GamesFinest

NieR Replicant ver.1.22474487139... is a thoroughly solid remake of the 2011 insider tip, whose age is still clearly visible despite various cosmetic repairs: The look of the penultimate console generation still sticks to too many models, and the remake still nibbles too much at the long-winded pacing and the repetitive game design. Nevertheless, the dramatic and highly philosophical story behind this facade still knows how to entertain at the highest level even after more than a decade. The artful genre mix, the successful musical background and the self-referential humor hide some of the game's dry stretches. Although Replicant can't quite live up to the expectations Automata created with its successful concept, it still manages to create unique moments that make all the effort worthwhile.

Review in German | Read full review

Besides the prominent pro- or antagonists like zombies and vampires in recent years, Werewolf: The Apocalypse - Earthblood positively stands out from the crowd with the rather stepmotherly treated werewolves. Unfortunately, that's almost all that can be said positively about the title. But don't misunderstand - Werewolf isn't a bad game per sé, it's just mediocre: Graphics and story look old, especially in direct comparison with other recently released titles, many parts like the skill tree seem to be seen as a must rather than a real enrichment for the game and the short game duration of about eight hours isn't convincing either. Werewolf: The Apocalypse - Earthblood seems to want a lot, but not be able to accomplish that much. At least there could have been more of the heavy metal music.

Review in German | Read full review

"Hitman 3" proves to be a successful stealth game and concludes the successful series about the hitman with dignity. Veterans of the series will immediately get into the third part and enjoy the entertaining missions, the black humor and the hidden Easter Eggs. Hitman 3" undoubtedly deserves the highest mark for its level design, which contributed significantly to the incomparable atmosphere of the game. It's simply fun to explore the winding areas in order to eliminate the next target with even more perfection. Nevertheless, it can't be denied that "Hitman 3" with its six main missions is undoubtedly no scope bombast. In addition, the game lacks any real innovations, so a certain routine will creep in very quickly, especially for pros. All in all, fans of the Hitman series and lovers of perfidious stealth games will undoubtedly find the right game fodder in "Hitman 3".

Review in German | Read full review

Curious Expedition 2 can be recommended to fans of strategy games with narrative elements and colorful graphics. Especially the different roles with their special abilities and personalities as well as procedural map generation lead to a high replay value, where you can still experience new things in the third playthrough. Only the random rolls could be improved, as they can throw a spanner in the works even with the best planning. If you don't get frustrated too easily and enjoy tactically dealing with all kinds of diseases, madness and the wilderness, Curious Expedition 2 will offer you some challenging hours.

Review in German | Read full review

Little Nightmares II is an intense and atmospheric scary experience, which, however, is a bit weak on the gameplay side. The character and sound design are still excellently staged, the entertaining puzzles fit well into the minimalistic concept and the whimsical design fascinates from the first minute on. Nevertheless, the unintuitive and sluggish controls keep nibbling away at our frustration tolerance, and the trail & error concept unfortunately repeatedly pulls us out of the intense atmosphere. Like its predecessor, Little Nightmares II may not be a hardcore horror, but it is a likeable and entertaining thrill ride that will keep you entertained for a few hours.

Review in German | Read full review

TOHU is definitely a game that lives on its graphic and sounds. In every new area, players are wise to take a few moments to take in the beautifully crafted surroundings and their details. On a positive note, this also helps for solving the puzzles that could overall be more demanding and original. The story itself remains rather superficial, except for a few comments made by the little number of NPCs encountered, and is ending rather abruptly. TOHU is a game for all those that are searching for a game, that is nicely designed and easy to listen to and guarantees a few hours of entertainment.

Review in German | Read full review

Disjunction is not a game that invites its players to explore. Story as well as map pathing are predefined, NPC’s are primarily a means to an end, and characters alternate back and forth between their homes and their missions. But the story lines of the protagonists, who by themselves could hardly be more different, and a for some players potentially foreseeable end give enough variety to stay engaged. Additionally, the socio-critical undertones hit one or two nerves along the way, especially in times like these. The charming pixel graphics, nicely created maps, easy-to-handle controls and levels that give hope to succeed in the next run even though the player just got deafeated – all those factors make for an entertaining and compelling gaming experience.

