God, Trials Rising is good. At its heart, a physics-based puzzle game that wears the trappings of extreme sports. It’s the modern equivalent of the old Dirt Bike games on Mac from the 90’s, a formula that has grown more showy and complex over time but retains their “get up and try again” spirit. Indeed,…
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I’ll preface this review by saying that despite owning a Sega Mega Drive, I never played either of the original ToeJam & Earl games in their heyday. I also never played the series’ abortive third entry on the original Xbox either, though I understand that this is probably for the best. Well may you say,…
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Ape Out is not a terribly long game, but it is a fun one. It’s an entertaining and creative riff on the format popularised by Hotline Miami, a barbarous explosion of violence that belies its more rhythm-based gameplay. You play an angry, caged gorilla ready to throw off the shackles of oppression and embark on…
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Claiming Final Fantasy IX is your favourite of the PSOne era FF titles is a bit like saying Ringo is your favourite Beatle — most people think you’re a wanker and that there are far better musicians in the group. But what Ringo fans know is that he’s often unfairly overlooked. Sure, he’s responsible for…
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Observer walks a line between cyberpunk, noir and psychological horror that displays a deep love of all three genres, drawing its most obvious inspirations from films like Alphaville, Ghost in the Shell and Blade Runner. The story follows cyborg detective (or Observer) Daniel Lazarski, played by Blade Runner’s Rutger Hauer. Daniel Lazarski is your quintessential hard-boiled detective; as analytical…
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It’s hard to believe this is the second Tetris review I’ve written in three months. Even harder to believe, the franchise’s raw adaptability. Like the patterns its falling blocks create, Tetris seems able to change its shape at will, wholly altering the core experience with the addition of a single extra mechanic. Tetris Effect leveraged…
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Aragami: Shadow Edition is a rather clever blend of modern stealth elements and old school action-adventure. Its most obvious mechanical influence seems to be Tenchu: Stealth Assassins with a little of Splinter Cell‘s shadow cover thrown in for good measure. It adopts an animated look reminiscent of Okami. Indeed, like Okami, Aragami is steeped in…
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There are only four good skateboarding video games, and the OlliOlli series are two of them.* Roll7’s OlliOlli and its follow-up OlliOlli 2: Welcome to Olliwood are side-scrolling skateboarding titles that are all about putting the sickest runs together and racking up massive score multipliers. Both games have a deceptively simple 2D look that belie…
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There was a time when point-and-click adventures ruled the roost, with companies like LucasArts churning out hit after hit between Maniac Mansion, The Secret of Monkey Island Grim Fandango and Full Throttle. Since the 1980s, video game technologies have advanced unbelievably, opening up a diverse range of options for gameplay, allowing sprawling open world adventures…
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It’s been 16 years since the release of Intelligent Systems’ Advance Wars 2, widely considered one of the greatest turn-based strategy titles ever made, and 11 years since Advance Wars: Dark Conflict (titled Days of Ruin in the US). The intervening period saw the popularity of Intelligent’s Fire Emblem series explode in the West, an unexpected turn…
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Pikuniku is an absurd, charming little game from the folks at Devolver Digital, and one that is absolutely fascinating. Styled after the whimsical platformer titles of the PS2 era like Loco Roco and Katamari Damacy, Pikuniku follows the struggles of a little red blob as he awakens in a strange land filled with shiny, happy…
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Gris is pretty special experience. It’s a game with a lot to say, but never actually says a word out loud. Instead, Gris uses its strident, beautiful art style to convey its every thought — linework, animation and colour all have a part to play in this story about finding your way back from a…
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Since its announcement at The Game Awards late last year, fans have been waiting for a look at Mortal Kombat 11 in action. This morning’s reveal livestream dropped a raft of new trailers for the NetherRealm Studios fighter, all focused on gameplay and characters. Following on from 2015’s Mortal Kombat X, MK11 introduces a time travel…
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When we think about game design that could be considered “timeless,” the classic Super Mario Bros formula still leaps readily to mind. 34 years after its first appearance on the NES, Shigeru Miyamoto’s original push-forward platformer design remains as compelling as its ever been. New Super Mario Bros U Deluxe only proves this further, taking…
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It’s been 20 years since Masahiro Sakurai became the architect of one of the riskiest experiments in Nintendo’s history. Super Smash Bros‘ dramatic origin story is well known — Sakurai had an idea for a four-player fighting game featuring Nintendo characters. Sakurai was acutely aware that getting Nintendo to approve a game about their beloved…
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Civilization VI was already complicated game long before the decision was made to port it to console. A great game to be sure, but a very complicated one. Civ has long made its home on the PC. The game’s overall complexity and forest of nested menus made a jump to console seem all but impossible….
