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Empire of Sin has plenty of good ideas from the great 1920s Chicago setting and atmosphere. From a great diplomacy system that can make or break your playthrough at certain times in the game, to turn-based combat which I love in games shows some promise. But the game is mired by lackluster map design, bad AI, unbalanced abilities, and some clunky controls. I did enjoy the roleplaying aspect of being able to lead a criminal empire as a historically inspired gangster. Empire of Sin manages to capture ambition beautifully in its empire management systems, and its allure of everything is strong.
Even without Game Pass, Hi-Fi Rush is a must-play. Vibrant colors, lovable characters, and a phenomenal gameplay loop solidify itself as an early Game of the Year contender. Anyone who loved Devil May Cry will happily string combos just like Dante again. Adults who spent their childhoods playing Guitar Hero will adore the game’s matrimony to the rhythm. Platforming aficionados who played Ratchet & Clank or Psychonauts will get a kick out of the traversal. Hi-Fi Rush, a colorful game developed by the same team behind a great horror experience in The Evil Within, is a hit. Go play it.
8 Bit Adventures 2 is a very great game albeit with some balancing issues with bosses. The characters were very memorable and had lovingly written dialogue with distinct styles for everyone. As well as the Glitch being a very fleshed-out Villain. The game shines the brightest in its combat, and exploration of the varied and unique locales. As well as the challenging bosses with their contributions to the tale. It is an easy recommendation due to its classical yet thrilling journey.
Altogether, I found Hubris to be raising the bar for an indie action adventure. It’s clearly punching way above its weight. If you have been waiting for a true Half-Life: Alyx contender in terms of production value, Hubris might not be exactly on that level. However, it is definitely worth picking up and you will not be disappointed.
For the longest time, I had no intention to pick up a Virtual Reality system. That is until I saw Demeo for the very first time. Now, I can easily add Among Us VR to the list of must-play VR games. The great UI and immersive gameplay make up for the slightly tricky controls at the beginning. Once you adjust or get used to the game’s control setup, you will have hours of great frantic fun. Undoubtedly, VR makes Among Us 10 times better than the original! This game is one of my top 5 games of 2022. So, no time like the present to start acting a little Suss!
Pentiment did not give off the best first impression. But the more I played, the more I was engulfed with the game’s layered narrative filled with mysteries and intrigue. Dialogue choices were well realized, but the consequences didn’t garner the expected reactions. Despite being off-putting at first, the game’s visual and audio presentations complement its 16th-century art style well. Although the game’s limited scope is quickly apparent, Pentiment’s narrative design has a lot to offer and is another feather in the cap of Obsidian’s story-telling credentials.
At every turn Ghostbusters: Spirits Unleashed heads the wrong way. It has a stylized art direction but lacks ambitious cosmetics. It has a story but it is merely a crumb within the multiplayer-first experience. Then there are the great mechanics paired with a lack of meaningful depth. As a whole, the game is content impoverished. The end result is not a game that feels like it is missing something, it feels like it is missing some of everything. If it were to grow and continue as a live service, the team has a lot to work with. There should be a dozen ghosts to play as, and they all could be from the movies. The cosmetics need to be expanded tenfold. Also, if there is nothing they can do in the way of adding more weapons due to the franchise’s limits, there should be classes like Medic and Engineer. Along with a complete re-balance of how playing as the ghost works. There is something here that is fun to play for a shot bit. However, all we are left with is hope that it can grow as a live service.
A Plague Tale: Requiem is in a lot of ways a massive improvement over Innocence. But the lack of a few alchemical compounds and the changes in the upgrade system felt like steps backward. Especially in comparison to the leaps in quality made in the game’s graphical fidelity. As well as the game’s story is more intense and meaningful than the original. However, none of the cons including the game’s rough performance can prevent me from recommending its incredible journey. Especially for fans of Innocence.
Despite being utterly grotesque, Scorn’s visuals are great, and the sound design is a cut above. The puzzle-adventure gameplay is intuitively designed and is a great pairing. However, the vagueness of its design philosophy is often confusing, and I think the confusion outweighs the fun. Unfortunately, the creative choices the developers took with the story didn’t do it for me. While I can appreciate a show-don’t-tell approach, I think there needs to be some bespoke parameters. Solely relying on environmental storytelling is a cool idea in theory, and I appreciate Ebb Software seeing it through to the end, but ultimately it felt all for naught. As a result, this game is incredibly niche, and I think the audience for Scorn is really small. Everything in Scorn is clearly deliberate, so I can’t imagine the story and plot are any exception. However, I completely beat this game, rounding up every achievement on offer, and I have little to no idea what it was about. I don’t think it’s completely devoid of meaning, but I won’t be sticking around to uncover that for myself.
