GameCrate's Reviews
There is a good amount of content here and the gameplay is fun. My only real complaints are that the game can be a pain to play solo, the class perks don’t always make a lot of sense, and the points grind won’t be a fun time for people who don’t want to move the difficulty mode up as their characters level up.
There’s no doubt that some Jet Set Radio fans hungry for more will enjoy Bomb Rush Cyberfunk. I’ve been waiting for this series’ return in spirit along with the rest of them, but in the end, it did little more than inspire nostalgia for the original, gorgeous though it may be.
The more time I spent with Atlas Fallen, the more its cracks became harder to ignore. Its combat system is sorely lacking, the story is entirely uninteresting and poorly told, and the whole experience has an unpolished quality to it. Perhaps Deck13 ought to give the soulslike thing another go.
BG3 is a highwater mark for choice-driven RPGs and the new standard to which basically every other major RPG will be compared. I feel bad for Starfield at this point and for game developers in general. Larian Studios has set the bar incredibly high. Still, I hope other publishers will see it as an example to let developers have time and creative freedom to make incredible games without all the bloated live service and microtransaction bullshit. Also, you can play this game in four-player online co-op or even split-screen locally on a single PC, and in this day and age, that may be one of the most impressive features in BG3. If you love RPGs, you owe it to yourself to play this game.
I think that anyone who enjoyed Remnant: From the Ashes should really enjoy this and a lot of newcomers should too. However, if you hated the first game or found it too frustrating, Remnant II probably won’t win you over.
Double Dragon Gaiden is an interesting game with a lot of creative ideas. We’ve seen roguelikes and brawlers mixed before, but not nearly as intricately. I could feel that spark of passion as I played. Unfortunately there are some key drawbacks that betray many of those neat ideas and really hamper the experience. From getting slapped out of defensive tags and juggled to death to subsequent runs feeling more and more like a grind, I had less fun the more I played. I love that Arc System Works has been producing cool, experimental games since snagging the Double Dragon and Kunio-kun/River City licenses. This one has a lot going for it, but stumbles toward the finish line.
Even after the credits roll in Pikmin 4, there’s a bit more to the story and brand new areas to explore. From the delightfully textured world that’s brimming with secrets to the tiniest details, like how your Pikmin will occasionally sing classic Pikmin songs when riding Oatchi, Nintendo has packed the game with enough personality and whimsy that it could easily keep fans happy for another ten years. Of course, we certainly hope Pikmin 5 will come a lot sooner.
The verdict in this Maquette review is that the game isn’t worth playing. It’s a shame that it isn’t better, because the initial concept of resizing objects with the maquette is truly unique. However, it’s not explored nearly enough, the game’s puzzles aren’t enjoyable to solve, and the game’s story is an enormous load of nothing. The biggest puzzle in Maquette is figuring out why anyone would want to play it.
Aliens: Dark Descent feels a lot like some of the recent Alien films, where there are plenty of good ideas but the execution is lacking. A real-time strategy game starring helpless, fragile marines sounds fun, but the slow and clunky controls makes it much harder to engage with the systems present in combat. The atmosphere and story are strong enough that if the game was even a bit more fun to play, it would be worth checking out for fans of Aliens, but as it stands Aliens: Dark Descent is a frustrating experience.
The Bunker does many things right, from its intricate level design to its rich atmosphere, but the overbearing adherence to horror eventually makes it wear on the senses. Being isolated in a pitch-black bunker with only a murderous beast as company can run you down quickly, and The Bunker never lets up. It is soaked in tension, worships at the altar of making you squirm, and does it with a smile. While this is appealing, it is a lot to manage, and this is a game for horror fans with a masochistic streak. Find the best pair of headphones, sit in the dark, and get your creative thinking cap on, because The Bunker is a survival horror experience to rival the best in recent memory. When it all comes together, when your back is against the wall, gun drawn with a single bullet left, and the beast is bearing at you down a dark hallway, that is when this game sings. In those moments, it reaches the heights of the genre greats and its progenitor.
