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Hitman III is a personal game of the year contender, and not because it is asking nicely with lavish graphics and large-scale levels. Instead, it has an ICA Silverballer pressed hard against my skull demanding to stand atop that list, with some of the best level design I’ve ever seen and a density that elicits a real challenge—and I don’t feel like arguing against it. Hitman III is a fun, addictive, and exceptionally satisfying gaming experience that highlights how we don’t need expansive open worlds—just a building full of bad guys, a slick-looking suit, and a tightly strung garotte wire. I would go on, but I’ve got some Emetic rat poison to serve and a trilogy to catch up on.
Cyber Shadow is the quintessential 2D retro-style ninja platformer. Aarne Hunziker has absolutely outdone himself with this title in every sense of the word. I genuinely don’t have anything negative to say about it, and even the one thing I did have a slight problem with I wouldn’t change (that being checkpoint frequency). The difficulty can feel frustrating at times, but it is in no way insurmountable, and honestly just gives it more of a retro vibe. Cyber Shadow excels in every way through its beautiful presentation, a soundtrack that slaps harder with each new song, a touching story, and absolutely thrilling gameplay. This is an absolute must play for any fans of 2D platformers.
With interesting themes, a compelling story, and a creeping sense of dread, The Medium is a mature and atmospheric experience that I really enjoyed playing. It’s a major evolution for Bloober Team, building on elements from their earlier games and making bold new strides in other areas. After Observer: System Redux, I was excited to play The Medium. Now I genuinely can’t wait for what they do next. Let’s see where it truly all ends.
Destruction AllStars is like a well-oiled machine—it looks the part and does the job. However, once the thrills of landing the perfect slam or launching yourself from an imminent K.O. fade away, what is left is a relatively shallow experience that will struggle to keep you playing longer than a dozen hours. That may be fine for those swiping this up during its stint on PS Plus, but for anyone paying their hard-earned cash for this lacklustre experience, well… you’re in for an expensive ride.
As a whole, Ghosts ‘n Goblins Resurrection is an incredible remake of the original. It does everything a remake should, in that it keeps the core feeling of what made the original click with players while updating it for a modern audience. However, I can’t stress this enough though: do not play on the Knight or Legend difficulty levels until you genuinely feel ready, whenever that is. Neither are, in my opinion, a good way to experience everything that is wonderful about Ghosts ‘n Goblins Resurrection, and will only leave you frustrated beyond belief.
Taxi Chaos sought to emulate a 22 year old classic, thus having 22 years to learn what made Crazy Taxi great. Despite this, Taxi Chaos falls flat and fails to recapture the thrills and high-speed gameplay of its progenitor. At its high price point on the Nintendo eShop in relation to the content within, I cannot recommend Taxi Chaos in its current, shallow state.
There is a lot to appreciate here: the atmosphere and general presentation are super well done and were just enough to ensure that I was never fully against my time with the game. Yet the story did not do anything for me, and if you’re not into the story with a walking sim it is for sure a recipe for a bad time. There is an audience for In Rays of the Light, with the two endings providing a small reason to go back (as well as looking for some notes to expand upon the narrative), fans of the genre will be right at home here—while others may find the experience swiftly forgotten upon the credits rolling.
If you, like me loved Jak and Daxter on your PS2 back in the day and also loved MediEvil, I’m almost positive there will be something about Pumpkin Jack that will bring a smile to your face. It is exactly aimed at that kind of player, while also being quite accessible to new players and charming enough along the way to get you invested in exploring each level. It definitely doesn’t break any ground in the genre but it is a worthy entry in the genre even just solely based on how well it pays homage to what inspired it in the first place. It might not be everything that I want it to be now, but I’m already holding out hope to see a Pumpkin Jack 2 that answers all my prayers.
Dry Drowning is a fun experience that uses its format well and has clearly been created by people with a lot of love for the genre. Even if you don’t ordinarily play visual novels, I think there’s a lot more to keep you engaged than you would expect. There’s a real sense that your choices craft the narrative and Mordred’s journey, and whilst there is a lot happening the game does a good job at keeping you on track. If you’re in the mood to play detective, you’ll definitely find something to enjoy here.
Pacer is a thrilling racing game with plenty of content, variety and customisation. A couple of rough edges and slightly disappointing combat keep it from reaching true greatness but it’s still a fun trip down memory lane, even when you’re going at 1,000 kilometres per hour.
