Chris Penwell's Reviews
God of War Ragnarok's immaculate attention to detail, provoking narrative, and visceral combat mark it as one of the best PlayStation exclusives.
MultiVersus shows there's enough promise to expand the platform fighter genre with a new focus on 2v2 gameplay and intriguing movesets for each character. We didn't call Mortal Kombat a Street Fighter clone, despite them sharing a 2D plane. Nintendo didn't even begin the platform fighter genre: it only popularized it. The term "Smash Clone" is a demeaning one, which is a huge turnoff for many. MultiVersus should get love for its concept, and as it continues to build, hopefully it will get its time in the sun.
The magic of Epic Mickey has been remastered to an illustrious degree in its Rebrushed version.
Marvel Rivals is one of the most exciting multiplayer games in years.
A fantastic platforming adventure with high production values, we just wish it had a larger variety of enemies.
Cult of the Lamb is a fun town-builder with an equally amazing dungeon crawler that never stops until the final boss is handled. Paired with a fantastic-sounding soundtrack and sound effects, it's hard not to recommend this game to anyone.
Overall, The Last of Us Part 1 is a stellar remake for those who want to play the game for the first time or haven't revisited it for a while. The graphics are gorgeous, the story is still thoroughly entertaining, and the Accessibility Options on offer are superb. Unfortunately, the repetitive combat and lack of multiplayer options do make the package less optimal for those who don't want to spend full price on The Last of Us Part 1.
Overwatch 2 doesn't feel like a sequel but still offers an extremely entertaining experience to those who come back to the series once more. The new characters, maps, and modes are all highlights in this game. However, the microtransaction model is expensive, and the lack of sequel-level changes to Overwatch 2 may cause an exodus of bored fans.
Hi-Fi Rush deserves gold record status. The combat is satisfying to pull off, the narrative keeps you intrigued, and the art style is absolutely gorgeous. While the majority of the game is set in a somewhat sterile factory setting, the amount of flair Hi-Fi Rush oozes more than makes up for it.
The Ratchet & Clank Rift Apart PC port is spectacular, but it has a few issues that need to be sorted out, like our favorite Lombax fixing an issue with his wrench.
SNK used to be a dim segment of the fighting game community during the PS3/Xbox 360 era, but The King of Fighters XV shines bright on modern systems with stellar graphics and fighting that can appeal to anyone, not just the hardcore. This game firmly cements SNK’s place in the genre once again after two successful titles before it.
Moss: Book 2 evolves the gaming format even further with stellar puzzles, a wonderful fantasy-themed world, and emotional storytelling from its writing and its incredible animations.
Overall, Beyond Good & Evil 20th Anniversary Edition is a fantastic remaster with beautiful visuals and remade music. Hopefully Ubisoft follows this with stunning remasters of other classic series like Rayman. Beyond Good & Evil still has engaging characters, fun puzzles and stealth sections that make you think. The world is also glorious to explore and shows Beyond Good & Evil was ahead of its time with how it built Hillys with multiple creatures, cultures and species of people. Unfortunately, the lack of manual saves and camera issues do let down this 20th Anniversary Edition.
Technical issues aside, Lost Records: Bloom & Rage succeeds in telling a meaningful story.
Date Everything feels like too much of a good thing, as the game prioritises quantity over quality.
Impressive efforts with a few noticeable problems holding them back. Won't astound everyone, but is worth your time and cash.
Nickelodeon All-Star Brawl 2 is worth trying out. The new movesets make this game more exciting than the original, and the online netcode is surprisingly stellar. If you want to check out All-Star Brawl 2 alone, the campaign mode is compelling enough to play it for hours. While the music is disappointing to listen to, the new voice acting does add so much to the game.
Impressive efforts with a few noticeable problems holding them back. Won't astound everyone, but is worth your time and cash. A gorgeous breath of fresh air that you can complete in one sitting. However, the enemies and the gameplay can get repetitive from time to time.
MultiVersus succeeds at making this crossover an epic clash, but the online needs to be improved across the board to keep players invested.
Sonic Frontiers is a welcome surprise in 2022. It brings an engaging pseudo-open world, thrilling combat, and a deeper story than you may expect. Some of the platforming can feel janky for a few moments, and a somewhat lack of fast travel does aggravate, but this is one of the best adventures this hedgehog has been on in years.