EggManStudio

For a little context on why I gave this game such a low score, I'd like to talk about the PC version. The PC version of House Flipper is a brilliant game and a heck of a lot of fun, but not very well optimised. It isn't the most graphically impressive of games, yet it runs like a clogged toilet on anything that isn't a gaming PC. I have two devices that can run Skyrim with no problems, and they can't run House Flipper on the lowest graphics settings for love nor money. This issue is also present here in the Switch version. The controls sometimes feel really sluggish, as does the framerate, and there's just enough input lag to be noticeable. I also swear it's making my Switch run hotter than any other game I own - and this is all in spite of the fact that the graphics are cranked down massively compared to the PC version and really do not look very good at all. The Switch is capable of running better-looking games at higher framerates, so I surmise this game may just be a port of the PC version, and not a very good one at that. Not to mention that as of the launch day, it appears to not have any of the DLC or many of the items that were subsequently added to the PC version. Still, if you can get past all that it's still the House Flipper I know and love. Get this version only if you don't have a PC that can run it decently, otherwise it's not worth your money.

#ThankYouGameFreak Pokémon Sword didn't blow me away, but despite the lack of a National Dex it's a damn good Pokémon game and a brilliant first proper outing onto the Switch for the franchise. Here's hoping that Game Freak uses this as a stepping stones me for een better games on the console in the future!

More or less, exactly what one could ask from a Rage sequel. Great shooting, great driving, let down only by a dubious story.

I have to be brutally honest, the PC version of Lock's Quest is really hard to reccomend. It was an instant buy for me. since I really loved the DS original, but the multitude of issues in this version drew me to refund it. A plethora of bugs, story features and modes being completely removed and the soudntrack having had all the life **** out of it in the "remastering" process all turned me completely off from this version. You're far better off just emulating the DS version if I'm quite honest.

Easily one of 2017's most underrated games. I don't think I've seen many games pull off open-world stealth in the way SGW3 does - the sniping is first-rate, the open world isn't the most detailed but is still fun to explore, and the missions are unique and a whole lot of fun, especially with the many ways in which you can tackle them.

This game has a great plot and some interesting gameplay mechanics, but essentially everything else was lacking. The HUD and map screen are both inexcusably lazily designed, the gameplay is decent but quickly gets repetitive and feels rather clunky, reloading makes you switch weapons for some reason, and the worst thing about it is that it's all too easy to get lost in the dubiously-designed levels, mainly due to the fact that there are no objective markers. In addition, the player character Jackie moves so slowly that exploring the levels is a slog and combat is just horrible. That and the graphics have not aged well at all and look pretty murky in comparison with other games from the same console, and not in a good, stylistic way. Give this one a miss if you're a FPS fan and move straight to the second game.

Nothing short of brilliant. Fast-paced, frenetic and damn good looking, this is most definitely the spiritual successor to both wipEout and F-Zero we all needed.

This game is about two things: Exploring and murdering everything you come across. And it is absolutely fantastic. It's Doom by name, Doom by nature, and Doom in spirit, arguably even more so than Doom 3. With that in mind you may be surprised to find that it actually has a pretty good story too. All in all, it's already claimed the title of the best shooter of 2016 in my book, and perhaps even the best game of 2016 too.

SUPERHOT IS THE MOST INNOVATIVE SHOOTER I'VE PLAYED IN YEARS! Superhot isn't so much a first-person shooter game, more an experiment in first person shooting mechanics. And at that, an experiment which went very, very well. The game's main mechanic is that time only moves when you move, and your objective is t o use this to your advantage and kill everyone who is attacking you. It's fantastically fun and often very tense as you dodge bullets with pinpoint precision and shatter your red, polygonal enemies as you play through the game - or is the game playing you? The plot is executed very cleverly, the mechanics never seem to feel old or stretched too thinly out, and all it's already one of the best games of 2016 in my humble opinion.

