PlayStation 4 owners can now experience one of the best Tomb Raider adventures ever made. Plus, they get some worthwhile content to boot. Not a bad deal for a year’s wait.
Batman: Return to Arkham is a good collection that has considerable upgrades in a lot of areas, especially with DLC and other nice value add-ons. It does fall short a bit with graphical issues and frame rate, but nothing that would detour you from playing both games again on the PS4. The two original games are still some of the best adventures out there and worth any sort of graphical trouble, especially for those who have never tried them.
DICE made a perfect game with Battlefield 1. It has a competent campaign that properly does justice to The Great War and a deep, fun multiplayer experience that reminds us why Battlefield does it better than anyone on a massive scale.
WWE 2K17 has clear focus with what makes for a good wrestling experience. The visuals, the options for gameplay and the beautiful atmosphere of the game make this wrestling title worth your time. The controls do bring the gameplay down a bit, though, as they feel stiff and linear for the most part. Regardless, the rest of the game shows that Yuke’s and Visual Concepts has certainly started to point this series in the right direction.
Skylanders: Imaginators is a fantastic release that brings some new value to the series through gamer Skylander creation and great gameplay in the main story. Toys for Bob and Activision are certainly keeping this series fresh with good ideas and execution.
Atlas Reactor is an impressive turn-based tactical game that has ground work built on fast action and a steep learning curve.
Dragon Quest Builders is a stunning balance of build and adventure. I was incredibly skeptical that the two genres would ever evenly mix, but somehow Square Enix found the right spots and put together one helluva package for Dragon Quest and Minecraft fans to enjoy. It’s really quite good and addictive.
Severed is a short adventure that has a lot of major gameplay elements packed into it. Its unique art style will keep your eyes engaged, while your brain will be firmly occupied with the puzzles and sword play. There’s not a lot more you could ask for from a $14.99 game.
God Eater 2: Rage Burst’s gameplay is driven by a bevy of missions, some great enemies and a variety of different, interesting loadouts to help make the experience fun and somewhat deep. The shortcomings are outweighed by these positives, though those shortcomings come in the form of linear landscapes, plain graphics and difficult controls. Regardless, Shift did a good job overall.
Destiny - Rise of Iron is a worthy addition to the Destiny expansion family. It brings more fun, better balance (risk/rewards) and a tough raid. Definitely a step up, but still contains some old caveats that the series can't quite shake in PvP that hurt it just a bit. Overall, it's a great expansion for the series.
Sonic Boom: Fire and Ice is more positive than negative. It is developed to tap that deep nostalgia that Sonic fans have for the series, while bringing in some new elements that make it more than just an arcade platformer. While it isn’t perfect, especially the controls, it’s still a very entertaining experience that should satisfy the Sonic the Hedgehog fanbase. Sanzaru Games did a fabulous job with it and I hope they continue to make more Sonic games in the very near future.
Pac-Man Championship Edition 2 is a tough, uphill experience that might have a few things going against it in terms of frustration, but the game also has a lot going for it in terms of challenge. Gamers generally cry about games being too quick and easy, so Bandai Namco Studios has created something that goes against that grain. Certainly this is the Dark Souls of the Pac-Man series.
Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney - Spirit of Justice has an even balance of good writing, new gameplay design and fantastic presentation. Bringing back familiar faces to push the story and containing a healthy dose of difficulty, which is what most fans of the series adore, only helps its overall case. Definitely a worthy addition to the Phoenix Wright family.
Resident Evil 4 does indeed make a perfect 2005 appearance on the current generation consoles, which is a huge plus. It’s such a significant game in the series, so much that it helped the name Resident Evil become more than just a linear zombie shoot ‘em up with jump scares. Its impact can not be understated. With that said, the lack of tweaking and adaption with the controls made the 2016 experience on the PlayStation 4 a bit tough to love. It’s not a deal breaker, but it’s tough to recapture RE4’s magic when you’re fighting with the controls. In the end, a classic is still a classic, despite its flaws in this generation.
While it has been a few years since I’ve reviewed a Madden NFL title, EA Tiburon’s efforts in Madden NFL 17 seems to be incredibly focused on keeping the necessary modes intact, the gameplay elements accurate on both sides of the ball and, most importantly, not trying to overreach. The developers seemed focused on bringing the best Madden NFL title in the last 10 years and they have very much accomplished that feat. This is a must-have, folks.
No Man’s Sky is a unique experience for this generation of consoles. It brings a relaxing gameplay design that is geared more towards exploration, rather than sci-fi action. In addition to exploration, it has a healthy crafting system, an interesting monetary structure that adds extra motivation, and an endless amount of adventures and secrets to uncover along the way. No Man’s Sky isn’t perfect execution by any means, especially when compared to the intentions that it was built on, but there’s enough here to warrant the journey.
10 Second Ninja X is a wonderful test of strategy, emotions and patience. The game will last as long as your anger skills, so prepare yourself if you ninja your way into this.
LEGO Star Wars: The Force Awakens isn't simply another movie licensed turned into a LEGO game. It's a beautiful opus for the LEGO series that shows that Tt Games isn't resting on its laurels enjoying the money rolling in. The developers have put a lot of love into the presentation, gameplay depth and overall experience to bring a top-tier game that should entertain both adults and kids. Kudos to them for keeping the series fresh.
Star Ocean: Integrity and Faithlessness is a beautiful game that is well crafted in some areas, especially in the menu and combat systems. Sadly, the game trips on its own inconsistent difficulty and poor or incomplete feel of the gameplay design.
As it stands, Umbrella Corps is a hard sell even at $29.99. The content just seems void of enjoyment and entertainment because of the broken feel of the overall gameplay design. I will give Capcom and its developers props for trying something different in the RE series. The idea seems to be built on good intentions.