Awoken from the slumber of six years of development and three years of early access, the full version of Baldur’s Gate 3 is finally here. And it was well worth the wait. While many enjoyed Baldur’s Gate 3 in early access, I opted out and instead decided to wait for the full release. I’ve only been able to play around 10 hours of Baldur’s Gate 3, which doesn’t put me any farther than the people that finished Act 1 in early access, but since this is my first time experiencing Baldur’s Gate 3, I’m happy to report that the finished product is wildly fun and extremely well polished.

First, a bit of background. Baldur’s Gate 3 is literally Dungeons & Dragons 5e with a premade story for you to follow, and it makes for such a good alternative. D&D’s already a game beloved by many, but it’s held back by physical limitations and lots of prep work. What you lose in unbridled creativity both in storytelling and combat encounters in D&D, you gain in the ease of booting up a video game and the ability to play with friends from anywhere in the world in Baldur’s Gate 3. I’ve yet to try the co-op in, but if it works well, this game could really replace your D&D game nights.

Related: Baldur’s Gate 3 Multiplayer Guide – How to Play With Friends

I’ve barely scratched the surface with my 10 hours, but from what I’ve played, Baldur’s Gate 3 is a remarkable experience with a genuinely impressive amount of player freedom — whether that be through character and class customization, world-altering decisions, or absolutely bonkers combat encounters and equally bonkers ways you can get out of starting a fight.

Make it Pink! Make it Blue! – The Customization

The graphics in Baldur’s Gate 3 are gorgeous, and it’s best shown in the first minutes of the game when you create your character. The detail and level of customization are impressive. I’m not one for extremely detailed character customizations that allow you to determine cheek depth and jaw tautness, so I love Baldur’s Gate 3’s refined character creation. The selection of races is wonderful — they are all visually stunning and so much fun to customize. You can spend hours just customizing your character, and trust me, I have. I also really love how there are trans and non-binary options; the more diversity and representation, the better. You can even customize your character’s genitalia, which is cool (you can also turn off all nudity, which is equally cool).

Baldur’s Gate 3 wouldn’t be a D&D game without multiple classes, subclasses, and multiclassing. At launch, Baldur’s Gate 3 has 12 classes and 46 subclasses to choose from. After you’ve chosen your class, you either get to choose your subclass immediately or unlock your options at level two. Also, at level two, you can begin multiclassing into any of the 11 other classes. And then there’s Feats which offer even more minute class customization. You can truly make any class you want in Baldur’s Gate 3. The buildcrafting potential is strong, but you also don’t get punished for picking whatever race, background, class, and subclass you find to be the coolest, a balance that’s really important.

D&D Made Easy… But It’s Not Easy – The Gameplay

Yeah, figuring out puzzles and making decisions is cool, but we all know the combat is what’s really important. I love the turn-based combat in Baldur’s Gate 3 — it’s almost identical to Divinity: Original Sin 2. The skills, spells, and combat roles your individual character contributes feel really solid for those familiar with RPGs. I also find the hotbar UI really easy to understand and navigate, which is a huge win. The downside is I’ve experienced some awkward mechanics that make combat slightly less enjoyable. Like how you might want to hit someone with a melee attack but your character took a few extra steps and now you’re just barely out of reach. Or when you aim a spell and need to finagle your line of sight because it’ll only line up with the enemy’s toe. And while there is a difficulty setting, combat in Baldur’s Gate 3 is challenging. Consider running away when things are too tough or reloading a save (quick save often!) when a bad roll results in you fighting 10 enemies that are a level above you.

Just like D&D, Baldur’s Gate 3 features skill checks. In conversations, these skill checks are manual dice rolls that can have pluses and minuses based on your proficiencies and spells. Everywhere else in the world, skill checks are automatically performed as you walk around — like perception checks when looking for traps, stealth checks when sneaking past enemies, and survival checks when looking for treasure. I’m a big fan of these skill checks, especially the manual ones, because it adds that tactile D&D feel of choice and chance that makes successes and failures carry more weight.

However, with skill checks, I wish there was an option to turn on all dice rolls instead of seeing only visible dice rolls in conversations. I know the percentage by an enemy is all you need to know to quickly consider the AC check and saving throw chance, but I think all the automatic dice rolls behind the scenes can inhibit the player’s understanding of the core combat system, which is both a positive and a negative I suppose. I just think the option would be nice.

Related: Does Baldur’s Gate 3 Have Controller Support?

Besides how good combat and skill checks are, the only downside I have with the gameplay is the lack of a beginner-friendly tutorial. The intro of the game, which takes about an hour, serves as an appetizer to introduce you to combat, decision-making, exploring the world, and solving puzzles, but if I wasn’t already familiar with how Larian Studios’ games work, since I played and loved Divinity: Original Sin 2, I think I would’ve struggled to learn the ropes during this short “tutorial,” if you can call it that. I wish there was a more detailed or in-depth showcase of how to play Baldur’s Gate 3 to help people that are new to Larian Studios’ games and new to D&D.

And, of course, we can’t forget about romance. Anyone who’s been following Baldur’s Gate 3 is aware that you can have sex with a Druid shape-shifted into a bear, and there is a lot of fantasy lust fulfillment in Baldur’s Gate 3, but what’s really taken me by surprise is the opportunity for deep romantic connections. I’m gonna be honest, I started romancing Shadowheart to just get the juicy sex scene (for science), but when our relationship finally got to the point where we went on a nighttime date, I found myself leaning into getting to know her and building our relationship subtlely — I even ended the night with a kiss. There were plenty of opportunities for me to get right to it and have a one-night stand, but I find it fascinating that the romance can be deeper than that. I was expecting Mass Effect where the end goal is sex and was surprised to find that Baldur’s Gate 3’s romance is much more mature, in more ways than one.

Mind Flayin’ Fun – The Story

Right after customizing your character and pressing “Venture Forth,” you’re immediately launched into a dramatic cutscene that features mind flayers, dragons, and realm hopping. There might not have ever been a more immediate, action-packed opening than what we get with Baldur’s Gate 3. And the story just continues to evolve from there. The first main goal is to deal with the tadpole that’s been planted in your brain that’s supposed to turn you into a mind flayer but hasn’t, but the story’s scope grows even bigger when your Guardian meets you one night and hints at a cosmic war being waged. It’s all high fantasy excellence, but not the kind that reeks of pretentiousness and fluff.

Related: Is Baldur’s Gate 3 Coming to Xbox?

While the grand overarching story is really interesting and I definitely want to experience more, the micro stories found in sidequests and the Origin characters’ backgrounds and interactions with each other are just as strong a motivator for me to keep playing — sometimes even more so. For example, I really like the characters Wyll and Karlach, but both of their life goals are to kill each other. Because of my specific choices, I guided Wyll and Karlach to understand one another and to form a budding friendship. However, every choice has a consequence; Wyll’s magical patron appeared and turned him into a demon for not honoring his pact. Wyll is forever a demon going forward in my campaign which is such an interesting story arc for him. Wyll and Karlach’s relationship doesn’t have anything to do with the tadpool story, but it’s mini-stories like this that make discovering the next big story detail feel like a lived-in adventure that I’m in charge of.

Choose Wisely – The Choices

D&D is known for being an open-ended game with infinite choices. While Baldur’s Gate 3 isn’t that, and can’t realistically be without the help of an insanely powerful AI-run system the likes of which doesn’t exist (yet), there are tons of exciting choices to make, all of which can drastically change the outcome of specific encounters and the story at large. One silly example is you can persuade an army of goblins to let you pass or call upon some troll friends you made earlier to fight them all. There are more serious examples, too, like if you should have an entire tiefling refugee camp exterminated by siding with the goblins. Or you can find the head Druid to continue a spell that will keep the tiefling camp safe until everyone can evacuate to Baldur’s Gate. The stakes are sometimes large and sometimes small, but the choices always present multiple routes forward, all led by you.

Going back to my Wyll and Karlach example, there were multiple opportunities for me to side with Wyll and kill Karlach, or stick to Karlach’s side and kill Wyll for being the problem. I could have drastically changed my entire party’s story, including mine, by choosing to kill Karlach or Wyll, but I chose the middle ground, and Wyll became a demon because of it. Each decision so far has felt so personal and distinct to my campaign, which makes me want to play different campaigns with different friend groups to see just how far we can take it.

My Final Thoughts So Far

I’ve only been playing Baldur’s Gate 3 for about 10 hours, but if I had to give it a score, I would give it a 4.5/5. I think Baldur’s Gate 3 could easily be GOTY for people familiar with Larian Studios’ games and D&D. I also think people unfamiliar with either Larian Studios’ or D&D could struggle to find their groove with Baldur’s Gate and consider it more of a 4/5. I still want to play Baldur’s Gate 3 co-op and I want to experience more of the story with higher-level combat, but my temporary score of 4.5/5 is because of the phenomenal stories, customization, choice variety, and gameplay. What currently holds it back from a perfect score is how the clunkiness of gameplay mechanics can sometimes hold you back from playing the story your way, and how new players are tossed into a jarring game.

Besides that, Baldur’s Gate 3 is so good so far; the more progress I make, the more hooked I become. Every moment I’m not playing Baldur’s Gate 3, I wish I was… so let me wrap this up — go play Baldur’s Gate 3! It’s a defining RPG that masterfully blends all that’s brilliant about D&D into an equally convenient and engaging video game.

Disney is expanding their presence in the video game scene with Disney Illusion Island. In this cute and quirky platformer, you play as Disney classic characters Mickey, Minnie, Donald, or Goofy and make your way through a vast world to return Toems stolen from the Hokuns. There are three sections to explore with a Toem in each. Along the way you gain new tools and abilities.

Gameplay

As you begin to dive into the world and expand beyond the area you start in, you’ll notice your map get larger, and larger. It’s definitely a Metroidvania map with a lot to uncover, all connected, with different things available in certain sections based on what abilities you’ve unlocked. This may seem overwhelming at first but as you get used to your abilities and side tasks (which are slowly introduced to give players time to adjust) you begin to know what to look for and where. There is always a Mickey Mouse sign marker that shows where the current objective is, even if that section of the map has yet to be uncovered, so you at least have an idea of where to head.

A really big plus to the game, for me, is the ability to play solo or multiplayer. I find that sometimes with platformers that give this option, it’s much better one way or the other. However, Disney Illusion Island has seamlessly offered a great experience either way. Since this is such a kid-friendly game, it makes it a great option for parents to play with their young kids. The only downside to multiplayer is everyone has to be on the same page as to where you’re going or your character will get lost off-screen.

Another feature that opens this game up to multiple audiences is the way that difficulty options are handled. All that happens is you have more or less lives at a time depending on what kind of playstyle you prefer. For players who prefer to follow the story and have a chill game, or even for young children just learning to play, there are three lives. For those who are more experienced with the gameplay and enjoy the challenge of a Metroidvania, there is one life. Of course, there’s also an in-between option for anyone looking for a bit of both with two lives.

I will say, for those looking for a challenge, the only time you really experience Illusion Island’s challenge (even with just one life) is in the battles for the Toems. There are many save points around the map that prevents much back-tracking when you lose all your lives. This is a benefit to new, easy-going players, but more experienced players may find this too easy.

Lovable Side Characters

In addition to the crew of four, you’ll also see some other fun recurring side characters that help you along your journey or are part of the story. When you begin the game, you’re tricked into the forest for a fake picnic by the adorable Hokuns who need the Toems back. These bunny-like creatures are humorous and sweet, difficult to hate. But my personal favorite is Mazzy, who the crew notes always seems to show up just when you need him. He’s an inventor crocodile who personalizes items to help Mickey, Minnie, Donald, and Goofy along the way to unlock new areas. These are just a few of many examples of the NPCs you’ll encounter that add so much to the experience by breaking up your time hopping from one area to the next.

Dialogue and Art

I always got excited to see another character come onto screen because the dialogue was surprisingly enjoyable. Instead of just sticking to the basics of what you need to do, it is written in a very engaging sense, with humor and personality for each character, including the NPCs. The jokes are clean fun the whole family will find funny but not juvenile to the point that adults won’t enjoy them on its own.

As you’d expect from Disney, the cutscenes play very much like a television show. I found myself often forgetting I was playing a game and not watching TV. I also appreciated the modern take on the character style with influence from the classic cartoons. There’s a fresh look with a bit of nostalgic touch. These things combined made the cutscenes very enjoyable to watch.

Good for Kids and Adults

Whether you’re looking to pick this up and play it with the littles in your life or you’re looking to play it for yourself, this is a quick and enjoyable platformer with a lot to offer. It’s something that’s an enjoyable, laid-back play. However, if you want a challenge you may want to turn to another title.

When Remnant: From the Ashes was released in 2019, it took a while to gain popularity. This could be because an unrecognized developer created it at the time, or it could be due to the fact that it was a third-person shooter inspired by the souls-like genre. Either way, the original Remnant gathered a cult following due to its brutal combat and addicting structure. Fast forward four years later, and we have Remnant 2, a sequel that looked promising from the start of its marketing cycle. It promises improved gameplay mechanics and even more replayability. So how does Remnant 2 hold up? I’d say pretty well.

Right at the start of Remnant 2, you can’t help but be impressed by how the game looks visually. The colors of the first level, as you make your way through the sewers filled with rot, really pop on screen, making you instantly realize that you’re playing a sequel. All levels, also known as biomes, look uniquely beautiful and testify to how far Gunfire Games has come regarding the Remnant universe. What makes this so great is that these worlds are constantly changing as you can reroll the campaign and play the story over again, with each run feeling unique compared to the last. With that said, though, stunning graphics is only part of what makes a game great. How does Remnant 2 do with combat and story?

Combat and Gameplay – Both Familiar and New

What made Remnant: From the Ashes’ combat so satisfying was the feel of the controls, which is essential to how it works in the souls-like subgenre. That said, it had some issues that needed to be addressed, and I’m pleased to say that Remnant 2 takes care of them.

Combat is improved upon the first in more ways than one. The nature of making decisive actions is still there to create a challenging experience, arguably even more. Still, it’s more accessible to the player as builds have the potential to be developed into something that wasn’t possible in the original.

There are an incredible amount of ways you can go about your build in Remnant 2: through the use of rings, fragments, weapon mods, and mutators, but most importantly, Archetypes. Archetypes can be considered the same as classes from other games, where each has unique abilities and specializations. 

Selecting an Archetype isn’t the end to “choosing a class,” though, as the game allows you to mix two Archetypes as you progress further into the game. Combining two makes for some unique builds and gives the player leniency in deciding what kind of build they would like to create. For example, I ran the handler and hunter Archetype together on my character, which provided buff support on the Handler side of things but long-range precision from the Hunter Archetype. This system that Gunfire Games has created allows for replayability and customization freedom.

Speaking of replayability, Remnant 2 has the most out of any game I have played in a very long time. This stems from the reroll campaign option similar to the mechanic in Remnant: From the Ashes, where you can start over the main story from the beginning, but everything will be different now. This includes the level you start on, the enemies and bosses you encounter, and even the order of cutscenes and puzzles. It’s the same premise as in the original, but there’s more reason to do it in the sequel, as the changes are even more significant.

Bosses shine through in Remnant 2 with incredible designs that left me in awe. Despite the way the bosses look, I fear a lack of balance is present. It’s understandable to have a range of difficulties for bosses, but some are weak as all get out, and others are straight-up overpowered. Before you say, “You’re probably just bad at the game,” I can assure you that may very well be true, but these types of games should provide plausible solutions and a trial-and-error playstyle for the player instead of having to rely on pure luck. This fact is especially true for a game like Remnant 2, considering the game’s fundamental boils down to its souls-like gameplay.

Remnant 2 has a great share of puzzles that are so complex that it left me scratching my head for hours (literally). Rarely do I find a game that requires so much thinking to find a solution, something that should be present more in video games. It will sometimes cause frustration for the player, but once you bring it upon yourself or your co-op buddy to find the answer to the puzzle, it feels fantastic and incredibly rewarding as the game makes you feel a real sense of satisfaction for your determination and hard work.

Story and Lore – Leave Much to Be Desired

Remnant 2 takes place several decades after the original story, in a world where a dangerous Root is taking over, and it is up to the player to stop it once and for all. Boring, right? That’s because it is. This is where Remnant 2 lacks severely — the story is nothing to write home about, and that fact shows in its boring dialogue. I often wanted to skip over NPC’s conversations because they didn’t offer much value except for maybe a clue or a little lore detail. Speaking of lore, you can tell that Gunfire Games gave it its all in that regard, which I applaud, but it’s also a clear testament to the fact that the studio does other things better.

The discovery of NPC’s hidden well in the world, a staple of lore in souls-like games, is present in the game, and I encountered some incredible-looking character designs on my journey. But, I never felt the need to revisit most of them outside of receiving a secret item or a clue towards a side quest. I say “most” of the NPCs are pointless because some are indeed great at world-building of the current level you’re on, but I just wish there was more depth to them. It would have been nice for some of these characters to add more value, such as vendors I could stop by mid-run instead of returning to the hub. Regardless, sometimes it felt like these well-hidden characters are randomly placed there just because and with no substantial reason, and that is a real shame.

If you’re looking for a game that is story driven and will keep you intrigued, this isn’t the one for you. This is clearly a game that focuses more on the combat and gameplay experience, which is okay, but it negates and hinders the reason why we fans wanted to revisit the Remnant universe in the first place.

Performance Issues

For the most part, Remnant 2 ran just fine on my PlayStation 5. Occasionally, my character would get stuck, or the game completely crashed on me, but not enough for it to ruin the entire experience. It can be frustrating and unacceptable, especially when the original had so many issues on the console. Still, it runs 100 times better than Remnant: From the Ashes, as it should, considering it’s next-gen, and console players should have no worries picking this up on their home console. I can’t speak for Xbox, but if you’re a PlayStation 5 player, then have at it.

Verdict

Remnant 2 feels like a love letter to the fans of the first, with an emphasis on replayability and some new features. The different experiences the game can generate from one person to the next are impressive, as each run feels unique. Combat feels great, and the freedom in build creation is a huge improvement over its predecessor. Still, some issues with the game’s core may leave some disappointed. The story is lacking, it can run into performance issues, and the world-building leaves much to be desired. Regardless, if you’re looking for more Remnant, the sequel will please you and scratch that itch.

Exoprimal is an especially unique title from Capcom. Through an apocalyptic meeting of past and future, players are able to battle hordes of dinosaurs with high-tech gear while trying to unravel the plots of a sinister AI mastermind. This online-based game seeks to combine team-based shooter combat and player-vs-player action. There’s a lot to love about Exoprimal, but its focus on so much at once might still leave a lot to be desired.

Visiting the Future and Experiencing the Past

Exoprimal is set in the years 2043 and 2040, with players continuously visiting the latter time period to participate in wargames constructed by the AI Leviathan. Progressing through these wargames allows players to unravel the mystery of why they were brought to the past and why their ship crashed in the present. There aren’t a whole lot of different places to explore both within and outside of the wargames, but the setting itself is compelling enough to draw players in and unravel Exoprimal’s many mysteries.

While learning more about the world of Exoprimal, players — as the mute Ace exofighter — will commonly engage in banter with their ship’s crew. These characters, while occasionally snarky and sarcastic, are well-rounded enough to keep from being too grating or annoying. Unfortunately, actually uncovering the story quickly begins losing its appeal, as much of the game’s backstory is presented as voiceovers with a few images of characters floating on the screen. Considering how well the game’s actual cutscenes are presented, it’s unfortunate that there wasn’t more time put into those instead.

Leviathan itself also happens to get particularly grating across multiple matches thanks to its repetitive voice lines and lack of wider personality traits. While it shows some more interesting traits occasionally, they only truly appear before or after wargames, with most of its notable lines only relating to how fast or slow you’re going compared to opponents. Other interesting characters show up throughout the story as you progress further and each Exosuit has its own voice and personality, so — fortunately enough — things don’t get too dull during gameplay.

Visually, Exoprimal is impressive. Performance-wise, it’s fantastic. Despite its high PC requirements, players can easily enjoy the game on a wide variety of platforms without a hitch. Any slowdowns are minor at worst, and the game’s quality isn’t heavily downgraded when playing at low settings. There should be no problems in at least testing how the game runs, allowing anyone on the fence to dive into a couple of matches and see what it truly has to offer.

Fast-Paced Dino Destruction

To survive in the world of Exoprimal, players need to take control of many different Exosuits. These can be swapped during missions, allowing many roles to be performed at once. They also come with their own unique weapons to make each playstyle feel truly unique, though some obviously excel in a wider range of areas than others. There might not be a whole lot that players can do with a single suit, but smart switching and good team synergy makes for some varied and fun battles.

Unfortunately, the core gameplay loop lacks a lot of this variety. Early in the game, players will find themselves in a constant cycle of mindlessly gunning down dinosaur hordes before being placed in a final mission. This ranges from escorting a target to its destination or simply gunning down more hordes, with the biggest variance being the addition of rival Exosuits or a player-controlled dinosaur. Later on, objectives become far more varied with the additions of Neosaurs and fully cooperative story-based missions. As fun as those additions are, the lack of variance at the start will almost certainly turn many first-time players away.

How one performs in Exoprimal will depend entirely on how well their team plays with each other. There are a few basic commands available to everyone on top of a voice chat feature that’s always on by default. That is, unfortunately, the extent of communication features. You aren’t able to direct your team to use specific Exosuits or to have a specific teammate pick up the player-controlled Dominator dinosaur. Text chat is a non-feature, so anyone without a microphone is unable to do a thing… and anyone with a microphone might not even know they’re using it. For a game with such intense focus on being competitive, it lacks the options to let more players take advantage of good strategy and teamwork.

It should also be noted that there are very few ways in which you’ll be able to focus on player-vs-environment (PvE) instead of player-vs-player (PVP) gameplay. Even though you have the option to choose which version you want at the start of a match, all it serves is to determine whether you fight enemy players during the final mission. You’ll still have to race them throughout the match to complete objectives faster, and you’ll even need to fight their controlled dinosaur if they decide to use a Dominator. This is to be expected considering the game’s heavy focus on mixing both gameplay styles, though it would have been nice to have a wider range of modes.

This also leads to the game’s greatest weakness, turning it from a promising new experience to one that might become outdated faster than some would expect.

Modern Systems Used in Prehistoric Ways

Exoprimal manages to keep very stable gameplay despite its online nature. But the biggest problem with the game is that it’s always online. Even with the existence of bots, players must always be playing multiplayer if they wish to enjoy the game outside of training mode. Without offline, the game simply cannot be played. This makes sense for most competitive games, but as the main opponents in Exoprimal are NPC dinosaurs, it’s simply another restriction on a game that already lacks player choice.

Because of how the game is structured, it’s difficult to experiment with lesser-used Exosuits outside of training. The lack of solo play combines with the constant competitive aspect of Exoprimal and leads to ever-present pressure to do well. If one team member falls behind, the rest of them have no chance as dinosaur hordes swarm them and the other team steamrolls whatever’s in its way. A mode solely based on PvE is coming to the game in a future free update, but it shouldn’t need so much time after release to share such essential content with fans. The longer the game stays in its current state, the less encouragement new players will have to even attempt improvement.

Even with future updates, it will all mean nothing if Capcom never decides to add an offline mode. As it stands, the story can only be completed by playing through multiple online matches, and the game can only be experienced to its fullest by going through the company’s servers. If those servers ever go offline, then this game will die out completely, and no number of Neosaurs or new Exosuits will change that. In other words, this game will inevitably have a death date. The only way this changes is if Capcom adds single-player options in the future, and there has been no indication that they’ll ever do so.

It was stated from the start that Exoprimal would be a team-focused competitive title. But the fact remains that it doesn’t need to be, especially since the game has well-made bots, fairly engaging story content, and perfectly acceptable PvE gameplay. It would be a shame to see this game go the way of others that didn’t need to always be online, with services ended not long after launch and no way to access the actually fun parts.

Verdict

Exoprimal is a very fun game with baffling limitations imposed upon its players. Lack of early-game content and forced competitive modes will almost certainly push most newcomers away. Those willing to stay will simply have to watch the clock tick down on this always-online title before its services end and it becomes utterly unplayable. It’s especially a shame because Exoprimal itself has fantastic gameplay with varied Exosuits and some great content further in, but it lacks some of the most essential features a game like this should have.

There’s always the possibility that it will get better, but a full-priced game from a high-profile company such as Capcom shouldn’t have to rely on possibilities. The game should have been delayed to let that content arrive on release instead of letting player counts bleed from a lackluster launch. Without support from the fans, the game will eventually lose its services and end up completely unplayable. However good Exoprimal might be eventually won’t matter if no one can enjoy its content anymore.

Embark on a thrilling adventure with Aliens: Dark Descent — a squad-based action game set in the iconic Alien franchise by publisher Focus Entertainment and Developer Tindalos. As the commander of a team of tough Colonial Marines, you will end a dangerous Xenomorph outbreak on Lethe. Experience intense real-time combat as you face off against infamous Xenomorphs, rogue operatives from the insatiable Weyland-Yutani Corporation, and a range of new, terrifying creatures in the Alien franchise. If you’re a die-hard fan of the Aliens franchise, Aliens: Dark Descent is a game you simply cannot miss and becomes one of the best Aliens video games, despite having a few shortcomings.

The Story

The USS Otago is currently on its shakedown run as it enters the atmosphere of Lethe, a moon, in the year 2198. At the same time, the Brettonville shuttle docks at Pioneer Station to deliver its cargo. However, an infiltrator unlocks the crates, revealing them to contain dangerous facehuggers and a fierce Warrior Xenomorph. After narrowly escaping, Hayes activates the Cerberus protocol, which Weyland-Yutani created, to enforce a planetary quarantine should an unforeseen event like a Xenomorph infestation happen.

Unfortunately, the protocol also resulted in the partial destruction of the Otago, which crashed into Lethe. During this process, Hayes is attacked by a Warrior Xenomorph but rescued by Sergeant Jonas Harper and his team of Colonial Marines. Together, they flee the station and head towards the damaged Otago. Harper is then appointed as the leader of the remaining Marines, while Hayes takes charge of the bridge.

At this stage of Aliens: Dark Descent, you take charge of your squad of Marines, marking the start of the game. Without giving too much away, the storyline draws significant inspiration from Aliens 1-3, staying true to the franchise. The writing is exceptional, the characters fleshed out, and you will want to keep playing to see what happens to the Otago next, giving it that “just one more mission” factor.

Commanding Your Marines

In Aliens: Dark Descent, players assume the role of a commander leading a team of four US Marines across different colonies and bases on Lethe. However, the design decision that requires you to control the entire squad instead of individual Marines feels like a mistake. Although you can issue specific orders to each Marine in the squad, there is a limitation to what you can control. For instance, you can give individuals a task outside combat but can’t deploy your squad around a room and focus on a choke point from multiple angles. This is because each unit makes up a piece of your squad, and they must move and attack as a group while in formation. To make up for this, you can deploy turrets to cover those areas, but they break easily when attacked by Xenomorphs, and your entire crew will need to travel together to fix it because your squad is vulnerable when not together.

Initially, the limitation wasn’t much of a problem, but as the game progressed, it caused more complications. This was particularly noticeable when trying to rescue civilians, as they insisted on standing in front of the squad, acting as human shields instead of following behind as they would in reality. As a result, there were some aggravating instances where you had to modify your strategy or make the tough decision to restart a mission if one of them was slain by a Xenomorph.

After completing a mission, your Marines may have experienced injuries and trauma from battling Xenomorphs and cultists. This can cause them to become tired and emotionally affected, which will cause adverse status effects (or take them out of the action altogether). To address these issues, you must assign them to Medbay, where their injuries can be healed and their emotional traumas can be worked through. However, it’s important to note that this process takes time, and you may have to strategize and rotate in healthier Marines until your squad is back to full strength. This realistic aspect of Aliens: Dark Descent is highly appreciated, as it sheds light on the challenges and difficulties soldiers face in war, especially against foes as formidable as Xenomorphs.

Customizing Your Squad

In Aliens: Dark Descent, one of the most exciting features is the ability to customize your squad completely. You have complete authority over each member, from their appearance to their name. Moreover, you can select from five classes: Medic, Recon, Sergeant, Gunner, and Tecker, and assign each member with unique abilities that make them an unstoppable unit. It’s no surprise that they’re the ultimate Xenomorph killing squad in the Aliens franchise. For instance, the Tecker can deploy a drone that can weld/unweld doors and attack Xenomorphs, the medic can reduce stress levels when healing damage, and the Sergeant can boost the stats of your entire squad. You have complete control over how you construct your squad of Marines, and there is no incorrect answer, which is fantastic.

You can also build a large stable of reserve Marines stationed on the Otago when not assigned to your squad. Although your squad can only consist of four Marines, you can enroll the remaining Marines in rigorous training to automatically increase their levels when not being used. This unique feature distinguishes the game from other tactical games where units remain idle. Although you may not utilize every Marine on the Otago, they will be helpful when your squad needs to rest or if one of your Marines dies (RIP Recon E. Smith, you served me well). While the replacement Marines may not be as experienced or powerful as the ones they are replacing, they are still a better option than an unrealistic level 1 unit.

You will develop a strong bond with your squad as you nurture your marines, molding them from inexperienced recruits into battle-hardened veterans. Personalizing their names, experiences, classes, and abilities to complement those of their three squad mates makes losing a squad member devastating, prompting a desire to restart the mission to get them back (which will lose you hours of progress if you choose the No One Can Hear Them Scream save system option).

Fighting Xenomorphs

In Aliens: Dark Descent, players are given a preview of the Xenomorph type they will encounter during a specific mission through well-crafted cutscenes. These scenes are awe-inspiring, comparable to the movies, leaving players anxious about their inevitable encounters during the mission. For example, players witness a facehugger attacking crew members at the start of the game. As the mission progresses, players must quickly kill a wave of facehuggers to keep them from impregnating their squad members.

The combat experience is quite enjoyable despite the poor sound effects. By accessing the skills menu of your squad, you can either slow down time or pause the game entirely. This allows you to order your squad members to attack the Xenomorphs in various ways based on the current situation. However, you only have a certain number of Command Points in combat, which are the number of commands you can issue to your Marines, making every action count as they take time to respawn.

For example, if there’s just a single Drone Xenomorph, you can instruct your Recon Marine to take it down with a single long-range headshot using her sniper rifle before it sees you and alerts other Xenomorphs. Alternatively, you can have the gunner set up his smart gun on a tripod while he completes an objective, keeping the rest of the squad safe. Finally, when you’re overwhelmed (which is bound to happen), you can use explosives like a grenade that will damage Xenomorphs and cause a stasis field that slows them down if they didn’t die in the initial blast, giving your marines extra time to mop up. Other fun weapons include an RPG, Incinerator, Plasma Gun, Sub-Machine, Landmine, etc… You have many weapons and tools for your specific playstyle.

Visuals

I played Aliens: Dark Descent on Steam Deck. As a fan of the game’s cutscenes, I invested hours adjusting my settings to achieve the best possible graphics without compromising performance. Despite the game not being optimized for Steam Deck and receiving an Unsupported rating through Valve, I pushed it to its limits and was thoroughly impressed with the graphical results. Interestingly, my dad, who introduced me to the Aliens franchise during my childhood, was captivated by the Xenomorphs and couldn’t help but glance at my screen during the cutscenes.

For the remainder of the game, you will switch between a third-person overhead view to command your squad during missions on Lethe or navigate through graphical menus with animated backgrounds to manage the crew of the Otago. The art assets used for both perspectives are of good quality, typical of similar games in the genre. Though not revolutionary, the graphics are executed well enough to maintain the immersive gameplay experience and give it that extra flavor that brings Lethe and the Otago to life (Jonesy included).

If you are playing Aliens: Dark Descent on a traditional PC, especially with a high-performance gaming setup, you can expect an impressive visual experience without major hiccups or configuration issues. But don’t fret if your machine is less powerful because, as I have seen with testing on my mid-range Lenovo gaming laptop, the game can still provide an enjoyable experience.

Sounds and Music

The most extensive critique of Aliens: Dark Descent is its sound design. The sounds were inconsistent, as some aspects are authentic to the franchise while others are not. This broke the immersion and was a huge disappointment. For instance, the sounds of your squad walking are janky, the loud sounds of the squad yelling out commands got old very quickly, and the background noises of the settlements caused disruption when the squad talked with the Otago. In addition, the sounds of the Xenomorphs and iconic weapons sounds, like the Pulse Rifle and Smart Gun, in Aliens: Dark Descent is better than in previous Aliens games (Alien Vs. Predator 3, I’m looking at you), but they were still off and not authentic to the franchise (and often annoying).

The absence of music in certain areas of the game, particularly while on the Otago and during mission deployment and recaps, is puzzling. While the music on the title screen and during cutscenes are fitting and reminiscent of scores from Alien and Aliens, it simply wasn’t enough. Fans of the Aliens franchise expect epic music that matches the sci-fi franchise, and the absence is noticeable. The only hope is that modding will be allowed, so that sound effects and music can improve the almost-perfect experience.

One redeeming quality of the sound design is the witty one-liners from the Marines that bring to mind the Marines from Aliens. These lines are so enjoyable that you may even catch yourself repeating them in your everyday life. For instance, when you weld a door shut, one of the Marines exclaims, “You shall not pass, f#@kers!” Another humorous line is uttered after taking down a wave of Xenomorphs: “That gun’s a freakin’ lawn mower!” Each Marine has a different personality, which shines through when deployed on Lethe.

Verdict – Game Over Man, GAME OVER!