If you are searching for a first-person shooter set in the Wild West which isn't too long but captures the essence of a Clint Eastwood movie in a playable form, then I would immediately recommend Call of Juarez: Gunslinger. The latest entry in Techland's western franchise pulls out all the stops and delivers a wonderfully satisfying Western shooter experience with a delicious helping of plot mixed in as well. Call of Juarez: Gunslinger follows the story of Silas Greaves - or rather, it follows the story of him recounting his recollections to a group of incredulous bar patrons. And they have a right to be incredulous as he makes increasingly outlandish claims, from inadvertently starting the Gunfight at the OK Corral to riding with Billy the Kid and claiming to have killed various famous figures of the period, including Newman Hayes "Old Man" Clanton, George "Flat-Nose" Curry, two of the Dalton Brothers and even Jesse James himself, but one unmistakeable detail remains clear - for very personal reasons he had been hunting Roscoe "Bob" Bryant, a man who had wronged him many years ago. The gameplay has you playing through Silas's alcohol-addled recollections, which often change and shift as Silas tells his tale - ranging from bridges or paths miraculously appearing to an entire army of Apaches DISappearing. As unreliable a narrator as he is though, you just have to love Silas, as well as the characters he speaks with in the bar. All of them have much more personality than the standard FPS player-goons, and indeed the game's plot rides largely on these characters and the interactions they have with each other. As you play you find yourself eagerly following Silas's story, no matter how fanciful or nonsensical it may be, and at the end you'll find a twist which will leave you quite surprised. To call the gameplay typical, no-nonsense FPS fare would be doing it a grave disservice. This game takes the FPS formula and turns it up to 11. Almost every other second you're ploughing through hordes of bandits and outlaws with a rifle, a shotgun or a pair of trusty revolvers, all of which are immensely satisfying to use. It's like playing through a spaghetti western; no expense is spared on the action at all and very rarely is there a moment where everyone isn't up in arms, all guns blazing. But that's not all - at the end of most of the levels you'll take part in a standoff with one of many characters, and with these the game changes dramatically. Whereas in the levels proper you'll be shooting baddies willy-nilly, in a Standoff things are much different. You'll have to carefully balance your focus and your hand position to get the best draw speed and accuracy to kill your opponent (or on occasion, opponentS) before they do the same to you. Alternatively you can just up and shoot them first, but that results in the game penalises you for killing your opponent "dishonourably"; the loading screen menus also remind you that "history will remember you as a coward" if you do this. These tense, high-focus standoffs serve as a satisfying break from the action, whilst also elevating the game's challenge - I'd often find myself dying in standoffs about as many times as I did in the whole preceding level. The weapons used in the game aren't very varied but neither were the weapons of the Wild West time period. There's four different sidearms, that's three pistols and one revolver, a rifle with a "sawed off" variant which appears later in the game and a shotgun, making for seven weapons total, so while the weapons choice is limited as per the time period restraints, anything more would feel like too much. You can pick your favourite sidearm and couple it with a primary weapon to match, depending on whether you prefer fighting at range or in close quarters. This perfectly balanced variation on the weaponry is complimented by a perk system, allowing you to upgrade Silas's abilities in relation to your play style. Gaining perks also allows you to unlock Legendary weapons - slight misnomers in that they are actually upgrades to the default weapons. The entire system provides a great incentive to try different play styles to find which one suits you the most - my trusty rifle and six-shooters saw me through most of the game. Critics compared the first Call of Juarez to a "more refined Oblivion". If that is true then one could also compare Gunslinger, to a more refined Wolfenstein or Doom. It has fantastic, high-octane gameplay, a gripping story (even if not all of it is true) and all in all is one of the best FPS games I've played in a while, as well as the best Wild West shooter I've EVER played.

If ever there was poetry in game form, this is it. This game's unique mechanic might seem a little quirky and hard to manage at times, but the story, setting and characters are all likeable enoug to make you want to continue. The way it manages to tell the story it does with no comrehensible dialogue at all is absolutely stunning. And that ending... Never before has a game nearly made me cry. Not one for those who are easily turned off by slightly awkeward gameplay, but ifyou can see past that then this game will really touch your heart.

What can I say? It's Bit.Trip on the Vita. On the other hand, this release of the Bit.Trip saga is not without its problems. Several of the games suffer from slowdowns and framerate issues which can lead to some of the beats being off, most noticeably in Beat, where the beats invariably get more and more out of sync the further into the level you get, amidst other issues such as beats going through your paddle and not correctly transitioning into the first boss music. That said, some of the other gamss are still enjoyable, Void and Runner are almost perfectly ported and I had minimal problems. Overall verdict? Worth a look if you liked the Bit.Trip games and want a way to play them on the go though Bit.Trip Saga for the 3DS arguably did this better.