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3sZsk8VHY2g New details have emerged surrounding Super Smash Bros. Ultimate, notably, you can play as infamous Mario level-hazard, Piranha Plant. https://twitter.com/Tetra_Flora/status/1058108258706186240 Piranha plant will be available to players who purchase early – either those who register their game card before January 31st 2019, or to those who buy digital versions. On top of this, Inceneroar…
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The NBA Playgrounds series is back once again for its second attempt at a slam dunk, with a fun, charming and old school approach rarely seen since the good old days of NBA Jam. I’m happy to say that NBA 2K Playgrounds 2 is an improvement over its predecessor in almost every single way, with…
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Dark Souls Remastered finally makes its way onto the Nintendo Switch after bringing its most polished iteration of the game to date on those respective consoles. I am glad to say that Dark Souls Remastered’s latest outing is as good as it’s ever been, bringing players back to the world of Lordan; and being able…
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And now, a take that may be controversial: Diablo 3 is way better on console than it is on PC. No seriously, hear me out on this one. While Diablo 3 has been available on the Xbox One and PlayStation 4 for some time, this is the game’s first appearance on the Nintendo Switch or,…
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Oh Mega Man, such a treasured relic of the past, and one of the great gaming franchises of the 8-bit era. It was — is — one of the few series that could get away with being so repetitive and frustratingly difficult because there’s something about its simple premise and nostalgia-inducing schtick that just stuck…
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Thought that ‘toys to life’ video game fad was over? That the days of collecting Skylanders and Disney Infinity figures were behind you? Guess again. Starlink: Battle for Atlas marks developer Ubisoft Toronto’s first attempt at creating a fun, friendly, accessible spaceship combat-based experience for the young and old alike. While it’s not perfect, Starlink: Battle for…
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The World Ends With You is frequently spoken of as one of the greatest games developed for the original Nintendo DS, with a killer story and gameplay that used the full capacity of the innovative touch screen. Despite how well-received it was, TWEWY also went somewhat unloved in the wider gaming scene, and has come…
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The Mario Party franchise has long established itself as a ruthless destroyer of friendships. From its earliest, controller-ruining days on the Nintendo 64, the series has sought to emulate the classic board game shenanigans of something like Monopoly. But, like Monopoly, a core part of its design involves regularly screwing over anyone unfortunate enough to…
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I wouldn’t blame you if this indie point and click puzzle adventure slipped through the cracks, especially with the extreme amount of indie titles being released each month. The Low Road follows a new spy hoping to get her foot in the door so she can get out and do some field work. It comments on…
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The NBA 2K series is back for its 20th anniversary, which seems like a long time for a video game franchise, but has proved to be time well spent, with the NBA 2K franchise becoming the preferred platform for many NBA fans, including myself. It is with great satisfaction that I can say that while…
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Multiplayer is something that, over the years, has moved further and further into the online-only space. All but gone are the days of friends or family paying with (or against) one another on a single console. The days of couch party titles like Mario Kart 64 and Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater 2 are gone, replaced…
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Untitled Goose Game, the goose vs farmer trolling simulator from Melbourne developer House House, captured the internet’s imagination last year with its hilarious debut trailer. The biggest question that trailer failed to answer was “When can I play this, and why isn’t the answer ‘right now’?” The answer might be sooner than you think. House…
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Okami was a work of art before it was ported to numerous modern platforms, inspiring a new generation of players with its mythic take on the old Zelda formula, but this Nintendo Switch port in particular gives it a necessary new life.
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The Venom Power Pack & Stand is an essential accessory for hardcore Nintendo Switch gaming, providing a significant boost to the console’s battery life and a solid kickstand base for travel stability. With its sleek design and ease of use, the device is easy to recommend for any Switch gamer.
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