I'm a diehard fan of the GTA series, but I'm of two minds about this up and down port to the Unreal 4 Engine. The initial wow-factor of the visual upgrade is undeniable, but the more you play it, the more cracks appear in that pretty veneer. Some of those are legacy fissures that have not been repaired. Others are eyesore imperfections wrought by a new team of less-than-master craftspeople.
Essentially, I'm going to spend a few more days in the trenches to get a better handle on what appears to be, at the time of writing, a promise-filled yet obviously imperfect sequel.
At the end of the day, Far Cry 6 successfully conjures the alluring tropical beauty of FC3's sandbox, FC4's verticality and mountaineering, along with the weirdo weaponry of New Dawn.
Deathloop is never anything less than absolute edge-of-your-seat gaming
Ghost if Tsushima Director's Cut isn't as revolutionary as its invasion-thwarting subject matter, but it's still a damn nice slice of samurai escapism. If nothing else, Sucker Punch has secured a solid new-gen beachhead to (hopefully) launch a multi-sequel assault.
Sniper Elite VR misfires almost as much as it bullseyes
Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart is a phenomenal, PS5 system seller, and you should invest all your bolts in it.
Returnal makes an important, evolutionary (house)marque on the arcade shooter landscape.
Sackboy delivers some damn good jumpy-jumpy material.
For a launch title, the worth of Spider-Man: Miles Morales is undeniable. It offers an expensive-TV-justifying visual feast – not to mention a tantalising "What Dreams May Come" glimpse at the sugar encrusted future of eye-candy. (Console hasn't even launched yet and I can feel my eyes getting the diabeetus.) Likewise, it delivers super-fast load times and an immersive, tactile DualSense experience you simply can't 'feel' anywhere else.
There’s a more than decent racing game thrumming underneath this hood
Ghost of Tsushima isn't perfect but, like a summoned objective on your touchpad, it's a breath of fresh air that'll send a warm chill down the spine of any Samurai aficionado.
As a spin-off, Gears Tactics has strong core gameplay, but unfortunately surrounding areas in the design hold it back from being greater.
Bottom line; this isn’t a huge reinvention, but it sure is a damn solid sequel.
Combine that host of clever, game-improving systems with an increase in enemy variety, and The Banner Saga 3 is easily the best entry in an already impressive series.
It's brutally old school and will push your hand-eye to the limit, but Wipeout Omega Collection represents style, substance and value for money in equal measure. This is a glorious homecoming of a flagship PlayStation title, an unmissable synaesthetic treat for your ear and eye holes that earns its light-seizure warnings. Your Star Wars prequel memes are mistaken. THIS is pod racing.