The Yomawari: Long Night Collection represents great value with its two-games-in-one package. Despite both games being quite short they represent the horror genre like no other. The tension is often palpable, and feeling of fear while out on the streets is almost constant. The audio may appear to be basic, but it does a stellar job of immersion with small sounds helping to heighten the paranoia that something could be lurking around the corner. The visuals will appeal to fans of a chibi-anime style and really do help lend to gorgeous backdrops and animations. Yomawari: Long Night Collection is well worth a purchase for horror fans.
Neon Chrome is a fun twin-stick shooter that has a rewarding upgrade feature and a good visual aesthetic. The controls feel tight, even if they do take some getting used to, and the procedural environments, enemy placements, and character selection, all ensure that each playthrough feels fresh. The visual setting from level to level could do with a bit more distinction as each level is based in the same type of office floor, but this is a minor gripe. Overall, there is a lot of game-time to be had within Neon Chrome, and those looking for a twin-stick shooter on the Nintendo Switch should certainly take note.
Undeniably, this is a free upgrade worth downloading for new Xbox Series X owners, as it brings over some of the technical performance boosts from the PC version as well as 60fps cutscenes. Owners of both the Series S and Series X experience a number of upgrades including the sublime 120fps in multiplayer, alongside a huge toolbox of customisable options for the main story campaign. Although at the same time, as mentioned in the Cubed3 Xbox One review, the campaign mode still suffers from a weird mesh of linearity in some chapters followed by some bland tedious back-and-forth sandbox exploration. Any Gears of War fan should definitely take Gears 5 for a spin if they really want to test the power of their new hardware but may feel somewhat let down by the campaign mode if they are huge fans of the initial trilogy.
The lack of changes in FIFA 21 overall, particularly compared to FIFA 20 is telling. The iconic pairing of Martin Tyler and Alan Smith have been removed from commentary, and for what it's worth they may as well have taken the goalkeepers with them. Modes have had tiny incremental touches added to them which amount to very little more than quality of life enhancements. However, it cannot be argued that FIFA 21 is still a fun arcade experience bursting with a plethora of different modes whether it be FUT, Career Mode, VOLTA or House Rules.FIFA 21 hasn't re-written the wheel but it is fun, fast attacking football and hopefully EA have big plans to shake up the franchise next year for its true next-gen console experience.
A competent port of a Nintendo 64 classic, Star Wars Episode I: Racer looks great with the added spit-shine, controls tightly, and performs excellently, with no slowdown in frame-rate. Loading screens have also been removed entirely, which was not really an issue in the original versions, but it is something that should be commended here. At a budget price, many will be pleased that this will help them re-live a piece of nostalgia, and for those on the fence, do not hesitate as this is a great quality port in both docked and handheld modes, yet it will leave others wondering what Aspyr could have done by adding in an online multiplayer and improved AI.
Monster Energy Supercross - The Official Videogame 3 does indeed capture the sport down to a tee, and has incredibly flexible, and deep customisation tools, that are able to thrust a player into the AMA Supercross universe. Its unforgiving difficulty and steep price point is probably the stumbling block to making this a renowned and accessible racer, but at the same time the purists who love a good challenge will absolutely adore the subtle tweaks that can be made to player setups. Anyone who adores the sport will love this, but those hoping for a leisurely, easy racer to play through, will be sorely surprised.
Simple, yet satisfying. Skies of Fury DX is a mobile title that belongs on the Nintendo Switch. A quick pick-up-and-play experience that has appealing audio-visuals, can be enjoyed in short bursts, and has flexible multiplayer options. The only downside is the lack of variety in the types of stages and missions that are on offer, particularly for the current, £14.59 price tag.
It may not be the definitive version of Resident Evil 4, but it is still a fun one nonetheless.
This has been one enjoyable ride and it is great to see how well Sonic has fared in his latest outing. Exploration is fun, running around an island and going from grind rail to grind rail. The variety of challenges and collectibles are balanced, and combat has evolved via the new Cyloop ability, although this does get a little repetitive by the end of the game. There is never really a dull moment to be had, and there is plenty of content to power through. This is a game that every Sonic fan needs to play. Hopefully Sonic Team and SEGA follow up with a direct sequel as they have the formula nailed just right.
KartRider: Drift has made an indelible impression during the review process. It is rare that a free-to-play game offers so much for free and continues to offer a fun experience.
WWE 2K23 is certainly one of the better wrestling games of recent memory. In fact, it might be easy to say that WWE 2K23 is the best wrestling game on the market, hands down.