An interesting FPS-slash-puzzle platformer with unique and interesting mechanics. Be warned, however - this game is brutally difficult and will actively attempt, at every twist and turn, to frustrate, confound and irritate you. That said, despite this infuriating difficulty it is still rather enjoyable.

[SPOILER ALERT: This review contains spoilers.]

Easily the best Call of Duty for a long while. New features, abilities and the best CoD story for quite a while makes Advanced Warfare a welcome return to form for the series.

It's only a "remaster" in a broad sense of the term, but fundamentally it's still the Worms World Party we know and love, but with Steam achievements, controller support and better compatibility on modern operating systems. Sure, the menus are in a low resolution, but I find that with the simplistic art style, it doesn't really matter. I'd even go as far to say that this game offers a superior experience to Worms Armageddon, for the same price on Steam. Don't believe the horrible reviews, this game IS worth playing if you liked the original Worms World Party.

Ironfall Invasion is far from a perfect shooter, with a bland story and abysmal voice acting, but it offers a good third-person shooter experience on the 3DS - and is one of very few games to do so. I'd most definitely reccommend to New 3DS owners looking for a good handheld shooter to pick up and play.

Fallout 3 is one of the best games I've ever played in terms of setting and story, as well as unique gameplay mechanics. As such, it is almost with a heavy heart that I say that I cannot say the same of its final DLC pack, Mothership Zeta. This is quite easily the single worst DLC I have ever played for a game, as I shall now explain. To start off, let's have a lok at the concept. I hear that aliens have been hinted at in previous Fallout games as easter eggs, much like Fallout 1's TARDIS, but this DLC is all about them. It is a plot element which has no place in the Fallout universe, and a later revelation in the plotline is potentially canon-destroying. Not only is the plot inexplicable and unwanted, however, hte gameplay and mechanics added are too. The game introduces several new weapons which are far too powerful for their own good, as well as the "Epoxy" - which allows you to repair your objects simply by using it, which is something that no self-respecting Fallout player would want or need. Using these items would just make the game unrealistically easy. The gameplay, furhtermore, could not be anything less like Fallout 3. There are far too many enemies and far too few pointers to where you're meant to be going. The interior of the spaceship feels cramped and claustrophobic, and worse still: Once you start it, you cannot go back to the Capital Wasteland until you've finished it. Overall, Motherships Zeta is, quite frankly, neither the final DLC we wanted, nor needed. The combat-focussed experience, misplaced setting and outrageous plot is something which will leave any self-respecting Fallout fan seething.

It's important to realise when playing this game that it isn't meant to be a true RPG - it's meant to be a pisstake of the RPG genre, wherein you have to unlock everything, right down to moving, saving and battling, and it does that absolutely brilliantly. I would reccomend this game to anyone who liked the old RPGs like Final Fantasy and the like - I for one found myself chuckling heartily at the little references here and there. A brilliant little stab at the RPG genre, Evoland is so deliberately generic that it's hilarious, and any retro game fan should pick it up for its nostalgic and its comedic value.

