PlayStation LifeStyle
HomepagePlayStation LifeStyle's Reviews
The steady improvement of MotoGP continues with MotoGP 21. The move to the PlayStation 5 affords a bunch of benefits inherent to the latest generation of consoles, and having a race load in a handful of seconds is such a nice luxury. The inclusion of the DualSense's haptics is appreciated, as a useful feature to tell when tires are losing their grip. Brake temperature management combines with fuel consumption and tire wearing to increase immersion. It may still not excite much with a lacking presentation, but MotoGP 21 is a solid contender that'll have you feeling like you could almost take to the track yourself. Just, watch those knees, yeah?
Resident Evil Village is a good game with a lot of opportunity to have been a great game. And yet, for as many criticisms as I have, it was an experience that I was happy to play through a second time immediately after finishing the first. The new setting, creatures, villains, and story are engaging additions to the Resident Evil canon, even if the gameplay doesn't seem to have evolved all that much and the scares have been pulled back. It's still a fun romp in a new setting with new monsters; a great and fitting piece of the broader series that makes me excited to see where it's all headed next.
Buildings Have Feelings Too can initially feel frustrating and difficult, as well as completely unforgiving. Mistakes often end up being incredibly costly and the save system can feel unfair. Despite this, it's a fun puzzle game once players can fully grasp all of its different aspects and it's satisfying when everything falls into place.
Returnal is an essential PS5 title, now and throughout the console's life. Housemarque took the rogue-like bullet-hell formula and applied it to a AAA experience in a way that creates something exceptionally unique yet wholly familiar. Returnal is an engaging experience in narrative, gameplay, and player discovery, consistently surprising on every level. Utilizing the PS5 technology in a way that most other developers are barely tapping into, Returnal feels like one of the first truly next-gen experiences, letting Housemarque set the stage for the new console. And like Housemarque games before it, it's the kind of game that will withstand the test of time, begging for additional cycles well into the future.
Oddworld: Soulstorm should have been the definitive version of the second entry in the Oddworld quintology, while the new story and characters hold their own, the gameplay lets it down. A plethora of bugs make the game far more difficult and frustrating than it should be, ranging from inconsistent enemy movement and teleportation to traces of elements no longer in the final product. There are more than 1300 Mudokons needing your help, but it might be worth waiting a while before you take on this mammoth task.
NieR Replicant is a game I won't be forgetting anytime soon. Its story is fantastically dark, incredibly unique and told in such a fascinating way, while its mix of combat and exploration has just the right hints of Zelda that make it a hell of a lot of fun to play through. It has some repetition issues and shows its true age in some areas, but it's a game I'd recommend to the first-time NieR players like myself as well as the Automata die-hards. I guess it's time for me to finish that game after all.
When you take a step back and look at the "big picture," at least on paper, MLB The Show 21 is a success. That said, when it's your first entry in a new console generation, the bar for success is admittedly quite low. For this reason, not to mention the meager distinctions between the PS4 and PS5 versions of the game, it's fairly difficult to justify the extra expense of making the jump to next-generation hardware. That said, if you decide to take the plunge and pick up the PlayStation 5 version, you won't be disappointed by the latest in a franchise that keeps knocking it out of the park.
If you want to find yourself chuckling at one absurd look at the future of space flight, and can handle yourself in survival games, then by all means check out Breathedge. Its humor may not appeal to everyone, but beyond that the beautiful views of space wreckage mixed with a decent challenge of avoiding death provide for an entertaining couple dozen hours of playtime. Building out a space station is its own reward, as are the in-game rewards. Enjoy yourself out there in the vast nothingness with your immortal chicken, wits, and maybe a wrench or two.
Outriders is simply and unapologetically Outriders. And that's what, despite its flaws, makes it stand tall. Because it owns its flaws and rough spots, all weathered with pride through a launch period that was as rough as the Outriders first landing on Enoch. Riding out that storm offers an experience that is simply fun to play, and its something that I consistently can't wait to get back to. High risk, high reward gameplay and crafting very tight and specific builds leads to an endlessly engaging gameplay loop. Balancing the power fantasy with challenge for players is a difficult task, but Outriders manages it well. It's far from a perfect game, but it's so undeniably honest in its pursuit of being exactly what it is that there's nothing else quite like it out there. And that itself is what makes Outriders so compelling. Because Outriders is just Outriders.
