Stevivor's Reviews
South of Midnight accomplishes what it has set out to do, offering players something truly unique, empathetic, and enthralling.
Atomfall ticks all the right boxes. It's immersive, compelling, yet is extremely respectful of your time.
Shadows is best played with hidden blades as a stealth-action game reminiscent of what Assassin's Creed used to be, but its greatest strength is choice.
Split Fiction is an enjoyable romp. It is equal parts platformer, shooter, and puzzler. Grab a friend and get playing (though if you’ve not played It Takes Two as yet, that’s recommended above this).
There’s never been a better time to dip into the Monster Hunter franchise than with Wilds. Hope to see you out there, hunter.
You can see how HB Studios has refined what has come before.
I really enjoyed my time with Like A Dragon Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii as a way to get to know the character of Goro Majima better. While he’s always a fun time when he shows up, Pirate Yakuza lets RGG Studio examine what this legendary figure in the franchise would be like with his same instincts, but none of his backstory.
There’s just something about Avowed that makes it feel very much like a product built for a subscription service. Not in a live-service game kind of way, but in a Netflix Original Movie kind of way.
Civ 7 isn’t just good, it’s the real deal. It’s a sequel that thinks like one of the matches it contains – a lot of small but significant strategic decisions that, when added up, create a winner. It feels different enough from previous iterations to justify the 7 in the title, and it thoughtfully builds on what came before. Civilization 7 is one of 2025’s first must-play titles.
Fans of the original will surely enjoy this — keeping what I’ve said in mind — while those that are intrigued by its concept should get out the original first. Engage accordingly.
Sniper Elite Resistance is hilarious, chaotic fun... in [an] expertly-crafted sandbox. Experiment, take risks, and above all else: fight the Nazis.
The ability to pick it up and put it down for short bursts was a perfect fit for the game, and helped keep my blood pressure under control for some of the endgame levels that really got me boiling over.
After a few decades with an ageing Indy, the Great Circle is a delightful return to Dr Jones in his prime. Strictly for the fans, in all the right ways.
If you’re looking for something to add to your fitness routine, and don’t mind a bit of repetition in some soulless instructors, this one certainly fits the bill.
STALKER 2 is stable and runs consistently at a high framerate on my higher end system. Guns make noises, the gaping wounds in the earth have been knitted over and characters models no longer desync in cutscenes.
Tetris Forever is the most joyful and wondrous experience I’ve had with a video game all year and I would wholeheartedly recommend it to anyone and everyone. Its only crime is that it does such an intensely good job of getting you keen to consume every weird version of Tetris that’s out there that it can’t help but bring a twang of disappointment at its inability to deliver most of them as playable builds within itself. The folks at Digital Eclipse are doing remarkable and important work with these collections and I hope we continue to see many more of them.
With so many bespoke moments for each little mini-story, complete with unique minigames and interesting character arcs, Brothership is bursting at the seams with fun things to do.
While I’m always thrilled to see more sensibly scoped and budgeted games come along at a lower price point, it’s eminently clear throughout that Slitterhead suffered a messy development. While I’m hugely sympathetic to the situation Toyama’s team found themselves in building the studio and starting production just a few months into the unfolding chaos of 2020, Slitterhead’s realisation just misses the mark in almost every area. It’s an incomprehensible slog to play through and I regret spending so much of my week with it.
Dragon Age The Veilguard is the epitome of 'better than the sum of its parts'. It’s been so long since I experienced this level of joy in a long-form RPG; I have a compulsion to keep playing and finish one more quest.
Call of Duty Black Ops 6 is a spectacular return to form, after Modern Warfare 3 fumbled blurring the line between expansion and sequel. We were ready for something different, and that’s exactly what it has delivered with speedy and satisfying multiplayer and a highly engaging and well-paced espionage thriller campaign that’s one of the best in the Call of Duty series. With excellent gunplay across all modes and an addictive combat loop, Black Ops 6 is the best Call of Duty game so far this console generation.