Mr. Prepper doesn’t turn out to be the nuclear catastrophe it initially convinces you it will be. It survives the radioactive onslaught by the skin of it’s dank, burrowed out teeth. There’s something strange in this that can be recommended, but only to those who have a penchant for the suvivalist, resource-management genre. For everyone else, the threat of impending destruction on the surface is likely more preferable to the solitude and depression of the bunker.
A turn-based strategy game with remarkably solid, pretty and entertaining foundations, Reverie Knights Tactics is a good if unspectacular entry into the genre. Its gameplay and design could have benefitted from additional depth, but this compact package offers a pleasantly enjoyable romp with even more hope for future entries. Completely usurp other tactics games it likely won’t, but there’s enough here to have you entering your own reverie in this tale.
Failing to stack up anywhere near it’s contemporaries, Blackwind is a hollow exosuit complete with unengaging combat, mind-numbing exploration and puzzle elements, repetitious presentation, poor story and baffling design choices. There are plenty of potentially great ingredients to this package, but unlike the age-old adage, the sum is certainly no greater than the parts. A meek gust of breeze as opposed to the promise of a gale-force wind.
Nestling nicely among the raft of indie gems, Aspire: Ina’s Tale excels with a gorgeous art style, subtle yet engaging story-telling and excellent musical score. While you can largely solve the puzzles without much effort, your journey with Ina will be a compelling and rich adventure. It may not hold the loftiest aspirations, but Ina’s dreams are worth embracing.
Unfortunately falling victim to the giants of rogue-likes it provided the shoulders for, Collapsed is an entertaining if poorly balanced rogue-like. Solid action and gunplay can only carry you so far when repetition slowly wears away your enthusiasm, and you know that other games in the genre offer so much more in comparison. Collapsed is despairingly trapped under the rubble of those who have surpassed it.
Channelling your inner desire to become just like Spiderman, Windlands 2 has some epic moments that are buried under tedious combat design, poor story structure and inconsistent grappling that is hindered by the current PSVR tech. When the harmony of swinging works, it encapsulates the best of what only immersive VR can do, if only the game itself could provide the platform to let it spread its wings and soar.
Combining the awkward unforgiving nature of space with a short and focused puzzle exploration game, Heavenly Bodies succeeds in what it sets out to achieve. It’ll frustrate you, impress you, drive you mad and blow you away with its mechanics and 70s aesthetic. You might not always have fun playing it, but this is a Zero-G trip worth embarking on, smashed controllers and all.
Delivering a delicious protein of a cooking game sandwiched between an engaging story and retro horror presentation, Happy’s Humble Burger Farm succeeds at points. The horror and wider gameplay sully the burger with spoilt toppings, but the core of this sandwich is still worth a try.
Building on the immense foundations of the original, Jurassic World Evolution 2 provides more of the same addictive management gameplay with the thrill of seeing the prehistoric reptiles in all their glory. The new additions are light and there’s still some minor issues, but it’s all forgotten as you behold a T-Rex emerging from the shadows for the first time.
Offering a trilogy of solid content offerings with campaign, multiplayer and zombies, Vanguard is a valiant attempt from Sledgehammer which maybe plays it a little too safe in the end. Despite the messy, disjointed design choices for online, Vanguard still proves to be a satisfying experience. It may not lead the line of CoD entries as its name suggests, but it nestles nicely in the middle of the pack.
Boasting an incredibly unique, creative and gorgeous aesthetic with an exceptionally intriguing, well-told narrative, The Eternal Cylinder manages to still be rewarding even when its gameplay and mechanics become tedious and uninteresting. You’ll certainly be tired outrunning this circular vortex of death, but the tale is worth seeing through for the sights along the way.
If you like big-breasted anime females then Neptunia x Senran Kagura: Ninja Wars has got you covered. With lacklustre story, shallow hack-and-slash mechanics and ancient graphical presentation, there’s little here worth your time. If you’re a fan of action or RPG games that are anything more deep than a puddle, Ninja Wars ain’t gonna be the one, basically, especially if you don’t fancy balancing barely-glad animated women on peaches.
