PS5

Of all the things I expected to review this year, an interactive musical was not on my bingo card. Coming from small Dutch studio, Bonte Avond this charming tale arrives on console almost two years after the PC release.  Once Upon a Jester might not resonate with everyone, but I […]

Once Upon a Jester – PS5 Review

 in PS5 / Reviews  tagged bonte avonde / diamond heist / dutch / friendship / improv / musical / once upon a jester / quick time events / songs / story-driven / Theatre by
Sometimes a small package can hold some interesting ideas. Twins of the Sun attempts to pack environmental variety in their simple brawler. Commando Panda have at least tried to keep a short adventure relatively fresh but I find the basic combat a little too loose and not especially satisfying. The […]

Twins of the Sun – PS5 Review

 in PS5 / Reviews  tagged commando panda / jungle / local co-op / mines / twin-stick brawler / twins of the sun / village / wave-based survival by
We’ve been playing Halls of Torment pretty solidly since we reviewed it last month and those German devs, Chasing Carrots, certainly did deliver an enjoyment and addictive game but one that’s quite the time sink.  We’ve put in countless hours already and so we’re not all that convinced there needs to be […]

Halls of Torment: Boglands DLC – PS5 Review

 in PS5  tagged auto / auto-battler / boglands / chasing carrots / dlc / halls of torment / rogue-lite / survivors-like by
Another day, another nautical game to sail the seas on. Republic of Pirates aims to give your strategic and city-building sea legs a stretch. Crazy Goat Games have done a serviceable job but it doesn’t quite reach great depths. There’s a degree of polish and some lovely touches that give […]

Republic of Pirates – PS5 Review

 in PS5 / Reviews  tagged boat combat / city builder / crazy goat games / diplomacy / plunder / republic of pirates / revenge / strategy / trade by
There’s been a few indie efforts playing off nostalgia for the old survival horror format. Fixed camera angles, puzzle solving and limited resources used to be the norm. I get why people clamour for it but the end results aren’t always desirable. The Order of the Snake Scale certainly falls […]

The Order of the Snake Scale – PS5 Review

 in PS5 / Reviews  tagged adventure / corporate interests / crime solving / cult / eldritch horror / fm simple games studio / moving boxes / murder / puzzles / survival horror / the order of the snake scale by
Painkiller is a co-op focused first-person shooter and is a reboot of a 2004 game that bears the same name (always fun when you’re trying to find tips and tricks for the new one but whatever).  The original game’s devs, People Can Fly (responsible for Outriders and the brilliant Bulletstorm but now seemingly stuck in […]

Painkiller – PS5 Review

 in PS5  tagged co-op / fps / painkiller / squad by
Xenotilt, or to give its full name, XENOTILT: HOSTILE PINBALL ACTION, is an arcade-style pinball title from LA-based studio FLARB LLC (Flarb?!) which somehow manages to both modernise the genre while also taking it back to its earliest videogame roots. The pinball scene, in videogaming, has been ruled for years now by […]

XENOTILT – PS5 Review

 in PS5  tagged pinball / retro / xenotilt by
Byte Barrel have returned with a sequel to their retro FPS Forgive Me Father. Whilst there are a few tweaks around character progression, the formula remains largely the same with a smart, atmospheric look. Whilst the story is told by some unconvincing voice acting, the combat has a decent tempo […]

Forgive Me Father 2 – PS5 Review

 in PS5 / Reviews  tagged byte barrel / clocks / comic book aesthetic / darkness / forgive me father 2 / horror / lovecraftian / new game plus / retro first-person shooter by