Elijah Beahm
A bland sad protagonist with all the charisma of a rock with a frowny face, a mystery box-style narrative that only ends with more mystery boxes, a combat system that wants to be multiple entirely different games. The Callisto Protocol might function, and it’ll certainly have its launch issues patched out in due time, but in no way can I recommend it to anyone but the most morbidly curious. Everything was stacked in this game’s favor, and it still wasn’t enough. We didn’t need Dead Space 2.0 - we just needed a cohesive, focused game. Instead, it's an oddly soulless concoction of unfocused ambitions, poor planning, and inconceivably amateurish design. Whether you're winning or losing, Callisto Protocol never feels right.
Terminator Resistance: Annihilation Line tries for a second encore that overstays its welcome even when it's working right. Poorly executed and uneventful, it sadly doesn't live up to the standard set by Teyon's main campaign.
Brilliant decision making, horrible brawling. Hand of Fate fails to hit a straight flush like it hopes.
Vampire: The Masquerade - Swansong manages to suck almost all the fun out of being a vampire. Billed as an RPG, it functions more like a frustrating puzzle game. Only the most patient players will have the time for it.
Despite some original ideas and a wealth of content, CastleStorm chokes on it's own ambition by lacking the follow through necessary to truly stand out. It is an incredibly boring yet unique game.
The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt is an amazing single-player action-RPG buried in a mediocre open world game. As much as everyone was wowed by the jump to open world with the third Witcher game, I seriously wish they'd stuck to the formula in their previous games. Sometimes bigger really isn't better.
The Skywalker Saga aims to be the greatest LEGO Star Wars experience of all time, only to be a middling mess. Fans will still get something out of it, but nothing here warrants all the headache behind the scenes over the last few years. Despite all odds, TT Games’ latest is a chaotic pile of bricks that never quite click together right.
Romancelvania is a great visual novel trapped inside a Metroidvania that bites off more than it can chew. Dualshockers was provided with a copy of the game for review purposes.
Nightmare Reaper has all the makings of a fantastic retro-FPS with rogue-lite elements wonderfully smattered across. However, for all its personality, Nightmare Reaper is also an uneven mess when it strikes the wrong note. A game some will love, warts and all, but many others will walk away wanting for a tighter experience.
Despite all its oddness though, Corpse of Discovery remains a compelling, if flawed, indie adventure game. It's a "walking sim" with gameplay, an FPS with no shooting, and almost a horror game without blood and gore.
Resident Evil 4 Remake asks the bold question of whether you can perfect what many already consider perfection. While fairly competent at the basics, Capcom's latest remake has the least creative energy of its series revivals, leaving you wanting for much more.
Venture to an alternate history full of secret societies and gumshoe detectives in Blues & Bullets.
SOMA is a spectacular adventure game stuck in the jaws of a mediocre horror game.
The Cold War goes hot in Sony's CounterSpy.
Saber Interactive's Evil Dead: The Game might be a bore to play solo, but is a blast online and brimming with potential for future updates. This is how they do it in Michigan!