PCGamesN's Reviews
No matter where it falls on your moral compass, Palworld has given the static formula of Pokémon a clear shake-up, both mechanically and ethically. On a technical level, I can’t say it’s good. However, its sheer playability is carried by just how bizarre it is from moment to moment. It’s certainly not bad going for a game that many people dismissed as vaporware at best, or forecast to go the same way as Fntastic’s The Day Before at worst. Anyway, my Pengullet’s feeling down because of the bad working conditions, so if you’ll excuse me, I’ve got to chuck him into a hot spring.
Perhaps part of the issue with this is in the expectations. The marketing materials surrounding Lightfall built it up to tell the story that would lead us to the space game’s final chapter. But Bungie should know one thing: if it wants to keep its players happy, it should never make a promise it can’t keep.
Sons of the Forest is an utterly engrossing game, and in losing myself in it, hours went by as I explored. For me, the main concerns are in content density, lack of direction, and a lingering feeling of being unfinished which, to be fair, is totally understandable from an early-access title. The building is a little clunky. There are visual issues with certain animations. It’s also given way to many hilarious glitches, including a physics issue that launched my character into the sky while chopping down a tree.
I’ve got plenty more to see of Wild Hearts before giving it a score, but as it stands I’m not relishing the task. Its frame rate issues and graphical glitches make this RPG game unplayable on PC, and it’s not just me; other colleagues within PCGamesN and PC reviewers across the internet have found the same thing. I’m desperately hoping that a day-one patch will fix these issues, because the game shows a lot of promise. While it may require a bit of relearning for some experienced hunters, there are plenty of fun new ideas that make hunting in Wild Hearts different enough. But in its current state, we can’t recommend picking it up.
I’ve not had all that long to take in High on Life’s wacky universe, so there’s not much else we can say other than it’s a love letter to fans of Roiland’s previous work. High on Life shows signs of being a good shooter now and then with some creative boss battles and powerful weapons, but other than that, it’s been rather run-of-the-mill so far.
While I’m only in the opening stages of my journey, I’m already intrigued by what’s going on in the Dragon Isles. Following the death of one of my favourite characters thus far – no spoilers, don’t worry – I’ve made my way into Alexstrasza’s inner sanctum, and it’s absolutely stunning (as is she, but that’s a side note). An earthquake has just shaken the entirety of the Waking Shores, and our adventurers are off to investigate just what mischief these Primal pains-du-derrière have cooked up now. Check back here soon for a fuller verdict on the expansion as I progress through the story and experiment more with the new features.
I’ll have more to say about Darktide once I’ve spent some time with the newly stabilised release build. For now, be aware of the technical issues players faced during the beta before diving in. I’m hopeful that Fatshark has been able to sort most of them out, because this is some of the most fun I’ve ever had in the 40k universe to date – when it works.
The shooting is sharp and impactful, and the slow and snipey set pieces feel as slick as they did all the way back in All Ghillied Up, but it feels like the ratio behind this tried-and-true formula is a little off this time. It’s more stop-start than any COD in recent memory, and the highlights are diluted by a few too many drab stealth missions. It’s not one of the best Call of Duty campaigns, but it’s far from a bad one.
I’m still working my way through my first season at the helm of the semi-pro Bath City FC (a team I’ve chosen as a way to connect with my coworkers in PCGamesN’s hometown), and so there’s still more I’d like to see before assigning a score – particularly, the initial patch that updates the beta build I’ve been playing. But my impressions of Football Manager 2021 so far are largely positive. This is a clear step forward over last year’s edition, even if some of its new ideas don’t completely work.
Thoughtful tweaks and deeper team management make a superb update as other annualised sports series flounder
It’s strange to be slightly disappointed with Leviathans despite spending entire days completely immersed in Stellaris, yet again. It’s not bad DLC, it’s just mostly invisible for large portions of the game.
The Walking Dead: Michonne is supplementary at best. It's a sidestory that fills in a brief gap in a much bigger narrative. There are hints of more interesting things to come, but as of the first episode, this is far from essential for either fans of The Walking Dead comics or Telltale's other episodic games. It's a diversion, and not a great one.
This is an ambitious game, polished to perfection when it comes to atmosphere, but rough and cumbersome in many of its moment-to-moment interactions.
Cities: Skylines was kept fresh thanks to its army of modders, but After Dark tweaks every single element of the game so that, once you start rooting around the budget panel and customising districts, it starts to feel new again. And it will probably feel new all over again once the modders get their hands on the expansion.
Legacy of the Void, in true Blizzard fashion, doesn't break astounding new ground but does build expertly on what's come before. With an ending so ridiculous I couldn't help but love it, including three of the finest levels ever put in a strategy game, and a plot that never lets up on twists and went brilliantly unspoiled in marketing materials thus far, I don't know how else I would have put the series to rest. No matter your experience with the RTS, StarCraft 2's campaigns are only matched for value and fun by one another.
I'm not going to beat around the bush here: Homeworld: Deserts of Kharak is the greatest RTS I have played since I first started flirting with StarCraft II.
The fetch quests and backtracking grate, but A Knight to Remember is still a fairly strong start to King's Quest. Even though it's a self-contained story that leaves few loose threads, I'm keen to return and see Graham grow into the famous Knight he's meant to be. So much has changed in 21 years, but it's good to be back in Daventry.
At the moment, you're getting a fair amount for less than £10: two campaign worlds right away, each with 12 challenges, almost 260 Steam Workshop challenges and the ability to make your own. And it all works, which makes a nice change. If you have a burning desire to build lots of silly bridges or help tiny vehicles make some crazy leaps of faith, Poly Bridge can scratch that itch already.
Telltale's trip back to its comedy roots is a triumph. Rhys and Fiona are a duo I want to spend more time with. Baker and Bailey do a phenomenal job of bringing them to life, with spot-on comic timing and just enough humanity so they don't simply feel like vehicles for jokes. Pandora is a world I'm enamoured with once more, and being able to explore it without grinding or shooting a thousand addle-brained enemies over and over again is a very welcome change.
The Lost Lords is an improvement, then. A significant one. But by introducing two new characters, there hasn't been enough development, despite the fact that we're approaching the halfway point of the series.