Mike

About Mike

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

I do enjoy some side-scrolling platforming and a dystopian future of science gone amok is fantastic trope to mine. Combining the two is Titanium Hound from Red Spot Sylphina. With a visual style very much within the 16-bit era, this indie effort starts to stumble with controls and pacing. There […]

Titanium Hound – PS4 Review

March 21, 2023 in PS4 / Reviews tagged 2d sidescroller / cops / crafting / dystopia / future bacteria / mech plot / platforming / red spot sylphina / shooter / titanium hound by Mike

When you really stop and think about it, translating wrestling into a fighting game framework can be an impossible task. The sport itself is a collaborative effort whereas most gaming is a solo experience with explicit win conditions. Wrestling games have been many things over the years but I struggle […]

WWE 2K23 – PS5 Review

March 20, 2023 in PS5 / Reviews tagged fighting / john cena / sports entertainment / then now forever / vince mcmahon / visual concepts / wrasslin / wrestling / wwe 2k23 by Mike

Imitation breeds innovation, right? There’s been a lot of attempts to twist and add some spice to From Software’s recent efforts. Team Ninja’s no stranger to it with Nioh, a series I genuinely enjoy. Their next move is to take the parry-heavy combat of Sekiro and marry it with the […]

Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty – PS5 Review

March 7, 2023 in PS5 / Reviews tagged chinese history / elixir / han / Romance of the Three Kingdoms / soulslike / supernatural / team ninja / wo long fallen dynasty by Mike

It’s been a busy time around here with releases starting to drop. February used to be a bit of a dumping ground but now, as games are delayed and release windows are hard to nail down, games feel like they can arrive at any time of year. Step forth, Scars […]

Scars Above – PS5 Review

February 28, 2023 in PS5 / Reviews tagged first contact / investigations / mad head games / metahedron / scars above / science / soulslike / space / third-person shooter by Mike

Maybe it’s spending more time at home but I’ve found myself looking at smaller diversions to spend fifteen minutes here and there. Games come in all shapes and sizes but Mighty Math arrives from Greenfall Studios with a cheap price tag and a very simple premise. Having already landed on […]

Mighty Math – PS4 Review

February 14, 2023 in PS4 / Reviews tagged addition / arcade / greenfall studios / math / mighty / subtraction / survival by Mike

One of the good things about this job is the chance to refresh one’s memory. I recall being pretty sweet on Darkwood‘s original release from Acid Wizard. The atmospheric horror managed to deliver a lot with a grimy aesthetic and a survivalist approach. With the Playstation 5, very little has […]

Darkwood – PS5 Review

February 7, 2023 in PS5 / Reviews tagged acid wizard / crafting / darkwood / escape / forest / mystery / survival horror by Mike

I’m never really sure what to do with kids games. I can’t review them from a child’s perspective and it’s not like I can fetch some kids to play it for me. Even so, I wouldn’t trust a kid’s opinion on anything. Kids have no sense of taste, no sense […]

Spongebob Squarepants: The Cosmic Shake – PS4 Review

January 30, 2023 in PS5 / Reviews tagged bubbles / cartoon / combat / jellyfish / nickelodeon / platforming / purple lamp / seahorses / spongebob squarepants the cosmic shake by Mike

I’ve often wondered how to view games that don’t carry a lot of challenge. I can feel like a passenger throughout but some of my most memorable experiences have also felt very trivial to complete. It’s a quandary I’ve had to keep in mind whilst playing Wavetale, an adventure platformer […]

Wavetale – PS5 Review

December 27, 2022 in PS5 / Reviews tagged adventure / apocalypse / exploration / narratively-driven / platforming / thunderful / waterworld / wavetale by Mike

I think few games have left a mark on open-world design than The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild. Elden Ring has taken the lessons to heart but, prior to that, Sable took a shot at keeping the world fairly quiet and letting players do the map marking. Originally […]

Sable – PS5 Review

December 11, 2022 in PS5 / Reviews tagged adventure / climbing / coming of age / masks / open world / platforming / puzzles / rite of passage / sable / shedworks by Mike

Sometimes it’s good to be late to the party. When Sifu originally released I was knee deep in review mania and I always have trepidation tackling a game where the difficulty is a keen selling point. Sloclap’s been tinkering with combat systems since their debut Absolver. Whilst that focused on […]

Sifu – PS5 Review

December 4, 2022 in PS5 / Reviews tagged Beat em up / brawler / chinese / kung fu / martial art / pak mei / revenge / sifu / sloclap by Mike

All good things have to end and Kylotonn’s stint with the World Rally Championship license is coming to a conclusion. As a swansong, WRC Generations consolidates all the previous content under one tidy package. Whilst they’re not pushing the boat out, there is plenty here to admire and, with the […]

WRC Generations – PS5 Review

November 6, 2022 in PS5 / Reviews tagged co-op / kylotonn / motorsport / online multiplayer / racing / rally / split screen / time trial / wrc generations by Mike

I do love a good souls-like but there is a sense that taking them into the second dimension can limit combat and exploration. There’s no shortage of triers and Third Sphere Game Studios are the latest to give the stripped down experience a shot. Released on steam in January, a […]

Watcher Chronicles – PS5 Review

October 16, 2022 in PS5 / Reviews tagged 2d platforming / catacombs / crypts / exploration / magic / melee combat / ranged attacks / soulslike / third sphere game studios / watcher chronicles by Mike