Those who played Doom and Quake way back when will remember the fun that was blasting enemies into oblivion with an assortment of weapons, ranging from mundane to downright crazy. Perhaps this is the reason why Rage wears the name "iD Software" so proudly, stating on the box art as being from the creators of Doom and Quake - and indeed, the game offers a very similar experience, with some modern twists, and the result is, at the very least, enjoyable. The main story of Rage revolves around the player character, a survivor of an experiment by the U.S. government known as the Eden Project, designed to repopulate the Earth after a cataclysmic event which destroyed most of civilisation, awakening 106 years after being put in stasis, and being unwittingly dragged into a fight between the warring Authority, who are attempting to sieze control of the remaining settlements of Earth, and the Resistance, whose name should probably speak for themselves. This plot might be a bit bland, but Rage's fun lies not in its plot, but in its gameplay. The game certainly spares no expense with regards to action during its missions, which usually see you shooting large numbers of enemies with a large variety of weapons, which can be strategically used in tandem with each other. It's for this reason that, as stated before, I compare Rage favourably with games such as Doom and Quake, though equally favourable comparisons can also be made to Borderlands for its setting and Mad Max for the driving. The game's certainly not grounded in the past, however - there are various features which drag the classic shooter into the age of modern gaming, such as a lives system of sorts implemented through a "defibrilator" mini-game, an open-world setting and and a vehicle mechanic, with the player unlocking better vehicles as they progress in the game. The driving in this game feels surprisingly fluid - It feels really satisfying to empty your Boost gauge whilst speeding through the game's deserted wastelands. The game also incorporates a vehicular combat system, though the weapons for this mode are not quite as diverse as thse for the main game, being limited to a mostly-ineffective Minigun, rockets, and a pulse weapon later on in the game. Aside from the large variety of weapons available to the player in the game, each weapon also has various ammunition types, for instance an assault rifle has a standard round and a more powerful round, a shotgun has standard buckshot, an explosive "pop-rocket" round and a pulse round, and the game's Pistol has not only bulllets of increasing damage, but also Killbursts - the best description for which I can give comes from in-game: "Bullets within bullets within bullets, and they all fire at once." This gives the game slightly more diversity, making things a little more interesting by allowing players to switch between different ammo types on the fly to cater for different situations - Should I blast my way through with my ordinary Shotgun cartridges or do I blow them to pieces with my Pop Rockets? There are some criticisms to be made - as I've said before, the story is quite bland and some of the open-world segments feel a bit forced, particularly the colonies which serve as a break-point of sorts between missions. Also, in spite of all the ammo types available, money is not easy enough to come by in the game world to actually be able to take advantage of all of them at once, requiring players to specialise at some point. Also quite annoying is the fact that there is no HUD when inside the game's aforementioned colonies, making it difficult to work out where it is you're meant to be going when some missions require you to visit a particular area within the colonies, necessitating wandering around aimlessly for a while trying to work out where the hell it is you're supposed to go. Perhaps one could also argue that some of the modernisations made to the game just seem arbitrary, from the plot to basic things like iron sights, which in some situations just aren't necessary. All in all, the enjoyability of Rage depends on what you want from it. If you're looking for a deep story experience, then this is probably not the game for you. If, however, you enjoyed games the likes of Doom, Painkiller, Serious Sam and Duke Nukem 3D and are looking for a similar experience updated for a modern age, then Rage will be happy to provide you with a generous helping of over-the-top, rip-roaring action that will surely sustain one's appetite for death and destruction.

It's an interesting position to be in to be able to judge a reboot of a much-loved game franchise with no knowledge of the games which came before. Such is the case with me and the enigma that is DmC: Devil may Cry. Strange naming aside, this game, despite being much maligned by the Devil May Cry fanbase, is, from a totally objective viewpoint such as mine, still worth a play. The game's plot reads like Conspiracy theory nine billion and seven - The world has been secretly infiltrated by demons, and a small resistance made up of anti-hero playable character Dante, talented psychic Kat and charismatic leader Vergil is fighting to try and free humanity from their iron-fisted, secret power. The corny underlying plot, however, is tempered slightly by the twists and turns that occur during the plotline, so whilst it may have a bland initial taste it's an alright plot, and definitely not the worst. The main character, as stated before, is Dante, who starts off as an unlikeable anti-hero but as ther game progresses, he begins to see the importance of his actions, to realise what is at stake if he is to fail - though his desire for justice also has a noticeable streak of revenge running through it. Overall though, he's an interesting character, and the only other gripe I have about him is that his voice acting is somewhat subpar, especially when he's shouting. What flaws there are are made up fror in the gameplay. At its core it's your typical hack n' slash fare, you have a large, bladed weapon, you can kill enemies with it, and like any good hack & slash it's very, very fun - though this game spices it up a bit by throwing in Ebony and Ivory, a pair of pistols which Dante can use to juggle enemies in the air and hit far-off foes. As you progress through the game Dante also unlocks new weapons, such as Arbiter, a massive demonic axe, Aquila, a pair of glaives, and Revenant, a powerful shotgun. These weapons allow for more interesting gameplay by allowing one to juggle multiple weapons tactically to finish off enemies effectively, making the gameplay all the more fun, and as it is with most hack and slashes, it's really fun to hack and slash the living daylights out of many enemies at a time. In summary, in spite of its shortcomings, DmC: Devil may Cry is a good game for its genre. With a slightly-cheesy, yet interesting plot, believable characters and gameplay which builds a bit on the classic hack n' slash formula, it's definitely worth a play, even if you HAVE played a DmC game before.