Aliens: Dark Descent is a fantastic addition to the iconic Alien franchise’s vast and often disappointing collection of video games. The story is seamlessly integrated into the universe, and you’ll come face-to-face with the iconic Xenomorphs that have instilled fear in fans for decades. While some may find the inconsistent sound design, lack of epic music, and limited squad commands as major drawbacks, they don’t detract from the overall experience. On the contrary, it’s one of the best Aliens video games that immerse fans in the beloved universe while providing thrilling action that they’ll remember for a long time.

In the 90s, Squaresoft brought together some of the industry’s most talented individuals to create a “dream team” with the goal of creating one of the greatest RPGs of all time. That development team included all-stars like Final Fantasy creator Hironobu Sakaguchi, Dragon Quest creator Yuji Horii, and Dragon Ball author and character designer Akira Toriyama among others. This meeting of minds gave rise to Chrono Trigger, one of the best games of its generation and one of the most celebrated games of all time.

Now, Square Enix finds itself in a similar situation with Final Fantasy XVI. Producer Naoki Yoshida has even referred to XVI’s development team as a dream team himself in pre-release interviews, and they’ve got the credentials to back it up. Of course, Yoshida helms the critically-acclaimed MMO Final Fantasy XIV and plenty of those MMO devs have followed him into XVI’s development, but there are also the likes of Ryota Suzuki, the game’s combat director who worked on Devil May Cry 5, Dragon’s Dogma, and Marvel vs. Capcom 2, and Masayoshi Soken, one of the industry’s most beloved composers who continually churns out bangers for Final Fantasy XIV.

If you look at any of the names attached to Final Fantasy XVI, you’ll notice a history of exceptional work. That talent bleeds into every aspect of this game. As many of you already know from the game’s recently released demo, Final Fantasy XVI fires on all cylinders right out of the gate. As exciting as the demo is, however, things only ramp up from there. Final Fantasy XVI is an exhilarating adventure packed with plenty of pretty particle effects and larger-than-life Eikon battles interspersed between quiet, human moments of heartbreak, hatred, and most importantly of all, hope.

Welcome to Valisthea

Final Fantasy XVI is set in Valisthea, a dark fantasy world comprised of twin continents that rely on Mothercrystals as the backbone of society. These Mothercrystals, and smaller handheld crystals owned by commoners and elites alike, allow people to cast magic to aid with daily tasks like refilling wells, chilling food, and heating baths. There are some with the ability to cast magic without a crystal, but these people are immediately branded and forced into slavery as Bearers. In addition, a select chosen few are Dominants, powerful individuals with the ability to call upon the power of an Eikon.

Bearers, named for the Crystal’s Curse that they bear which slowly turns their bodies to stone as they continue to cast magic, are seen as subhuman in each of Valisthea’s kingdoms. It’s these Bearers that are the backbone of Final Fantasy XVI’s story, as protagonist Clive Rosfield finds himself embroiled in an underground rebellion amid his personal quest for revenge. XVI’s story continually puts new twists on its rules as Clive and his companions travel the Twins, and learning the intricacies of the relationships between Bearers, the Mothercrystals, Dominants, commoners, and the elite in each kingdom keeps the story interesting throughout its lengthy runtime.

Bearers of the Crystals’ Curse

XVI wrestles with the very real consequences of revolution, forcing its cast to confront the suffering that always precedes salvation. A major running theme throughout the game is that things will get worse before they get better. Clive’s actions are hurting people and making the lives of common folk that much more difficult in the short term. It’s equal parts heart-wrenching and inspiring to see Clive and his band of Cursebreakers rally people to their cause knowing that they’ll most likely lose their friends, family, and homes and not even see the fruits of their labors within their lifetime — and that’s if they even decide to hear Clive out in the first place.

Final Fantasy XVI’s side quests might as well be mandatory because they’re the best demonstration of these themes. The main story does a fine enough job, but really getting to know the people of Valisthea and their cultures will greatly enhance your experience with the game. Basically every optional quest in the game functions as a new lens of examination for Clive’s goals and morals. Pretty much every “well actually” thought that could be raised by an overly pedantic Redditor is answered in a side quest at some point.

Each of XVI’s quests is filled with smart writing that explores avenues of oppression that aren’t as obvious on the surface level but still hurt just as hard. One may be compelled to turn down their dream job to help with their sibling’s underground Bearer liberation efforts, for example, or a doctor may find themselves wracked with guilt over lost patients even if they’re doing everything they can. Loss extends beyond just dead people in Valisthea.

In addition, there are multiple side quest chains that progress alongside the main story, giving you updates on growing settlements and storylines that are central to Clive’s cause. The rewards for these might be lackluster if you’re only looking at the Gil and XP, but the lore and worldbuilding are the real rewards. Watching a settlement of newly-freed Bearers struggle to find their way, for example, is incredibly compelling. Some of them can’t even comprehend what having a home means, let alone be motivated to take up arms to defend it from monsters.

Where There’s a Chance, There’s a Choice

Still, despite its dark tone and overt Game of Thrones influence, Final Fantasy XVI is ultimately a hopeful tale. Clive’s group toils for the future of those yet to come, and XVI’s story goes to great lengths to show the importance of that. It’s a story about solidarity, about joining arms and standing side by side with your companions even if there’s only a 1% chance of a better future sometime down the line. In XVI’s eyes, complacency is cowardice.

It’s an incredibly important story for our day and age as we find ourselves feeling powerless and smothered by an oppressive atmosphere. When most are too apathetic about their situation to strive for change, and those that do have the will to invoke change are too worried about putting food on the table or living paycheck to paycheck, how do we as a society advance the greater good?

XVI asserts that our neighbors and friends are the wings on which we rise, but it also shows the reality that the power of friendship is not a magic bullet that cures all. It’s a harsh path to take — and it’s okay to be afraid or even angry at the hand you’ve been dealt — but selfless sacrifice for those yet to come is the only way we can grow. Things may seem fated to remain this way, but our will is stronger. We only need to take the first steps to tread a path for the generations that follow.

Again, the game’s side quests are the most effective demonstration of the flickers of hope we can find in hopeless situations. Whether it’s tending to the garden of a lost ally, finding a tasty treat for a furry friend, or gathering a group of friends to share a bottle of vintage wine, there are always brief snippets of happiness to be found throughout Valisthea. A world without little moments like this wouldn’t be worth saving, after all.

Valisthea Historia

If it sounds like Final Fantasy XVI is a dense game, then you’d be right. It demands your attention and requires you to learn the names of various kingdoms and characters, all while keeping track of manipulation and subterfuge that muddy the waters. That’s where Active Time Lore comes in. Active Time Lore is one of the game’s breakthrough features, allowing you to press the touchpad at any time — even during cutscenes — to access a web of brief codex entries for every relevant character, location, or proper noun in that scene.

It’s much more than simply reading a long codex entry in another RPG too, since Active Time Lore usually only provides a paragraph or two maximum with the most relevant information that you need for that scene. Plus, the entries are updated with new information as you progress through the game, so as mysteries are uncovered, new refreshers will be added. It also keeps track of any ongoing mysteries or questions, so you’ll be able to tell if you’ve genuinely forgotten something or if you’re not supposed to know an answer yet.

In addition, there’s a State of the Realm menu that can be accessed at the Hideaway, the game’s main hub area. This shows an interactive timeline and map that showcases a web of every character relationship in the game, complete with helpful hints along the connective lines that read “brother,” “sister,” “manipulating,” “attempted assassination,” and things like that. The map also changes as you progress along the timeline, allowing you to see borders grow and shrink throughout the story so you can keep tabs on each kingdom on the Twins.

Active Time Lore and State of the Realm are genuinely two of Final Fantasy XVI’s most impressive features because of their ease of use and continual updates throughout the story, and I hope to see more RPGs adopt something similar in the future. Imagine if you could watch a show like Game of Thrones for the first time all over again but still have all the knowledge you know now. That’s what Active Time Lore brings to the table. It’s like having a know-it-all friend on the couch next to you, only less annoying.

Active Time Battle

Final Fantasy XVI’s world and story deserve endless praise, but for the sake of this review, we’re moving on to the game’s other pillar: combat. While it may seem simple at first glance, Clive’s powers create a remarkably deep combat system.

Clive is armed with a basic sword attack and a ranged magic attack, but the two are meant to be alternated one after the other as your main combo string. On top of that, Clive can have up to three Eikons equipped at once, each with their own unique ability and two additional special attacks that operate on cooldowns. Stringing these together is the real meat of the combat, and choosing which Eikons to equip, when to use certain abilities, and leveling up abilities so you can use them with other active Eikons is where the bulk of build crafting takes place.

Of course, the combat designer on this game also gave us Devil May Cry 5 and Dragon’s Dogma, so you know there are fancy tricks that Clive can pull off during fights. Launching enemies into the air, using jump cancels to extend combos, and pulling off riskier parries in lieu of perfect dodges represent the tip of the iceberg with XVI’s combat depth.

Plus, there’s Torgal, Clive’s canine companion who serves as the only other directly controllable party member in the game. Clive can issue commands to Torgal during combat to extend his combos, and this powerful pup can launch enemies sky-high, extend combos both on the ground and in the air, and even slam foes down to the ground. There’s a lot to keep track of during XVI’s battles when you factor in Clive’s rhythmic sword/magic combo, Eikon ability cooldowns, and Torgal commands, but the feeling you get when you start to master these systems is a high that few games can match.

Eikonic Conflict

Simply put, Final Fantasy XVI has some of the best boss battles in any game ever. Final Fantasy is known for its scale and spectacle, but the PlayStation 5 breathes new life into these setpieces and makes them unbelievably gorgeous.

The game somehow continues to top itself with each new boss battle, and most of these fights had my jaw on the floor and left me wondering how something like this is even playable. Soken’s sweeping score is the cherry on top, decorating the blinding flashes of particle effects and epic scale with some of the most triumphant tracks I’ve ever heard.

XVI’s normal combat already has an unbelievable amount of visual flair, but boss battles make use of QTEs and jaw-dropping phase transitions to really sell the spectacle. Things heat up even more in Eikon vs. Eikon fights, many of which have already been showcased in pre-release trailers. The best of the bunch haven’t been showcased yet though, and the game keeps coming up with creative new ways for these massive magical beasts to demonstrate their abilities.

Smokin’ Sexy Style

Unlike Devil May Cry, Clive isn’t scored for stylish combos or fancy strings during the main game. However, there’s something for all you DMC junkies out there: arcade mode. This side mode lets you replay any of the game’s missions with fixed gear and a scoring system, giving you a reason to flex on those goblins and an outlet to scratch that Devil Trigger itch. If you really want to stretch this combat system as far as it can go, then arcade mode is for you.

If you’re looking for something to test your mettle, then you can start a playthrough on “Final Fantasy” mode after completing the main campaign. It’s technically New Game+, but it serves as Final Fantasy XVI’s postgame. It basically ramps things up from the ending difficulty-wise but places you right at the beginning of the game (after the introduction, saving you a headache and letting you dive straight into the action).

In a game where the level design and exploration aren’t the primary focus, especially in the main campaign stages that you’ll be replaying, adding new enemies and tougher bosses basically makes them brand-new levels. Yes, it’s the same set of locales, but when most of them are basically just fancy corridors, the enemies are what make them unique. If you aren’t typically a New Game+ enjoyer, you should still give Final Fantasy mode a chance.

The Verdict

If you couldn’t tell from the heaping amount of praise I’ve been showering on it, Final Fantasy XVI is one of the best RPGs in a long time. It’s easily the best non-MMO Final Fantasy (sorry, I’m one of those XIV stans). It’s ironic that a studio as plainly named as Creative Business Unit 3 is putting out some of the most creative, passionate, and heartfelt stuff in the industry at the moment.

Final Fantasy XVI is an outstanding achievement. Every part of it, from its characters to its combat, was put there with a purpose. Not only does it deliver satisfyingly slick action RPG combat in between masterfully directed cutscenes, but also a story with real heart. Most importantly, it’s incredibly clear that a team of creative individuals was behind every decision. There’s a human element that permeates every aspect of Final Fantasy XVI, and that’s what makes it so special.

Take a trip to a faraway land in a time of nostalgia with STORY OF SEASONS: A Wonderful Life. This title was originally called Harvest Moon: A Wonderful Life when it was created for the GameCube and PlayStation 2 in 2003 and has now been remastered and released on June 27, 2023 for PC, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X/S. If you love games like Stardew Valley, Sun Haven, My Time at Portia, and others, you have the original version of this game to thank, as it is one of the earliest cozy games. It takes you to a small island away from the city hustle and bustle to take over and maintain your late father’s farm. You sell your crops, animals, and other things produced on the farm to make enough income for your farm to grow and improve.

Character Creation – A Step in the Right Direction, But Limited

As a first-time player of A Wonderful Life, I was surprised there weren’t more customization options when it came to appearances. Coming into this from games like Sun Haven and Stardew Valley that were created long since A Wonderful Life — and the fantastic customization options you get in some other modern titles — I’ve grown used to the options. Sure, it’s built from an older game, but reworking it can be an opportunity to add some more options.

An important piece that was added to the character customization and a changed mechanic of the game is the added they/them pronouns, the ability to pick your pronouns no matter what your character looks like, and (as you find out as you begin to play) the ability to marry any of the marriage candidates regardless of the gender of your character, or theirs. It’s a necessary inclusive option for an RPG to incorporate and was a great use of an update to an old fan favorite.

Gameplay

Wandering this quiet town after fulfilling your farm chores in the early game is a great way to get to know some of the characters as well as some of the other activities available off the farm. Occasionally you’ll walk into a cutscene where you have conversations with people to learn more about what’s happening in the Forgotten Valley. The dialogue here can lead to some missions, such as getting the Goddess to appear in the spring.

As you usually see in this style of game, there is a bulletin board with various items the townspeople need that they will reward you for completing. Reading the board automatically accepts the task and there aren’t very many available at once. This does leave quite a bit of downtime in between missions but also leaves a great opportunity for fishing, setting up your shop, and getting to know more about the events offered in the other buildings in the area.

PC Mechanics – A Bit Off

While it didn’t stop me from enjoying the game as a whole, it was a learning curve to get used to some of the controls in the game on PC. I started off trying to move my line of sight by using my mouse but I had a much better time with my arrow keys. Once I got my movement down and could position my line of sight where I wanted, I went on to meet and name my farm and my animals. There’s a very limited number of characters for these names, and you cannot put spaces in the farm name, which stifled a bit of creativity.

In STORY OF SEASONS: A Wonderful Life, there are two menus. One is a game menu with options for saving, loading, audio, graphics, leaving the game, etc. The other is an items and quests type of menu that shows what is in your backpack, your relationships, accepted missions from the board, etc. It took me a minute to find the controls to open them. Typically Escape and Enter are my go-to buttons for menus, while these are Backspace and Tab.

Within the menus were a few other quirks. If there is an arrow for a particular selection, such as the number of items, you can’t use the mouse to click the arrow as it will close the menu you were looking at. When you’re ready to quit the game and looking to save, the naming isn’t intuitive — players will need to hit the Backspace button and select Write in Journal to save and Read Journal to load a previous save.

Beginner Friendly

Little things aside, I really enjoyed my time in the Forgotten Valley. It would be a great pick for someone just getting into farm RPG titles. In the beginning, you get a full walkthrough of your entire farm and how it works. The more you interact with items in the game, the more information it has for you that is always accessible to reference in case you’re like me and forget things after you’ve read them.

In addition to walking you through all the options for collecting items on your farm and how to take care of everything, you also get an introduction to all of the townspeople and what they do in the town. This is something I have felt is missing from a lot of cozy games, often feeling like trial by fire. Having the full rundown of everything without having to know someone who knows, look it up, or clumsily stumble into something cool made progress much more simple. As an added bonus, you can also function as an adult without a strictly enforced bedtime. You will eventually need to go to sleep to replenish stamina (or eat a bunch of food instead) but you won’t be promptly kicked off your farm in the middle of a task to make you sleep.

Verdict

All things considered there are some really great aspects of this game that make it a fun play. I highly recommend STORY OF SEASONS: A Wonderful Life for both beginners and experienced farming RPG veterans as it is its own unique experience. It is a little slower-paced than others, but this may make for a less overwhelming experience. The revamped art style is peaceful and cute to look at, the townspeople offer a variety of personalities to interact with, and there are several ways to make an income that are enjoyable options. The minor differences in how you may be used to playing are noticeable initially but don’t take away from the overall experience.

The Amnesia series has had a special impact on horror gaming since 2010. Ever since The Dark Descent, the series has shown its players the meaning of a truly great horror game once you remove the bulk of the action, instead leaning hard on the psychological terror. These games have been immersive and clever, and despite not always looking the greatest, the brand of atmospheric dread would shine through. In our review of Amnesia: The Bunker, we examine whether this latest sequel stacks up.

What Kind of Game is Amnesia: The Bunker?

Amnesia: The Bunker, much like the rest of the Amnesia games, is a first-person horror game focusing on exploration, careful rationing of supplies, and escaping deadly foes. They’ve historically never prioritized combat as the solution, which is the point: this, much like any of the other games, puts you in the role of a vulnerable protagonist, Henri Clément in this case.

As Henri, you wake up in an empty hospital bunk, seemingly completely abandoned. You have no recollection of what happened and must piece together the mystery while finding a way to safely escape and rejoin the fight. Here you’ll need to navigate dark passages, chase away pests, and even evade a deadly, tenacious beast that can take a hell of a beating while still poised to rip your head off.

Cruel, Unusual, and Exactly What I Like

As Henri, you begin the game narrowly escaping the horrible trench warfare characteristic of the war. Picture it: it’s mid-1916, merely days after the beginning of horrible offensives like the Battle of the Somme, with one of the highest death tolls of the entire war, and you’re under fire. Desperate to escape, you make it to apparent safety, with gas grenades thrown about, and gunfire picking away at you, you find yourself plunged into a deadly fall, only to wake up to something even more horrifying: the unknown.

This feels like a much more modern, polished-looking Amnesia than the original, and while it lacks similar stakes to those in Rebirth, the game’s survival and psychological elements feel far more immersive than ever. Instead of limited matches, tinderboxes, or lantern oil, you must find fuel for a generator that goes through your supply like a fleet of Hummers. What about the game’s solution for portable light? Do they give you a reasonable, helpful lantern in these trying times?

No, it’s a dinky, pathetic little dynamo flashlight ripped straight out of a 1919 Popular Mechanics article. The game even mocks how useless it is in war, its pull cord making an easily-audible noise that would alert anything wanting to kill you. You not only have to ration light like in the other games, but even the act of restoring that light will draw enemies to you. It’s cruel, unusual, and exactly what I like in a horror game.

Amnesia: Isolation

It’s safe to say Amnesia has been an incredibly influential game in the horror genre, turning it increasingly into a prestige genre for video gaming in general. There were stories to be told, suddenly, with experiential qualities of the genre on full display thanks to brilliant concepts put out by this series.

The Bunker also wisely adapts strong qualities from other great horror games of the past decade, and this is no more apparent than with the game’s stalker, a ghastly beast that resembles a twisted, monstrous humanoid on all-fours, yet still nimble enough to contort into the holes dotting the bunker.

This beast resembles other stalker enemies from the franchise but also takes cues from other great video game monsters. It can ambush you and be heard prowling for you like the Xenomorph in Alien: Isolation; it can be stunned, but shouldn’t be fought head-on like Mr. X in Resident Evil; and hits as hard as the Nemesis himself.

I was nervous about the prospect of having weapons in this game, but the ammo for them is terribly intentionally limited. Your best option every single time is to spare as much as you can and live to run screaming another day. Besides, the beast isn’t the only enemy you have to worry about, for better or for worse.

A Game Where It’s the Player’s Sanity, Not the Protagonist, That Can Run Out

There are a lot of pressure-filled moments in the claustrophobic corridors and tunnels hidden in the bunker. I remember more than a few instances of being trapped under bunkbeds of the soldiers’ barracks as the beast prowled around the room, anxious to take out my flashlight and even check the surroundings and plan a route of escape.

Feeling trapped in a video game is a difficult sensation to appreciate, without feeling softlocked. You’re kept there, by design, and you have to either play smart or run like hell when you mess up. There’s no sanity meter, but the heavy thumping of Henri’s heart sells the immersive feeling of terror when you’re being hunted. If you don’t have gas in the generator, it will actively seek you more often without provocation, and you will have to wander the bunker in these situations more than once.

There’s more than the beast, too, such as some upsettingly large rats. You can choose to try and sidestep them or kill them with fire or gas. Try your best not to run into them, as they chip away at your health. There’s also a non-zero number of human threats you can face, directly or indirectly, and I won’t spoil it any more than that.

Everything you do must be done carefully, which makes this the type of dread horror gamers should desire in their next experience. You get a revolver in the game, but sometimes when you reload your weapon, you’ll notice the bullets are not all next to each other in the cylinder. You can chalk this up to Henri clumsily putting them in there in a moment of panic, but this means you can accidentally dry fire upon an enemy expecting them to appear, so you’ll have to know when your next bullet will come.

That’s not all, but everything, from your revolver to grenades, to seemingly your medkits, all produce sound when used, and some are incredibly loud, drawing predators. You might find yourself weighing the options of just skulking in the dark and hoping to not get lost when you know you could get snapped up at any moment.

Despite this game not having a sanity meter, Amnesia: The Bunker is a game where it’s the player’s sanity, not the protagonist, that can run out. Even moments where you, as the player, make a mistake as simple as accidentally throwing an item you’re carrying, can be fatal errors, and it’s great.

The Issues

There aren’t any dealbreaker-tier issues I have with this game, with respect to how well-optimized it is despite being smallish. For ~16.38 GB I got a solid 10 hours of fun exploration, but some clear moments where the game had to prepare itself for me to see it.

This meant awkward pauses in exploration as the game loaded the area, on a technical basis. On a greater level, another notable issue was the ‘Failed to Load Config File’ error I seem to run into with every Amnesia game, which curiously never seems to be reliably fixed before launch. It’s short, but very replayable. The only other issue I took was that the endings felt more samey than before, but still quite compelling if open-ended.

But other issues are minor or preferential, like the crafting system. While it’s fun to have, I found the torch you can make to be frustratingly ineffective, while also having a good laugh as I waved it to try and ward off the beast, only for it to sink its massive claws into me, undeterred. Petrol bombs and medkits, though, were invaluable, and more than made up for this, especially since they’re made with a lot of the same ingredients.

The Verdict

To fully go into what I love about this game would be to spoil it, and while no two playthroughs are the same, I don’t want to ruin it by divulging some of the most fascinating details. It refers to previous Amnesia games in ways you’ll want to replay this and the rest of the series. But what I loved, aside from the visceral feeling of terror in a concise horror experience was the following:

You’re a soldier in one of the bloodiest, most brutal wars in human history who finds himself trapped in a bunker, isolated from combat. You’re also completely oblivious to everything that happened to you. In your attempts to escape, you catch rare glimpses of the battlefield beyond your reach, the sounds of gunfire and explosions pounding the earth, and sniper fire making glancing wounds as you peek from the pillbox. It’s not even safe to look out there, let alone climb out.

You’re not equipped to go back out there, and you’re forced to take your chances with a literal monster, instead, at least for the moment. It’s a sinister catch-22 and reminds you as the player that this conflict left its soldiers with shell shock, often a paralyzing feeling. Shell shock was the WWI-era original term for what would be defined as PTSD, and etched into the minds of soldiers how brutal, unforgiving, and inescapable the combat would be.

Those moments you’re trapped in a dark corner, hoping the monster passes you by, you might as well be holed up in the trenches above, before charging into No-Man’s Land and near-certain death. In a way, as a WWI soldier, you’ll find yourself right at home in the bunker. The terror and isolation you feel here is a devious construct you must outsmart to escape to the surface, and makes this feel like a true horror game in the best of ways.

Every decade or so, Diablo pokes its horned head around the door and offers us a new game to consume our lives for months on end. After thoroughly enjoying Diablo IV‘s initial playtest, I was eager to make a deal with the devil and return to Sanctuary once again.

As a franchise, Diablo revolutionized the action-RPG genre and set the modern standard for dungeon crawlers — but the one thing I craved in a Diablo title was depth. While throwing the player into a desolate world packed with demon weapon-in-hand is enough for many of us to have a great time, Diablo always felt somewhat restricted by the lack of exploration and narrative outside of its procedurally generated dungeons. 

Diablo IV improves upon its timeless gameplay and combines it with a vast open world, captivating characters, and fresh innovations to produce the best Diablo game to date.

One Hell of a Sequel — Combat and Abilities

Diablo IV retains its addictive core gameplay, freshened up with a new coat of paint and a much more extensive Talent system. Players can select from a diverse roster of character classes, each with unique playstyles and an array of abilities to choose from.

Playing a sword-wielding Barbarian and crossbow-toting Demon Hunter in Diablo III — I landed on the Rogue class for Diablo IV. Thanks to its revamped Talent Tree system, I was able to shape my character (seen above) around both melee and ranged combat.

Throughout my first playthrough, I constantly experimented with different builds and was pleasantly surprised at how different a single class could feel depending on Talent choices. Despite being able to learn as many abilities as you want, you can still only equip six abilities at one time. This made an otherwise dynamic system feel quite limiting, especially when picking up a piece of armor that gave me a new skill that I couldn’t use without sacrificing a slot on my ability bar.

Even still, obliterating hoards of demons with a flurry of shadow-imbued arrows and stealthy stabs in the dark felt as exhilarating and satisfying as ever. Diablo IV’s combat is fluid, fun, and now considerably easier to sink your fangs into.

Stay Awhile and Listen — Narrative

Diablo IV is set thirty years after the events of Diablo III: Reaper of Souls and expands upon the 27-year history of the franchise in a completely new way. Rather than focusing on the titular Lord of Terror and the forces of Hell, players face a brand-new threat; a lover’s spat between angel and demon.

The demon Lilith and angel Inarius birthed the human world of Sanctuary to escape from Heaven and Hell’s Eternal Conflict. Banished by Inarius in ages past, Lilith is finally summoned back to Sanctuary by desperate cultists, driven by a mysterious motive that unfolds as the game progresses.

Diablo IV is a colossal step forward for the franchise when it comes to narrative —having a villain as intriguing (and terrifying) as Lilith was exactly what Diablo needed. Its story gripped me from the very beginning and kept me hooked throughout the entire campaign. The game has a varied cast of memorable characters with excellent vocal performances, which previous Diablo games sorely lacked (with a few notable exceptions).

The story is told in such a way that both brand-new players and seasoned Diablo vets alike can enjoy it. Lorath, a hermit who serves as the player’s mentor, does a fantastic job explaining the necessary details. Trust me, this guy could read a one-thousand-page textbook on algebra, and his sultry tone and delivery would keep me captivated.

Stirrup Trouble and Rein in the Rewards — Exploration, Mounts, and Questing

As a series first, Diablo IV is entirely open-world. Rather than being confined to a single zone tied to your current story chapter (known as ‘Acts’), Sanctuary’s map is seamlessly connected together and free to explore as soon as the prologue concludes.

Diablo IV’s Acts often span multiple locations, which helps Sanctuary to feel like a living, breathing world. I often found myself galloping off the beaten path to investigate one of its many Dungeons or conquering a Stronghold and watching it transform into a new retreat.

That’s right: galloping. One of the most exciting new elements in Diablo IV is the inclusion of mounts. Hopping on the back of a horse and being able to bolt past hordes of enemies to reach your location is a delight and makes exploration much more accessible. My only hope is that Blizzard will eventually introduce unique mount types into the game, as I could only find various colors and themes of the same horse model during my playthrough.

Side quests are much more involved in Diablo IV, with questlines that tell individual stories throughout the game’s five regions. Your Renown level with each region rises as you complete optional content, granting account-wide bonuses, such as additional Skill Points, XP, and gold.

Rather than repeatedly replaying the campaign to level new characters, the sheer amount of optional content Diablo IV has to offer means that players can level their alts by exploring content they’ve yet to experience on their main character. This is especially useful due to Blizzard’s content plan, which will require players to create a new character each Season to earn further rewards — more on that questionable decision later.

Gritty, Gruesome, Gorgeous — Visuals, Sound, and Music

As soon as you set foot in Sanctuary, you’ll be mesmerized by the captivating visuals, music, and atmosphere of Diablo IV. Returning to its roots and departing from Diablo III’s controversial ‘cartoony’ art style, Diablo IV is dark, gritty, melancholic, and gorgeously gruesome.

Each environment is intricately crafted, with stunning details combined with an atmospheric soundtrack that creates a tangible sense of dread and trepidation. Pulsating organic structures, spindly spider legs protruding from platforms crafted from bones — many parts of the game made my skin crawl and sent shivers down my spine.

Diablo IV also manages to be stunning without the use of hellish imagery. From sandstorms in arid deserts to imprints in the snow left by fallen weapons, the game’s environment is the best I’ve witnessed in a Blizzard title. Whether exploring ruined temples or delving into demonic territory, Diablo IV’s graphics and audio remain consistently impressive and exceptionally immersive.

The user interface is also a tremendous improvement from recent Diablo titles. It’s far cleaner and more accessible while retaining the game’s theme. Accessibility, in general, is far better, with over fifty accessibility options, including text and vision assistance, audio cues, and item highlighting.

Hell as a Service — Battle Pass, Seasonal Content, and Microtransactions

Diablo III was a live-service game before the gaming community coined a term, so it’s no surprise that Diablo IV has adopted the typical aspects of ‘games as a service,’ from Battle Passes to premium currency and XP boosts.

To be entirely transparent, we were not granted access to the in-game shop or Battle Pass during the review period. Instead, we were given an asset pack containing a list of prices, cosmetics, and footage of the in-game store in action.

The Battle Pass features 90 Battle Pass Tiers, with 27 of those Tiers being free. By completing Season Objectives, players are rewarded with Seasonal cosmetics and Smoldering Ash — which can be spent on Seasonal Blessings that grant permanent buffs, such as XP boosts and higher Elixir durations. Smoldering Ash is only earnt in the free Tiers, meaning Diablo IV has no current pay-to-win aspect. Players also need to be of a certain level to take advantage of Seasonal Blessings.

‘Platinum’ is the premium currency of Diablo IV, which is earnable through the paid track of the Battle Pass or directly purchasable for real-world money. Platinum can only be used to buy cosmetic appearances from the shop and unlock the premium Battle Pass track —neither of which provide any gameplay advantages.

While a premium Battle Pass in a $70 game is unappealing by itself, my primary gripe is how Seasonal content is planned to be handled. Players must create a new character from scratch every Season to earn future Battle Pass rewards in subsequent Seasons. As the type of player that’s stuck with the same World of Warcraft character for over a decade, it was incredibly disappointing to learn that seasonal characters make their return from previous games.

Edit: Blizzard has taken into account the feedback provided by fans and altered their seasonal plan slightly from launch. Seasonal characters will retain Renown and location progress of previous characters, along with a ‘skip campaign’ option to dive straight into seasonal story content. While I would’ve liked to play a single character throughout Diablo 4’s lifespan, this new content plan appears to be a much better solution than the initial seasonal model.

Socially Slaying Succubi Seasonally — Multiplayer and Social Features

Diablo IV can be enjoyed as a single-player experience but does require a constant internet connection. The game provides various multiplayer options and social features, actively encouraging players to play with friends and fellow adventurers.

The entirety of Diablo IV is playable with friends through online play, including cross-platform, with the added bonus of cross-progression — something totally absent from the console versions of Diablo III. What does remain from the console editions is the inclusion of local couch co-op in the Xbox and PlayStation versions of the game.

As you journey through Sanctuary, you’ll often spot other players going about their demon-slaying business. You can team up with these players to complete dynamic public events or use the emote wheel to briefly dance in each other’s presence before being on your merry way.

Colossal challenging bosses spawn at set times throughout Sanctuary, designed to unite players to defeat them and earn powerful gear. Whether you’ve managed to band together a squad of friends or are fending for your life with total strangers, facing off against these titans is incredibly entertaining. Especially watching the same low-level Barbarian get instantly obliterated the second they walk into the area.

The Verdict

With engaging combat, an immersive atmosphere, and a compelling story, Diablo IV rekindles the flame of one of Blizzard’s most beloved franchises. Though the current live service content plan somewhat hinders its potential, Diablo IV will satisfy the hunger of series veterans and any new player seeking a quality action RPG.

There are few fighting games with as long and storied histories as Capcom’s sensational Street Fighter series. Every long-running video game franchise has its share of highs and lows, but few come close to matching Street Fighter‘s particular set of peaks and valleys throughout its 35-year history. Street Fighter II is widely regarded as one of the most influential video games of all time, responsible for many fighting game genre staples that are still around today. Street Fighter V, on the other hand, struggled to make a splash when it hit the scene in 2016.

Since the last mainline Street Fighter release, the fighting game genre has been experiencing a bit of a renaissance. Tekken 7 received significantly more exciting post-launch support than its contemporary, Street Fighter V, receiving crossovers from mega franchises like Final Fantasy and The Walking Dead. Arc System Works built one of the greatest anime fighters ever in Dragon Ball FighterZ and propelled the Guilty Gear series to insane new heights with Strive. In addition, Mortal Kombat continues to sell a ton of copies with each new entry, and its upcoming reboot looks set to keep that trend going. On top of all that, Super Smash Bros. Ultimate redefined what a roster could look like.

