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DreamBreak had the potential to be a lot more than it currently is. However, Aist design choices for mixing in rather quirky mini games that feel oddly out of place with the main game and with DreamBreak’s main portion of gameplay feeling heavily underwhelming, puzzles too obvious and the story feeling kind of shoehorned, it's hard to give it a thumbs up.
The Coma: Recut is a must for horror fans that don’t mind a bit of difficulty in their 2-D side scrollers.
When compared to the other HD ports that SNK, SS5S is not as inspiring as the likes of Garou or Windjammers. Nonetheless, it’s a going at a reasonable price-tag (with PS4/Vita cross-buy too!) and perhaps purchasing it will give SNK some incentive to try bringing to series in a new instalment. Samurai Shodown deserves it as much as, if not more than SNK’s other titles.
Ultimately, readers that have experienced the original will be able to determine whether this title is worth their time. The story does certainly head in an interesting direction, but players will need a tolerance for the anime fanservice present. It's a niche title, but one that the intended audience will likely be able to appreciate. There's a surprising amount of sincerity to be found here.
Since release I have been on Destiny 2 every night, be it to complete a few quick challenges or play the strikes until the light of our world faded so that my Guardian would earn that little bit more in his. It’s a wonderful experience and I get to share it with friends who share the same feeling of revitalised hope. Destiny 2 is far from perfect, but I am happy to consider myself at home alongside those blemishes on such a polished product.
Songbringer is an enjoyable game that nails the Zelda dungeon-crawling aspect while still managing to bring something new to the table with the procedural seed runs, permadeath mode and a cast of unique and amusing characters.
Time Recoil is short and precise. It’s an action packed romp utilising a much loved bullet time mechanic that creates a stylish persona for a rather bland looking game. Although stages don’t differ much from one another you won’t be sticking around in them long enough to care all that much. In essence, Time Recoil is a “burner game” as I like to put it. You can pick it up easily and have fun, it does the job it says it does. But once you’ve finished it -- which won't take long-- you’ll be discarding it as fast you got it.
Distrust is a knowing nod to The Thing and plays homage to survival horror games in the same motion. It's far from perfect, but there is something there that makes it enjoyable.
Frustrating is definitely the word that describes Dead Alliance the most. Great ideas that just weren't implemented correctly, with the core game itself being dull and uninspired. It screams of the developers just having little experience and wanted too many features at once. There is potential here, but it would require a lot of work to overhaul the game and turn it into something truly unique in terms of zombie games and multiplayer shooters.
Without any connection issues, Absolver sings as one of the most promising indie titles this year. There is so much to do and the variety of different attacks on display is astounding; it might take some time to unlock them by fighting others, but it is time well invested. It might only have 3 basic Styles, but you can make the complex and pay homage to some of your favourite martial artists with a variety of form defining attacks, like massive flying knees, low sweeps, or spinning backfists.
Life is Strange: Before the Storm Episode 1 fails to live up to the promise of the original. While providing a great soundtrack, updated visuals, and better animations it struggles to realise just what made Life is Strange special.
As a tightly designed title, with every aspect intended to serve a single common purpose, Ys VIII: Lacrimosa of Dana is actually a pretty strong entry in the series. Its simplicity really is its strength, and players looking for some sense of adventure should be able to find a good one in this. Additionally, that simplicity also makes Ys VIII accessible to players who have yet to experience this neat and fun series.
Windjammers is back, just as you remember it. And whilst that’s both a blessing and a curse, I’m just glad to have it back, and at a price that doesn’t make me openly weep. If you’re after another game to add to your collection of party titles, you could do a lot worse
As much as I wanted to love Warriors All-Stars, I couldn’t. There was something missing, even though the graphics were marvellously polished. With a massive lack of variety and a rather taxing effort required to fully appreciate the story in its entirety, I ultimately felt that it wasn’t worth the effort, which is a horrible thing to say about a once beloved franchise. Deep down I wanted Warriors All-Stars to be a game-changer, but it wound up as a game changer.
F1 2017 is marred by the immense shadow that is F1 2016’s greatness. It goes at great length to try and build upon what was started last year, but doesn’t polish it, or make it different, enough for it to stand out. If you are looking for a simulation racer for Formula 1, and you don’t already have F1 2016, then F1 2017 should be bought.
All in all, StarCraft: Remastered hasn’t really changed much outside of the aesthetics -- and that is totally fine! It might be 20 years old, and with the bit of work that’s been done, it’s looking damn good for it’s age. But it’s really is a case of “if it ain’t broke…” with this one. The gameplay had been consistently good since Brood War first came out, meaning there’s a reason why pro e-sports players still play the original StarCraft to this very day. It might be a lot less easy for newcomers to get into, but if you’re patient and diligent with the campaign, that should eventually teach you all you need to know to get online and get owned by some serious tryhards with a little more dignity. If the campaign and it’s incredible story is really all you’re in it for, then maybe sticking with the free Anthology version from Battle.net is for you, but StarCraft: Remastered is well worth £12.99 for a good looking, great sounding and definitive version of the game.
Narratively, the goal of Stormblood was to create change for the better. In reality, the developers ultimately succeeded in this same goal. Going forward, it’ll be interesting to see how this is reflected in the upcoming content patches that will further build on what the expansion is seeking to achieve.
Kiwami doesn’t replace the original. The original Yakuza is an interesting retrospective, featuring a somewhat more down-to-Earth depiction of Kamurocho. However, Kiwami serves as a brilliant follow-up to Yakuza 0 in its own right. It was honestly really hard to put down in order to even write this review. Yakuza Kiwami is just an absolute blast.
The fantastic stage design, gorgeous visuals and inspiring music of the early Sonic games have been brilliantly translated, with all the new additions seamlessly gelling with the old. Mania is an absolute must for any self-proclaimed Sonic fan and ranks high even just as a platformer in this generations of consoles. The blue blur has truly returned to his former glory.
Ultimately, what sets LawBreakers aside from its competitors in a very crowded genre is its ability to create moments.