Metal: Hellsinger takes the familiar thirst for blood of the genre and runs with a familiar hellish theme as seen in titles like DOOM, but an innovative fresh take on the FPS category with a layered rhythm approach makes the adventure enjoyable from start to finish. The soundtrack is utterly awesome, and while it might not be to everyone's taste it should certainly satiate metal fans everywhere. Unfortunately, the downside is its brevity, with everything on offer taking an average eight hours, at best, to get through all of the content available. There is no doubt though that developer The Outsiders has left this reviewer thirsty for more.
Trifox is an impressive start for new developer Glowfish Interactive, with creative enemies, challenging hidden collectables, and colourful worlds. The gameplay is varied thanks to the fully customisable combat options and levels also pose their own challenging puzzles and obstacles. The adventure is somewhat brief, but for as long as it lasts it well worth the time and effort. Those looking for a mascot-centric platformer adventure shouldn’t overlook Trifox.
Final Fantasy VII Remake Intergrade is a stellar product, one that has a magnificent soundtrack, superb voice acting, wonderful graphics, and a battle system that is totally moreish. The plot is initially quite zany, but stick with it, and the characters and events certainly do grow to be one of the finer video game stories developed. On PlayStation 5 it loads incredibly fast, almost wiping out any load times at all, and having gameplay look so good at 60fps will delight many. The path that is trodden feels incredibly linear, at points repetitive and reused, not that this is a crime. It is easy to spend over 50 hours on the first run, including the DLC, and this isn't even the entirety of the original game which shows a great value. Fans who already played through the PlayStation 4 version may not get too much out of this experience, but for newcomers this is certainly a must play.
Unexpectedly, Gears Tactics is quite a competent and enjoyable tactical strategy game. The roots of what make a good tactics game are embedded in the DNA, combat is fun and yet somewhat familiar. However, Gears Tactics falls into the trap of laying down a great foundation with awesome mechanics but it does feel that the few creative ideas showcased begin to feel repetitive after the thirty plus hour campaign. That isn't to say that Gears Tactics is devoid of ideas either, Gears fans will be impressed with how the title pushes forward the narrative and newcomers will also be left in awe at how good the characterisation and cutscenes are, which are just as good as Gears 5, from a graphical and presentation standpoint. This is a great foundation into what should become a great spin-off series, should it continue.
It is highly satisfying completing a story arc or traversing the world and finding things that you felt that other players might not have stumbled across due to the nature of the open world and its use of way finders. The lack of load times on Xbox Series S is truly impressive given the nature of environments, landscape, and elements that are present on screen. There were a few issues from characters floating in mid-air, bizarre enemy AI, and straight up freezes, although these were far and few between given the scope of it all. Intuitive and varied combat help keep things fresh, even if it does take a fair few hours of gameplay to really get going. Assassin's Creed Valhalla is a thoroughly enjoyable, open-world RPG that is an absolute must for Xbox owners.
A predictable, but engaging story mode has added some real shine to the F1 franchise, alongside the addition of two player career mode adding more options for players. Each iteration of F1 has gone from strength to strength, and F1 2021 is a great representation of the sport, from realistic presentation, great graphical details on the cars, tracks that feel authentic, and the return of My Team. Fans of F1 who want to keep up to date with the sport and have the latest team liveries and driver rosters, will be totally in love with this.
Cubed3 adored DOOM Eternal for Nintendo Switch when it first released and having The Ancient Gods DLC Part 1 come to the console is another cherry on the cake for the handheld hybrid system. The difficulty will be the biggest barrier to overcome for many; this is a rock solid DLC pack that will test even the most veteran players out there. The three stages on offer might sound like the DLC is lacking, but there is enough content there to warrant the price tag for an extra chance to smash up some demons. Bethesda have already stated that DLC 2 will be coming later in the year, so it is not that much longer to wait!
Thankfully, a few of the early bugs were ironed out of Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War, and subsequent season passes have patched up modes and maps that were lacking. The campaign is genuinely intriguing but may not appeal to those who just want to run and gun. Zombies and Multiplayer modes are plentiful and there should be something for everyone to thoroughly enjoy. Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War should be used as the poster child for PlayStation 5's DualSense controller which has been put to full use for an immersive experience. Casual players will be somewhat put off by the sheer storage space required to fully experience everything that is on offer, especially given that SSD capacity is this generation's gold dust, but Call of Duty die-hards will most likely overlook this.
Pacer successfully fills a gap in the market for high speed, anti-gravity racers. Those who are wishing for an experience reminiscent of the Wipeout series will be pleased on how this project has turned out. Tight and precise controls, matched up with a large assortment of maps and customised crafts makes for a very fulfilling experience. Issues such as those posed by hard-to-reach weapons can be overcome by practising and improving knowledge of each turn in every track - alas the lacklustre sound effects from the crafts is seemingly all that is available. These tiny issues aside Pacer makes good on its promise, even if it took a long time to get there.