PJ O'Reilly

Nintendo Life

PJ O'Reilly·Apr 8, 2024

Critic60/100

Agreement—

MLB The Show 24 delivers a solid third season of baseball on Switch in a port that keeps the gameplay fluid and delivers a full suite of modes, even if it does feel as though the console is really being pushed to its limit now. There are the expected visual downgrades, longer loading times compared to other platforms, and online can be dodgy, but a slew of modes, deep and satisfying gameplay, and that handsomely expanded Storylines mode patches over most of the rough spots.

Pure Xbox

PJ O'Reilly·Mar 27, 2024

Critic60/100

Agreement—

Open Roads, in theory, should be another Gone Home-style success story. However, what we've actually got here feels strangely by the numbers, surprisingly short and very light on actual drama, mystery or thrills that genuinely compel. At around two hours long you won't need a lot of compelling to see it through, mind you, but overall this just feels like retreading the same sort of ground with much less of an effect. There's superb acting and it all looks great, but the narrative just isn't doing it for us this time, sadly.

Nintendo Life

PJ O'Reilly·Mar 21, 2024

Critic80/100

Agreement—

Princess Peach: Showtime! sees Nintendo finally give everyone's favourite imaginary princess the rollicking adventure she deserves. We had expected a rather throwaway offering here, a bunch of minigames and Mario-lite platforming maybe, but what we've got is one of the better kid-focused games on Switch. There's creativity, style, and fun to spare here, with levels packed full of secrets, cool outfits, and enough new mechanics to ensure nothing ever outstays its welcome. Come for the fashion, stay for the boss battles, slo-mo bullet dodges, and cardboard horse chases. Besides a few niggling performance issues, this is Nintendo on rather cracking form. Encore!

Nintendo Life

PJ O'Reilly·Mar 8, 2024

Critic70/100

Agreement—

Expeditions: A MudRunner Game arrives on Switch in a port that does a surprisingly decent job of delivering the goods without getting utterly bogged down by issues en route. This is a big game, a modern, physics-heavy beast, and while there's a blurriness to the visuals which detracts from the overall atmosphere, and some frame rate bumps along the way to boot, the core experience has arrived intact. It's not perfect, but it's a reasonably decent place from (s)which to start for a game that absolutely deserves your time and patience.

Pure Xbox

PJ O'Reilly·Mar 4, 2024

Critic60/100

Agreement—

The Outlast Trials is a cool idea, a spin-off that funnels players through a gauntlet of twisted levels with a gameshow/Saw movie vibe. However, as good as it all looks and sounds, with plenty of levels and tons of customisation to dig into, the core gameplay here is just way too bland and repetitive, it's in no way scary, and the only real fun to be had is in getting a bunch of pals together to laugh at your misfortunes and all of the violence that ensues.

Pure Xbox

PJ O'Reilly·Mar 4, 2024

Critic80/100

Agreement—

Expeditions: A MudRunner Game shifts the slow-moving action of its predecessors from small scale levels full of straightforward challenges to a set of large open world maps designed specifically for freewheeling offroad exploration. The magic of SnowRunner et al remains intact here, with a gloriously atmospheric bunch of regions to get busy taming as you push forward through swamps, across rivers and over mountains in a game that genuinely feels like Death Stranding in a truck at points. Co-op mode may be missing at launch, which is a real shame, and there's a few graphical issues to sort just now, but we reckon this is still Saber Interactive's best crack at the offroad sim yet, and that's saying something.

Nintendo Life

PJ O'Reilly·Feb 27, 2024

Critic100/100

Agreement—

Pentiment is a fantastic adventure RPG that revels in a studious approach to history and immaculate recreations of the styles and traditions of 16th-century Bavaria. There's a super smart, funny, and engaging murder mystery to investigate here, but it's how that mystery is so fully rooted in the world that's been lovingly crafted around it that really elevates this experience. It's one of the best games of the past decade, hands down, and to have that experience running and performing perfectly on Switch is a joyous thing - it feels like it was made for Nintendo's console. This is about as essential as games get.

Pure Xbox

PJ O'Reilly·Feb 21, 2024

Critic90/100

Agreement—

Balatro is an incredibly clever indie gem that uses the bones of regular poker to build an incredibly approachable and fiendishly addictive new experience. There's a wonderfully slick core to this one, building decks and taking on dealers as you add wild special cards and variables to your pack is trance-inducing stuff and, backed by a fantastically understated soundtrack and perfect visuals, it makes for one of the first proper, actual, absolute must-play games of 2024.

