GGRecon's Reviews
Gigantic: Rampage Edition is a pleasure to play, if you can get a game, and even though it has a somewhat low ceiling, there’s no denying that Abstraction knocked this out of the park.
If a dark revenge fantasy tale of destroying an evil cult sounds like your kind of thing, then Children of the Sun is everything you could want.
From its banging soundtrack to its pixel-perfect paddling, C-Smash VRS is one of Meta Quest 3's most enjoyable titles, even a year on from its PSVR 2 launch. One more game, yeah?
If you’re looking for a new rogue-lite to sink your teeth into, Beat Slayer offers an excellent rendition of the genre, with the rhythm-based combat only elevating it further. I’d have liked to have seen a little more innovation in the game’s upgrade system, and the character work here falls a little sub-par of what I’d expect in a game like this. That said, I had a rollicking-good time smashing my way through the streets of Berlin, and would certainly recommend picking it up if you’re looking for some added musical spice with your combat.
This is quite easily one of the most gorgeous open worlds you’ll explore in a modern video game. With a stellar set of graphical customisation options and admirable performance on rigs that meet the recommended requirements, there’s currently no better place to experience Aloy’s journey.
Showtime embraces Peach's femininity and uses it to fuel her newfound heroics. Transforming into a graceful figure skater, a beautiful songstress or a cutesy chef is her way of saving those in need, and it's truly cathartic. On top of that, the levels are simply a whole lot of fun to play, despite how easy you might find them.
What’s unforgivable is that, at its core, South Park: Snow Day! isn’t remotely fun to play. Its combat and progression systems aren’t engaging, and only the most hardcore of South Park fans will find a glimmer of hope in the bulletproof humour that’s borrowed from the cartoon.
Accessible, fun, and full of ambition, Rise of the Ronin will have you hooked on its combat no matter what type of player you are - with an exciting story of engaging characters being bloodied icing on the cake. Sure, some of its RPG systems won’t be for everyone, but Team Ninja’s first open-world effort is almost everything you could want from an action-packed samurai game set in Japan.
Despite my reservations about the late game, Dragon's Dogma 2 remains an exceptional experience on almost all fronts and an adventure that you unequivocally won't want to miss.
The game certainly gets better as time goes on, and the story is well-told enough that it's worth experiencing for survival horror fans. However, it comes with the caveats that the overall gameplay leaves a lot to be desired, and its survival horror contemporaries just do a better job on nearly every front.
By offering a whole heap of challenging encounters, fun roguelite mechanics, and just another reason to jump into one of the Switch's best games, Splatoon 3: Side Order is a thrill. More boss fights would've been nice, but that doesn't take away an unshakeable desire to jump back in right now.
WWE 2K24 may be a big investment, but considering this is the best that this series has ever been, that may just be worth it to you. 2K24 is just as undeniable as the American Nightmare on its cover, and a capstone for several years running for great wrestling and great wrestling games.
While some of its looting mechanics feel a little stale in comparison to how it evolves other areas of the genre this likely won’t deter most players from seeing this intriguing story through to the end. Instead, Pacific Drive is one of the most intriguing games I’ve played in 2024 so far. It borrows concepts from the likes of STALKER and Firewatch, and combines them to create an accessible survival rogue-lite that’s a joy to engage with. Seeing your car gradually transform from a heap of junk to essentially a life support system is a satisfying experience, and only enhanced by the weird and wonderful world you get to drive it about in.
Mario vs Donkey Kong is a charming puzzler that’s great in short bursts, but the repetitive formula, short length, and occasionally frustrating controls leave it paling in comparison to other top-tier Mario outings on Switch.
Classified: France '44 is a strong debut from Absolutely Games that's worth a go if you're looking for hours of well-designed turn-based combat, varied missions and encounters, and a highly replayable campaign. However, it doesn't quite hit the potato masher on the head when it comes to exploring its WWII setting and creating a narrative about the human cost of war.
Every beat of this game still lands, and the developer was right not to fix what wasn't broken in the first place, developing and refining the definitive version of Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons. If you have never experienced the game before, you owe it to yourself to strap in for an evening for a beautiful story that will drag you through a motley collection of emotions.
Final Fantasy 7 Rebirth is one of my favourite games that I've played in a long time and does so much with its narrative that feels uncompromisingly ambitious and fresh.
For a small team to develop an ARPG as polished and as player-friendly as Last Epoch is astonishing. To do it with the complexity that the genre demands as a prerequisite is something else, and I'm truly, truly impressed by what's on offer at launch - and can't wait to see it grow.
Bandle Tale feels like a game some people will thoroughly enjoy, but others might grow tired of when the systems start piling on top of each other. It’s surprisingly complex, and about as long as the average big-budget RPG, but whether players will have the same patience for it remains to be seen. A lot of heart has gone into this game, and I really wanted to love it. As it stands, it’s a solid crafting RPG with a cute aesthetic that doesn’t really match the menu-heavy gameplay. It would be a lot more fun without systems like the auras restricting you from doing what you need to do.
There’s a lot to like about Foamstars, but there’s unfortunately a lot to dislike, too. I appreciate that it goes all-in on the candy-coloured visuals and embraces its silliness, and there’s something to be said for the adrenaline rush it provides in standard 4v4 matches. But with a poor story mode offering, wildly expensive microtransactions, and visibility issues that really hamper gameplay, I can't see Foamstars making waves in the sea of multiplayer shooters that already exist.