Ghostwire Tokyo: Spider’s Thread may be a free update, but it is integral to taking a good game towards something truly great. The few additions to combat genuinely help the game flow, and new missions and a roguelite mode are just the icing on the cake. Tango Gameworks is dedicated to making Ghostwire a worthwhile game, and it won’t be long before it sits in a similar cult classic spot as The Evil Within 2. I hope that Ghostwire gets a sequel one day because it is one of many titles on the cusp of something extraordinary, but it just needs a little more room to grow.
Cassette Beasts is a fresh take on the monster collecting genre, featuring both whimsical creatures and actual floating nightmares in its surreal world. A double battle system with dozens of different buffs and debuffs creates a need to be more strategic and its story goes far beyond a desire to become champion or to just catch'em all, but you can still do that too if you want to. A few shortcomings in the quest systems and platforming hold it back, but only slightly. Cassette Beasts proves itself as far more than just a knockoff, and is instead a brilliant game in its own right.
All in all, Engage is a fun game, particularly those who have a history with the franchise. Folks who have been with the series for a while will appreciate the inclusion of classic favorite characters, as well as the nods to past game soundtracks and maps on the Paralogue maps. Those who play for engaging maps and mechanics will not be disappointed, but if you’re wanting more dating-sim in your chess match, you may find this game’s characters lacking.
Even with my figurative shrug at World Tour mode, it’s easy to see Street Fighter 6 as an achievement for Capcom. There was so much up and down with Street Fighter 5 that sucked the joy out of having a new one, and really only people who showed up years later got the full package. The esports vibe was an understandable experiment, but not one that fully landed. Street Fighter 6 on the other hand is like smashing open a pinata. It’s bursting with energy, style and content in a way very few fighting games have ever managed, even ones praised for single-player offerings. It not only feels like there’s something for everyone here, but it feels like there’s a genuine foundation for a community to grow and thrive. And I definitely plan to stick around and see how that shakes out.
Greedventory does something fresh with meshing point-and-click games with some Souls mechanics and its great art style and music show a lot of charm and care. A few issues like difficulty balancing and some bugs here and there hold it back a bit, but won’t ruin the experience for everyone. However, those who don’t enjoy difficult games or get frustrated easily should probably sit this one out.
Outlanders blends satisfying strategy with an enticingly chill vibe, and packs a surprising amount of humor into its mostly wordless story. Don’t let its cute exterior fool you — Outlanders will test your strategic abilities even as it draws you in with its cozy charm.
That’s the fascinating thing about games like Diablo IV. There’s so much of it, and so much context, I can see so many ways it can be meaningful for players. It’s because of that near-perfect mixture of agency, progression, social texture and depth. The fidelity and polish afforded by Diablo being… Diablo is crucial as well. Diablo IV is a tremendous game in scale and scope, but it still feels authored and managed instead of bloated and frivolous. That it was put together amid so much external and internal strife and holds together as well as it does is a mind-blowing accomplishment. I’m beyond stoked to start it for real soon.
While those puzzles may not have been immensely challenging and quick time events will always make me sigh, there’s so much that Wishfully Studios gets right with Planet of Lana that it’s an easy game to recommend. The amount of artistry that was poured into the game’s stellar animation, hand-painted environments, detailed sound design, and sweeping music is worth the price of admission alone. It’s all made even more impressive by the fact that this is the studio’s debut release, and it means that their next title is definitely one that I’ll be eagerly anticipating.
Tears of the Kingdom is the game that everyone made BOTW out to be and then some. The NES was released in 1983 in Japan, and since then, Nintendo has been a standard-setter in the gaming industry, and Tears of the Kingdom shows that even forty years later, nobody can do it better.
Honkai Star Rail is already one of the most exciting RPGs in years even before its first major content update. While the grind may eventually chase you away, its excellent writing and original combat system make Honkai Star Rail well worth diving into, especially with no upfront cost.