Leonardo Faria's Reviews
In Rays of the Light is a massively disappointing game hampered by its confusing nature and abysmal optimization. So far, it’s the PS5-specific game with the single worst framerate in the console’s fresh, yet ever growing library. It’s a shame, considering that Sergey Noskov’s previous effort was such a delightful surprise, but this one fails to deliver in every single aspect except its soundtrack.
All I can say without spoiling things for you readers is that it’s a game worth experiencing. Despite the myriad of grammatical errors, this is an incredibly smart story that will catch players off guard with its inventive twists. It’s also one hell of a fun mix between an RPG and a rhythm game.
This game might be set in Ancient Mesopotamia, but there’s more bureaucracy in here than your average trip to the DMV, not to mention the lack of a true sandbox mode available right from the get-go. A commendable effort from a two-man team, but one that probably bit a bit more than they could chew.
As a project developed by a group of recently graduated game developers, Mail Mole is worthy of praise. It runs well on the Switch, it’s mostly devoid of bugs, and its character design is quite cute. Sadly, it’s a generic platformer with a very simple premise and forgettable level design.
When compared to other monster truck simulators out in the market, Monster Jam Steel Titans 2 is still miles ahead of its competition in terms of performance, gameplay, and overall amount of content. The problem is that there isn’t a lot of new content included in here to justify its existence as a full-fledged, pricey sequel.
I cannot think of any other text-based game that made me want to go for another playthrough with completely different outcomes as soon as I had finished my first one. This might not be the most visually compelling or action-heavy game released in recent memory, but it’s easily one of my favorite games in 2021 so far.
The developers did include some neat features, such as a story-focused reward system for collecting crystals and a (boring but still existing) horde mode, but at the end of the day, this feels way too clunky and unfinished for what’s basically a port of a Steam game released in 2015.
Room to Grow isn’t spectacular, but it’s not bad either. It’s a simple puzzle game with a very interesting gameplay mechanic that becomes a bit tiresome after a while due to its repetitive nature. The excessively simplistic visuals and sound effects don’t add much to it either. It’s fairly enjoyable, but as mentioned with many other small Steam indies I’ve tackled in the past, this would have been a better fit on the Switch or a phone instead of a PC.
Taxi Chaos isn’t really terrible. All in all, it’s a decent attempt to replicate what made Crazy Taxi so good twenty years ago, but in a new era of consoles. It’s just completely devoid of charm, with dull characters, visuals, and soundtrack. It’s fun for a few minutes, it manages to scratch your nostalgic itch for a while, but it’s definitely not a substitute for Sega’s near-perfect arcade franchise.
I was expecting for the Blizzard Arcade Collection to be a simple throwback to the company’s earlier days. However, I certainly wasn’t expecting to be overwhelmed with tons of extra content and brand-new Definitive Editions of each game included in the collection. This is a work of love, a fantastic tribute to one of the most iconic developers of the past thirty years and their iconic early titles.
Steven Universe: Unleash the Light is, for all intents and purposes, a premium mobile game now available on the Switch. Don’t expect a lot of depth or sidequests: this is a mostly linear RPG experience that was tailor made for a younger audience.
It’s not only a well-designed puzzle platformer with good controls, but also a story-driven treat for the eyes and ears, a game that will make you care about a bunch of moving rectangles, somehow. It might not be very replayable (actually, let’s double down on this: it’s devoid of replayability), but it’s still pretty fun while it lasts.
Despite its minuscule size and scope, Minit Fun Racer is definitely not that kind of cheap shovelware that floods the Steam Marketplace on a daily basis. It’s a surprisingly addictive auto-runner with a very fun gameplay loop and an excellent progression system. Considering its really small price tag, that would already be enough for me to recommend it. Being a game whose sales will be perpetually directed to charity is just a tasty icing on top of an already delicious cake.
#Drive might suffer from a few technical issues, but its gameplay loop is on point. Its controls are a perfect mix between simplistic and complex. It’s slick, stylish, and full of content. It knows how to reward players with a slow-paced, yet very rewarding progression system.
Right when Half Past Fate: Romantic Distancing starts becoming interesting… it ends. It had so much potential, as this is a relatable story featuring some of the most likable characters I’ve seen in a while, but it ends so abruptly you can’t help but feel massively disappointed. This could (and should) have been a much better experience if it wasn’t just a mere hour long.
Knight’s Retreat might have some problems derived from its excessively minimalistic approach, but I have to commend the developers for coming up with a completely unique and very entertaining premise for a puzzle game. It doesn’t require a lot of your time, as it only features eighty puzzles, but it’s good while it lasts.
The King of Fighters 2002: Unlimited Match has always been considered the best game in the franchise, and this brand new PS4 port is its best version so far.
You will see everything CROSSBOW: Bloodnight has to offer in a handful of minutes. It’s very limited in terms of content and things you can do in it. Yet, somehow, it works. It’s a fun battle arena that’s all about honing your skills against a horde of horror-styled enemies in a fun and fast-paced gameplay loop. Being sold for just a few bucks, it’s actually well worth your cash.
I enjoyed Kinetic Edge‘s simple premise, amount of content and gameplay loop, but I got beyond annoyed with its presentation. It’s a perfect game to spend a few dozen minutes at a time, though. Pick up a mode, play a few levels, try to beat your scores or defeat other players, and then give your damaged eyeballs a well-deserved rest. I’m also looking forward to an eventual Switch port; this game would fit like a glove in that system.
The PlayStation 5 version of Control Ultimate Edition is one of the best, if not the best game available for the system so far. The game is finally available on a system with enough horsepower to handle its visuals, physics, and wacky gameplay. That, coupled with the near nonexistent loading times, multiple graphical presets, and small, but still welcome implementations of the DualSense’s features, makes this version the best and mandatory way to play Remedy’s masterpiece.