4News.it's Reviews
Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 is a fascinating and engaging RPG that offers an intellectually stimulating experience. With a solid, unique and original narrative, innovative gameplay - especially with regard to the combat system - and functional graphics, the game succeeds in keeping the player glued to the screen, leveraging the combination of exploration, mystery and combat. Despite some minor flaws related especially to the ending - a bit choppy and seemingly lost in its own ambition and some technical uncertainties - the title stands out for its ability to deliver an immersive and memorable experience. Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 is - in our opinion - the most impressive debut role-playing game we have ever had the good fortune to play.
Review in Italian | Read full review
MotoGP 25 is the perfect entry point for those who want to get closer to the world of MotoGP, but it is also a title that longtime fans can squeeze in for hours. The new features introduced are well thought out, the riding is enjoyable but deep, and the Career is finally alive. Those who love motorcycles will find all the passion of the paddock in it. Those who love video games will see in it a technical but accessible simulation. I saw both, and raced it like I was really there. “Look out guys, this is a great title.”
Review in Italian | Read full review
With StarVaders, development team Pengonauts presents itself with personality in the landscape of independent productions. After tastefully mixing Star Invaders with grid-based strategists, the roguelike deckbuilder made by the Montreal-based software house was able to engage and entertain us. Simple to approach and difficult to master, fighting extraterrestrial visitors offers a magnetic loop gameplay that is tastefully varied and deep. If you are a fan of its sources of inspiration, StarVaders is the exact definition of “one more game and then I'll quit...maybe.... maybe not.”
Review in Italian | Read full review
With its characteristics resulting from a roguelike hybrid of old-school fighting game and shooter, KIBORG proved to be a compelling title full of surprises. Tense and violent combat mingles with a steady pace, where the sense of progression is assured and the content knows how to prove generous. However, the experience proves to be imperfectly balanced making Lee Morgan's brutal journey all too rough at times. Nevertheless, the allure of creating an unstoppable cybernetic fighter is a real cool thing not to be underestimated.
Review in Italian | Read full review
Steel Seed is yet another demonstration of the talent of Italian software houses. Storm in a Teacup realizes a wide-ranging sci-fi adventure, combining a top-notch graphical presentation with a deep narrative as well as an absolutely exuberant gameplay mix of fast-paced combat, dynamic platforming and tantalizing stealth. This is a genuinely amazing product at times, but one that in its current state is flawed on the technical optimization front and the unevenness of some interactions. Get ready to help Zoe and KOBY: humanity's survival is at stake.
Review in Italian | Read full review
FATAL FURY: City of the Wolves marks the dazzling return of the legendary SNK fighting game to the greats of the genre. If the production values are already evident from the title's aesthetic presentation, the depth of the combat system and the exuberant cast are exactly the reasons why all fans of fighting games will love it with vigor. However, we are faced with a product that is contradictory at times: the menus are dated and cumbersome, the modes present could have been more polished, the online is not always stable, and the tutorial is excessively sparse. It is precisely this last aspect that should point us to the title's greatest limitation: its high complexity, the result of a veritable sea of mechanics. With patience and dedication, the new journey to the city of wolves takes on the connotations of a galvanizing if not mystical experience. But the price to pay may not be for everyone.
Review in Italian | Read full review
The Hundred Line -Last Defense Academy- is the perfect fusion born of the collaboration between Kazutaka Kodaka and Kotaro Uchikoshi. The result is a title that draws on the best features of their major productions (Danganronpa and Zero Escape, above all) to create a unique and incredibly ambitious product, especially on the narrative side. Kaleidoscopic, sprawling, and surprising writing makes it essential to play and replay a title equally challenging in its tactical RPG component. There are some structural limitations of game design and, inevitably, its thick verbiage may not make it a product for everyone. But if you have loved the previous works of the two Japanese designers, we warn you: this may be their magnum opus.
Review in Italian | Read full review
MULLET MADJACK is a little masterpiece that draws on ideas already traveled over to create a magnetic experience with an overwhelming personality. A shooter that rides the wave of 90s anime cyberpunk, throwing into the mixer adrenaline-fueled, ultraviolent gameplay that exudes a visceral and authentic charisma. Part classic arcade and part modern roguelite, the title developed by HAMMER95 is a sinful fruit that is impossible to resist.
Review in Italian | Read full review
Tempest Rising is an honest product. It doesn't try to please everyone, it doesn't try to revolutionize anything, it doesn't make unrealistic promises. It does one thing, and it does it well: it reintroduces the classic RTS experience in all its glory--and in all its rigidity. It is a game that respects the times of those who lived through the golden age of strategy games, but one that risks seeming anachronistic in the eyes of new generations. Its lack of compromise is fascinating, but it may also be its greatest limitation.
Review in Italian | Read full review
Rusty Rabbit represents an interesting experiment, not so much for its specific features as for the background of its creative team. Putting aside visual novels, Nitroplus and Gen Urobuchi bring to life a classic-style metroidvania with an intriguing narrative bent and some interesting game design ideas. The overall experience proves to be quite intriguing and unexpectedly relaxing, although it has several naiveté issues that prevent Stamp's adventure from being truly memorable or at least capable of being able to stand out among the vast and ruthless competition.
Review in Italian | Read full review
Indiana Jones and the Ancient Circle is one of the most interesting and comprehensive titles of the year, managing to capture the essence of the character and the charm of his adventures to great effect. Despite some technical imperfections and a slight drop in pace in the final part of the game, MachineGames has packed an experience that fans of the genre will be unlikely to forget.