With the AAA fighting game scene as healthy as it is right now — and that’s not even to mention the indie scene which features fan favorites like Rivals of Aether, Fraymakers, and Your Only Move is Hustle — Street Fighter 6 needs to be a home run from Capcom for this series to recover from its recent stumbles. Thankfully, Street Fighter 6 is not only a fantastic return to form that will appease veterans, but also a surprisingly welcoming avenue into the fighting game community for newcomers.

The World Warrior

If you’ve got FGC friends, then you’ve likely had an experience with someone pushy trying to get you into the scene. “No trust me, just try every character to see who you vibe with,” they might tell you. “Everyone gets bodied at first; it’s part of the experience,” they tease as they use you as a training dummy to practice an annoying long string they saw on Reddit the other day. Street Fighter 6‘s World Tour mode is who that friend thinks they are. It’s one of the greatest tutorials ever made, not because it teaches you how to play Street Fighter, but because it teaches you how to play fighting games.

If you’ve ever thought to yourself, “I’d love to try fighting games; I just don’t know how to get into them,” then Street Fighter 6 is your jumping on point. While recent releases like Guilty Gear Strive have incredibly in-depth tutorials that teach you the inner workings of every system, not everyone wants to sit through lame tutorial segments. Game designers have known for years now that the best tutorials are invisible, and Street Fighter 6‘s World Tour mode works in the shadows to teach you how to pick up and learn any fighting game under the sun.

World Tour lets you create a custom avatar and travel the globe to meet Street Fighter icons from the series’ storied history. You’ll start out learning from new poster boy Luke, but before long you’ll link up with everyone on the base Street Fighter 6 roster. Training under each master will let you adopt their basic fighting style, but you can mix and match special moves and supers to make your character your own.

As expected, the story isn’t anything special and mainly serves as an excuse to cram all these characters into your path. The true brilliance of World Tour is how it doles out the moves and masters throughout its runtime. You’ll start with characters like Luke and Chun-Li, some of the most basic options on the Street Fighter roster, and even then you’ll only start out with a limited subset of their special moves. As you meet new masters, you can mix their skills into your style and learn more complex skills from the styles that you actually use.

This structure lets newcomers familiarize themselves with the simplest aspects of each character, find what they like, and then unlock deeper, more complex combos and special moves for the characters that actually fit their playstyle. It’s effectively the same as trying the whole roster in training mode but significantly more appealing and way more guided. It’s even better when you realize your kit has some weaknesses and leaves you wishing you just had a move that did this or an ability that countered that, only for a new master to show up with a solution. I learned I might actually want to try Blanka this way!

World Tour also dishes out more complex mechanics over time to reduce the complications that typically scare new players off. You won’t be able to use the new Drive abilities until a few chapters in; the first chapter restricts you to the new Modern control scheme, and you can’t mix and match supers and more complicated abilities until much later in the story.

It even gives surprisingly great advice for learning fighting games as a complete newbie, like ignoring combos and only trying to use heavy punches and kicks as a beginner. That way, you can get a feel for openings, timings, footsies, and other fundamentals without worrying about the special sauce that advanced players bring to the table. Most of World Tour’s design decisions are made with newbies in mind, subtly teaching them everything they need to know to go 0-2 at their first local tournament (it’s a rite of passage).

A key example of this is Pressure Time, a stunning effect triggered by attacking foes when they flash bright white. Enemies flash white when they perform slow, lumbering attacks that FGC veterans would immediately recognize as unsafe or suboptimal if just thrown out randomly. However, the AI enemies make these mistakes on purpose, conditioning players to capitalize on these mistakes and leveling up their punish game as a result.

Mixing and matching is the ultimate victory of World Tour mode, however, since it points everyone toward their ideal main. Luke is at the center of a complex web of characters, each with their own strengths and weaknesses. By the time World Tour ends, you’ll have a good idea of how everyone on the roster plays. You’ll have a handful of people in mind for yourself, but you’ll also know the weaknesses of the entire roster since you’ve been messing with their moves for hours via your custom avatar.

While the mode was definitely designed with newcomers in mind, Street Fighter veterans can absolutely get some enjoyment out of it as well. The ability to mix and match each master’s movesets and customize your character with various perks lets you have fun with incredibly unbalanced builds that wouldn’t fly in standard matches. I combined the best of Chun-Li and Cammy while wearing gear that boosted the strength of my kicks and increased the recharge rate of my Drive gauge, for example, letting me make an incredibly cursed kicking build.

Ultimately, World Tour is Street Fighter 6‘s biggest surprise. It’s not just a tutorial for this game, but the genre as a whole. It teaches players how to examine the roster of a fighting game, how to learn fundamentals, and how to add spicy combos and mechanics on top of the basics once they’ve got them under their belt. If you can make it through World Tour, not only will you be able to compete online in Street Fighter 6, but you’ll also be able to pick up other future fighting games if you adopt the same training regiment.

Here Comes a New Challenger

All of these bells and whistles are mounted onto a remarkably solid foundation. Street Fighter 6 is a very simple game to learn, even more so with its new modern control scheme and ample beginner options, but there are endless ways for an experienced player to wipe the floor with the competition and become king of a cabinet online. Plus, the new Drive abilities not only allow for thrilling counterattacks and exhilarating comebacks but also a visual spectacle for spectators as the game enters slow motion and trails of vibrant paint follow each fighter’s moves.

Whether you’re looking to fight for yourself or see the strongest go head to head, the Battle Hub is where you’ll want to be. Serving as the game’s main online space, the Battle Hub is a poster child for all the reasons we love fighting games. It’s the esports arena of your dreams, complete with wall-to-wall cabinets, prize counters, and side events happening around the main event. It crams all the excitement of your local weekly into a digital space with the production value of EVO.

Plenty of fighting games have adopted this digital arcade style of matchmaking, but Street Fighter 6‘s Battle Hub is the best one yet. Rows of alluring cabinets entice you to sit and wait for a challenger or spectate that one person that hasn’t gotten up from their seat in an hour, sending all of their opponents away with their tails between their legs.

Broken win streaks and exciting upsets are paired with lightning bolts of information on the screens surrounding the arena, contributing to the electric atmosphere. It has all the energy of a crowded arcade cabinet with spectators scarfing down pizza and inhaling unhealthy amounts of soda as they slam quarters down to call next. It’s a space for people who love fighting games.

Even if you’re not into the competitive scene, there’s still plenty to do in Street Fighter 6‘s Battle Hub. Most of the matches there are casual in nature anyway, so don’t be afraid to sit down at a cabinet and see what happens. There are also extreme battles on the sidelines that feature various gimmicks and modifiers, channeling Super Smash Bros. with items and all of its signature craziness. Plus, there’s a rotating selection of classic Capcom fighting games like Final Fight and older Street Fighter games that you can enjoy in between matches.

Most importantly, Street Fighter 6 has the signature hallmark of a good fighting game: getting bodied is fun. Whether you’re trying to learn a new character or you’re busting out your Cammy combos after hours of training room exercise, every fight is a lesson to be learned. One player will pick up on a weakness and exploit it. Maybe you’re holding block too often and making yourself susceptible to throws. Maybe you’re jumping in recklessly. Nobody’s perfect.

The beauty of Street Fighter 6 — and any good fighting game for that matter — happens after that exploitation. Once you realize you’re being countered, you’ll adjust your game plan to account for it, forcing your opponent to do the same and resulting in an endless cycle of two people trying to one-up each other from round to round. Tactics develop, moves are mastered, and rivalries are forged in the flames.

The highlights of my time with Street Fighter 6 have been getting absolutely destroyed by someone with way more experience than I have. Even if I ended up 0-6 (it was close though), I could feel myself mastering my character just a little bit more with every depletion of my health bar. I never felt I was wasting my time, even when I was hopelessly outmatched. Getting tilted is just part of the process, and the Battle Hub’s public nature just makes comeback stories and hype last hits all the more exciting.

Despite what you may believe, fighting games are the most social games out there. Even in their early days, dozens of people crowded around cabinets to see rivals settle their beef or strange newcomers defeat the resident arcade champion. Street Fighter 6 revels in this. Even in the relatively empty review period with only a handful of people tucked away in the corner of a Battle Hub on a good day, I found myself transported back to the good old days of passing the controller after a loss and erupting into cheers at close matches as I sat on the floor of a friend’s bedroom.

Offline Offerings

Street Fighter V launched with an embarrassingly slim offline feature set, mainly to get the game out of the door in time for the next competitive circuit. The thing is, a fighting game needs offline content to survive. New players almost always dive into offline content first before dipping their toes into the hellscape that is online play, and if there’s nothing more than a training mode that’s designed for veterans, there won’t be any new blood hitting the cabinets at all.

Thankfully, Capcom learned from its mistakes at the launch of Street Fighter V and ensured that this entry had a robust offline offering. In addition to the expansive World Tour mode, there’s the classic arcade mode and plenty of other ways to throw hands without an internet connection. Everything that you’d expect to be there is there, making this the perfect game to throw on at a party and let people come and go to test their mettle as they please.

The Verdict

We’re so back. Street Fighter 6 is a return to form for the series after its previous mainline fumble, cementing Capcom’s long-running fighter as a genre titan. Capcom’s been on a hot streak lately, and this excellent fighting game isn’t doing anything to stop it. Street Fighter 6 feels like a celebration of fighting games as a whole, offering newcomers one of the most in-depth onboarding programs ever seen in the form of the new World Tour mode and showing them what makes the FGC so special in the Battle Hub that awaits them when they’re ready.

LEGO 2K Drive is your childhood LEGO dreams come to life in one gathering of trailblazing bricks on a track. However, the inner mechanics and systems, with one system, in particular, hold the game back. Even with its faults, LEGO 2K Drive is still worth the time if you can look past the rough edges but if not, you will feel as though it held the majority of LEGO 2K Drive down from being great.

The Story — Have You Obtained Enough Flags Yet?

The main story of LEGO 2K Drive revolves around the protagonist (whoever you’d like your character to be) reaching the Sky Cup Grand Prix: the most important race in all of Bricklandia. In order to reach it you will have to collect a number of checkered flags by winning races against various rivals across the world. These rivals are packed with personality and one of the most notable examples is “Hugh-Man” who is an alien starstruck with fame because of their followers on social media. If you beat Hugh-Man in their race you will even get a UFO-shaped car to drive around in — quite the spectacle indeed.

Related: Does LEGO 2K Drive Have Crossplay?

The Rivals are what keeps each race unique and interesting but the track layouts and thematic presences all add something unique to LEGO 2K Drive. There are occasionally side activities and mini-games that you have to complete in order to progress the story. The mini-games can get a little repetitive at times because you usually are just bashing into enemies like robot minifigures but the minigames still are diverse enough that players won’t lose attention.

The Gameplay — Drifting Around the Track in Brick Style

The gameplay of LEGO 2K Drive is a standout when you get used to the core systems. Drifting around the track, boosting into other cars, and using a diverse array of brick-defying powerups never gets old. Although you can also choose to do this in local-co op or even online crossplay, meaning there is no need to race alone in the game. I love the fact that there is crossplay included for a racing game and LEGO 2K Drive is a brilliant example of doing it well, thanks to the varied races.

Related: Best Car Builds in 2K Drive: LEGO 2K Drive Build Guide

The building system of LEGO 2K Drive is where the game stands out from the crowd, with a complex but accessible build system that makes this LEGO title not just a rehash of worn-out ideas. This is because of the sheer amount of bricks and pieces that you can use during the building process in one of the many garages across the game. After you build a vehicle you can then go ahead and take it into a test drive area.

These test drive areas are varied, with one being a water-based area with rubber ducks — it’s all very charming. The tutorial and game onboarding systems are also highly thought-out. No matter what sort of games you have played, you will be guided here with little issue. There is even a system in which you can learn how to make pre-built cars from scratch in build mode.

Related: How to Play Multiplayer in Lego 2K Drive – Split Screen Co-Op and Online Multiplayer

Microtransactions and the Open World

Where the game starts to show its cracks is how the microtransaction system is built-out. You can use the store to buy new vehicles with Brickbux that you can earn throughout the game. However, the caveat is that you can also buy Brickbux with coins that cost actual real-world money. The microtransaction store (named Unkie’s Emporium) is in your face every time you pause LEGO 2K Drive. It feels strange to have microtransactions in a racing game like this targeted toward younger audiences, to say the least.

Overall the gameplay holds up excellently and progression is rewarding while playing through the various races. Along with that, the open world of LEGO 2K Drive has side activities around every corner and these keep the pace enjoyably intense while driving around. The locations on offer are diverse enough to keep players coming back for more, such as the Hauntsborough section of the map, which is a sweeping haunted land with a towering castle, murky swamp depths, and more.

The Art and Sound Design — A Brick Rattlin’ Good Time

Both the art style and sound design of LEGO 2K Drive is absolutely stunning. When first starting the game and being placed in the bright, brick-filed green fields of Turbo Acres, there truly was a sense of warm childhood nostalgia that appeared once again. Crashing into cars and hearing the brick “Cha-clunks!” happen as you do is always extremely satisfying. The art design backs all of this up with its stylized nature that always is vibrant and colorful. All of these elements keep us focused on the game fully.

Conclusion

All in all, LEGO 2K Drive satisfies any craving for brick-racing that you may have had in the past with A+ class but still is rough around the edges because of its microtransaction system. Nonetheless, LEGO 2K Drive is an experience that can pride itself on being a game with visuals that match its vibrant personalities of characters and events throughout the world. If you are looking for a new type of racing game that will let you create any car you could imagine, then look no further than 2K Drive.

If you’re a fan of Darkest Dungeon, you’ll want to check out its sequel, Darkest Dungeon II. This CRPG offers a unique experience with its turn-based tactics and roguelike gameplay. However, even if you’ve already played the early access version, the 1.0 version offers an expanded and enhanced experience worth purchasing. The game takes everything that worked well in the original and improves upon the flaws, resulting in an addictive and engaging game you’ll enjoy playing, even if your heroes die and your expedition fails multiple times.

The Ephemeral Equation is Unbalanced

The sequel to Darkest Dungeon, Darkest Dungeon II, takes you on a new adventure where an even greater evil lies waiting below the corruption you once conquered at the Estate. Madness has taken hold of everything, and your task is to guide your brave group of heroes to the mountain to prevent a catastrophic event. But before reaching the mountain, you must complete a set number of regions based on the Confession you’ve selected. These regions offer opportunities to battle lair bosses, gain new hero skills, or meet a tragic end.

I was impressed with how well the story was continued. It showed how the evil had spread to the surrounding regions, painting a vivid picture of the apocalyptic world. The game didn’t hold back, which made my successes and failures more impactful. However, moments of hope also contrasted with the overall dark tone and made me remember that not all is lost, even in the darkest moments.

Choosing Confession

Another new feature of Darkest Dungeon II is the Confession system, which significantly impacts the upcoming expedition by determining its length, the buffs enemies can receive through Ordainments, and the flame of hope effects that will occur. Additionally, it contributes to the main story’s progression, with brief segments shared at the beginning of each expedition. Hearing new pieces of the five-act story upon completion or failure of an expedition makes restarting less frustrating and daunting for me. In addition, it served as motivation to beat the Confession I was stuck on because I loved unlocking another piece of the puzzle that led up to both games’ events in the franchise.

The Characters

In Darkest Dungeon II, players have the option to select from a diverse range of 11 Heroes, each with their own unique role in the game. To begin your journey up the mountain, you must strategically assemble a team of 4 Heroes that complements your style of play. As you uncover their individual backstories and special abilities, you’ll develop a strong connection with these Heroes, making them crucial assets to your quest.

With a vast array of Hero combinations available, players have the flexibility to curate a team that aligns with their preferred playstyle or Confession. The Hero system is well-crafted, and experimenting with different Heroes to optimize a team composition can be an exciting experience. If an expedition ends in failure, players can easily switch up their team composition and try again.

Unlocking New Skills

I enjoyed discovering new abilities for my characters in Darkest Dungeon II by visiting the Shrine of Reflection. At first, each character only comes equipped with five basic skills, but by completing five chapters of their personal story, you can unlock an additional six skills. These chapters offer a deep dive into the history of each hero, and completing them allows you to unlock a new skill connected to the chapter’s events.

For instance, in Chapter 2 of The Jest, you engage in a musical duel with another musician. To win, you must use abilities that correspond to the correct structure of the song, such as the bridge, chorus, solo, melody, etc. Playing the right part will damage the NPC, but playing the wrong part will hurt you instead. If you fail, you won’t unlock the new skill and must try again at a different Shrine of Reflection.

This method of unlocking skills may sound uninteresting initially, but it turned out to be an engaging way to learn more about each character’s story. I even grew attached to my characters through this process.

Managing Relationships

In Darkest Dungeon II, the affinity system determines the bond between your heroes. Your choices, the inn items you use, and your actions during battles all affect the status of these relationships. Despite the possibility of unusual situations, the affinity system is well-designed. If two heroes develop a positive relationship, they will gain Blessed Attacks, which support each other when used. For instance, a Blessed Attack from one hero will lower the stress of the other hero with whom they share a positive relationship.

Understanding what factors positively or negatively impact the relationship between two heroes adds a layer of complexity that I thoroughly enjoyed discovering. The quirks of your heroes make them feel like living and breathing entities. Additionally, buying your heroes a flask of whiskey to share at the inn to improve their relationship seems realistic. Who wouldn’t want to bond over a drink after an arduous expedition or the loss of a fellow hero?

Visuals

The use of shadows in Darkest Dungeon II’s art style is impressive, creating a striking contrast that draws inspiration from the motion and noir comic styles. The result is a dark and gritty atmosphere that is complemented by the characters’ Super Deform (SD) style, which amplifies their heroic, cute, or distorted qualities. The techniques used to achieve this art style are noteworthy and could be the subject of an entire semester’s discussion at art school. My exploration of the game’s visuals is a testament to the success of Darkest Dungeon II’s art style and exceptional execution.

Sounds

The performance of Wayne June as The Narrator in the game is exceptional and perfectly complements its tone. He skillfully immerses the players in the story, making them laugh or cry with his witty one-liners based on their current situation and actions. For example, whenever a hero suffering from the blindness effect is used to attack, he says, “A simple miscalculation, I suppose,” which is a simple yet effective way to help players learn the game’s mechanics.

Darkest Dungeon II’s use of music is also noteworthy. Stuart Chatwood’s brand-new score adds excitement to the journey and makes players feel inside the stagecoach with their expedition party members. In addition, the Power Up Audio team’s sound effects enhance the game’s immersive experience, with each hero, enemy, attack, and more have unique sounds. For instance, The Jest’s musical abilities always provided much-needed sanity during my expeditions, so I always brought him to my party.

Combat

If you appreciate classic turn-based RPGs, you’ll enjoy the combat system in Darkest Dungeon II. However, several factors can either help you win or lead to your defeat, making it initially overwhelming. To make things easier, there is a glossary of icon definitions that you can refer to.

Once you understand how everything works together, combat becomes less frustrating, and executing incredible maneuvers can be a blast. For example, I landed a critical hit combo of 51 damage on a lair boss, which led me to exclaim joyfully, much to my partner’s amusement.

New Token System

The game’s combat now has a new token system that enhances the gameplay experience. It makes every action during combat more meaningful and adds complexity to the game. The tokens, such as buffs, debuffs, and specials, can be combined in different ways to produce distinct effects. For example, The Leper may begin with a Blind token that causes him to miss an attack, but this effect can be nullified if another hero applies a Combo token to an enemy. With numerous permutations, the new system offers limitless possibilities for players. Figuring out what combinations to use on specific types of enemies made me think. I also had to stop and think about how different heroes could be used together if I attempted a different composition.

Death’s Door

In Darkest Dungeon II, death plays a significant role in the storyline and significantly impacts your expedition and the remaining heroes. Losing a hero affects your emotional attachment to them and can derail an otherwise perfect run. Even though a randomly chosen hero will join your expedition party, losing one or more heroes can still be very detrimental.

Furthermore, you have to wait until you reach the inn at the end of your current expedition before joining your party, which means you might be short on party members when dealing with whatever lies ahead. I vividly recall losing all my heroes but one while fighting a lair boss and surviving until the end. It was a feeling of accomplishment, and I realized that the solitary surviving hero would be remembered for centuries.

In addition, losing heroes means losing mastery points and the relationship points you invested valuable time and resources in creating positive relationships. Therefore, you must start over with the new ones joining your expedition party.

The Verdict – Expedition End

Honestly, Darkest Dungeon II can present many challenges, and you may face some setbacks. Despite this, I was immediately drawn in, and my excitement to learn outweighed any frustrations I encountered from failing. I found myself eagerly exploring new adventures, experimenting with different Hero combinations, delving into the game’s mechanics, and contemplating the story long after I had to take a break from a lengthy session.

Initially, I didn’t think the game was that great, but I soon realized I had misunderstood the mechanics, leading to my misjudgment. However, once you grasp the mechanics and unlock additional content, the game becomes more accessible and enjoyable. The art style, music, hero design, and combat all contribute to a satisfying experience that is tough to step away from and keeps you fully engaged.

Over 20 years ago, the Game Boy Advance was unleashed upon the public, being the latest and most accessible option in portable gaming, with robust controls and updated visuals. It was not a quantum leap over the Game Boy Color, but just enough to feel fresh with some genre-defining hits to sell the system far beyond its pocket-sized novelty. Advance Wars was among the first titles to make a splash on the system and was quick to blow people away with its accessibility and sophisticated gameplay.

While the sequel, Black Hole Rising, never quite got to the same heights of public reception, they’re both revered as positive examples of pocket-sized, short-session tactics games. With the news of a remake with enhanced visuals, people were excited to see if they could recapture the early-2000s magic, and for better or for worse, they certainly did.

A Sense of Addictive Replayability

Advance Wars 1+2: Re-Boot Camp is a collection of 2 classic GBA titles, lovingly recreated by WayForward in the image of its Intelligent Systems origin. They look, feel, and play very similarly to the old games, embodying their spirit while still feeling oddly modern. While the controls are rather simple, they don’t need to be overly complicated, as the original games previously demonstrated. The mechanics are easy to grasp but have surprising amounts of depth to what you can do with them.

For those who have never played the Advance Wars games, or any of the Wars games (of which there are now 10!) the gameplay is turn-based tactics, with each type of unit serving a role. While this is similar in principle to Intelligent Systems’ arguably most famous franchise, Fire Emblem, Advance Wars strips things down even further: no RPG elements, just army men and vehicles. Players don’t need to feel hung up on losing units in battle thanks to no permadeath, but instead, you’ll be graded on your performance, so study up.

In either of the remakes, like the originals, you’ll be graded for how you complete each mission. This is based on Speed, Power, and Technique. This largely boils down to how many turns (or ‘Days’ in the game) it takes for you to complete a mission, along with how many enemies you can defeat while reducing your casualties. This creates a sense of addictive replayability in these games that feels distinctively like many modern mobile games, drawing you back to get your new personal best. This feature is an important one to get players to come back because, well…

The Story is Threadbare at Best

I’ll clarify this by saying the plot is not really what most players are coming to this game to play. That’s okay, and it should instead be weighed on what it aims to achieve. But also, many turn-based strategy games, like Fire Emblem and others, still achieve memorable stories while remaining replayable, and even the earlier GBA Fire Emblem games would still grade you. But that is out of the way, in regards to Advance Wars 1+2: Re-Boot Camp, the story is threadbare at best.

Instead, you’re treated to charming exchanges between playable Commanding Officers, with the chance to notice the casting of familiar YouTubers, even though their voiceover work is overall quite sparse. This does little more than help personify their respective playstyles, which in itself is appreciated, and executed well.

But I found it incredibly amusing that the game made a point of cautioning players before they selected Advance Wars 2 if they hadn’t completed its predecessor. This is entirely because the villain of that game is revealed to be the villain of the first game, and it’s not some grand twist or betrayal, but rather a cliched “man behind the curtain, pulling the strings” moment. But at least they had creative names for their characters, right?

Wrong. The first game had a clone of the main playable protagonist, Andy. They called him Clone Andy and presumably made players pause so they could gasp in terror. Even if that is technically a spoiler, saying it out of context like this serves more to showcase how silly it truly is, but again, players aren’t here for the story.

A Game of Clever Problem-Solving Even for Returning Players

Despite Advance Wars 1+2: Re-Boot Camp being remakes of 2 20-year-old games, they still have new tricks up their sleeves. This is not only in the new online functionality of the multiplayer, but even a map maker function that is simple, elegant, and lets you create lots of fun skirmishes for others to try.

Not only this, but the completionists will find plenty of substance to this purchase. The campaign missions are varied, if easy to figure out in many cases, and getting an S-Rank is a tantalizing prospect even for returning players or content creators seeking to prove themselves to their audiences.

The story missions, while easy to play in many cases, have a reasonable scale in difficulty, especially with the Challenge Campaign you can unlock. While features like the Fog of War or concealed units can easily be circumvented by moving across the map and canceling until you run into enemies, it’s better to think of this as a layer to the mechanic.

It forces players to be mindful of where the enemy *could* be and to send in essentially a spotter unit before laying down a barrage. Even in mechanics that could be seen as exploitable, it’s better to see this title as a game of clever problem-solving, even for returning players. Approach any mission, be it in a story battle or a shared map, with an open mind like this and you’ll find a game that knows its players, and rewards them for their adaptability.

New Coat of Paint, Same Gold Star

The characters are essentially the same, albeit given voiceover work. They’re drawn and brought more lovably to life than ever before, with Max being easily goaded into confrontations, Olaf being a tenacious and impulsive buffoon, and Andy being an adorable greenhorn quick to rise to the challenge. Seeing their characters embodied from their CO powers to their animations, and even their armies and how they play, feels incredibly satisfying and faithful.

I was cautious when I heard a franchise from my beloved Intelligent Systems was being remade by a different studio, but WayForward was a strong fit in this case. Their remake allows the old classic GBA feel to remain present, with the maps feeling similar to a gorgeously laid-out tabletop with your customized, favorite units being given a much-needed visual upgrade. It feels like you’re laying out your models for battle, given a new coat of paint, but in the case of Andy and his friends, that same Gold Star.

There are lots of drawbacks to this game, however. Despite the overall bang for your buck, and lack of having to pay for unlockable content (remember when this was the norm?) the game has a weak story and predictable Nintendo-sized gaps in its online features, like no matchmaking for Online Versus mode. You’ll actively need to seek out other players instead of the game doing the work for you, which does seem oddly limited.

Advance Wars 1+2: Re-Boot Camp isn’t a perfect title on its own merits, but it’s addictive, stylish, and fun. The wonderful characters make up for an uninteresting and predictable plot. It’d be great to see more Advance Wars and other Wars titles make their way over to the system, but adding matchmaking for online play would be a must. It would also be nice to get a more compelling story, given how much time is required to complete each campaign, instead of it feeling like an overly-long primer on the game’s mechanics and playable COs.

Afterimage is what you get if you take a golden Metroidvania formula and apply it to a stylized world of wonder. Brutal bosses can be found in many places, hidden areas uncover vast secrets, and abilities show the protagonist Renee’s true potential — there is a lot to experience. As someone who has played both Hollow Knight and Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night (each with its own incredibly soulful but modern atmosphere), Afterimage had a lot to live up to.

The World and Art – Gleams of Beauty From the Darkest Depths

The world of Engardin in Afterimage is one of the most beautiful game worlds I have ever experienced. Every location on the map that you venture into will feel packed with life from the moment you first step foot in it. You will be able to feel the artist’s heart and soul poured into the smallest of details. The chosen art style for Afterimage is a reflection of its prowess at capturing our attention for the entirety of the game.

The locations are varied enough that the player flow loops (artistically speaking) never feel drawn out. For example, you will find lush jungle greens in places like Emerald Falls but apparent higher echelon societies in the Holy Grounds. There is a beauty to be discovered wherever you decide to adventure, and that is encouraged heavily by the game’s choice of systems and loot collecting.

Equally, in the same way that the overall world design is gorgeously created, the creature/monster design exudes the same brushstrokes of perfection. Every creature has a place in Engardin and the included bestiary ensures players can learn more about them if they so wish. Usually, you might tend to revisit their designs again because of their stunning appearance.

Gameplay and Afterimages – A Stellar Display of Mechanics

Afterimage excels in providing fast-paced gameplay with each battle and movement. Character builds can be crafted with precision by use of the Talents section which allows you to learn new skills for specific weapons and upgrade general character stats. Of course (for those who explore) you can find some scrolls with even more talents to learn.

The weapons and spells themselves have a lot of diversity with whips, scythes, swords, and more all doing their part to keep the player engaged. Knowing what weapon to use when approaching one of the many top-notch creature battle patterns is always a delight. Furthermore, most of the bosses that are scattered throughout Engardin all feel enjoyable to battle while learning the patterns.

Related: Best Talents to Unlock First in Afterimage

Healing in the game can be done either through healing runes/stones (the glyphs on the top left) which you can collect more of through your journey or you can use health potions. Your healing spells will always be refreshed every time you rest at a confluence. This method of healing keeps the balance of difficulty steady but still challenging in areas where it needs to be.

Another subset of tools Renee has at her disposal is Afterimages which can act as either movement abilities like a wall-jump (unlocking new areas) or even combat helpers like the “Venomous Spore” that will damage nearby enemies when you are hit. The abilities themselves can be found by defeating bosses or searching for them within the world.

Narrative and Story – Souls, Souls…and More Souls?

The premise of Afterimage’s story is based on Renee (or Ree), the main protagonist of Afterimage. Renee is searching for the soul of Aros (she is known as Madame) to bring Aros back after seeing her soul being absorbed by another woman in a cloak when Renee’s village was destroyed.

Renee is a highly likable person and the same can be said with the majority of characters within the game. Ree’s personality truly held the story together because of the way she interacted with the world around her — she’s virtuous, always looking to help and assist others. However, the story almost boils down to “travel to the Misty Waters” with little further storytelling interaction after you make your way to the Resting Well at the start of the game.

After you pass the Misty Waters you will have to backtrack to places you’ve already been and then traverse to the final area. Each sector is built out with stunning design but there should be more narrative connection beyond what’s found in your journal or from hunting for (nicely written) lore scattered around the word.

The game has multiple endings and this is of a major benefit. What will likely be the most common ending for people takes you to a small cutscene and then boots you back to the main menu without even a credits screen. It feels strange that there isn’t admiration on display for those who worked extensively on making the game what it is — a beauty even with some small flaws.

Companions and Sidequests

Ifree is the floating companion who travels alongside Renee although sometimes has excruciating dialogue choices. For example, in the story, you will meet an adorable penguin named Brenda — the companion of another character called Karsa. What does Ifree do? He berates the penguin. This attempt at humor feels out of place, especially when Renee and Karsa’s first meeting was full of comradery.

Over time Brenda and Ifree do start to communicate a lot more when you meet them again, so there is indeed still a charm to the character development. The sidequests of Afterimage are where the shining light of this Metroidvania shows itself even more. Every character I encountered in them made me want to learn much more about the world because of the whimsical dialogue found within the quests.

Technicality and Level Design – Mazes and Impressive Feats

The overall level design in Afterimage is where the game starts to reveal its pitfalls. Designing effective player pathways is a vital part of the development process and when Afterimage does it well, it flourishes. But in the moments when the world feels like a maze, it only takes joy away from the experience.

Many areas in the map have walls breakable from the other side that block the player off; although the intent is to ensure the player goes another way first, it feels like a cheap and dull way to do so — especially when the main path is not clear. Some of the level design can make it feel as though player exploration is punished instead of rewarded because of those gated areas.

Related: Afterimage Trophies and Achievements Listed

Where the player does discover hidden places concealed by elements, like leaves on the screen, demonstrates undeniable merit to the design. If the general pathway flow had been slightly tweaked in areas to stop players from wondering where to go, the game would likely have seen even further success.

An area of technicality that was impressively implemented was the Marking system for the map. There are various different symbols to use that you can place on the map, i.e. a treasure chest that you can place somewhere, then go back to later. This blends together the aspect of discovery and map navigation in a fruitful but gratifying way.

Music and Sound Design — Effective Symphonies for Afterimage

It can be tough to express just how alluring the Afterimage soundtrack is without hearing it for yourself. The team has done a wonderful job at maintaining Engardin’s artistic image with a soundtrack that matches the world’s aesthetic. One particular standout track was found in the final area of the game known as the Sunken Sanctum which felt like being placed in a church with a heavenly choir.

The music has the effect of essentially placing people into a building in their mind with stained glass on each side while echoes of melodically pristine music are being forced into your soul. The design and production of the soundtrack highlight the care and attention given to the underlying music of the world.

Conclusion

Within the first few hours, Afterimage looks set to take a perfect five out of five score but the sometimes clunky (rat in a maze) level pathways and sub-par explained story hold it back from true greatness. Nonetheless, with a more than 26-hour runtime, Afterimage kept me hooked to my seat as I ventured through the beautiful world with elegantly designed creatures and battles everywhere I turned. For the price of entry — Afterimage is one of the best Metroidvanias I have personally ever played.

With the track record of Arkane Studios creating absolute bangers for the past decade, it’s no question why the gaming community has been looking forward to Redfall. Bringing the Arkane magic into an open world filled with vampires is a win-win, right? After beating the main story and clocking in around 20 hours of playtime, I can safely say that Redfall lives up to the studio’s potential — but only if you can look past the technical issues and some missing features.

Narrative and Story

Arkane’s latest game occurs in the island town of Redfall, Massachusetts. Vampires have taken control of this island, cut off all citizens from the outside world, and blocked out the sun entirely. This is where you come in to take back control and eliminate the deadly vampires that have taken away the land. As you explore the two open-world areas, you will begin to uncover the mystery behind the vampire gods and how this apocalyptic invasion came to be.

