There isn’t a whole lot original about Oceanhorn 2, it very proudly wears its inspiration to the The Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker; not on its sleeve but its cosplaying as Link. This isn’t a bad thing at all, as I said above there aren’t very many of these games on Xbox (which is really sad btw). More than that because it doesn’t have a rage inducing difficulty it makes Oceanhorn 2 a great game for families to play together which is something that can’t be said for a lot of adventure games lately. Some of my fondest memories is playing games with my mom watching (she isn’t a gamer) and finding a game like that now as a father is rare. So, in this sea of utterly fantastic games in the year of our Lord 2023, don’t sleep on Oceanhorn 2 – Knights of the Lost Realm.
Players won’t find combat in Lifeless Moon, instead this game is made for fans of classic sci-fi, the stuff from Rod Sterling’s Twilight Zone, the kind of sci-fi that makes you think about it after you turn it off. And for all those reasons I really enjoyed this game, while I did find it overly easy at times moving through the world and the various biomes and figuring out its story was the real payoff, and if you like that type of sci-fi then you should check this one out before you get lost in Starfield.
Lisa: The Painful is just a perfect name for this game as it evokes such emotions while playing. Depending on the gamer though this dark, sometimes humorous, always shocking world could be just the ticket to see something polar opposite from say a Final Fantasy. I certainly walked away from this game not feeling the light and pride of finishing the usual RPG’s, Lisa: The Painful is a bleak experience but one that is worth it if you can stomach it.
Atlas Fallen does some things right as a new franchise, the world that the team has made is interesting and begs to be explored, the story is for the most part extremely well told and as I said graphically the game looks great. But the unevenness of the combat just makes avoiding fights more common than facing enemies head on. Which is truly a shame because as I said above, I love action games and had high hopes that Atlas Fallen would stick the landing. I am hoping this is something that can be fixed with a patch, because I did enjoy skating around the sands and exploring the massive levels.
Miasma Chronicles isn’t far removed from the studios previous outing with Mutant Year Zero in neither setting or gameplay. That doesn’t mean however that it’s a bad game at all, Miasma feels more polished and nuanced than its predecessor which speaks volumes of the talent at the studio. However, for me the narrative wasn’t as strong as the world itself which wasn’t helped by the feeling of an abrupt ending to the whole affair. But Miasma Chronicles remains a good time due to the mix of tactical strategy and stealth gameplay.
The team at Larian Studios are to be commended, Baldur’s Gate 3 is nothing short of a masterpiece when it comes to RPG’s.
Graphically Front Mission: 1st Remake looks phenomenal on the Series X, small touches like working windshield wipers on vehicles and things really help to immerse players in the game and its world. The remake presents the game in a different camera angle from the original but allows players to choose how they want to play. This is also true of the soundtrack in game as the original and a remastered and remixed version is available as well. While I enjoyed the story of Front Mission: 1st Remake, the combat made the game feel like a chore. In fact, it felt like for everyone good thing I found with the game, I would end up with two negatives. I had issues with the camera control in the heat of battle, the overall difficulty on default is a tad hard (but there is a difficulty selection if you want to play on easy), missing more attacks than I hit even in melee and all these things just led to a poor experience. I think Id love to play a new Front Mission game, one that isn’t a remake and is charting its own path forward; hopefully we can see that one day.
Fuga: Melodies of Steel 2 provides another dark look at war and its effects on those who are waging it. Just like in the first there are some very dire consequences to using certain abilities in game, thankfully the developers have added another option which will only disable instead of destroying, which is nice but still feels bad to use either weapon. (Im being vague on purpose but if you played the original you know what I’m talking about) While I loved this game almost as much as I enjoyed the original, I just can’t shake the feeling that this didn’t do enough to be a full sequel, so much of it is so similar to the original. It doesn’t mean Fuga 2 isn’t great though, the story is just as moving as the original and the relationships players will be stewards over with these kids is one of, if not the best thing about this series.
So much about this game is questionable, from the backwards ass way the narrative is presented to just having one mode available at launch to the inclusion of a battle pass. I don’t get it one bit, but Exoprimal is on Game Pass and I encourage you to check it out because there is fun to be had, but your mileage will definitely vary on how much you have that’s for sure.
There really isn’t one thing that I walked away from in Forever Skies that I absolutely hated; in fact, I found its approach quite refreshing to the genre. Having a lone scientist return to the polluted Earth is a great jumping point for some survival stories. And flying through the world was strangely beautiful at times, seeing the sun rise and set against the green sky and thunderstorms with the impressive lightning flashes and rain were my favorites to witness. Alas there just isn’t enough content currently for me to invest in this game fully, I don’t want to get burnt out on the limited content and then never come back to check out the game in all its glory. Forever Skies isn’t a bad game by any means, it’s just not a complete one and if you know that going in and aren’t bothered by it then you will have some fun in the skies.
