High-Def Digest
HomepageHigh-Def Digest's Reviews
This is not a bad start to a small season of Nova DLC. It has some fresh ideas and enjoyable missions within the framework of the successful 'Starcraft II' recipe. It’s a bit lighter on story than I would like, and stingy with Nova’s upgrades, but I’m quite happy to try the next one as soon as it’s here - especially considering that this is probably as close to 'Starcraft: Ghost' as we’ll ever get.
'Quantum Break', like any expensive exclusive, developed a great deal of expectations over time. By and large, the game lives up to those expectations. It has a few stumbles in its pacing and action, but it combines historic shooter conventions with a set of flashy, delightful superpowers and a live-action component that's easy on the eyes. If you have an Xbox One, this is undoubtedly a game you should play.
'Stikbold! A Dodgeball Adventure' may not be the cream of the crop when it comes to local multiplayer games, but it's a heck of an alternative. There's enough depth to keep players coming back for more, but not enough content to recommend long play sessions. A completely ridiculous, albeit short, campaign also helps round out an enjoyable package. 'Stikbold' offers up all the fun of dodgeball with the added bonus of not getting smacked in the face with a large rubber ball.
This miniseries is moving forward very quickly, packing more action in two short episodes than a typical Telltale season gets in the same amount of time. It might seem as though that pace is too rapid for any chance at real characterization, but that isn’t the case. In 'Give No Shelter,' nearly all of the fat has been stripped away from the supporting cast to make way for Michonne, and the series is all the better for it.
I found 'Day of the Tentacle Remastered' to be a shining example of how to do a remaster, and the visuals really stand tall. The original game is more accessible (and nearly modern in some aspects) than I recall. Coupled with the included 'Maniac Mansion' and Vita support, this ought to make a great adventure game romp for a great swathe of players.
'Minecraft: Story Mode - Order Up' is a return to form for the series, which has been struggling a bit in narrative heft the last few episodes. The witherstorm probably went on longer than it should, but it was a serviceable origin story for the new Order of the Stone. 'Order Up' seems more like a new season than a fifth episode, and I think that will end up being an advantage as we move forward.
Taken by itself, 'Cold Darkness Awakened' is not a particularly convincing reason to purchase 'Rise of the Tomb Raider's season pass. For those who already own the pass, it’s not a bad way to spend an hour or two, but it probably won’t offer much more than that. It doesn’t offer enough freshness or gameplay to justify a separate purchase.
Both a great action game and a really fun strategy game, 'Empires' might not appeal to most 'Warriors' fans, as the new elements can seem intimidating and almost jarring when put next to the combat, but for those who put the time in, there's a lot of complexity and fantastic ideas to be found here, making this one of the best 'Warriors' games to date.
The high expectations that I developed after playing through the first three episodes of 'République' have been diminished by 'Terminus'. This is not the denouement I had expected, in terms of gameplay or story. Even so, I think the series as a whole is worth playing. The player just needs to keep in mind that, not unlike many great film series or TV shows, the best entries are in the beginning.
'Automatron' is on the smaller side of DLC, but still a bright beginning for what is hopefully an outstanding season of 'Fallout' DLC. The quick and somewhat forgettable mission material is buoyed by strong crafting elements and a more player-oriented approach to companions. I would recommend it even at its separate price point.
The 'Homeworld: Deserts of Kharak - Soban Fleet' makes for a small but potentially significant DLC pack for players interested in a more defensive fleet configuration or fresh options when playing with friends. This is basically a complimentary DLC addition that players new to the base game might not even take notice of right off as the Soban fleet doesn’t fundamentally change anything. For those who have enjoyed the 'Homeworld' prequel, it’s worth playing at least a few matches with the fleet.
A fantastic reboot that revitalizes an aging series wonderfully, the 'Hitman Intro Pack' is packed with personality, intelligence, and absolutely wonderful gameplay. This should easily satisfy series veterans and newcomers alike, and gives me a ton of hope for upcoming episodes. I can't wait to see where IO goes from here.
I didn't enjoy 'Punch Club' as much as I wanted to, mostly due to mechanical gripes that bugged me throughout my entire playthrough. Despite these issues, it's a charming little game that the developers have only improved with the addition of free content. While it makes a few missteps in some critical areas, for fans of life sims or boxing movies, this is definitely worth checking out.
'Tom Clancy's The Division' has the fingerprints of many other Ubisoft properties: 'Ghost Recon', 'Rainbow Six', and even non-Clancy stuff like 'Watch Dogs'. It combines some of the best features of those games into a highly enjoyable MMO slash shooter. I would not say it's the best shooter I've played on the Xbox One, nor is it a huge leap forward in video gaming as a whole, but I'll be damned if I'm not having fun with it.
A game filled with ambition that never quite reaches its lofty goals, 'The Witch and the Hundred Knight' isn't a bad game, but it's not a particularly good one. While the 'Revival Edition' is a substantial improvement over its predeccesor, the already confirmed sequel needs to double down on these improvements and change the structural flaws still present here. The story is worth experiencing if you can tolerate a character who's intentionally extremely unlikeable, but as an overall package, it stumbles in a fair few critical ways, and ultimately ends up as one of the weaker efforts from a largely fantastic studio.
'SUPERHOT' is a very accessible arcade game with highly repeatable shooting shenanigans. I can't quite decide if the storyline is trying to be edgy or funny, but it doesn't really work on either level. Thankfully, much of it can be safely ignored in favor of the awesome physics-based gunplay.
'Street Fighter V' stops short of being an online-only experience, but players need to want to play online nearly all of the time to get much mileage currently. The roster is impressive, but undercut by the game's insistence that players pre-select a single character before going online. In essence, the fighters are more accessible than what the game modes facilitate, but there's no denying how each human vs human match can be marvelous. With the framework in place, and an incredible fighting system delivering on being a new numbered 'Street Fighter' installment, what's left is for Capcom to deliver on their promised content and feature pipeline.
While 'Fire Emblem Fates: Conquest' can stumble in a few places, namely the melodramatic plot and a few structural annoyances, this is ultimately a great SRPG that should please series fans. Some of the newer mechanics don't work quite as well as they should, but the tweaks to the core gameplay go a long way to making this a challenging, and immensely satisfying game.
While 'Sadame' isn't a bad game at all, it feels like a particularly hollow one. The game has promise, but it all gets squandered on combat that's too simple and dull for its own good. For $15, the quantity of content is impressive, but despite the good ideas present, 'Sadame' doesn't have nearly enough variety or challenge to ultimately make it feel worthwhile.
'Plants vs. Zombies: Garden Warfare 2' is less of a sequel and more of a big expansion, but that's not a bad thing. PopCap has made some big steps forward in cementing the 'Garden Warfare' series as a real contender in the multiplayer arena, if not competitively then at least for sheer enjoyment. 'Garden Warfare 2' is big, fun, and mostly worth the price of admission.