What can I say about F.E.A.R 3? Well, obviously, it's the 3rd game in the F.E.A.R franchise, which, one would expect, would say everything. But in all honesty, it doesn't - in fact, the third installment of the F.E.A.R franchise is much more akin to the generic first person shooter than the trouser-browning horror shooter that the F.E.A.R name is otherwise known for. The gameplay is, to put it in one word, generic. You have guns, they go bang, there are a LOT of enemies to shoot with them, same old. However, the genericness is tempered slightly with a very nice cover system, the slow-mo mechanic which is a mainstay of the F.E.A.R franchise, and the occasional creepy moment, though undoubtedly nothing as trouser-wetting as the previous games in the series, which I have admittedly not actually played a lot of. There is also some geo-mod, but this is needless and hinders more than it helps. However, the game is still relatively fun despite the genericness and shortcomings. The story is confusing. Whilst playing through the game I had little idea of what was actually going on, but from what I could gather, Alma, the creepy little F.E.A.R mainstay, has become pregnant for whatever reason, and the main character, the "Point Man" and his brother Paxton Fettel, who was killed in F.E.A.R 1 and who has somehow returned, have to find her and... well, Fettel wants to eat the child and Point Man wants to destroy it. That's as much as I could gather. The game takes about 6 to 7 hours to beat, though this is somewhat artificially extended by the game's difficulty. I was playing on "Commando" (Normal) difficulty, and some areas of the game were heavily confusing and others were incredibly difficult, particularly one section where I had to defeat a massive mech which could kill me in a few shots and tear any cover you might choose to use to pieces, and also another where I was attacked by TWO of the most annoying enemy in the game, which needless to say was frustrating. To summarise, F.E.A.R 3 is generic, difficult, short, confusing and has stupidly large numbers of incredibly annoying enemies. I'd reccommend this game only if you're a fan of first-person shooters in general and like a challenge, in which case you may find it quite fun (Though you may find yourself not wanting anyone to mention phase casters to you ever again), otherwise save your cash and buy another good FPS, or better, one of the prior F.E.A.R games.

I remember back when "expansion packs" were relatively common. Take for example Red Alert 2: Yuri's Revenge or even more recent ones such as F.E.A.R: Extraction Point and Perseus Mandate - nowerdays, however, such expansion packs are few and far between, with such releases a Burial at Sea for BioShock Infinite and Uprising for Red Alert 3, and indeed the subject of this review, Wolfenstein: The Old Blood. The Old Blood is a standalone prequel to its predesecssor, The New Order, taking place during World War 2, directly before the beginning of The New Order's storyline. As it was with the new order, however, the story isn't the main focus of the game. The bulk of the game is concerned with its gameplay, which is functionally no different to The New Order, in that main character B.J. Blazkowicz can hold many different weapons, from the powerful Schockhammer semi-automatic shotgun to the grenade-launching Kampfpistole. However, in line with the earlier setting, some features have been removed, such as the upgrade feature, which now only affects one weapon, and the rechargable energy weapons - however, these have been replaced with a new mechanic, the Pipe. Found very early on, the Pipe has many uses, including as a weapon, both dual wielded and as one weapon, and climbing walls, somewhat reminiscent of the Cliffhanger mission from Modern Warfare 2. In addition, again much like The New Order, most of the levels can be tacked either with stealth or with high action with little ramification as to choice, making the gamemuch more flexible, and overall the gameplay is fun and unique when compared to other shooters. There are a few criticisms to be made, however. First of all, the levels are notably more linear in comparison with The New Order's. Secondly, objectives are often not very clear and objective markers don't always appear straight away, so sometimes one must look around a bit in order ot find out what it is you're meant to be doing. Finally, and this is the biggest criticism of them all, the game's final boss (without spoiling anything) is incredibly tedious and overly difficult in comparison with the rest of the game. Despite this, however, The Old Blood still manages to hold its own through its gameplay. I managed to complete ther game's storyline in around 5 to 6 hours, which for a game that costs about half as much as a full game is quite a lot. Ground Zeroes cost about as much and was considerably shorter than this. In conclusion, Wolfenstein: The Old Blood is a worthy prequel/expansion to The New Order, in spite of its large shortcomings. I'd personally reccommend playing this before The New Order, seeing how they flow into each other and play almost identically.