Reviewer's Note: We liked What The Dub?! so much, we wanted you to have a chance to try it out for yourself in this review! There's a missing chunk of text in the review below that we want you to fill in with your own review dub in the comments!What The Dub?! is the perfect blend of party games and bad movie nights. It's a relatively simple idea with endless hilarity unlocked by each group of people that plays it. Wide Right Interactive has mined the depths of places no human should ever go to bring you some of the best prompts and most awkward footage to ever be recorded to film. By sticking to the established party game formula, it's easy for anyone to pick up and play, whether they're a gamer or not. Whether your a party game fanatic, or just venturing forth into the world of what party games can offer, What The Dub?! is an essential addition to any party games collection.
Balan Wonderworld feels like it's shrouded in mystery because there's a woeful lack of explanation for the majority of its mechanics. Nobody should be left looking for external guides to gather even the most basic information for a game aimed at children. When added to the frustrating management of the game's costumes (including those that can't jump in a platformer), its underdeveloped story, the overly simplistic platforming, and the tortuous Balan Bouts, this is a game that had promise but is ruined by a multitude of bizarre design decisions.
It may be Rhianna's name that sells you on Lost Words but it takes a talented team to bring a writer's work to life. And Sketchbook Games did such a brilliant job of it. The art is inviting, the controls are simple and intuitive. No level felt like a chore, nor did I encounter any strange bugs. I found it almost impossible to get stuck at any point. It's not so long that it will be pushed aside quickly, either; it took me a Saturday afternoon to get through the majority of it. If you have a youngster interested in writing and video games, I highly recommend nudging them towards Lost Words to encourage their creative spark.
Even with the handful of bugs this is a unique experience that is very easy to recommend. It's an amazing RPG with an absolutely stunning amount of depth for a game where you're mostly just talking to people. Both the story and cast of characters are highly memorable and no two players will have the same experience. It's really easy to see why PC gamers have been raving about Disco Elysium, this truly is a must-play experience.
I Saw Black Clouds has very little to redeem it. The characters are unrealistic and the plot twists and turns in an incoherent manner that introduces continuity issues. Player choices occasionally make a difference but are often ignored and sometimes even dubbed incorrect. Endings are mixed up and player relationships are pointless, plus the game can be buggy too. The irony is that Shropshire has its fair share of ghost stories and it even claims to be the most haunted county in the UK. Maybe the game would have been better telling one of those stories instead.
Because I'm much more inclined to play these sorts of puzzle platformers on a console over computer, DARQ has been in various wishlists of mine for some time. I'm honestly glad that I waited for the chance to play this on my PS5, not only because my old laptop couldn't have handled it, but I feel that this complete edition is a polished final version and everything the developers wanted it to be. It runs smooth as silk, autosaves frequently, those scary moments have more impact when I witness them on a TV over a computer screen. DARQ Complete Edition has been such a positive experience for me that I'm excited to see what Unfold Games does next.
Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 1 + 2 is still a perfect game, and the small PS5 enhancements only serve to make it even better, but don't expect a drastically different game or experience when jumping to the new console. The PS5 version simply continues to polish something that already gleamed beautifully.
Root Film does a great job at holding your attention throughout the 15-20 hours you'll spend with it. The truth behind the film project from ten years ago is an intriguing one to uncover and you'll discover plenty of dark secrets along the way. Despite being a game with lots of death in it, it also manages to be a love letter to the Shimane region in Japan. The endearing characters you meet will also help keep the game feeling light despite some of its intense subject matter.
It Takes Two is endlessly creative. Gameplay speaks to narrative, while narrative informs gameplay, and the entire experience just feels incredibly polished and detailed. It nails relationships in ways that so many games-and even other forms of media-just can't. It asks the player to engage with the the story through mandatory co-op to tell the tale of a couple on the verge of divorce, rediscovering the good in their relationship. It's not just one of the best action platformers in recent memory, but also a fantastic and unique story representing a dynamic that you don't often see represented in games, at least not to this depth and nuance.
Murder on Eridanos is a great finish to one of my favorite Western RPGs in recent years. Interrogating suspects, following clues, and sussing out the twist kept me engaged and entertained. It definitely beats out Peril on Gorgon. I think you'll find this cast of characters much more appealing and the writing worlds above what Gorgon brought to the table. Better writing and better weapons to end with is the soft chocolate peppermint at the end of a delicious meal.
At its heart, this is the same Crash Bandicoot 4 that we loved last year when it came to PS4. The improved loading times alone are enough to make the PS5 version stand out, and the enhanced visuals are an added treat, seeing Crash in native 4K at 60 fps. Additional PS5 features round out the package, but as I played, it was mostly just the improved loading that really stuck out to me as the defining feature of this next-gen port.