May2022
A mixed intro to the world of Suikoden's spiritual successor
Eiyuden Chronicle: Hundred Heroes, a spiritual successor to the legendary Suikoden series of Japanese role-playing games, blew past its funding goals on Kickstarter two years ago, raising a whopping 4.5 million USD and shattering all its stretch goals in the process. It’s safe to say...
December2020
Review Drawn To Life: Two Realms - A Strange Sequel Which Totally Misses The Point
Styleless And Stylusless
Drawn To Life: Two Realms is the second sequel in a series that last came out in 2009, the same year that Obama first came to office. It's a lifetime ago. No one had "new Drawn To Life" game on their 2020 bingo, yet here it is anyway, attempting to revitalise and reinvent a beloved cult classic that found its home on the DS...
November2020
Review Ghostrunner - A Thrilling Cyberpunk Epic Dulled By Performance Problems On Switch
Be a literal runner of blades
It seems the cyberpunk genre has seen something of a resurgence in the indie game scene lately, no doubt spurred on by CDProjektRed’s anticipated tentpole release which now appears set to launch somewhere in the actual year 2077 (only kidding, of course! It's sure to be here by at least 2055). Ghostrunner is the...
Review Control: Ultimate Edition - A Highly Convincing Proof-Of-Concept For Cloud Gaming On Switch
Upper Escherlon Gaming
If you haven't played Control yet, the game's newest release on Nintendo Switch might be enough to finally tempt you to give it a go. But one question looms large over the Switch's version of the game: does it actually run well on Nintendo's less-powerful home console? The short answer is: yes. The slightly longer answer is:...
October2020
Review Horace - A Heart-Warming Nostalgia Trip And Must-Play Masterpiece
Horace doesn't go skiing
The name “Horace” has cultural cachet in the world of British retrogaming, and we can’t help but believe that the evocation thereof is very, very intentional on the Horace developers’ part. After all, their game is steeped in nostalgia; the pop culture of days past infuses Horace from its opening nod to Thames TV’s...
May2020
Review Journey To The Savage Planet - No Man's Sky Meets Metroidvania
Kindred Spirits
Typhoon Studios' Journey to the Savage Planet was very well received when it originally released back in January of this year on PC and consoles; it's a genuinely funny and supremely well designed title that combines Metroidvania elements with No Man's Sky-style procuring of resources on a bizarre alien planet filled with slick...
Review Indivisible - An Enjoyable And Beautiful RPG Hybrid With A Few Rough Edges
Taking "voices in the head" to the next level
Lab Zero Games made quite a name for itself when it first came onto the scene with the launch of Skullgirls about eight years ago, where it demonstrated a remarkable penchant for smooth 2D animation and tight combat design. A few years after its success there, the studio launched an Indiegogo campaign in...
November2019
Mini Review Zumba Burn it Up! - Ring Fit Adventure Too Crazy For You? Try This Instead
Rhythmic calorie counting
Out of all of the family-centric games introduced during the lifetime of the absurdly popular Nintendo Wii, only a handful have seemingly thrived and continued into the present day. Perhaps the most prevalent is the Just Dance franchise, which releases every year like clockwork, but the Zumba series is just about hanging by...
July2019
Review Terraria - A Fine Switch Port That’s Missing One Key Ingredient
A decent port of a legendary game
If there’s one game in the world that has been cloned to death, it’s Mojang’s seminal sandbox block-builder, Minecraft. Most of the ‘me-too’ versions of it have been content with simply offering a vastly inferior experience that seldom adds much, if any, interesting new content to the tried and true...
May2019
Review Brothers: A Tale Of Two Sons - A Welcome Return Of An Indie Classic
Oh brother, where art thou?
When Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons first wandered onto Xbox 360’s wonderfully indie-centric marketplace in 2013, it brought with a new meaning to the term ‘co-op’. With a new generation of consoles mere months away, Payday 2 developer Starbreeze Studios captured the imaginations of critics and players alike. It was a...
November2018
Review Abzu - A Gorgeous And Thought-Provoking Journey That All Switch Owners Should Embark On
Breathtaking
Journey changed the game when it released back in 2012, bringing a distinctly serene experience to PlayStation owners that championed the experience of play, rather than the goal of conquering challenges. Journey generated all sorts of acclaim for its atmosphere and pace, so it comes as no surprise that Matt Nava – Journey’s art...
