Game Rant
HomepageGame Rant's Reviews
Everything on display here has been seen before, and though it does those things well, its reliance on a tried-and-true formula and its liberal borrowing from Bloodborne in particular work against it, denying it a unique identity. Yet despite the impulse to think that The Last Faith could just be 2D Bloodborne 2, the final product is a great Metroidvania on its own, and - aside from some of the writing - its adaptation of the work that inspired it is very well done. Ultimately, The Last Faith feels sharp, looks great, and it's a lot of fun to play. Playstack clearly loves and understands the genre, and anyone looking to scratch the itch will certainly enjoy this game.
Atlus' Persona 5 Tactica drops the Phantom Thieves in a Medieval Europe-style world as they are dragged into an ongoing revolution by a mysterious figure. Rather than a traditional turn-based JRPG, the Persona 5 spin-off falls within the tactics genre.
That's really the story for Modern Warfare 3 across the board. The campaign is made up of Warzone content, the multiplayer is comprised of maps that are 14 years old, and the Zombies mode uses a map that will be recycled for the battle royale. $70 is a high asking price for what's here, but those that do decide to take the plunge will find the best Call of Duty multiplayer experience in years and an intriguing open world Zombies mode that, while not quite as fun as the classic round-based Zombies maps, can still dish out memorable moments with friends.
Nickelodeon All-Star Brawl 2 offers a genuinely fun multiplayer experience, so it's a shame that its single-player features are so weak. We were unable to test the game's online functionality, but if the online multiplayer is reliable and as fun as its local offerings, Nickelodeon All-Star Brawl 2 will be a solid option for Smash fans who are hungry for something fresh. The game isn't going to blow anyone away, but it mostly accomplishes what it has set out to do and delivers a platform fighting game experience that outdoes the original.
Like a Dragon: The Man Who Erased His Name marks the beginning of the end for Kazuma Kiryu, but, if its quality is anything to go by, the Like a Dragon series has a long and bright future ahead.
There’s little doubt that gamers who liked The Talos Principle will enjoy its sequel. It offers much the same experience in a more cohesive package. The puzzles are more accessible to the layman while still presenting a satisfying challenge, and very few will have to be skipped, even for someone who doesn’t consider themselves a puzzle person. And while the philosophical meanderings can be a bit long-winded, most of them can thankfully be ignored. Overall, any complaints pale in comparison to the fully engaging adventure puzzle experience that Croteam is offering with The Talos Principle 2.
But even with a few technical hiccups, checkpoint woes, and a sense that maybe going this big with such an intimate game wasn’t the best choice, The Invincible is an enjoyable experience. The Invincible is a '60s sci-fi novel brought to life that is best suited for those who love to get nerdy about hard science and love that retro sci-fi aesthetic. More casual fans will likely find plenty to enjoy with the game, but they should know that this a game about getting immersed in a world that wants to tell a story instead of the usual space-faring adventure shtick. When The Invincible gets its hooks in players, it can be a narrative experience that is thrilling, thought-provoking, and worth the ride.
Alan Wake 2 has incredible graphics and some memorable moments, but it's dragged down by technical issues and tedious gameplay.
Published by Sega, Amplitude Studios' Endless Dungeon is a roguelike twin-stick shooter built around a tower defense mechanic. Featuring a range of playable characters who each come with their own nuances, the game's missions are taken on by squads of three, with players having to clear procedurally-generated levels while defending a special bot. Endless Dungeon can be played solo or in co-op.
Even with some of its shortcomings, Cities: Skylines 2 delivers an extremely deep and content-rich city simulator that genre fans will definitely want to check out. It should once again remind fans why Colossal Order is the perfect studio to lead the urban city-building genre after the failings of the SimCity franchise. However, it is also hard to look past the fact that this game is launching with less content than the original game currently has. Couple that with the limitations the districts have and the lack of the custom-building tools that players loved in the original, and the game feels like it is being held back a bit at launch. Much of this may be fixed with post-launch updates, but right now, it feels like a pretty glaring omission.
In its current state, however, Lords of the Fallen proves that Hexworks still has a bit to go before it learns the same lessons that many souls-like developers have in terms of quality-of-life adjustments and making sure that it strikes the right balance between challenge and frustration. Right now, it seems like Lords of the Fallen is taking the worst elements of every souls-like game and making those elements its main catalyst for difficulty, which is a bummer because everything else is so good. For the souls-like hardcore, Lords of the Fallen will be a fine conquest, but for the souls-like beginner, there are better entry points to the genre that offer a more well-rounded exploration into what souls-likes are capable of.
When it comes to adaptations, Hellboy hasn't had a ton of luck lately. Hellboy Web of Wyrd certainly isn't on the same disastrous level, but it's underwhelming in its own respects. Hellboy and his world is a potential gold mine of fantastic adaptive potential, as Guillermo del Toro proved with his pair of films in the early 2000s. The character offers so much more, and though Web of Wyrd has some bright spots, it ultimately fails to realize the potential of its source material.
The Jackbox Party Pack 10 has three excellent party games in Hypnotorious, Time Jinx, and Dodo Re Mi, with Tee K.O. 2's only drawbacks being its familiarity and the occasional technical issue. Mileage with Fixytext will vary, but it will likely be the least-played out of the new batch of party games. This puts Jackbox Party Pack 10 on par with the other games in the series, which means it's a great party game experience that will become a fan favorite at game nights.
Marvel's Spider-Man 2 is the best entry in Insomniac's Spider-Man series to date, with epic boss fights and an amazing open world to explore.
Hardcore Hot Wheels fans will get the most out of Hot Wheels Unleashed 2: Turbocharged, but even casual racing game fans will have a lot of fun with the game. Not everything clicks, and the game could have benefited greatly by having more variety with its track environments, but Hot Wheels Unleashed 2: Turbocharged is an exciting racer with a great set of creation tools that should keep fans busy for quite some time.
From a brand-new campaign with exciting new features to a battle system that has been shaken up with new mechanics, Total War: Pharaoh has a lot to offer players looking for a new strategy experience to sink their teeth into. Some of its unique features may feel a bit bland, but it makes up for it by offering players unprecedented freedom to shape game and history how they see fit. And even though it may be smaller than Total War: Warhammer 3, it is still a worthy entry in this iconic franchise.
Despite a few shortcomings, Assassin's Creed Mirage completes its mission of being a love letter to the earliest days of the franchise.
It has incredible art design and presentation, is so cleverly designed, and has a pace that makes it hard to put down once things get going. The surface-level view of the game is unassuming but digging into the worlds of Cocoon reveals an experience that is unforgettable.
There are other complaints, such as the front-loaded need to make money, which evaporates after Mineko acquires all the crafting tools and benches, immediately negating one of the few mechanics that kept anybody playing. But, ultimately, Mineko’s Night Market is a melding of boredom and frustration, and a lot of that frustration stems from the fact that the game could have been good. It had the graphics, music, story, and the makings of a gameplay loop that should have been thoroughly engaging. Instead, it just feels like nothing was pushed to its full potential, leaving both the game and the player wanting more.
Nitpicks aside, Separate Ways is a mostly tremendous addition to the Resident Evil 4 remake and, along with The Mercenaries mode updates that were released for free, goes a long way in making the RE4 remake experience truly complete. Some may still not be happy that Separate Ways is a $9.99 DLC instead of being packed-in with the game like it was in the post-GameCube versions of the original Resident Evil 4, but this version of Separate Ways is a fundamentally different experience and one that surpasses its predecessor in every possible way.