, but may just beat it in the thing that matters most.
If you embrace everything, Grand Kingdom is a cheerful, relaxing, thoughtful experience. Character design is beautiful, with a lot of variety and just enough animation to give even the blacksmiths some bounce and personality. You can take you time with the game. Dig through the menus, try different class combinations, and win your wars, one battle at a time.
A serious sports sim in all its primal glory.
For anyone who hasn't had their fill of retro side-scrolling platformers, Broforce effortless and undeniable fun. Load-up, settle in, and invite a few bros.
Build a world, share a world, shoot everyone in the world.
When you're not waiting for it to load, Just Cause 3 is an incredibly fun game. Crisp visuals and a clever soundtrack bring all the explosions to life. Even with the violence and destruction, it manages to maintain a lighter tone than the Far Cry games, without sliding into the outright silliness of Saints Row. But, it's still silly enough. Dropping boats on satellite dishes, tying enemy soldiers to exploding gas tanks, and grappling, wingsuiting, and parachuting the length and breadth of beautiful Medici, just to blow the crap out of it. Just Cause 3 is an absolute blast.
So, with twelve bikes to unlock, enough Tours and challenges to last a week or two, and absolutely stunning scenery and weather, Driveclub Bikes is a solid DLC. When promised extra content starts pouring in, like the trophies and unusable cars, there's no telling how much better Driveclub Bikes might get.
Is hate too strong a word?
While there's a robust simplicity to the gameplay that is engaging, right or wrong, we've all got used to a level of completeness and polish that PES, even twenty years on, is still sometimes missing.