Leonardo Faria's Reviews
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.
Adol’s awkward goth phase may have started on his 34th birthday, but thankfully, it ended up being the good kind of goth. The one that listens to Nightwish and reads 19th century literature, not the phoney one that hangs out at Hot Topic and thinks that Keanu Reeves’ role in 1992’s Dracula was competent.
It’s a completely unique kind of game, mixing deep character development, intergalactic sailing (literally), mystery solving, and even ancient civilization linguistics. To top it off, it looks gorgeous, sounds decent enough, and runs surprisingly well on the Switch.
Despite the unfair difficulty curve and uninteresting presentation, Disjunction is a very well-designed take on the Hotline Miami formula, albeit with its own stealth-focused twist. It offers enough gadgets and gameplay tropes to let players tackle each level the way they want to, either by being stealthy and classy or by being ultraviolent and unsubtle.
Silver Chains is actually decent, but it would have been a much more enjoyable horror title if it wasn’t for its short run time and overabundance of irritating jump scares. All the ingredients are here: its graphics are surprisingly good, its framerate is rock-solid, its story is engaging (but predictable), and some of its puzzles are quite interesting. There are much worse horror titles out there, though.
Cyber Shadow is not the best retro-infused indie platformer starring a ninja I’ve played in recent memory, but it’s still well worth your time. It’s occasionally unfair and frustrating, but once you reach a boss battle or a better designed level, you’ll be greeted with a surprisingly rewarding action experience with great visuals and soundtrack.
Don’t think Atelier Ryza 2 is a bad game. There are lots of good things in it, in fact. The problem is that I was expecting more from a game with a full-fledged Playstation 5 build. With the exception of the fast loading times, the game doesn’t take advantage of the system’s hardware, resulting in a game that looks dated and runs as well as what I would expect from its Switch port.
In short, some of the games included in here might suffer from some graphical and gameplay issues brought over from the 90’s, but this collection really impressed me nonetheless. Turrican Flashback is one of the more robust retro collections released in recent memory.
As expected, Hed the Pig is terrible, absolutely abysmal, with terrible visuals, controls, and one of the most boring gameplay loops in recent memory. It’s the game that makes me wonder how easy it must be to get one of these Switch devkits. Why was this conceived, and most importantly, approved for commercial release, will remain as one of the biggest mysteries of the universe.
All in all, it’s a shame that Writhe is severely lacking in content, but that’s not its main issue. It’s not fun to play, and it’s ugly to look at. Its gameplay is clunky and borderline unfair at times. Not to mention the noticeable technical issues that hinder its performance. This might possibly be the first exclusive FPS to the Switch, but I don’t see the reason to pick it up in its current state.
Skater XL is a game full of good intentions, but not only is it completely devoid of content, but it’s also devoid of a community that was supposed to come up with new levels and assets for other players to enjoy. Sadly, I see no reason for people to give this game a shot nowadays.
All in all, Shot in the Dark is a very simple and straightforward game, but it succeeds at what it wanted to do: provide a genuinely creepy experience with the simplest graphics and controls one could imagine. This game made me feel more unsettled than many modern horror games out there.
The PlayStation 5 version of MXGP 2020 feels exactly like most early titles released right after a console’s initial launch period. It’s midway between the last generation and what the next generation of gaming will actually look and feel like, and a game that utilizes some of its new hardware’s capabilities. But at the end of the day, it feels just like a slightly prettier last-gen title.