GameCloud's Reviews
Xenoblade Chronicles 2 can easily be considered the best available “reason to buy a Switch.” While there are already a lot of great titles available for the system, much of the current library is also shared with the Wii U and other platforms. Xenoblade, on the other hand, is an unforgettable journey you’ll only get to experience on Nintendo’s newest console, and is currently, in my opinion, the best exclusive available for it. A magnificent world, well-written characters, interesting plot and refined combat, all mixed together make for an experience that you’d be hard-pressed to pass on.
Ōkami HD serves as proof that even among today's trends, progression in an open-world game such as this one can be meaningful. The newly improved 4K resolution is just an added bonus that further demonstrates the game's visual style will never get old, regardless of its obviously dated textures. In my opinion, it's a near-perfect game, and one you should definitely experience if you haven't already. It's also one well worth revisiting, even if it'll be your fifth time. The latest release of Ōkami HD might not provide much more for people who've played the remaster already, but when it's priced so cheaply, it's not much of an asking price.
Shadow of the Colossus is the gold standard of video game remakes for this generation, period. Bluepoint Games deserves all the credit for offering a remake worthy of the praise placed upon the original, and as such have given an entirely new audience license to experience one of video games most exceptional titles. Forget the cynical rhetoric around "cash grabs" and easy franchise milking with texture update "HD remasters." Instead, I hope this game becomes enshrined as a new sort of video game remake renaissance in which new and old audiences alike can experience classic titles as if they were brand new again. However you need to do it, make sure to get your hands on a copy of Shadow of the Colossus on PS4.
I want to be clear that Dragon Ball FighterZ, at its core, is a great game that does so much right by Dragon Ball. At the best of times, this is essentially a perfect DB fighter. Outplaying an opponent in such a rapid, intense exchange is extremely rewarding and learning to best different techniques and approaches is a fulfilling process. It’s just a shame that these moments feel like as much work to reach as they do. If you want a basic, button mashing fighter that looks really cool, FighterZ is a great pick, but if you want a deep and engaging combat system, then prepare to dig through the former to get to the latter. An annoying lobby system and meandering story keep DBF from feeling like a wonderful package across the board, but the beautiful, faithful art and animation alone is worthy of much praise. Dragon Ball FighterZ is successful as a traditional fighting game in the world of Dragon Ball, even if it places more than a few hurdles in its own path.
Life is Strange: Before the Storm is undoubtedly a risk that Square Enix didn’t need to take. The original Life is Strange ended in a way that left fans expecting nothing more, so the prequel’s announcement came as quite a surprise. Thankfully, newcomers Deck Nine have created a mini-series that is not only respectful of the original but stands on its own as an essential prequel. The visuals may suffer from slight blemishes, and the uneven voice acting can be off-putting at times, but the game quickly makes up for this through its engaging characters, excellent pacing and great plot twists. It’s a no-brainer for fans of Life is Strange and an equally perfect starting point for newcomers.
Metal Gear Survive builds off of an excellent game to create something fundamentally different. Journeying through the dust and uncovering more of the map piece by piece is a rewardingly dangerous progression system, not unlike the save room style of Symphony of The Night or Resident Evil. Earning stronger and cooler gear while fitting out your base with bigger and better defences and resources is equally engaging, with new challenges consistently arising to replace those you’ve outgrown. It’s not a Kojima game, and it’s not a Metal Gear Solid game, but it’s a lot of fun and never fails to reward the time you put into it.
I could go on all day about the things I enjoy in Sea of Thieves, and even the things that get my blood boiling, but, suffice to say, I’m happy the game is as good as it is even with such a long journey ahead of it. As future months of content begin showing up, from new AI threats, to what sounds like another ship type, more mission types and even weekly events, I’m fully committed to updating this review to reflect the changes. I’m hoping Sea of Thieves hangs around for a while to come and continues to shine as bright as the golden age of piracy it calls home. Weigh anchor, set the sails! All aboard for adventure and for booty!
God of War is an exceptional game that modernises an antiquated formula while carrying forward and expanding upon the conventions that gave the series its own identity. Everything God of War is known for is here, but in brand new, elaborately constructed ways. Such reverence is given to the series’ history without fear of reinventing it, and the result is an incredibly high-quality experience far surpassing those that came before.
While Radiant Historia: Perfect Chronology offers a battle system unlike any others you’ve likely played, what is really on offer here is a well-told story with memorable characters. If you’re one to skip cutscenes or power through dialogue boxes, you’re going to miss a lot of what is charming about this game and be put off by battles that become less interesting as you progress. On the other hand, curious and patient players will find meaningful character dialogue voiced by a talented cast, succinct storytelling to keep your interest, and a world very different to ours to learn about.
If you’ve played the original Dark Souls before, or the Prepare to Die Edition on PC, there really isn’t much here for you in the way of new content. So unless you’re dying to see Blighttown and Lost Izalith run at a steady frame-rate, I’d only recommend it if you’re looking for an excuse to replay the game. However, if you haven’t played this game before, you’d be doing yourself a disservice not to pick it up. A lot of things that kept it from ageing well have been ironed out and make Dark Souls Remastered the definitive way to play this game. If you’ve ever been remotely interested or have played and enjoyed other Souls games, now is the best time to try it.