Review in German | Read full review

"Assassin's Creed Valhalla" proves to be an exciting open-world game that is completely convincing, at least at first glance. With the Nordic-inspired Viking adventure, friends of the series can look forward to impressive locations and put their assassin skills to the test once again. Both the missions and the battles are perfectly adapted to the scenery and let the player dive deep into the Nordic world. However, "Assassin's Creed Valhalla" lacks a really gripping story, which was an important supporting structure in many predecessors. The graphics could also use some fine-tuning to make the setting seem even more realistic. Nevertheless, genre fans will undoubtedly enjoy "Assassin's Creed Valhalla" and can look forward to an assassin adventure of a different kind.

Review in German | Read full review

Even though "Unto the End" turns out to be very fair overall thanks to the numerous save points, the player definitely has to show brains in order to develop the right strategies. The regular flashbacks and nightmare sequences, which provide the player with valuable clues about the background story, also provide the right atmosphere. Visually, "Unto the End" impresses with its simple 2D graphics, which, however, don't lose anything of the game's special atmosphere. All in all, players can look forward to an indie title with "Unto the End", which challenges them in a very special way. Fans of extraordinary survival games will definitely make the right catch with "Unto the End".

Review in German | Read full review

"Crash Bandicoot 4: It's About Time" proves in the test to be a crazy 2.5D platformer, which is in no way inferior to its predecessors. So friends of the game series can once again look forward to a fast-paced gaming experience, bizarre boss opponents and the right pinch of humor. However, even the most hardened pros will be challenged enormously and will have to have a lot of patience, especially on the high difficulty level. If you want to experience the nostalgic flair of a timeless classic and are prepared to make a few technical cutbacks, "Crash Bandicoot 4: It's About Time" is not to be missed.

Review in German | Read full review

Watch Dogs: Legion offers a solid game principle that knows how to entertain - at least temporarily. A free narrative is deliberately created here, which could playfully offer undeniable new opportunities, but narrative balances on a fine line between emotion-free narrative structure and individualizable adventure. In this breakneck balancing act, Watch Dogs: Legion loses itself in a sober, generic narrative that, due to its pale character drawings and the playful omissions that accompany them, was never really allowed to keep up with its predecessors. Thanks to interchangeable characters, an unbalanced skill system and redundant game elements, Ubisoft is only marginally able to continuously exploit the potential behind the new unique selling point. Instead, the hacker IP gets lost in a jumble of well-intentioned but half-baked game approaches that ultimately fail to prove themselves on a motivational level. The manifold solution options as well as the tricky level structures should, however, at least provide for entertaining gaming fun. Despite the new approach, Ubisoft simply doesn't risk enough to really step out of the worn out, playful structures of its predecessors and burden the game principle with a little more relevance and "unconsumption". But as the saying goes: "He who does not dare does not win!

Review in German | Read full review

Yakuza: Like a Dragon is without question an ambitious and well done sequel to the successful Yakuza series. Like a Dragon finally takes the consistent and long overdue step towards role-playing games, which the popular main series has not dared to do so far despite all parallels. And the concept works: The game principle trumps with interesting new approaches, is more motivating than ever and offers the probably most beautiful game world of the complete series. And although you're only too happy to step into some of the stumbling blocks typical for the genre - the likeable cast, the wonderful visuals and the many humorous references let us skilfully overlook them. In short: If you haven't yet discovered your love for Sega's action series, you'll probably do well to take a look at Like a Dragon. Experiment succeeded!

Review in German | Read full review

Hangar 13 has indisputably made Mafia Definitive Edition exactly the remake it had to be in order to entertain and at the same time not to disrespectfully alienate the clearly outdated original. The narrative approach is based on the right set screws, in order to bring the action adventure into the modern age. Thanks to the expanded character profiles, the successful voice recordings and the impressive visuals, the narrative gains additional emotionality and presents you with a rousing story-focused mafia adventure that is unlike any other. At the same time, the new edition has to struggle with the complex, limited game elements. Hakeliges Gunplay, the strongly linear level structures as well as the partly not flawless technical implementation show that Hangar 13 did not yet want to take the leap into modern times. Even though Mafia Definitive Edition never met the multi-layered shooter standard, the game with its consistent simplicity feels coherent enough to entertain during the almost 10-hour campaign. In combination with the difficult setting options, the remake is the perfect snack for the nostalgia-bright players and those who want to become one in the future.

Review in German | Read full review

"Marvel's Avengers" proves to be an entertaining action bombast with a multi-layered story, an authentic protagonist and the right fan service. However, the fights sometimes lack the right depth, as the individual attacks are too generic overall. We also would have liked to have seen a little more variety in the creation of the side missions and the levels. Technically, "Marvel's Avengers" seems to be quite solid to us, even if some flaws can't be denied. Overall, "Marvel's Avengers" doesn't set any new standards in its genre - but fans of the successful series will certainly get their money's worth.

