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Call of Cthulhu is worth playing if you like your Lovecraft. It's worth playing if you like horror in general, too. However, it isn't a must-play, despite having the potential to have established itself as one.
As a new interpretation of this almost decade-old formula, Sinner asks some great questions. When we strip away the exploration of the dungeon crawl and the tension of the storytelling, what's the core of Dark Souls? Risky, challenging, and rewarding encounters with larger than life baddies. Sinner may not be the final answer, unfortunately. It's too derivative, both in enemy and environment design. Sinner focused and simple, but over-complicates things with the sacrifice experiment. It's a step in a new and right direction, but it's only a half step at best.
While Nickelodeon Kart Racers' provides plenty of content and has smart references that integrate well with some very solid racing, the poor visuals and botched battle mode leave plenty to be desired. If you accept the game for what it is there's definitely some fun to be had but its shortcomings are jarring enough to require some substantial blinders.
The target audience for this product are either shameless zealots or complete newcomers. Given that there is no other legitimate source to play both games on a current generation console, either group will ultimately end up satisfied. However, if you are looking for fan service, you'll be gravely disappointed. Imagine that: Konami phoning something in? Why does that sound so familiar?
Red Dead Redemption 2 redefines the open world genre.
Heavy Fire: Red Shadow had the potential to give gamers an updated version of Beach Head 2002 from the heyday of arcades. Unfortunately, an incredibly short campaign, terrible graphics, and a lack of any real challenge all coalesce into an altogether underwhelming product. The $9.99 premium VR mode is so minimal in execution, that even that isn't recommended. If you absolutely love arcade, wave-based shooters, it's probably still best to wait until Heavy Fire: Red Shadow is on a fire sale before plopping down the cash.
Overall, though, it's tough not to recommend My Hero One's Justice all the same. Being able to take these characters out for a spin and re-enact some of their most memorable moments from the story is a treat, and the fighting gameplay itself is just strong enough that it keeps drawing me back in whenever I think I'm done with it for the next few days. It's a solid game that can easily draw in newcomers as well, thanks to the story mode's careful retreading of past plots, too. My Hero One's Justice is a strong introduction to what could easily be the foundation of a valuable fighting franchise for Bandai Namco and a must-own for My Hero Academia fans.
Soulcalibur VI is a solid entry in the long-running fighting franchise. The new Reversal Edge mechanic gives everyone a chance at a comeback, with a balanced risk that their move may backfire on the player who invoked the move. A decent campaign is paired with a beefier custom story mode, to provide for dozens of hours of gameplay, even if most of the cutscenes are more visual novel than actual cutscene. Barebones online options may leave some players wanting more, but getting to the action is as quick as ever because of a sharp focus. Time will tell if these improvements can translate to better sales, but Soulcalibur VI is one game all fighting fans should pick up.
While The Heist has a strong story—or at least the start of one—it doesn't fill out the world or give Peter any additional gameplay growth. Mary Jane gets another boring stealth segment. There's a single requisite set of collectibles. Added suits give visual flair only. Embracing Peter's human side as he swings through the city was always a strong point of Marvel's Spider-Man, but I had hoped the DLC episodes would begin to improve on some of the weaknesses in the main game. Instead, The Heist makes them more apparent than ever. Perhaps the complete The City That Never Sleeps arc should have been released as single robust expansion, rather than three piecemeal episodes that are just giving us more Spidey at a trickle.
If I had to describe Haunted Dungeons: Hyakki Castle in one word, that word would be, “fumbly.” There's a lot of fumbling, mostly with the controls, some with the menus and UI, and some with getting around the maps with their samey walls and lack of landmarks. Real-time, horror-tinted dungeon crawling is a neat idea, and with the customization, skills, and cool monsters, there is fun to be had here. Multiple difficulty levels and post-game content also gives plenty of challenge for the genre hardcores. But this is a game that leaves me wanting more from it, but in a way that means the promise from the concept doesn't match the experience in my hands.
