Previews

Have you ever sat in a massage chair and received a deep, intense tissue massage while playing a handheld? Thanks to the Xbox booth at PAX 2025, I can now say that I have. Whether it’s to ease us into those price hikes from Xbox Game Pass or just simply a gesture of goodwill, the…

Yes! It exists, and you can play it! Originally set for release on October 3rd, Gearbox Software announced that the game was delayed indefinitely and all pre-orders were able to be refunded. It wasn’t looking good for the future of this highly anticipated game on the Nintendo Switch 2 console. Surprisingly, tucked away in the…

Up until today, I was very confused as to why Nintendo was releasing Mario Kart World and Kirby Air Riders, two kart racers, in the first six months of the Nintendo Switch 2’s lifecycle. The Kirby Air Riders Nintendo Direct had me thinking that these games were very similar, just with a different character roster….

Pokémon jumps to the next generation with its first full game on the Nintendo Switch 2. Following the massive success of Pokémon Legends: Arceus, we get a game in the same style with a brand new gameplay mechanic and fabulous Paris setting to explore. Being confined to a city is a new thing for the series,…

I’ve always enjoyed the Hyrule Warriors games on the original Nintendo Switch, but I wish they ran a little better on the ageing hardware. Hyrule Warriors: Age of Imprisonment marks the latest entry in the hack-and-slash series, building up to the events that take place in the incredible mainline sequel, The Legend of Zelda: Tears of…

Metroid Prime 4: Beyond probably needs no introduction, given its long-awaited announcement and subsequent release, but here we are, with a build that was playable at PAX Aus 2025. The 15-minute demo was packed with a few things that laid down the overall tone and gameplay for what’s to come, complete with mouse controls on…

The formula of Borderlands is unquestionable. You get a wild, survival-of-the-fittest sci-fi world (that went absolutely nuts) filled with characters, writing, and a story that has a charm and comedy unique in this industry. And then there’s the loot. Oh, such glorious loot that leaves you with countless gunplay possibilities and a hunger for more….

Gears of War is back again, and boy, does it feel strange to talk about its availability on the PlayStation 5. Gears of War: Reloaded is essentially a remaster of the original Gears of War, now polished and made available on a new platform. We got the chance to partake in the recent beta, which…

We love adorable cats. We love compelling video games. And we especially love when the two collide in a mature, story-rich experience that tugs at the heartstrings and reminds us just how deeply our feline friends love us (with spellbinding emotional results). Developed with support from Screen Australia, Copycat is the debut title of developer…

It’s been a while since I’ve played an Onimusha game, but with Onimusha: Way of the Sword bringing the franchise back after an 18-year hiatus, I feel that itch again. Onimusha: Warlords was admittedly remastered back in 2019, but Onimusha 2: Samurai’s Destiny holds a special place in my heart, as it’s the first Onimusha game I…

With the new Formula 1 season upon us, it feels only right that we start preparing for this year’s F1 game. We joined Senior Creative Director Lee Mather and Creative Director Gavin Cooper for a breakdown of EA Sports F1 25’s newest features and updates before the game’s official launch on the 30th of May….

As technology develops and video games along with it, we are seeing an increasingly rapid advancement of the industry. Video games are becoming stupendously realistic, not only due to the video-footage-like graphics but also the depth of the worlds these games inhabit. Games like Baldur’s Gate 3 have demonstrated the layered and complex stories that NPCs have…

If pushing toy diggers, trucks, and loaders in a sandpit consumed hours of your childhood, and you’ve been waiting for a more immersive, engaging driving simulator, RoadCraft might just be your next obsession. Developed by Saber Interactive, this upcoming title blends the meticulous off-road navigation of SnowRunner with an ambitious infrastructure-building component, letting players reshape…

Compulsion Games are no strangers to bringing something fresh to the gaming landscape. With massive hits like Contract and We Happy Few bringing stylish graphics with eccentric characters and compelling storylines, it was no surprise that Microsoft snapped the studio up in 2018 and started development on South of Midnight – a stop-motion style game…

