Alex Laybourne


58 games reviewed
70.9 average score
70 median score
72.4% of games recommended
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Aug 14, 2020

As a kid of the 90s, I cut my big boy gaming teeth on games like Ion Fury. Futuristic, fast-paced shooters that were filled with gore, or at least indistinct red blobs that were meant to be chunks of scorched meat. Ion Fury was one of many games out in my youth, and while I never got a chance to play the original, I was delightfully surprised to be able to take this reboot/remaster/re-release – I’m not sure what they are terming it – out for a spin.

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Aug 1, 2020

Online multiplayer games were once a rarity, but now however they are commonplace to the point of oversaturation. From PUGB and Fortnite to Call of Duty, Apex and more, there is a tried and tested formula that seems to reign supreme. So when I saw a code of an (as of that moment) unreleased online multiplayer called Tannenberg come along, I was certainly intrigued. Now, it wasn’t that online multiplayer aspect that caught my attention, but rather, the setting. A WWI game, a part of history that video games tend to overlook in favour of WWII, Vietnam, or more modern fictional wars. I knew nothing more about the game when I agreed to take the code, and that is just the way I like it. So, how did I find my time in the trenches? Did I go over the top for glory or was I left with underpants on my head, pencils up my nose crying wibble in the hope of being sent home? You will have to read on to find out.

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Jul 28, 2020

I am a big fan of dark and creepy games. They don’t need to be horror necessarily, but that dark, melancholy atmosphere, the creaking floorboards of an old house, or the shadows moving between the trees. Then you combine that with a story based in fact on a real place and draws inspiration from several different sources.

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Jul 20, 2020

As the world starts to come out of hibernation, and sport is slowly returning to the screens, it felt like the right time to turn my hand to Rugby 20. Being a fan of the game – playing it – and admittedly a dedicated follower of major tournament rugby only, I was all too eager to get my hands on the game. I am always partial to a sports game and was lucky enough to review NHL 20 for this site earlier in the year. But how does rugby translate from the pitch to the console? Does it score a try, or should it be relegated to the sin bin quicker than Saracens during a salary audit? Keep reading this Rapid Review to find out.

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Jul 12, 2020

It is not often that I get excited about a game. Not that wrapped up, clock-watching excitement. Yet that is precisely what I felt from the moment I saw the trailer for Night Call. It had something about it that intrigued me. I had to play this game.

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Jul 10, 2020

They say never judge a book by its cover, and I suppose never judge a game by its title would be the gaming equivalent. A name like Robots Under Attack, for me at least, calls for action and violence. Yet the reality behind the name was something different.

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I played and wrote about the first Coma game way back in early 2019. I loved the game. From the art style to the story and the way it unfolded. In fact, once I had finished my playthrough, I reached out to the developers at Devespresso Games and chatted with them for a little while.

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Every so often a game comes along that catches you unawares. The great thing about writing reviews is that sometimes when faced with a list of possible titles, you make a choice based on any number of criteria. This time around, it was the name.

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I knew nothing about the title before it landed in my lap, but a bit of research showed that there was quite some interest in the game through its development. I was afforded the ability to play and review all four chapters.

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The aerial exploits of the Red Baron are no secret. Military allegiances aside, his accomplishments behind the controls of his Fokker Dr1 Dreidecker are to be marveled at. Now, you can take to the skies and become the Baron, dodge, and weave your way through the allied planes and dogfight your way to brutal glory.

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There are times when you just know a game is going to be great. When its by a studio you know and trust, or when it’s a title in a series you have played since you were a kid. Then, sometimes, there is a game that comes along that sells you on the title alone. This is one of those games. I mean, who hasn’t wanted to write Rainbows, Toilets, and Unicorns in a sentence before.

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Dec 11, 2019

EA has made the headlines a lot this year, but when it comes to their sports games, they know their stuff, and NHL20 is a prime example of a fun game that sports fans can sink their teeth into. Just don’t expect anything groundbreaking.

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If you have stuck with me this far into the review, I think it goes without saying that this is one of my favourite series ever, and I could not recommend it enough. If you are scrolling through to see my final thoughts, this collection is near perfect, and if you are a horror fan, then you need to have it on your system.

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Oct 7, 2019

If you are new to the game or don’t own any other consoles, I feel this should be a must-own and a vital component to your collection. Dead By Daylight has a solid community, and it really shows. I rarely had a long wait for a game, as either killer or survivor.

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I thoroughly enjoyed playing Friday the 13th and am certain to be playing it for a long time to come. There’s no doubt in my mind that I will be getting the physical when it comes out, because it was everything I hoped for. Over the top, campy at times and a good server would get your heart pumping. The different levels of customization, from animations perks, and costumes added something extra still to the game. If you enjoy playing online and have played this or other games such as Dead by Daylight (on other systems) then you not only know what you are getting yourself in for, but can rest certain that you are going to enjoy yourself.

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Aug 23, 2019

Overall, Church in the Darkness is an ambitious product and while I understand what they were trying to accomplish, I feel they are just slightly off the mark. It’s a fun game, and one I still find myself going back to, but purely in the interest of seeing what endings there are, rather than being pulled in by the story. It just wasn’t everything that I was expecting.

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Aug 2, 2019

A first-person survival horror game on the PS4? Count me in. A first-person survival horror game steeped with Asian culture and folklore? Count me in multiple times. I first saw this game when I caught the first part of John Wolfe’s playthrough on YouTube. It immediately caught my eye, and when I saw it was coming out on PS4, I knew I had to give it a try.

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Jul 29, 2019

Ziggurat is another recent port from a Wii U game, which itself is a port from releases to other rival systems. The game is a fantasy rich dungeon-crawling RPG with procedurally generated levels that keep things fresh and interesting. The premise of the game is as straightforward as they come.

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