The story of Redfall is told through still frames instead of actual motion-captured cutscenes. While this isn’t the worst way to go about storytelling, it feels lazy compared to Arkane’s previous game Deathloop which offered immersive cutscenes to make the player feel like they were in the main character’s shoes. Still, Redfall makes up for this through what the game calls “Psychic Views.” When you interact with these Psychic Views, they display holograms of the past that aim to push the lore further and what happened on the island.

The story isn’t groundbreaking in Redfall and it is not Arkane’s best work. That said, it’s not entirely boring. It’s interesting to see how the vampires came to be and uncover disturbing backstories of the civilization, but the game doesn’t go far enough to make the player want to pay attention. Instead, I sometimes wanted to skip a cutscene and get back to the combat as the still-frames style videos can feel like a drag without providing much substance.

Gameplay and Co-Op

As you begin your journey through Redfall, you can choose between four heroes, each with their own abilities and specialties. Once you select a hero, you can’t go back to switch unless you start a new game entirely, but this is okay considering it adds so much replayability and gives the player reason to play through the main story again as a new hero.

Each character plays very differently from one another, which can change the gameplay experience entirely. For example, look at Layla, who can summon telekinesis powers to create a shield and deflect attacks off her umbrella. At the same time, Jacob can go invisible and track all enemies in proximity. All four of these heroes’ unique abilities demand a different approach to vampires and human enemies, creating the opportunity to play Redfall in full four times and helping to prevent the game from growing stale.

Redfall is a semi-looter shooter where you can find higher-tiered weapons worldwide through exploration and swapping them out. This is the only way to improve guns by finding rarer forms, and there is no way to upgrade your already favorite gun to a higher level. I would have liked to have the ability to upgrade my gun at a bench before taking on a boss,and Redfall would have benefited tremendously from this. Still, the gunplay is incredibly satisfying — from launching a stake into a vampire’s heart to freezing them with a UV beam — and it does an outstanding job of making the player feel like a total badass.

Redfall allows up to four-player co-op where everyone in the match can take on main missions and sidequests. Redfall shines in the co-op space mainly because everyone in the game can play as different characters. Using abilities to elevate teamwork is the focus here, and it can be a lot of fun when you pull it off correctly. For example, use Bribon to run into a group of enemies for distraction while Layla lifts Jacob to the top of the building to snipe them all out. This thinking on your feet and communication put teamwork at the forefront for Redfall.

The downfall of co-op mode is that the host’s game is the only one that will progress through the missions. So, you can go through half the story with a friend to repeat the whole process considering nothing was saved on your end. Multiplayer progression is limited to the host “because some missions are optional or non-sequential,” according to the in-game description. This doesn’t make much sense — the game should let the players decide whether they want advancement or not.

Progression and Exploration

Progression in Redfall works similarly to Arkane’s previous games like Dishonored. Each character has a skill tree that focuses on increasing the effectiveness of their abilities such as carrying more ammo for guns, speeding up health recovery, and even unlocking the ability to have more lockpicks. Speaking of lockpicks, these are essential in opening up hard-to-reach places that can lead to discovering critical items that can increase your max health and additional bonuses pushing your hero’s potential even further.

I felt very accomplished exploring the open world and stumbling upon a higher-tier weapon or Vampire Blood to increase my maximum health. Redfall does a great job at rewarding players who take the time to immerse themselves deep into the world and explore every nook and cranny — although many buildings are not accessible and are just for decoration. Finding buildings that were just for show instead of somewhere you could go into was a bit disappointing, and even though this is typical in an open-world game, Redfall feels a bit excessive in that regard.

Redfall features two main hubs along with safe houses that are found scattered throughout the world. Main hubs will be your go-to spot for starting any main missions or sidequests the game offers, while safehouses offer two tasks necessary to challenge the area’s Vampire God. The main missions offer a unique variety, but the safehouses can become repetitive.

While the lack of sidequests in the game is alarming, Redfall makes up for it by offering other activities in the world. For example, there are Vampire nests the player must raid, houses that provide rare rewards if you can locate all the keys, and civilians to rescue. Doing all these tasks offers a nice bump in experience points, and the game makes it clear that they are worth taking on as you’ll find yourself under-leveled for a boss if you skip them (looking at myself here).

Technical Issues

Redfall is great, but there’s no denying it has technical issues. There were times when the game crashed on me, but other times it ran perfectly fine. There were almost zero issues with framerate drops or pop-ins in the first half of the game, but as I got further into the second area and took on the more challenging Vampire Gods, the game struggled to keep up with what was happening on screen.

Stuttering, crashing, and lower-quality graphics all became an apparent issue when in specific locations — and while these issues can be fixed with patches, it’s still incredibly frustrating. For those who can look past the occasional cases, the game is still completely playable and the problems don’t warrant skipping Redfall altogether.

The Verdict

In no way is Redfall groundbreaking — but sometimes all a game needs to be is fun to play, and Arkane has created an experience that is a hell of a good time. Is it Arkane’s best game? Probably not. But there is so much to love here as the gameplay is addicting, intense, and will pull you back for another session. While the game could have benefited from the ability to upgrade weapons, more sidequests, and quality in-depth cutscenes for storytelling, what the game does right, it does with flying colors.

2019’s Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order was a surprise hit from the FPS-focused Respawn Entertainment, but Cal Kestis’ debut felt very much like a proof of concept for something greater. Star Wars Jedi: Survivor is that something.

A Next-Gen Galaxy

Respawn ditches last-gen hardware for Cal’s sophomore outing to great effect, delivering an exhilarating planet-hopping adventure that really takes the feedback from its predecessor to heart. Survivor is bigger, bolder, and more refined than Fallen Order, but Respawn hasn’t completely nailed everything in its second lap with Star Wars.

To start, Jedi: Survivor feels next-gen on all fronts. That’s not just in its stunning vistas, ridiculously detailed environments, and ability to play at 60 FPS in performance mode, but also in the sheer breadth of options available to the player. Cal has several combat stances and force abilities at his disposal, there are an insane amount of side activities and puzzles to partake in, and each planet is massive and bursting at the seams with life. This feels like one of the first games to truly take advantage of next-generation processing power for more than just a facelift.

Farming, Fishing, and Other Fun Stuff

There are three staples of a good video game: grappling hooks, farming minigames, and fishing minigames. Survivor pulls off the hat trick with additional flourishes. Cal gets a grappling hook within the first few minutes of the game, and as anyone with taste knows, every game is better with a grappling hook. Upon reaching the game’s main settlement of Rambler’s Reach — which grows and attracts new characters throughout the story — I was delighted to discover a rooftop garden on top of the saloon. “If this has fishing,” I thought to myself, “then this is surely an all-timer.”

Returning to the settlement an hour later after an exciting excursion with droids, danger, and death, I decided to take a load off and chat with the locals. One of them then tipped me off about a rumor, which added a quest to my log: recruit the mysterious fisherman. Those geniuses.

All jokes aside, Respawn knows what makes video games work. While Survivor’s seed and fish collectibles aren’t involved in fully-fledged minigames, their presence is emblematic of the game’s breadth of content as a whole. In addition, Respawn avoids the Metroid trope by letting Cal carry all his Fallen Order toys into Survivor, letting the game barrel out of the gate and blast down the aisle with breakneck pacing that never fails to excite.

The Open Road

There’s just so much to do when you’re not mainlining the story, and every reward feels worthwhile. An unassuming cave might bring you to a deadly encounter with a legendary creature, a crack in the wall might lead to a small pond where Cal’s fishing friend is casting away, or a platforming puzzle could unlock a spiffy new haircut for Cal. It’s a Star Wars smorgasbord. There’s a galaxy’s worth of content crammed onto every planet and everything is so much easier to navigate than Fallen Order’s labyrinthian locales.

Survivor uses the best form of encouragement to get you to engage with its side content: customization. While you can score some extra skill points, healing stims, or force capacity through exploration, the primary reason to stray from the beaten path is unlocking new clothes, hairstyles, parts, and paint jobs for both Cal and BD-1. While it’s a bit disappointing that you might miss out on your favorite output by skipping some random cave, there are a surprising number of customization options for Cal and BD-1 and you can pick up a solid starter wardrobe from planetary vendors (whose currency is also obtained via exploration).

In addition to being packed with secrets and rewards, each of Survivor’s planets is a visual feast. From the rugged cliffs of Koboh to the sandy deserts of Jedha, every location is pure photo mode bait. If you’re the type that loves to take screenshots, then soaking in the sights and sounds of Jedi: Survivor can easily add hours to your initial playthrough.

Performance Problems

Unfortunately, the game’s beauty comes at the cost of performance. The performance mode never feels like it holds a steady 60 FPS, and even the 30 FPS quality mode buckles under intense load. This is especially frustrating since the frame drops only seem to happen during tough battles. For example, a duel with a Rancor in a damp cave saw the game’s framerate tank into the teens, forcing me to swap from quality to performance mode just for the game to feel responsive.

Falling Back to Fallen Order

The game excels when it lets you loose onto a massive plain or desert with a mount to ferry you from nook to cranny as you clear the map. Respawn uses this wide-open level design to patch the cracks in the foundation left over from Fallen Order. When the game funnels you into linear levels in service of the story, however, the otherwise excellent pacing screeches to a halt and Fallen Order’s flaws begin to seep through those cracks.

Thankfully, Respawn has addressed the complaints from Fallen Order by adding several shortcuts and enabling fast travel between meditation points, but that’s still not enough to bandage Survivor’s underwhelming level design. More inventive combat arenas and enemy types would’ve done wonders for this game.

Survivor’s Story

The story isn’t this game’s strong suit either. Unfortunately, Cal’s journey doesn’t hit as hard as it should. Survivor tackles some interesting topics, namely survivor’s guilt, but it refuses to engage with its themes in any significant way outside of the introduction and final act.

Cal and the primary antagonist — who is in desperate need of more screen time — are mirror images of one another. Both have complicated feelings about the Jedi Order and themselves for not being able to do more, but they find themselves on diverging paths. Not wrestling harder with their clashing ideologies was a missed opportunity.

Cal’s layers of guilt are peeled back through the character-focused scenes sprinkled throughout the story. In typical Star Wars fashion, the main plot revolves around the retrieval of a MacGuffin that lets the good guys beat the bad guys, leaving the characters to do the heavy lifting narratively. Respawn takes full advantage of the Star Wars playground and delivers side characters and companions that are way more inventive than anything else churned out by Star Wars media in recent years.

Friendly Faces

Aside from the familiar faces from the first game like the lovable Greez, humble Cere, and enigmatic Merrin, Survivor introduces a wacky cast of endearing side characters that can be recruited to the game’s central hub town of Rambler’s Reach. This town is already home to people like Turgle, a lovable frog friend that plays the role of the game’s “weird little guy,” but you’ll also be able to check in with a slew of friendly faces every time you return.

Cal’s crew is the heart of the story though, and the way he processes his trauma through them is the driving force behind the narrative. Cal is in a very different spot than we left him at the end of Fallen Order, and he’s become riddled with resentment and guilt after the original crew broke up. Survivor’s story is a fairly paint-by-numbers “getting the gang back together” affair, but watching Cal toe the line between light and dark while his guilt slowly eats away at him is textbook Star Wars, even if the narrative doesn’t dive as deep as it should.

Paltry Parrying

In addition, Survivor still hasn’t remedied one of Fallen Order’s most detrimental aspects. Regardless of Cal’s weapon or style, combat still feels mushy. Parries in particular never feel as tight as they should, which is exacerbated even further by the swath of satisfying parries we’ve gotten in games like Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty since the release of Fallen Order. Mixing in force powers and blaster shots makes things much more enjoyable, but the simple act of swinging a saber leaves a lot to be desired.

The Verdict

Star Wars Jedi: Survivor builds on the foundation established in Fallen Order and delivers expansive environments crammed with content and secrets. Respawn still falls into some of the same pitfalls that it did in Fallen Order, though, namely in its underwhelming linear sections and middling story. Still, it’s peak Star Wars. It has all the sights, sounds, and fanservice that Fallen Order brought to the table multiplied by ten, offering fans a great time in a galaxy far, far away.

Entering the Burning Shores transported me back to the feeling of visiting Columbia from BioShock Infinite for the first time: the beauty found in every backdrop, the sense of awe and wonder, and the feeling of traveling to somewhere with a larger-than-life story to tell. I was ready to explore the Burning Shores headlong. The DLC effortlessly captures the essence of what makes the Horizon franchise successful yet also memorable in mere minutes. Horizon Forbidden West: Burning Shores is a DLC that becomes an essential part of the Forbidden West experience.

Locations and Setting – Los Angeles Maintains Its Beauty a Millennium Later

Burning Shores is set in Los Angeles of the future and continues some of the main lore-based story events from Forbidden West. Everywhere you look will be packed with unique style, with glistening beaches and flowing streams of lava. It makes venturing around the Burning Shores all that much more enjoyable: especially for those whose favorite area from Forbidden West was the San Francisco Bay Area.

No matter where you travel on the shores, there is always an area of interest that you will tend to find yourself looking into. With lots of ruins for you to explore and loot to collect, it can be difficult to stop playing when you get into the core loop of the DLC — the boost of adrenaline an expansion should absolutely offer. Soaring around the skies of the Burning Shores with your mount will never get old.

Fleet’s End is the main Quen settlement of the area and it is going to act as your main base of operations while on the shores. While you navigate the bustling area of Fleet’s End you can use it to equip and upgrade yourself with all of the latest that the game has to offer in terms of equipment. Brimshine is the new resource that you will be using for a lot of purchases and upgrades.

Thankfully this resource feels fulfilling to collect due to its multi-tier crystal system with a few types of crystal caches you can find.

Related: How to Get Brimshine in Horizon Forbidden West Burning Shores: Best Brimshine Locations

Gameplay and Machines – A Well-Placed Arrow Won’t Always Save You With These Machines

There are four new machines that have made their entrance into the series with the Bilegut being one that you’ll see most often. The new Bilegut machine hops around like a frog and can easily wreak havoc on your health bar if you don’t target the underbelly weak spot. When I encountered this machine for the first time it had the adrenaline flowing as I navigated around its body to land precision bow shots.

The design of the new machines keeps things fresh because of their unique attack styles which pair nicely with the main gameplay. You can even get access to mechanics such as the Grapple Strike that will let you get close and personal with Machines when they’re knocked down after a jump.

One of the most exciting parts of the gameplay is that you will get access to a Zenith (high-tech) weapon that will act like a cannon. Attaching tracker bolts to machines and then firing with the Zenith weapon has an impressive game feel that rockets the DLC up to the highest echelons even more. Not just that but another new machine is the Waterwing which will let you soar underwater — a serene and enchanting experience that will have you wanting to dive under, time and time again.

New abilities such as the aforementioned Grapple Strike tie all of the gameplay together and the other abilities on offer add extra improvements. Being able to craft a deployable shield to crouch behind keeps you on your toes while trying to think of the best placement to gain an upper edge.

Along with the main gameplay, the side quests and general activities that you can play in Burning Shores are very well-crafted. Going along flight paths in Aerial Captures as a form of sightseeing activity from the original game is intrinsically gorgeous. There could have been a few more side quests for the DLC to buff it up more but the collectible hunting in the form of Dinosaur figurines certainly makes up for it.

Narrative and Story – Quen-Focused and Excellently Crafted Dialogue

The story centers around a new character and companion for Aloy named Seyka. Our protagonist’s new companion Seyka is one of the Quen marines who made their way to the Forbidden West but instead ended up on the Burning Shores. The reason for Aloy’s venture to the shores is to hunt for Walter Londra, one of the Zeniths who secluded themselves in the area. Walter is a highly egotistical man who will stop at nothing to ensure he gets what he wants.

The moments between Seyka and Aloy throughout the story have become some of my personal favorite interactions from the entire game — and not just the DLC. That is a large feat to pass and it is mostly in part to Seyka’s confident personality along with their incredible actor Kylie Liya Page who captures the hearts of the audience. Not only that but the bonding moments between Aloy and Seyka are always wholesome and sweet to watch. Seyka is a character that I would love to see more of in future games because of just how impactful she can be.

Related: How to Use Updrafts in Horizon Forbidden West: Burning Shores

Within five main quests for the DLC, Aloy is dedicated to finding Seyka’s lost sister. The narrative pulls at the heart like a tense bowstring about to fire an arrow into a machine as the story continues to draw players into the experience that awaits. Nonetheless, with just five main story quests it feels as though there could have been a few more added into the mix. The story is short but sweet with incredible set pieces throughout so it compensates for this.

The ending was a battle that I will remember for years to come. In order to avoid spoilers, specifics won’t be given but imagine combining everything you love about Horizon into one thrilling encounter — you will then be living the moments of the ending.

Technicality and Level Design – A Guerrilla Games Masterclass All Over Again

Each level is successful in the execution of design acumen with effective flow and pacing throughout. The area which stood out the most was Pangea Park, effectively a theme park with a heavy dinosaur focus. The blends of colors at night were stunning, and lurking in the tall grass to eliminate enemies around the park was everything needed to satisfy any stealth-game aficionado’s appetite.

With that said, every area of Burning Shores felt impactful and it is for that reason among others that the expansion has made a lasting impression on the mind. In terms of technicality, the same existing Horizon formula that we all know and love is still heavily rooted in the DLC.

One area that could have used some extra tweaks was the flying mechanics of the new Waterwing mount. It would have been nice if diving downwards in the air and pulling back up gave a speed boost. Similar to how the flying mechanics worked in the Batman Arkham games for example.

Soaring around in Horizon Forbidden West feels incredible but with the speedier movement at times from personal input it could’ve felt increasingly effective.

Music and Sound Design – Symphonies of Mechanical Wonder

Sound is what can make or break a game depending on how well it is implemented. The core mechanics could be captivating but without tailored audio, it can be difficult to get the full experience. Burning Shores’ audio design is without a doubt incredibly implemented.

Vocals from those such as Julie Elven continue to impress in the soundtrack. Traveling around on the seas with the all-new Skiff also feels just as great as it sounds. When sailing around you will hear each part of the wooden vessel cleaving its way through the rising tides.

The mechanical whirring of the machines, as you make well-timed arrow shots, tingles the auditory senses with every movement — it truly needs to be felt on a personal level while playing.

Related: Horizon Forbidden West: How to Craft Fast Travel Packs and Other Items

Verdict – A Fitting Expansion for Horizon Forbidden West

Horizon Forbidden West: Burning Shores is an apex of joy that not only solidifies Burning Shores’ effectiveness but also secures the future of the franchise strongly. With a story that grasps the heart for its entirety all the way through, and gameplay that matches the effectiveness of the main events, it is no surprise why fans will be venturing back and forth to the Burning Shores even after the credits roll.

There are few video game series as long-running as Final Fantasy. With the sixteenth mainline entry just weeks away (and dozens upon dozens of spinoffs under the franchise’s belt), Square Enix has finally ported last year’s Final Fantasy Pixel Remaster series to PlayStation and Nintendo Switch following a period of PC/mobile exclusivity. Fans have been begging for these games to be playable on modern systems for years now, and after Square Enix’s laughable mobile remasters of classics like Final Fantasy VI, it seemed like all hope was lost.

Thankfully, the Pixel Remasters of Final Fantasy I-VI are nothing like their shoddy predecessors. They were good when they hit PC and mobile devices last year, but now they’re even greater with additional quality-of-life improvements. These new versions are the definitive way to enjoy some of the greatest RPGs of all time and experience an essential chapter of gaming history.

The Final Fantasy Pixel Remasters follow a recent industry trend of retro appreciation, with publishers realizing that fans are okay with pixels and old-school mechanics and don’t need expensive multi-million-dollar remakes to enjoy the classics. While Square Enix hasn’t gone as far to remake these games in its new HD-2D style in the vein of Octopath Traveler (or the upcoming remake of Dragon Quest III), the games have still received quite a few audiovisual touchups to make them more palatable for a modern audience.

Put simply, these games preserve the look and feel of the originals while bumping up the resolution and adding widescreen support. If you’ve played recent retro classic collections like the Mega Man Battle Network Legacy Collection or Capcom Beat ‘Em Up Bundle, then you’re already familiar with the types of tweaks on display here. The games look great given their age, and that unique Final Fantasy style bleeds through every pixel of the collection.

However, simply porting games this old to modern systems without any quality-of-life tweaks would be a surefire way to turn off fans both old and new. To remedy this, every game in the collection allows you to turn off random encounters at will and boost your XP and Gil gains by up to 4 times (or lower them below the standard amount if you’re a masochist). Plus, there are ways to speed up battles and dramatically improve the pacing of each game.

These don’t disable trophies or take away from the experience at all, either, so you can bend the games to your will while still maintaining (mostly) the same experience as those playing through the games back in the day. When some of these games still basically require walkthroughs to enjoy fully (looking at you Final Fantasy I), these additions ease the aging pains while still appeasing purists. Preserving these games in their original forms is important, but playing through the original Final Fantasy as it is today is a pain.

These quality-of-life improvements make the Pixel Remasters feel like a highly accessible museum tour. The tour guide wows the crowd with an old-fashioned water pump and invites museum-goers to try it for themselves to see how things were done in the old days, but there’s a water fountain down the hall for when you really get thirsty. Being able to turn off random encounters to head back to town for a quick supply run or boost your Gil gains by 4x to buy new gear for your party is a huge timesaver and makes these games much more playable for a modern audience.

In addition, each game features a rearranged soundtrack that can be turned on and off at any time. Being able to swap to the original songs is lovely, but the chiptune tracks can get old after a while. Thankfully, the new arrangements are all excellent. Square Enix has also finally addressed fan complaints about the font in the original release of the Pixel Remasters, and the new console port allows you to choose a pixelated typeface that fits more with the style of the games on display.

While all of these changes may seem minor on paper, their importance cannot be overstated. They open up these classic games to anyone and everyone, letting them experience the things that really matter. People love these games for their worlds, their characters, their music, and more. Now, there are basically zero barriers to those. There’s no need to put up with antiquated design tropes like annoyingly frequent random encounters, overtuned difficulty, or necessary grinding.

In addition, the release of the Pixel Remasters makes nearly the entire Final Fantasy saga playable on modern platforms. Some platforms have some exceptions — like the XIII trilogy only being available on Xbox via backward compatibility or XIV only being available on PlayStation consoles — but there’s an easy way to play basically any mainline Final Fantasy on your platform of choice now. This collection sets a standard that should be followed by any publisher with a massive back catalog of classic games.

The Pixel Remasters of Final Fantasy I-VI prove that retro games don’t need full-on remakes to make them palatable for modern audiences. All it takes are a few quality-of-life improvements like XP boosts, fast battle options, and encounter adjustments to make these games palatable for everyone. While they’re missing some of the extra content featured in other ports, they’re still the definitive way to experience these classic titles in their entirety.

The long-anticipated sequel to the Dead Island franchise is finally here, and this time we are taken to the streets of Hell-A. While it may seem weird that Dead Island 2 is set in a city like Los Angeles, it makes sense once you realize how isolated you are from the outside world. In this case, the island is manmade because the quarantine in Los Angeles doesn’t allow anyone in or out of the city. While Dead Island 2 has been the butt of jokes and leaving many fans of the franchise asking why they should care after so many years of disappointing delays and setbacks, Dead Island 2 has proven why it isn’t lunch in the stomach of another dead brained zombie but instead rose to the challenge and slayed with the best of them.

Welcome to Hell-A

Los Angeles, aptly named Hell-A by its residents, was chosen by Dambuster Studios as the location for Dead Island 2 because of the city’s great eccentrics and self-confidence. They did an amazing job with capturing this in all aspects of the game from the story, locations, characters, aesthetics, and sounds.

The Story

A girl gets bit by a zombie. The girl realizes she’s immune to zombies. The girl is humanity’s last hope to create a cure to rid itself of the zombie apocalypse. It’s the same old zombie story that’s been told a million times. Dead Island 2’s story starts and ends with the same premise and doesn’t stray as so many other zombie games, movies, and tv shows do. That is, to get away from zombies as the main antagonists and stray to humans or other creatures. This is a zombie slaying game taking place in Los Angeles, damn’t! We just want to slay zombies and do it style.

Beverly Hills… That’s Where I Want to Be

While trying to escape the zombie apocalypse, you will explore some of Los Angeles’ most iconic locations, like Beverly Hills, Venice Beach, and the Santa Monica Pier. The game offers ten zones for you to explore, and there’s no denying that an immense level of design went into each set piece, music, and sound effects for each zone. Unfortunately, however, there are still some downfalls.

Each location was designed to fit the game’s needs, meaning not all locations will be identical in size or experience. For instance, you will get the wide-open space of Beverly Hills that offers lots of exploration where you’ll get lost for hours while the on-rails space of Monarch Studios serves as nothing more than a boss fight location. It could have been so much more due to the really fun movie set pieces. Two of the ten locations are also set in a sewer and tunnel, which take you out of the pleasing aesthetic of Hell-A and are more annoying than anything else.

The Characters

Dead Island 2 does a great job of marrying the new residents of Hell-A with fan favorites from previous games like Sam B. These characters bring Dead Island 2’s story to life. As you progress through the story, you will grow attached to them, which is a mistake because it is a zombie apocalypse after all and people will die. However, this won’t stop you from feeling emotions like laughter, joy, sadness, and confusion throughout the story. Throw in the interactions from your Slayer and the result is a fun-filled ride that will make you want more after the credits have rolled.

The Looks

Dead Island 2 is lovely and performs well on modern consoles like the PlayStation 5. The character models, set pieces, and weapons look extraordinarily realistic and are a considerable upgrade from previous installments in the Dead Island franchise. In addition, the game presents you with the California style, which can only be described as an aesthetic that is casual, curated, breezy, sunny, and brightly colored through the blood-tinted glasses of the zombie apocalypse. The first thing you’ll notice when you run the streets of Hell-A is how vivid the world around you is, significantly contrasting the dark theme of death during the zombie apocalypse.

The Sound

From the moment the plane crashes at the beginning of the game, you know your ears will be in for a treat. Dead Island 2 offers a remarkable audible experience from its use of music that creates an eerie atmosphere, sound effects of its many set pieces, and well-cast voice actors. You’ll use your hearing as a primary way to explore and survive Hell-A. Nothing is more terrifying than hearing the hungry growls of a zombie from behind after you thought you had adequately cleared the area (Spoiler alert — you didn’t). Let’s hope you can fend off that zombie before it eats your nose as an appetizer. Yum.

I Came Here to Chew Bubble Gum and Slay Zombies…

Dead Island 2, at its core, is a survival horror action RPG whose success lies in whether or not the zombie slaying action is fun and satisfying. The game can look and sound pretty all it wants, but it will fall flat if the combat isn’t tight. Dead Island 2 offers many ways to achieve the zombie kill of the week, including a custom game engine, melee, guns, traps, and secondary items.

Fully Locational Evisceration System for Humanoids

Dambuster Studios built the F.L.E.S.H. engine from scratch because they wanted their humanoid characters to be as realistic as possible by allowing them to react naturally to events in the world. The F.L.E.S.H. system also extends to the various combat systems and creates hilarious and over-the-top moments based on the type of attack and weapon you use.

Systems like the F.L.E.S.H. engine are becoming popular with game studios, but not all have succeeded. Thankfully, the F.L.E.S.H. engine is not one of those failures. It should be the example all future studios look to when making a custom engine.

The F.L.E.S.H. engine does exactly what it’s supposed to and creates some of the most realistic zombie interactions to date. Whether punching your fist through the mushy face of a zombie, disfiguring a group of zombies with an explosive curveball, or electrocuting them with a well-placed trap, no two experiences will be the same. Their initial reactions and the result will be equally gory but satisfying.

Combat – Melee

Melee combat is where Dead Island 2 shines. The Slayers come decked out with several melee attacks like a ground pound that sends zombies staggering back, a drop kick that quickly knocks them off a building, or a palm strike that lets you interrupt a zombie mid-attack. Pair those with your favorite melee weapon and you’ll be zombie killing machine.

The melee weapons work remarkably well, especially with the ability to modify them to fit your playstyle. You can also use ordinary objects such as a pool cue, rake, or wrench and modify them to become deadly devices. Whether you want a slow-swinging but hard-hitting garden rake or a lightning-fast katana that cuts through zombie flesh like butter, melee weapons hit the mark.

In addition, you can modify your melee weapons to apply different status effects like lighting them on fire after a few swings to apply burn damage or shocking them in place with electricity. You can then pair these status effects mods with a chosen Skill from your Skill Deck to increase your power even more.

For example, by pairing melee combat with the F.L.E.S.H. engine, if you get overwhelmed by zombies, you can cut the leg off one zombie, palm strike a second zombie to interrupt an attack, knockback a third zombie with your weapon, and then curb stomp the first zombie when the area is clear. You have a ton of actions available at your disposal, depending on the situation you find yourself in. The melee combat system is why Dead Island 2 is so successful.

Combat – Guns

You won’t gain access to guns until pretty far into the story and will be happy for the change of pace once you get them. For instance, you’ll have access to pistols, light machine guns, crossbows, and a fun air cannon to kill zombies from a distance safely. However, this excitement wears off quickly, and you’ll miss your favorite melee weapon (mine was named Batty-Lou, what is the name of yours?).

This is because the act of shooting leaves a lot to be desired and feels a bit out of place. So much effort was put into the F.L.E.S.H. system and melee combat that guns feel like an afterthought. It’s hard to quickly aim weapons at zombies and you’ll end up wasting tons of valuable ammo. I found that saving one powerful gun as an “in case of emergencies” weapon is all you need. While this is one of the game’s only negatives, it doesn’t affect it too much since melee combat is so much fun and effective.

Traps

Another aspect of Dead Island 2 that makes combat satisfying is using the environment around you to trap, damage, and kill zombies. For instance, you can grab a water jug from a house and pour it between you and shambling zombies. Then, you can swing your melee weapon with an electric mod to turn it into an electric trap. This will cause zombies to become paralyzed and take damage over time. You can then either run away or attack them from a distance. Just be careful not to step in the water when doing so; otherwise, you and the zombies will be doing the Zed Dance, which is hilarious but will get you killed.

Curveballs

Finally, curveballs are secondary items complimenting your melee skills and weapons to help you survive against the threats found in Hell-A. You can have two curveballs equipped at the same time and can use them together to great effect. For example, if a horde of zombies is heading your way, you can throw the Meat curveball to gather them in the group. After that, you can throw the Pipebomb curveball in the middle of the group to blow them all up. Finally, you can clean up the remaining zombies without breaking a sweat.

The Verdict

The F.L.E.S.H. engine, beautiful graphics, and highly satisfying melee combat are key examples of why Dead Island 2 is a success. Other fantastic additions to the beloved franchise include the return of popular Slayers and the cast of colorful characters that bring Hell-A to life. Unfortunately, Dead Island 2 isn’t without its downfalls, the biggest being unsatisfying gunplay and suffocating level design with zones that were a missed opportunity.

Still, despite its many delays and setbacks, Dambuster Studios found a winning formula in Dead Island 2 and shows why it was the proper studio for the job. One that starts with its custom F.L.E.S.H. system that amps up the gore and ends with a shift in tone that provides a much-needed break to your sanity in just the right places. You’ll love your visit to Hell-A and will be hesitant to leave even with ongoing the zombie apocalypse. Instead, like your favorite pulp hero, you’ll swagger through the streets while egging on the zombies with your best one-liners.

Rally the Troops! – The Gameplay

What is Minecraft Legends?

Minecraft Legends takes real-time strategy from games like Age of Empire and Starcraft and open-world action from games like The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild and puts it all in the world of Minecraft. It’s an ambitious crossover that is tantalizing, but a bit underwhelming. There is a Campaign Mode that teaches you the ropes and has you playing through the story solely in PvE, a Versus Mode that puts two teams of up to four players against each other with the objective being to destroy the enemy’s base, and a Lost Legends and Myths Modes which are purchasable monthly missions with specific objectives and rewards. While all these exciting game modes offer the promise of variety, they can all be boiled down to the same standard gameplay represented in different forms. In each game mode, you’ll use your Legendary Lute to command your Allays to gather resources and build structures. You’ll use your Banner of Courage to command your army of Golems to attack Piglins or enemy bases. And that’s the long and short of it.

The Feel

One thing Minecraft Legends does get right is how smooth the gameplay feels. Traversing around the world and collecting more Mobs to join your ranks is an excellent experience. Add to that the ability to ride different mounts, some of which can glide through the air, and an expansive Overworld to explore and you’ve got yourself a surprisingly addicting adventure. The controls are complex and can take a while to get used to, but once you have the mental map of what each button does, collecting resources, building defenses, and attacking your enemies is well-polished and satisfying.

Something that doesn’t feel great is controlling the Golems. In Minecraft Legends, instead of sending a steady stream of enemies toward your opponents like in League of Legends, you need to constantly spawn your own Golems, rally a handful of them to you, and position them in defendable positions. You can’t create a self-generating system of Golems spawning and protecting a specific spot. You can’t bring your full army’s worth of Golems into battle. The micro-managing of Golems pulls you away from the role of commanding an army and grounds you in the trenches of monotony.