If you've been a fan of the LEGO DC titles in the past, then chances are you've already bought the game and aren't reading this at all. If you've never gotten into the LEGO genre before, then LEGO DC Super-Villains isn't a bad dropping-in point. The collectibles are easier to amass, the puzzles have some challenge, and the character creation is enjoyable. If nothing else, you get to hear Mark Hamill's sillier version of the Joker. That alone makes the price of admission worth it.
Ultimately Home Sweet Home is an intriguing horror experience with some neat ideas, but it doesn't seem to have the muscle to make those ideas work as well as they could. It's a short, concise experience, but it's often interrupted by frustrating trial and error challenges that interrupt the flow with frequent checkpoint loading and rewatching cutscenes. VR mode also feels half-baked, is uncomfortable to play at times, and makes those challenging moments even more cumbersome to deal with. While its atmosphere and especially sound design are high quality and quite effective at creeping you out, I more often found myself ripped back out of the experience, disappointed in the moment, and wanting more.
The Exorcist: Legion VR launches at a perfect time, near Halloween. While the adventure may be incredibly short, it is one that groups may enjoy, to see how others react to the horrors that await within. However, much like a scary movie or haunted house, once you know where the scares are located, they don't have the same oomph as the first time through. With variability all but removed, the replayability of Legion VR dwindles rapidly. Despite this, horror fans should check out The Exorcist: Legion VR for some of the most intense, if brief, scares available on any medium.
Starlink's beautiful worlds invoke the wonder of heading into the deep unknown, and it's one of the best implementations of the toys-to-life genre we've seen so far. Shallow mission and exploration structure can make the game seem repetitive, but exhilarating space combat while being able to customize your ship at any time helps stave off the boredom that might come from ferrying your 20th helium diffuser. While it's not perfect, Starlink is a fantastic base for a new wave of toys-to-life games, innovating on the genre in a special way that further connects players with both the toys and the experience. And even when the game is off, for this 30-year old gamer at least, the spaceships are still fun to play with.
Warriors Orochi 4 is the latest in a long line of Musou brawlers, a new entry in its own sub-series that assumes your fandom already as a multi-series crossover. Despite its roots in historical fiction, Warriors Orochi 4 allows itself to dip into over the top, supernatural territory, using mythology as an excuse to put real-life generals and warlords into even more bizarre combat situations. Bringing the likes of Zeus and Ares into the mix only makes things more fantastical, and the combat mechanics are bumped up to scale. The ceiling on combat potential has been shattered here, and using the new tools at players' disposal can allow them to more or less combo indefinitely to their hearts' content. While the breezy, fast and simple style of Musou isn't for everybody, fans will undoubtedly have a blast pushing this one to its breaking point, should one even exist. Warriors Orochi 4 is an easy highlight in a series that has consistently improved (Dynasty Warriors 9 being an exception) over the past few years.
If you love hosting board game night, why not pick this up and gather around the TV for a night. You won't be disappointed.
While it isn't going to be blowing the doors off of the tactical strategy genre, Space Hulk: Tactics is a perfectly adequate game. Thanks to a solid combat engine, good writing, twin-headed campaign, and level designer, players will certainly be getting their monies worth for the forty-dollar price tag. Now gear up and get back out there, brother. You've an entire species to defend!
As an NBA Playgrounds apologist and lover of arcade sports sims, this game can only be characterized as a disappointment, and a frustrating one at that. NBA 2K Playgrounds 2 has all the ingredients for an excellent game, but its best flavors are overpowered by the saltiness of its microtransactions and repetitive season. It's a shame, because the gameplay itself is absolutely excellent; it's the surrounding constructs, progression system, and a lackluster season that leaves this game tripping over its own laces.
Once you accept that the campaign is gone, you'll realize that Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 is a game made specifically for the fans.
If that reminds you of a situation that currently involves Roman Reigns, then you'll see why I'm so convinced WWE 2K19 is the best WWE port 2K Sports has ever made. Just like the real WWE, there are different audiences even within the same fandom, and there will be plenty of gamers who are blown away by the depth and tweaks made to WWE 2K19. WWE 2K19 is a great WWE game that is only a good wrestling game, and feels like it has reached the end of what is possible within the constraints of the WWE 2K series as we know it.