Review in Italian | Read full review
Star Overdrive is an ambitious project from Caracal Games, boldly taking cues from some of the best game design lessons of The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. The result is a product of great personality, a wide-ranging sci-fi adventure of acrobatics, challenges and puzzles. However, the desire to include a great density of play mechanics clashes with their not always well-defined implementation, resulting in an overall experience that is less fluid and dynamic than hoped for. Nevertheless, get ready to strap on your trusty hoverboard and plow through the dunes of Cebete: an amazing journey awaits you.
Review in Italian | Read full review
Tempest Rising is an honest product. It doesn't try to please everyone, it doesn't try to revolutionize anything, it doesn't make unrealistic promises. It does one thing, and it does it well: it reintroduces the classic RTS experience in all its glory--and in all its rigidity. It is a game that respects the times of those who lived through the golden age of strategy games, but one that risks seeming anachronistic in the eyes of new generations. Its lack of compromise is fascinating, but it may also be its greatest limitation.Monster Energy Supercross 25 is a solid but flawed evolution. Milestone has refined the formula, introduced new ideas, and tried to open up to a wider audience without distorting itself. The result is a game that can be punishing and technical, but also exciting, especially for those looking for a real challenge. However, some structural limitations remain: lackluster social modes, AI that can still be improved, slow progression and a few technical stumbles that break the immersiveness. For Supercross fans, it is a title to have. For everyone else, a good chance to get in the saddle -- but with a helmet strapped on.
Review in Italian | Read full review
The main success of South of Midnight lies in its unique identity. The new work from Compulsion Games showcases a modern stop-motion fable with dark overtones, drawing from the mysterious (and often tragic) charm of the folklore of the Deep South of the United States. The painstaking care taken in the artistic presentation (huge kudos to the marvelous soundtrack), however, does not find a similarly scrupulous realization in the game system. Although the linear structure is reassuring and welcoming, unfortunately the title never decides to explore its full potential, often leaving you with a bitter taste in your mouth. Net of its limitations, South of Midnight is a rich and meaningful experience that deserves to find a small place in the hearts of gamers.
Review in Italian | Read full review
The Last of Us Part II Remastered on PC represents one of the best console portings we have seen in recent years. Naughty Dog, Nixxes Software and Iron Galaxy have created a conversion that not only keeps the visual and narrative DNA of the original intact, but enhances it through the capabilities of PC hardware. Optimization is generally excellent, with scalability that allows the experience to be enjoyed on different band configurations. New technologies implemented, such as DLSS 3 and FSR 3.1, further expand the audience of potential players. The minor problems encountered do not in the least affect the overall quality of a work that, even on PC, is confirmed as one of the greatest videogame masterpieces of recent years. The addition of new content for the No Return mode, available from day one, is also a significant added value for both newcomers and those who have already experienced the adventure on PlayStation. If you are a PC owner and have not yet experienced the intense experience of The Last of Us Part II, this Remastered version is undoubtedly the best way to do so. If, on the other hand, you have already completed the game on consoles, the PC version offers enough technical improvements and new content to justify a return to Seattle. Ultimately, The Last of Us Part II Remastered for PC confirms itself as a benchmark for console porting, raising the quality bar for all future conversions
Review in Italian | Read full review
About ten years after its ill-fated debut on WiiU, Xenoblade Chronicles X: Definitive Edition reaches the planet Nintendo Switch giving new glory to the Monolith Soft masterpiece. An impressive JRPG today as it was then, exponentially improved in every respect: from graphics to sound, via gameplay. A title fully representative of the incredible talent of the development team, which even included juicy new content that will delight even those who already enjoyed it a decade ago. The Mira odyssey awaits us all: we are explorers, not guardians.
Review in Italian | Read full review
BLEACH Rebirth of Souls is a title that, unfortunately, falls halfway between being a truly worthwhile experience and a missed opportunity. The gameplay, fun, varied, and more strategic than even the most optimistic could have hoped for, deserved a more solid online mode and greater attention to some features that have now become standard. The main mode is well-executed, but it lacks everything essential for a community to continue supporting a product of this kind in the months to come.
Review in Italian | Read full review
AI LIMIT convinced us. Despite some flaws, primarily the management of connections between the game's macro-areas and the repetition of some enemies, it remains a solid and truly interesting production. With a well-executed combat system, a well-balanced progression, and spectacular bosses, the title will manage to entertain and engage all gamers. Even those who are not regular players of soulslike games, thanks to an initial impact that's softer than usual.
Review in Italian | Read full review
Assassin's Creed Shadows is a majestic title that exudes passion for feudal Japan and the assassin epic. The setting is breathtaking, the two protagonists well-constructed, the gameplay solid and multifaceted. But the boundless ambition ends up playing against the design. Repetitiveness, dated AI, redundant content management, and a half-hearted ending limit its narrative and playful power. It is, paradoxically, exactly the game we expected. An Assassin's Creed through and through. And it is precisely this that is its greatest virtue-and its most obvious curse.
Review in Italian | Read full review
We can confirm it: Atomfall is an ambitious gamble, successfully won by Rebellion. Set against the backdrop of an imaginary quarantine zone inspired by the real Windscale nuclear disaster in northern England, the British developers' new title succeeds in offering an experience somewhere between exploration, survival and action. Above all, it is a hymn to the sense of discovery in all its declinations thanks to a narrative deconstructed in favor of the maximum possible freedom granted to the player. It is a title that knows how to be both unexpectedly ruthless and utterly rewarding, even minus a few technical smears and some mechanics that are perhaps all too punishing. What mysteries will you discover?
Review in Italian | Read full review