If you can avoid these performance issues, thankfully there’s a great deal of fun to be had with The Climb 2. While in many ways it does not feel like a massive leap in content from the first game and still somewhat feels a tad tech demo like for a game released in 2021, for fans of the thrill of free-soling and finding enjoyment in besting others in time records, it will be sure to please and keep you coming back for hours. Perhaps we will this gameplay engine implemented into a larger scope title down the line from Crytek.
So though the Switch port of It’s About Time takes a significant step down graphics-wise, it’s a fair trade-off to ensure the game’s colourful, zany antics aren’t lost in translation. That is to say, it’s the brilliantly rich and responsive platforming that should be focused on here, rather than the dulled-down visuals – it’s certainly not enough to hinder your capacity to bash crates, munch wumpa fruit, and spin attack your way through time and space. Oodibigah!
For a free upgrade, the next-gen patch is a real blessing here and it is certainly a great step for the game to take in its attempts to gain a second chance at becoming a new regular in your play cycles. Your engagement with the endgame aspects of Avengers is going to be solely down to your preferences and your tolerance for an intense, grinding style of game as seen with the emergence of the “live service” game, with even my short dip into the online field matching me up with players who out-ranked my power level a substantial amount. However, I have no desire to search for loot, to make my characters as powerful as possible, or even grind for some cosmetic skins, as ultimately the core hook just isn’t enough to keep me coming back. What is here is mechanically solid, but it never manages to be gratifying enough to keep me invested past an hour or so—and with the grind the game requires, that is just not enough time to get engrossed with the elements at play here.
I wasn’t convinced that using a webcam was going to add anything to a video game, but I’m glad to have been proven wrong. Before Your Eyes is an innovative title that uses webcam technology to enhance the story. With a world that you’ll fall in love with and characters you’ll care about, you’ll want to soak up as much of Benny’s life as possible, but only as long as you don’t blink—and unfortunately, that’s got to happen at some point.
I left it emboldened in my refusal to cause any kind of harm to someone else for the sake of “art”, because it will leave me with nothing but solitude.
Doom 3 VR Edition is a solid idea—a somewhat slower, more atmosphere affair that seems perfect for VR. Instead, we are left with nothing more than a quick cash grab. With its dated graphics, flat-screen cutscenes, and a lack of VR interactivity, Doom 3 VR Edition does so little to validate its porting into virtual reality that a few hours in I had a yearning to simply experience the game on a television. For any fans of this FPS then, sure, this is probably worth checking out, and with its relatively low £20 price tag coming with around 15-hours of content (including its DLC), it can’t be disputed that there is bang for a fan’s buck—especially as a VR experience. Yet Doom 3 VR Edition proves that the mere premise of VR isn’t enough to guarantee a fun experience. This is a game that deserved a more thoughtful repurposing to allow its players to feel a part of its world. Instead, I was left with an experience that made me wholly aware that I was wearing a bit of plastic over my face.
If you are a fan of RPGs, this game is an absolute “must experience.” It completely rewrites the possibilities of what a role-playing game can be mechanically, and does so while also providing a fascinating and twisty narrative and characters who will test your resolve and allegiances. Combine all this with a revolutionary skill system, and you are faced with the best game of the year so far—and one of the greatest RPGs ever made. So get up, detective—it’s time to dance.
Monster Hunter Rise is another triumph of the series. While it doesn’t do much to win over new players, fans of the series will appreciate the smoother, faster experience.
Studio Koba calls their game ‘a poetic, subtle and beautiful handcrafted experience’, and honestly, it’s hard to disagree. What they have created here is a stunning platformer that you will enjoy every second of being in – and whilst I enjoyed my time playing it on the PS5, I feel like it’s a perfect game to boot up on your Nintendo Switch, cozy up in your favourite gaming spot, and get completely lost in. And with the full soundtrack available on Spotify, you can get that nostalgia hit even when you’re not near your console.
Forgotten Fields is a very charming, warm game that I highly recommend. If you’re looking for an inspiring, emotional, and heart-warming story with personality-filled characters and humorous writing, it’s here in spades. The minimalist but stylised graphics are very appealing, though the character models do need some improvement and some idle animations would be appreciated. The gameplay has some fun quirks but is quite simple overall, with some intuitive issues such as getting stuck on terrain, but those are very easily overlooked. I, personally, am now considering picking up Frostwood’s first release, Rainswept, as I enjoyed Forgotten Fields so thoroughly. It’s also nice to support an independent creator who clearly has a passion for well-written narratives and emotionally-driven themes.