Includes PushSquare
Last reviewed: Mina the Hollower · 5 days ago
A referential and joyful deep dive into the world of Batman, the latest LEGO effort from TT Games is elite brick gaming. Legacy of the Dark Knight just wants to be an enjoyable time, and it refuses to falter from that commitment. This new LEGO Batman will be some of the best fun you have all year.
Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty is an excellent action RPG that offers an even more hardcore take on the increasingly popular Soulslike formula. It's fast, frenetic, and hits like a truck, with one of the most mesmeric combat systems we've ever had the pleasure to master. It might scare off more casual players, but those looking for a challenge, well - you can stop looking.
In the current gaming landscape where the re-master, at least for now, appears to be here to stay, nothing released to date offers the sheer breadth of content found in Borderlands: The Handsome Collection. While those with no love for the franchise will, unsurprisingly, find nothing for them here, it does – as a result of the visual upgrades – provide a handsome jumping on point for newcomers, as well as a great way for the Borderlands faithful to catch up on anything that they might have missed.
From start to finish, Bloodborne revels in its unique – if somewhat masochistic – approach to entertainment. There are very few games that cause you to curse their developer one minute and sing their praises the next – but this is one of them. It is, quite simply, a sensationally designed and superbly refined offering.
Scram Kitty DX is a hard game to get to grips with, but is a wonderfully unique take on some more traditional genres. And with its wacky story of cats versus space mice, as well as its old-school aesthetic, it offers a highly enjoyable experience. Certainly there'll be those put off by its stiff challenge and lack of instruction, but if you're up to the challenge, this should prove an excellently absurd addition to your gaming library.
At the end of the day, we're not entirely sure why R.B.I. Baseball has been revived. A full-on, retro styled game would perhaps be a reasonable alternative to MLB The Show, but this game ventures way too closely to Sony's series without having the budget to compete – and it makes a poor connection as a consequence. Bench this one, and get your baseball fix elsewhere.
Rack N Ruin is a lot of fun when everything clicks, but these moments just don't happen often enough. If you're into top-down button mashers, then this may be worth a look. Roaming the world, while confusing at times, can feel rewarding when you make new discoveries, and Rack himself is an endearing character. Some poor design choices bog the experience down, however, and it's a real shame – especially when you consider the types of games that clearly inspired this title.
As suggested by other outlets prior to release, Axiom Verge is PlayStation's very own Metroid. That may sound a teensy bit degrading, but there's no denying that this and Nintendo's own space-faring adventure have more than a few things in common. Still, if being compared to one of the most beloved game series of all time isn't a compliment, then we don't know what is. If you've never seen the appeal of these types of games, then chances are this won't change your mind. Devoted fans of the genre, however, will no doubt adore Tom Happ's opus.
RIDE's adequate in almost all areas, but it's never going to offer the ride of your life. There's a clear passion for motorcycles on display here, and petrol heads will appreciate the depth of the tinkering that's on offer – but the on-track experience is far too clinical to confidently capture the pastime that the developer is so enthusiastic about. If you want to build up a stable of obsessively rendered motorcycles, each tuned to your exacting tastes, then this may get your internal engine roaring for a while – but everyone else will find a competently made racing game that, beneath all of the gusto of its creepy announcer, never really hits top gear.
Life Is Strange: Episode 2 – Out of Time has an excellent ending, but it's letdown by pacing issues that make the events leading up to that point feel inconsequential. There are a lot of interesting and engaging elements working in this release's favour, but it's yet to really pull them all together in a fulfilling manner. In some ways, this is an improvement – the dialogue's better for a start – but it really needs to step up soon. To use a tired baseball analogy, it's had two strikes now – one more and it's out.
One finale is better than the other, but Resident Evil: Revelations 2 is still a triumph as a whole. Episode Four: Metamorphosis' lop-sided nature means that it's individually weaker than its immediate predecessor, but when you consider its importance to the story, you'd mad to miss out. Just make sure that you get the good ending, sit back, and soak up the silliness.
There are people that say that Battlefield Hardline is just a DLC pack disguised as a new release, but that's not quite true. It feels familiar in terms of gameplay, but fresh enough in theme and heavy enough in content that it's worth its own release. It's a decent game that gets points for originality of concept, but how much value it has is down to how much you enjoyed previous entries in the franchise, and how much you'd like to see the Cop FPS genre become a thing.
Shiftlings is a fun, quirky title that may surprise those who decide to give it a go. The game's structured like a mobile title, which makes it best suited for short bursts, but you will have fun here – especially if you play with a friend. It's never really ambitious enough to stand out in the crowded puzzle platformer genre, but what you'll find here is a quality pick-up and play experience that will test your wits.
While we think that anyone who enjoyed Shadow of Mordor should submit to the Bright Lord's rule and purchase this DLC for the slight gameplay variations and advanced difficulty, those who aren't really drawn in by it might consider passing it up due to the low replay value and less than stellar storyline. Either way, it's more Shadow of Mordor with some slight twists, and that's still as good a reason as any to go there and back again with one of 2014's most triumphant titles.
Bladestorm: Nightmare's vast battlefields only become truly welcoming once you're embedded deep within its progression system, but those who are on the lookout for a bit of tactical action will definitely want to test their mettle as a mercenary all the same. While combat's never spectacular, and the game isn't quite as strategic as it perhaps promises to be at first glance, it's still easy to get lost in this historical hack-'em-up's rewarding gameplay loop.
Valley of the Yetis feels like a medley of Far Cry 4's greatest hits, and while none of the missions stray particularly far from the established formula, you'll still have fun scavenging for weapons and building your defences, which at least makes up for the disappointing Yetis.
Final Fantasy Type-0 HD is a mechanically solid action role-playing game, but now and again, it feels far more like a straight port than a grand remaster. However, questionable visual effects and some pretentious plot points aren't quite enough to hold back the efforts of Class Zero. Even though it can take a little while to truly click, this is a unique and refreshing entry in Square Enix's beloved franchise, and one that's a prime candidate for an even better sequel.