Mick Fraser's Reviews
Metro Exodus PC Enhanced Edition presents the original game along with all the DLC and greatly enhanced ray tracing technology.
Returnal's fluid, graceful movement and satisfying, punchy gunplay combine with a sense of exploration at once both wondrous and morbid, and a drip-fed progression system that makes you feel like you're always discovering or unlocking something new.
Disco Elysium: The Final Cut is quite simply like nothing else in the medium. If you missed it on PC, it's absolutely worth picking it up on console and investing some time and effort in its wonderfully complex world.
Demon Skin isn't a bad game, but it is ropey and certainly needed more work where the animations and menus are concerned.
Lost Words: Beyond the Page is a gorgeous, moving tale of two young girls facing an increasingly frightening world and eventually finding beauty where those less innocent might not, and that's the kind of writing that transcends mediums.
Trials of Fire is a masterful combination of several genres that manages to establish its own identity early on and build on it throughout.
Nanotale: Typing Chronicles will be a difficult sell for some people for very obvious reasons, but those willing to try something else and give themselves over to something a little bit different to the games we're all used to will find a charming, likeable adventure.
Despite a largely forgettable story and a few misfires, Outriders is a great looter shooter that feels satisfying to play alone or with others and easily holds its own among contemporaries.
Narita Boy's difficulty is balanced well enough to offer challenge without frustration, and the combat is sublime. Not to mention it's visually incredible.
Anyone who ever dreamed of being the villain building an island base to rival Dr. No should give Evil Genius 2: World Domination a fair shot.
Monster Hunter Rise brings enough quality of life improvements that it's arguably better than World was at launch. A strong line-up of monsters, loads of stuff to grind through, and the series' highest level of accessibility to date make Rise one of the Switch's best games and an absolute must-have for series fans.
For people who like their puzzles just a little bit different and their pixel art filled with severed limbs Red Ronin is an absolute must.
The Uncertain: Light at the End isn't a bad game, but so much of it feels uninspired and done before that it fails to thrill or excite.
If you're looking for something action-packed you'll be better served elsewhere, but for fans of Lovecraft's universe or head-scratching detectathons, The Sinking City is more than worth a shot.
Ghosts 'N Goblins Resurrection's uncompromising approach will appeal to many, and the new visuals and additional features go a long way.
Curse of the Dead Gods is an excellent rogue-like, and the massive variety of curses, weapons and buffs creates a different experience each time.
Having hit 2 million downloads on Steam in early access, Valheim is almost certainly going to stick around and get bigger and better. If Iron Gate AB stick to their current ethos of delivering faster-paced survival with the true freedom of opt-in PvP and community spirit, this could one day be the biggest survival game available. And considering the size of some of the current dominators, that’s no mean feat.
The Nioh Collection as a whole is an amazing experience for those who crave a massive, steep, yet incredibly rewarding RPG challenge.
Blue Fire is an excellent adventure game with just enough flavour pinched from a variety of games across a plethora of genres and platforms.
Werewolf: The Apocalypse - Earthblood has potential, but is little more than a C-tier experience that's unlikely to stick in anyone's memory for long.