Stephen Tailby

Push Square

Stephen Tailby·May 25, 2021

Critic90/100

Agreement—

Knockout City is a brilliant multiplayer brawler. Its well-balanced, skill-based gameplay is a joy, providing players with surprising depth just beneath the surface. While the number of maps and modes on day one is fairly small, the fun factor means this doesn't really matter, and updates will bring extra content to the game post-launch anyway. With a ton of customisation options, rewarding progression, and constantly engaging matches, this is knockout by name, knockout by nature.

Push Square

Stephen Tailby·May 24, 2021

Critic60/100

Agreement—

The RPG elements mean you'll nearly always be making some forward momentum. Finding treasure, sinking ships, and completing missions rewards you with XP, and you can upgrade and customise various parts of your boat to ensure your vessel is ship-shape. What's more, each town has its own side missions to tackle, and a market where you can trade goods in a shifting economy. These parts of the game are its strengths, but working through somewhat confusing menus and engaging in predictable battles take the wind out of its sails.

Push Square

Stephen Tailby·May 7, 2021

Critic70/100

Agreement—

Wreckfest just fully embraces what it is, and you have to respect it. Bugbear's brash, fender-bending racer has been unleashed on PlayStation 5 as part of May's PlayStation Plus lineup, and it's still very much the chaotic, crash-happy, Destruction Derby-esque experience people love. In the jump to new hardware, the game definitely benefits in a few areas, though some enhancements are better than others.

Push Square

Stephen Tailby·Apr 29, 2021

Critic90/100

Agreement—

Housemarque has delivered the PS5 promise with Returnal. All the console's bells and whistles enhance the experience, making this a real showpiece for the hardware. But more than that, the game is a force to be reckoned with; the breathless combat, super slick gameplay, and the subtle but unsettling story combine for an experience of surprising scale. Rogue-lite aspects mean it won't gel with everyone, but for those looking for a challenging, addictive arcade shooter, this comes highly recommended.

Push Square

Stephen Tailby·Apr 22, 2021

Critic40/100

Agreement—

Initially it's quite a novel experience, despite controls feeling fairly clunky. You solve problems, earning bricks with which to create new buildings and slowly unlock new business types, which expand your options. However, after a while, it becomes more difficult to manage; if a building is really lacking appeal, a circular meter will begin to fill. If you let it fill up, the building's business will close, and will be essentially useless. The trouble comes when you have buildings that won't move, and more than one suffering this red circle. This is just an example really, but the point is that the gameplay becomes too complicated. After a while, it loses the fun factor, and becomes a frustrating balancing act with too many plates to spin.

Push Square

Stephen Tailby·Apr 9, 2021

Critic40/100

Agreement—

Oddworld: Soulstorm presents itself well and shows a grand vision for the series, but as a modern game in 2021, it's just not where it needs to be. It can be extremely awkward to pull off even basic manoeuvres, some new features miss the mark, and certain levels made us want to quit altogether. Bugs exacerbate some of the gameplay frustrations with wonky AI, and ultimately the play experience can be frustratingly rigid. Fans will love this reimagining of a classic, and the franchise's unique charm shines through, but it's a tough sell for anyone coming to the series fresh.

Push Square

Stephen Tailby·Mar 29, 2021

Critic80/100

Agreement—

It isn't perfect; using the floaty jump as a dodge can sometimes land you in even more trouble, aiming your throwable pickaxe is imprecise, and some rooms just feel unfair. We also noticed some odd visual hitches, although these can be smoothed out by enabling vsync in the settings. All that said, if you enjoy a rogue-lite, particularly those with meaningful upgrades, UnderMine is well worth delving into.

Push Square

Stephen Tailby·Mar 24, 2021

Critic80/100

Agreement—

It Takes Two is an excellent co-op adventure. While it stumbles on certain narrative aspects and not all the performances are winners, it more than makes up for that with its brilliantly fun and ever-changing gameplay. Forcing two players to work in tandem in countless ways, the game embraces co-op play wholeheartedly, and the variety of gameplay and environments makes it a joy to play from start to finish.

Push Square

Stephen Tailby·Mar 16, 2021

Critic70/100

Agreement—

There are some parts that don't quite work. A fatigue system discourages you from prolonged excursions and can make things tricky, and the limited number of cards means you're rarely fully prepared to speak with everyone. Overall, though, we'd say it's a successful experiment, and a breath of fresh air among all the usual noise.

Push Square

Stephen Tailby·Mar 15, 2021

Critic70/100

Agreement—

There's quite a bit to take in here, but the bottom line is Star Renegades is a solid rogue-lite adventure. It might struggle to concisely convey all its systems, but give it some time and there's a deep, challenging game to sink your teeth into.

Push Square

Stephen Tailby·Mar 1, 2021

Critic70/100

Agreement—

Maquette is a fascinating puzzle game with a unique central mechanic. This leads to some super clever puzzles that will really test your grey matter. However, we can't help but feel that the concept's potential isn't quite fulfilled. Similarly, the story is pretty unique among games, but the execution just isn't quite there. Overall, it's an enjoyable experience that puzzle lovers should sample - just don't expect it to change the world.

Push Square

Stephen Tailby·Feb 23, 2021

Critic70/100

Agreement—

This is a challenging game. Despite enemies telegraphing attacks, their numbers can get the better of you. Combined with arena traps, hazards, and a lack of light sources, it can be rather difficult. However, with a parry, dodge roll, and your set of weapons, you're given plenty of opportunity to defend yourself. Combat really keeps you on your toes, and gives the game a quick pace that makes runs that much more addictive. If you want a dungeon crawler with satisfying gameplay and some unique ideas, this is far from a curse.

Push Square

Stephen Tailby·Feb 5, 2021

Critic60/100

Agreement—

If you're coming at this from the perspective of a Trophy hunter rather than seeking out a unique experience, Arrog will serve you well, too. You can attain a super simple Platinum comfortably inside an hour, if that's what you're after. However, that feels a little reductive given the game's tone. If you're looking for a truly one-of-a-kind adventure, don't mind a short runtime, and want to meet some ethereal capybaras, this ticks all those very specific boxes.

Push Square

Stephen Tailby·Feb 4, 2021

Critic60/100

Agreement—

Destruction AllStars can be a brilliantly frantic multiplayer game, with fun characters and cars, great DualSense feedback, and entertaining modes. However, it can ring a little hollow at times when the action dips. Lacklustre customisation options and mictrotransaction-locked content doesn't help matters, but when everything is playing out smoothly, this is more than capable of giving you a good time. Currently free to PS Plus members, it's well worth taking for a spin.

Push Square

Stephen Tailby·Jan 28, 2021

Critic70/100

Agreement—

Honestly, there isn't much more to the game than this. You're just building simple structures and hoping the physics don't send it tumbling down. However, if you're looking for a lighthearted, easy-going co-op game, this will scratch that itch.