Push Square
HomepagePush Square's Reviews
It's a real shame that it's currently experiencing these connectivity issues, as Absolver is an otherwise great melee action game. The combat is deep, tactical, and wonderfully customisable, and interacting co-operatively or competitively with other players can be a real joy. Once SloClap can ensure players of a lag-free environment to play in, this will be a knockout multiplayer brawler.
Deck Nine Games has gracefully hurdled the obstacles in its way, with a rip-roaring episode that pulls back the curtain on Rachel Amber and begins a chain of events that we can't wait to watch unwind. Life Is Strange: Before the Storm recaptures the spirit of the first season, but by framing the story around fan favourite Chloe Price, it has a much more rebellious vibe. And while that means there's still plenty of cringe to work through, Episode 1: Awake pitches the moments that matter perfectly – we can't wait to see what happens next.
An arcade masterpiece that's been lovingly revived for the PlayStation family, Windjammers is absolutely essential. A hoot both online and offline, hoofing Frisbees across sunbaked beaches is still fun 20 years removed from the title's original release, so here's to another two decades of top tossing.
Ultimate Tekken Bowl can be a blast with friends, but for its asking price, it's hard not to feel like there should be more meat on its bones. It's a fun Tekken 7 extra, but it's far from an essential purchase.
With each passing episode of Telltale's Guardians of the Galaxy, the chances that the series will evolve from a mildly entertaining diversion into an essential purchase grow dimmer. There's nothing here that's especially bad, and it's certainly not the worst series that Telltale has put together, but so far there's precious little beyond the easy Platinum Trophy to warrant a recommendation to anyone other than those enamoured with either the Telltale format or the Marvel characters. More Than a Feeling, quite simply, is more of the same.
If you like the idea of battling a host of girls wearing bunny or cat ears with a variety of magical attacks and a huge hammer, then Rabi-Ribi is for you. This platforming and bullet hell fusion is worth a look – just make sure you close the curtains before booting it up on your new 50-inch 4K screen.
Last Day of June is a beautiful rumination on the ways death and fate are indelibly intertwined. It's also a competent puzzler with a winning sense of style. Repetitiveness and a slightly predictable structure stymie the proceedings somewhat, but never enough to ruin what is an otherwise lovely experience.
Ys VIII: Lacrimosa of Dana is an exhilarating adventure with plenty of secrets to uncover and a wonderous island for you to explore. If you're a fan of the series or are even just a fan of RPGs in general, then Lacrimosa of Dana is an easy title to recommend. Its fast paced combat system and intriguing storyline will keep you hooked throughout.
Everybody's Golf reaches the green at eagle pace and then proceeds to duff the green. Don't get us wrong, this is still a highly enjoyable arcade golf game with some brilliantly original ideas, but there are some bizarre design errors which seem to weirdly imbalance the game. Pair that with an unreasonable progression system and you're left with a title that needlessly undoes a lot of its own hard work.
Rock of Ages II: Bigger and Boulder is a fun title that just about pulls off its strange cocktail of genres. The Monty Python-like presentation is executed well and suits the game's off-the-wall appeal, and its trio of modes and online or offline multiplayer give the game some legs beyond the story. Moreover, the gameplay offers a lot of potential for daft fun despite some sluggish boulder controls and frustrating AI balance issues. If you're after something different, or enjoy some cathartic destruction in your games, you'll have a ball.
Warriors All-Stars is a colourful hack and slash title that can be fun in short bursts thanks to its varied cast of playable characters, but it just has too many problems to be considered a good Warriors game. Frustrating, tedious mission design, a throwaway story, and a wildly unstable framerate make it very difficult to recommend when there are so many better Koei Tecmo titles on the market.
Pillars of Eternity is a wonderful role-playing game, expertly weaving deep, tactical combat and captivating writing - a combination that will appeal to unabashedly old school gamers, but will also yield abundant rewards for players new to the genre. What Obsidian has crafted here, ostensibly as a love letter to the isometric computer role-playing games of the late '90s, is not merely an exercise in tickling the nostalgia itch of those pining for another Planescape: Torment or Baldur's Gate, but a contemporary to those classics, and one that will surely be held in as high regard in the years to come.
The Incredible Adventures of Van Helsing II improves over the original in some ways, but fails in many others. There are a number of great quality of life improvements here and two new classes are very welcome. Unfortunately, the meat of the game is the combat, and it's just not very interesting. It becomes a chore to trudge through enemies and there's not even the pull of an intriguing or interesting story to keep you motivated.
Undertale is landmark RPG for those who appreciate something a little different – a game that wrong foots you and delights with the way it mixes up the tried and tested formula which so many adventure games stick so tightly to. A rare pleasure.
Given the origins of Thimbleweed Park as a Kickstarter project, it's not at all surprising to find that it's firmly aimed at a very specific audience. To that end it does deliver, with interesting characters, an enticing core mystery, and loads of puzzles, all wrapped up in a package that closely follows the tenets of the those classic Lucasarts titles.
White Day: A Labyrinth Named School may not be the king of fear and terror anymore, but it could still be a worthwhile experience for horror fanatics. This blast from the past certainly brings with it a lot of baggage such as the clunky puzzles and glitchy AI, but it has enough intrigue to it that we're still left pondering its story and themes long after the credits rolled. White Day is most definitely not a remake for everyone, but those wanting to take a trip down memory lane may leave somewhat satisfied.
F1 2017 flies across the finishing line in great form. Codemasters' latest has captured the off-track trappings of the world's most popular motorsport with a hearty R&D component that forms the backbone of its campaign. But behind the wheel the title fares just as well, with the Career mode implementing Invitational events to break up the routine – many of which are designed around a robust selection of historical rides. Factor in the rule altering Championships and a handling model that's able to accommodate a wide range of skillsets, and you have a racer deserving of its podium place.
Observer is rough. Some neat narrative beats and a beautifully presented cyberpunk world paired with an exceptional performance from Rutger Hauer end up being the only redeeming qualities present in this title. This is a game that, despite being short, feels overlong, due in part to some tedious and obnoxious gameplay segments, and some of the least subtle “horror” we've encountered in recent memory. Throw in a bevy of technical problems and a third act that is complete nonsense, and Observer is, at best, a bit of a mess. To call this game a letdown would be an understatement.
Yakuza Kiwami finds itself in a strange position. A remake that's technically a sequel to a much better game in Yakuza 0, it struggles to offer anything besides another engaging crime-drama storyline. Best described as a kind of expansion, Kiwami really shows its age in terms of narrative structure and gameplay design, but it's still worth playing through if you just can't get enough of Kaz. It goes without saying, however, that series newcomers are much better off starting with the far superior Yakuza 0.
Nidhogg 2 doesn't change the core gameplay of its precursor in any Earth shattering ways, but it does introduce enough tweaks and refinements to make it well worth a second trip to the cosmic worm's hideous belly. While the single player component isn't especially interesting and the visuals might not be to everyone's taste, as a couch multiplayer experience its immediacy and depth is utterly infectious.