Reviews

While the 16-bit era’s biggest successes were Nintendo’s SNES and the Sega Megadrive, many gamers spent their formative years with a Commodore Amiga and, let’s admit it, a stack of pirated games on cheap floppy discs that they got from some sketchy guy who ran a computer shop that is […]

Zool Redimensioned – PS4 Review

May 15, 2023 in PS4 / Reviews tagged 16-bit / amiga / port / redimensioned / retro / zool by Richie

XEL pronounced Excel, yes like the spreadsheet application, is a forced isometric perspective adventure with Metroidvania type elements. At least in terms of certain areas being inaccessible at the outset. To begin with you can’t hit anything. So you get a sword. And then you can’t open gates until you […]

XEL – PS4 Review

May 14, 2023 in PS4 / Reviews tagged buggy / dungeon crawler / lemon / metroidvania-ish / somehow good / xel by Ian

Timing is everything with sports titles and TT Isle of Man : Ride on the Edge 3 has managed to land right in the middle of the road racing season. With the marquee event mere weeks away, Raceward Studios has produced a challenging and rewarding racer that makes the Isle […]

TT Isle of Man: Ride on the Edge 3 – ...

May 11, 2023 in PS5 / Reviews tagged conor cummins / ian hutchinson / michael dunlop / motorsport / online multiplayer / public roads / raceward studios / racing / time trial / tt isle of man ride on the edge 3 by Mike

Wild Dogs is a 2D run and gun shooter from Brazilian coders 2nd Boss. Sporting a deliberate four-colour Gameboy/NES aesthetic and taking most, but not all, of its gameplay cues from Contra, this is as old-school as it gets but that’s not to say that Wild Dogs doesn’t have a […]

Wild Dogs – PS4 Review

May 10, 2023 in PS4 / Reviews tagged 2d / contra / retro / run and gun / wild dogs by Richie

One look at Strayed Lights had me interested. With a fairly minimal approach to storytelling and a parry-based combat system, I was anticipating something unique. Whilst it does try to plough it’s own furrow, Embers’ effort has me a little underwhelmed. Visually appealing, the sparse narrative and forgiving fights have […]

Strayed Lights – PS5 Review

May 9, 2023 in PS5 / Reviews tagged coming of age / embers / exploration / minimalist storytelling / parry / platforming / rite of passage / strayed lights by Mike

Run from the savepoint, skip the cutscene, jump to grab a ring, another cutscene showing the miasma that’s chasing you, platform section, mess up a jump, get eaten by the miasma. Then repeat last three sections over and over again until you die and start from the savepoint again. This […]

Itorah – PS4 Review

May 7, 2023 in PS4 / Reviews tagged grimbart / itorah / mesoamerican / metroidvania / super sunday super bore by Ian

There’s been a good glut of multiplayer games about deception and I think it fits in with my inability to rely on my reflexes. These tests of intelligence really appeal to me and another one has landed at my door. Deceive Inc. is the latest online-only, class-based effort looking to […]

Deceive Inc. – PS5 Review

May 1, 2023 in PS5 / Reviews tagged asymetrical multiplayer / caper / class based / deceive inc. / espionage / heist / online-only / spying / sweet bandits studios by Mike

Nuclear Blaze is a 2D fire-fighting puzzle-platformer that is notable for being the new project from Sébastien Bénard, the lead designer behind the critically-acclaimed Dead Cells and the game has an interesting history. In its earliest form, Nuclear Blaze was coded in just two days as part of a ‘game […]

Nuclear Blaze – PS4 Review

April 26, 2023 in PS4 / Reviews tagged dead cells / fire / firefighting / nuclear blaze / platformer / puzzle by Richie

Religion and videogames has always felt like an odd combination. Other mediums have had their religious epics but gaming just struggles to pull one together. Saga of Sins hasn’t quite got those lofty ambitions but this effort from Bonus Level Entertainment does use a Christian backdrop to deliver a decent […]

Saga of Sins – PS5 Review

April 25, 2023 in PS5 / Reviews tagged 2d platforming / 7 deadly sins / angels / bonus level entertainment / crusaders / Devil / germans / metroidvania / religion / saga of sins by Mike

Developed by Repixel8 (aka London based collector and coder Andrew Jefferys) and CGA Studio Games with we assume multiplatform ports handled by the latter, we have Formula Retro Racing: World Tour. Very much the throwback to the halcyon days of Sega’s Model 2 arcade heyday and the blue sky gaming […]

Formula Retro Racing: World Tour – PS4 Review

April 24, 2023 in PS4 / Reviews tagged blue skies in gaming / daytonaaaaaaa / g a m e o v e r / local multiplayer / namco-ish / repixel8 / retro racing / sega-ish / TIME EXTENSION by Ian

It’s confusing enough when a game with ‘Final’ in the title gets a sequel and 2021’s R-Type Final 2 certainly was an unexpected turn for the series, especially as it arrived some eighteen years after the previous Final title. But this release is stranger still. R-Type Final 3 may have […]

R-Type Final 3: Evolved – PS5 Review

April 23, 2023 in PS5 / Reviews tagged final / horizontally-scrolling / r-type / shoot em up by Richie

Cannon Dancer is a 2D platform/beat ’em up that has quite the enigmatic history. It was an arcade title that came out in 1996 and was the spiritual successor to Capcom’s famous Strider. Albeit without Capcom’s involvement. Kouichi “Isuke” Yotsui, the lead designer of both games, had moved onto the less […]

Cannon Dancer Osman – PS5 Review

April 19, 2023 in PS5 / Reviews tagged arcade / cannon dancer / coin-op / port / retro / strider by Richie