The excellent visual novel-style, animations, and minimalist character designs give off a surprising amount of personality, and the voice acting is, once again, top notch.
Uncanny Valley has strong presentation and an interesting story to tell but it’s held back by bad execution and cumbersome controls.
Lara Croft GO is beautiful to look at, has thought-provoking puzzles, and most importantly, is super fun to play.
Whether you're playing with one other person or a total of four, everyone shares the same set of lives.
It is, at least, refreshing to say that Batman: Return to Arkham happens to be one of the better collections out there, even if it is missing the criminally underrated Arkham Origins.
Mantis Burn Racing excels in being a casual and accessible racer for newcomers with excellent and responsive controls while offering a robust and challenging career mode for the hardcore.
Heart&Slash isn’t perfect, but if you give it a chance you may find that there’s a lot to love in this charming, 3D roguelike.
We sure hope that the wait for Episode 3 doesn't take another eight months. While Episode 2 doesn't quite hit all the targets, the mature and creepy story already has its hooks in us. Episode 2 also adds layers to Elliot Ness by exploring his past and his inner demons. The stylish visuals are at full swing, it's just disappointing that most of the gameplay in Episode 2 amounts to nothing more than repetitive gunplay sections that aren't all that much fun to play. We're still excited to see how everything will unfold in this five episode series, so long as the gameplay musters up more variety.
Resident Evil 0 is a worthy entry in the Resident Evil franchise even though it lacks the scares and originality. It's often overshadowed by the first game, but not giving it a spin would be a grave mistake. RE 0 makes some notable changes to the core gameplay like controlling and swapping between the two main leads at any time, as well as a complete revamp of managing items. The systems can feel archaic and occasionally cumbersome, but various new challenges and puzzles make it worth the effort. RE 0 is a stunning looking game and the new HD visuals ensure that it looks better than ever. Whether you're playing for the first time or looking for an excuse to replay it, Resident Evil 0 is absolutely worth your time and investment.
Hearts of Stone is a full-fledged add-on for a game that probably didn't need to be any longer. Thankfully, Hearts of Stone is a total blast for Witcher fans and packs more into its 10-15 hour campaign than most AAA games on the market. With its wonderfully paced story, mesmerizing characters, and gorgeous world to explore, Hearts of Stone demands to be played. It also raises the bar for what fans can expect from DLC for their favourite games. If you're itchin' for more witchin', then picking up Hearts of Stone is a no brainer.
Blues and Bullets isn't perfect, but Episode 1 definitely left a positive impression on us. The visual style is infectious and atmospheric, and while it takes more than a few cues from Sin City, it adds a surprising amount of immersion to the storytelling. The first episode is also nicely balanced between casual exploring, action scenes, and a lengthy but satisfying crime scene investigation. There certainly seems to be a lot of adventure games around these days, and we're happy to state that Blues and Bullets is yet another one you should keep your eyes on.
In the end, it's hard to recommend No Time To Explain. While its cutesy visuals and ridiculous plot are infectious from the offset, the punishing and unfair repetition of its gameplay will leave many players hard-pressed to find any enjoyment out of it.
It's a crowning achievement from the developer, and it's a definite contender for game of the year.
Tango Gameworks could've taken the easy route and had The Assignment cover similar ground to The Evil Within. Thankfully, the decision to move the focus from action to stealth has proven to be a smart one. With a more interesting lead character, tighter pacing, and better scares, The Assignment is that rare story add-on that may even be better than the main game.
Episode 4: Metamorphosis has a lot resting on its rotting shoulders and, for the most part, it does an adequate job tying up all the loose ends. The real revelation comes about unexpectedly, in the form of either a good or bad ending. And while we did feel a bit cheated getting the bad ending the first time through, it's hard to fault the rest of the episode for it. If you managed to do everything right, then this finale wraps things up really quite nicely.
As penultimate episodes go, Episode 3: Judgment does a rock solid job of keeping players engaged in its story as it leads into the game's final chapter. We're now eagerly anticipating the finale, but we're also a little bit apprehensive about where things will go next. Like all good serialized story-telling, that means the creators are at least doing a great job keeping us invested.
Episode Two: Contemplation is hands down, a better, stronger, and more satisfying entry than the Revelations 2 premiere episode was.
Resident Evil: Revelations 2 is off to a pretty good start. It's fun, campy, and even manages to throw in a few good scares. Once you get past the somewhat predictable first half, the game really comes together in the second with a blend of solid action, horror, and stealth. Dividing the game into episodic chunks is already shaping up to a successful experiment for Capcom, and we can't wait to see where it all leads to in the coming weeks.
It's clear from the start that, without a doubt, this is the best version of Resident Evil out there. While some of the game's legacy design choices may be hard to stomach in 2015, Capcom has ensured this gothic horror adventure is more approachable than ever before. By adding a no tank-control option and new Very Easy mode for newcomers, there is no longer any excuse to let this survival horror classic shamble on by.
If you're feeling particularly nostalgic and in need of an RPG that harkens back to your childhood, then Pier Solar may be capable of scratching that itch, just know that there's a good chance you probably won't have much fun doing so.