Control Resonant is an impeccably confident and tantalising sequel that has all the hallmarks of a Remedy classic. It's endlessly stylish and playful; it looks gorgeous, especially on the PS5 Pro, and it manages to address many of the woes that I had with the original Control.Repetitive combat is the big hitch, however, holding the game back from true greatness. Ultimately, though, it's not enough to overrule all that Remedy is doing right with this sequel.
No More Room in Hell 2 is an immersive and tactile FPS experience that revels in the slow-paced dread and somehow makes each interaction with a zombie feel dangerous. I’d love to love it more, but clunky controls and overwhelming UI make for a rough-around-the-edges console port.
Sprawl Zero is a great time if you’re looking to just kick back and shoot some bad guys. It won’t win any awards, and it certainly doesn’t break the mould, but it’s simple yet satisfying. It controls brilliantly, and it’s a lovely hit of shooter nostalgia.
Aliens: Fireteam Elite 2 is a massive letdown of a sequel. At times it teeters on the so-bad-it's-good territory, with references for fans of the series and some admittedly decent customisation. But it does little to amplify what's at its core: a half-arsed co-op tie-in that, bafflingly, lacks any of the charm that the first game had.
Big Walk is a quiet yet genius co-op experience. It sets you up with a fun interactive team-based system and just leaves you to uncover its wonders. The sense of discovery is palpable, and I was often blown away by the game's sense of scale and how it implemented progression in a seamless yet meaningful way. If you and your mates are looking for your next co-op fix, this is something special and unlike anything else out there.
Mortal Shell 2 is a soulslike that cuts to the chase. It's home to a stuffed interconnected world with a wide variety of enemies, dungeons, and little secrets, which make it a delight to explore. Each discovery of a new shell, weapon, or sidearm meaningfully impacts your playstyle, and levelling up is a fun and satisfying process. It loses steam a little towards the end, with some irritating backtracking, but overall this is a brilliant new addition to the genre and, by all accounts, a far improved sequel.
At the end of the day, Escape the Backrooms is just a fantastically fun and scary co-op experience. It's not some highly curated horror with flashy graphics and audio design, nor does it break the wheel in any wild way. But considering you are basically being put in a level with some murderous creature and being asked to avoid it and escape time and time again, Escape the Backrooms manages to keep things impressively fresh.
Luna Abyss is a AA shooter that holds its own against some of the elite of the genre. Its enticing and ominous sci-fi world is a delight to look at artistically, even if its muddy graphics let it down on closer inspection. Its story is fine, but a slick sense of progression keeps its action and platforming interesting from start to finish.
Directive 8020 had some serious potential, but it fails to conjure up anything of any real substance. There are little sparks of enjoyment in there, and I liked the Cassiopeia's gradual descent into a gloopy, fleshy hell. But a dull setting, uninteresting characters, and overly simplistic gameplay segments left me fairly uninterested in seeing how else I could play out this branching narrative experience.
Life is Strange: Reunion could have been a full Double Exposure sequel, and it could have been a full Max and Chloe entry. Instead, both narratives are squeezed into a bloated finale with dull pacing and a lacklustre resolution. There are sparks of brilliance in there and fantastic chemistry between its two leads, but it's never given the love and care to blossom into something beautiful.
Marathon doesn't have that instant fun factor and casual appeal that an extraction shooter like ARC Raiders does. And for a lot of people, that likely means it isn't the game for them. But Marathon is a game that gives more to you the more you give to it. With impeccable Bungie gunplay, a gorgeous world and artstyle, and a gameplay loop much denser than its competition, we think Marathon is something special. The more we play, the more we love it.
Highguard has potential, but it's not quite being met yet. As it stands today, this is a fun yet bloated shooter that lacks the spark you'll find in other games in the genre, like The Finals. It'll play to the tactical players out there, and it seems that Wildlight is committed to improving the game. But with a game mode that crams every type of shooter into a single experience, Highguard is a jack of all trades and master of none.
Avatar: Frontiers of Pandora - From the Ashes is a simplified yet cinematic story expansion that focuses on the best of the IP, without bogging you down with too much clutter. Its new third-person mode gives the game a whole new feel, and we wouldn't play it any other way. While Massive missed the mark with its Na'Vi enemies, it's a delight to spend more time in this giant multimedia sci-fi world.
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ARC Raiders has well and truly been worth the wait. This is a phenomenal showcase of what immersive multiplayer can be. Every run is different, and your squad will come out with stories to tell each time. It can be tougher on those planning to play solo, and the extraction loop won't be for everyone. But as far as extraction shooters go, this is one of the most accessible, and it respects your time, giving you a fun experience from your first match. We can easily say that ARC Raiders is one of the best multiplayer games this generation.
For those who appreciate a great movement system in a VR game, Reach is worth checking out for that alone. It’s lacking the same vibe as Synapse, with a dull story and repetitive environments, but if you give it time, there’s fun to be had here.
Battlefield 6 isn't worth buying for its campaign alone - although we suspect no one's really doing that anyway. For us, it's a nice starter while we're waiting for the main meal. It showcases how great the gunplay feels and how nice the game looks as a whole. But it's not breaking any boundaries from a narrative, mechanical, or immersive perspective. Did we enjoy our time with it? Yes, in a turn your brain off kind of way. Will we remember it by the time we're deep in the trenches of the multiplayer? Probably not.But, as mentioned, this is only a part of the Battlefield 6 experience. Once servers go live with real players, and we get some serious sessions out in the field, we'll update our review and score the game accordingly.
However, if you're just looking for a few more hours with your favourite quipping archaeologist, then The Order of Giants offers up just that, with a fun storyline, great visuals, and some fantastic puzzles.
Cronos: The New Dawn is a brilliant addition to the survival horror genre. In a lot of ways it's derivative, especially when it comes to how it plays and how it feels. However, Bloober has injected enough charm, curiosities, and weirdness into it to make it not only its own thing, but something almost endearing. With impeccable visuals, an entrancing score, and a captivatingly dark time-travelling mystery, Cronos: The New Dawn is a delectable piece of sci-fi horror.
With an incredibly dense lore and labyrinthine level design, Hell Is Us is a captivating experience. The game takes its solid (but tough) combat and chin-scratching puzzles and elevates them with a century spanning mystery that goes deeper and deeper. Its hands off approach means there is a huge emphasis on the world, and thankfully Rogue Factor does not disappoint. It's not going to be for everyone, but for those that love a good lore-filled mystery, this is a PS5 must-play.