GameSpot's Reviews
High On Life 2 may falter in a few key areas, and not everything connects--whether it's a drawn-out gag or a timid shotgun blast--but it stands out in a genre where the self-serious shooter is usually king, by offering an outlandish, comical, and creative alternative. The addition of a skateboard is a literal game-changer, and there's plenty of joy to be had seeing what exactly each mission entails. Its influences are overt, yet it has an identity all its own, and there are definitely worse ways to spend a weekend.
The atmosphere of the shooter is delightfully spooky, and the Spanish influences make for a narrative backdrop and lore that you want to sink your teeth into. But too often, Crisol is held back by its gameplay. The blood-for-bullets mechanic adds some fun strategic depth, but the overall experience is held back by repetitive enemy design and arena layouts. Better single-player first-person shooters can be found elsewhere.
The imagery and implications linger in my mind much like the siblings' nightmares. While Reanimal is certainly unsettling, it's also quite beautiful. It shines a light on the importance of companionship--while you may face moments of uncertainty, and unsafety, you're not alone. And that's invaluable.
Suda51 is an artist with a recognizable aesthetic, and his fingerprints are evident on this game too, but what's missing is a sense of a larger vision for the game. . Sometimes it's charming or funny, but these moments are fleeting, and artistic flair does not cancel out the tedium of the game's combat and exploration. . It's not a tragedy on the scale of the real Romeo and Juliet, but this is one Dead Man I'm not inclined to mourn.
Mario's various dalliances into sports have been inconsistent, often because they feel so bare-bones and perfunctory. Mario Tennis Fever breaks this trend with a multitude of modes and a playful, flexible gimmick that makes it more wild and unpredictable while also testing your tennis skills in a new way. It's the best a Mario sports game has been in years, and hopefully charts a course going forward for the Mushroom Kingdom's other sporting events.
Getting to the end, in a way, took me back to the beginning, remembering Kiryu's walk in the cemetery. The scene symbolizes the culmination of a specific time and place for the series--one that's currently unable to shake off its phantoms.
What McMillen, Glaiel, and co. pulled off is simply paw-some. It's catnip for roguelites in all its glory, as you keep going through runs and coming back for more.
This first full experience with a Dragon Quest game has sold me on the worldbuilding and playful spirit of the franchise, and now I want to explore it in other games. Ultimately and against all odds, Dragon Quest VII: Reimagined did make an on-ramp for a new fan. The ramp itself is a little wobbly, but what really matters is that now I feel like I've climbed aboard.
But Code Vein 2's shortcomings are too frequent to look past. Combat and exploration are hampered by dull enemies and wearisome environments, while technical issues only exacerbate its flaws. The soulslike genre has evolved since the original Code Vein launched in 2019, yet the forward-thinking shift to an open world hasn't prevented its sequel from suffering the same familiar blemishes.
Maybe it was just the entrancing physicality of Cairn's central climbing and survival mechanics. But at some point, whatever wall existed between myself and the game came down and I was there with Aava and she was with me.
Big Hops makes moving around the world an absolute delight, and then gives you flexible tools to make your own fun while exploring.
The bar might be on the floor, but Terminator 2D: No Fate establishes itself as the definitive Terminator 2 video game, created with love and appreciation for both the movie and 16-bit era.
A stellar combat system and multitude of strategic wrinkles are the glue that holds this well-told, if disjointed, episodic story together.
High highs and middling lows make Metroid Prime 4's return uneven.
Exciting side-scrolling action and a varied roster of heroes come together in a fun retro romp.
Constance is a beautiful and challenging action-adventure game that uses metroidvania mechanics to explore the hardships of mental and emotional burnout.
InZoi is gorgeous, innovative, and brimming with potential. The only problem? It's not particularly fun right now.
Kirby Air Riders is an impressive package that makes the most of its deceivingly simple mechanics.
The latest entry in the Call of Duty series gives players more ways to play the campaign than ever, to various degrees of success.
The spirit of Telltale Games' excellent episodic storytelling feels alive and well in Dispatch, a superhero adventure by developer AdHoc Studio.