The Progression

While the gameplay itself is smooth, the level of progression is shallow. In the Campaign and Versus Modes, the objective is to gather the starting resources, build your Improvements, put up some walls, and build Golem spawners. Do that three or four more times while attacking Piglins and the enemy base and you’ll win the day (or die trying). Instead of having a way to improve your personal character, bolster your army with unique items found from exploring the nooks and crannies of the battlefield, or create tunnels or sky bridges as you’d expect in a Minecraft game, Minecraft Legends sticks to a straightforward gameplay loop that is fun the first few times but doesn’t have much staying power.

Along with a lack of staying power, Minecraft Legends has a few quirks that hold it back. One of the smaller quirks is that when you recall your troops at a Golem spawner, it recalls the entire army which can hurt your teammates by leaving them defenseless as well as leave your base unprotected. One of the bigger quirks is that the only way to understand how to play the game is to play several hours of the campaign. While small quirks that gatekeep potential strategies in Minecraft Legends can be fixed and improved in future patch notes, not having an established tutorial mode to teach players who want to jump straight into the Versus Mode with their friends how to play is disappointing. On the bright side, the campaign has up to four player co-op which means you can learn how to play at a relaxed pace with your friends.

The Ornate Overworld – The Art Design

The Overworld of Minecraft Legends is a highlight. It feels very familiar but carries its own distinct identity. The colors pop thanks to the strong outlines and color palettes. The whole world is brimming with movement and detail found in the little creatures, the wind swaying the flowers, and the dust kicked up from your galloping steed. The day and night cycle is tranquil and adds an epic dosage of randomness. The field-of-view allows mountainous rock formations and giant jungles to bloom on the screen. While the systems and controls aren’t the best, the Overworld is extremely welcoming which makes exploring during the Campaign a blast.

Reap and Repeat – The Strategy

The Meta

While Minecraft Legends nails the action part of the game with vibrant vistas and a great third-person feel, the RTS side of the game is lacking. After playing the Versus Mode with other players and messing around in the Training Mode, the winning strategy of Minecraft Legends became instantly clear: whoever gets the Restone Launcher first, wins. Racing against time to beat your opponents to a specific advantage is typical and fun, but usually, RTS games have multiple winning formulas. Minecraft Legends does have multiple ways to fight and win, but it usually involves a select group of the best Golems and a Redstone Launcher. While the meta, or “most effective tactics available,” will likely change with patch notes and updates, there isn’t a lot of wiggle room when it comes to actual defenses, whether that be in a lack of attack towers, terrain modifications, or Golem variety.

The launch of Minecraft Legends is a bit ambiguous — is it a full game? Is it a live-service game? Will we get future “seasons” of new content and updates? In its current state, with new content being an unknown, Minecraft Legends lacks depth and replayability. The winning formula has been found and it involves not needing to step foot into the enemy base. This brings up my next point: for a game that’s an offshoot of Minecraft, building is astonishingly inconsequential.

The Building

Minecraft Legends commits the biggest Minecraft sin: building isn’t creative or fun. First, there’s no way to manipulate the environment. As fun as crafting a moat or raising your base higher up onto a mountainside would be, Minecraft Legends restricts what you can do which goes against what makes Minecraft amazing. Second, the layout of your base only matters to a certain extent. Getting creative by building an elaborate labyrinth doesn’t matter at all if your enemies have Creepers or a Redstone Launcher. Third, you’re under a time crunch, so spending time building something fun isn’t advised. Building in Minecraft Legends is a letdown in almost every way. What is the driving force of fun and freedom in Minecraft is the biggest chore in Minecraft Legends.

The Verdict

When looking at the foundation, Minecraft Legends has the potential of being an innovative action RTS genre blend, but ultimately, it sets its sights a little too high. Without a multi-layered system of deep and accessible strategy, Minecraft Legends is fun to frolic in but fails to fulfill.

The world is beautiful and the gameplay feel is great, but the core of Minecraft Legends lacks flavor, depth, and purpose. Though it’s unclear who this game is for, what we can take an educated guess at is those who play it will likely enjoy it for a week or two and then bounce to something else.

The Mega Man Battle Network Legacy Collection gives players a chance to explore some of the most unique Mega Man games in the franchise’s history. Instead of platforming and fighting robots, players build a deck of battle chips as they enter computers and take down monstrous viruses. Mega Man Battle Network Legacy Collection aims to modernize these original games with new features, restored content, and brand-new online functionality, but does the Legacy Collection truly manage to improve on the original Battle Network titles?

Jack In! Mega Man, Execute!

When starting the Legacy Collection, players are treated to a charming visual of MegaMan.EXE welcoming them. They’re able to dive into the games at their leisure or check out additional features like achievements, concept art, and music. It’s even possible to see downloadable chips and patch cards before opening a game, giving players an idea of what’s available and what isn’t. Many of these additions are standard for Capcom’s Legacy Collections, but minor additions like a talking Mega Man give this one a bit more personality than most.

This collection also includes a filter for each game meant to make the pixel-based adventures look “smoother” than usual. It’s not quite a perfect addition, but players are able to turn it off whenever they like in the collection’s own unique menu. This is where many other helpful features can be found, such as button configuration and sound options. Players can even adjust the screen size, allowing the games to mimic their original resolution on GBA systems. This allows for a faithful yet customizable experience that can’t be easily found in other re-releases out there.

However, the Legacy Collection lacks a few things that could have stood to be changed. In-game text uses a new font that doesn’t match the visuals, making it seem off-putting even with the filter on. There’s no way to change it back to its original form, which honestly doesn’t make much sense since the filter can be turned off whenever players like. It’s a minor change in the grand scheme of things, but it’s hard to fully embrace each title’s story with such mismatched text.

Additionally, the quality of life features found in the Legacy Collection is somewhat lacking. It’s still far too easy to lose hours of progress in one of the games due to running into an unwinnable random encounter, or to end up sitting around next to stationary enemies while waiting for new battle chips to become usable. The Buster MAX mode added in the collection feels like a cheap cop-out that overcompensates for the difficulty, making each game far too easy with it on. It would have been nicer to have an option for autosave or a button to speed up gameplay as seen in other recent collections. Such additions would make the acts of progression and grinding much less tedious while still forcing players to consider the challenges ahead of them.

Topping off the list of problems in the Legacy Collection itself is the lack of more Battle Network content outside of the GBA games and their patch cards. Obviously, there’s no Battle Network 4.5 and no Network Transmission, but there’s also no Operation Shooting Star and no Double Team DS. This was made clear from the collection’s announcement, but it’s a shame to lose out on the improvements and additions from the DS remakes of Battle Network 1 and 5. It’s also a shame to lose out on more Japanese-only content, especially since the Legacy Collection has made attempts to restore such content (even if that restoration isn’t perfect itself).

Lost in Translation, Yet Again

Having been released in the GBA era, the original Battle Network games were heavily localized, with more than a few translation errors showing up as a result. They also removed certain content from Japanese-only copies of each game, such as special battle chips and an entire scenario in Battle Network 6. Much of this content has been restored and newly translated with each title being based on its Japanese release. Some existing content has also been fixed up, such as the name of the Z-Saver chip being correctly changed to Z-Saber.

Unfortunately, many existing errors haven’t been fixed at all. Even the aforementioned Z-Saber chip still misspells Reploid as “Repliroid” in its description. There are also still plenty of infamous errors such as “Load Chaud” and “Leg’s Go, Lan” that feel impossible to miss. In fact, brand-new errors have been introduced, such as ellipses in the Battle Network 3 intro being replaced by quotation marks and certain NPC dialogue being cut off at the wrong points. It feels like the English script from each game was simply copy-pasted into the Legacy Collection without any regard for the problems present within.

This extends to each game’s localization as well, which might be seen as a good thing for some. Even Battle Network 2’s more raunchy and questionable sections were kept as-is, from rapping for whiskey to the characters swearing during tense moments. On one hand, it’s honestly kind of nice to experience these moments as they were. It lets players enjoy these games the same way many kids in the early 2000s did, and it completely evades cries of censorship by simply not having any to begin with. But considering the changes to text graphics and the numerous other errors present in the script, it comes off less as preservation and more as just pure laziness.

The Legacy Collection shouldn’t have these errors in the first place and it’s hard to excuse their existence., but they can eventually be patched if Capcom wishes to put in the time and effort to do so. This normally wouldn’t be relevant, but it brings up an important point for this review: these games aren’t just emulated versions of the original titles.

Worlds of Past and Present Combined

For all the errors Capcom missed in the Legacy Collection, they did their best to ensure none of it affected the most important part of Battle Network: the core gameplay. In other words, the gameplay across each title is faithful, responsive, and overall fantastic. Going beyond simple emulation, however, the developers have pushed ahead in this area to include perhaps the most important addition of the Legacy Collection: online functionality. Battling and trading can now be done across the internet, letting even long-time fans experience content they might have never been able to before.

The online functionality is on a per-game basis rather than being available through its own special menu. This does somewhat limit functionality, but it keeps online play more organized in general. The developers have even made efforts to balance PVP while keeping the single-player experience as free as it always was. This only makes for more intense online battles on top of the fun found by instantly deleting the toughest bosses using a mere handful of battle chips.

The Verdict

There’s a lot that can be said about what the Legacy Collection didn’t include or where it gets stuff wrong, but what it did right doesn’t need much of an explanation. Each game in the collection offers an incredibly faithful gameplay experience to the original. The additional patch cards, downloadable chips, restored content, and online functionality make these collections feel as complete as they can be even with whatever else might be missing. Its worst errors are easily ignored in the face of classic gameplay and a massive selection of content, making it hard not to recommend — even for players who own the GBA releases already.

Dredge isn’t a game to throw back. Hauled straight from the hearts of Black Salt Games, a brand-new game developer from New Zealand, is Dredge, an indie fishing-sim with sprinkles of RPG and eldritch horror. With the perfect storm of a cozy/eerie art design, hooky gameplay, and minimalist Lovecraftian storytelling, Dredge snuck up from the deep and has stolen our hearts… maybe literally.

Fear the Fish – The Gameplay

On paper, Dredge sounds quite simple and ordinary. You play as a fisherman on a boat, free roam an open sea, trade fish for cash, buy upgrades, and make repairs when needed. While the fundamentals of Dredge appear standard, its deeper layers are what make the seemingly mundane a murkier affair.

The Fishing and Day and Night Cycle

In this fishing game, you’ll do a lot of fishing. Ripples on the water and shadowy schools below inform you where fishing spots are. All you need to do is approach and drop a line. On the right, you’ll see your cargo which is where you’ll need to perform some puzzly inventory management to fit your fish and on the left, you’ll see a reel minigame. Each fish has a slightly different minigame and size which provides a temporary challenge to enjoy, but the real fun is found in trying to collect all 150+ fish varieties.

The fishing, like everything else in Dredge, has two deeper gameplay layers: Aberrations and the day and night cycle. While fishing, if you’re lucky, you’ll find an Aberration which is an abnormal fish of the species you would normally catch at that specific fishing spot. Not only are the Aberrations freakishly cool and fun to collect, but they also sell for a lot more.

On top of hunting for Aberrations, some fish only come out at night. This means you’ll need to keep a weather eye on the day and night cycle to determine when to fish and for how long. While remaining still on the water or spending time in town stops the clock, when you are sailing or fishing, the clock is ticking. When nighttime does come, you’ll see ghostly blue and green vapors above fishing spots that are guaranteed to give you an Aberration, but you also run the risk of becoming Paranoid. Overall, the multilayered fishing gameplay loops easily get its hooks in you — and that’s just the start.

The Paranoia and Dredging

The slithering shadows of the sea at night mean you’ll slowly become Paranoid. If you’re out in the darkness for too long or venture into the screaming red winds, you’ll gain Paranoia which is marked by an eyeball at the top of your screen. The more Paranoid you get, the angrier the eyeball gets, going from nonexistent, blue, green, and then red. When Paranoid, negative events can strike — events that can spoil your fish, steal your cargo, or damage your ship. After resting at a dock to get rid of your Paranoia, you’re free to sail the sea safely… until night looms its scaly head again.

When you aren’t fishing or staving off Paranoia, you’ll need to be dredging for materials. Everything in Dredge can be upgraded — your engine, your fishing pole, your lights, and your ship size. But to buy upgrades, you need to dredge wood, metal, cloth, and, most importantly, Research Parts to unlock the upgrades. Hunting for upgrade materials makes for addicting progression and battling Paranoia adds an element of horror to enjoy.

The Pursuits and Exploration

The last elements of Dredge’s gameplay are the Pursuits and the exploration. Pursuits are the side quests you’ll receive from the various characters in the game. They start out easy: go take this note to another harbor, and slowly get more difficult: catch and deliver a rotting Conger Eel. Completing Pursuits gives you cash and Research Parts which, like the mouth of a river leading right into the sea, feeds into what makes Dredge great.

Exploring the open ocean is exhilarating. Not only is building the ship and the confidence to chart the uncharted regions of the map a delight, but exploring the secrets found on the small in-between islands is either relaxing or anxiety-inducing, depending on the time, but always thrilling.

Uncharted Waters – The Art Design

What makes Dredge Dredge is the art design. Without the haunting melodies that play at the docks or the dark pastel palette, Dredge wouldn’t make it far from the docks. As enjoyable as fishing, dredging, exploring, questing, and navigating the day and night cycle are, the general backdrop of Lovecraftian mystery propels Dredge into being a uniquely mesmerizing experience. Instead of being the cheery and bright fishing adventures of The King of Red Lions from The Legend of Zelda: Wind Waker, Dredge is set on being a grounded, dark, thalassophobic cosmic horror in large part thanks to the art design.

Shadows and Similarities – The Story

After catching your first few fish, you’ll not only stumble upon strange mutations but also shady characters with cryptic pasts. As you complete Pursuits for each unique character in the game, you’ll discover touching micro stories as well as the thread that leads to the final catch.

Indie games of this caliber don’t have the time to tell a story with cinematic cutscenes and lengthy dialogue — which is exactly what works in Dredge’s favor. Black Salt Games expertly takes a page out of Lovecraftian tales like The Shadow Over Innsmouth and The Call of Cthulhu to tell a similarly briny and minimalistic tale that draws the player in further as holes in the mystery begin to fill. While exploring, you’ll come across messages in bottles that bobble on the ocean’s meniscus in each region of the map. While seemingly nonsensical at first, these messages begin to piece together the tale of what happened previously and how it all relates to your story now. While Dredge’s simple yet striking story is an inessential addition to an already amazing game, the pacing at which you pick up the pieces and unravel the supernatural mystery as well as the payoffs in the end made for an enhanced voyage.

The Verdict

Dredge takes a beloved genre of storytelling and makes it a fun fishing-sim. It’s as shallow and deep as that. While it isn’t a long game, it’s one that I was immediately grateful for experiencing. From the expertly interwoven gameplay loops to the horrifically charming story and art design, Dredge succeeds in creating a new genre blend that I desperately need more of.

Everyone’s favorite annual baseball title returns with the release of MLB The Show 23 just in time to celebrate the start of spring training and the 2023 Major League Baseball Season. With the increase in video game prices, it can be tough to justify purchasing a brand new title every year, especially if it offers nothing new compared to the previous ten iterations you may already own. This is the 18th addition to the iconic franchise and is the best we’ve gotten. No other MLB The Show has been this polished and provided a new, excellent feature like MLB The Show 23.

Gameplay

For what could easily be included in patches or DLCs, a yearly sports title’s biggest problem lies in the studio repackaging the same game at the same market price. While there isn’t much you can do to change how the sport of baseball itself is played, studios can at least improve its presentation, and MLB The Show 23 does just that.

The attribute changes were one of the most remarkable improvements. More specifically, how the Clutch attribute replaces previous attributes in certain situations, like when runners are in scoring position. This change will amp up the pressure and test your mettle as a hitter or batter. Whether you are struggling to exit an inning or have the game-winning run second base, you will feel the pressure to perform like a superstar, which was lacking in previous installments.

Another helpful improvement that makes MLB The Show 23 a more fluid experience is the improvements to the swing feedback system, which was successfully achieved by changing its on-screen presentation. By presenting the data using a natural left-to-right, top-to-bottom approach, you can quickly understand why your last swing was successful and adjust if not. Hitting is one of the most complicated aspects of the game, and I found I could make minor adjustments to my player’s swings, resulting in more successful at-bats.

Visual

MLB The Show 23 looks great on all platforms regardless of whether it plays on older gen or the latest-gen consoles and televisions. However, you won’t see much improvement from MLB The Show 22 to MLB The Show 23. Instead, where MLB The Show 23 shines is the 5,000 new animations that were added, including 100 that you will immediately see when playing on offensive or defensive. Particular new animations stand out when players dive for balls or perform amazing plays, like robbing a foul ball. These amp up the realism, further eliminating the awkward actions of either your character or AI-controlled players.

New Features

You may be asking, what does MLB The Show 23 bring to the ballpark that my previous favorite entry doesn’t? Technically, only two new features are brought to MLB The Show 23. The first feature is the creation of the Face Scan in the MLB The Show’s companion app and the new Storylines Mode that provides a fun experience that showcases the potential of future installments.

MLB The Show 23 Face Scan

The new Face Scan feature allows you to take a selfie and then upload that selfie to MLB The Show 23. The game uses that image to create a usable character in Road to the Show and Diamond Dynasty modes. While this may seem like a cheap gimmick, it works surprisingly well and gives sluggers a break from the ugly, generic models we’ve endured for years.

My experience with the new Face Scan feature was frustrating, but I was delighted with the results once I got through all the minor annoyances. First, the companion app didn’t have the Face Scan feature after I updated it to the 23 version. However, after uninstalling and reinstalling the app, it was there. Second, it took me a few tries to get the perfect selfie based on the AI it uses to scan the photo for anomalies that could interfere with the game’s ability to use it.

Once all that was done, I was surprisingly shocked to see a pretty close version of myself in-game. Of course, it wasn’t precisely like me. It was more like an Uncanny Valley version of myself, like one you would see in a movie like M3GAN, where an AI looks almost human but not 100%, which is a bit unnerving.

In fact, every time my partner walked by and saw my player, she just shook her head and said it was creepy. While this probably wasn’t the response Sony had in mind when introducing this feature, I would honestly call that a success. It was fantastic to play “myself” in Road to the Show instead of a generic guy that breaks the immersion every time he appears onscreen.

New Storylines Mode: The Negro Leagues Season 1

San Diego Studio worked closely with the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum and its president Bob Kendrick to recreate stories of the most iconic players from The Negro Leagues. You will experience the lives of eight of these players in an episodic format. Each player, on average, has eight episodes resulting in 73 episodes to experience across Season 1.

In one episode, we see how Satchel Paige fought against adversity by proving he was the real deal. You pitch as Paige during one of his most remembered moments when all other defensive members kneeled behind the mound. This adds to the challenge and gives a small glimpse into Paige’s skill. Not only did he have charisma, but he had the skill to back it up, even in ridiculous ways. Do you?

The presentation by Kendrick and being able to play as the iconic players was a huge blast, and I’m eagerly awaiting Season 2. The infinite possibilities of a Seasonal Storyline mode excite me with all the rich baseball history we can learn about (A League of Their Own and the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League, anyone?).

Unfortunately, the generic commentary continues in the storyline mode and breaks the immersion of playing an iconic player from the past. While it is fantastic to hear commentary about the player compared to their modern counterparts, the play-by-play gets old quickly. In addition, they missed an opportunity to pull soundbites from historic matches so we could experience what it was like to play baseball in that era.

Sonically, the audio within The Negro Leagues Storyline is unbalanced. The presentation led by Kendrick vs. the actual gameplay’s audio conflict against one another, and are constantly at odds when played through my TV speakers. As a PSA, adjust your sound sliders before starting the storyline mode to avoid this.

Finally, the storyline mode still utilizes the game’s soundtrack, which sometimes seems out of place. This is yet another example of a missed opportunity to use music from when the iconic player played. Even if era-specific music weren’t used, organ music (introduced to baseball in 1941) would have been much more effective.

Missing Features

No Import of Previous Data

Year-to-year saves, and certain user-created content from previous installments are not available in MLB The Show 23, which is a huge disappointment and a franchise misstep. All your time spent on your last RTTS player, Dimond Dynasty team, or Stubs Purchases is gone. You cannot import stubs, items, XP, or save data transfer from MLB The Show 22 into MLB The Show 23. Another disappointing aspect is that no created stadiums will transfer to MLB The Show 23 either. So all that time, money, and effort you left on the field is gone if you decide to upgrade to this year’s installment.

Let’s Play Ball… Unless You Are On PC

Another huge missing feature is the inclusion of the MLB The Show franchise on PC. While there is a workaround to play MLB The Show 23, if you are a member of Game Pass, it doesn’t work very well in multiplayer modes and just doesn’t cut it. Sports lovers and PC gamers remember playing games like NHL 97 and Triple Play 97 on their game riggings back in the day and hope that hockey and baseball return to PC. With devices like the Steam Deck, it would be amazing to play baseball on a mobile device that won’t struggle from the comfort of your bed or on the go.

The Verdict

The Negro Leagues and Face Scan are the two primary reasons that earn MLB The Show 23 a recommended purchase if you are still undecided about it. Other fantastic additions are the new animations and gameplay tweaks that improve existing features. However, MLB The Show 23 isn’t without its downfalls, the biggest being its missing features like year-to-year saves, missing an entire player base, and the poorly placed in-game generic commentary.

MLB The Show 23 overcomes its downfalls and provides baseball fans with a fantastic experience that offers many reasons to keep playing past the initial spring training hype. Instead, you’ll want to keep playing through the entire MLB season, which is rare because you often move on to other titles before opening day when a baseball game fails to hit (often striking out altogether). MLB The Show 23 will have you practice your best home run calls because the latest installment in the iconic franchise knocks it out of the park.

Disorganized Crime – The Campaign

One of the major highlights of Crime Boss: Rockay City is the roguelike campaign. Right when you start it, you’ll embark on some high-adrenaline missions that throw you straight into the deep end. After getting your feet thoroughly wet, you’ll meet the main characters and finally settle down into your base of operations which is where you’ll organize your day.

The objective of the campaign is to take down the numerous gang leaders by taking territory and making money all while avoiding the authorities. Each day, you’ll get a few activities to complete like robbing a warehouse or fighting a rival gang which will give you cash. You can then spend that cash to hire better teammates and soldiers for the turf wars you’ll wage to gain more territory. You’ll have daily goals to complete that will help you level up and unlock permanent upgrades. Once you run out of soldiers or your teammates are all used up, you’ll end the day and repeat it tomorrow. You lose the campaign and will need to start from day one when you die in an activity.

The gameplay loop and flow of the campaign is surprisingly intriguing and innovative. For example, there are days when surprise missions are presented which definitely add more flavor and fun to your run. You also won’t be able to do every activity on the map, so you’ll need to choose how you spend your day wisely. Overall, the fun replayability of Crime Boss: Rockay City lies in the ever-changing roguelike campaign.

Casing the Joint – The Gameplay and Game Modes

The Activities

While the campaign of Crime Boss: Rockay City sounds excellent on paper, it falls flat in practice because of the gameplay. All of the activities last around three to five minutes, generally feel similar, and can sometimes handle quite clumsily. At times, you’ll load into an activity and not know exactly what you are supposed to do. At other times, you’ll load into a mission with no warning only for five enemies to surround you and shoot you down immediately with nowhere to run or hide. And whether you’re robbing a van, robbing a building, or killing gang members and robbing whatever they have in their hideout, the activities all very quickly begin to feel very samey.

That said, the activities in Crime Boss: Rockay City are action-packed and exciting. While not necessarily groundbreaking, the bite-sized missions that incorporate stealth, decision-making, and shooting in a small space are all welcomed iterations to the stale FPS formula and work really well for the pick-up/put-down play of a roguelike.

The Gunplay

While the activities have their ups and downs, the gunplay in Crime Boss: Rockay City feels outdated. We live in a time where the sway of aiming down the sights, the weight of a gunshot, and the impact of the bullet on your target have all been perfected in FPS games like Warzone 2 and Destiny 2. Because we have such high-class examples of what a great FPS experience should feel like, Crime Boss: Rockay City’s gunplay inevitably plays like it’s stuck in its 90s setting — which would be cool if they were going for an arcade throwback type of experience, but they definitely aren’t. It’s not terrible by any means, but it doesn’t compete.

The AI

Beyond how the weapons feel, the AI intelligence is low. Whether it’s your bot teammates that stand out in the open and don’t know where the enemies are coming from or the enemy soldiers that swarm way too quickly and have pin-point accuracy, the difficulty of Crime Boss: Rockay City doesn’t just lie in the guns feeling underdeveloped but also in the AI being unintelligent. Luckily, tweaks to gunplay and AI can be implemented after a game launches, so the enjoyment of Crime Boss: Rockay City can only go up from here.

The Game Modes

There are three game modes in Crime Boss: Rockay City. You can either play the campaign, the quick play which is called Crime Time, or a co-op stories section called Urban Legends. Basically, all these game modes are the exact same. While the campaign is a strictly single-player affair, Urban Legends gives you a string of campaign-adjacent missions that you can play online with up to three friends. The Crime Time quick play features the same types of activities in which you can gain cash which can be used to unlock characters and guns. If you thought the activities in the campaign were samey, know that the Crime Time and Urban Legend game modes don’t offer much else.

Takes a Thief to Catch a Thief – The Writing and Acting

Crime Boss: Rockay City has a star-studded cast of famous screen actors. The acting is good in a void, but is fairly disjointed in reality when two screen actors are fighting for a scene that they probably recorded on separate days. While the acting is usually pretty good, the performances are only as good as the writing. And with the writing being bad, our impressions are that less money should’ve been spent getting the cast and more money should’ve been spent writing the script.

Something that constantly feels off in Crime Boss: Rockay City is the writing. There is a lot of dialogue between the well-known characters and all of it is as cheesy, crass, and misogynistic as a 90s crime show set in Florida would be.

Thankfully, you can skip the dialogue, but that doesn’t stop the issue of it being morally gray. The real problem with the writing is that there is no clear indication that it is satirical — which would be clever in showing that the crude way mob bosses and gangsters talk to each other, women, and their enemies is problematic and clearly wrong. Instead, the gangsters and mob bosses are portrayed as cool conmen which leads the player to believe that the writing is either unintentionally awful, purposefully problematic, or justifiably okay since the heroes of the story are doing it. If the graphics were a bit more cartoony or the actors really leaned into the stereotypical nature of their lines, the writing might have come off as more crisp and less cringe, more nuanced instead of offensive because that’s what’s cool.

The Verdict

It’s not every day we get a new studio taking a big swing by taking a genre that has been executed perfectly for years and giving it a unique twist. Crime Boss: Rockay City might not have the most versatile activities, best gunplay, or first-class writing, but it does provide an interesting experience that, like a cheap B-movie, has that certain kind of charm you can’t help but enjoy.

Crime Boss: Rockay City’s execution isn’t revolutionary or exceptional, but its shot at an innovative roguelike campaign is a praiseworthy proof of concept. While my stay in Rockay City wasn’t a long one, hopefully, another Crime Boss city comes along soon, one that takes what was good about Rockay City and takes it to the next level.

At long last, Diablo 4 is almost here. While we wait for the official release in a couple of months, Blizzard Entertainment has graced us with a taste of Diablo 4 in the first beta. While we did receive Diablo 2: Resurrected in 2021, we haven’t had a new Diablo entry since Diablo 3 came out in 2012. As the God Father of dungeon crawling, min-maxing, and online RPG co-op, Diablo is back with Diablo 4.

The first beta weekend of Diablo 4 is now done and, after completing the entirety of Act 1 and crafting an awesome archery/poison trap/shadow Rogue with a focus on spreading Vulnerability, we can genuinely say that Diablo 4 is the grand return we were waiting for.

Diablo 4 Gameplay & Story

Diablo 4 is a streamlined and edified version of the past games’ mechanics and UI. If you’ve played any previous Diablo entry, you’ll feel right at home with Diablo 4. If you are new to the franchise, Diablo 4’s gameplay is extremely addictive and easy to love.

Related: Best Diablo 4 Sorceress Build – Skills, Stats, and Items

Diablo 4’s gameplay consists of getting and completing main and side quests, creatively obliterating large groups of enemies that all have unique attacks and abilities, and diving into challenging dungeons for essential character perks. You’ll gain experience by doing just about anything and use your skill points to create a specific class build.

Diablo 4 Classes

Speaking of classes, there are five classes in total: Barbarian, Rogue, Sorcerer, Druid, and Necromancer; but Druid and Necromancer weren’t available in the Closed Beta (March 17 to March 20) window. Regardless, each class is extremely unique and fun to theorycraft.

Each class offers a unique playstyle that works to make Diablo 4 endlessly replayable. On top of that, each class has multiple branches in its skill tree which can be explored to create distinctive builds. For example, you can create a flame Sorcerer that focuses on high damage and explosions or a Sorcerer that chains lightning in between enemies for quick eliminations.

Diablo 4 Gameplay

Diablo 4 is completely open-world and features cross-play online multiplayer which means there are jump-in public events and large time-specific world bosses. You can play all of Diablo 4 in an online party or completely solo. Either way, Diablo 4’s combat so far is peak Diablo hack and slash.

Besides the world-class cutscenes, what caught our attention the most during our playthrough of Diablo 4’s first early access period was the intoxicatingly dangerous dungeons and character building. Overcoming impossible hordes of hellions, skeletons, and other demonic horrors with a character that feels expertly crafted, even if you don’t really know what you’re doing, is undeniably fun.

Diablo 4 Story: Act 1

In the first beta weekend, players got to play through Diablo 4’s first act. There’s nothing fully original here — an extremely powerful demon named Lillith has been summoned and you need to work with various characters to track her down and defeat her.

While the story isn’t surprising, Act 1 had a few interesting twists and turns that made the opening act enticing. The story might not be Diablo 4’s greatest strength, but Act 1 was enjoyable and set things up to get even better.

Diablo 4 Early Impressions

The first Diablo 4 beta went as expected. While there was an unsurprising amount of error codes and very long queue lines, what was also unsurprising was how great Diablo 4 felt to play.

It seems simple and maybe a little too familiar since there have been many amazing Diablo-like games that have satiated us during the wait, but the king has returned. Diablo 4 is already excellent and we can’t wait to see it get even better before it releases on June 6, 2023,

There are few games that have aged as well as Resident Evil 4. While Capcom’s survival horror juggernaut features several standout entries, none are as revered as the fourth. Leon’s sophomore outing marked a dramatic turn for the series (so much so that it led to the creation of Devil May Cry), steering Resident Evil more toward boisterous action instead of slow fixed-camera crawls through cramped hallways. Still, Resident Evil 4 kept the horror in survival horror through masterful balancing, enemy placement, and resource management. If you’ve ever touched a video game, then you know how good Resident Evil 4 is.

Remaking Resident Evil 4 is an incredibly daunting task that I wouldn’t wish on my worst enemy. It appears on every best game of all time list, even the ones with poor taste. However, when Capcom released the remake of Resident Evil 2 in 2019, we all knew we’d reach this point eventually. A new version of Resident Evil 4 is here. So, how does Capcom’s remake of this legendary survival horror title fare?

Remaking Resident Evil 4

As a gamer (embarrassing, I know), it pains me to admit that I don’t have much history with the original version of Resident Evil 4 aside from a few hours here and there. I knew Resident Evil 4 was good, and one playthrough of the opening village encounter is enough for anyone with common sense to realize that it’s one of the all-time greats. Going into this remake mostly blind was both a blessing and a curse. On the positive side, it was a phenomenal, masterfully-paced thrill ride that kept me on the edge of my seat for a dozen hours. On the other hand, it was so good that I’m sad I’ll never get to experience it for the first time again.

Remaking Resident Evil 4 is a gargantuan undertaking where even one small change can completely ruin the original’s balance and atmosphere. Things could’ve gone drastically wrong here, especially since the slower, more methodical direction taken in the remakes of Resident Evil 2 and 3 doesn’t fit too well with Resident Evil 4’s focus on action. Thankfully, Resident Evil 4 remake owns its identity. Capcom fully embraces the stupidity of the original while amping up some of the parts that haven’t aged as well. Everything flows together so well that it’s hard to believe the game wasn’t exactly like this in the first place.

Where’s Everyone Going? Bingo?

Tone is a hard thing to manage in video games, especially when your game’s protagonist is the wise-cracking Leon S. Kennedy. Somehow, Resident Evil 4 remake manages to pull off a completely self-serious tone while still having Leon calling out one-liners like they’re balls in a bingo hall. There’s something surreal about witnessing Leon pull off a backflip to evade two chainsaw-wielding enemies — a scene that might as well come from a lost cheesy mid-2000s direct-to-video film — while the game is rendered at a native 4K resolution with ray tracing and individually rendered strands of hair.

In that regard, this version of Resident Evil 4 is a strange beast. It’s the equivalent of a person whose voice doesn’t match their face. It wears a leather jacket, leaning against a street lamp and lighting a cigarette, but when you approach, the tough guy facade is dropped and it asks who your Smash main is and excitedly explains that the 3DS is actually really easy to mod. It has visuals that would put The Last of Us to shame, but it wants nothing to do with ruminations about fatherhood, family, and hope. It just wants you to parry a chainsaw with your knife.

Modernizing a Classic

Still, Capcom has touched up some aspects of the story in an attempt to strengthen the game’s admittedly paper-thin narrative. Leon’s first encounter with a ganado is an excellent example of this. For starters, the house itself is much scarier and Leon actually attempts to speak Spanish before drawing his gun. There are plenty of these minor tweaks throughout the game, and they help it feel like a more modern title than a game that’s nearly 20 years old at this point. Looking up the original scenes and playing some of the original game for myself only made me appreciate the changes even more.

