Includes PushSquare
Last reviewed: Palworld · today
there's no denying that Age of Mythology’s gameplay can feel simplistic, which is ironic, considering how influential the series has been. Having played a bunch back in the day, the missed campaigns are appreciated, but we can’t see ourselves regularly returning to the well.
Dragon Age: The Veilguard isn't quite BioWare back to its absolute best, but it is the most cohesive and emotionally engaging RPG that the studio has delivered since Mass Effect 3. Its shift to crunchy action combat is an improvement over Inquisition's middle-of-the-road approach, and although the game feels a little light on meaningful player choice, the storytelling pulls no punches when it actually matters. This is a gorgeous and gripping adventure, backed by a cast of endearing heroes and deliciously devious villains.
All-Star Fruit Racing is a relatively fun kart racer that has some good ideas, but it all goes a bit pear-shaped. Though it provides a decent amount of content both in single and multiplayer, the wavering performance, some iffy design choices, and a general lack of polish may spoil your appetite. If you're hungry for a simple kart racing experience on PS4, this may give you a bite of the cherry, but it'll sadly never be top banana.
On the surface, Shining Resonance Refrain is a largely unremarkable Japanese RPG, but dig a little deeper and fans of the genre will find an accessible adventure that comes together surprisingly well. Cliche characters and predictable plot elements prevent the story from really taking off, but there's an endearing quality to how the game presents itself. Combat's fun, progression is straightforward and rewarding, and dating sim elements add a certain charm. Refrain's like a quick and easy summer anime -- it's certainly not a classic, but it's good fun while it lasts.
Online-only play taints Next Up Hero and obviously puts off potential players, but this bright and colourful world can be enjoyable at times. Repetitive gameplay prevents the release from becoming a standout indie title, but it may have enough charm to entice a few aspiring heroes for at least a few hours.
The Spectrum Retreat is a pleasant surprise. The colour coded puzzles are intelligently designed and present a decent challenge, while the Penrose hotel is an absorbing backdrop that creates an unsettling atmosphere. While it's a shame more isn't made of this setting, the game's storytelling, design, and puzzle solving is a compelling mix, and for less than a tenner, provides a unique experience across its six-hour runtime.
Salary Man Escape is a competent puzzler that has a decent amount of fun to offer when things are going your way, but when that enjoyment partly relies on physics outside of your control, it's easy for frustration to creep in when the going gets tough. Add that to the fact that the game lacks a definitive control method thanks to flaws in both motion and the traditional controller, and you can't be blamed for looking for an alternative experience.
Saying that Milestone need to take a step back with its dirt bike games and rework everything is becoming as tired a statement as saying Telltale needs to use a new engine. But it remains true yet again with MXGP Pro. A very slight improvement over MXGP 3, but a noticeable step back from Monster Energy Supercross, MXGP Pro is largely a spectacular disaster. It gets a couple things right, and offers a new slate of tracks to race on, but you'll be too busy slamming your head into a wall to really notice.
While it's disappointing to see The Crew 2 fall into some of the same pitfalls as its predecessor, its open world remains one of the most impressive playgrounds, in terms of scale, out there. Sure, there's very little reason to explore its vast road networks outside of its visual appeal, but the sheer variety of different events, from nerve racking aerial races to coast-to-coast endurance runs, will still get your heart racing.
Despite a couple of flaws, Super Bomberman R is a strong entry into a long-running franchise. It doesn't try to reinvent the wheel, but offers enough variation to the gameplay to keep veterans of the series on their toes, while also helping newcomers ease into the format. It's a shame that online battles seem to be such a mess at the moment, because with that up and running to its full potential this would easily be the definitive Bomberman game.
Lumines Remastered is a loving, wonderfully polished return of one of the best rhythm games of these past years. A couple irritating technical issues and a slightly archaic song unlock system aren't enough to stand in the way of the wildly entertaining, timeless gameplay.
Rainbow Skies is an epic adventure with a much improved narrative when compared to its predecessor. Its addictive gameplay makes it an absolute joy to explore every inch of the world, and with a huge amount of customisation options and an abundance of side quests, this superior sequel is sure to keep you enthralled for many, many hours.
With the ups and downs of the many licensed LEGO titles having been well documented by now, you'll know exactly what you're getting with LEGO The Incredibles. Even knowing full well you'll be contending with dodgy controls, and occasionally repetitive gameplay, you'll somehow find yourself propelled through the story by an overwhelming compulsion to pick up literally millions of studs along the way. Even stretching The Incredibles source material close to breaking point doesn't put too much of a dampener on your time with the Parr family, and while it doesn't come close the best the LEGO games have offered over the years, there's just enough here to make you reach for your super suit.
The Awesome Adventures of Captain Spirit thoughtfully examines a troubled childhood through the eyes of the 10-year-old living it. This non-linear episode encourages you to explore, refraining from beating you over the head with its difficult subject matter. It's building into something, and it's hard to determine exactly what that is with DONTNOD being so coy about its plans for the sequel. You need to really dig into this to get anything out of it, and while we found the backstories of the small cast to be well thought out, it's hard to know what purpose they will serve yet.
New Gundam Breaker is a disaster. A near broken mess of an action game, even Gundam maniacs will struggle to stomach its many, many flaws. Its visual novel elements are so obnoxiously cliche that you'll have to stop your eyes from rolling our of their sockets, and the gameplay is a mix of clunky controls and unfathomable chaos. Add some unbelievably poor technical performance to the mix, and you have a Gundam game that's not even fit to be mobile suit scrap orbiting the Earth.
The Lost Child isn't a game bereft of merit, and we're sure that there's a number of people who'll enjoy the visual novel slash first person dungeon crawler approach taken here. But it's certainly a game with limited appeal - even among the role playing game demographic - thanks to the lifeless battles and cumbrous dungeon design. It's a game that pays more than a passing nod to numerous other RPGs - Pokemon, Persona, and other Shin Megami Tensei titles - but sadly, never approaches the quality of any of them.
Late in the game, one of the characters has a line where he says “I am a miserable, unfortunate man.” We can't think of a more perfect way to describe playing this title. From a team capable of making a game as exceptional as Fated: The Silent Oath, the quality of work, or lack thereof, on display here stings.