Dominic Sheard's Reviews
I have nothing but praise for Codemasters' return to the muddy motorsport of rally. This might be barebones when it comes to its presentation, but with the loudness stripped away, what is here, and what matters, is the amazing execution of its gameplay. Dirt Rally is a visceral monster of a rally game, bringing an additive and unforgiving driving model that makes it all so more rewarding when a stage goes right.
It sounds like I am being hard on Return to PopoloCrois, but that is because I am a little disappointed with Return to PopoloCrois and how it doesn’t blend the two things I enjoy (RPGs and Harvest Moon) in a way that sets a good example for both properties involved.
Nights of Azure has a story that could have been great, especially with its same-sex relationship between the two main characters coming across as natural and not judged in the game's world.
Stranger of Sword City takes the fundamentals of the dungeon crawler and coats it with a twist of Japanese.
There really isn’t much else to say about Ares Omega. No additional content is hidden away, as this is a small title with one mode. While I like the roguelike progression, the rest of the game feels like an prototype, lacking any sort of redeeming presentation, polish or any score tracking to keep you coming back. Mix these issues in with the soulless procedural generated levels and there isn’t anything in Ares Omega that has any redeemable qualities to recommend to anyone but only those that have exhausted all the better games that have come before it.
Trackmania Turbo brings its unique blend of thrill ride, arcade and puzzle racing to current generation consoles, and purely speaking about gameplay, is probably the best title in the series – it's certainly turned into my favourite of the bunch.
Hitman has refined its gameplay, while having options that help newcomers, but should not upset existing fans, and as such, is a solid start that hopefully keeps getting better and upping the variety with each mission added.
Project X Zone 2 is exceptional at managing to successfully bring all these characters together.
Launch troubles and lack of single player aside (which this score addresses), Street Fighter V is a brilliant fighting game.
Arslan: The Warriors of Legend is another solid take on the Warriors formula, one with a clear, and above all else, focus on bringing the anime's entertaining story to life in an action filled video game.
Dragon's Dogma: Dark Arisen to this day still remains a one of a kind game with some innovative ideas that you cannot find in any other RPG.
Valhalla Hills is a decent strategy title that calls up memories of the classics of this gameplay style.
Unlike Vermintide, Mordheim: City of the Damned is a harder recommendation for people who don't know the Warhammer franchise, as its the type of game with a big learning curve that makes it less open for people who just want to jump into a game.
In the end, Just Cause 3 does not make as much of an impact on the genre that it's predecessor did. But just because that is the case, that does not mean that this is a bad game, it's far from that, it's a good game that knows what it wants to be. There is bundles of fun here.
It is very easy to simply dismiss Warhammer: End Times – Vermintide as a Left 4 Dead clone and leave it at that, but in reality, this is a great cooperative game that uses Valve's zombie game as a base, but then built its own personality on top of what Left 4 Dead had originally brought seven years ago. With great feeling melee combat, gruesome action, solid level design and brutal difficulty, this game is a hell of a lot of fun and is ideal for anyone looking for more first-person action to cure an itch for cooperative fun who doesn't mind grinding on the side to impress the rats with their better gear.
Once you get past the idea of being a ship collector with its limited storage space and World of Warships' free-to-play expensive shenanigans, which shouldn't be that much of a negative against the game's great gameplay, World of Warships ends up a refreshing title. This is thanks to the exciting naval combat, a wide collection of warships, engrossing class types and pretty visuals, all which blend together in a rewarding time to bring a very unique type of combat to multiplayer team-based games, making this Wargaming's best World of title to date.
In all, this is an expansion for The Witcher 3 fans who like the idea of returning to the world they once visited for one more self-contained meaningful story.The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt – Hearts of Stonemight not have a new land to explore, but that does not stop this from being a great addition to an already outstanding game.
WRC 5: FIA World Rally Championship is a fairly standard rally game that brings a forgiving version of the motorsport. Kylotonn Games has built themselves a starting block to construct improvements in the undoubtedly upcoming 2016 sequel, but as it stands, WRC 5: FIA World Rally Championship is lacking quality and includes some damning design choices, such as the awful career rubber banding times and bare bone features.
While you might not come out this game's 40+ hour adventure with memories of the plot, you will remember the heroes, their fights and the lovely music that wraps it up to signal this as the best Tales of game since Tales of Vesperia hit the Xbox 360 back in 2009.
Dragon Quest Heroes does a honorific job with the source material, bringing a game that will make fans adore the love that has been injected into it. If you are a fan of Dragon Quest, then really, this game is for you. There are areas that could be improved, and the lack of multiplayer will upset Musou fans, but Dragon Quest Heroes resurrects the series through a different style of game and tickles those nostalgic memories.