Aliens: Dark Descent does a great job of mashing up tactical action and the tension and fear of its source material. Not without its pain points however such as the lip syncing during cutscenes, controller buttons not being recognized usually when in the heat of battle, and some other bugs and glitches. I commend these developers for taking so many different things and successfully putting them together to deliver a wonderful tactical strategy game, some more time gestating and this one would have been ready to really burst forth and do some real damage.
Crime Boss Rockay City deserved better, from the inexcusable number of bugs and glitches that players will come across while played the games narrative or the multiplayer missions to the just laughable performances of some actors who I used to hold in such high regard. In a different timeline this game would have just leaned 100% into the jank and made this a successful parody. But instead, it falls flat by trying to tell a serious story about an ambitious crime boss who wanted more, a story as old as time and one that’s been told a million times better before.
While personally I think the future looks grim for this one only because multiplayer audiences are so fickle, Crash Team Rumble is a blast and if you have some fond memories of the old games, you’ll enjoy this one quite a bit…while it lasts.
Trinity Trigger has some really good ideas that sadly never get fleshed out. The story is quite unique and really could have been something if handled with a bit more care. What begins as a Legend of Mana-esque journey, soon delves into a mess of broken combat, poor directions for the player, and lackluster graphics. Which is really a shame, because with some more time in the oven Trinity Trigger might’ve been able to help differentiate itself from the sea of other RPGs out right now.
I said this above, but I feel like it bears repeating; Ravenlok feels like the culmination of all the work this team has done using voxel tech. It is a beautiful game, one that evokes images of various Disney/Pixer type worlds and just as vivid. Each of the worlds offer side quests and various characters to interact with that was all enjoyable. Aside from the easy combat I enjoyed my time with Ravenlok and if you are looking for a quick fantasy adventure, I can’t recommend it enough.
I’m sorry, I am just so frustrated by this game’s decisions. On the one hand I am all for a gaming studio taking a big swing at trying to shake up a formula; it just sucks when it turns out poorly because it just means that other developers will stick with the status quo to find success. The combat in Stray Blade for instance is trying something new but due to the overall clunkiness of the controls and the timing of the enemies’ attacks it makes it all but impossible to find success with the system in place. Stray Blade has its ups with the colorful graphics and likeable protagonist but it’s a combat heavy game where the combat just isn’t fun which makes this one hard to recommend.
There are lots of survival systems at play in Beyond Contact, but due to the poor functionality of the UI a lot of those systems aren’t fun. While I did enjoy the actually base building, and research systems for upgrading gear and tools my constant fight with the UI and bugs just marred each of my play sessions with the game. If players can deal with the controls, the developers are promising more planets to explore. Those that prefer the mouse and keyboard might have a better time with this one than I did with the controller.
Even though I enjoyed the actual racing and especially the story campaign in Lego 2K Drive, but for me a player who loves to play online this game gives me pause. I don’t get a lot of time to spend on games between reviewing them, my kids and just life overall. So, sitting down to play and seeing my opponents all have super tricked out rides; I just know I am in for a loss. I don’t have an issue with microtransactions in games, but I do have an issue when players can just purchase power making it unfair for those who can’t or just won’t. If you plan on strictly playing Lego 2K Drive single player, there is a lot to enjoy here…. Even with the wonky drifting system.
The base game mechanics in Starship Troopers: Extermination is a blast to play, and the game loop itself is satisfying. Sure, I’m a sucker for the ‘horde shooter’ type games and mashing it with one of my favorite science fiction B movies was a sure-fire way to get me hyped. But more than that, Extermination is a great game, the models for the bugs look exactly like they did back in 97. Overall, the graphics in this early access game are quite good. In fact, my biggest issue with this game is that it IS an early access game. So many video games are releasing this way and I understand the invaluable contribution to the games overall success that having real players interact with it in this early stage. But the issue is the game is not feature complete, sure its fun for now but with the promise of that complete game later, I will just wait for the 1.0 release instead of playing the EA version in the run up to it. Starship Troopers: Extermination is an enjoyable game, but unless you plan on truly playing to follow its progress, id wait for the full release which hopefully also includes consoles.
After Us had some lofty goals and it shows but sadly, they didn’t quite reach those highs. Incredible art direction and a dope soundtrack sadly don’t make up for the ‘tacked’ on combat and the very floaty platforming controls. The design choice to make it open world is also a head scratcher because the game absolutely does a poor job of telling players where to go next. I’m left wondering what could have been with After Us, had the combat been taken out I think this would have been a much better adventure.