Luke Plunkett's Reviews
Given the technological advances made here, and its breezier outlook on life with a cast freed from the confines of Yakuza's dense lore, I'd prefer to look at this as the first of a new breed of Yakuza game.
I'm not angry at Kingdom Come, I'm just… disappointed. It was touted as this grand historical representation, an abandonment of fantasy for a true medieval setting, a game that would let us live the middle ages. But the game we got is just this busted, inconsistently ambitious RPG that shines in points, but falls apart in most others.
Rise & Fall gets its hooks in deep, showing that the enlarged game's greatest strength may not be its scale or its history, but the sense of togetherness it inspires, and the way it drags the player down to the surface of its gorgeous world.
There's so little to love [in 2K18 MyCareer modes] that all we're left with is the basketball (which you can enjoy in other modes), Brands™ and a mountain of problems.
Warhammer 2 might have a lot in common with the first game, but everything it has done to set itself apart is big and fresh and daring, making this a game that's worthy of its own place in the spotlight.
Endless Space 2 is now one of the real standard-bearers in the 4X space. While some of its more direct elements come up short, its implementation of politics is a masterstroke, adding depth and complexity to part of a game that often feels like an arbitrary chore.
As an experiment in how far the boundaries of what constitutes an RTS can be pushed, I admire Dawn of War III for what it's tried. It may not have entirely pulled it off, but there aren't many games that play like this (WarCraft 3 fans, this one's for you), and there aren't many trying such interesting things with the way their factions are designed.
If you want to play a Halo game with the simpler story, backs-to-the-wall tone and cinematic flair of Bungie's good ol' days go right ahead and play Halo Wars 2. Just don't expect the quality of the game to match that of the cutscenes.
Yakuza 0 is the closest thing video games have to a prime-time soap opera.
Planet Coaster is best when treated as a giant LEGO set. A sunny, cheery tabula rasa, lying there waiting for you to go nuts in a never-ending quest to make yourself as happy as the grinning faces of the people lining up to take your rides for a spin.
What we’ve got here is a strategy game that, while preserving most of the series’ longtime fundamentals, has also found new and surprising ways—through an investment in player choice and more hands-on time with your people—to keep things interesting.
I like what 2K have done with this year’s MyCareer. They’ve recognised that Spike Lee’s joint was maybe too big a reach (or just the wrong man for the job), and in getting hold of talent that’s more at home with the tone and grind required for something like this, have crafted a career story that might not revolutionise the little sub-genre they’ve carved out for themselves, but is a definite improvement on 2K16's misfire.
Hearts of Iron IV is an incredibly rewarding strategy experience, letting you roll your sleeves up and re-fight the Second World War in a way that few other series have ever even attempted, let alone pulled off. Just know that to reap those rewards, you’re going to need to put in some work, and put up with a few quirks while you’re at it.
Ditching history has set this series free.
A fantastic space strategy game let down by some plodding sections.
Somehow makes the stock market fun.
2016's turn-based Golden Age continues
ADR1FT is a game torn right down the middle. It places the player in a position of imminent danger, but invites them to relax and enjoy the scenery. It gives you a fun way to jet around in 3D space, then gives you nothing to do with it but navigate corridors. It wrote and recorded an extensive backstory, but presents you little reason to care about it.
Firewatch is the loneliest game about human beings you might ever play.
It's Homeworld, but with sand, and it's the best new RTS game in years.