PlayStation Universe
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Though King's Bounty II's presentation is certainly crumbly in ways that would only be endearing to folks partial to PS3 level jank, there still remains a compelling RPG and turn based strategy hybrid here. Bolstered by non-linear storytelling, deceptively deep world building and the sort of accessible strategy that embraces genre newcomers and stalwarts alike, King's Bounty II is a deeply appealing effort that does ample justice to its namesake.
Madden is a billion dollar franchise that has grown content. Thanks to its exclusivity deals, EA takes zero risks and fumbles each year providing us rehashed versions of previous entries. Madden NFL 22 is no different. Meager improvements are outweighed by series fatigue. Instead of focusing on giving us polished gameplay mechanics and an improved Franchise Mode, EA's focus is divided into unwelcome modes like Face The Franchise and The Yard leading to an overall incomplete and broken experience.
Arguably the modern template for so many self-styled retro shooters, Quake has returned in stunning form. A stellar remaster, Quake not only maintains the essence of id Software's classic 1996 shooter, but it meaningfully iterates upon it too with all new additional content, mod support and crossplay. At a super budget price point, there is no reason to dive into one of the very best 3D shooters of all time.
So far, Ghost of Tsushima: Director's Cut is this year's pinnacle of Open World Games. Iki Island is stunningly beautiful and the technical upgrades make it even more enjoyable. Ghost of Tsushima: Director's Cut grandly stakes its status as one of the very best open world games on PS5 that proudly stands alongside the best games on the platform. If you've been holding off playing Ghost of Tsushima, now is the time to get playing.
Yuoni takes the hide-and-seek formula and adds a few new concepts to it. Not everything works as well as the others, particularly the design of some of the common enemies and their movements. However, it makes some thoughtful creative choices and takes chances with them to make something that at least horror fans should try out. Yuoni is far from perfect, but it still holds its own merit.
Morris may be dead, but there's no denying that Annapurna Interactive's knack for publishing charming video games with unique gameplay is alive and kicking. Beyond its unique flavour of puzzle, there's a vibrant world full of characters who can't wait to share their stories. If you have the patience to do so, it's well worth hearing them out.
Simply one of the most enchanting art-styles you'll experience on an indie game. The hand-drawn characters and backgrounds are magical in motion, and contribute to a potently heart-warming playthrough. Whereas the game's simultaneous character control, puzzles, and individual character skills can be highly enjoyable at the right moments, those moments sadly don't come enough to completely satisfy. Nevertheless, Greak: Azur is worth a go for the aesthetic charm alone, and has some great puzzles for fans of that inclination.
Antab Studio provides living proof that style should not come before substance in an eye-catching albeit below average shooter which would've felt at home on the PlayStation 2.
The Siege of Paris is a step down from the first DLC, offering only half the content.
Hades is an absolutely stellar experience that will keep you hooked in from the beginning, with a beautiful visual design and score, not to mention an excellent narrative and intricate gameplay that will keep you coming back again and again for just one more run.
If you have any interest in puzzle-platformers, don't let Omno pass you by. It's one of the most heartwarming adventures you can experience on PlayStation 4 with a level of charm seldom found in the medium.
The Falconeer: Warrior Edition is largely the same game that I already enjoyed when it first launched, but experiencing it on PS5 has made all the difference. The DualSense's features are well implemented, and the gameplay flows in such a way that you never want to put the controller down. Despite issues with the UI, and how certain aspects of the game work, you can just get around them, and can avoid them altogether once you've moved into the endgame.
An enjoyable blend of genres and gameplay systems gives Tribes of Midgard a unique feel. While not being revolutionary, it manages to create a pleasant online experience rarely seen on a PlayStation platform. It looks clean, feels fresh and has enough content to keep you going for a long time. While I am not a massive fan of the Fortnite-style progression system, I loved the rewards tied to your Trophies. Tribes of Midgard is great, especially if you have friends to quest with.
My opening days with Blightbound were ridden with crashes and bugs. Luckily the say one patch fixed most of these and you, if you buy it, will never have to suffer as I did. When I got through the initial pain, there are parts of Blightbound I liked. I enjoyed combing abilities together, I really enjoyed multiplayer and collecting new heroes is delightful. Be wary of playing alone though, the AI is tosh and the game can get quite repetitive in longer sessions. There are better examples of dungeon crawlers out there but Blightbound does have some good qualities mixed in with its bad ones.
Eldest Souls wears its inspiration on its sleeve, though in the end that counts for very little. The boss fights are often unbalanced and tedious, which only contributes to a frustration that deters you from wanting to pick the controller back up.
Variable State follows up the wordless weirdness of Virginia with a far more talkative, and more grounded, supernatural drama with Last Stop. The focus on its three protagonists' everyday problems over the underlying odd phenomena helps to make each tale more engaging, and in turn, makes the stranger things that occur feel more captivatingly mysterious in their initially limited use. It's a little light in terms of traditional player control, but Last Stop tells a hell of a good story that you still very much feel like you're in the director's chair for.
The FMV acting is great, as are the production values but ultimately the story just doesn't hold up. There's simply too much repetition required to uncover everything Night Book has to offer.
Utterly absorbing and rarely anything less than completely fascinating, The Forgotten City is an intoxicating microcosm of Ancient Roman society embedded in a dialogue heavy adventure and wrapped around one of the most smartly designed mysteries and sleuthing yarns to come along in a good long while. Occasional technical creakiness and issues aside, it's a deeply pleasant irony that The Forgotten City will remain long in your memory after the credits have completed their roll the first, second, third and fourth time.
Blue Fire had all the potential to become a top-notch Zelda clone for PlayStation's audience, but misses the mark significantly with dated level design, unwieldy controls and an unforgiving checkpoint system.
A deliberately slow, and sometimes frustratingly patient, start aside, The Great Ace Attorney Chronicles revamps the Ace Attorney formula by injecting it with a take on Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's Great Detective stories that is recognizable, and yet oh-so-perfect for this series in how it changes it. If the Phoenix Wright games have lost a little of their luster for you, then this double header Victorian-era spinoff may well be worth investigating.