Counting down to D-Day, you guide a group of Special Forces and French Resistance through Northwest France in an attempt to derail Nazi-Germany. The turn-based tactical squad missions are familiar all the way back to X-Com, but several new tactics have been added. Thanks to a new morale system, every shot counts, even when missed, taking away one of the biggest frustrations of the genre. Classified: France '44 isn't without fault, but will please fans of the genre with fresh ideas.
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With a welcome new location, two beloved heroes and a tight storyline that combines main and sidequests like never before, Infinite Wealth might be less crazy than before, but much more compelling and coherent. The combat has been upped with jobs and bonds. As a downside, the added resort island management feels like a mis-fire, but is fortunately mostly optional.
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This remaster might feel a bit superfluous as the original PS4 version was already great. However, the added features including the commentary, deleted scenes and the new roguelike game mode are welcome additions. For new players, this remastered version is definitely the right choice. For owners of the PS4 version, the extras and extra graphical fidelity might be enough to entice the relatively small upgrade fee.
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Great sequel with many improvements. Your canine company 'buddy' is both adorable and useful in combat and solving puzzles. You're fitted out with a wide range of guns and the occasional melee weapon, but their usefulness is limited - as is your storage for them. Focus is clearly still on shooting Freddies. The improved reload-mechanism adds a new source of anxiety, especially when you fumble with Freddies approaching. There are a couple of technical hickups, but they don't stand in the way of fun.
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A great revival of the new Just Dance platform after a false start last entry. Finally, Just Dance integrates years of content into one game, providing access to all your purchased songs. The songs are more and more experiences with entertaining backdrops that border on being too visually distracting. Even Just Dance+ is now more fleshed out with enough content to make it worth it. The online Dancefloor is still missing in action.
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Baldur's Gate 3 is an impressive feat, making a DnD game accessible to the masses, while keeping the core, mechanics and variety of the rulebook intact. The freedom of choice is enormous, as are the consequences. The translation to consoles isn't entirely perfect and some minor grievances and bugs have transitioned or are even introduced, but all in all, this is the best Dungeons & Dragons game in existence.
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Armored Core 6 is a nice diversion from the Souls games for From Games. The return to modular mechs allows players to experiment with wildly different builds. Sadly, the game feels very unbalanced. It throws very hard bosses at you when you're unprepared and underpowered, while not challenging you enough when you finally reach enough freedom to build an AC to suit your style.
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Synapse is the new standard for VR FPS. thanks to teh clever use of force feedback and eye tracking, you feel like you're inside the action. The combination of eye tracking and telekinesis is simply delightful and this is the closest we've felt to being a true force wielder. the clever use of your offhand for navigation, telekinesis and climbing/hiding is brilliant and works like a charm. If we have to complain a bit, we would love some more variety to the weapons used.
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Final Fantasy XVI is a complete package with a refreshingly mature storyline, full of surprises that keeps raising the stakes. The switch to real-time fights is daring step, but works most of the time, as long as the graphical effects don't blur what's going on. The game can be greatily adapted to facilitate those that mostly play for the story, but also those that are looking for a real challenge. The most epic fights, those between the Eikons, are visually impressive, but a bit too hands-off.
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Farming Simulator 23 for Switch balances between two extremities. The game offers a solid farming experience that can be enjoyed endlessly, but, as it is based on the mobile version, it's also very limited. It doesn't offer the freedom which makes Farming Simulator great. Without mods, limited vehicles and fixed layouts, you're trapped in the base functionalities without the possibility of experimentation or expansion.
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This game was clearly a challenge too big for the developer and they should have been saved from this embarrasment. This game doesn't do the Lord of the Rings franchise, Daedalic or Nacon any favors and it would be best if they avoid games of this size and for a while. With its extremely poor character design, lackluster, boring gameplay and bug ridden mess, this is one title even the biggest LotR fan should avoid.
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A platformer that's hampered by it's focus on telling a tale of an ecological drama. The enormous environments are widely different, but are all dark an gloomy, while protagonist Gaia can temporarily bring brightness. Gameplay is diverse, even though Gaia could really benefit from the ability to shy away from edges, making the platforming more difficult than neccessary. There is a great game here, but it isn't allowed to shine due to the unrelenting desire to get the ecological story across.
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Murfasha is short, but fun to play. There is a lot of shooting, but it's still laid back and actually too easy. The Tower Defense mechanism where you're the tower yourself is nicely thought of. The game has a dark sense of humor that actually works, without getting too much on the forefront. Murfasha is a great game for a couple of hours or evenings of fun, with out too much hassle.
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When a game is delayed for a long time, it usually doesn't bode well. But Dambuster Studios has delivered a strong zombie-slayer in Dead Island 2, with a lot of content, loads of weapons and anatomically correct zombies. It does have some technical issues, but that doesn't stand in the way of fun.
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Mile 0 is the prequel to Road 96, a highly valued indie game. Sadly, this prequel cannot live up to the expectations. The choose your adventure mechanic doesn't work if the final result is already known, the game is short and marred with technical errors. Also, the game seems designed for mouse and keyboard with controller support added as an afterthought. Sadly, we cannot recommend this game in its current form.
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Many would consider remaking a classic like Resident Evil 4 impossible. However Capcom has taken up the gauntlet and managed to make the classic even better. With an expanded storyline, better movement options and fighting skills, as well as many big and small quality of life improvements, this remake is better in almost every way, except for the graphics, which could have done with a bit more polish
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Moss Book2 is longer, more versatile and graphically better than it's predecessor. Quill (and companions) are adorable as ever, but the even bigger stakes and more interesting puzzles make this follow-up even more interesting. The release together with PS VR2 is welcome and makes this one of the better starter-games of the launch line-up.
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When is a remake not a remake? Ishin at times feels like the developers cut corners by incorporating existing models from other games and the original. NPC characters and animations lack refinement and didn't get the overhaul you would expect from a remake. However, the cutscenes and the original story remains strong and the gameplay with its new use of weapons and the added team cards are solid as ever. Together, Ishin fails to rise above the average, which could have been easily avoided.
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Dead Space is how a remake is supposed to be. The game is full of big and small improvements that make the experience even more intense, but also even better than the original and that with graphics and sound that are completely current-gen is. When you play the game, it really feels like the Dead Space of before, but as soon as you hold both versions next to each other you only notice well how big the differences actually are. That's exactly what a Really good remake features: the preservation of good elements and improvements that don't stand out.
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One piece Odyssey celebrates 25 years of the anime by providing a game with gameplay that is at times just as old. The turnbased fights have some interesting new elements, but outside the fights a lot feels oldfashioned. Quests lack a sense of progress, no fast travel during quests and the use of savepoints make this game feel like it hasn't progressed beyond a few decades ago. Fortunately, the anime itself is brilliant and makes you eager to go watch it right after you close the game.
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