There really aren't any other games like this. Responding to requests on the fly is an interesting concept, and one that is fleshed out very well in Cook, Serve, Delicious. It's fun, and yet also quite tense - a mere second could spell the difference between serving an order and just missing it, and as you progress through the game this happens more and more often as you encounter more and more complex foods to prepare - in fact, that's my sole criticism. Some of the foods are just a little TOO complex, sometimes detracting from the experience a bit. Aside from that though, Cook, Serve, Delicious is a "delicious" little strategy-slash-management simulator which will keep you entertained for a long time.

I can see how this would maybe appeal to those who enjoyed isometric RPGs the likes of Baldur's Gate and Diablo, but this game just didn't appeal to me. I don't like how I just have to click on an enemy and watch my character defeat him for me. For me, that takes the enjoyment out of it all. It feels as if I'm dteached from my character, just sort of telling him what to do instead of actually doing it, and in a modern game it feels outdated and boring. Aside from that, the voice acting is very subpar, and the whole thing just feels overly complex and behind its time.

As of late, the 2D platforming genre has seen a bit of a resurgence, especially in indie games like Super Meat Boy, I Wanna Be The Guy and to a lesser extent in more high-profile titles New Super Mario Bros. and the like. Rayman Legends, the sequel to 2011's reboot of the Rayman series, Rayman Origins, is one such platformer, and quite possibly one of the best in its genre. Rayman Legends, like its predecessor, is very simple in terms of its gameplay: Run, jump and punch your way through each of the levels, rescuing the small, fairy-like Teensies (who replace Origins' Electoons) as you go. It's actually quite a good thing the gameplay is this simple, because this game's difficulty is certainly not to be sniffed at. On some of the Challenge levels in particular it might take someone many different tries to get past a particular area of the game, and whilst at first this may seem aggravating there's no feeling quite like finally completing that ONE level. Another interesting addition is the Murfy mechanic - whilst playing, the player can control Murfy with the Wii U GamePad to guide their character through the level, by for instance moving platforms or distracting enemies, adding a little variety to the gameplay whilst still retaining the simplicity that makes it so enjoyable. There are also additional characters, but the differences are mostly cosmetic and don't change the gameplay, though in all honesty this is more to the game's benefit, since the gameplay is OK as it is, and doesn't really need any different character abilities to make it any better. Also like Origins, Legends' story is barebones, quite possibly to the overall game's benefit. Not focusing much on the story means that the player can divert their attention to actually enjoying the gameplay and uniquer art style, which are the game's main points. To summarise, Rayman Legends is the best anyone could ask from a platforming game. It's challenging, it has funny characters, enjoyable levels, it doesn't focus too much on the plot, and most importantly - It will keep you entertained for a VERY long time. Yes, it can get very, VERY difficult, but as you play it, you realise that that's the whole point: Trial and error, improving with every failed attempt, slowly but surely perfecting your strategy. And it's exactly that that makes Rayman Legends special.

As of late, the 2D platforming genre has seen a bit of a resurgence, especially in indie games like Super Meat Boy, I Wanna Be The Guy and to a lesser extent in more high-profile titles New Super Mario Bros. and the like. Rayman Legends, the sequel to 2011's reboot of the Rayman series, Rayman Origins, is one such platformer, and quite possibly one of the best in its genre. Rayman Legends, like its predecessor, is very simple in terms of its gameplay: Run, jump and punch your way through each of the levels, rescuing the small, fairy-like Teensies (who replace Origins' Electoons) as you go. It's actually quite a good thing the gameplay is this simple, because this game's difficulty is certainly not to be sniffed at. On some of the Challenge levels in particular it might take someone many different tries to get past a particular area of the game, and whilst at first this may seem aggravating there's no feeling quite like finally completing that ONE level. Another interesting addition is the Murfy mechanic - whilst playing, the player can use Murfy to guide their character through the level, by for instance moving platforms or distracting enemies, adding a little variety to the gameplay whilst still retaining the simplicity that makes it so enjoyable. There are also additional characters, but the differences are mostly cosmetic and don't change the gameplay, though in all honesty this is more to the game's benefit, since the gameplay is OK as it is, and doesn't really need any different character abilities to make it any better. Also like Origins, Legends' story is barebones, quite possibly to the overall game's benefit. Not focusing much on the story means that the player can divert their attention to actually enjoying the gameplay and uniquer art style, which are the game's main points. I have but two overarching criticisms of this version, however: First of all, the implementaion of the uPlay DRM system, even on the Steam version, which is unnecessary and cumbersome. Second: This game was clearly meant for the Wii U, a fact that shows as you play the game. I thought that maybe the Wii U's features would transfer more easily to the PC, but unfortunately Ubisoft didn't really take advantage of the keyboard ands mouse in the same way they took advantage of the Wii U's gamepad. Actions formerly performed by the player themselves as Murfy on the Touch Pad are now performed with a single touch of a button on the controller, which if you ask me is a bit of a missed opportunity. To summarise, despite clearly being designed for the Wii U, Rayman Legends is the best anyone could ask from a platforming game. It's challenging, it has funny characters, enjoyable levels, it doesn't focus too much on the plot, and most importantly - It will keep you entertained for a VERY long time. Yes, it can get very, VERY difficult, but as you play it, you realise that that's the whole point: Trial and error, improving with every failed attempt, slowly but surely perfecting your strategy. And it's exactly that that makes Rayman Legends special.