Sporting two of the best FPS experiences of the early 2010s and the original, mindblowing graphical powerhouse that busted many a rig in 2007, the Crysis Remastered Trilogy offers hours of solid, smooth and satisfying FPS action. Not all of the improvements hit the mark, but the core of these titles is left intact. If you’ve never played Crysis before, now’s your chance to save the world in style with your ass-kicking Nanosuit. Just watch out for the first impression.
If you have a squad of like-minded buddies ready to lose many an evening to slaying some zombie infested hordes, Back 4 Blood will provide you plenty to satisfy that urge. It doesn’t quite capture the greatness of its forebears and it stumbles over itself with its erratic difficulty curve and repetitive nature, but Back 4 Blood has immensely satisfying, if simplistic, gameplay mechanic. This is a veteran, war-torn survivor who’s maybe danced this bloody dance once too many times, but it knows damn well how to deliver that co-op fun.
Phoenix Point is a game I desperately wanted to love. It has exceptionally complex and deep mechanics, solid turn-based combat systems and fun global strategy gameplay, coupled with a decent story and some decent new additions to provide it its own identity. It is also, however, riddled with technical problems, inconsistent mechanics and frustrating difficulty spikes. Like a true phoenix, it can rise with glory when it wants to, I only wish it didn’t thud back down to ashes so frequently.
Insurgency: Sandstorm offers a brutal, satisfying and bleak FPS experience for those willing to immerse themselves in its tactical, punishing offering. Despite some glitches and slightly repetitive design, it stands tall as an inspiring shooter that will improve not only your skills as a player, but will also have you thinking like a soldier. The desert may be a Hellish place to be, but damn is it a rewarding and satisfying experience too. If you enjoy multiplayer shooters, there are firefights here you need to engage in for yourself.
As a movie, In Sound Mind may have been an interesting and quirky, if slightly derivative, story of introspection and psychological understanding. As a game though, it simply doesn’t have the depth of mechanics to hold you through its 5-6 hour runtime. Sporting awful combat and stealth sequences, boring level design and inconsistent presentation, In Sound Mind activates too few of the adrenaline-controlling brain areas. Instead, it peaked some interest which slowly faded out the longer I played. You wouldn’t be out of your mind to play it if you’re a psychological horror fan, but you’ll potentially be in two minds of whether it was actually fun to play.
Despite a short run time and relatively straightforward golf mechanics, Golf Club Wasteland wows with its world, vibrant graphical direction and amusingly sarcastic and critical story notes. I haven’t played anything quite like it this year, but I’m absolutely thrilled that I gave it a go as it’s cemented its place as one of my favourite little titles. If the idea of a beautifully desolate round of golf on a decimated Earth appeals to you, grab your 9-iron and get hitting, you won’t regret it.
The Medium surprised me with its psychologically twisted, complex and intricate story that had me enthralled from the moment the intrigue turned into something more sinister and personable. Even with its simplistic gameplay design and clunky encounter mechanics, the atmosphere of the world and enjoyable tale should carry you through even its darkest corners. In the real world, The Medium would be basic, but in the spirit realm, it comes to life and will show you the disturbing but enchanting fabric of its reality.
With a bit more time and budget, King’s Bounty II could have been one of the pinnacles of the fantasy medieval genre. The turn-based combat is deep, rewarding and challenging (though sometimes unfairly balanced), while the world of Nostria is artistically interesting and well-realised. If only the developers had been afforded the time and money to actually get the title running properly to overcome all the technical problems. The story is lacklustre with shamefully bad dialogue and voice acting, with everything other than the core combat system feeling under-developed and lacking the quality of life elements that have become the norm. King’s Bounty II ends up a decent prize, but a rather hollow haul of treasure that had so much more potential – a bounty more fit for a nobleman than a king.