Capcom has also tweaked the gameplay to bring the game more in line with its survival horror predecessors. Leon will still shoot, stab, and suplex his way through hordes of infected foes, but there are some new additions like stealth takedowns, knife durability, and ammo crafting that make the delicate dance of resource management that much tenser. This is still an action game at its core, but these changes add a new layer of strategy to the game and they synergize exceptionally well with the existing systems at play.

For example, the ammo crafting mechanic allows you to focus your playstyle around the weapons you actually enjoy using — within reason of course. If you don’t want to use the knife that much, then don’t spend the Pesetas to repair it. You can scrounge temporary knives anyway! Love the shotgun? Spend your gunpowder to craft shells and neglect the rifle! Plus, Resident Evil 4 allows you to customize your attache case with charms that provide bonus ammunition when crafting certain bullet types, increase the drop rate of certain items, and more. These additions are so well integrated into the experience that it was surprising to learn that the original game did not have them.

Shooting, Stabbing, and Suplexing

If there’s one thing about Resident Evil 4 that should absolutely not be changed under any circumstances, it’s the core combat loop. Fortunately, it’s as good as ever in Resident Evil 4 remake. Weapons feel super punchy thanks to excellent audio design, which works equally well to add to both the spooky atmosphere of quiet areas and the pulse-pounding action of crowded combat sequences. There are multiple weapons on offer for each archetype, so there’s bound to be a pistol, shotgun, rifle, or submachine gun that suits your playstyle well.

Rather than delivering its scares through dark hallways and slow-moving zombies, Resident Evil 4 serves up scares through scarcity. Ganados and other foes are seemingly endless, even in early-game encounters. You never feel like you have a surplus of ammunition, but you also never feel helpless either. Movement and positioning are key. You’ll have to slam through doors, clamber over walls and windows, and barricade entrances to give yourself some breathing room.

If there’s one thing Resident Evil 4 excels at, it’s the art of the chase. Every fight feels like a scramble to safety. The remake’s new movement — removing tank controls and allowing Leon to move while aiming and firing — also helps in this regard. Leon still feels tanky and slow, but you never feel like you’re not in control. All of this comes together to create an experience where you constantly feel like you’re treading water, and these sink-or-swim skirmishes keep Resident Evil 4 sailing full speed ahead throughout the entirety of its dozen-hour runtime.

Every encounter is masterfully designed too, forcing you to use everything at your disposal to scrape by. Like any good shooter, Resident Evil 4 is more than just clicking heads. To survive with any resources left, you’ll have to use your environment to your advantage and think on your feet.

Early on, for example, you’ll learn that you can shoot enemies in the legs to force them into position for a roundhouse kick that can clear crowds. You’ll also learn neat tricks like shooting the dynamite out of an enemy’s hand before they throw it or disarming a charging foe by shooting their arm. Before long, however, the game essentially requires you to mix these into your combat routine if you want to have any ammo left for future encounters.

There’s never an explicit tutorial for this stuff though, so it really feels like you’re discovering these tricks yourself and developing your own helpful habits. A stray bullet that kneecaps an enemy in Chapter 2 can transform into an essential strategy that saves resources and prevents your progress from being kneecapped in Chapter 10. Environments feel impressively dynamic because of this as well, with bullets always causing some sort of mayhem no matter where they land.

You’ll need to put these strategies to the test in Resident Evil 4’s many boss fights and unique encounters with tougher-than-average creatures. The game knows exactly when to slow things down and shove you into a claustrophobic maze with a seemingly immortal monster or pick up the pace with a pulse-pounding action setpiece. Resident Evil 4’s special enemies — like the grotesque regenerators — genuinely incite fear because of their tanky builds and relentless aggression, placing heavy stress on your resource pool.

Each boss battle is a spectacle as well, ranging from frenetic firefights with armored giants to tense one-on-one knife duels. Some boss fights have been entirely redesigned from scratch, while others have received minor tweaks to their mechanics and arenas while still remaining thematically consistent with their original appearances. The original Resident Evil 4 was home to some of the best boss encounters in the series, and the remake enhances them in especially efficient ways.

What’re Ya Buyin’?

The economy is the glue that holds Resident Evil 4 together. While the original game was already carefully balanced to ensure you were never too understocked or overstocked on supplies, Resident Evil 4 remake adds new ways for you to maintain your ammo reserves like crafting, leaving you with plenty of Pesetas saved for weapon upgrades and attachments. The merchant’s metagame of deciding what supplies are worth buying and what is worth sacrificing in favor of essential supplies is a constant source of tension throughout the game.

Resident Evil 4 remake has improved the shopping experience in a number of ways, providing a new level of depth to the mysterious merchant. Optional side quests obtained from blue flyers posted throughout the game task you with collecting various items, defeating optional bosses, or destroying blue medallions scattered throughout certain areas in exchange for Spinel, a unique currency that can be traded to the merchant for exclusive rewards. These rewards cannot be purchased with standard Pesetas, so you really need to think hard about what’s necessary.

Gemstones found throughout the world can also be slotted into certain treasures to increase their overall value as well, creating yet another decision in the checkout aisle. Do you sell your red ruby now for a quick buck, or do you save it so it can be attached to a chalice with other gems down the line for a larger payday? In this way, gems and other treasures become another resource that must be juggled along with your ammunition, knives, and medical supplies.

Because unique attachments like stocks and scopes can be obtained via Spinel exchanges rather than cold hard cash and there are plenty of new ways to get paid, Resident Evil 4 remake lets you put your money where it matters: into your weapons. The game even encourages you to offload weapons that you don’t use, refunding you the full value of that weapon and its upgrades, so you can further fine-tune your play style.

The Striker shotgun may be more powerful than the Riot Gun, for example, but it doesn’t have the range of the latter. When you pair this with the new charm system for the attache case and the new ammo crafting system that lets you prioritize the weapons that you enjoy using, Resident Evil 4 offers one of the most flexible combat systems in the entire series. It takes all the right notes from later games in the series, particularly Resident Evil Village, while still keeping sight of its original identity.

The Verdict

If Capcom’s fantastic track record with Resident Evil remakes somehow wasn’t enough to convince you that Resident Evil 4 would turn out great, then just a few minutes in control of Leon will be all it takes for you to realize that the original masterpiece has been done justice. Capcom’s reimagining of the 2005 classic isn’t afraid to be itself, but it also takes an introspective look within to hone what few dull edges the original had. This version of Resident Evil 4 is not only a survival horror masterpiece, but also one of the finest video games ever created.

Over the past decade, numerous indie developers have tried their hand at creating a Souls-like game. This has led to the genre becoming somewhat oversaturated, making it difficult to create something that can stand out on its own. Archangel Studios has sought to overcome this challenging task with the release of Bleak Faith: Forsaken, a new title that dives into horror while offering its own special gameplay mechanics. Can Bleak Faith stand on its own as a shockingly fantastic indie hit, or is its name accurate in more ways than one?

Note: Following its release, Bleak Faith: Forsaken was the subject of controversy due to certain animations looking to be taken straight out of FromSoftware’s biggest hits. The developers went on to explain that these animations were purchased from the Epic Marketplace, a storefront that is meant to be vetted, and they’ve since begun to remove some of the more questionable content from the game. This is worth mentioning for the sake of clarity, but as this topic is ongoing, this review will not factor this controversy into its final score.

Entering the Omnistructure

Immediately when starting Bleak Faith: Forsaken, players are thrust into a world filled with surrealism and horror, taking control of a withered body on a quest to explore and survive. Very little story is shared throughout the game, arguably giving even less than the bare minimum, but there are many talkative NPCs that help paint a fuller picture. The game combines this with one of the darkest, most oppressive atmospheres found in any title to date, making the player truly feel as though they’re trapped in a spiral of mystery and terror.

True to its name, the Omnistructure is vast. Bleak Faith boasts a great deal of alternate pathways and interconnectivity, but the sheer size of it all is coupled with a harsh lack of direction. Many pathways loop around on each other or lead to dead ends, making it hard to feel like any progress is being made. This will certainly appeal to exploration fanatics looking to get as lost as they can, but it can be frustrating for players simply wishing to find and battle the next boss.

The overall art direction of Bleak Faith is perhaps its greatest attribute. Enemy designs range from noble knights to aberrant beasts and metallic monstrosities. This makes for encounters that feel varied while adding ever greater touches of surrealism to the game’s world, which itself is already very striking. Natural overgrowth combines with mind-bending structures and shattered ruins of civilization. Additionally, the ambience and combat music are incredibly striking, eliciting feelings of tension and anxiety that only ever improve the experience. Even without much dialogue or explicit storytelling, Bleak Faith: Forsaken manages to be an incredibly immersive title.

Tough Trials and Conflicting Combat

Trying to survive in the Omnistructure is not an easy task. While the major bosses found throughout the game have varied movesets and eye-catching attacks, the main source of difficulty comes from how Bleak Faith’s base combat works. Attacks are staggered through carefully timed combos and dodges lack many I-Frames, forcing players to adopt an incredibly safe style of fighting. This makes combat against early-game enemies engaging, but it can cause battles against stronger foes to become drawn-out and tedious. This design might be partially due to a lack of punishment for dying, as the only thing lost when respawning is time. Certain parts of the title can feel overly difficult as a result of this, but there’s no shortage of options available to respond to such challenges.

The game offers a few bonuses to help players alleviate the slowness of certain encounters. Rather than leveling up or resting at safe points, the game rewards those who take charge in combat, providing plenty of healing items and unique equipment as part of enemy loot drops. Some pieces of equipment provide powerful abilities that allow players to wipe out weaker foes in an instant, but this requires its own magic-like resource that can’t easily be refilled. Other additions like perks and player-specific abilities can be acquired further into a playthrough, but players won’t have much room to experiment with different builds early on.

Experimenting in general is not something many can do in Bleak Faith early on. A lack of I-Frames means speed-focused builds will get shredded when up against most foes, and only being able to use two healing items to start makes aggressive builds unlikely to outpace equally aggressive bosses. The abilities are fun to use, but they’re way too limited and don’t offer as much as they could. The overall combat feels somewhat underdeveloped as a result, even with all the options and various weapons players can use. Perhaps Bleak Faith: Forsaken would have benefitted most from focusing less on its Souls-like ideas and instead building on its action elements further. Though other Souls-like elements are able to stand out fairly well, the world itself falls into classic pitfalls plaguing indie-made titles of this punishing genre.

Technical Aspects and Questionable Design Decisions

Ironically, much like the Omnisphere itself, the issues with Bleak Faith are exceedingly interconnected. The aforementioned lack of story is supplemented by a lack of information in the game, from missing example videos to few explanations on upgrades and perks. This extends to certain enemies and obstacles with more unorthodox methods of attack, often catching players by surprise. Certain areas have invisible floating bodies that rapidly drain player HP, and because they have the ability to stunlock, certain encounters with them can be impossible to survive. This is one thing that puts a wedge in Bleak Faith’s exploration, which unfortunately has some odd caveats of its own.

The world of Bleak Faith is utterly massive. This makes it very interesting to explore, but it also makes exploration itself very unwieldy. There are a few opportunities to climb high-up structures for shortcuts, though certain encounters with ladders feel much longer than they should be. But broken geometry and unforgiving fall damage can sometimes make the player feel like they’re being punished for going where they should. This is present in many ways throughout the game, with at least one example of a shortcut elevator’s lever putting the player through a wall and forcing them to respawn. This leads into another major issue about the game: the many technical aspects that continue to plague it today.

Though Bleak Faith is fairly well-optimized in this day and age, it still suffers from a higher-than-average number of bugs. Many of these bugs were fixed by the developers locking the game’s FPS to 90 or below, but there are still some cases of missing sounds, strange hitboxes, and ridiculous rag dolling — the latter of which can send players into bottomless pits, putting them under the map. Taking into account other aspects like certain enemy attacks not having sound and AI being easily broken through normal gameplay, the game can oftentimes feel somewhat incomplete.

Since Bleak Faith: Forsaken’s release, the developers have continued to relentlessly iron out the game’s technical issues while rebalancing and changing other parts of it. While the issues are certainly glaring from the start, it’s also clear that the minds behind this title will continue to support it as much as they can. It’s possible that most of these bugs and oddities will no longer exist in the future, though it’s a shame to see the game having been released in this state regardless. Still, with enough time and polish, the greatest aspects of this title will have the chance to truly shine in the eyes of all players.

Flawed, but Not Truly Forsaken

Despite its genre and mechanics, Bleak Faith is at its best when it isn’t trying to be a Souls-like. From its surreal environment to its special abilities and horrific enemy designs, everything the game can truly claim for itself is something to be proud of. Sadly, this title’s massive scope has led to many technical issues alongside a lack of direction in both exploration and core combat, harming its appeal to a wider audience. The developers are taking steps to continually improve the game, but it will be some time before it can truly stand on its own.

Even with all of its issues, there’s incredible potential and plenty of good to be found in Bleak Faith: Forsaken. The truth is that many players will be able to look beyond its problems for the sake of its incredible atmosphere and more favorable aspects of its design. It’s hard to recommend in its current state, but if the devs continue to support the game, it’s likely to go above and beyond those that came before it.

After jumping back into the ring in WWE 2K22, I found myself leaving rather impressed. While being out of the wrestling scene for many years, since the Nintendo 64 days, I found a pleasantly polished and deep title that left me wanting a little bit more. With the ever-increasing complexity and graphical fidelity of other sports titles on the market, it felt like 2K Sports and Visual Concepts were finally getting this franchise back on the right track.

Booting into WWE 2K23 for the first time, I half expected to be treated to a fairly similar experience to last year, especially given the nature of the subject matter. However, it seems that Visual Concepts is back on its feet, and ready to bring the WWE series back into the limelight with a plethora of changes I had no clue I needed.

Sweaty Drama Has Never Looked This Good

While WWE 2K22 was a visually impressive game, there were still a few parts that felt lackluster, and that was the first noticeable improvement in 2K23. The general presentation, from the menu screens to the expertly crafted entrances, everything looks stunning this time around. While still held back by previous-generation consoles, the current-generation versions look better than ever, even if some aspects could still use a little work.

Watching The Rock saunter down to the ring, muscles shaking, is an impressive feature that helps sell WWE 2K23 as more than a cut & paste entry. These subtle tweaks are also noticeable during gameplay, alongside bruising and red marks that appear on the bodies and faces of wrestlers after taking significant damage, inching this franchise closer to real life.

There are a few character models that could still use some TLC — Cactus Jack is one of the worst offenders, looking like Mack Foldger instead of Mick Foley — but for the majority of Superstars included on this packed roster, they look better and more realistic than ever. Even in the ring, watching their bodies degrade due to damage is impressive, and something I hope they continue expanding upon.

Showcase Mode Steals The Show, And New Modes Impress

Taking notes from last year’s entry, WWE 2K23 allowed me to step into the shoes of John Cena — or so I thought. Unlike the Showcase Mode that allowed us to kick butt as Rey Mysterio while learning about his favorite matches, you’ll be controlling John Cena’s opponents and watching his greatest matches unfold. It’s unique and took me by surprise to see him take a more humble approach to the situation, and offer some of the most fascinating wrestling action available.

Working through different objectives is the main aspect of these Showcase matches, stepping into the shoes of Rob Van Dam, Kurt Angle, and more Superstars to deliver a lesson in humility to John Cena. Mixing Live Action footage from these older matches with the high-definition models can be jarring, but it’s still such a neat mode that offers plenty of replay value for those who love the life and story of one of the biggest superstars in WWE history.

Alongside the Showcase mode, I took some time to jump into the completely revamped MyRise mode and found an even more engaging and enjoyable story than last time. Not only that, but the addition of a second story that will let you pick and choose different results is impressive, considering that this is a feature-packed game. While WWE 2K22 felt overwhelming, WWE 2K23 has increased and improved in almost every aspect.

MyRise is better than before, but what about the MyGM, MyFaction, and MyUniverse modes? They all received a fair number of increases and upgrades, making them feel smoother. The ability to continue through more seasons of the MyGM mode without needing to start everything over from scratch, or start a new save file, is great, especially if you find yourself loving that mode more than anything else, and incremental changes to MyFaction make it feel more polished and cohesive overall. MyUniverse is still one of my favorite modes, and it feels better in just about every way.

Gameplay Tweaks Improve The Overall Experience

To be fair, the in-ring action felt the best it ever has in WWE 2K22, and that is mostly unchanged. With a few new gameplay features, WWE 2K23 feels like a more refined version, with dodges and other actions making their triumphant return. However, the new additions to the pre-wrestling action are the biggest game-changers.

Digging into the menus, you’ll find the ability to change the in-ring AI, and customize it to your liking. Yes, a feature that has been a huge selling point for Fire Pro Wrestling is now available in a AAA Wrestling title and can be — unironically — game-changing. While some of the wrestler ratings may feel off, with certain superstars being ranked low compared to where they should be, being able to alter their in-ring AI to your liking can make each match as bombastic as possible.

Watching wrestlers like Otis and Rikishi take the to high-ropes as their go-to action for attacking is hilarious, and can lead to some of the most ridiculous matches possible. However, being able to fine-tune how these wrestlers act in the ring can make every match more exciting, and is a very welcomed addition.

The other big change is the addition of War Games, where two sets of wrestlers go at it in three-man brawls, which is exciting. However, it feels more like a novelty that can be built on in the future, especially since each individual ring is caged off from the other. It’s fun to watch, but not incredibly fun to play, as it can get overwhelming with the amount of action on screen.

Commentary Takes A Flying Leap Off The Top Rope

The overall commentary sounds and feels more authentic, especially considering that there are over 100 wrestlers in WWE 2K23. Hearing the commentary crew accurately call out wrestlers, moves, and even locations help keep the engagement levels high, considering that Commentary has sometimes been a low point.

In a particular match, I grabbed my opponent and led him to the Commentator Table, and watched as they all sprung backward and started jabbing at one another with verbal barbs. Hearing them comment that we were too close for comfort, and then instantly start ribbing each other because the focus wasn’t on them, made for an exciting and dynamic match.

In the ring, you’ll hear wrestlers grunt and groan in agony. Physical exertions when punching, and getting punched, help this feel like the most authentic representation of the sport to date, even if the lines may not have been recorded by the actual wrestlers themselves. They may have been, but I’m personally unsure and don’t want to make assumptions on this matter.

On the other hand, the in-ring sounds of bodies smacking canvas, the floor, is full of thump. It would be nice to have a bit more variety, as it seems that a majority of the sound bytes are repeated, but it’s still satisfying to hear the cracking of lumber when driving someone through a table, or the reverberation of steel on a skull.

The Road To Wrestlemania

While the overall presentation, gameplay, and almost every other aspect of this game have been completely revamped, there are still a few things I would love to see in the future.

A bit of TLC to some of the character models, particularly of those that are no longer with us, would be appreciated. Seeing Macho Man Randy Savage mode re-used is disappointing. There is an unpleasant uncanny valley vibe going on with some of the models, leaving your brain hurting trying to figure out if that’s what they looked like.

Something feels like it’s missing from the Wrestlemania rings, too. The most exciting night in show business, but the vibe and energy don’t match. While seeing your standard crowd during an NXT In Your House match is fine, let’s increase the energy when it comes to Wrestlemania.

Not to mention, the overall Rating System seems skewed. While it felt fine last time around, seeing someone like Austin Theory, a current WWE Champion, being ranked 82 Overall feels wrong. A lot of newcomers are rated on a fairly skewed scale, and while the ratings may not make much difference in the long run when in the right hands, it just feels like favoritism.

The Verdict

Step aside, No Mercy, there’s a new late-night living room champion in the building. After just a few matches, I found myself jumping onto my dashboard and immediately deleting WWE 2K22 from my console, as this is an improvement in almost every possible way. From the improved opponent, AI that can be tweaked to your liking, to the commentary making every match feel alive, Visual Concepts and 2K Sports have almost perfected this genre.

Watching the rise of John Cena was electrifying, and the general gameplay improvements have made this the most competent Wrestling game to come out in decades. With an overwhelming amount of content, it’s going to be difficult to find time for many other games coming out this year. WWE 2K is back in full swing, and this is going to be the title to beat for years to come.

A symphony of 4-stroke engines accompanies the start of the race as I hold my clutch and prepare for a battle toward the holeshot. No matter how often you experience this feeling, it’s one of the most exhilarating and exciting ways to start a sporting event — whether this is your first rodeo or your 6th.

To be completely honest, I’m normally not the type of person to purchase a standard, numbered sports title year after year. But, something about Milestone’s signature Supercross series always has me intrigued and it continues to find a home on my console of choice. With some major hits and a few drastic misses, Monster Energy Supercross 6 could have been the breaking point of my continued enjoyment of this franchise.

While some aspects feel a bit bumpy, even compared to some of the initial offerings, Monster Energy Supercross 6 is a compelling ride from start to finish, even with a few wipeouts on the way toward the finish.

Championship Level Riding Takes The Lead Here

Let’s get this out of the way first and foremost: Monster Energy Supercross 6 handles the best it has in quite some time. Dumping countless hours into previous titles — and even revisiting them while playing through this entry — it feels that the developers at Milestone have finally hit the almost perfect balance of Arcade racing and Simulation feel. Driving into a corner is going to require a slower speed, the proper use of the clutch, and feathering the throttle compared to hitting it at 50 mph and shifting weight.

Another strong point that helps Monster Energy Supercross 6 feel better than ever is track scaling, which feels better than it ever has and may honestly be the best featured in a Motocross game to date — and with the sheer number of games under their belts, this is no small feat. Pinning the gas right before hitting a massive double has never felt better, and the general ebbs and flows of rhythm sections feel like a vast improvement over the competition, even if some aspects feel dated by today’s standards.

To compare the general gameplay feel, I jumped into one of the most beloved Milestone Motocross racing titles, MX GP 3, alongside Rainbow Studios’ latest entry, MX vs ATV Legends, to compare the general feel of racing. While Monster Energy Supercross 6 nails the line, there is one aspect that it needs to bring into the next numbered entry if it wants to stay viable: Track Deformation.

It’s almost unacceptable that Monster Energy Supercross 6 doesn’t have this particular gameplay factor yet after this many entries. Yes, there is a form of track deformation in this title, but it is purely cosmetic, meaning that well-worn lines are primarily just there for show. MX GP 3 and MX vs ATV Legends, on the other hand, have physics that will affect the flow of the race, with worn lines giving players the chance to nail faster lines and get faster track times.

While this may be the most disappointing aspect to myself — and frankly, countless others that have been hoping to see this feature added in this latest entry — the expertly crafted tracks alongside the revised riding physics help this entry stick in the top of my mind when it comes to choosing a title to jump into — even with so many choices available on the market.

The Sun Has Gone Down, And The Moon Has Come Up

Another aspect of Monster Energy Supercross 6 that feels like a step in the right direction is the general feel of the AI. Some of the previous entries in the franchise, most notably Monster Energy Supercross 4, were criticized for their brutal difficulty. They were not very casual friendly titles, and even those that had played every entry in the series would find themselves struggling to be competitive against their computer-controlled foes.

This has been resolved fully with Monster Energy Supercross 6, offering the most balanced gameplay ever seen on the digital dirt. Starting on Medium, I found myself zipping past opponents without much care in the world, but swapping to Hard or Realistic would offer the challenge that I strived for. It no longer feels like I had a giant bullseye on the back of my jersey, and that it was fair and balanced.

Another small detail that didn’t go unnoticed this time around is putting real-life skills into consideration. It was always jarring to me to see high-level riders like Eli Tomac or Ken Roczen fall far behind in the pack rather than offering the challenge they should. This seems to be alleviated this time around, as they would consistently hover around 2nd or 3rd place, eating my dust as I left them behind in the corners.

You’ll no longer see your opponents stop on a dime, and suddenly burst out of a corner at top speed, which is something I must offer kudos toward as it has plagued the franchise for a long time. Every race seems dependent on your personal skill level, and with a variety of accessibility options, it is the most causal-friendly entry in the franchise, while still offering pros the chance to tinker with settings and make races as challenging as possible.

Customization Misses The Podium Finish

With the push towards next-generation hardware, Monster Energy Supercross 6 isn’t going to be a title that you use to showcase the power of your PlayStation 5 or Xbox Series X. While the on-track action looks and feels great thanks to a constant and stable 60fps/4K resolution, some parts of the game look laughably bad by comparison.

One of the worst offenders is the character models depending on the situation you find yourself in. While racing, you’re never going to have the chance to see your favorite pros without their helmets on, but once you do, you may wish that they would keep them on forever. Seeing Dylan Ferrandis on the podium staring directly into my soul with what looks to be a PlayStation 3 quality character model is terrifying, and the lack of any humanity behind those horrifyingly glossy eyes is something that will be burned into my psyche forever.

Created characters fare a little better, but they are still of questionable quality overall. The most disappointing aspect overall, however, has to be the variety of customization options on offer. The majority of the jerseys, boots, and helmets that are available are repeats of the previous two games, but there is a smattering of new options available. Motocross is equal parts flair and function, so seeing the same gear over and over again doesn’t help the argument of sports games being cut and paste from previous entries.

On the flip side, however, Helmet & Sticker Customization does make its return, giving those patient enough to create some masterpieces the chance to make a one-of-a-kind piece of equipment that will help them stand out above the Troy Lee Designs and Fox Racing gear sets. I’m one of those kinds of people that will wait and see what others are creating before making one of my own, but if other games have taught me anything, it’s that creative minds will make some amazing artwork with surprisingly deep tools.

Supercross Park Is The Best Compound Milestone Has Created Yet

After pouring my heart and soul into the 17 tracks available in the game, I wanted to take the opportunity to check out the Supercross Park. While the Compounds normally feel like an afterthought in the majority of Milestone games, Supercross Park is one of the best aspects of Monster Energy Supercross 6 by a long shot.

Bringing the voice and image of Jeremey McGrath to life in the world — with a much better character model than the majority of other racers — I found that Supercross Park is a really enjoyable experience with a much more laid-back vibe compared to the standard races. Taking the chance to explore this massive playground was an absolute joy, and with different collectibles and quests to jump into, I found myself coming back to Supercross Park more often than I expected.

Getting the chance to let loose a bit, and bomb down a huge hill before doing a backflip over an airplane may not sound like the most realistic thing, but damn if it isn’t a fun time. It’s a massive playground to hone the craft of riding on, and offers a great distraction if you find yourself bored of stadium racing. Plus, the ability to bring some friends to tear up the dirt and unleash some hella Kyle energy is refreshing and adds to the overall replayability.

Rhythm Attack, On The Other Hand…

The newest addition to Monster Energy Supercross 6 is Rhythm Attack, a 1v1 battle to the end through a variety of different jumps, whoops, and tabletops. This is meant to be the ultimate test of skills between two racers, to show who the greatest of all time is.

But, it’s also one of the most half-baked parts of the game. There are only two available tracks to use in this mode, so once you have mastered them, you’ll always be on top of things. Maybe if there was a way to have tracks that are procedurally generated so I couldn’t go in and practice until I went red in the face, this would be an exciting challenge. But, as it stands, Rhythm Attack is going to be a playground for those that spend a lot of time mastering the two tracks available, and not much more.

We’ve seen it happen with the Excitebike track in Mario Kart 8, so there is a chance that Milestone may seize the opportunity if they decide to unleash some DLC upon this entry, but as it stands, it’s a fun gimmick that doesn’t have a lot of staying power in the long haul. I wouldn’t be surprised to see this mode axed in the next entry unless there was some extra TLC that goes into making it more fleshed out.

The Verdict

While playing this game, the song “The Distance” by the band Cake rebounded wildly through my head. I found myself driving and striving as fast as I can, deftly maneuvering and muscling for rank, and it brought me to a time of pure nostalgia. Growing up playing Motocross games with my older brother and watching him race through different circuits during countless summers, Monster Energy Supercross 6 has finally found itself back in the proper line once again.

I’ve found myself loving the previous entries in this franchise and making my way back to them on a rather frequent basis to see if they still hold up as well as my memory serves. And while Monster Energy Supercross 6 does much more right than it does wrong, you can tell that Milestone is racing and pacing and plotting the course for the next entry.

If they’re hoping to stay viable in the market, there are some needed changes — with meaningful track deformation being the main culprit here. Still, Monster Energy Supercross 6 feels like a victory lap for the series. It’s a podium finish without a doubt, but they’re going to need to raise the bar for the next race to ensure they take home the championship instead of a second-place trophy.

Kirby’s Return to Dream Land was esteemed as one of the strongest entries into the Kirby franchise when it was initially released on Wii in 2011, offering a traditional yet modern Kirby experience, so there were some pretty high expectations to meet when Kirby’s Return to Dream Land Deluxe was announced to launch on Nintendo Switch over ten years later following its predecessor’s high praise. 

Return to Dream Land (2011) encapsulated everything players adored about Kirby, with bright and colorful character design, simple yet satisfying platforming to complete, and of course, everyone’s favorite bright pink protagonist, but it still defines its own identity by offering destructive super abilities and new areas to explore, making it feel familiar yet fresh. 

So one of the main concerns any player faces when going into a remake is whether it’ll be exactly the experience you had the first time you picked up a title or whether there will be a number of changes to alter the experience enough to keep it fresh and modern as opposed to a carbon copy. While one of the reasons many of us pick up a remake of a title as well-loved as Kirby’s Return to Dream Land is familiarity, it still manages to offer a few new elements such as a new epilogue and a few new copy abilities to keep things exciting. 

Let’s Get to Grips with Gameplay

Gameplay itself is in no way challenging — and the simple platforming elements of the initial few stages mean that it takes you a few hours to really get stuck into the story — but the improved graphics and bright visuals alongside some high-quality animated cutscenes keep the first few hours fun, and when you’re starting to get to grips with the story a few areas in, you’ll start to see exactly what makes Return to Dream Land so special. 

Before long, you’ll have to rely on Kirby’s copy abilities to progress through a level. Whether that’s using a water ability to cross fiery platforms or Kirby’s Whip Ability to take down anything hovering above you, it’s a more ingenious way of bringing fun to taking down hordes of enemies instead of jumping over them in the ample open space of the initial few levels. It’s not exactly rocket science, but it helps bring life to Kirby’s Copy Abilities instead of just being a way to clear enemies and helping you look for a new angle in sticky situations where you need to find a solution quickly. 

Related: How to Play the Kirby Games in Order

Plus, with the newest additions for Copy Abilities, there’s something fresh about Kirby’s powers for gamers who have played through these not-so-challenging levels before. These abilities promote how Return to Dream Land is more than just a re-skin of a classic title and offers a little more compared to the original. There’s a lot to build on without shaking any of the original’s charm, and even well-versed, veteran players will have new skills to harness and learn.

Everything is Fun with Friends

With a game like Kirby’s Return to Dream Land Deluxe, the ability to play alongside friends is a welcome one, but that’s not to say the game is equipped and designed to offer the same challenge for four players as there is for a solo adventurer.  As you’d expect with multiplayer in a simple platforming game, there is not a lot of challenge in each level to distract you from generally using multiplayer to goof around and have fun rather than focusing on the game and challenge at hand. 

Even boss battles pose no threat to multiple players, and since their attack patterns are easily tracked anyway, four players attacking at once will only delay these attacks and make it almost laughably easy to take down enemies. Essentially, each level — regardless of how far into the game you are — becomes a race among friends to see who can reach the end first or cause the most damage. The brute force of each player attacking at the same time makes any enemy attack void, which is great for any player who needs extra help, but can be a bit frustrating if you want a decent multiplayer gaming experience without feeling completely overpowering. 

Related: Is There Online Play in Kirby’s Return to Dream Land Deluxe?

But, going back to the core values of Kirby, these games are designed to be fun rather than infuriatingly challenging among friends, unlike something like Super Mario 3D World, which makes you rely so heavily on teamwork and communication to make any sort of progress. It also makes gameplay entirely welcoming to new and younger gamers who can jump in without having to worry about memorizing any core mechanics and having to know the controls’ ins and outs to add to the experience. 

Post-Game Promises and Merry Magoland 

Though even when you think you’ve finished, there’s still content to sink your teeth into, with one of the most noticeable additions being Magolor’s Epilogue which offers a completely new, two-ish hour experience. Levels are similarly designed to the main storyline, but you begin the tale very weak and with minimal attacks. As you progress, you’ll gain new powers and work on picking your strength back up — a physical representation of your journey through the story to help you acknowledge that you are headed in the right direction — which is particularly rewarding since you can breeze through the central storyline of Dream Land Deluxe without any issues. 

In a way, it’s a shame that the epilogue isn’t available from the beginning of the game for any returning players since you’ll have to embark on the same base adventure to unlock the most significant dose of new content. However, it does make sure that you’re making the most of the entire adventure rather than just making a beeline for the new parts and missing out on what is a genuinely enjoyable revisit of an incredible game. 

Furthermore, Merry Magoland also offers players an incentive to re-do levels and find stamps to unlock new minigames, so there’s a huge amount of replayability for anyone who wants to make the most of their experience with the game and have alternative games to jump in and out of when you don’t fancy level after level of platforming and want to try something new. So even though it’s easy to enjoy the game without giving Merry Magoland a second thought, it’s a fun incentive to keep playing and maintain the adventure. 

The Verdict

Although players of the original Kirby’s Return to Dream Land will appreciate the experience of re-visiting the title with better graphics and smoother gameplay, the title is still just as appealing to new players who want an authentic Kirby experience. In comparison to a game like Kirby and the Forgotten Land, it’s nowhere near as explorative. Controls and levels are linear and simple to jump in and out of — which some may think is more restrictive — but it’s a perfect remaster of a loved game. 

