Press Start
HomepagePress Start's Reviews
The Dark Crystal: Age of Resistance Tactics falls into the trap of mimicking the greats of its genre without understanding what made them so great. While a passable strategy game at best, the only saving grace of Age of Resistance Tactics is the world it’s based on. And even that’s not as great as it could be.
Much like the games it takes inspiration from, Speaking Simulator definitely isn’t for everyone. It’s a short physics-based romp filled with slapstick quality and well-written humour that’s bound to make anyone laugh regardless of whether you’re playing or watching. Despite its short runtime and minimal replay value, if Speaking Simulator piques your interest I implore you to give it a go, it’s as entertaining as it looks, but don’t expect anything much deeper than that.
Zombie Army 4: Dead War builds upon the original trilogy of games to offer a robust zombie-killing experience. While what’s here is enjoyable, and the combat is as satisfying as ever, it doesn’t quite step out on its own into something truly unique.
Journey to the Savage Planet is a concise yet well focused adventure that channels the best bits of games like Metroid and Prey. Despite this, some unsatisfying combat and repetitive locales keep it from being the achievement that it could be.
Tokyo Mirage Sessions #FE Encore features some much-needed quality of life improvements, as well as a strong opening and novel combat. But, ultimately, tedious dungeon design and unrefined boss battles that plagued the original remain and prevent Encore from being the improvement it could be.
AO Tennis 2 is a huge improvement on the original game and extremely close to being the perfect package. The lack of star players and unbalanced difficulty levels are the only things that hold it back from rivalling the best tennis games throughout history.
Alien: Isolation is close to a survival horror masterpiece that, while unforgiving, carries itself with an unbridled sense of style and class. It authentically recreates the look and feel of the original 1979 film while still feeling incredibly rewarding. Through some wizardry, the game plays just as well, if not better, on Switch, and is to be commended as one of the best ports the platform has ever seen.
While returning to its roots in some ways, Pokemon Sword and Shield feels stuck in a transitional phase
Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order is the Star Wars game fans have been waiting for. It brings together a strong story, addictive combat and an earnest dedication to recreating that Star Wars magic to offer one of the best Star Wars games in over a decade. It’s an experience that any Star Wars fan can’t afford to miss.
Mario And Sonic At The Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 is a fun collection of games that absolutely anybody can enjoy. The story mode is delightful, although a little bit tedious and repetitive, but doesn't detract from what is otherwise, a nice package.
It's clear that Ghost Games has taken a touch of Paradise and applied it to Heat, resulting in a thrilling and beautiful racing game that's bursting with things to do. Though their ambition was bold, they strayed too far from comfort in putting Heat together. When measured up against its own franchise, Heat does a lot to move the series in the right direction and it's a clear, marked improvement over Payback.
As a well-rounded gaming experience, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare takes steps in the right direction to give itself some serious realism. Offering more grounded gameplay than instalments such as the Black Ops or Advanced Warfare games, the gunplay and controls are tight and very balanced for both the experienced and casual player alike. The only thing that the game and Infinity Ward themselves seemed to truly struggle with was the narrative – where it works in some cases, often you're left feeling like you're stuck in a half-concocted American political propaganda piece.
Hideo Kojima has long been a visionary auteur, his feted career stands as proof. With no walls to contain him, he has given birth to Death Stranding. It's an experience that will be remembered for a long time, from its early hype to the untethered lunacy of its narrative. It's an art installation of a game that filled me with rage as often as it did joy. It is sweeping in both lustre and purpose, though it wears a few warts on the pleasant, bare bones of a game about deliveries that has no right to be as memorable as it somehow is.
Luigi's Mansion 3 is an extremely solid entry and another must-have for Switch owners. The game has a tonne of improvements that feel natural and make for great puzzles. It's also an absolute treat visually.
There's something really special about MediEvil getting a well-deserved remake beyond the visual and audio glow-up. It provides the title with a chance to break out of the confines of relative obscurity to reach a wider audience. MediEvil deserves all of this and more with its fantastic tone, entertaining characters and story, excellent level design, and stellar pacing, even if a few issues hold it back. If you haven't played it before you'd be doing yourself a disservice by not giving it a go, and if you have played it before, rejoice in Fortesque's skeletal embrace.
The Outer Worlds is the kind of inspired take on a genre that could only come from a team as passionate and talented as Obsidian. It's not perfect, but it's creative, succinct, compelling and funny in all the right ways. I sincerely hope that this signals the beginning of a new, ongoing franchise because the people and stories of the Halcyon Colony will stick with me for a long time to come.
With so much promise in the lead-up, Ghost Recon Breakpoint falls flat of reaching its goal in satisfying expectations. With a lot of things to do but no real reason to do it, the game puts up barriers such as strange loot systems, a subpar plot, an extreme solo difficulty and a requirement for online play. If you can convince your friends to get a copy and play with you, your experience may be better – but chances are you'll find your time better spent elsewhere.
The humanisation of Eris Morn, a once bleak caricature shrouded in mystique, along with a number of brave narrative turns help Shadowkeep along to a thrilling conclusion that sets Destiny up for another year to come. Though the core tweaks haven't all landed, Shadowkeep takes a beatseat to only two before it in terms of delivering rounded, high-quality expansion experience.
Concrete Genie paints an impressive picture with delightful gameplay and heart warming characters. it's a great way to spend a few hours unleashing your creativity.
Yooka-Laylee and the Impossible Lair ironically does justice to the impossible task of living up to the name of great platforming games like Super Mario Bros, Donkey Kong Country, and Rayman Legends. It's a joy to play, feeling simultaneously modern and yet nostalgic. The odd omission of boss battles and some issues with variety aside, Yooka-Laylee and the Impossible Lair is a game any self-respecting platformer fan should play.