Review in German | Read full review

With "Paper Mario: The Origami King" Nintendo delivers an entertaining platformer that takes up the concept of its predecessor and enriches it with fresh ideas. It's really fun to search for hidden treasures in the folded paper world and complete the lovingly integrated mini-games. Unfortunately, the combat system in particular lacks the necessary standard, so even beginners can easily send the enemy hordes into the afterlife. Here, Nintendo should undoubtedly have tightened the level of difficulty a little more, in order to offer pros the right challenge as well. Also the puzzle inserts are sometimes provided with too many aids, so that the puzzle games lose the actual trick. From a technical point of view we can't complain about "Paper Mario: The Origami King", because the game is brimming with creative ideas. All in all, "Paper Mario: The Origami King" does not set new standards in the universe of Mario titles - but players can look forward to a colorful and shallow 2D adventure in the usual plumbing style.

Review in German | Read full review

Summer in Mara has real potential to become a strong indie game with an addictive element. However, it still lacks too many nooks and crannies to be really fun all the time. At the moment Summer in Mara is something for those players who are looking for a very simple adventure game, which can be played on the side and doesn't demand too much attention.

Review in German | Read full review

In my test I tried to stay as objective as possible, especially because otherwise I'm not really a player of such genres. And yet, in the short time I played Snowrunner, I actually enjoyed it. Although I do see some problems here: For example, the tasks are just too repetitive to be really motivated to put much more hours into the title than I have done so far. Furthermore, the gameplay is also clearly too slow for me. The only reason why I would play the Snowrunner longer would be the multiplayer - as soon as it runs stable at some point. Even though my opinion is rather reserved, I can see the hype among the target group and can understand why the title is played passionately.

Review in German | Read full review

With "Final Fantasy 7 Remake" Square Enix delivers a fantastic remake of the former roleplaying game classic and enriches it with some technical and content innovations. The combat system features a whole new level of complexity, while the developers are still focusing on the strengths of the original. The game world is atmospherically set in scene, while the elaborately animated game sequences are accompanied by a grandiose soundtrack. While "Final Fantasy 7 Remake" lacks nothing of narrative depth, the game weakens occasionally by blurred textures. Nevertheless, with "Final Fantasy 7 Remake" the players are served a more than successful action-RPG, which will especially delight the fans of the original. Ultimately, players can be curious to see how the adventure of Cloud and his friends continues and whether the developers will soon release the next episode of the successful role-playing game.

Review in German | Read full review

After years of hibernation, Sakura Wars finally returns to the scene and doesn't shy away from some fundamental changes. We still spend most of our time getting to know the new members of the new Flower Division, deepening our relationship with them, or even getting up close and personal with them. At the heart of Sakura Wars remains the compelling story of the Flower Division's rebuilding and return to its former glory. The plot consistently succeeds in the balancing act between funny anime humor and serious tones - a fact that is underlined by the successful staging and visuals. Unfortunately, there are some drawbacks in terms of game mechanics, because the adventure as well as fight passages have to struggle with their monotony at regular intervals. Keyword fight: these say goodbye to their tactical roots and open the door for an action-oriented Musou approach. These battles know how to entertain over long distances, but are again and again slowed down by rough control and lack of variety. And yet: Sakura Wars knew how to lure me to the controller again and again with its charm and offers anime enthusiasts a sensitive story, which will captivate for a good 30 hours, if you can overlook some technical shortcomings.

Review in German | Read full review

With "Ori and the Will of the Wisps", Moon Studios has created a fantastic 2D platformer, which takes up the strengths of its predecessor and appears even rounder and more perfect in itself. Thanks to an optimized control system, the racing and climbing passages run even rounder, so that over time a true flow is created when playing. Visually, "Ori and the Will of the Wisps" proves to be a true force and shines with even finer details and an almost fairy-tale like game world. The soundtrack also stands for itself at this point and sets new standards even in this genre. In terms of difficulty level, "Ori and the Will of the Wisps" with its three different levels offers both beginners and veterans the right challenge. Of course, it is the touching story that makes "Ori and the Will of the Wisps" so unique and lets the player dive deep into the game. In our test, "Ori and the Will of the Wisps" proves to be a true pearl among 2D adventures and promises unforgettable game moments.

Review in German | Read full review