Midnight Ghost Hunt takes the fun of prop hunt and by giving it that spooky Ghostbusters twist, takes it to the next level. Whether you're hiding in a gargoyle or a saucepan, or running after them with a flamethrower going and radar spiking, there is fun to be had. The games are short sharp fun regardless of which team you're put on, something impressive as these style games often feel like one side is there to almost facilitate the fun of the opponents. Despite a few bugs and hosting issues, this is a ghostly experience everyone should believe in.
Railroad Ink Challenge is a solid experience, which lacks some features which could take it to the next level. Booting up players can try to beat their own highscores, or play the ever changing daily challenges. Lakes, Lava and more are missing but the release of the Forest and Desert DLC has helped instill some extra variety into the experience. A proper multiplayer experience would have been nice, yet the chance to just hop on, roll some dice and make networks is a pleasant experience in its own right.
Pushing past the first couple hours of clumsy stumbling around and getting to grips with the parkour mechanics and Dying Light 2 becomes a pleasure to play. Being able to take any path from A to B is extremely rewarding, and it only improves as skills and such are unlocked. Players are kept on their toes, literally – at least in game, by the stark differences between day and night. There is a serious amount of content, with side missions and areas to explore on top of the meaty main campaign. Much like the original Techland has already promised years of content and, with 3 patches already released (including a day 0 patch) there is no doubting it'll keep fans pleased and playing for hours upon hours upon hours.
With each DLC released Cities Skylines gets a bigger and more impressive game, from an already epic starting point. Now there are many available it could be daunting to new players, though for fans having a new area to dive into is a great reason to get back into crafting cities. Having the new public transport options and the two terminal types gives plenty to get invested in, just make sure you have a large flat area planned out for your airport to properly take flight!
Unfortunately, Grand Theft Auto: The Trilogy – The Definitive Edition is proof that nostalgia will only get you so far. It'll get you to boot up the game with rose tinted glasses, there waiting for you are the GTA experiences we have all loved from years ago. They aren't the same though. Improvements are masked by flaws, and they don't truly feel elevated close to "definitive" edition status. The CEO of Grove Street Games has promised updates and hopefully these can fix the qwirks, the bugs and the oddities, which chip away at those rose tinted glasses. We all wanted Grand Theft Auto: The Trilogy – The Definitive Edition to allow us to once again sink hours into those glorious games of old. Perhaps they will get there, it's been a rocky start and currently it's not the hidden package we were looking for.
Returning the franchise to the original style seems to have paid off. With brilliant, fast paced, tower defence gameplay on offer it will keep two cooping players thoroughly entertained and wanting to play just that one more level. There's a huge range of levels to play through, different modes to unlock, traps both big and small to upgrade, and so much more. The inclusion of the war scenario mode adds that wow factor of scale, without losing what makes Orcs Must Die 3 fun. There is always another wave of orcs, trolls, elementals and more ready to fight, and you'll want to defend against them time and time again!
Hood Outlaws & Legends has a solid basis to build on. By focusing specifically on the one game mode the developers have crafted a dynamic experience. While elements might feel the same no two matches are ever quite the same; thanks to the way that vaults move and players have choices of where to extract from. Matches go until the very end, with victory occasionally stolen out of what looks like a definite defeat. Visually the world is a dark shadowy one and this is awesome to stealth through, it's just a shame that by the extract stage in matches stealth goes out of the window. There are improvements to be made but with season passes already planned for the first year, it seems that Hood Outlaws & Legends should be able to entertain players for many months to come.
In its current form Iron Harvest 1920+ offers a solid RTS experience, which brings an incredible alternate universe to life. It doesn't break from the norm in terms of gameplay but it is the narrative and setting that sets the game apart from the rest.
Gamers will easily be able to sink hours into Before We Leave, from conquering new islands to finally getting off the planet. It’s just hard to get past, that while launched, the current game state feels more like the end half of a Beta.
Dr. Kawashima's Brain Training will be a welcoming experience for new and experienced players. For those that have played the games before there might not be a wave of newness. Nevertheless, the game puts you straight back into the mentality of slowly improving your brain age. The exercises can be hard, the Sudokus can be brain-burning – though there are others to relax to. Dr. Kawashima's Brain Training won't captivate players for hours on end but it has the potential to keep players coming back for their 30 minutes of brain training every day.
For those wanting more content, the Planet Zoo Arctic pack’s campaign levels can provide ample hours of entertainment. For those still with plenty of base game to go, unless one of the animals speaks to you, it may be best to wait a little before picking it up.
For all the strengths of the story, multiplayer is where new and veteran players will sink hours and hours into. For both sets of players, Modern Warfare offers new content and hours of entertainment.
Overall, Blood and Truth is amazing. I enjoyed it greatly and something I'll be playing for the foreseeable future. There were multiple times I forgot it was just a game, and where I actually cared for Ryan's family as though they were my own. The soundtrack was one of the better ones as of late, and gives me a reason to push grime on my friends and family by making them play the game. If you have a PSVR, this game is a must play.
With such an amazingly thought up location of the Helios, Close to the Sun is an adventure full of atmosphere, tension and a surprisingly lack of people. The puzzle elements never felt out of reach but had an element of thinking to them.
Overall, it feels like a game that should have been released as an Early Access title for the next month or two. With a touch of polish and some quality of life improvements World War Z could be the closest to Left 4 Dead 3 we may get.
Often in strategy titles there is the want for more. More building types, more resource types, more of everything. Anno 1800 has all of that depth from the very beginning with so many types of buildings there is an amazing balancing act to make. With chains of production to make, such as potato farms which supply schnapps brewers, there is plenty of thinking to be done. This is a game many would refer to as a time sink, yet it is one I'd happily pour hours into. The futuristic titles had lost their way somewhat, but Anno 1800 firmly steers the series back on track!
The levels are once again only available when past the Femington hospital, though unlike the Bigfoot DLC the challenge posed makes this more sensical – with this being the first time I had struggled to keep a hospital profitable. Simply put, if you are looking to extend the base game's awesomeness and have a new challenge then Pebberley Island is the location you should travel to!
Many of the positives of the orignal have been captured and bundled with a host of improvements, yet The Division 2 still feels like more of the same. Taken on face value this might sound negative but as the original helped the hours pass by, and the sequel matches this, and you start to realise this is another great game from Ubisoft. Built on the core shooter gameplay, the cover based combat is fast paced and explosive – without being too over the top.
The Occupation could, should and would be easily a gaming experience to recommend. Alas, the experience is tarnished with not just little, forgettable or mildly acceptable, bugs.
Comparison aside, Anthem can be a fairly chilled game to play with friends, despite explosions big enough to fill screens, and this is 100% the way to play the game. The constant challenges to defend areas or collects things are made less of a chore with a competent ally. Also, having a friend to cooperatively combo with helps push all of the over the top fun to the surface. The niggles are still there and present but it is much easier to forgive when not solo. With all the glorious map there to fly around, the vast ways to cause explosions and cooperative play, Anthem is well worth playing, especially once the roadmapped content starts to come online.