Adam Beck's Reviews
Dragon Ball Xenoverse 2 was an entertaining but flawed game when it was released last year and it remains such on Nintendo Switch. If anything, this port feels like the worst version to pick up, with numerous graphical sacrifices and severe frame rate issues in the hub city whilst playing on the handheld mode.
Hitman – Episode 4: Bangkok has a lot of good going for it, but doesn’t quite live up to the excitement that has been established in the past.
Even at the budgeted price point, Resident Evil 5’s reemergence feels a bit disappointing.
Hitman Episode 3: Marrakesh is the least impressive installment thus far, but it still holds up as a decent distraction.
Gears of War: Ultimate Edition for PC is plagued with a number of issues that vastly damage the experience.
Lightning Returns is the antithesis of its predecessors. The confined and plodding pace of the last two games is no more and the nonsensical narrative has been lightly improved. More still, the combat is hands-down the strongest of the three games. Unfortunately, Lightning's new quest isn't without its limitations, as while the visual fidelity has improved thanks to the transition to the significantly more flexible platform, the six year old engine is showing its age and the degree past assets are used is almost criminal.
Prototype Biohazard Bundle is a questionable release. While it's an acceptable port to the current generation platforms, the Prototype duo don't hold up well in the current environment.
Spotty performance, a terribly boring aesthetic and a messy, cobbled together combat system amounts to something that had potential, but was beaten over the head with a cricket bat.
Deus Ex: Mankind Divided is the epitome of the phrase, one step forward, two steps back.
IO Interactive has setup something potentially more impressive for future releases, with gameplay we've come to love and a taste of what feels like infinite possibilities spread throughout a single scenario.
If you played Ryse: Son of Rome on Xbox One, there's little reason to return on PC. It may contain higher resolutions and a more flexible frame rate, but otherwise it's substantially the same game.
While there's an intriguing setup here, 'All That Remains' starts the new season off slowly and fails to deliver a sensible and concrete outlook at the future. There are notably fewer meaningful choices to be found and the action scenes are without much suspense as Clementine is far too susceptible to be grabbed by a walker.
EA Sports has been developing their first UFC game for some time now and, while they have shown they know their material, it's unfortunately weighed down by shortcomings. On one hand, the mechanics are satisfying as timing counters and ground passes are down to precision.
Some parts of Lords of the Fallen are surprisingly enjoyable, but many weigh it down.
The Crew can be fun under the right circumstances, but unfortunately those are too far and few between. It's not a bad game, as there's a lot to like in this package, but there's also a fair amount holding it back
Dynasty Warriors 8: Empires has all the entertaining, albeit repetitive combat the series is known for, but lacks the features to back it up. While this is par for the course for an Empires game, it's still hard to recommend as little has changed over Dynasty Warriors 7: Empires outside of some insignificant updates to the highly strategic politics that go on outside of battle.
Disgaea 7 improves upon its predecessor by building a balanced and more complete roster than what we've become used to, but unfortunately it falls apart in other areas.
Warhammer: 40,000: Darktide is one of the most enjoyable games of the year, but it's tremendously rough around the edges.
Castlevania: Lords of Shadow – Ultimate Edition is a solid package for anyone who didn't get to play the game back in 2010, but at this point, it just feels like a stepping stone that allows the sequel to be released on the platform.
Soul Hackers 2 is a by the books turn-based JRPG that doesn't do anything particularly memorable nor offensive.