Book review by Matt S. Nakamura Fuminori rocketed to international literary superstardom with The Thief, and with very good reason. This book is a masterpiece. In general terms, it’s a crime thriller, but that’s underselling and simplifying it. Combining the dense reflection on the human condition of something with a…
Read MorePreview by Trent P. It is now approaching winter, and that means driving home from work as night falls; the lights flicker and illuminate the city in an almost foreign way. During the day the city seems busier and brighter. The night brings an odd contrast, it is quiet, and…
Read MoreReview by Matt S. Metropolis: Lux Obscura is what happens when a game developer really likes Sin City, and decides to copy it, without really understanding why Sin City – or the broader noir genre – is so good. It does manage to get every common noir element into it,…
Read MoreReview by Matt S. “Noir” is not just a great word; it’s a great genre. Presenting us with worlds of shadow, where the dark swallows the light, and where the good guys are not as heroic as they should be, and the bad guys represent the cancers that are slowly…
Read MoreReview by Matt S. Blues and Bullets is a game that appeals to almost all of my sensibilities. It’s narrative-focused and striking, and fits neatly within the crime noir genre; something that has fascinated me into many, many years of study. Related reading: The other staff favourite episodic game series…
Read MoreReview by Matt S. As much respect as I have for David Cage, I hadn’t actually played Heavy Rain before. I didn’t have a PlayStation 3 when it first launched, and when I did eventually pick one up, there were an awful lot of games I had to catch up…
Read MoreLove film noir? Love being stealthy in video games? Love solving puzzles? You may want to sit down, because we’ve found the perfect game for you: Calvino Noir. Described as an “exploratory, sneaking adventure though the 1930s European criminal underworld,” the trailer is actually quite reminiscent of This War of…
Read MoreIf you’re going to promise a noir genre game, then you should deliver one. The Detail starts well. Players find themselves thrust into a world of heavy contrast and are immediately tasked with helping two cops break into a house to apprehend someone potentially responsible for doing some very nasty…
Read MoreThe indies are producing some truly awesome stuff for consoles at the moment. White Night is coming to us from OSome Studio, and it looks incredible. It’s apparently a homage to classic horror titles such as Alone in the Dark. As you’ll see in the trailer below it seems to…
Read MoreReview by Matt S. It’s important to explain the history behind this brilliant anime series before we talk about the anime itself. French literature has an equivalent to Sherlock Holmes, his name is Arsène Lupin. Like Sherlock Holmes, Lupin is a roguish gentlemen, but unlike Holmes, Lupin is a thief.…
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