Mike

About Mike

Mike gets all the racing games because he understands that stuff even though he doesn't drive.

It doesn’t feel that long ago I was reviewing Ride. In the five years since, Milestone’s iterated, added, chopped and changed a formula that is finally starting to feel complete. With more tracks, races and bikes, Ride 4 is close to overtaking Tourist Trophy as my go-to bike racer. Whilst […]

Ride 4 – PS4 Review

October 10, 2020 in PS4 / Reviews tagged harley davidson / honda / milestone / motorcycle racing / motorsport / online multiplayer / racing / ride 4 / sport / time trial / track day / yamaha by Mike

I can’t say it’s often we get a game to review that’s been out since May. Monstrum has been out even longer on the PC but a sequel is on the way. Ahead of that impending release, the original has been sent our way from Junkfish. A very small package, […]

Monstrum – PS4 Review

October 6, 2020 in PS4 / Reviews tagged cargo ship / cat and mouse / escape plan / hide and seek / junkfish / monsters / monstrum / stealth / survival horror by Mike

What an odd thing this is. With 2020 being what it is, you’d be forgiven for seeing a sports title skip a year. Sadly, contractual agreements being what they are, sometimes that’s not an option. With not a whole lot of fanfare, the imaginatively titled eFootball 2021 Season Update, arrives […]

eFootball PES 2021 Season Update – PS4 Review

September 22, 2020 in PS4 / Reviews tagged eFootball PES 2021 season update / frank lampard / konami / online multiplayer / pes productions / ryan giggs / soccer / sports by Mike

I’m not a Warhammer 40,000 guy so I’ve always been stunned by how much that property entails. It’s been a very prolific license for developers and this time Rogue Factor are applying their tactical RPG experience to Necromunda: Underhive Wars. Boasting a lengthy, varied campaign with an emphasis on verticality, […]

Necromunda: Underhive Wars – PS4 Review

September 19, 2020 in PS4 / Reviews tagged archeotech / necromunda underhive wars / rogue factor / tactical rpg / turn-based / warhammer 40k by Mike

Update: Since this review was first published, a patch dropped on 14th September which does improve the shooting. It’s more reliable but I still feel it’s a bit finicky. I’ve been having more success from outside the paint and the timing feels better. I still don’t feel it’s where it needs […]

NBA 2K21 – PS4 Review

September 11, 2020 in PS4 / Reviews tagged basketball / career mode / myteam / nba 2K21 / online multiplayer / slam dunk / sports / visual concepts by Mike

The visual novel deluge shows no signs of stopping although at least A Hero and a Garden is more of a clicker than a choose your own adventure. Coming from npckc, this knight’s story features some green thumb gardening and some charming life lessons. Simple in its approach, there’s a […]

A Hero and A Garden – PS4 Review

September 9, 2020 in PS4 / Reviews tagged a hero and a garden / clicker / idle / knight / monsters / narratively-driven / npckc by Mike

Kylotonn’s handling of the long-running WRC series has seen it steadily refined into a formidable off-road simulation. I felt that last year’s effort was a real step forward with a substantial career mode and some stunning recreations of the Championship’s dirt and gravel roads. In this, the most strangest of […]

WRC 9 FIA World Rally Championship – PS4 Review

September 3, 2020 in PS4 / Reviews tagged dirt / GRAVEL / kylotonn / motorsport / mud / rallying / time trial / wrc 9 fia world rally championship by Mike

I’m having a hard time with the visual novel genre. There’s something about the writing in general that puts me off. It’s a very wordy genre and it’s all very geared towards telling, rather than showing. The next one on my docket is Cinders, from MoaCube. It’s a retelling of […]

Cinders – PS4 Review

August 29, 2020 in PS4 / Reviews tagged choices / cinderella / cinders / fairytale / godmother / moacube / narratively-driven / visual novel by Mike

One thing I like about this job is the opportunity to be genuinely surprised by something. I’ll admit my expectations for Peaky Blinders: Mastermind, based on the BBC drama, were pretty low. Futurlab are at the helm who you might remember as the developers of Velocity2X. They’ve been prolific over […]

Peaky Blinders: Mastermind – PS4 Review

August 23, 2020 in PS4 / Reviews tagged bbc / cillian murphy / futurlab / gang / heist / peaky blinders mastermind / puzzle / stealth / teamwork / time management by Mike

Classic adventure games are a genre where I’ve enjoyed the wit an writing at the expense of enduring the puzzles. Epic Llama’s 2017 effort, Darkestville Castle has now arrived on consoles with a clear vision to pay homage to the old Lucas Arts formula. With that comes certain expectations but […]

Darkestville Castle – PS4 Review

August 22, 2020 in PS4 / Reviews tagged darkestville castle / demons / epic llama / fish rescue / point and click adventure / puzzles by Mike

It’s a stone could fact that there are more visual novels born than people these days. Sure enough, another one has crossed my path asking me to look at some anime artwork whilst trying to pay attention to some dialogue. It’s Nicole‘s turn. Coming from Winter Wolves, this dating simulator […]

Nicole – PS4 Review

August 6, 2020 in PS4 / Reviews tagged college / dating life simulator / mystery / narratively-driven / nicole / visual novel / winter wolves by Mike

Jisei the First Case HD is a visual novel focused entirely around a murder mystery. Centred around a killing at a diner, Sakevisual’s focused narrative provides some simple investigative thrills whilst lacking in some longevity and nuance. The story concerns a murder mystery held entirely within a diner’s premises. A […]

Jisei: The First Case HD – PS4 Review

August 1, 2020 in PS4 / Reviews tagged detective / jisei the first case hd / Murder mystery / narratively-driven / sakevisual / visual novel by Mike