Eastward is a remarkable achievement in a number of ways. Those for whom the world, story and characters really click will likely regard it as a minor masterpiece. A more general audience can revel in the visuals and music, and also get a lot out of the combat, exploration and puzzles, but may find the game frustratingly talky and slow-moving. Ultimately, it is the prospect of the game’s script that will help players determine if a trip Eastward is one worth taking.
Madden 22 is a ridiculously safe bet for EA. We’re hopefully on the cusp of getting fully dedicated next gen games that leave behind PlayStation 4 and Xbox One in favor of having a truly superior product, at least in the sports genre. Even though companies like Sony are betting on releasing crossgen AAA’s like Horizon: Forbidden West, it’s truly to fans’ best interest getting an evolutionary step when in comes to EA’s sports catalog, which as it stands in a unique position of being literally the only game in town and in result, is stagnant and tired. Will Madden 23 get over this hump? We’ll find out in twelve months from now.
Undeniably, Far Cry 6 has enough to keep you busy for hours, not including the post-release DLC that still has yet to be unlocked. Now, whether or not these will be quality hours will depend on if you don’t mind to the (let’s say ‘unique’) brand of humor that has always been a part of the franchise and the bafflingly hands off approach Ubisoft has with the themes that they most certainly knowingly injects into their games. It’s yet another Far Cry, for better or for worse.
Industria doesn’t outstay its welcome, but it could have done with more narrative meat on its bones, especially for the ending. It sets up a fascinating world I was interested to learn about, and left me eager for more. The shooting is nicely satisfying and the robot design is appropriately unnerving, meaning the dark hallways of the buildings of Hakavik always felt atmospheric and spooky. It needs some more patches to make the performance adequate, but I will be very interested to see what Bleakmill does next. I hope we’ll return to the world of Industria in the future.
Yeah, it might be mean to say that Hot Wheels Unleashed is better than it has any right to be, I admit. It’s incredibly competently put together and it’s clear a lot of care has gone into its making. This isn’t a hastily developed cash grab in any way, and as far as licensed games go, it’s among the better ones you can buy right now.
El Shaddai: Ascension of the Metatron is truly a unique game, and despite its bland gameplay, feels like a genuine cult classic.
I’m a huge fan of games like this, that are respectable to what came before them and don’t try to merely ape them, but add something tasty to the formula. While Steel Assault stumbles somewhat along the way in its delivery, it’s still very playable and is a pleasurable challenging romp that is very much possible to succeed at if you stick with it.
Concept games like Lake are great for what they are and for how long they last you. You shouldn’t come to them expecting to be blown away, but for what they aim to present. Lake is especially good at delivering a satisfyingly light and encapsulated experience, but not much else.
When it’s at its best, Humankind represents a fascinating look at the strategy genre through the historical lens of tribal society through the space age. Amplitude’s focus on cultures and cultural affinity sets Humankind apart from games like Civilization and commitment to supporting the game with early and numerous patches and bug fixes mean that your empires will be racing towards the stars for a long time to come.
Bandai Namco has been on a roll with its Japanese releases this year, starting with the very stylish Scarlet Nexus a couple of months ago. Tales of Arise is yet another hit in the series that you’ll want to add to your JRPG library, and one that is very likely to keep you entertained for weeks, if not months, to come.