Episode four of DONTNOD's Life Is Strange continues the exceptional level of quality that episode three delivered. It even goes so far as to surpass what came before in a variety of ways.
Outside of the irritatingly expected technical hiccups, Tales from the Borderlands: Episode 4 – Escape Plan Bravo is brilliant. Creative, heartfelt, and fittingly ludicrous, it's represents Telltale at its best, in what is quickly becoming the most consistent series in its portfolio. When this was announced, we never thought that we'd ever write that sentence.
Really cool art and a great score pair to ensure that Mike Bithell's latest is worth a shout – but we'd advise proceeding with caution, because there are still kinks to be worked out.
The plot is compelling, the presentation is generally very good, and the conclusion is outstanding. But all of these achievements will be tempered if you're looking for the kind of scares that defined Amnesia: The Dark Descent.
When you come right down to it, NHL 16 is an improvement over last year's release in virtually every department. Unfortunately, that isn't exactly saying a lot.
Minecraft: Story Mode - Episode 1: Order of the Stone is a lacklustre start to Telltale's latest series. While it's certainly not bad, it's not exactly good either. A great performance from Patton Oswalt and some fun sequences aren't enough to cancel out the wonky pacing and bland narrative, while the ensemble cast mostly falls flat. This instalment is inoffensive enough, but it never really provides enough for you to latch on to. There's still plenty more to come, of course, but the jury's still out.
The more that we think about it, the more we reckon that Tales from the Borderlands just might be the best series that Telltale has released to date. The game is a consistent joy, fusing humor and touching emotions into one product. A Telltale Borderlands game sounds very strange on paper, but this series, and the finale in particular, illustrate exactly why this pairing has worked. The finale sets itself up for a second season, and we very much hope that we get one.
Minecraft: Story Mode has, again, failed to impress. A miniscule run-time paired with a plethora of uninteresting events helped to make this one of the weakest episodes we've seen from Telltale in a long, long time. We're now two episodes in, and we're still not finding a whole lot to like. The alarm bells are ringing – maybe this series is one that sounded better in theory than in practice, because it has not delivered thus far.
Game of Thrones: Episode 6 – The Ice Dragon offers an alright ending to a slightly disappointing spin-off overall. We struggled to care about a lot of the deaths here, but the story moves along reasonably well and it sets up what we hope will prove a superior second season. It can't light a candle to some of Telltale's finer work, but it's never been outwardly bad. If that's the best that can be said about a six episode series, though, it's not a resounding endorsement, is it?
Episode Three of Minecraft: Story Mode marks what can easily be considered the high point of the season – but it's still not great. Coming hot off the trail of one of Telltale's worst episodes has certainly helped make this release far easier to like, but its own accomplishments should not be sold short. This episode is a light, fun romp, and its consistently goofy tone helps to craft the series' identity at long last.
Among the Sleep has some incredible ideas, but its execution is simply not strong enough to stir you from your slumber. The game squanders its impressive opening by spending too much time in generic environments, and the puzzles lack the imagination needed to keep you awake. The narrative goes to some nightmarish places, but it ends all too abruptly, and technical issues apply the sleeping cap to an already mixed release.
The fourth and penultimate episode of Telltale's first season of Minecraft: Story Mode has yet again failed to impress.
Attractio has solid puzzle mechanics that it uses well and they're varied enough to remain interesting, but they're surrounded by grossly outdated visuals, poor voice performances, and an obnoxious narrative. For $20, the game doesn't really justify its price tag.
This generation has seen a glut of puzzle platformers grace the PlayStation 4, but fortunately for those interested, Unravel is absolutely one that deserves attention. While it feels like more could have been done with its mechanics, the game's charming and has a great lead character. It's also sublimely presented. It's not quite the epic yarn that we were anticipating, then – but Coldwood's meticulous needlework makes it worth a look at least.
Not quite as bad as falling into a pit of spikes, 101 Ways to Die is a serviceable physics-based puzzle game. Fun in short doses, it does enough right to warrant a quick look, but even though creating your own weird and wonderful traps is the title's main draw, the gameplay can outstay its welcome when the difficulty level begins to rise.
Minecraft: Story Mode - Episode 5: Order Up! is the strongest individual episode in this series thus far. We say individual, because this is essentially a soft reboot of the season. Telltale's typical chapter-based story format just didn't work this time out, so an extended series of self-contained narratives may be the change that this spin-off needs. If these individual stories can maintain the level of intrigue in this instalment and build upon it, then we're interested to see what lies ahead. Until then, however, we remain sceptical – after all, the track record of this series isn't exactly on Telltale's side.
The Park is a bit of an oddity. A walking simulator with an incredibly brief runtime – 90 minutes at a leisurely pace – that nonetheless has some fun ideas sprinkled in. Actually riding the amusement park rides is a lot of fun – and effectively creepy in a couple of instances – but the rest of the game has nothing to offer other than walking really. Toss in some less-than-ideal performance hiccups and mediocre voice acting, and the title doesn't feel like it comes anywhere near justifying its price tag.
Asemblance delivers an intriguing narrative based around a time looping mechanic, and makes a lot out of very little. The game may not have many environments to explore, but each one is carefully layered and crafted to allow the story to emerge at whatever pace you're able to keep up with. It helps that the title has genuinely interesting – and, oftentimes, unnerving – ideas, which, when paired with the menacing music, makes for an engaging experience.
To put it simply, Hyper Light Drifter is incredible. Lovingly wrapped in a distinctly retro shell, the title fires on all cylinders. An intriguing, abstract narrative set in one of the most beautifully vivid world's we've ever seen helps provide a near flawless experience. Add in great combat and controls as well as an amazing soundtrack, and the end result is easily one of this year's must-plays. Its difficulty may scare away some, but for all who can cope, the experience is a truly rewarding one.
Variable State's Virginia is by and large an unsuccessful attempt to make something interesting. An absolutely incredible soundtrack and great environmental art fail to lift the game from a bog of issues. There are some severe technical issues here, but real criticism should be pointed in the direction of the oftentimes incomprehensible narrative, which needed to be much stronger given the general lack of interactivity elsewhere.