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Despite this, I’ve enjoyed my time with Project Songbird all the same. While it didn’t grip me fully, I did enjoy aspects of the tale, and I really dug the horror sections thanks to great use of audio and visuals to make a genuinely unsettling experience.
In my opinion, it’s a real shame that Messy Up falls short, as there are the makings of a good game here. It just needs a little more care to optimize the menus for consoles and to fix some gameplay mechanics. I just can’t recommend this game when there are other games that do it much better.
Screamer is quite simply an incredible arcade racer, with stellar presentation and gameplay. It’s a rare racer that can hold my attention for more than a few hours, but I’ll be playing this for a long time to come.
Yakuza Kiwami 3 & Dark Ties was always going to be a hit with me as a fan of the series. A lot of the amendments to modernise the game and make it more fun and interesting have hit the spot with me. Although its not the strongest story in the series, coupling it with the Dark Ties side story brings an interesting dynamic on the story which I enjoy. But a horrifically bad casting choice has completely tarnished the game and left me with mix feelings.
A strong setting and atmosphere provide genuine creeps and a tale that is engaging, though for me the combat is a weak spot in an otherwise enjoyable experience.
While there’s no denying Marathon is an aggressive PvPvE extraction shooter, it is also a remarkably moreish one. The core loop of exploration, looting and fighting feels great as we’d hope from FPS veterans Bungie, and while the UI could use some touch ups in both inputs and clarity, that one more game feeling is present and correct enough that I can see myself sticking with this for some time to come. With constant updates and additions promised, I think the future is bright for Marathon indeed.
Styx: Blades of Greed is unrepentantly a stealth game, and this instalment adds a lot of new features and mechanics but makes sure to never move to far away from what has made this series appealing – skulking in the shadows.
While the base gameplay may be simple and of the time, Jaws Retro Edition proves that can still be fun even today. The Enhanced edition is great and offers more meat on the bones to the original, and while it may not be my favourite retro game ever, I have still enjoyed taking it to Bruce and his aquatic cohorts all the same.
Like I mentioned this one was not on my radar, no pun intended, and I was pleasantly surprised. A few glitches with the enemies soured the experience a little but not enough for me to not recommend the game still. Even as someone who doesn't gravitate to stealth games, this one was successful in integrating a system simple enough to pick up and swap between characters easily and make you feel satisfied clearing an area whether by yourself or through an automated, planned team effort. It has a thorough save system to boot which absolutely helped make the game more enjoyable with my trial and error. For sure, I recommend it as a really solid game.
A downer to end with, but I do want to reiterate that the game otherwise is excellent in terms of quality. The roster (at least what is unlocked to start with) is stacked, the match types are more varied than ever, and there are so many modes here to play with I am honestly staggered how anyone could find the time to explore them all properly. Showcase does CM Punk justice, while MyRise is a great character builder for our custom superstar, and the creation suite is even more mind boggling in its scope than ever.
Across all aspects of the experience - gameplay, story., audio, and visuals - Planet of Lana II is a resounding success. A joy to play, a touching story, and incredible soundtrack make for what will be a top contender for my favourite game of the year.
Easily the best Resident Evil game in many years, with inspirations from both RE2’s survival horror and RE4’s more action horror. Paced perfectly, and with plenty of surprises to discover, I can’t recommend Resident Evil Requiem highly enough.
As a debut FMV title, Trapped Predator has done a great job of following in the wake of publisher Wales Interactive. The tale is engaging with plenty of twists, turns, and reasons to replay. We’d have liked a few more choices, more frequently to make along the way and we hope that whatever they bring us next can fine tune what is already a solid base in their production and story telling.
While the narrative didn’t grab us, the brilliant presentation and moreish challenge did. It may make us curse more than a few times as we die yet again, but the challenge was ultimately enjoyable enough to want to continue on regardless.
REANIMAL is a great step in the right direction for Tarsier’s portfolio, with all the improvements there are still some problems with its execution.
Romeo is a Dead Man is a fun, crazy, chaotic action title with a lot to offer, even if a few niggles rear their heads at times.
All in all, The Run is another excellent FMV title from Paul Raschid and his team. The performances are great, the choices present some real dilemmas, and the conclusion is satisfyingly surprising.
Cairn is thoughtful in its mechanical exploration of being a climber and it also delivers a story that pushes back on the mythology of the sport and the people that reach the highest levels. This is an essential game.
In short bursts there is fun to be had with Rightfully, Beary Arms, and once we nab a few permanent upgrades some of the issues are less pronounced. But we simply didn’t find it all that engaging enough to want to repeatedly play and progress, with one-note combat and occasionally cheap deaths.
MIO has a lot of features that other games in the genre introduced and found a way to incorporate and make them shine. The modifier system is similar to Hollow Knight or Ori and the Will of the Wisps. The accessibility option that makes each boss a tiny bit weaker after each failed attempt is similar to Hades. The extended platforming sections of the Ori games and Guacamelee are also present. MIO does a fantastic job of taking all these systems and making them their own while wrapping them up in a huge world to explore. This is Douze Dixièmes’ second game which follows their stunning debut, Shady Part of Me, and I can’t wait to see what they do next.