I like to think that Phoenix Springs is what happens when talented people who don't work in the video game industry decide to create a video game, without knowing or following patterns and rules that we now consider axioms. Maybe it is not so, but it seems so, and it is still a good thing.
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: Undisputed has the flavor of a title assault launched too soon. Steel City Interactive's ambition is evident and even well-founded, given the goodness of the boxing model created, but it has led the studio to take a step a little too far. The game was born already great and not all aspects enjoyed the same care given to combat, such as the Career Mode that exalts between the ropes, but is as flat as the paperwork in the outline. Still, it is a good title, especially for those who care little for frills and are interested only in the barrel, on which a new and promising dynasty can be built in the future.
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Minds Beneath Us is a very peculiar graphic adventure with few puzzles and lots of dialogue. Its strength is the connection it manages to create between the narrative cue and what it requires of the player. The reward for the patience required is a game with an eerie atmosphere that is hard to find elsewhere.
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On the streets of Heading Out, there is some confusion. Serious Sim's game tries to combine racing and storytelling through some micro-management mechanics, but the balance between the parts does not hold for the entire game, and every now and then the narrative path seems inexorably shaped by the availability of resources. Heading Out, however, shows his best to eyes and ears, as the gray roads of North America flow beneath the wheels and the cassette tape in the stereo blasts a perfect travel soundtrack into the speakers.
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Broken Roads looks from Australian shores toward some even recent classics of the CRPG genre and reworks a rather known formula through the lens of philosophy. The juxtaposition is a not so obvious success: in fact, philosophy is not used as a mere label to offer a re-brand of something already seen, but a g that moves both the game mechanics and the narrative progression.
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As time has passed, producing one game a year bigger and better than the previous one has become increasingly complicated and expensive. The path taken by WWE 2K24 is therefore logical, with many small adjustments that overall improve the experience across every mode, and a good deal of additions spread across every department. A more than worthy celebration for Wrestlemania XL.
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Although it undoubtedly belongs to the trend of retro games, the relationship with the nostalgia of Casper Croes' game is different from the most widespread one. In Alisa's case, the past is not understood as an unattainable era, but as a model whose limits can now represent a challenge and no longer an obstacle. The challenge is to recreate a game today that is not only inspired by Resident Evil, but also shares its technical characteristics, but is appealing to modern players. The challenge can undoubtedly be said to have been won, also thanks to the use of a good dose of (self-)irony reminiscent of Lynch's.
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You can't think of combining the irreverent spirit of the Suicide Squad with a formula plastered around what are considered the most marketable fashions at the moment. The risk is twofold, that of creating a game that dresses badly around the protagonists, but also that of arriving out of time, to fashions that are now deflated. Suicide Squad: Kill the Justice League stumbles into both of these mistakes. Yet here and there flashes of funny situations emerge, the characters have charisma, the writing is good with excellent quality tips and Rocksteady know how to do their job technically. Let's hope the live service experiments with superhero groups are over here.
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UFC 5 is a significant leap forward from the past and a game that holds the discipline it tries to simulate in high regard. The approach is deep and requires both effort and concentration even in the less simulative mode. On the other hand, it can be very rewarding once the mechanics are mastered. The transition to Frostbyte has been positive, not so much in the graphical leap, which is evident, but in the animations and links that concatenate them.
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The credit Konami has long enjoyed because of its indispensable role in the modern conception of soccer video games has now been exhausted. And you have to recognize eFootball 2024 for what it is, a very slight improvement on the previous version, still plagued by the same, huge problems. The music is still the same: decent gameplay, Dream Team limited by the database, other modes none to be had, cumbersome menus. The time has come for a breakthrough, because the alternative is rather bleak.
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Like a Formula 1 car, Forza Motorsport has more radically rethought its set-up to narrow the gap on rivals. The new career introduces RPG-like components designed to increase the bond between the player and their vehicles: the fleet of cars is still large, but the focus has shifted to performance customization. Manual calibration of difficulty and aids makes it suitable for any type of player, while still offering an intriguing challenge thanks to the AI of the drivatars. Visually it is impressive, but something is still missing to get to the realism of GT.
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Days of Doom tries to do something new by fusing together turn-based strategy and roguelite. The end result, however, can only be said to be partially successful. Both the battles and the growth are characterized by slow times that end up diluting the fun: in the short run you have fun, but the risk of getting tired soon is real. The art direction is nice, though derivative at times. Overall a good pastime, but one that risks slipping away without leaving a trace.
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Chants of Sennaar is a game that uses language in a unique way, putting it at the center of its bizarre puzzles. Midway between graphic adventure and puzzle game, it sports rarefied and evocative settings, populated by mysterious figures speaking unknown languages. Beyond that, however, it does something very few other games do: it displaces the player, disorients him or her, and urges them to pursue the discovery of knowledge, instead of replicating already seen mechanics. That is why it is even forgiven for stealth phases.
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Mediterranea Inferno, from a gameplay point of view, is a solid visual novel in which the choices left in the hands of the player lead to radical turns, really giving the impression of being in control of events. However, the quality of the writing and the ability of its young author to deal with complex and multifaceted themes with great maturity, awareness, and courage in taking clear-cut positions (which should be common ground in 2023, but that's another matter) should be even more emphasized.
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Stasis: Bone Totem is a point-and-click graphic adventure that exploits the classic mechanics of the genre in a modern and appealing technical setting, although the game was made almost entirely by only two people. Its strength lies in its horror-tinged sci-fi atmospheres and in its narrative which presents interesting reflections on ethics and corporations. The writing style is verbose: this might be a limitation for some, but it is an indispensable ingredient in the creation of a world that winks at cosmic horror.
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Elegant and minimalist, Humanity is an excellent puzzle game. Its philosophy, effectively represented by the constant stream of humans to be led to safety, is supported by excellent technical realization and over-the-top design. Despite levels lasting dozens of minutes, the trials it subjects the player to are al-ways challenging and entertaining thanks to a number of solutions designed to enhance the player's ex-perience, such as the ability to repeat the scenario with given commands, speed up the passage of time, and actual video walkthroughs.
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Road 96: Mile 0 will appeal to those who enjoyed the previous chapter. Instead of taking up the formula in its entirety, Mile 0 introduces a variation in the form of musical sections. The combination works conveying anxieties and concerns of the teenage protagonists. From a technical standpoint, the game is a bit backward, but it does feel acceptable.
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Formula Retro Racing - World Tour is exactly what it sounds like: a sunny arcade that makes simplicity its strong point, yet without sacrificing a fair amount of depth. The world tour promised by the title takes shape in a series of tracks rich in detail, albeit reproduced from crude polygons. The simplicity of the driving model is offset by the presence of muscle cars that introduce drifting, turning the tables and adding a dash of variety. A great game for moments of nostalgia and mood enhancement.
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The Last Worker is as much a satire of the work environment in this phase of capitalism as it is of those video games that seem to be more about work than fun. Overall, this is an interesting and artistically sound production that lacks something to leaves its mark.
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WWE 2K23 builds on the excellent foundation laid with the last edition of the game and moves forward a small step. The new features are limited, but they go a long way toward filling the gaps in WWE 2K22, for example with a significantly larger roster (nearly 200 wrestlers in total). The show stealer is undoubtedly the Showcase mode focused on John Cena and his (rare) defeats The experience overall is good, but the feeling is that little has been done to offer anything really new, merely tweaking the winning product of 22.. Like WWE's TV shows, 2K wants to pleasure to everybody, but that's simply non possible.
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