Nintendo Life

PJ O'Reilly·Feb 14, 2024

Critic70/100

Agreement—

Mario vs Donkey Kong serves up a slick return to the 2004 GBA adventure that finds fresh fun in cooperative play. Yep, the new co-op mode really is the star of the show this time out and, alongside two new worlds, 'Plus' versions of each level, a Time Attack mode, and fancy new looks and sounds, there's plenty to dig into and enjoy with a core puzzle/platforming setup that has aged quite well. Just be aware that, if you're a more seasoned player looking for platforming challenges, this game finds its strengths as an experience for younger gamers or as a co-op title to enjoy with your kids. Taken as such, it absolutely earns a recommendation.

Pure Xbox

PJ O'Reilly·Feb 2, 2024

Critic80/100

Agreement0%

Rocksteady's Suicide Squad: Kill The Justice League, despite all of the wailing and gnashing of teeth pre-release, has arrived in perfectly fine form. This is, at launch, one of the most polished looter shooters we've played, an action-packed superhero adventure that dishes up top-notch combat, tons of fan-service, excellent traversal (important for superheroes!), addicting loot, and plenty of surprises and shocks to boot. Yes, the story is artificially dragged out, mission types are repetitive and the store is a right royal rip-off, but the writing, the performances, core mechanics and incredible attention to detail here ensure that this is one squad of misfits who've managed to take the heat and survive intact.

Nintendo Life

PJ O'Reilly·Jan 24, 2024

Critic90/100

Agreement—

Under Night In-Birth II Sys:Celes is a cracking sequel that brings meaningful change to the series' core combat, adds rollback netcode and three strong new characters to an already enthralling roster, and all looks, sounds, and plays every bit as good as its dazzling predecessor. Chronicle mode has been axed, and it's a shame it hasn't been replaced with something else, but this remains a top-notch effort, a deep and addictive anime fighter that should please long-time fans and interested newbies alike.

Pure Xbox

PJ O'Reilly·Jan 23, 2024

Critic80/100

Agreement—

Tekken 8 is a little light on single-player content in comparison to some of the other big fighters out there right now, and it does give off the initial impression of being super-slick over strategically balanced early on. Stick with it though, dig down beneath all the fancy new heat moves and screen-shaking rage attacks, and you'll find a classic fighting system that feels better now than it ever has. Once you're in the zone, pulling off Phoenix smashers, dashing fists and sandwich claps whilst side-stepping like a pro, any slight shortcomings this game may have are left at the entrance to the arena.

Nintendo Life

PJ O'Reilly·Jan 18, 2024

Critic70/100

Agreement—

Another Code: Recollection's biggest addition to the original DS and Wii experiences, besides the slick new graphics and fully explorable 3D environs, is its all-new navigation and puzzle aids. With the obtuse nature of some puzzles now a triviality - should you find yourself stumped - there's now no difficulty spikes or annoying moments to hold you back from a two-part tale that's very much worth diving into for fans of slow-burn point-and-click titles. Their pacing could have done with some more work, but this collection is as good a return to Ashley's world as fans could have hoped for.

Nintendo Life

PJ O'Reilly·Jan 11, 2024

Critic90/100

Agreement—

Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown is a slick return to the roots of this franchise that serves up clever 2.5D action wrapped up in a delightful art style and satisfying story. There's a smart balance here between old-school levels of action and challenge, moreish combat, and neat puzzles, all mixed with accessibility options and fine-tuning that open things up to newcomers and casual players. We knew Ubisoft Montpellier was a pair of safe hands and the team hasn't let us down, serving up the first must-play of 2024 in a Switch port that absolutely does the business.

Pure Xbox

PJ O'Reilly·Jan 11, 2024

Critic90/100

Agreement—

Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown is a fantastically clever return to the franchise that serves up slick 2.5D action wrapped up in a delightful art style and satisfying story. There's a smart balance here between old-school levels of action and challenge, moreish combat and neat puzzles, mixed with accessibility options and fine-tuning that open this traditionally tough genre up to newcomers. We knew Ubisoft Montpellier was a pair of safe hands, and it's not let us down here, serving up the first must-play of 2024, and we're only just getting started.