Reviews

COMING IN HOT

Diablo 4 review: The road to hell is paved with reinventions

Diablo is back with much of the same quality we've been pining for. But in a world with Path of Exile and other competitors, is Blizzard still the king of hell?

JURI'S OUT

Street Fighter 6 review: one of the best fighting game packages of all time

With Street Fighter 6, the series steps back into the ring, bruised and beaten, and proves nothing can keep its fighting spirit down.

SHODAN WHAT YOU GOT

System Shock Remake review: A foundation for the new generation of immersive sims

Nightdive Studios may have taken seven years, but it's finally managed to do the impossible and thread the unlikely line between reboot and remake.

CALL THE FEDS

Star Trek: Resurgence Review – A voyage home for 90s nerds

Can Telltale alumni transport us back to where no man has gone before, or is this another loveless riff on popular scifi’s heyday?

FUSION FRENZY

Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom review – Nintendo hasn’t blown its Fuse

Building out the world

SUCKS TO BE YOU

Redfall review: A bloodless imitation of Arkane’s best work

Dishonored’s magic is spread thin across a co-op open world where compromise is everywhere

LIGHTSHOW

Star Wars Jedi: Survivor review | A starbound epic that shoots for the stars

We're talkin' lightsabers on your PS5 bud. It's a pretty great combo.

IS THIS LOS?

Dead Island 2 review: a HELL-A zany take on the co-op zombie shooter

Drop the poker face, because Dead Island 2 is here, showing the co-op zombie-slaughtering genre how it's done in 2023.

FLAWED STRATEGY

Minecraft Legends review: a cute kid-friendly strategy adventure, but missing the series’ magic

While Minecraft Legends aims to be a kid-friendly first RTS and fodder for Minecraft fans, it's not entirely successful at either. The backbone of something brilliant lurks within, though.

SUPERSTAR SAGA

Super Mario Bros. Movie review: not quite a super show, but a potent nostalgia tour

Though this new cinematic outing isn’t quite as tight as those given to Sonic and Pikachu, Illumination and Nintendo’s partnership is resoundingly successful in dispelling Mario’s 90s movie curse.

NO SPAIN, NO GAIN

Resident Evil 4 Remake review: A bolder, Leon-hearted version of a classic, refined in every way

“This time, it can be different.” And that’s okay. In fact, it's more than OK.

FINE CHINA

Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty review – How to make friends and annihilate people

As great as Team Ninja’s tidal, back-and-forth take on the Souls-like formula is, some small regressions keep it from landing a killer blow.

PIECES OF EIGHT

Octopath Traveler 2 plays it safe, but it’s subtly better than its predecessor in every way that matters

By taking what worked for the previous game and gently iterating on it, Octopath Traveler 2 offers up a delightful JRPG throwback - with many similar shortcomings to its predecessor.

WILD DANCER

Like a Dragon: Ishin review – An exceptional RPG that fulfils the Samurai fantasy

This romp from Kyo is outstanding, even among its peers.

OMEGA FORCE MAJEURE

Wild Hearts review: We’ve got Monster Hunter at home…

What happens when you copy someone else’s homework? You get in trouble.

NICHELY DOES IT

PlayStation VR2 review: ?530 on PS5 VR might end up being the best money you've ever spent

The PlayStation virtual reality offering costs about ?1k all-in, but the experience is generation defining.

MOUNT E-VR-EST

Horizon Call of the Mountain review: The view is worth the climb

PS VR2’s key launch title is gorgeous, but at times a little dull.

BITTERSWEET SYMPHONY

Final Fantasy Theatrhythm Final Bar Line review: Long-awaited Switch and PS4 ensemble strikes a chord

The latest Switch and PS4 FF rhythm game creates some series high notes – but it’s not a totally flawless performance.

THE LAST OF USG

Dead Space remake review: A masterclass in survival horror, all over again

One of the most influential horror games of all time returns to show us all how it's done. 15 years later, Dead Space asserts its place at the top.

I'M A FREY'D KNOT

Forspoken review: Already on borrowed time

It stumbles out the block with a slow, awkward opening and barely manages to recover its footing – even 10 hours later. But there's something in Forspoken, somewhere.

SAVED BY THE FELL

Fire Emblem Engage review: brilliantly meaty strategy RPG combat meets a less compelling world

Following on from Fire Emblem: Three Houses, Engage has equal capacity to delight and frustrate – for newcomers and veterans alike.

SMALL TURN

People in small apartments deserve better driving games: Thrustmaster T128 review

A sim-wheel that’s unapologetically designed for cluttered desks.

THE WUTAI THAT BINDS

Crisis Core Final Fantasy 7 Reunion review: One of the most impressive remasters ever, but still a PSP game at heart

With Final Fantasy 7 Remake reinvigorating the wider compilation, is this once-niche RPG spin-off ready for another shot at relevance?

UP JACOB’S CREEK

The Callisto Protocol review: A dead frustrating space

The Callisto Protocol is what happens when you aim for the moon and land on your arse.

MARVEL MASHUP

Marvel's Midnight Suns review: Firaxis assembles its most joyful game to date

The feelgood game of the year is a strange, stark contrast to XCOM.