It eschews challenge in every sense of the word. However, it still offers a fun, traditional experience with well-loved characters that doesn’t stray too far from the 2011 release, but still manages to build upon its foundations to remain relevant, up-to-date, and, most importantly, fun. If you want an authentic platforming Kirby experience, then Return to Dream Land Deluxe ticks all the boxes regardless of whether you’ve played the original or not. 

Though the numerous improvements Bungie has brought forward with Destiny 2 Lightfall are either solid first drafts or nearly perfect, the story of Lightfall, which is the second to last expansion in the Light and Dark Saga, leaves a bit to be desired. Instead of that uncontrollable excitement of climbing higher and higher on a rollercoaster just before the big drop (aka, the next expansion), The Final Shape, the story of Lightfall feels more like setting the table. There’s nothing too grand about it — it’s actually quite repetitive and most likely not the chore you would’ve picked — but the meal that awaits requires preparation and anticipation. Sure, you can snack on some hors d’oeuvres while the table is prepared, but ultimately, you’re left feeling hungry.

The Beginning of the End – The Lightfall Campaign and Neomuna

Coming from The Witch Queen, which featured one of the best stories told in Destiny 2 so far, Lightfall has a lot to live up to. Along with that pressure, The Traveler is acting strangely at the end of Season of the Seraph, Raputin’s last message points toward The Veil (I would tell you what The Veil is, but honestly, we still don’t know) which is hidden on Neptune, and The Witness, the final “big bad” of the Light and Dark Saga, knocks at our front door. With so much at stake, all the responsibility falls on Lightfall’s campaign to give us a satisfying story that sets up the end. 

And instead, Destiny 2 Lightfall’s campaign focuses on Calus and his Shadow Legion, Neomuna and its inhabitants, and Strand, the new subclass. Nothing much about The Traveler. Nothing much about The Witness. Nothing much about The Veil. Granted, Lightfall tells its story well, but the penultimate story that we as Destiny 2 players needed in order to understand what’s happening — to build our excitement for the finale — isn’t told in Lightfall. Lightfall tells a really good story, it’s just that it’s the wrong story.

Related: Some May Think Destiny 2 Lightfall’s Campaign May Suck — But Neomuna Certainly Doesn’t

Lights, Camera, 80’s Montage – The Missions and Pacing

In Lightfall, we get a neon-soaked setting and story that go hand-in-hand. As we race Calus, who is an old enemy turned disciple to The Witness, to The Veil hidden in Neomuna, we discover a curious fabric that we inevitably gain control over called Strand. We also assist and are assisted by the Cloud Striders, Rohan and Nimbus, who feel a little rushed and forced, but are well-voiced characters that don’t add or take away too much from the Lightfall story. 

As much as I would rather have a more important and revelatory narrative, the race to The Veil is epic — the missions in Lightfall are some of Bungie’s best-paced and best-executed yet. The objective always feels fresh and important, the environments constantly offer something new, and the weapons and armor look and feel great. The writing found specifically in the payoffs throughout the story is pretty pandering and lifeless, but what’s presented in the missions feels tight and fun. Bungie said we would get an 80s-inspired action movie and Lightfall definitely has a few memorable missions that capture that magic.

Secrets help create a sense of community as fans are left to speculate what’s next, but in Destiny 2 Lightfall, the major events feel unsatisfying since they are too shrouded in mystery. Mystery is a useful tool in storytelling, but there are a handful of major events that happen in Lightfall’s campaign that are left unexplained and uninvestigated. Building hype and tension for future final reveals is fine, but keeping every player in the dark in the current expansion they paid for crosses the line.

The end of the Lightfall campaign leaves many more questions than answers. In fact, I’m now nervous to play the next expansion. Instead of unfolding the plot, Bungie might decide to focus on something else entirely. The live nature of Destiny 2’s storytelling can be used effectively to give us breadcrumbs leading to the bigger moments, but Lightfall is that bigger moment, and what we got feels like leftovers.

Lightfall errors in focusing too heavily on Calus, Strand, and the Cloud Striders instead of giving us the exposition needed to understand the big threats and big reveals. That said, the story Lightfall does choose to tell is confident, featuring well-executed missions that are enjoyable, fun, and individually diverse. Compared to The Witch Queen, Lightfall takes the cake for mission design and pacing, which is saying a lot, and hopefully, the mysteries of Lightfall become unraveled in the four Year 6 seasons.

Related: Destiny 2 Lightfall’s Campaign May Be Disappointing, But Answers Are Coming in the New Seasons, Bungie Confirms

Neomuna Is the Main Course – The Setting and Tormentors

Neomuna is an absolutely breathtaking destination. The second you land in the war-torn space city, waving lines of green tug at your curiosity. Sparking purple sands slice the scenery. The Cloud Striders and CloudArc peak your interest in Neomuna’s culture, the architecture, designs, and colors continuously draw you in, and the invasion of Calus’s Shadow Legion brings a palpable suspense.

While Calus’s Shadow Legion is scary and provides a challenge, the real threat comes from the Tormentors, the new enemy type introduced in Lightfall. Tormentors are servants of The Witness that feature terrifying strength. Even on normal difficulty, a Tormentor can mess you up if you aren’t careful, which adds a layer of caution and fun similar to the effect of Hunters in Halo. Plus, Tormentors’ dark character design and alien sound effects are bone-chilling. The atmosphere on the battlefield completely shifts when a Tormentor arrives because you know you need to use your abilities, weapons, and mobility carefully.

Down, But Not Out – The Difficulty and Mod Changes

With Lightfall, Bungie decided to increase the difficulty of Destiny 2 in numerous ways. While some of their choices are excellent decisions, like changing how to defeat Champion enemies from using specific weapons to using specific subclasses and implementing Surges and Overcharged Weapons in harder activities, where difficulty didn’t need to be added is the subclass abilities.

In the recent Lightfall patch notes, you’ll see that almost every Grenade, Melee, and Super for every subclass and class received an increased cooldown time. While this was done to create more balance and difficulty in Destiny 2, it ultimately makes everything feel less fun. Using your abilities in coordination with your firepower and selecting the best Exotics and Mods to go with your build was one of the best parts of Destiny 2, and all of that got nerfed with Lightfall with increased ability cooldowns. Luckily, Destiny 2 is a live game, meaning nothing is permanent.

Speaking of Mods, the Buildcrafting Mod system is much more streamlined and organized, but the Mod selections aren’t exciting. Hopefully, we get more Mods to play with in the future, but currently, there are far fewer unique Mods than ever before which is great for new players but terribly dull for long-time theorycrafters.

Related: Destiny 2 Strand: The Best Builds for Hunters, Titans, and Warlocks

Weave Through Reality – Strand and Quality of Life Improvements

As for all of the other changes, Destiny 2 is much better thanks to the quality of life changes in Lightfall. We finally have in-game Loadout slots which allow you to save your entire build, we have a Mod overview page that allows for easy viewing and selection, and there are now Guardian Ranks which serve as a new player guide as well as an end game symbol of status. Lightfall also introduces easier weapon crafting (goodbye grinding for red border patterns) and a more consistent way to get Shaders. Overall, the seemingly small quality of life improvements makes a big difference. Also, I can’t wait for the Fireteam Finder.

Last, but certainly not least, is Strand. Strand is easily the most fun subclass so far in Destiny 2 thanks to the Grapple, gorgeous animations, and wicked sound designs. Each class harnesses Strand in a unique way: Warlocks summon Threadling minions, Hunters weave rope darts, and Titans slice through the fabric of spacetime. All of the abilities feel great, but what doesn’t feel great is the cooldowns.

I know, I know, I already complained about the ability cooldowns, but Strand is different. Since Strand is unlocked at the end of the Lightfall campaign, you’ll receive windows of time where you get to test drive the subclass during the missions. During these Strand trials, you feel like the most powerful being to ever exist thanks to the cooldowns of your Strand Super, Grenade, Melee, and Class Ability being reduced to mere seconds. This gets you excited to fully unlock Strand, but when you finally do, you’re hit with the reality that even with 100 Discipline, the soonest the Strand Grapple will be available takes one whole minute. Hopefully, Bungie can tweak Strand to make it more enjoyable while also maintaining balance, and maybe, after the grind, the Strand Fragments will help out, but currently, Strand feels a little underwhelming.

The Verdict

Destiny 2 is one of the best live service games available and with the positive improvements in Lightfall, Destiny 2 is the best it’s ever been and is on track to continue getting even better. That said, the Lightfall expansion’s story brings nuanced disappointment that’s blood-pumping at best and frustratingly puzzling at worst. On the flip side, Strand is genuinely fun even if it needs a few tweaks and Guardian Ranks, Loadouts, Buildcrafting changes, and Weapon Crafting changes all hover around fantastic.

Perhaps the hype and expectations for Destiny 2 Lightfall were too high, perhaps we should expect more from Bungie’s storytelling. Regardless, Lightfall is enjoyable and Destiny 2 is better for it. Neomuna rocks, the campaign doesn’t suck like people say it does, and Bungie will continue to tweak our favorite space shooter until equilibrium is found. The table is set. Now, all we have to do is wait a year for The Final Shape which is when we can, fingers crossed, finally devour the meal.

A lot of games nowadays seem to be joining the Souls-like bandwagon, letting them blend into a sea of Souls clones despite not being outright replicas. Scars Above seeks to break this norm by borrowing a few elements that are prevalent. This is a difficult undertaking for any game, but the question is, can Scars Above still stand out?

All Alone in an Alien Zone

After a mysterious alien object, called the Metahedron, appears above the earth, the Sentient Contact Assessment and Response Team, or SCAR are dispatched to examine the object up close and figure out its purpose. This is where you pick up the story as Kate, the crew’s scientist. Upon scanning the Metahedron, your ship (along with the other crew members) is sucked inside the alien structure as Kate passes out. When Kate comes to, she is alone in an alien world.

As you trudge along to discover the fate of your shop and crew, Kate begins to have various visions of a weird entity and a holographic alien. The hologram seems to be a remnant from the aliens that used to be in control of this area, and for some reason, it now wants to help Kate out.

The plot of this mysterious figure in the sky that sled to this high-tech alien race’s erasure quickly becomes Kate’s main interest as well as the focus of the game. The crew then becomes relegated as a driving factor for working your way through this alien world and solving all of the problems that these aliens left behind.

However, it very quickly devolves into a “your princess is in another castle” deal with each instance of you finally managing to catch up to your crew leaving you empty-handed with the hologram or some other evidence telling you that they are just ahead and you need to keep going. Each time you arrive at a location where your crewmates should be, you either find a dead body or an abandoned camp with signs that the rest of the crew has moved on from that location.

Mix and Match

A big part of the combat in Scars Above is fighting with ranged combat in various ways. While you can always just shoot enemies until they are dead, you can shorten the fight by trying to combine various elements that your gun uses to create reactions or by using the environment to create the reaction.

Since you only have the electricity version of your gun to begin with, you are rather limited on available options. For the most part, you can bait enemies into the water and then shoot it with your weapon to create an AOE electrical attack that thankfully won’t damage you. Later on, you will have access to fire, ice, and corrosive elemental weapons attachments that can interact with the environment in different ways.

However, this is a point that Scars Above falls flat on. The environment interactions are only useful for one stage that you travel through and then never seem to come back as often as they could. You start out in a jungle where you can electrify and freeze the water to either hurt enemies or create platforms for yourself. Then you move onto an ice area where you can use the fire to melt ice lakes and instantly kill enemies by freezing them.

But the whole time you are in the ice area, you are not able to use any of the combinations that you learned about in the jungle. Then once you leave the ice area, you are never going to need to melt ice lakes again. If you could go back to these areas for some reason it would still be useful but you never really backtrack in the game; you are constantly moving forward into new areas.

Various One-Offs Don’t Make A Good Game

There is a running trend in Scars Above, where it will introduce mechanics that are interesting but never seems to come back to them. It has a lot of one-and-done moments that could have very well been repurposed later.

The weapon crafting system where you have to drag all the pieces together never comes back when it could have easily been used again — like when you get your other three elemental attachments for your gun. Many of the elemental interactions are linked to a single area and don’t see much use outside of that area. They just get replaced by a new interaction.

The only system that seems to return is the investigation events because in case you forgot, Kate is a scientist, not a fighter. These events can come in two different forms that are frustrating. One investigation form is where you are presented with an area and must piece together what happened by interacting with various points around a marked zone. These are not too challenging since the points you need to investigate tend to be obvious.

The other investigation event involves performing a deep scan of a machine or lifeform which is frustrating since you have no real direction on what points you need to hover over and interact with. This can lead to just slowly scanning your cursor over the entire scene until it happens to change color when you pass over the applicable items.

A Melting Pot of Mechanics

The final nail in the coffin for Scars Above is just how poorly everything seems to mesh together. The game borrows so many ideas from Souls-like games that work well on their own, but when combined with the original mechanics, they just fall flat.

Scars Above has a bonfire-esque system through the use of pillars. By interacting with a pillar, you set it as a respawn point, heal yourself, and restore some ammo. You can also come back to a previously used pillar at any point to heal and restock at the cost of respawning all the enemies you have killed. But the issue is that Scars Above is a linear game; you won’t find yourself ever backtracking to a pillar to heal. The only time you return to a pillar is when you open a shortcut back to a pillar you have already visited.

Scars Above also expects you to avoid using these pillars as respawn points considering that story progress is lost on death. So any cutscenes will need to be rewatched, however, upgrades that you grab will stay in your inventory. This can leave you in a loop of watching the same story cutscene over and over until you manage to finally reach the next pillar. Which makes the use of pillars instead of just regular checkpoints all the more confusing.

The leveling system in Scars Above is also something that is normally fine on its own but when combined with the other mechanics, it falls flat. It is less of a leveling system and more of a progression tracker. You can’t farm XP to increase your level before a fight. You only get XP by scanning a new enemy type for the first time or by grabbing little cubes in the open world. These cubes don’t respawn, though, so once you get all the XP out of an area you might as well move on. The idea of a leveling system just doesn’t benefit from a linear experience like this.

The Verdict

Tragically, these mechanics don’t blend well together, thus ruining the whole experience of Scars Above. While it has a solid foundation and the original idea works well, all the other mechanics grinding against one another make the experience unenjoyable.

This is what will unfortunately make Scars Above fall into the sea of various Souls-like games despite having a lot of stand-out features for itself. The core may be solid and fun, but no one wants to waste their time having to dig through all the problems that this game suffers.

As someone who has put way too many hours into Nioh 1 and 2, my standards for souls-like action RPGs were raised. I wanted something with fun, flashy combat, and an awesome gameplay loop. I wanted something that will have my adrenaline pumping as I’m on my last heal fighting against formidable foes. Well, that’s where Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty comes in, firing on all cylinders and going beyond.

Koei Tecmo and Team Ninja nailed it with Wo Long. They took the Nioh formula and trimmed the fat in necessary areas while tweaking the good to make it even better. It still maintains all my aforementioned expectations of what a KT and Team Ninja game should be comprised of. What they created feels like an evolution of the Nioh series, now taken into a new era.

Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty just feels good to play. The fluid and flashy combat makes me look and feel like such a badass warrior. From the swords, halberds, staffs, and other weapons offered, the way everything flows looks like an entrancing dance of elegance and lethality. 

Chaos in the Three Kingdoms – A Familiar Formula in a New and Grand Setting

The best way to describe how Wo Long feels is if you combined the visuals and swordplay of the Dynasty Warriors and Nioh games with a pinch of Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice. What results is a game that is quite difficult, but oh-so-rewarding when you conquer the seemingly impossible.

To break it down, let’s start with the Dynasty Warriors elements.

Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty takes place in a fictitious depiction of the Later Han Dynasty in China. The empire is on the verge of collapse, with war breaking out among the Cao Wei, Sun Wu, and Shu Han states. If this all seems familiar, then you have either played the DW games or have heard of the Romance of the Three Kingdoms. The source material remains intact, but throw in demons, spells, and monsters. This now unfolds as a dark fantasy variant of the story. 

Next, Wo Long resembles Nioh repurposed in a new country. Some may even call it “Nioh, but in China” which is fair to say (not that it’s a bad thing in any way). From a quick glance, Wo Long can be mistaken as a DLC for a Nioh game or as a spiritual “Nioh 3.” That isn’t the case, but that series and this new game are so good, so that doesn’t even matter.

Combine the visuals and swordplay of the Dynasty Warriors and Nioh games with a pinch of Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice

Aside from visuals, Wo Loing contains the menus and overall flow of the Nioh series. You start off on a level and fight your way through progressively tougher enemies. These missions are fairly linear and are structured in a way that’s hard to get lost in. However, the game rewards you for venturing off the beaten path.

Instead of Prayer Shrines, you have to claim a Battle Flag and rest at them. Your healing inventory is replenished and you can continue. There are also shortcuts to get back to previous Flags. Basically, all the standard aspects from souls-like games and Nioh are there.

Your Hand Won’t Be Held for Everything

The combat is fast and hardcore and rewards those who nailed down the depth of the mechanics. This is where it starts to get into Sekiro territory. If you have ever heard of the Mikiri Counter which is almost a necessary mechanic to progress through FromSoftware’s game, think of that being applied here in Wo Long. 

Sure, you can swing your weapon away to your heart’s content, but the hack-and-slash nature of this game can only get you so far. What separates the good players from the bad will be how well you can telegraph enemy moves, manage your patience in combat, and have a good sense of your environment.

Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty heavily rewards players who know how to utilize the Deflect mechanic. Press the proper button or key, depending on your platform of choice to perform it. Hit it right as an enemy’s attack is about to connect. In doing so, you can redirect your enemy’s attack. 

If you can master your deflect, you’re going to open a whole new world of badassery.

If performed on a normal enemy, they might stagger a bit, allowing you to follow up. There is also the more lethal “critical blow” moves that you really have to know how to either dodge or deflect. This is where the big damage takes place. Enemies can be mostly dealt with by infinitely staggering them and withering their health bars away. Bosses are a completely different story, however.

What makes many people rage at souls-like games are the legendarily difficult boss fights. You have to know when you have an advantageous moment to inflict your damage. Otherwise, you’ll get killed before you know it. In Wo Long, dodging isn’t the name of the game here. It still works as intended, but if you can master your deflect, you’re going to open a whole new world of badassery.

It’ll definitely take a lot of time, going through several deaths, moments of rage, and contemplations of quitting. I want to reassure you that once you get your timing down against bosses, this game will become significantly easier and a lot more enjoyable. Go ahead, badmouth it, and call it “Learn to Counter: The Game,” but this isn’t a title meant for the faint of heart. You have to know what you’re getting yourself into before writing this off as being a “bad” game because you didn’t learn the core mechanics in helping you succeed.

Souls Mechanics, but With Enhancements

If you have ever played a Souls game or a souls-like game in any capacity, Wo Long shouldn’t be too much of a stranger here. Yes, the terminology will all sound different than what’s expected, but it all basically translates from one to one.

What should be addressed is the big question: “What happens if you die twice?”

Well, the short answer: “You should avoid that.”

But the longer, more concise answer: this game doesn’t punish you as hard as other games. Instead of getting a debuff and losing all of your XP, you only lose half of your unbanked experience points, or Genuine Qi, as it’s called in Wo Long. 

In order to get your Qi back, you’ll have to defeat the enemy who killed you in your last life. They’ll be a bit stronger than last time, so make sure to rethink your strategy before going all in. 

As for other terms, this game utilizes a system called Spirit. It’s akin to Stamina from other games. In Wo Long, it’s almost like Stamina, but it’s only used when performing Martial Arts moves on your weapons, heavy attacks (or Spirit Attacks), dodging, deflecting, blocking, and spells. You don’t use up Spirit when sprinting or jumping, so it makes the nature of the whole game much faster than what you might be used to.

Spirit Guardians, as they were in Nioh, are now called Divine Beasts. They provide you with a temporary buff and can really help turn the tide in battle when things get too dicey. 

From the movement feeling so fast and smooth, to the combat feeling fluid and rewarding, I can give nothing but praise for how Team Ninja pulled this off. As I’m already on my second playthrough of the game, it’s so hard to put this thing down. I keep wanting more, and Wo Long is really scratching that itch for an awesome gameplay loop.

New Mechanics that Give the Game a More Unique Identity

Aside from the staple mechanics we’re used to in souls-like games, Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty has a new Morale system. Think of it as a power mechanic individually set for each level you play. You have your overall character level from speccing into one of the five Virtues, but the Morale rank differs from that. 

Typically, you start off at Morale Rank 0 and have to climb your way up. In doing so, you level it up by defeating enemies. They too will also have those Morale ranks. It’s a number that determines how strong they’ll be in regard to the player. You can even the playing fields by matching them there and by finding all the Flags in each level.

As I’m already on my second playthrough of the game, it’s so hard to put this thing down. I keep wanting more, and Wo Long is really scratching that itch for an awesome gameplay loop.

This also ties into the new Vengeance system where you’ll occasionally see enemies with abnormally high Morale Ranks. It’s like a variant of a VIP system of sorts where they might be a normal grunt, but they have claimed the lives of other players, making them a harder target. Killing them will reward you with more cool gear, so there’s a tradeoff.

Standard RPG Mechanics That Create a Healthy Balance Between Grind and Skill

Returning from the Nioh games into Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty is the gear system. It’s oftentimes and most accurately described as having a Diablo-like loot system where enemies, bosses, and missions will reward you with progressively stronger gear.

You equip the better gear as you see fit to your build and play with it. In the first run, you’re constantly getting stronger items. So, yes, there are builds in this game where you can focus on the strengths of your character and skills. Via the blacksmith, you can increase such stats as how much health you get back per Dragon Cure Pot or how much Spirit you consume upon using spells. The list goes on.

Unlike Nioh where you’re overloaded with so many item drops, Wo Long’s gear drops as much less cluttered. You’ll still obtain things that may not really appeal to you, but there’s a lot less junk to sift through. This does mean that your inventory won’t be overflowing so often. Gear is more impactful and won’t mean too much only until the endgame.

This game feels like it was designed in a way where you have to actually hone your skills to be good. You can’t rely on numbers and builds to necessarily carry you to the end. While builds are definitely viable, it’ll eliminate that need to be stat checked every now and then, which I can praise so much.

Travel as a Pack or as One

What you may notice in Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty is that you are oftentimes accompanied by an NPC. This might be a divisive topic for people who want to have a more solo experience. Having an NPC in some instances can trivialize the game’s legendary difficulty at times. With more entities being able to remove aggro from you, this does start to feel more akin to a Dynasty Warriors game.

Luckily, even if NPCs are first given to you without having any say in whether you want them to stick around or not, there is an option to take on missions alone. You’ll get an item for it. The addition of forced NPCs in a majority of levels can help newcomers to the genre get eased into it.

However, this also coincides with the multiplayer options available in Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty. You can go through the majority of the game’s missions by being the guest or inviting someone as a guest in your mission. There’s also the standard cooperative option where you can play levels from start to finish with up to two other people.

To put the icing on the cake, there’s even an invasion system where you or other players can invade other people’s game instances and challenge them to a 1 on 1. Of course, if you are scared of overpowered players or just an unfair interruption in your game, you can disable this feature. The social features, overall, are a win for all players, despite preferences.

Everything is Just Pretty to Look At

If you’re a player who likes to take in the environment, the level design, the armor sets, weapons, the story, and the cutscenes, Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty also delivers on this front. This game is available to 8th-gen console owners, but it’s still a good-looking one regardless. 

It’s usually difficult to create a story where you’re the definition of plot armor, advancing the narrative to reach a satisfying ending. Here, I think Team Ninja and Koei Tecmo also nailed it. The weaker aspect of the Nioh games was the story, which wasn’t all too much to write home about, but here in Wo Long, it feels like it’s done better. 

The visuals stand strong while creating a story that’s memorable. Even if a lot of the names of the characters might be tough to remember or get the hang of, you have the option to check the game’s Encyclopedia to keep up with everything. From characters’ backgrounds, enemy logs, past tutorials, and other important tidbits of info Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty does a good job of keeping you focused on the game. So, make sure you read what’s on the UI and don’t just skip over everything.

The Verdict

Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty took the Nioh formula and expanded upon it, cutting out the unnecessary parts. It’s a game that is graphically impressive, fun, challenging, and feels complete. This might actually be a good intro game for people who have been put off by the sheer difficulty of souls-like games. There are resources available for people who need just a bit more power to put up a fair fight against the seemingly impossible.

All in all, if you like a good rendition of the Romance of the Three Kingdoms in a Nioh-styled souls game, you cannot skip out on this one. 

Returnal PC is a release of the popular roguelike and bullet hell game from Sony, originally released in 2021 as an exclusive title for the PlayStation 5 console. While the original launch, subsequent fixes, and feature updates happened over time, PC players can rejoice that the re-release will have everything rolled into an excellent package upon the game’s release to Steam and the Epic Games Store. First, however, you may ask yourself if purchasing the PC release is worth it. What new features does it offer?

The answer is a resounding yes because you can access existing features like the in-game progress tracker, achievements, co-op mode, and the Tower of Sisyphus. In addition, you will also have access to additional tools unique to the PC version since many gaming computers are available on the market and are made differently. Tools in Returnal include five graphical pre-sets, in-game performance metrics, an FPS counter, a latency tracker, and a GPU and CPU tracking gauge. While it is possible to get Returnal running on your specific gaming PC, the developers included the above tools for a reason.

Welcome to Atropos

Returnal takes place entirely on an alien planet called Atropos. The Sentients built an advanced civilization encompassing the entire planet, but Atropos’ environment has since reclaimed it. The Sentients are close to extinction as only the Severed remains of their population inhabit the planet. Advanced artifacts of their lost civilization are also scattered across the planet and will help you in your journey of breaking the cycle. From the hive mind structures of the Crimson Wastes to the terrifying depths of the underwater Abyssal Scar, there are five biomes on Atropos that you will traverse, each providing a unique challenge.

I admit Atropos was a bit of a throwaway world for me. Nothing about it stood out to me from a visual or level design standpoint. Other games that were set in alien worlds were more successful. The only standout was the inclusion of the haunted houses used to explore Selene’s background. Everything else was just generic scenery, and it fell into the background.

Hello, Selene Vassos, Have We Met Before?

The protagonist of Returnal is Selene Vassos, voiced by Jane Perry (Hitman, Devils), a Greek American working for ASTRA as a deep space scout. As you further into the cycle, you will unravel Selene’s story as a child leading up to the events of her crash on Atropos.

Selene’s story examines the hurt, guilt, and pain Selene felt after the events of her son and mother. The story is highly elevated and crosses the boundaries of parallel universes and dream sequences. We don’t know what is real or not. At one point, we are left to question if Selene is even an astronaut.

Still, just like the tremendously crafted elevated horror movie, The Babadook, it shows us how trauma affects humankind and how people deal with it differently. The car crash is parallel to the Helios crashing on Atropos. Atropos is a dream sequence that pieces together the real-life events and people of Selene. In it, we learn about her grief, guilt, sadness, and anger because of events surrounding her child and mother.

I didn’t catch it initially, but slight hints are dropped throughout the game. For instance, a throwaway voice line about leaving Helios later turned out to hint at her son, also named Helios. These little nuggets are spread throughout the game and will make all the difference in understanding the story.

Can You Break the Cycle?

Returnal’s primary game mechanic comes from the Roguelike genre. After you die, you will start over again and lose all loot and the progress you gained before your death. However, most games, like Returnal, allow you to keep some upgrades to your character so you can become more powerful with every new playthrough.

This includes abilities that allow you to access locked areas, which will help progress the story. Along with unlocking permanent abilities, you will understand how the game works and survive longer before your death. This all culminates in beating the game. In Returnal, beating the game is called breaking the cycle, which Selene appears to be stuck in since her crash landing on Atropos.

A Fully Immersive Experience

Returnal is an immersive experience that hits you from three primary senses: touch, sight, and sound. Sony, Climax Studios, and Housemarque’s use of haptic feedback, 4K supported visuals, and 3D sound set Returnal apart from most recent Triple-A titles on the market. However, these features require much work from the player to enjoy, so you should expect to tinker with the game as soon as it is installed.

Haptic Feedback and Dynamic Trigger Effects

Rain in Returnal will cause subtle haptic pulses that are procedurally synthesized at runtime, which makes your brain think you are standing in the rain on Atropos. These constant haptic pulses added to the immersion and made it feel like my hands were doing more than just holding a controller. There are also dynamic trigger effects, aka the ability to use focus aim by pulling halfway on the trigger or entering the alt-fire mode by fully holding the trigger down. 

However, you must plug a DualSense into your gaming PC to use this feature. One of the reasons why PC players love gaming on PCs is their use of a mouse and keyboard. So a DualSense controller’s requirement to experience one of the game’s features is a loss from the start. Plus, if you don’t own a PlayStation 5, you won’t just have one lying around, which defeats the purpose of a PC port.

4K Resolution With Ray Tracing

One benefit of owning a console is not having to worry about the PC requirements of a game. Unfortunately, this is where Returnal can cause frustration for PC players because the requirements to run Returnal on 4K with Ray Tracing are high. You will need a good gaming PC to run it using these settings. It took me a while to tweak my settings to avoid stuttering or lag in the game because Returnal is demanding on the GPU. Most of the time, the gauge pinged at 100%.

3D Audio

Returnal uses 3D audio for its sound effects and soundtrack, which brings Atropos to life. I played with headphones on, using the available 3D audio options. Multiple times during my playthrough, I looked behind me because I thought the sound was coming from inside my house.

However, this is another pain point of the game because you will need to use stereo headphones, have a system that supports Dolby Atmos, or use a 5.1 and 7.1 surround sound system. You may have to move your gaming rig around to accommodate, which may be more trouble than it’s worth. Trust me, however. It is worth it!

PC vs. PlayStation 5

Where Returnal shines on the PC over its console counterpart is its upscale features like DLSS and AMD FSR. In addition, the game also includes NVIDIA Image Scaling and VRS, which allows for the dynamic rendering of in-game assets. The game will render objects with distinct qualities based on their importance, allowing you to gain additional frames without negatively impacting quality. I gained 10 to 20 additional frames, which makes a difference.

Unfortunately, getting Returnal to work on the PC with all the tools, gauges, and settings was a pain and most likely not worth it to the average player. In addition, finding the perfect balance between amazing graphics and outstanding performance was tedious. It killed my initial excitement for the game before I started it.

Outside of DLSS and FSR, there is little else to be gained from Returnal from the PlayStation 5 version. The game’s mechanics, story, and features are all the same, albeit wrapped in an excellent package that is available from the port’s launch.

The Verdict

Sony did a fantastic job porting another exclusive game on PC. The port includes all features in one polished package. However, getting the game to run can be challenging and a significant turnoff for the average PC player. Therefore, I only recommend it if you didn’t play it on the PlayStation 5 since the story, mechanics, and features are the same.

In addition, I failed to connect with the game because it offers an insane learning curve through its use of two of the most challenging genres. I only beat the game because I loved uncovering Selene’s story and watching the movie-quality cut scenes, not the mechanics themselves.

Bioshock Clone or Original Masterpiece?

Atomic Heart has been called a BioShock clone ever since early gameplay footage was made available to eager fans. However, it was apparent while playing that it is a love letter to BioShock and other popular games. It was enjoyable but familiar.

The Polymer powers of Atomic Heart are like the Plasmid powers of BioShock. For instance, you can combine the powers of Telekinesis and Electricity for a shocking good time. However, the Polymer system is less in-depth and fluid than the Plasmids.

Atomic Heart takes place in an alternate dystopian open-world USSR very similar to the setting of Fallout, offering a post-war ‘50s aesthetic mixed with advanced technology. The protagonist is an anti-hero, and his persona and in-game commentary are straight from the Duke Nukem franchise. His throwaway one-liners, wit, and confidence make you feel like a badass action star from the get-go. While his persona may get old for some, it is hilarious and sets him apart from other games with silent protagonists.

Welcome to the Utopian USSR

The story of Atomic Heart centers around scientist Dmitry Sechenov, creator of polymerization. These advancements would eventually create a networked artificial intelligence called Kollektiv. After that, humans in the USSR lived in harmony with their robots until things went wrong.

Atomic Heart’s story about humankind creating an advanced AI only to have it sabotaged, leading to said AI killing and taking over humanity, has been beaten to death (I hope a terminator is sent to fight Kollektiv for AI supremacy). However, if you love sci-fi, you will love how this story is told through its anti-hero and colorful robots. Otherwise, you have permission to roll your eyes and move on to something else.

Humans and Robots and Mutants, Oh My!

Atomic Heart is brought to life with a great voice cast. Mundfish also used specialized equipment to create 3D scans of their actors’ faces to achieve realistic character animations. As a result, you can feel the characters’ emotions when they interact with each other. For example, one scene in particular where a general screams at another character will make your heart pump and make you thankful that you aren’t the one who earned his wrath.

Lately, there has been a rise in interactions between video game protagonists and inanimate objects. The charm is about to wear off, but it doesn’t happen in Atomic Heart. Instead, the interaction between P-3 and Charles is successful because of the well-written dialogue and strategic placement.

Atomic Heart shines with its design of the NPC robots that inhabit the USSR. The interactions will have you talking about them long after their scenes are over. Unfortunately, you will repeatedly face the same enemies with minor variations outside the boss’ battles spread throughout the game. It’s a shame for NPC characters to be well thought out while the game’s enemies are generic.

