The 2D Platformer genre is not a newcomer to the gaming scene, of course our Italian plumber friend is a prime example of that. Neither is the Top-Down Puzzler genre, though perhaps not as widespread as the former. So, what can be done to make these genres new and exciting? Merge them together of course!
Those were the first words mentioned about Biomutant, found in an advertisement in GamesMarkt, a German gaming magazine. However, it was officially announced a couple of days later on the 21st of August 2017: since then, the hype and expectations have been growing and growing. Personally, I haven’t been following Biomutant‘s development from the very beginning. I purposely avoided looking too much into it, first learning about it I believe at E3 last year. For open-world RPGs, I love experiencing them with just a basic idea of the story!
Across the years in gaming, we’ve seen plenty of reimaginings of the future, quite often a post-apocalyptic Earth. It isn’t exactly a new concept. However, Mutropolis takes this trope and makes it its own! This time, we are transported to the year 5000, where Earth had been abandoned in favour of a move to Mars. But, clues leading to a lost city bring an archaeology team back to their ancestral home.
In 1999, Pokémon Snap was released for the Nintendo 64. One of the first console-based games as a spin off for the Pokémon series, and featuring Pokémon rendered for the first time in real-time 3D, it remains a fond memory for many. It was something unique and much different from the mechanics in the main line titles, with first-person rail shooter gameplay.
How many of us go through life saying yes to people’s demands or requests? It may be a family member, a friend, or even a work colleague. It’s easy to slip into the habit of trying to please everyone and being too nice, even if it’s detrimental to our wellbeing. You can end up burnt out, or in an uncomfortable situation. Do you find it hard to tell others no, out of fear of upsetting them?
No matter what type of gamer you are, whether you live and breathe video games or pick up a mobile game every now and again, life simulations seem to appeal to just about everyone. Animal Crossing: New Horizons is certainly proof of this, people who don’t usually play games are desperate to find a Switch which have shot up in demand during the pandemic. They’re relaxing, and don’t require a lot of skill or concentration. They’re the type of games you can play in chunks whenever you choose, during a lunch break or in bed late at night.
The latest Indie Showcase for Nintendo Switch revealed that Calico was coming to the handheld console. Though I didn’t watch it myself, another member of the Rapid Reviews team instantly branded it as a “Chloe type of game”, and he was not wrong! I had actually played the demo on Steam, had the game in my wishlist and followed its development on Twitter.
The Worms series has been around since 1995, so I’d be surprised if any gaming fan hadn’t heard of those angry anthropomorphic fellows! To sum it up, the series largely revolves around turn-based artillery tactics. Often having to be the last one standing, you use whacky weapons to deplete your opponents’ health. Sheep, Holy Hand Grenades, and more, Worms boasts slapstick humour. It has gone through character design changes, 2D to 3D, and even a mini-golf spin-off!
The Drawn to Life games stand out for me when I think of my time with the original Nintendo DS. The first title, originally developed by 5th Cell, came out in 2007 whilst its sequel, The Next Chapter, released in 2009. There was even a spin-off in 2008, Drawn to Life: Spongebob Squarepants Edition! A criminally underrated series, you are the Creator, looked up to by a species named the Raposa. Using the DS touch screen and your stylus to draw, you could create your own hero and items such as platforms and signs within the game. As someone who has always loved drawing, it was innovative to see my creations come to life in game!
On the surface, Horace may seem like just another 2D platformer on the Nintendo eShop. It’s hard to summarise the entire story, so the description of a robot trying to reunite with his family while picking up rubbish left over from the Robot War doesn’t particularly stand out. I’ve played many whacky indie games in my time at Rapid Reviews, with weird and wonderful stories, and initially Horace doesn’t sound too different.
Launching as a day one title alongside the Xbox Series X|S, The Falconeer has been an anticipated title for many. It’s been on my radar for a while, and I’d frequently seen beautiful shots of soaring birds above the ocean appearing on my Twitter feed. As a game optimized for next-gen, it would be silly not to take the chance to review it.
Our journey through the Assassin’s Creed series has taken us from Italy to London to Egypt, meeting historical figures along the way. We’ve delved into the past and become a pirate or a Medjay, yet always fighting for the Assassins against the Templars. In the latest addition to the series, Assassin’s Creed Valhalla, we now take on the role of a ruthless Viking warrior!
The PlayStation 2’s Star Wars Battlefront II is a much loved game in my brother and I’s collection. Countless hours spent playing heroes vs villains mainly, but also taking down star destroyers in the space battles. I was pretty dreadful, confusing myself by spinning around and blowing myself up…but it was fun nontheless! The news of Star Wars: Squadrons had me longing to relive those days. With the new Battlefront‘s exclusion of space battles, they seemed lost to nostalgia. Though they were introduced in the second installation of the series, there were mixed opinions. So does Star Wars: Squadrons get space battles right once and for all? Let’s find out.
When Embracelet popped up in our games list, I immediately fell in love with the art style. Reminiscent of the design in Untitled Goose Game, the low-poly art looked utterly charming. There was something about the characters with their beady eyes and little mouths that captured my heart. However, I thought the story sounded a little cheesy. I’m all for magic and fantasy, but a bracelet with magical powers? I thought it was perhaps a little childish. But as they say, don’t judge a book by its cover, as I soon found out I was wrong!
I think all of us can relate to having that one tycoon game that left us staring at a screen for hours, completely unaware of the time passing. There’s something about management games that draws many of us in and becomes addictive, whether that be running your own theme park or building your own city. I’m not sure what this power lust and control says about humans… When I saw Chef in our games list, I was happy to review it, having spent many hours on titles such as Rollercoaster Tycoon and Planet Zoo. A restaurant sim was something I’d never really played before, besides old flash games on the family PC on rainy days. But was it a recipe for disaster or the creme de la creme of restaurant tycoons?
From the title of this game and the strange imagery of its accompanying photo, you can tell straight away it’s not going to be an uplifting game. When I saw The Suicide of Rachel Foster pop up on our review list and confirming its genre of thriller on the Xbox Store, I was wary. Horror games are not my thing; being the biggest wimp has me screaming bloody murder even in non-horror games, simply being chased has me throwing my controller down (remember The Rugrats: Search for Reptar? Well, I was terrified of the goose in the maze.)
Though some of you may recognise our orange heroes Score-chan and Gig, this was actually my first time delving into the Piczle universe. The Piczle series focuses on nonogram logic-puzzles, in which you have to fill a certain number of squares within a grid to create an image. Similar to Sudoku though, you need to make sure there are no clashes and that the numbers correspond both horizontally and vertically.
Picture an old woman with a love of gardening followed around by cute, chubby mushrooms as her loyal army. Sounds pretty cute, right? Well, in Terrorarium, this granny uses those adorable mushroom creatures, Moogu, as her expendable pawns in alien gardens filled with murderous plants and hazards. Not so cute.
The first imagery we ever saw from our initial glimpse at Death Stranding, was a naked Daryl Dixon cradling a baby. No explanation, no story detail. But it was from Hideo Kojima, so naturally, hype arose. However, for me, I never really pushed to find out what the game was about or watch any more trailers over the years. It was for PS4, and as an Xbox player, I was never going to play it, so why bother?
Being a late 90s baby, I was unfortunately just a little too late to be part of that generation who grew up on arcade games, waiting in line to slot their coin into the machine. But for those who remember that memory well, you may have heard of Missile Command. It has now made its way onto the Nintendo Switch in the form of Missile Command Recharged with some brand new features!