Although rough around the edges, The Last Oricru delivered on what it intended to do. The game provided a decent souls like experience, with fun combat, great co-op, and an engaging premise. Best of all, this was all baked on top of a satisfying branching narrative system that truly delivers on player agency. The Last Oricru will likely surprise players, but expectations should be kept in check.
I look at Triangle Strategy as a game that does everything right that The Diofield Chronicle gets wrong. The story and characters aren’t inherently bad but are ultimately forgettable and uninteresting. The strategy gameplay is engaging and unique but fails to stick the landing. The visuals are pretty but simplistic and lack any sense of real identity. Not to mention the soundtrack and audio obscure good voice acting. At its current price of $59.99 USD, The Diofield Chronicle is difficult to recommend. Personally, I would wait for a sale and lower my expectations. There’s so much about this game that feels unfinished. I was surprised that it was installed from the disc on Xbox Series X and in the time that I played it, not once did the game require an update. To be honest, I think Square Enix simply got the game out and I’d be surprised if it received any improvements in the future.
No Place for Bravery tries to carve its own place in a flood of Souls-like titles hitting the market to some success. Its excellent, yet tragic, story continues to resonate strongly with me and some of its set pieces were truly captivating. The combat was serviceable with a decent amount of enemy variety and always demanded my attention. However, the game was let down by its bland pixel graphics and technical hiccups.
The Last Of Us Part One is a great remake of a masterpiece. The story feels more impactful than ever. The gameplay is more fluid and polished, and everything looks and sounds fantastic. However, the omission of the Factions multiplayer mode means Naughty Dog didn’t remake an entire portion of the game. I understand that Naughty Dog is working on Factions separately, and maybe it comes later in an update. Similar to what Sucker Punch did with Ghost Of Tsushima’s multiplayer. But that still means part of the game just isn’t here.
Overall I enjoyed my experience with Dynasty Warriors 9 Empires on the Xbox Series X. Its shallow character creation system was disappointing and could dampen your time with the game. Unfortunately, the game did not take advantage of the new hardware, as its visual look dated, despite its solid animations. I feel after the indefinite delay the developers might have changed course a bit and that’s why we got what we did. Both the Domestic Affairs and Way of Life systems are welcomed additions. Especially if you decide to play as your child in a second playthrough. I can say that Dynasty Warrior vets and new players alike will have a lot to look forward to in the game, despite its glaring shortcomings.
Soul Hackers 2 was an absolute treat. The style on display from every character, location, and demon was fantastic. The story, despite having a basic plot, had incredible characters to back it up. It also knocked several emotional moments out of the park. The deep and engaging combat system with the staggering demon collecting aspect was fun and rewarding. All of this coupled with one of the most unique areas I’ve seen in a game like the Soul Matrix. Which gave me so much to enjoy in my playthrough, despite its annoying design at times, leaving me eager to start again. Soul Hackers 2 is an easy recommendation, even if you have not played a game from Atlus.
In all, Cult of the Lamb is a fantastic game that perfectly blends two genres. While the combat is simple and there is room for improvement when it comes to level variation, this indie game punches way above its weight. The layers upon layers of mechanics make Cult of the Lamb a dense game with tremendous value at its indie price point.
Stray is a beautiful platforming adventure with a meaningful story. The characters, environments, exploration, and soundtrack make this game truly stand out, even if the ending leaves more to be desired. Restrictive gameplay keeps Stray from reaching its true potential, but BlueTwelve Studio’s ambition shines through its gorgeous art direction and engaging exploration. Stray is an unforgettable experience and is one of PS5’s best independent titles.
As Dusk Falls delivered an enthralling narrative with solid characters to follow. The game’s original graphics and art direction were off-putting at first but grew on me over time. The soundtrack and voice acting were both excellent. Multiplayer was well realized and added a whole new dimension to the gameplay. Though the game’s ending was a huge letdown and felt cheap overall. Despite this, As Dusk Falls is a solid experience and is worthy of your time.
Cuphead originally cost $20 and contained nearly 30 levels of boss fights and platforming mayhem. The Delicious Last Course costs $8 and has a dozen levels, a new playable character with a notably different move set, and more armor items from Porkrind. All fans of the original should not hesitate to drop those $8 for The Delicious Last Course.
F1 22 has a lot of under-the-hood improvements that might not be obvious at first. Driving remains satisfying, engaging, and adaptable. While the AI is aggressive, it will likely add to your race experience. The game’s presentation remains impeccable and truly reflects authentic F1 coverage. There’s a ton of content to enjoy that will satiate F1 and racing fans. But its aging graphics and a lackluster F1 Life show that an overhaul is overdue.