The Atomic Way

Atomic Heart combines elements from the first-person shooter, puzzle-solving, horror, action, and mystery genres into one neat package. There is something for everyone in this game, and you can play however you see fit.

In addition, you can rebuild your character without spending resources on resetting your skills. Don’t like a particular skill tree? No problem! You can reset your skill points for a full refund and try something new. This is also true for all the weapons you can build and upgrade. While it takes a lot of materials to craft and upgrade your weapons, you can disassemble them for a full refund of materials and build another weapon. You can have fun with the game without having to farm.

Player Discretion Advised

Atomic Heart earns every bit of its mature rating from the ESRB with lots of cursing, blood, gore, violence, and nudity. However, most of that is spread through the game and presented in manageable chunks, making it more bearable if it isn’t your thing. However, P-3’s cussing overstayed its welcome. Almost every conversation or reaction he has to a situation is filled with cuss words. While strategic cussing shows the gravity of the situation or adds a bit of comedy to an otherwise serious situation, the overuse in the game lessens its effect, and you grow to ignore it after a while. One last thing to mention about Atomic Heart is the ability to talk to dead people through the technology that has taken over. Some conversations you can have with them are not for the faint of heart.

The Verdict

Atomic Heart was well worth the wait, and we can see why it is one of the top ten most wish-listed games on Steam leading up to its release. You won’t be disappointed! Atomic Heart is polished, with fantastic voice acting, memorable characters, great animation, and intense action. The result is a game that will keep you wanting more. While Atomic Heart doesn’t bring anything new to the table, it brings flair to the concepts it borrows from games before it, making for a fun experience you will enjoy regardless of the game style you like. The game will have your heart pumping, funny bone aching, and brain working overtime!

Despite that, the series has found a large audience and Like a Dragon: Ishin is a celebration of that. The series has finally found the courage to use its true name — Like a Dragon — globally, and the first game to come with that branding is a remaster of a historical spinoff that was deliberately skipped in the west when it was first released. That’s a power play. Regardless of how you feel about Ishin, you have to realize what it represents for Like a Dragon’s newfound global confidence following Yakuza 0’s western release in 2017.

Like a Dragon: Ishin is a deeply complex historical drama featuring real-life historical events and characters portrayed by characters from the Yakuza franchise. Kazuma Kiryu is now Sakamoto Ryoma, Goro Majima is now Okita Soji, and so on. It’s like watching a school play with all of your friends playing the leads.

Not only does it spice up the heavy political drama with some light fanservice, but it also helps you understand the major players and their motivations. You know how the guy with Majima’s face is going to act, for example. That’s not to say that each character is a carbon copy of their modern-day counterpart, however — Sakamoto Ryoma has some distinct differences from Kazuma Kiryu — but the faces serve as a foundational guide to the period.

As expected, Ishin’s story is a tangled web of conspiracies, fake names, warring factions, and not-so-loyal loyalist parties. Its careful setup results in a disappointingly slow first half, but the final few chapters are packed with explosive drama, shocking revelations, and emotional duels. The slower intro is appreciated, however, since Ishin throws a ton of terms at you that you have to learn if you want to understand everyone’s motivations. It’s as much of a history lesson as it is an action game, which is to be expected of a period piece like this. Just like the mainline Yakuza games provide virtual tourism, Ishin provides historical tourism.

Ishin takes place during a particularly dangerous time in Japan, so the game hands you one of the franchise’s best combat systems to protect yourself from ronin and bandits throughout the streets of Kyo. Ryoma is the only playable character this time around, but he has four very diverse combat styles that complement one another in interesting ways. Alongside the standard Brawler style, Ryoma also has access to the straightforward Swordsman, the long-distance Gunman, and the hybrid Wild Dancer which allows you to dual wield a sword and gun simultaneously.

Each style has its own strengths and weaknesses, even more so than the styles in previous games. You’ll most likely use Swordsman for most of your fights, but the Gunman is perfect for opening attacks when enemies are charging at you and the Wild Dancer style is fantastic for handling large crowds. Even Brawler, the unarmed style, has its uses with unique heat actions. Heat actions in general are much tamer this time around too, but that allows for more deliberate decision-making in the heat of battle.

When you’re not fighting or watching a cutscene, you can experience the nightlife and leisure activities of 19th-century Japan. In true Yakuza fashion, you can lose hours to these side activities. The staples are there — karaoke, mahjong, dancing — but you can also bet on chicken races, grow crops and cook food in the surprisingly deep Another Life side quest, or fight through Battle Dungeons with random rewards.

The game places a huge emphasis on Battle Dungeons. They’re the best way to get most of the game’s rare crafting materials, so you’ll need to run them frequently if you want to upgrade your sword and gun. They’re also the best way to level up your troopers, who essentially act as special abilities that Ryoma can use during combat. The trooper system is surprisingly deep, allowing you to recruit new soldiers through a gacha system, fuse them together to increase their strength, and create synergistic squads that increase your combat prowess.

Of course, you’ll also run into side stories as you navigate the streets of Kyo that range from silly to serious. They feel like they get in the way of the game’s main story way more often than they usually do, however, which can kill the game’s pacing if you take the wrong route. It’s frustrating to be rushing to an important Shinsengumi meeting only to be interrupted multiple times along the way by a crowd of people doing a silly dance, a dog that won’t stop barking, or Ryoma deciding to take a dip in a bathhouse. It’s great that the substories happen to you as you walk around since it makes the world feel much more natural, but it happens way too frequently.

The game’s decision to infuse side stories into typical gameplay mechanics does shine in one regard, however: the friendship system. Each restaurant owner, vendor, and minigame NPC has their own storyline that progresses as you visit them more often. This gives you a reason to visit the karaoke venue on a whim or go out of your way to heal at a specific restaurant, making the town of Kyo feel so much more alive. I wouldn’t have done as much chicken race betting, for example, if I didn’t feel like stopping by to see a friend at the front desk. In a game whose story focuses so much on deciding what’s best for the people of Japan, Ishin’s friendship system is a fantastic way for you to get to know those people.

Another brilliant innovation on Ishin’s part is the Virtue system. Virtue points (not to be confused with standard experience points) are accumulated by doing literally anything in Ishin, from battling bandits to eating at a restaurant to growing crops. You can then spend these points on upgrades like enhanced sprinting, fishing or farm upgrades, items at a special shop, and more. Everything in this game is a form of progression, even the small interactions with shopkeepers. Just like the friendship system, the Virtue system encourages you to interact with the world much more often.

Despite its issues, Like a Dragon: Ishin is a remarkable period piece. The mainline Yakuza games are known for their incredible sense of place, and Ishin is equally as effective at transporting you to 19th-century Japan. Even though it’s not on the fancy Dragon Engine, the streets of Kyo are brimming with life. Speedy couriers dash down the roads, shady bars operate in the slim alleyways between major streets, and crowds gather around conmen selling glasses that supposedly let you see through women’s clothes. You can practically taste the sake flowing as you walk down the main street past bars and restaurants, feeling the warm wind blowing through your haori.

Like a Dragon: Ishin is a stellar period piece filled with melodramatic monologues, great combat, goofy side content, and a whole lot of heart. Ishin may not be the strongest Like a Dragon game because of its lackluster first half and average boss battles, but it’s definitely the most unique title that Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio has ever put out. It wears its heart on its sleeve and you can practically feel the game smiling back at you when a shocking revelation happens during the story or two characters finally cross swords after hours of build-up. It’s a historical drama that only Ryu Ga Gotoku Studio could pull off.

Gameplay and Combat – A Whole New Way to Hunt

Wild Hearts follows the formula that hunting fans will be familiar with, such as seeking out giant beasts, killing them, gathering their materials, and using them to upgrade their gear and armor. While this process can be considered a simple idea, the game shines through the mechanics of crafting while in the midst of battles. Karakuri, the name of the crafting system, is a brilliant addition to the combat that makes every hunt feel different from the last and adds to the number of playstyles allowed in and out of the hunt.

Hunters in Wild Hearts have access to three different Karakuri types, all with a unique purpose. Dragon Karakuri can help you travel across the game’s regions, Basic Karakuri can help you survive longer in combat, and Fusion Karakuri combines your Basic Karakuri to offer protection and increased damage toward the Kemono you are fighting.

I want to emphasize the Basic and Fusion Karakuri and how well this mechanic alleviates the battle system in Wild Hearts. These must be done on the fly amid battle and require the player to use strategic thinking and timing to maximize their full potential. Concoct a pounder to hammer down the beast with significant damage, use your bulwark to block the Kingtusk from running you down, or set off a firework to knock down a flying Kemono, leaving it stunned to the floor. With many more options to create, these Karakuri will make all the difference in whether you survive to see another hunt.

This Karakuri system makes co-op with other hunters in a league of its own. Teaming up with other hunters, all having their Karakuri builds and strategy results in a wild experience that any fan of hunting games should experience. Your partner made a stack of blocks to climb up and rain down a decisive attack? Well, you can be right behind this player and use their Karakuri to your advantage as well. Every Karakuri built will remain in the Hunters world until a player or beast destroys it, making teamwork essential to come out on top in the hunt.

With all of the good being mentioned, the somewhat flawed must be discussed. The reasonably lousy part of the gameplay and combat is that sometimes the camera can’t handle all that is happening on screen. I have found myself, quite a few times, getting caught in the corner, unable to move and see what I was doing, resulting in death or at least a significant hit in my health bar. Some can argue that this camera issue is expected in a hunting game, and although this is very rare, it is most likely that players will want this fixed in a future patch or update to make this issue more manageable.

Kemono – Variety

The game offers 20 Kemono to seek out, with more promised in the future, each with its moveset and characteristics. You can compare this feature to Soulslike games, where you must study what makes your enemy tick and learn how to avoid devastating blows that the Kemono are constantly looking to land on you. You’ll find that certain Karakuri and weapons work better against each Kemono, making you continuously have to make a game plan. This was a great way to keep the feel of gameplay fresh and different every time you went out on the hunt, and even though this was incredibly difficult, it felt great when you learned how to win.

Some of these Kemono you come across will have different variations; for example, a Kingtusk can also be found as an Icetusk in another region. While it would have been nice to have a different Kemono instead of the same look, these variations offered different movesets, and the player needs to adjust accordingly.

RPG Mechanics – Weapons, Gear, and Karakuri Skill Trees

Weapons and gear are significant in Wild Hearts, considering each Kemono has its specific weakness. The player can target each weakness by upgrading weapons to increase damage with an element attached, such as fire, water, or wind, to name a few. It is the same here for anyone familiar with how element weaknesses work in games. For example, a water enhancement will have the fire Kemono cowering as you use the water to your advantage.

Hunters can look at armor and gear in the same light but the other way around. If you plan on hunting a Fire Kemono, you will want to equip armor that focuses explicitly on defense against fire attacks. Players don’t have to make guesses here either, as the game will provide you with a Cyclopedia on each Kemono, making it essential to study before you go out on every hunt.

This is my favorite mechanic, considering it pushes the player to create different load-outs, which you can do from the main menu, depending on the Kemono you plan on hunting at that very moment. These load-outs can be pushed even further by switching out all eight different weapons with three different categories, Slash, Lunge, and Pummel, depending on what the Kemono is weakest to, according to the Cyclopedia.

The game expands the Karakuri system by including a skill tree for these builds. In said skill tree, you will be able to increase the damage output of each Karakuri, the sturdiness to prevent breaking from Kemono, and even learn new Dragon Karakuri to use around each region to help gather resources, improve exploration, and more. This skill tree was a great addition to the already phenomenal RPG mechanics, requiring you to decide where to spend your points. Once again another reason why this game requires plenty of strategy and calculated choices.

Story and Visuals – An Uninspiring Story in a Beautiful Setting

I’m not going to criticize Wild Hearts too much in this field considering the story is the least important aspect of hunting games, but it should still be addressed. Wild Hearts tells a tale of the Kemono, who are infused with nature and destroying everything in their path. Not to go into spoiler territory, but it is up to you, the hunter, to take them down and restore balance to the regions across Azuma. With boring dialogue and uninteresting events, the story leaves a lot to be desired and won’t do much for players looking for an experience that focuses on this.

Wild Hearts regions are focused on the four seasons, each representing one in a beautiful way that makes the game stand alone. Nature is fundamental in the game, especially considering the Kemono are infused with it, and the representation of each season pops on screen, making each hunt a breathtaking experience for hunters from all walks of life.

Now don’t get me wrong, the graphics aren’t something to write home about, and doesn’t match up to what other AAA games offer, such as Horizon Zero Dawn, but the ocean-like summer in Spirit Isle or the turning of the leaves in Akikure Canyon left me wanting to explore more.

The Verdict

Wild Hearts should not go unnoticed by hunting fans looking for a brand-new adventure. With beautiful scenery, and an addicting combat system filled with creativity, there is no denying that the developers have made it known that they can compete with their top competitor. Fresh ideas separate the game and push it into a league of its own, and I can’t wait to see what updates they have in store for the future. While the game stumbles here and there regarding camera issues, story, and a lack of enemy variety at launch, Koei Tecmo’s Omega Force and EA’s latest game still manages to land on its own two feet. A brilliant crafting system makes Wild Hearts unique and a lovely addition to the hunting subgenre.

The Story — A Tale That Doesn’t Quite Hit the Mark

When the game starts, it is clear that the story revolves around times of great upset and turmoil set in a fantasy retro ’90s version of 2022 Hong Kong. You play as Lieutenant Stone, a likable character with enough depth to their overall personality to keep you hooked throughout the game. Other budding characters also form a major part of Stone’s Zombie Unit team, these are Doc, Herzog, Cortez, and the Gunsmith Vivienne. Most of these characters are excellent at differentiating themselves from each other with nice voice acting, and Cortez also communicates through sign language which was a nice touch I wasn’t expecting.

However, Herzog’s dialogue can be a little off-the-cuff at times — clearly a “lady’s man” Herzog makes a few actions and comments across the game which didn’t really have any effect. For example, one of the opening moments in a diner had Herzog dropping a fork to look down a waitress’s top. If anything the actions left a bitter taste in my mouth. This may vary for different people to an extent, but it feels like the developers have tried to take a certain masculine direction with Herzog that hasn’t hit the mark.

The dialogue and pacing as a whole are some of the core issues with the game’s story. Although interesting at points, it doesn’t save it from feeling randomly placed together and sealed haphazardly with Flex Tape. Something that took a while to get used to was random intersections of anime-style cutscenes for key story moments — this was because of the jumps in style so quickly. The same emotional effects could have been generated with just the regular cutscene dynamics. Although, these anime intersections were an effective attempt at bringing in new elements that grew fonder as the game progressed.

The story does have some emotional parts such as while listening to Lieutenant Stone’s past or the synthetic robot discussions. Friendly dialogue moments between Stone and the cheerful Gunsmith character were always a joy to listen to. Even the Gunsmith’s cats get featured sometimes in these convos and it is lovely to see. The Diner, used as a setting for catch-up talks, served as a nice reprieve, and the story did feel better rounded at these points. Nonetheless, if you are looking for a hybrid slasher game with a wholly impactful story, this likely won’t be the one for you.

The Gameplay — An Influx of the Old and the New in Wanted: Dead

Thankfully, the core gameplay of the experience is beautifully crafted and makes the faults of the story’s pacing less significant. The game prides itself on being tough and, at times, brutal. Especially so in the starting levels when you are still getting acquainted with the mechanics. There is a short tutorial to go over the key information if you need it but it does still take some time to find the flow of combat.

When the flow is harnessed, the highest echelons of combat design can be observed with the interlinking of both slasher and shooter gameplay. Every second of the combat was satisfying, of slashing through foes like a crimson edge finding its place and then carving forward with glory-inducing finisher moves. Exciting boss battles push the boundaries of your skills and leave you wanting more. Along with that, you can opt to find chainsaws in levels for instant kills to your foes or choose to upgrade your weapons by switching out parts at a gunsmith drone. One downside to the combat is that the cover system can be a little arduous at times as you stumble about to find the cover without peeking out too much, but it still holds up well.

Unfortunately, with frame-rate drops and occasional crashes happening this hindered the game’s overall performance. It should be noted that Cortez, Herzog, and Doc will be with you as you venture through the levels and assist you in eliminating enemies — Doc also will bring you back to life for one time per life.

As you eliminate enemies you will earn ability points that can be used to buy skills from three different trees of abilities: Offense, Utility, and Defense. As you progress with the game and unlock more of these, the game cements itself even further as an experience that I will want to return to for even just the combat/game feel alone. The New Game+ mode is a perfect way to experience this again for those looking for replayability.

Level Design and Setting

There are plenty of moments in the game when the level design felt successful, one of the most effective was a club area which you will fight through. However, the game was very minimal in terms of levels; there wasn’t a ton of them at all. Although there were numerous interesting sections on most of the levels. You could also find Collectible documents scattered across the world which lent itself to some extra exploration.

After each mission, the player returns to the Police Headquarters which acts as the main central hub for the team. Within the area, expect to hunt around for extra collectible documents or even just explore and chat with some of the NPCs wandering around. Partaking in some minigames such as Claw Machines to get statue collectibles of characters was intriguing as it was something quite unusual.

Minigames and Music

From Ramen eating to Karaoke and more, there is a large number of minigames for you to partake in that can also be accessed through the main menu. You will unlock these gradually as you progress with the game. Rhythm-based Ramen eating was definitely not on my bingo card for what I expected from the experience. Nonetheless, it was a fun time to play and the same goes for the Karaoke with the Gunsmith.

The music and soundtrack of the game are excellent and some tracks have also been recorded and sung by Stefanie Joosten who you may also better know as the character Quiet from Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain. The jukebox in the lounge room also is a nice implementation that had me dancing away to new 80s-inspired music.

The Verdict

All in all, Wanted: Dead is a highly enjoyable experience but the story’s pacing and content hold it back from true greatness. The combat system is brilliantly implemented and the lighthearted minigames are great for some extra fun aside from the main content of the game. Even the art style is greatly executed. Wanted: Dead may not hit the mark in every area, but it still serrates the cut between hybrid slasher/shooter gameplay perfectly and I knew that it would be revisited by me for a long time to come even after the credits had rolled.

Scores of witches and wizards have been craving an immersive Wizarding World experience ever since their first page or frame in J. K. Rowling’s fantastic Harry Potter series. It’s a world that effortlessly invokes curiosity, imagination, and captivation. With that said, any video game that attempts to capture the ephemeral magic of a Hogwarts adventure has a lot to live up to. From Potterheads that know their house and wand specs by heart to casual fans who love the whimsical and wicked nature of the Wizarding World, Hogwarts Legacy is the game we’ve all been waiting for.

Hogwarts Legacy is Avalanche Software’s single-player open-world RPG adventure set in an 1800s Hogwarts valley, which encompasses the castle, Hogsmeade, surrounding hamlets, and much more. It is the game you immediately wanted right after you finished watching or reading the Harry Potter series. To get lost in the ever-changing halls of Hogwarts, to let Lumos guide you deeper into the Forbidden Forest, to ride a broomstick over the rolling hills on your way from the castle to Hogsmeade, all of this and more is possible in Hogwarts Legacy.

After completing the main story of the game and getting a taste of everything Hogwarts Legacy has to offer (which is a lot), I can confidently say that this game is excellent. Though it’s not without its flaws, the overall offer of a personalized Hogwarts adventure that you get to write is captured with Hogwarts Legacy. The best Hogwarts experience ever made is finally here.

Yer a Wizard/Witch – The Story and Pacing

Hogwarts Legacy wastes no time with introductions. You pick your preferred graphics option, create your character, receive your letter to Hogwarts, and get in the carriage. We all know why we are here, which is why Avalanche Software thrusts you into the castle selecting your house as soon as possible, all while laying the foundation for its unique standalone story.

The grandeur and shrouded mystery of the plot mixed with the lunacy of a class of fifth years meddling in affairs far beyond their pay grade is unequivocally Harry Potter inspired. While the main story of Hogwarts Legacy does have some enjoyable quests and puzzles, the plot itself is easily the weakest part of Hogwarts Legacy. It’s not bad by any means, it just can be repetitive and predictable.

On the flip side, the side quests and activities that feature fellow students and characters outside the castle walls are deviously distracting in the best way possible. The main plot of Hogwarts Legacy is all well and good, but the whole Hogwarts experience is found as you help Poppy hunt down poachers that captured a dragon, attend classes that teach you how to use Mandrakes, and defeat powerful magic wielders found deep in dark dungeons.

The pace at which you unlock and explore the world of Hogwarts Legacy is expertly crafted. Instead of throwing you into an endless ocean of spells, collectibles, potions, plants, home decor, beast farming, combat, dungeons, gear upgrades, flying, and exploration, Avalanche Software ingenuously threads you along a trail of perfectly placed breadcrumbs that expand your knowledge of what Hogwarts Legacy offers and how to engage with it. The downside to that is you won’t unlock broomstick riding for a while, but if you plan on sticking with Hogwarts Legacy for a full term, you’ll appreciate the digestible pace that isn’t too painstakingly slow and isn’t too overwhelmingly fast. With Hogwarts Legacy, there is a lot to chew on, so eat slowly; savor every bite.

Expelliarmus! – The Gameplay

As mentioned previously, Hogwarts Legacy is a big game filled with lots of activities. While this can be a red flag in video games, the open world, Hogsmeade, and Hogwarts castle are filled with engaging activities, including puzzles that, while repetitive, manage to feel fresh and satisfying because they are bite-sized, focus on inviting you further into the world, and make you feel like a master sorcerer/sorceress. Best of all, the rewards for these puzzles skirt past being a mere collectathon because they are always gameplay-forward. Some examples of useful rewards for completing puzzles are increased gear storage, decorations, new outfits, and, yes, even XP.

Because of the all-encompassing nature of life at Hogwarts, there are a lot of things Hogwarts Legacy could have been, an MMO, a life-sim, or a sports game just to name a few. While each of those games would have all been fantastic in their own right, Avalanche Software casts a wide and confident net with Hogwarts Legacy which manages to capture almost all of what makes the Wizarding World special. Unfortunately, Hogwarts Legacy doesn’t include everything, namely Quidditch, romance options, and multiplayer, but what it does have is expansive, well-designed, and, as the British say, quite moreish.

Generally though, Hogwarts Legacy is greater than the sum of its parts. While each gameplay mechanic is momentarily fun in its own right, the entire Hogwarts experience when wrapped together in a bow is an absolute banquet for one.

The Gameplay Loops

If you’re sad about what Hogwarts Legacy doesn’t include, know that there are so many delectable gameplay mechanics and loops to engage with that all overlap in practical ways. First, you’ll discover how to make potions which will aid you in battle. Then, you’ll discover how to grow magical plants that will grant you ingredients for your potions. You’ll constantly be learning new spells as you complete challenges and attend new classes which will help you solve more puzzles. Then you get the Room of Requirement which you can fully customize — walls, doors, floors, colors, styles, everything — with decorations found from completed puzzles and chests you’ll find with your new spells. You’ll also unlock a vivarium which is where you can keep your very own beast habitat in which you’ll be able to name and take care of beasts rescued in the open world who will reward you with ingredients for better potions. Every gameplay element influences each other in a way that makes doing anything in Hogwarts Legacy feel extremely gratifying.

Though there is so much to engage with, exploration in Hogwarts Legacy is a fulfilling gameplay experience in itself. Hogwarts Legacy lets you fly around anywhere you want on broomstick or on a magical beast which is all I’ve ever wanted in a Hogwarts game. Swooshing silently between the autumn trees is something I won’t get sick of any time soon.

The game also has a long tail thanks to the level of player expression. Along with all of the other interesting gameplay loops, sinking countless hours into customizing the perfect Room of Requirement with the best designs and decorations isn’t hard to do. Because Hogwarts Legacy has Sims, the Chao Garden, and fun flying mechanics similar to Horizon Forbidden West, people will be playing Hogwarts Legacy for many years to come.

Something that is key to every gameplay mechanic in Hogwarts Legacy is the awareness of player freedom. Right when combat becomes a bit exhausting, you can freely change the pace by engaging in a puzzle, hunting for some beasts, decorating your Room of Requirement, or learning a new spell. If you’re growing tired of a particular aspect of the game, you can at any point try something else. The exponential freedom that you have in Hogwarts Legacy with its many layers of gameplay is exciting and genuinely addictive.

The Combat

One of the most skeptical elements of Hogwarts Legacy is the combat which has turned out to be surprisingly fun. While casting carefully chosen spells to break enemy shields is enjoyable both visually and mechanically, the true joy of combat comes when you combine what you’ve learned in Herbology, Potions, and Defense Against the Dark Arts. Whether you are countering a spell with Protego and Stupefy, throwing out a Venomous Tentacula to deal some extra damage, or focusing on completing the combat-specific dueling feats, combat is definitely not a weak point for Hogwarts Legacy.

The only downside to the combat in Hogwarts Legacy is that the big mini-bosses and bosses you encounter throughout the story can gum up the forward flow of combat because they are so spongey. Casting the same basic attack spell over and over while you wait for your powerful spells to cool down is great when you are creatively dispatching multiple enemies at a rapid clip, but it’s not great when you’re sinking spell after spell into a boss that is seemingly immune to everything until that last spell that finally drains its health completely.

Welcome Home – The Art, Characters, Music, and Setting

On PlayStation 5, Hogwarts Legacy looks breathtaking. Never before has it been so important to nail presentation and Hogwarts Legacy really delivers with not only its graphical fidelity and steady performance, but also with its world layout, cosmetics, and music that accurately captures the source material while expanding in a way that only a studio full of loving fans could.

The Hogwarts castle is accurate and interesting on a macro and micro level. On your first day of classes, you’ll not only get lost but you’ll also lose yourself as you become fully immersed in every little detail. Ghosts dance the halls, students whisper rumors, and portraits move. Each common room, hallway, and classroom is flooded with interesting details from the books and movies. Also, the tailored common rooms make each house feel distinct which makes your Hogwarts experience feel one-of-a-kind.

There is a colorful cast of characters that you’ll meet as you play through Hogwarts Legacy that are all charming and believable thanks to great performances and visuals. Some of the characters play a bigger role than others, but you’ll be able to interact with all of them and roleplay your responses to make friends or enemies with whomever you want. Each house has its own ensemble of quirky students that work to make Hogwarts Legacy feel like a legit school.

As discussed, there are many gameplay loops to enjoy, but one of the main ones that I’ve left out is styling your character. The character creation is great, but what is truly amazing is the sheer amount of fashion choices you’ll have in Hogwarts Legacy. Though you’ll cycle through better gear as you come across it, you can always set your gear’s appearance to whatever you want. The clothing animations are fantastic and the options are aplenty.

The Verdict

Avalanche Software has done it — the comfort, the nostalgia, the freshness, the thrill — everything in Hogwarts Legacy emulsifies together to create a celebration of what the Wizarding World is and what the fans have always dreamed of. This is by far the best Wizarding World video game to ever come out and stands with a select few games that prove more is more.

Every aspect of Hogwarts Legacy overflows with love, dedication, and admiration. This one’s for the fans, but for those who don’t have any ties to Hogwarts or the Wizarding World, Hogwarts Legacy is a phenomenal game that has a lot of great “somethings for everyone.”

Aboard the USG Ishimura

Dead Space Remake is set aboard the USG Ishimura, a massive mining ship classified as a planet cracker. The ship is 5,300 feet and 1,550 feet tall and features nine decks with seven subsections. It was home to 1332 crew members before the Necromorph infection, where it served as both a mining vessel and medical research and development vessel while orbiting Aegis VII.

I provided the above facts about the Ishimura to give you an idea of how massive it is and why it provides a perfect space for the Dead Space game to take place in. From the Medical Deck to the Hydroponics Deck to the Tram Station, you will experience what it is like to be aboard a space station in astonishing detail that will hit all your senses. But, of course, the Ishimura is not just a space station but an infested space station, which is every sci-fi lover’s dream and nightmare. So what would you do if you were in Ellen Ripley’s shoes?

No sci-fi game would be complete without experiencing space, and you will get to see this firsthand with the damaged parts of the Ishimura, letting in the void that is space to make your journey that much more difficult. Navigate the difficulties of Zero-G and no-oxygen environments while solving puzzles and fighting Necromorphs.

Isaac Clarke and Crew

At the start of Dead Space Remake, we meet Isaac Clarke, voiced by Gunner Wright, and the rest of the USG Kellion crew: Corporal Aiden Chen, Corporal Johnston, Computer Specialist Kendra Daniels, and Senior Security Officer Zach Hammond. I enjoyed my reunion with the Kellion crew after 15 years and had to remind myself that they weren’t long for this world. When Chen met his untimely demise at the beginning of the game, I clasped my hand to my mouth in shock and awe because it was more brutal than I remembered.

As the game progresses, we meet the USG Ishimura crew through holographic recordings, voice logs, and text documents that unravel what happened to the USG Ishimura, its crew, and the colony on Aegis VII. So with these logs, we learn that Ishimura was more than just mining, and the crew members we meet show us two sides of the coin. The first is the poor unsuspecting crew members who were there to do their jobs. The second is those who knew the real reason for their journey and were trying to figure out the horrors that unfolded unknown to the rest of the crew.

The Necromorph Outbreak

Our story takes place in 2508, when Isaac Clarke and his fellow crew members on the USG Kellion were dispatched to the USG Ishimura, known as a planet cracker, for an emergency maintenance mission to find and repair the cause of the communications blackout. Unfortunately, Clarke and crew realize things aren’t right, as no one answers their initial hails. Once aboard the Ishimura, in spectacular fashion, if I might add, things quickly take a horrific turn. This is when they find the crew of the Ishimura is all slaughtered, and mysterious creatures called Necromorphs are roaming the massive mining ship. To make matters worse, Clarke’s partner, Dr. Nicole Brennan, has gone missing with the rest of the crew. Can Clarke survive the Necromorph infection and find Nicole while keeping his crumbling sanity intact?

I love this story. I loved it when the original game came out in 2008 and loved it with the Remake. The visual updates and 3D atmospheric audio allowed me to experience it repeatedly and did not disappoint. I played Dead Space Remake with my Steam Deck using headphones while laying in bed late at night with the lights off. This created an eerie atmosphere that got my heart racing and made me invested in Clarke’s survival during most parts of the game. This feeling is why I love horror games and feel Dead Space Remake successfully earned its immersive survival horror tag.

Classic Survival-Horror and Third-Person Shooting

Like most, my love for sci-fi horror comes from the movies Alien and Aliens. While they are two completely different movies, with Alien firmly rooted in the survival-horror genre and Aliens in the third-person shooter genre, I feel Dead Space Remake owns both genres and does it exceptionally well.

In parts of the game, I felt like Ripley on the Nostromo as I traversed the Ishimura while constantly watching out for Necromorphs from sneaking up on me in an ever-changing environment. Dead Space Remake includes a new AI-driven system called the Intensity Director, which comprises content organization, spawning, and a pacing control system. There are over 1200 unique events with a countless variety of combinations possible. This allows the game to adapt and change from room to room, which adds to the uneasy feeling of not knowing what you will encounter at any moment. This includes Necromorphs spawning in a wall vent, lights turning off, showers turning on, and fog making visibility difficult. The goal was to create peaks and valleys of tension and a unique playing experience for every player.

In other parts, I felt like the Colonial Marines from Aliens as I was going toe-to-toe with waves of Necromorphs using weapons, modules, and the environment to defeat them. While the Necromorphs were challenging to beat, I never felt underpowered because of the Remake’s better weapon upgrades and alt-fire modes. The combat was also satisfying because of the game’s new peeling system, which represents the damage you are causing to the Necromorphs when shooting them through the visual representation of meat chunks falling off them. This was an excellent feature because slicing off the limbs of Necromorphs is a massive part of combat, and it just adds to the realism and feeling of going up against them.

Remake vs Original

The burning question that you and most folks that haven’t bought Dead Space Remake are asking is how the Remake holds up to the Original and whether it is with the hefty price tag. Let me answer this question right away by giving you a resounding yes. My answer is yes. I’ve already discussed some reasons above, like the game has no loading screens, which add to the immersion, the Intensity Director, visual improvements and 3D sounds, improvements to the existing weapon, and upgrade systems. But, if that isn’t enough to get you to buy the game, additional features include New Game Plus and new side quests that delve deeper into the story. In addition, this alternate ending fits the game much better than the original, and the new traversal uses Zero-G. I can preach about the game all day, but I want you to experience it firsthand.

The Verdict

We are frustrated that the things we love are being ruined due to being rebooted or remade. Whether it is done poorly, taken from a bygone era, or made so different, it’s riding on the coattails of the original’s successes. We don’t like seeing our favorite things that aren’t up to our standards. When this happens, we scream at whoever will listen that they should never have been touched. It is then scarce for something to be better while still being faithful to the original, and we need to praise it when it happens. This is the case with Dead Space Remake because it is better than the original in every way.

The first time I died while playing Dead Space Remake on Impossible Mode, I couldn’t help but say Hudson’s iconic line from Aliens: “Game Over, Man! Game Over!” to myself as I started the game over. While watching the intro cutscene, I couldn’t help but snicker to myself because of it. When I beat the game on Impossible Mode, I breathed a sigh of relief and smiled, knowing I was about to have a ton of fun playing on New Game Plus with the game’s foam finger.

After watching the game’s alternate ending, I wanted a Dead Space 2 Remake because, in my book, Motive has proven that they can remake one of my most cherished games, and I want to experience the rest of the franchise as I did with Dead Space Remake. I know you will love this Remake just as much as I did.