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Well…Battlewake is a mixed bag. The campaign is disappointing and offers little replay value. It acts as an extended tutorial for each Pirate Lord rather than a meaningful experience for the gamer. Graphically it’s impressive, and it plays well, if you like the Assassin’s Creed: Black Flag naval missions, but as a whole, it lacks the depth to stand out to be the next must-play PSVR game. Rather than the Black Pearl sailing the deep seas, it’s more like a turd floating in a puddle. Unfortunately, it’s shallow experience with some solid ideas, due to that I give this a Thumb Culture Bronze Award.
It was a strange decision for me to finally move on from Fifa over to PES as I said previously, I have been playing the Fifa series since 1994. But I know a 100% I have made the right decision. Fifa has in my opinion been a reskin of the same game for a number of years and quite frankly, there is nothing exciting about it anymore. If it wasn’t for “The Journey” mode, I would have moved over to PES a few years earlier. I am not the only one either. Reading a lot of the buzz on the internet & comments in forums, there’s a hell of a lot of people switching over too. All in all, I am extremely extremely impressed with eFootball PES 2020. Yes there are some irregularities in the game but Konami are already on top of these issues. The future for eFootball PES 2020 looks very exciting & I am glad to finally be a part of it. I am awarding eFootball PES 2020 a Thumb Culture Gold Award.
I was overall disappointed with Killing Floor 2 and Killing Floor Incursion, more the former than the latter. Whilst Incursion runs a bit better and has a few more gimmicks and mechanics to play around with, both games were still massive disappointments. I can see the games had quite a dedicated fanbase but they’re just simply not for me. I feel like the combat is weak, the voice acting is atrocious. The only real positive I can really spin from these games is that the environmental design is top-notch and both of them run extremely well, so for that reason I’m giving both games a Thumb Culture Bronze Award.
It’s no pleasure to be so critical of a title which innovates on the third person adventure genre while offering an engaging plot. The Sinking City was clearly created with a strong vision in mind, and its failings are largely technical. There is much to love, and I will be going back to experience more of the story, but given the current state of the Switch port, I cannot recommend it. Wait to see if Frogwares release a patch before sinking any time into this one. I’m giving it the Thumb Culture Bronze award.
The graphics were lovely, the audio was lovely, the game was absolute trash, I feel like I’ve had more brain-stimulating games from a free phone app, I probably won’t ever load this back up on my Switch because I can’t bear to play it any longer. In terms of buying Solo: Islands Of The Heart as it is, I’d probably not even bother doing that, get yourself some paint with the money and paint your walls, let it dry, watch it whilst it dries I promise you it’s much more fun. I’m going to give Solo: Islands Of The Heart a platitrash (trash) award, meaning it’s probably one of the worst games I’ve reviewed yet.
With some games, when a DLC drops it can sometimes feel like a half-arsed attempt to cash in on something that is already successful however Mutant Year Zero: Seed of Evil is refreshing as it introduces new plant-type enemies as well as a new character, new areas to explore and a continuation of an epic story. If you really want to challenge yourself and reckon you are strategic mastermind then I highly recommend departing with your hard-earned money as you will not be disappointed. I award Mutant Year Zero: Seed of Evil the Thumb Culture Platinum Trophy.
Creature in the Well is a carefully crafted game that combines two genres to create a truly unique puzzle action game. The gameplay loop is addictive, challenging and rewarding. It trusts the gamer to work out its mechanic, which is refreshing, but may frustrate some people. Although it may not have universal appeal, those who are interested won’t be disappointed with this game. Flight School Studios had an audacious idea but they stuck the landing. This hits the jackpot and is awarded the Thumb Culture Gold Award!
So what did you think of the Hotline Miami Collection on the Switch Callum? I must say, I thoroughly enjoyed my time with the Hotline Miami Collection, I can now say I am a big fan and will easily be replaying this for some time. I think the Hotline Miami Collection really suits being on the switch and am a bit surprised it hasn’t come out sooner. I am already looking forward to playing it this weekend and to re-step back into the shoes of “Jacket”…wish me luck. All that said I will be easily giving the Hotline Miami Collection a Thumb Culture Platinum Award.
Ninja Saviours: Return of the Warriors is a nice addition to the PS4 library for fans of Taito, or really anyone over 35 that could remember the original or the Super Famicom version. The inclusion of the co-op mode will make it more appealing to play with friends. It’s rather short and without the nostalgia factor it doesn’t really bring anything to the table that can’t be found elsewhere in abundance and as such I think it’s going to be overlooked by many people as ‘another arcade port’ Ninja Saviours: Return of the Warriors has earned the Thumb Culture Bronze Award, fun for a short play here and there but not a game to sink any real time into or boredom will strike from the shadows.
