GameSpew's Reviews
It’s short enough to play through in one sitting, but that’s for the best: once you get started with Fort Solis, you’re going to struggle to pull yourself away. It’s a tense, haunting journey that will have you hooked from the word go, keeping you on your toes as you wonder what awaits around every corner. Perhaps its overall story could have packed a bit more punch, but we still lapped up every second of it as we explored the fascinating and eerie titular space station.
While it’s unlikely to win over anyone that tried the first and didn’t vibe with it, Blasphemous 2 is undoubtedly a treat for fans wanting to spend more time with the Penitent One. With more variety in terms of both visuals and gameplay, this is a confident sequel that builds on the foundations of its predecessor. And while its story may be confounding at times, we can’t help but be mesmerised by its dark and mysterious world.
Skye Tales is an easy game to recommend; both for younger players and for adults who want an easy-going, cosy game to spend an evening with. It’s short – you’ll be done in a matter of hours – but almost every minute spent in its colourful, joy-filled world will leave you feeling warm and fuzzy inside. It won’t appeal to everyone, with even the game’s hardest puzzles being rather straightforward, but when it comes to a game to relax with, they don’t get much better than this.
If you’re a fan of stealth or strategy games, you really should consider Shadow Gambit: The Cursed Crew a must-play. This is Mimimi Games at its finest, building on the mechanics it finely tuned in Shadow Tactics and Desperados III while also adding more elements, more freedom and more fun. You’ll quickly come to love this band of unusual pirates, and what each of them offers when out in the field. So much so that you might even be tempted to replay missions just to approach things from a different angle.
Gord isn’t the deepest of city builders, and its campaign can sometimes feel like an extended tutorial, but nevertheless, it provides an engaging mix of city building and exploration. With its sanity system and pesky Horrors that need to be dealt with, there’s not much else like this around. Jump into its Custom Scenario mode with both feet, and you’ll likely a find a game that will eat up hours of your time.
It’s a shame that the songs in Stray Gods: The Roleplaying Musical didn’t have quite the impact on us that we hoped, but it might not be the case for everyone. Still, while we won’t be rushing to listen to its soundtrack on any streaming platforms, we’ve very much enjoyed our time with the game, and we’ll no doubt be returning to it for another playthrough or two in the future.
Nova Strike isn’t a bad game by any means, but it doesn’t do enough to make it stick in your mind like the best of the genre. The roguelike elements are nice, but there simply needs to be more variety and unpredictability to make the focus on them truly worthwhile. And so what you’re left with is a shoot ’em up that too quickly looks and feels generic, with little reason to keep playing once you’ve bested what it has to offer.
There’s a lot to like about Remnant II – this is a very worthy sequel. It offers more of the same challenging, world-hopping, third-person shooter action, but this time with more choice, more polish, and a variety of gameplay improvements. Fans of Remnant: From the Ashes will lap this up, and newcomers are likely to get a lot of enjoyment from it too – as long as they’re brave and persistent.
If you’re a fan of fast-paced platforming and like a challenge, consider Garlic a must-have. Add to that its budget price and its excellent sense of humour, and you have an indie gem that really does deserves more attention than it’s had so far.
If you’re a fan of first-person puzzle games, Viewfinder should be considered essential. Sure, its story leaves something to be desired, and some of its puzzles don’t quite hit the mark. But even the worst of the bunch keep you engaged enough to see this clever little puzzle game through to the end. Never outstaying its welcome, Viewfinder has left a lasting impression on us.
While its gameplay can feel a little basic at times, we’re really glad that GYLT is now free of Stadia. This is a small but powerful horror title that tackles an important issue while also providing hours of engaging gameplay. And though there’s nothing truly original here, Tequila Works has obviously put this together with care. If nothing else, it deserves praise for simply being a horror game accessible to younger audiences while still being unsettling for all.
A triumph in just about every way, Dave the Diver is undoubtedly going to be one of 2023’s biggest success stories. This gorgeous adventure keeps you hooked no matter what you’re doing. Whether you’re serving up sushi, catching fish or exploring the depths of the oceans for long-lost secrets, you’ll struggle to pull yourself away. We just love it. Even if it does leave us craving sushi – but it’s a small price to pay.
While its unique visual style – and even the action – can eventually become a little repetitive, it’s hard not to be impressed with what Synapse offers. It’s particularly fun in short bursts, and so it’s handy that you can leave the game during a run and resume where you left off at a later date. if you’re after a fun, action-packed PSVR 2 experience that truly puts supernatural power in your hands, then, it’s definitely worthy of your time and money.
We were never expecting Greyhill Incident to be amazing, but it falls even short of simply being mediocre. Unfortunately, it’s one of the worst games we’ve played this year. While it manages to create a truly unsettling atmosphere and has some pretty hair-raising scenes, its gameplay is so tedious and frustrating that it kills your desire to progress. And so, those looking for alien-based horror thrills will have to do with the paltry options that are already available for now.
Dordogne’s unique selling point is undoubtedly its art style. It truly is beautiful – perhaps one of the most gorgeously animated games we’ve had the pleasure to play, even. And yes, the visuals alone are almost enough to carry the game. Despite the odd misstep, though, we did thoroughly enjoy the story and came to care for Mimi and her grandmother – as brief as our time with them was. It’s small, it’s quaint, but it’s touching – and it’s one of those special games that reminds you life is precious, fleeting and nothing should be taken for granted.
Final Fantasy XVI is a brave new direction for the long-running RPG series, and one that pays off. We haven’t been this engaged by a Final Fantasy title in quite some time, and we absolutely love the new action-focused combat system. Sometimes elements of the new and old Final Fantasy clash, and the story has some elements that left us scratching our heads, but overall this will be remembered as one of the greats. With stunning visuals, a rousing soundtrack, a fun combat system and an engaging politically-driven story, Final Fantasy XVI is quite simply a triumph.
Does Park Beyond capture the magic of Theme Park World from the early 2000s? Not quite, but damn, it tries. It feels like a nice, happy medium between the complexity of Planet Coaster and the simplicity of Theme Park: stick to flat rides and prefab coasters if you want, but if you’re the more creative type, you’ll get a huge kick out of the freedom Park Beyond’s coaster building and design tools give you. Packed with personality, plenty of gameplay and some truly wonderful ride designs, Park Beyond is a must for theme park sim fans.
F1 23 is pretty much a faultless racing experience. While its career mode may be lacking in innovations this year, the return of Braking Point and the new F1 World mode more than make up for it. Add in other improvements and features, and you have what is undoubtedly the best F1 game yet. If you’re an F1 fan this is an absolute must-buy as usual, but even racing game fans in general would be wise to add this to their collection. With its wealth of content, brilliant handling and sublime presentation, F1 23 is simply racing at its finest.
It’s hard to wholeheartedly recommend MotoGP 23 to anyone but devout fans of the sport, especially with Nine Season 2009 gone without anything to replace it. It’s a solid racing game with some decent updates, but it’s not the most generous when it comes to content and it fails to cater to newcomers without basically taking control off of them. Ultimately, it may be out of date now, but most are better off sticking with MotoGP 22 for another year.
It’s not the same as getting a brand new game, but when it comes to Katamari, we’ll take whatever we can get. We Love Katamari REROLL+ Royal Reverie is just as delightful as the original, and it’s clear a lot of work has been done to make this 18-year-old game look just as good as ever. Some of its more random levels aren’t quite as enjoyable as they should be, but as a full package, this is Katamari at its best.