Video Game Review

Fire Emblem Warriors: Three Hopes Review: Victorious on and off the battlefield

I’ve always admired musou style games for their sheer intensity. Repeatedly hacking and slashing waves of villains never seems to get old, from the Dynasty Warriors franchise, to the more recent Hyrule Warriors: Age of Calamity. As a result, the Fire Emblem franchise has decided to try its hand at the genre for the second…

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Trek to Yomi Review: A stylish, samurai showdown

I’ve often been drawn to the various samurai films of the 20th century. From director Akira Kurosawa’s classics like The Hidden Fortress and Seven Samurai, to the ultra violent Shogun Assassin, there’s a sense of grace and simplicity to be found amongst the many stories of revenge and redemption. As a result, it’s no secret…

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LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga Review: May the bricks be with you

The lightsaber battles. Dogfights. Distant planets. Iconic characters. The Star Wars saga has brought with it many memorable moments that have stood the test of time. While I won’t begin to list those moments here, LEGO Star Wars: The Skywalker Saga has decided to cram them all into one neat package, reinventing the LEGO game formula…

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Ghostwire: Tokyo Review: Saving the city, one soul at a time

Tokyo might just be one of the busiest and most popular cities in the world. Known for its dense population, vibrant nightlife and iconic culture, you’d be hard-pressed to find a place with less to do or see. Enter Ghostwire: Tokyo. A supernatural force has left the city empty, devoid of human life. Their souls…

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Halo Infinite Single-Player Campaign Review: Welcome back Chief

On this, the 20th anniversary of the franchise and the Xbox platform as a whole, Halo has sparked many questions in the minds of its fans. Has the series run its course? Is the Master Chief a relevant hero for the modern age? Can such a dated franchise really exist without pushing new boundaries? Well…

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Battlefield 2042 Review: A Trip Into the Eye of the Storm

For a franchise centred around the conflict of war, covering several eras and stories, it’s clear that Battlefield 2042 had one target left in mind; itself. What follows is an incredibly frustrating blend of smooth action and refined gunplay, paired with numerous bugs and glitches, and the overall lack of depth within its mainline modes….

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Game Review: An Ode to Pokémon Brilliant Diamond

It’s been 15 years since the release of Pokémon Diamond and Pearl—arguably the most important entry in the Pokémon gaming franchise, as it revitalised its popularity through changes to the battle system, along with Wi-Fi connectivity and the ability to connect players to the wider Pokémon community. It was the spark for the Gen IV…

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Grand Theft Auto: The Trilogy: The Definitive Edition Review: A Missed Opportunity

Let’s get one thing out of the way. Grand Theft Auto: Vice City is without a doubt my favourite entry in the Grand Theft Auto franchise and one of my favourite games of all time. So you can imagine my excitement when Rockstar had announced Grand Theft Auto: The Trilogy: The Definitive Edition, containing Grand Theft…

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Call of Duty: Vanguard Review: A Familiar Firefight

Call of Duty: Vanguard’s return to a World War II setting is not without its merit. Since Call of Duty: WWII, the franchise had cycled back around to a Modern Warfare revival and two Black Ops titles. But was this era worth revisiting? In many respects, yes; and no. Call of Duty: Vanguard plays its…

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Mario Party Superstars Review: Celebrate Good Times

I owe the Mario Party franchise a great deal of credit. It’s responsible for some of the best gaming moments I’ve had on a Nintendo console. While Mario Party 3 will always remain my favourite, it’s safe to say that the franchise faltered in recent years, prompting me to drift away from the iconic mini-games…

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Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy Review: The Heroes We Deserve

I have to be honest. After publisher Square Enix’s last Marvel themed outing, Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy instilled a sizeable amount of doubt within me. Sure, Marvel’s Avengers was a fun cooperative experience, but it lacked any depth and heart. It seems as though the second time is the charm, as Marvel’s Guardians of…

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Far Cry 6

Far Cry 6 Review: Viva La Revolution

The Far Cry series has faltered over the past few years. Recent iterations were either lacking immersive worlds, memorable villains, innovative gameplay, or all three. While far from terrible, it’s clear that nothing has been as good as the darling that is Far Cry 3. And it seems as though Ubisoft has heard. Far Cry…

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FIFA 22

FIFA 22 Review: Once more with feeling

FIFA 22 takes the term “next-generation” pretty seriously. And it should. With every new console generation, the FIFA franchise takes major steps forward. New hardware presents an opportunity to reinvent FIFA‘s visuals, mechanics and add a range of new game modes. However, I wouldn’t blame fans for feeling disillusioned with the series in recent years. Most…

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Outriders

Outriders Review: A Top-Tier Looter Shooter

From the moment we played the Outriders demo, our impression was of a functional and addictive looter shooter. Strong shooting and interesting powers overshadowed the demo’s repetitive mission structures and unrewarding grind. These are, of course, issues that affect the best in the genre. And, as a complete package, Outriders does indeed reflect the best…

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Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War Review: True to Tradition, Through Thick and Thin

Like the sudden lift in temperature that tells you summer is on its way, the arrival of Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War tells you exactly what time of year it is. Developer Treyarch takes its flagship Call of Duty series to the early 1980’s, determined to bring down the iron curtain with nothing but…

