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Gotham Knights successfully gives players a great new Batman title, without a heavy reliance on the Caped Crusader himself. The gameplay is fun, with combat feeling excellent, and the co-op really adds a whole new layer to the game. With an intriguing narrative that sees the Dark Knight’s understudies take up the mantle, Gotham Knights provides an exciting and emotional experience that is definitely worth picking up!
If you were ever on the fence about the original, now would be the best time to jump on board. The numerous updates to the formula expand Amicia’s toolkit in all sorts of fun and dynamic ways, making each encounter and puzzle to be solved an absolute treat. While the story and character development don’t leave too much of a mark, there are still some genuinely great scenes that bounce naturally between extreme tension and silly moments of levity. It isn’t every day you see such a tightly-focused stealth game like A Plague Tale: Requiem. So even if it’s only for the gameplay, this dense 18-20 hour journey should not be missed.
LEGO Bricktales fails to live up to its potential. The game’s building mechanic is really tedious and annoying. The LEGO pieces are often difficult to maneuver into specific positions and the controls are quite awkward. The level exploration is bland and the narrative is simplistic and uninteresting. Overall LEGO Bricktails is a real disappointment and not worth the time investment.
Kamiwaza: Way of the Thief should have stayed a Japanese exclusive. Multiple mechanics fall flat and the tedium of go-fetch quests quickly starts to stack up several hours in. Constantly spamming one button for a full minute to steal valuable items isn’t fun. Neither is repeating the same generic mission setup with extremely vague target instructions. Doesn’t help that the branching storylines and characters aren’t particularly interesting either, apart from a few interesting designs here and there. So if the wacky, over-the-top silliness can’t grab your attention, it’s hard to say what else will.
Valkyrie Elysium is a decent action RPG that’s rather short in length, but it’s combo-based combat grows stale hours before the credits roll. The game nails the melancholic, Norse-inspired atmosphere of the series, although the story, characters and side-quests that appear in these lands are anything but legendary. So if you don’t enjoy the combat, then there’s little else to latch onto.
FIFA 23’s gameplay feels so good to control, as EA has implemented a whole host of touch-ups within the presentation and mechanics for it’s final take on the series. The new inclusions to Career Mode like player personalities, transfer tips and being able to select a real-life manager really go a long way as well. While Volta Football still feels tacked on, the addition of full cross-play support for current and old-gen consoles makes it easier than ever for friends to jump into a match.
The DioField Chronicle effortlessly combines real-time strategy and tactical turn-based gameplay. Featuring a very approachable battle system that streamlines several elements of it’s presentation, so the focus always remains on combat. Albeit, the story is often too preoccupied with politics and plot-specific events that the audience probably won’t care too much about, along with a steep difficulty curve that forces players to complete optional content and AI that makes some rather silly decisions at times. If you can get past these issues however, the addictive hybrid gameplay should keep you hooked throughout.
Foretales is a great entry into the deckbuilding genre. Featuring a very simple gameplay style, this title is really easy to get into, but can still be challenging at times. The narrative is intriguing and the visual design is gorgeous. Foretales is definitely worth giving a go, whether you have played deck builders before or not.
Destroy All Humans! 2 does a great job of faithfully recreating the world that captivated so many fans back in 2006! The gameplay mechanics have been refined to make some aspects, particularly the psychokinesis, feel a lot more natural and slick to execute. The massive overhaul to the visuals makes the game look fantastic on modern hardware, whilst still keeping the semi-cartoony art style that was present in the original.
Deep Silver Volition took a bold step in setting Saints Row around a whole new crew, and it absolutely paid off. Featuring a cast of interesting and entertaining characters, this narrative reverts back to the more serious nature of Saints Row 1 & 2. Add to this some really slick combat and driving mechanics, as well as a world filled to the brim with fun side quests and areas to explore, and you have an absolutely stellar entry into the Saints Row series!
Cult of the Lamb is a rare gem that combines a roguelike experience with base building mechanics. This wacky narrative will have you in stitches time and time again, whilst you enjoy adventuring through these beautiful 2.5D landscapes. Managing your own cult is as crazy as it sounds and is very entertaining! This is definitely one to add to your game collection.
Ex-Zodiac is the Star Fox game that fans have been dreaming of. It successfully replicates that beloved retro aesthetic without losing what made the original titles so engaging. Those precise flying controls, varied set-pieces and in-depth boss battles are all here, and the game will supposedly be doubled in length by the time Ex-Zodiac hits it’s full 1.0 launch. While the characters and story aren’t particularly interesting, here’s hoping they can pull it around for the next half of the adventure.
Yurukill: The Calumniation Games contains an addictive blend of escape room escapades and fast-paced bullet-hell segments that will keep players eagerly awaiting the next corner. The story and character presentation are great too, with only a few technical flaws that get in the way of an otherwise spectacular theme park ride.
Gordian Quest is not just a common deck builder, as it features some awesome DND-inspired elements that’ll make fans of the classic tabletop RPG feel right at home. The art design is spectacular and the gameplay is incredibly fun, even if it’s a little easy. The one downfall is the story, which can be quite basic—only serving the purpose of moving the game forward. But all in all, Gordian Quest is immensely rewarding… unless you’re looking for a well-woven tale.
OlliOlli World: VOID Riders features the most bizarre narrative in the OlliOlli series! Not only is it as strange as it is hilarious, but it is also the greatest one yet! Add to this some entertaining new mechanics and chaotic new levels, and you have the best of what OlliOlli World has to offer!
Card Shark features a surprisingly deep story with much mystery surrounding its fascinating, and somewhat dubious characters. The simple game mechanics and stunning art style really makes for a title that is really unique. The minimalist approach to the gameplay is welcomed and the 8 hour play time ensures that no part of Card Shark feels overused or repetitive! This is definitely one for your Nintendo Switch library!
Sniper Elite 5 is a perfect example of a game that is just good. There are no real glitches or screen tearing and the game plays really well on the PS5. The graphics look fine, even if the character designs are a little questionable. The problem arises with the game becoming predictable and boring. However, the devs saw this coming – hence half the game being online. So even though playing through the campaign with a friend is fun, it’s not worth the price, in my opinion.
Dolmen is a serviceable, sci-fi ARPG that sets players up against a gauntlet of strong enemies and varied bosses. Utilising the Metroidvania style approach to progression, the game aims to keep players on their toes with it’s striking visual design and level layout. It’s just a shame the story isn’t up to scratch and a few certain gameplay features are left wanting.
Trek To Yomi may have a great narrative and an excellent visual design, however the stiff combat mechanics and tedious exploration sections may quickly diminish any desire to see the game through to the end. Despite having great potential, Trek To Yomi fails to deliver and instead becomes a very lackluster experience!
The full release of King Arthur: Knight’s Tale impresses in almost every area, despite being in Early Access for quite some time. The game expands dramatically, offering an incredible story, fun tactical gameplay and great visuals. Not to mention there is a lot to do once completing the game, whether that’s taking on bosses or playing PVP. Even though it can feel slightly unfinished, the game is still incredible and should continue to improve with more time and dedication from the developers.