March2018
Review Last Day Of June (Switch eShop)
A terrible fate
Losing a loved one is hard to fathom until you actually experience it yourself. Grief is a natural reaction when you lose a person in your life that you love. It’s the heart-breaking outcome when you develop emotional connections with other people in this world including your family and friends. Last Day Of June – originally...
December2017
Review Portal Knights (Switch)
To me, to you
It’s easy to instantly compare any sandbox-type game with crafting, combat and building elements to Minecraft; many games have tried – to varying degrees of success – to re-create what Mojang’s mammoth franchise has done so well over the last few years. Luckily, though, whilst Portal Knights does have a number of features that...
July2016
Review Terraria (Wii U eShop / Wii U)
Now more complete
After a half-year wait, Terraria is now also available on the 3DS's big brother system. The handheld release suffered from some annoying issues, mostly related to hardware limitations, so does the Wii U version fare any better? For those who weren't really interested in the game up until this point, Terraria is a 2D sandbox game...
January2016
A downsized download
Originally released on PC back in 2011, Terraria could be described as a 2D sidescrolling Minecraft with graphics reminiscent of 16-bit games. Over the years it received many updates and eventually started getting ported to many other systems. Now it's finally Nintendo's turn to get the game, but does it still hold up or did too...
June2014
Review How to Survive (Wii U eShop)
Island-hopping and head-popping
Zombies used to be so underground, man. Years ago the very mention of these rotted ghouls would have people scratching their heads in blissful ignorance, but now they’re shuffling, walking and running around like they own the place. The genre has been utterly exhausted to the point where now their inclusion in media...
June2013
Review Sniper Elite V2 (Wii U)
Reach out and touch someone
Let’s just get this out of the way: Sniper Elite V2 on Wii U seems built for the bargain bin. Were it a movie then this edition would be one of those bare-bones, dithery full-screen DVDs that advertises its interactive menu and scene selection as "features". So says the cynic in us, and our realist chimes in with a...
December2012
E - I - E - I - oh
If you're looking for the most happening place on Miiverse, look no further than the community for Funky Barn. Filled with sketches of animals in sunglasses and musical references, it's become a haven for memes and the friendliest trolling you've ever seen. When somebody posts about the game itself rather than its title, it's met...
June2011
Review Naruto Shippuden 3D: The New Era (3DS)
Losing the way of the ninja
By publishing Tomy’s Naruto Shippuden 3D: The New Era, 505 Games is clearly counting on the popularity of the anime show outside of Japan. With over 200 episodes aired the show has accrued a loyal fan base, so it's hardly surprising that this 3DS entry has made it to European shores, with a US release later in the year...
July2010
Review Hair Salon: Pocket Stylist (DSiWare)
Mane attraction or curl up and dye?
Just in case you've ever wondered what you'd look like with a head of luscious bright green hair, here's Hair Salon: Pocket Stylist to satiate your curiosity. To start, you snap a picture with your DSi camera and manoeuvre your face within the guide area, which then becomes the face of your character. In case you...
December2009
Review Happy Holidays: Christmas (WiiWare)
We must have been very naughty indeed...
The holiday greeting card is normally innocuous enough. Often purchased with a feeling of obligation to declare one's genuinely heartfelt feelings via a mass-produced combination of sentimental/humorous messages and art/photos, they've been a staple of the holiday season for decades. For nearly as long as...
October2009
Review Happy Holidays: Halloween (WiiWare)
Take your holiday elsewhere!
The idea of sending greeting cards to your Wii friends isn't a bad one - after all you can already send messages with photos - so as a concept a cheap and cheerful greeting card program could easily have a place on your Wii, but a Halloween-focused one? Creating an application that will only be used once a year seems...
May2009
The best puzzler on the DS?
Puzzles have always been an ideal fit for the DS, with its touch screen capabilities and the portable nature of the console means that is perfect to dip in and out of a puzzle for a few minutes in between waiting for a phone call or the dinner to emerge unscathed from the oven. As a result, there have been numerous puzzle...
March2008
Review Guilty Gear XX Accent Core (Wii)
Make sure you've got your Classic Controller handy for this one
Few genres possess the stubborn nature of the 2D fighter. Whereas other game types evolve over time and strive to incorporate new and innovative features that not only make them easier to play but also more enjoyable, the 2D brawler is perfectly content to remain static. But before you...