Mike

About Mike

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

Games of all shapes and sizes come to me in this job. Radio Squid comes from PixelTeriyaki and looks to deliver an experimental look at the twin-stick shooter. Whilst somewhat small in scope, there’s some interesting choices here that at least make the game plough its own furrow. The plot […]

Radio Squid – PS4 Review

June 23, 2020 in PS4 / Reviews tagged arcade / money toad / Pixel art / radio squid pixelteriyaki / sealife / twin-stick shooter by Mike

Say the words visual novel to me and I have a pretty good idea of what to expect. Just through osmosis, I’ve gained a perception of a genre that has a rather uneasy underbelly to it. Strawberry Vinegar manages to punch this home every step of the way. Coming from […]

Strawberry Vinegar – PS4 Review

June 6, 2020 in PS4 / Reviews tagged anime girls / children / choose your own adventure / ebi-hime / feeder fetish / narratively-driven / romance / visual novel by Mike

Sport is very slowly getting back on the menu. The real Tour de France is hoping for a race in August whilst the virtual equivalent is hitting shelves when the original race was due to be scheduled. We live in unprecedented times but, you can rest assured that Cyanide will […]

Tour de France 2020 – PS4 Review

June 3, 2020 in PS4 tagged classics / cyanide / cycling / racing / sport / time trial / tour de france 2020 by Mike

Invader Studios have certainly tattooed an influence firmly on Daymare 1998. The title screen, gameplay and tone take huge nods towards Capcom’s Resident Evil series. Indeed, this project originally began as a fan-made remake of Resident Evil 2. It just about gets away with it being a loving homage but […]

Daymare 1998 – PS4 Review

May 9, 2020 in PS4 / Reviews tagged Biohazard / daymare 1998 / invader studios / inventory management / resident evil / survival horror / zombies by Mike

Her Story‘s a game I completely missed the boat on. Sam Barlow’s attempt at a narrative experience focusing entirely on a police interview raised many eyebrows and critical acclaim. Sam now returns with another desktop detective thriller in Telling Lies. Following up in spirit and structure of its predecessor, this […]

Telling Lies – PS4 Review

May 3, 2020 in PS4 / Reviews tagged espionage / fmv / full motion video / narratively-driven / sam barlow / telling lies / voyeurism by Mike

You know the world’s in a weird place when a sports title comes out ahead of a new season. MotoGP 20 becomes my first taste of the sport this year and my first return to the series in a few years. Since then, Milestone’s changed engines and are making noises […]

MotoGP 20 – PS4 Review

April 25, 2020 in PS4 / Reviews tagged grand prix / milestone / moto2 / moto3 / motogp 20 / motorcycles / motorsport / racing by Mike

Life under lockdown’s been weird. I’ve spent a fair amount of time doing some mundane things in video games in lieu of travelling from place to place in reality. Perhaps it’s a good thing then that Bus Simulator‘s map expansion DLC has finally arrived on consoles. Stillalive Studio’s public transport […]

Bus Simulator: Map Expansion DLC – PS4 Review

April 18, 2020 in PS4 / Reviews tagged bus simulator / buses / driving / map expansion dlc / routemaster / stillalive studios by Mike

In this job you see games of all sizes and origins. As well as the big hitters, you get smaller efforts that have sometimes seen a prior Steam or mobile release. Some even find their way on to web browsers before an eventual console release. Random Heroes: Gold Edition is […]

Random Heroes: Gold Edition – PS4 Review

April 9, 2020 in PS4 / Reviews tagged 2d platforming / random heroes gold edition / ratalaika / shooter / somepx / weapons / woblyware / zombies by Mike

Interactive movies are such a tricky genre to review. On the one hand, you’re trying to judge it as interactive media and, on the other, you’re trying to judge it as a film. Often they feel like clumsy compromises where the acting and story don’t hold much weight whilst the […]

The Complex – PS4 Review

March 31, 2020 in PS4 / Reviews tagged bad science / big pharma / branching narrative / choose your own adventure / good gate media / interactive movie / little jade productions / the complex / wales interactive by Mike

There’s an unknown quality to space that media loves to plunder and explore. H.P. Lovecraft’s work is an obvious example of this and Moons of Madness looks to take heavy inspiration from the Victorian horror writer. Now, forgive me if I’m a little worn out by the relatively recent influx […]

Moons of Madness – PS4 Review

March 24, 2020 in PS4 / Reviews tagged cosmic horror / lovecraft / mars / moons of madness / rock pocket games / space / story-driven / walking simulator by Mike

It’s been a couple of years since Kylotonn’s first ventured into road racing. TT Isle of Man – Ride on the Edge 2 represents their second crack of the whip with some key changes in place. Career mode is bolstered, there are more tracks to explore and bikes to ride. […]

TT Isle of Man – Ride on the Edge 2 ...

March 18, 2020 in PS4 / Reviews tagged bikes / kylotonn / motorsport / online multiplayer / racing / superbikes / supersport / time trial / tt isle of man ride on the edge 2 by Mike

I feel like I miss the boat on team-based, online-only shooters. Part of me maybe sees them as a commitment and I always tend to get left behind by an improving community. I suck, basically. Spanish developers Fluxart Studios are now throwing their hat into the ring with a much […]

Holfraine – PS4 Review

March 11, 2020 in PS4 / Reviews tagged capture point / capture the flag / fluxart studios / hero shooter / holfraine / online-only / PVP / team-based / third-person shooter by Mike