Overall, with a slightly higher than the expected price point of £19.99, I wouldn’t recommend you take a punt on the game if you’re slightly interested in the genre and/or theme. This game is for fans of the RTS genre who are looking for a challenge and I’m sure that the game will build a cult following of hardcore RTS fans, however with no tutorial and campaign to support newcomers to the genre, I’d give the They Are Billions a Thumb Culture Bronze Award.
PC Building Simulator is fun to experiment with on a short-term basis, I think if it was possible to add in some more variants like Laptops, Tablets, Phones etc. then it may be more appealing to general gamers however I appreciate with all the components its most likely not a feasible option. Unfortunately, the repetitiveness of the tasks means that it’s a game that will sit on the shelf for rather long spells in between use and after completion will most likely not be played again. PC Building Simulator has reached the Benchmark of the Thumb Culture Bronze Award, usable and fun but could and maybe should be better.
Bulletstorm: Duke of Switch Edition is an impressive achievement, but glaring omissions prevent it from being anything close to a definitive version, and it’s disappointing that games from previous generations are still being ported to the Switch in an incomplete condition. That being said, if you want a unique, single-player FPS which runs really well in handheld mode and you’re not interested in challenge maps or multiplayer you will most likely have a great time. I’m giving Bulletstorm: Duke of Switch Edition the Thumb Culture Silver Award.
If you’re a serious fan of rally car racing and want an authentic simulation of the sport then this is the game for you. The career mode is deep and will satisfy the hardcore racing fan but Kylotonn has included many other modes to appeal to all racing fans. However, if you have a passing interest, then this is probably not the game for you. Due to the game’s niché appeal and steep learning curve, I award WRC 8 the Thumb Culture Silver Award!
Wrapping up, I would very much say that Ancestors: The Humankind Odyssey is worth a purchase. It’s a game I’ve had in my mind for a long time. I was very excited to play it when I first saw gameplay, and I must say, Panache Digital Games did not disappoint. For this reason, I’ll be awarding Ancestors: The Humankind Odyssey the Thumb Culture Gold Award. Very narrowly missing the much-coveted Platinum award. The only improvement I would want to see is the ability to play with a couple of friends. Multiplayer would be a lot of fun, but because of the way some of the game systems work, I don’t think it would happen. Just remember this as you play: Apes alone weak, apes together strong and ape shall not kill ape.
Heave Ho is a beautiful co-op title which is sure to liven up games nights and Twitch/Mixer streams across the world. I’m slinging it the Thumb Culture Gold Award!
Controller issues aside, Pagan Online has great potential for the long haul and to be up there in the ARPG go to’s with the likes of Diablo. The community on Reddit is active and so are the developers and with gold around the corner, I can see the player base becoming bigger. With Thunder and lightning raining down, I would give Pagan Online a Thumb Culture Gold Award.
For fans of the sport of cycling or serious statistician’s there’s some serious replayability, the more you play, the more familiar the menus seem and all of the tasks and strategies feel less daunting, however if you’re not of the above, I can’t honestly see anything else that would keep me coming back to play. However, with the games potential appeal to the right player, I award Pro Cycling Manager 2019 Season the Thumb Culture Silver Award!
All in all, I did enjoy my 5-6 hours of playing the game but like a lot of other games these days there doesn’t seem that much content to spend hours and hours on it. You could play all the missions multiple times, upgrade your character etc in one 5-6 hour sitting. The game desperately needs more maps, and I didn’t think the stealth aspect of the game was that great, so that would need to be enhanced. I encountered a couple of bugs where sometimes the sleepwalker would be stuck on a door so I could go around unnoticed but as it just come out I will let them off. When I re-look back at the screenshots I took during the game I do think its looks really cool. I think they have really captured the eerie strange neighbourhood feeling to a T, I just wish the missions were more interesting, maybe make the maps bigger so you have more to achieve to not caught. I will be keeping my eye on the release updates as I do want to jump back into this, but ONLY if the updates are worthwhile. I will be giving The Blackout Club a Thumb Culture Silver Award.
Trails of Cold Steel II has to be up there with the best in the genre in my opinion. Yes, it’s essential that you play the games in order, even if it’s just to make sure you get the best experience from the story. While there is a ‘recap’ section in the menu it doesn’t give you all of the information as I still found myself scratching my head at times. I will most definitely be investing in Trails of Cold Steel I and be aiming to get through that and finish part II so that when III is release I won’t be in the same situation again. I highly recommend this game to anyone who is looking for a new game (JRPG of course) to sink their teeth into and as such Trails of Cold Steel II fully deserves the Thumb Culture Gold Award.
I’m Hungry VR will likely please those who want to see what it might be like to work in a burger stand without having to endure abuse from lairy blokes and unpleasant managers, and there is fun to be had if you don’t mind a lot of repetition. However, if you’re a stalwart of the frantic food prep genre (if there is such a thing) and are no longer as entranced by the charms of VR as you once were you might find this one a bit under-cooked. I’m giving I’m Hungry VR the Thumb Culture Bronze Award, which is the fast-food equivalent of a McDonald’s hamburger. Nice!