We reviewed the first Kingdom Come Deliverance when it was released in 2018 and were pleasantly surprised with almost everything it offered. Near limitless freedom to explore a painstakingly crafted medieval open world felt like a worthy experience all on its own. But paired with numerous functional gameplay mechanics and systems, this is something worth…

Another year, another Sonic the Hedgehog game…sort of. This remaster of Sonic Generations, one of the more popular titles in the franchise is long overdue with some shiny new next-gen graphics, smooth gameplay and higher frame rates, which means Sonic fans will be revelling in the speed and visuals of this impressive-looking game. Also, a…

Funko Fusion is a mixture of Travellers Tales Lego games and Lego Dimensions, with a much more adult sense of humour in a collector fest with many controlling mechanics and things to collect.  The game is officially born from the Funko Pop! franchise, with each character one of the real-life figures, and some other Funko-owned…

Just in case I’ve never mentioned it in writing, I’ll mention it again; I bloody love Indiana Jones. Growing up with the films on VHS as a kid, I have nothing but fond memories of the boulder escape from Raiders of the Lost Ark, the monkey brains from Temple of Doom and drinking from the…

Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2 has landed at a particularly interesting point in my life. I’ve never really considered myself a huge Warhammer 40,00 fan, and only really dabbled in certain games like the original Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine and even the more recent Warhammer 40,000: Boltgun, simply because they appealed to me from a…

Modern gaming is in a bit of a limbo. In some ways, it’s never been better, with eye-watering budgets and grand-scale adventures. In other ways, it’s never been worse. Despite huge growth and Oscar-worthy narrative-focused games like The Last of Us and Red Dead Redemption, a significant amount of titles seemingly suffer a lack of…

I got the chance to try Like a Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name later in the day, and I’m glad that I did. While it still retains much of the insanity and variety that the series has been known for so far, it also retains many of the string combat mechanics that have…

It wasn’t long after Super Mario Bros. Wonder, that I caught the SEGA booth and the offering to try out the upcoming Sonic Superstars. I’m certainly a fan of both the character and the broader franchise, but haven’t seen as much of this leading up to PAX AUS 2023 as I would have liked. With…

While it’s always great to be at PAX AUS, some of my fondest memories of the show came from 2017. It was my first PAX AUS with The AU Review, and Super Mario Odyssey was out that weekend. While it had actually come out that Friday, the first day of the PAX AUS weekend, I…

It seems like only yesterday that we found out that EA Sports and FIFA were parting ways, granting the long-running football franchise a seemingly new identity. Name change aside, EA Sports FC 24 does its best to freshen up many of the game’s nuanced mechanics and motion capture, in ways that feel new and exciting,…

Mortal Kombat 1 might be rebooting the narrative, even if the long-running fighting franchise relies on a successful, established formula to pave its way forward. We got our hands on the recent closed beta over the weekend, and we can safely say that Mortal Kombat 1 is a downright enjoyable fighter thanks to some splendid…

I got into the Payday franchise with Payday 2, and much later than expected. While I had first played Payday 2 way back on the PlayStation 3 upon its release, I hadn’t really sunk my teeth into its offerings until earlier this year, when I picked it up on Xbox Game Pass. And boy am…

It’s that time of the year again. With the Formula 1 season off and running, we recently got some hands-on time with the upcoming F1 23. In many ways, F1 23 is looking to return in strong form, with various adjustments to physics, a direct Braking Point story sequel and a whole new F1 World…

Originally announced as eSports Boxing Club, Undisputed looks to fill a large hole in the sporting games market. With certain games like Big Rumble Boxing and the Creed Champions spin-off trying their best, it’s been over a decade since a traditional boxing game has graced any platform. Fight Night Champion still scratches that itch for…

I must admit, for as popular as Diablo III has been since its launch, it had never managed to grab me, nor keep me around for more than a couple of months after its release. That being said, Diablo IV’s open beta seemed like the perfect opportunity to become reacquainted with the franchise that might…

The team at Plaion ANZ were nice enough to provide us with a hands-on look at the highly anticipated Dead Island 2 from Dambuster Studios and Deep Silver. The sequel is finally releasing later this month after the first game in 2011, which garnered rave reviews and a cult following. This time around the island…