NO WAND REQUIRED

The Knight Witch Review: A magical twist on the genre — lean and engaging

A decent release, just before 2022 vanishes.

evil missed

Evil West review – One of the year’s best action games let down by outdated level design

Evil West is a fun action game, but it could've been a lot more fun.

DU’MET DO US PART

The Dark Pictures Anthology: The Devil in Me review - A thoughtful, but janky dive into the fetishisation of serial killers

There’s lots to love about The Devil in Me, but a game this grand needs more time to perfect.

ON THE VICTORY ROAD

Pokemon Scarlet & Violet review: a super-effective new vision – with painful performance woes

When Game Freak tries to wrap its head around developing on modern platforms, it still hurts itself in its confusion – despite the greatness of everything else.

Carnage Concerto

Dying Light 2 Bloody Ties DLC review: All tied up

Dying Light 2’s first DLC expansion is more of the same, for better and worse

HOOFIN’ AROUND

Goat Simulator 3 review – A wacky yet meaningful lesson in the etiquette of an entitled goat

There’s goat-shaped destruction, a presidential race to boycott, and even a portal to IKEA. What more could you want?

SCIENCE-FEELS

Somerville review: the most beautiful game I’ve ever played

Jumpship has created a gorgeous work of art that just achieves greatness in Somerville, in spite of some control quirks.

ARS GRATIA ARTIS

Pentiment review: a wonderful tapestry of historical intrigue, and a welcome treat for Game Pass users

Nobody expects a lavish ink commission.

CLING ME THE HORIZON

Tactics Ogre: Reborn review – One of the best strategy games of all time gets even better

New features, gorgeous presentation, and a stone-cold classic in the middle? Yeah, Tactics Ogre: Reborn is essential.

FOR THOR EYES

God of War Ragnarok review: Unmatched spectacle action that's determined to say the quiet part loud

What did we think of Kratos and Atreus' latest adventure? Find out in our God of War Ragnarok review.

E PLEASE, CAROL

Thrustmaster eSwap X Pro review: a star premium pad for symmetrical controller lovers

The Thrustmaster eSwap X Pro is a great, quality product, propped-up by one feature that is massively unique.

GHOST+SOAP BROMANCE

Modern Warfare 2 campaign review - An excellent pitch for an Infinity Ward RPG

On the surface, Modern Warfare 2’s campaign may look like the same old Call of Duty – but in playing it, I found it to be the series’ most imaginative.

HAIR NECESSITIES

Bayonetta 3 review: An instant classic that feels like a proper old-school, content-packed Nintendo adventure

Bigger levels, bigger fights, bigger hair – Bayonetta 3 somehow manages to edge the Platinum formula even harder to deliver one hell of a climax.

Playing Batman

Gotham Knights review: Four isn't always better than one

It's been many years in the making, but can Gotham Knights meet expectations? Not really.

RAT’S ENTERTAINMENT

A Plague Tale: Requiem review – an essential Game Pass encore, in sickness and in health

The cinematic sequel to A Plague Tale: Innocence wants you to think long and hard about who you are, and what you’ve done.

W-AAA-HHH

Mario + Rabbids Sparks of Hope review – a Nintendo Switch exclusive with the alluring charm of a GBA classic

Ubisoft and Nintendo join forces once again to surprise us all with the most unlikely – and lovely –?Nintendo Switch team-up.

23andMbappe

FIFA 23 Review: EA's last ever FIFA game isn't quite a clinical finish

Find out how the final football game in EA Sports' long-running series performs in our FIFA 23 review!

GIGER GROSS

Scorn review: An immersive, visceral horror experience that takes environmental storytelling to the extreme

Scorn is as gross as horror gets in 2022.

HIT THE BRICKS

Lego Bricktales review: A near-perfect video game representation of joyous Lego creativity

Lego Bricktales carries the energy of the finest and most experimental Lego video games of the 90s – and it’s a wonderful low-key game of the year contender.

Living on

Deathverse: Let it Die review — a game I love, doomed to the niche

Deathverse: Let it Die is a weird, wacky, wonderful game. You might hate it.

HEAVEN AND HELL

The DioField Chronicle review: An understated, under-marketed strategy RPG romp that deserves better

The DioField Chronicle feels like it’s been sent to die as some mega-niche undertaking, but it’s nevertheless a pleasingly experimental tactical RPG adventure.

TREASURE TROVE

Return to Monkey Island review: a charming nostalgia-ridden musing on the ravages of time – and a worthy successor

The creator of the Monkey Island series returns to offer his vision of a third game – and it’s got more to say than its nostalgic trappings first suggest.

Kill ‘em all

Metal: Hellsinger review – The road to hell (and Game Pass) is paved with reinventions

With a wry smile and a knowing little headbang, Metal: Hellsinger is a fun riff on rhythm action tied up in a lean package.

squid game

Splatoon 3 review: you’ll buy it for the multiplayer – but its single-player story mode is an absolute blast

Splatoon 3 feels quite samey, but a high level of polish and the series’ best single-player offering to date elevate this sequel.

one night in paris

Steel Rising review — A ballet of French steampunk and Souls that’s more tedious than tour de force

Souls-like in nature, Spiders has tinkered with the formula to make a machination all of its own – to mixed results.