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Mafia

Mafia: Definitive Edition Review: Come Home to the Family

The Godfather is my favourite film of all time, and it was my love of gangster films that led me to Mafia. Released in 2002, it is one of the most underrated and nuanced mobster stories of that or any hardware generation. Since then, the series has both vanished and returned to the fold, along…

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WWE 2K Battlegrounds Review: A Shallow, Functional Brawler

As crammed as the name suggests, WWE 2K Battlegrounds introduces yet another entry to 2K’s “Grounds” series, off the heels of NBA 2K Playgrounds 2. The crux of these experiences revolves around the fact that they never take themselves too seriously. Over the top game play and stylised visuals keep this game from feeling like…

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No Straight Roads: Grab your sunnies, we’re going to Vinyl City

No Straight Roads is a rhythm-based, action-adventure game created by Malaysian-based studio Metronomik, created by two cool dudes who worked on Final Fantasy XV and Street Fighter V respectively. Rock your way through Vinyl City as Mayday and Duke to rid the world of the EDM empire! I’ve been looking forward to playing this game…

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Marvel’s Avengers Review: World’s Greatest Grind

That Marvel’s Avengers released when it did could be considered great timing. With the MCU coming to a grinding halt, I was looking forward to this as a perfect replacement. But after a worrying beta filled with repetitive gameplay and awkward mission structure, Marvel’s Avengers left me with a few concerns. Its full release is…

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UFC 4 Review: The best UFC game to date, but not for the reasons you think

Much of the foundation EA’s UFC series that was laid back in 2014 has developed nicely, but each sequel, while an improvement, felt like an authentic experience that frustrated fans, and alienated others. Solid mechanics and slick visuals impressed, but a clunky ground game left fans like myself, sticking to strikes and knockouts to avoid…

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Project Cars 3 Review: Shifting Gears

My first few days with Project Cars 3 proved to be an incredibly polarising experience. I consider myself a true fan of racing sims, and while Project Cars 2 stands out as one of my favourites, Project Cars 3 does not; but not in the way you would think. It’s safe to say that Project…

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Samurai Jack: Battle Through Time Review: All Hail the Traveller’s Tale

Samurai Jack’s fifth and final season capped off a magnificent 16 year run, of which many other Cartoon Network shows would have envied over. Being a huge fan of the series, I flinched a little when I saw the reveal of Samurai Jack: Battle Through Time, yet another tie in game that I thought would…

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Need For Speed: Heat Review: The Heat is on

The Need for Speed franchise is much as a staple of the racing genre as any other. From the high octane thrills of Hot Pursuit, to the halcyon days of Underground, and the epic, white-knuckle police chases of the highly regarded Most Wanted. A few rocky and undercooked entries have plagued the series in recent…

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Games Review: Onrush (PS4, 2018): Who said arcade racers were dead?

Onrush immediately throws itself onto you as a weird, quirky and sometimes downright crazy experience. However, it’s an experience which I haven’t come across in a while, and to my surprise, it’s some of the most fun I’ve had in a racing title in recent memory. Developers Evolution Studios of Driveclub and Motorstorm fame have…

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Games Review: Rick and Morty: Virtual Rick-Ality (PSVR, 2018), Immersive, Disgusting & Foul Mouthed in a good way!

Ever since the amazing game Accounting Plus VR from Squanchtendo and Crows Crows Crows,  there was no doubt we needed a Rick and Morty VR game. Now a sweet, sweet collaboration between Owlchemy Games, the dev behind Job Simulator, and Adult Swim Games has become a Rick-ality! See what I did there?

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Games Review: A Way Out (PS4, 2018): Greatness through simplicity

“Fuck the Oscars! This is the real shit, right here.” At least that is what creator and director Josef Fares said loud and clear regarding his new title A Way Out at the 2017 Game Awards. Given his enthusiasm, it wasn’t a stretch to believe that this experience would not be an extremely good one,…

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Games Review: Dragon Quest Builders (Switch, 2018): Portable construction and crunch

Dragon Quest Builders returns for the Nintendo Switch and if you missed it like I did the first few times around, it’s worth a dip in this craft-em-up meets RPG hybrid. Originally released on PS3, PS Vita and then PS4, it has definitely done the rounds, but has developer Division 5 used that time to…

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Games Review: AO Tennis (PS4, 2018): Serving up anything but an ace

Let’s get one thing straight: I love tennis. The Australian Open is no exception, grabbing me from the first round all the way to the final match. So it’s safe to say I was excited for AO Tennis, hoping it would bring tennis games back into the mainstream, a nod to the good old days of…

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Games Review: Life is Strange: Before The Storm Ep 2: A Brave New World (PS4, 2017)

Here we are again, the second chapter in the increasingly amazing  Life is Strange: Before the Storm. Episode 2: A Brave New World opens not long after Rachel Amber decided it would be cool to start a fire in the local forest of Arcadia after losing her shit. As the huge storm slowly approached Arcadia in…

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Games Review: Dragon Ball Xenoverse 2 (Switch, 2017) is one of the Switch’s better ports

Another day, another port for Nintendo Switch, but that’s ok, we were all worried we wouldn’t be getting what Nintendo promised us, a more mainstream console with third-party support. We got it, and here’s another solid example of their new ethos — Dragon Ball Xenoverse 2!

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