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Being a retro revival of Asteroids isn't the flashiest look for an indie game and I fear Back to Belt on Xbox may suffer for that. But if you have any interest at all in arcade-style, pick up and play games, this one is definitely worth a look. It does not get everything right but there’s a lot of challenge and fun to be had here.
For anyone interested in the setting, there is a rather good, if flawed, turn-based strategy game out there on the PC which is available to purchase. Otherwise, I’d suggest getting out your D20s and giving the tabletop RPG a go and, sadly, giving Noble Armada: Lost Worlds on Xbox a wide berth.
Glitch’s Trip on Xbox is a brilliant platformer that looks the part and plays great. It’s a game that constantly throws unique challenges at you to truly test your mettle, and any fan of hardcore platformers will relish the challenge it offers. It’s fair to say that Glitch’s is certainly a trip worth taking.
Guntastic on Xbox is a well-designed, fun little game, if only for a limited time. However, its hampered replayability along with a lack of depth, put up against a not insignificant price tag, makes it difficult to recommend.
CATTCH on Xbox is the platforming equivalent of a pack of Haribo. It’s colourful and characterful, and you can’t put it down at the start. But chew down on too much at once and you’ll get sick of it.
Jet Kave Adventure on Xbox is something that you’ll begin to enjoy the more you progress. The extra gameplay features that are brought about via the use of the jetpack add a new dimension to the platforming genre and manage to give the game a sense of urgency and speed.
For a few short hours The Pillar: Puzzle Escape on Xbox will completely transport you away. It is easy to get sucked in thanks to the serene environment combined with the first-person perspective. A lack of story does not matter: this is a place begging to be explored.
The fusion of shooter and match-3 mechanics does work, and while it’s hard to keep on top of the situation, practice certainly helps. What doesn’t work so well is the amount of fun on offer as Galacide quickly becomes frustrating.
Spending time in the Bermuda Triangle with Down in Bermuda on Xbox is tremendous. It's a game where you can just kick back and relax, solving puzzles in your own time without anything trying to kill you, or you ever needing to worry about silly time restraints.
Paw Paw Paw on Xbox is a pretty decent beat ‘em up that doesn’t take itself too seriously and is reasonably priced for the fair few hours it will take to get through. There will be retries and replayability as you come up against some darn tough enemies, but the short levels help alleviate stress.
MXGP 2020 on Xbox is more than just a rally game for people that like eating mud and wearing leathers. It’s challenging, it’s rewarding, and while I'm still a long way off even finishing a race without falling off, it’s nice to know that there is light at the end of the tunnel. If you know your Honda from your KTM, this is an easy sell, as it is probably as realistic a MXGP experience can be with all your bones intact.
BFF or Die on Xbox is clearly best played with friends, but the inclusivity of a single player mode is welcome, despite being less enjoyable. It’s lacking compared to some other party games out there, but it will provide a couple of hours of fun to those prepared to give it a chance.
You should go into PBA Pro Bowling 2021 on Xbox not expecting too much, but even then you will probably find yourself disappointed by what is on offer, alongside becoming pretty bored during events.
We need more puzzle games. Batu Ta Batu on Xbox has got me fired up for more games with delightfully addictive mechanics. Though the multiplayer feels out of place, and the additional game modes are ho-hum, the endless mode is so good that it’s reason enough to give the game a go.
If the battles were anywhere near as playful as the base-management, then Steampunk Tower 2 on Xbox would be an easy recommendation. Instead, the scaffolding is better than the game it’s supporting, and that’s probably not where you want your game to be. It’s a fascinating experiment for sure - making a console tower defence game that’s both vertical and only on one screen - but ultimately it doesn’t quite succeed.
Blacksmith of the Sand Kingdom on Xbox is an interesting take on a KEMCO game. It’s more of a management sim than a straight-up RPG, with you having to balance your jaunts to dungeons against the needs of the town for blacksmithed goods. There is a depth that is quite pleasing, but the whole premise seems to be to grind - while there’s fun to be had, it is very repetitive.
So, Cyberpunk 2077 on Xbox. This is a game I had been looking forward to for what seems like a lifetime, and it was never going to live up to the high expectations that CD Projekt Red, I or the world as a whole has been putting on it. It’s a great RPG, but at the same time it doesn’t do anything grounding breaking in terms of style and gameplay. Yes it has bugs, there is an annoying UI and I can’t ignore the mission stutters, but similarly it’s a game that I constantly think back to when I’m not gaming, looking forward to my next deep session with it.
It may have released on PC back in 2016 but Planet Coaster: Console Edition is quietly one of the best launch titles for the Xbox Series X|S, and made all the better by being available through Game Pass. For a park sim, it is incredibly easy to pick up and play as everything is explained and designed as this version was built up for consoles, as opposed to a simple port.
Sadly, Monstrum on the Xbox One is a poor attempt at an interesting concept. The abandoned ship isn’t the most unique setting for a horror game but being pursued by a bloodthirsty monster should provide at least some tension. Instead it is a laborious plod through samey corridors where sometimes being caught by the monster is preferable than having to perform the same objectives over and over again just to escape.
The Complex on Xbox One is a good sci-fi experience that delivers a decent tale about pharma-terrorism with many complex and interesting themes running throughout. The production values, acting and the script are all very good and it’s a very enjoyable yarn, with all this helped by the fact that there are several different – and hugely interesting – outcomes in place. But the actual choice-driven gameplay has not been able to make me feel connected to the story enough