Into The Breach is a tour-de-force of tight design, an excellent execution of an idea, and a wonderful take on turn-based strategic combat. I have pretty much nothing bad to say about it. My only wish right now is that there was more of it, that its permutations would stretch on forever, that there’d be islands that I’d ever be able to conquer, more different Vek than I’d ever be able to fight, and more different bonus objectives than I’d ever see. But I understand, design-wise, why this could never be the case. I think Subset have achieved something pretty special here; I look forward to coming back to it in all my future timelines.
Moss is a lovely little game that applies VR in ways I’m excited to see develop. The simple platforming, puzzling and fighting aren’t anything fantastic on their own, but together in a precious little storybook world, and elevated by a VR perspective, they’re a delight. It’s a shame Moss feels a little cut short, but what remains is an endearing adventure that’s a joy to take part in. A healthy mix of interesting puzzles and satisfyingly, simple combat make Moss a stand out PSVR game and a beacon for the potential of third-person games in the virtual realm.
With new enemies, new careers and new missions to check out, Vermintide 2 is a fantastic sequel to an already phenomenal game. It’s not perfect, with a difficulty spike so sharp that scientists could study it to make better laser pointers, but it’s great once you get into it. With satisfying combat in a vivid imagining of the Warhammer End Times, VT2 is almost a no-brainer. The real no-brainer is our undying faith in Sigmar, which should never wane even in the face of bile trolls.
Much as Final Fantasy XV’s opening line suggests, this is a game for fans and first-timers alike. If you’ve not played FFXV before and want to give it a try, this is (probably) the best way to experience it so far. For those who’ve already played the game before, there’s so much to come back for after a year in post-development. Even if you’ve never played a Final Fantasy game before, this is such a departure from the series’ usual style that I implore you to give it a try. Many of the major “improvements” promised by the development team have already been implemented, and there is a heap of extra content in the included DLC. As it stands, the only major issue with this otherwise solid port are the technical issues being faced by a minority group of players, and I suspect this won’t be the case for very long. If the quality of the future content holds up, I’ll likely be coming back for a third playthrough in another year’s time.
Pillars of Eternity II: Deadfire knows its audience and understands their focus, delivering its best content where it matters most; the story. The world of PoE2 is alive and breathing and teems with hundreds of characters ready to pull you into their own plot threads. Though it is let down a little by its reverence to ancient combat mechanics and an attempt to tack on new systems, the game shows off the love and care of its creators in the complex, interwoven class systems that allow for incredible diversity in combat approaches, as well as the beautiful design and graphics work that sees the Deadfire Archipelago glowing as few settings have done before. PoE2 is a title that every serious RPG fan needs to spend some time on.
The best part of Detroit: Become Human is without a doubt the story, so it’s a huge shame I can’t talk about it in detail. If you’re not into story-driven games, then the gameplay certainly won’t engross you enough to make it worthwhile as the narrative is all Detroit really has. However, if you are interested in giving it a go, it’s a fascinating experience as the game explores AI and opens a dialogue about the impact they’ll have in society, their humanity and exactly what rights they should have if they were to become sentient. The story does have its up and downs for sure – there are plenty of tropes, clichés and a bit too much melodrama that stops it short of being a literary masterpiece. It also doesn’t bring any new ideas to the table about AI going rouge – but then again, as a piece of entertainment it does as described – it entertains. While it doesn’t excel as a “game” in the sense of the word, it’s easily one of the best experiences of its kind I’ve played, and I enjoyed it thoroughly.
For fans of the BattleTech IP, this game is a no-brainer. For everyone else, it's still worth a go but not the best game out there. While the core gameplay is fun enough, the difficulty of entry can be off-putting until you wrap your head around everything. Thankfully, the freedom of customisation that has kept so many BattleTech fans loyal to the series is on full show. Though its execution leaves much to be desired, the game is a solid entry in the BattleTech video game line-up that'll satiate your need for another Mechwarrior game for a while yet.
For the most part, Frostpunk is exactly what I hoped it would be, and more besides. It's an aesthetically realised addictive management game, and it cleverly pulls in disparate gameplay elements to craft a feeling of isolated, desperate warmth against the crippling cold. I like it a lot. It also provides avenues for tyranny, if that's your thing. Its main issue at the moment is a slight lack of content, as its three scenarios suffer a bit in terms of replay value, but given the devs have already committed to future (hopefully unpaid) extra content, I'm hopeful this won't remain a problem for long.
Insomniac Games are my favourite developers, Spider-Man is one of my favourite characters, and comparable games like InFamous and Arkham are among my favourites of all time. Even still, Marvel’s Spider-Man impressed me greatly. It’s not without its flaws, but swinging around, shooting webs and building up combos feels so good that they’re hard even to notice. Spider-Man’s story is exciting and hits hard at its biggest moments, while excellent writing, performances and presentation meet the high standards of the game’s magnificent mechanics. Marvel’s Spider-Man has great strengths on many fronts, and plenty of substance well worth swinging through.
Aside from some admittedly minor gripes and the typically icky post-launch content malarkey, Black Ops IIII is an undeniably appealing multiplayer gaming package. Blackout is a faster and more dynamic battle royale mode than the reigning PUBG and Fortnite; the arena mode has changed in ways that encourage team play, and strategy and Zombies is still a joy, just with more customisation. Black Ops IIII is like your dad’s favourite brand of beer that finally brought out a bolder tasting summer brew; familiar, reliable and now interesting enough for you to accept that you will one day die. Or something.