PCGamesN's Reviews
Simple in almost all respects, Luftrauser is one of Vlambeer's biggest triumphs because it strips back everything in the name of exposing the fun at the centre of the game. It's almost as if the designers were engineers of the rauser itself; reducing weight and tweaking fuel lines to ensure the most effective deliverer of death possible. The concessions to lower skilled pilots makes the bosses a bit of a non-event, but the overall result is a challenge that works for all players, and that's a genuine achievement. Wrapped in a stylish package with darting machine silhouettes and authentic World War 2 colour-pallet, Luftrausers is really quite special.
And that's maybe Titanfall's biggest, and most forgivable flaw: it looks less interesting and novel than it actually is. It's such a fresh take on the military shooter, splitting the difference between the more deliberate pace of games like Battlefield and Call of Duty and the kinetic excitement of games like Tribes or even Counter-Strike. It just takes a while to see that, because Titanfall's presentation is so conservative.
In The Fall, NFusion have taken a scalpel to to Human Revolution's template, collected together a pile of game meat - the essential giblets of a Deus Ex game - stitched it together and presented you with a serving. It's recognisably Deus Ex but it's not very appetising. NFusion get an extra point for not including a single boss fight.
It's additions may feel almost wholly unnecessary, but they do nothing to dilute the genuinely great multiplayer core. The lack of online is surely a barrier to entry for many, but for those in the right environment - university halls, Friday-night game sessions, after school with buddies - TowerFall Ascension consistently delivers massive heaped doses of fun. It revels in humiliation - even saving death replays as GIFs for easy social media bragging - and is likely to destroy friendships for an hour or two. And the more heated the arguments and the fouler the swearing, the more likely you are to do it all over again next week.
You have to admire Blizzard's approach to Diablo III. They fixed it. The game itself now absolutely superb and Reaper of Souls finishes the job.
I'm not sure if anything is worth waiting 11 years for, but if it was, it would be Age of Wonders III. This isn't Duke Nukem Forever, shoved out the door to exploit ravenous fans. Nostalgia has a lot of weight, and this definitely feels like something that could have existed over a decade ago when we were swimming in turn-based strategy, but that's not why it's great. It builds on its past rather than just using it as currency. The familiar sits beside the modern, the fleshed out classes, the deeper tactical combat. It's the best that Age of Wonders has ever been.
Burial at Sea was a little over excited to return to Rapture, donning a film noir trilby that soon fell off to reveal clunky set piece combover, but Part Two is far more comfortable in its own skin. It integrates the fighty and the talky enough to make Rapture feel a more dangerous and believable place, discards the impenetrable conceits with which the first DLC began, and brings an almost seven year old series full circle and to a satisfying end. What a wonderful trick, and a fitting note for one of PC gaming's best loved studios (as we know them, at least) to bow out on.
I wonder if, accidentally, Goat Sim might be one of the best kids games going: an ungulate enhanced remix of the Lego series, that proves that breaking is at least as fun as building. It is hard to feel mean about a game that inspires that kind of reaction.
Betrayer is an FPS where the shooting is lackluster and the enemies annoying. An adventure game where investigations are restricted to looking for objects on the ground. It is carried by artistic flair and - when it works - impressive audio design. As the violent encounters started to drain me of my energy and the plodding search for clues started to drain me of my sanity, I weathered it all because of my burning need to finish the story and my mission. I needed to put these souls to rest. But mostly I just wanted it to be over.
I'm completely invested now. I worry about Bigby. I'm pointlessly going through the decisions he made, I made, attempting to figure out how they will change the way the rest of the fables' view their protector. But most of all I want to finish this case and catch whoever is responsible for this titanic mess, and then rip his limbs off. Bigby's indignation and quest for vengeance is infectious.
Had I not known that this was the work of Jane Jensen, I honestly wouldn't have believed it. And when there are so many adventure games coming out during this renaissance, it's hard to see why anyone would choose this over, say, The Walking Dead or one of Daedalic's traditional, bloody hard adventure games.
Zenimax have a lot of work ahead of them to turn TESO around.
Warlock II might take place in a silly universe where narrators like to impersonate Sean Connery and kingdoms are ruled by regal rats or chatting skeletons, but Ino-Co has taken its construction very seriously. It's exactly what a sequel should be, keeping the spirit of the original but improving every aspect.
I never expected Smite to worm its way into my roster of games I keep playing after review. It's a small number because there isn't enough time in the day for more, but Smite's going in there. It will likely be my go-to MOBA, at least until Heroes of the Storm. There are still almost 40 characters I've barely played, many not at all, and I confess that I might even chuck in a bit of money so I can grab some of the ridiculous god skins. Catwoman Bastet, Sith Lord Sun Wukong: they are absurd and I must own them.
The journey through Drangleic needs to be experienced. It's a marriage of phenomenal world design and impressively tight mechanics. And then it probably needs to be experienced all over again through New Game +. It's undoubtedly bloody hard work, but that just makes every sliver of success precious. Hurrah for Dark Souls II.
With its awful characters, inconsistent voice acting and combat hampered by problematic enemies, what little there is to enjoy is whittled away. It's something to be tasted when absolutely starved for RPGs and could provide enough sword and sorcery shenanigans to tide one over until something more appetizing comes along, but it's unlikely to prove fulfilling.
At number 5, we're still seeing iteration rather than revolution. Everything that's great about Tropico 5 is built on the same foundation that all the previous games have built on. That's a solid foundation, of course, but it's become a bit too familiar. There aren't any surprises to be found here. But just as familiarity can breed contempt, it can also provide comfort. Returning to Tropico remains a delight, and the drive to plonk down one more hotel, oversee one more year and win yet another election continues to make it the sort of game that can swallow hour after hour.
In Sheep's Clothing is a bit short and not as shocking as previous episodes, but it is darkly unsettling and deftly sets the scene for the closing of this horrific case. And we're left with one final cliffhanger. Standing in a room, surrounded by enemies. The question is: who's getting out?
It is Open World: The Game, and as such, struggles to find an identity of its own beyond its entertaining hacking hook and the inspired multiplayer. But those two elements make up a sizeable portion of the game. There are moments of genuine brilliance buried in the game that elevates it above mediocrity, but its reliance on increasingly tired design does it a disservice.
By the end, most of its sights and systems will be all too familiar. But between its uniquely provincial setting and dedication to undergrowth stealth, there's more than enough novel in Sir that you'll gladly be the rabbit in its lights at least one time through.