Review by James T. There is a popular saying that less is more. A more minimalist approach can often be more effective. And that certainly seems to be the mindset and ethos at publisher Cococucumber with the release of its latest title, Riverbond. For those that caught a glimpse of…
Read MoreReview by Harvard L. With the original Dragon Quest Builders, Square Enix had a winning formula on its hands – combining the creative gameplay of Minecraft style voxel-builders with the JRPG breadcrumbing of the no-nonsense Dragon Quest franchise. Rather than being a throwaway spinoff to cash in on a fad-genre,…
Read MoreReview by Matt S. Chile’s ACE Team is undeniably the most prominent and celebrated developer to have emerged from South America. Across the company’s 22-year history, it has produced what can only be considered an eclectic library of games, from the oddball Rock of Ages, to the B-grade homage/satire The…
Read MoreReview by Lindsay M. There seems to have been an influx in Lovecraft-themed games released in the past few years, and some really have been exceptional — The Infectious Madness of Doctor Dekker comes to mind, as it takes familiar themes and puts them into a contemporary context. Others, such…
Read MoreReview by Matt S. Judgment is not really a “new Yakuza title”. Nor is it any form of sequel. It shares elements of what came before, and the comparisons are there at the superficial level. The narrative does take place in the same universe, and the setting – Kamurocho –…
Read MoreReview by Matt S. What a delight Crash Team Racing Nitro-Fueled is. For whatever reason it has proven to be hard for developers to even compete with Mario Kart, sitting high on its kart-racing party game pedestal, and while Crash Team Racing doesn’t quite get there, it’s the closest anyone…
Read MoreReview by Matt S. Earlier this year, Idea Factory released Death’s End re;Quest, which proved to be an impressive step in a bold direction for the publisher. Previously known principally for budget, fanservicey JRPGs that revelled in their B-grade nature, Death End built impressive depth in its narratives and themes…
Read MoreReview by Matt S. Layers of Fear 2, like its predecessor, is impressively effective at highlighting certain limitations in the way that we talk about – and write about – horror in video games. In our space we’re all so used to horror being associated with the monstrous, and the…
Read MoreReview by Lindsay M. I expected to like Darkwood. I really did. The survival horror title promises not to hold your hand, to let you figure out how to play as you die repeatedly. I’ve played Don’t Starve for dozens of hours, so this didn’t phase me. The premise and…
Read MoreReview by Brad L. Sonic the Hedgehog needed something good to happen. Anything positive. He has had such a bad time of it recently with the trailer to the live-action film that he’s needed a good-news story to prop his name back up again. Yet, Team Sonic Racing teeters somewhere…
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