Wccftech's Reviews
Persona 5 Strikers is a fun sequel that builds off the first year of the Phantom Thieves and might be the kind of action-packed sequel that only true fans of the original Persona 5 will desire for.
Destruction AllStars certainly has its charm. It exudes personality, thanks to a varied cast of characters that - despite having zero story - seem to have something about them that makes you want to learn more about them, such as their name. You're here for the cars, and they are fun. The smashing, or destruction, of other cars, is a genuinely fun experience that's made all the better by each character having their own ability to mix things up. The game modes do keep things ticking over, though It needs to be said that the game needs to add more in the future to keep things fresh. This isn't a bad start for Destruction AllStars, but it's also one that needs to focus on the strengths and drop the weaknesses - particularly the abysmal on-foot gameplay - to make this game the online draw it could be.
Werewolf: The Apocalypse – Earthblood is as straightforward as an action-adventure game can be. None of its features are broken, but the shallowness of the entire experience makes it a very hard game to recommend for those who are not into the setting to begin with. It does provide moments of fun here and there, but its linear, derivative experience does not stand out in any way.
With a huge amount of content and a tightly designed action role-playing challenging experience, Nioh 2 – The Complete Edition is a game that can keep those willing to delve deep into its gameplay systems engaged for hundreds of hours. Despite some issues, like incorrect button prompts for mouse and keyboard controls, optimization problems and visuals not much improved over the PlayStation 4 release, the PC version is a solid port that's worth your money, especially if you have the system capable of taking advantage of exclusive features like Ultrawide resolutions and up to 120 FPS gameplay.
Atelier Ryza 2: Lost Legends & the Secret Fairy marks the very first direct sequel in Atelier's twenty-three years old history. Bringing back Reisalin Stout makes perfect sense and the game benefits from Reisalin and her cheery cast of compatriots. With a light-hearted story taking you on an adventure in a genuinely great-looking and enjoyable to explore environments, you'll also find yourself pulled in by an enhanced battle system, made even more tactical than before. The constantly returning alchemy is also joined by a system that I'm going to call memory archaeology, helping to develop the new main character as well as the history of the game's world. Either way, this is a very enjoyable outing and one that will no doubt keep Reisalin as a fan-favourite character in what is arguably one of, if not the best game in the Atelier series.
Gods Will Fall is a well-focused action-oriented dungeon-crawling soulslike with procedural generation. Only the procedural generation is on the difficulty, allowing for developers Clever Beans to have handcrafted each dungeon in a stunning hand-brushed art style and have each playthrough feel that bit different, as the increased difficulty of a particular dungeon brings new creatures, paths, and opportunities. While not perfect, some things like the rather barren overworld as well as some bugs standing out, the character development, emergent storytelling and tight combat does more than enough to let this stand out.
A New God is a worthy expansion of Immortals Fenyx Rising, bringing some new gear and abilities to play with, and some more excellently designed puzzles that challenge the player's knowledge of the game's mechanics in interesting ways. Sadly, the expansion lacks the wealth of activities found in the main campaign, making the new one a little more repetitive in the long run. Still, a worthy purchase for fans of the puzzles seen in the main game.
Marianne might be able to jump between two realities, but The Medium is trapped somewhere between being a worthy Silent Hill successor and another mediocre hide and seek horror game.
Hitman 3 is the definitive case for careful refinement over needless reinvention. While not that fundamentally different from its predecessors, Hitman 3 has been polished to a high sheen, offering up fantastic frictionless stealth gameplay and an eye-catching array of unique, exciting stages. At times it's felt like luck was against this trilogy, but Agent 47 would be proud of how IO Interactive's well-laid plans have come together in the end.
Destiny 2: Beyond Light is a negative net sum, with so much content vaulted in favor of a meager campaign set in Europa. So much is teased and promised to bring the original Destiny vision together with Destiny 2 that we can't hope but be excited to see what Bungie is promising in seasons to come. However, what's available right now is less than the exotic content that players might've hyped themselves up for.
Scott Pilgrim Versus the World Complete Edition certainly aims to be a faithful collection of this decade-old RPG brawler but with a near-zero list of improvements, it's tough to call Scott Pilgrim's adventure anything more than a pre-wrapped gift to the fans.
Despite its appeal to nostalgia and the phenomenal success of the first game, Super Meat Boy Forever fails to deliver its promises and ends up undermining the IP and design of the game it's based upon.
Sackboy's first foray outside of the Media Moleculeverse without an editor to guide his way is not only a fantastic 3D platformer for all ages but also one of the best PlayStation 5 launch titles for younger audiences
Medal of Honor: Above and Beyond isn't the return to the series that I would have hoped. As a VR game is has a lot to offer, the gameplay is engaging, the missions varied, and both the single-player and multiplayer can be fun to play. However, the story is woefully mismanaged, with a cast of mostly unlikeable and unsympathetic characters - a tragedy when it comes with an incredibly powerful piece of work in the form of the gallery, a collection of documentaries and interviews with veterans of the war.
Shady Part of Me is a decent puzzle platformer, which offers some inventive challenges and an overall polished presentation. That said, almost everything about the game, including its story, aesthetic, and core mechanics, are lifted wholesale from more memorable indie games like Braid, Limbo, Little Nightmares, and Contrast. Like a shadow cast upon your bedroom wall, Shady Part of Me may be fleetingly interesting, but it won't leave a lasting impression.
Devil May Cry 5 Special Edition is every bit as good as the original release, if not even more, thanks to the many additions like playable Vergil, Turbo Mode and Legendary Dark Knight difficulty. While ray tracing and DualSense support are not massive game-changers, they round up the package nicely and help making it a worthy purchase for every Devil May Cry fan and for those who did not have yet the pleasure to experience one of the best character action games released in recent years.
Call of the Sea is a gripping, interesting, and creative take on the Lovecraftian formula. It moves away from the oft-trodden horror roots and creates an imaginative and immersive puzzle adventure with none of the lingering racism you might expect.
Released as both a remaster and an expansion, Observer: System Redux manages to fully deliver its promises, improving the original's experience with new meaningful content, quality of life changes, and massive visual improvements that leverage the power of the new consoles. The game hasn't changed a whole lot since the original, so those who did not like it in the first place will not change their minds with Observer: System Redux, but those that did will find the remaster to be a worthy purchase.
NBA 2K21 makes a solid debut on next-gen consoles, but may fall short of some fans' razzle dazzle expectations. The game looks impressive, if slightly uneven, and new animations make for silky-smooth on-court action, but a lack of unique, worthwhile content holds the overall package back. If you've been waiting for NBA 2K21 on PS5 and Xbox Series X, or bought the Mamba Forever Edition that comes with a free upgrade, this is certainly the best version to play. That said, if you don't have access to the upgrade (or a PS5 or XSX for that matter) you don't need to feel too bad about sticking to the G League this year.
The quality of life changes, the return of an orchestral soundtrack, the new side stories and Tockington challenges all add up to make Dragon Quest XI S the best way to play this JRPG classic (as long as you mind the graphical downgrades), but with no new content that wasn't already added to last year's Nintendo Switch release, it's a tough sell for players that have already enjoyed the Luminary's adventure once or twice already.