Reviews
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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?
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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.
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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.
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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?
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FUSION FRENZY
Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom review – Nintendo hasn’t blown its Fuse
Building out the world
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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
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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.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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SMALL TURN
People in small apartments deserve better driving games: Thrustmaster T128 review
A sim-wheel that’s unapologetically designed for cluttered desks.
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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?
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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.
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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.
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NO WAND REQUIRED
The Knight Witch Review: A magical twist on the genre — lean and engaging
A decent release, just before 2022 vanishes.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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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
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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?
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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.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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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!
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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.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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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.
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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.