Steam shoves a lot of stuff onto Steam through its Greenlight platform, some good, some bad. One such game is 6180 the moon, a platforming game developed by first-time developer Turtle Cream Studios. The gameplay of 6180 the moon is as simple as its story. You play as The Moon, who rolls through the various levels of the game in pursuit of the Sun, who has recently disappeared - the Moon has made it its goal to find the Sun and work out what has gone wrong. The mechanic that makes 6180 the moon unique is the fact that the top and bottom of ther level are connected - falling down causes you to reappear at the top, and jumping through the top causes you to rise from below, which makes for some rather interesting gameplay, which slowly develops over the course of the game's five areas with other mechanics, for instance blocks which explode, pushing the Moon upwards or downwards. Some of these mechanics, particularly the connected ceiling and floor and one mechanic where pressing a button causes some blocks to disappear, remind me of the old indie game Karoshi 2.0, which had some similar mechanics. The game starts off easy and pretty much continues being generally easy throughout, though not so much so as to be boring - There is the slightest hint of challenge to keep you interested as you play through. That said, it is also a very short game, so don't expect to complete ther main game in over an hour; it took me about 45 minutes. But despite its short length, 6180 the moon is still an enjoyable experience with its interesting mechanics and the simple art style and soundtrack, which reminds me in part of some of the old WiiWare games for Nintendo Wii. Overall, I'd reccommend 6180 the moon. Short but sweet, it's a cute little platformer with a unique little style, ideal for when you feel like a quick one-hour game. It's relatively cheap already on Steam, with a base price of only £2.75, so I can see it going even cheaper amidst the Steam sales, and it's also available for download from the Wii U's eShop.

There are very few games which can be described as having truly perfected their formula. One could say that Mario and Sonic perfected the platformer, that mario galaxy perfected the 3D platformer, perhaps even that games like GTA: San Andreas perfected the open-world formula. Mass Effect 2 is a game that has created its own formula by delicately fusing RPG elements with third-person shooter gameplay, and the result is simply pure perfection. The game picks up a few years after the first Mass Effect game and revolves around the protagonist from the first game, John (or Jane) Shepard, who after waking up from a coma and being essentially brought back from the dead by a shadowy organisation named Cerberus must stop an invasion of deadly aliens known as the Collectors, who are abducting entire colonies of humans for some unknown purpose. To do this, he must assemble a team and travel beyond the Omega 4 Relay, from which no ship has ever returned. As he recruits new allies and old friends for his suicide mission, Shepard makes new discoveries which reveal more and more of the mysterious Collectors' nature and goals. The story in this game is absolutely amazing. How the plot progresses depends partly on the actions that Shepard took in the first Mass Effect, so I highly reccommend playing that first before this. The rest is decided through the game's morality system - "Paragon" choices make Shepard a much more noble, just character, whereas "Renegade" choices make him bolder, harsher and colder. This allows for a different experience and different character developments for Shepard depending on what choices the player makes throughout the game and its predecessor - anything that you do could change the course of the whole game. And when you reach the ending, I absolutely guarantee that you will be on the edge of your computer chair with tension. Also returning from Mass Effect 1 is the ability to start a romantic relationship with one of the characters on board the ship. This has little effect on the storyline itself but it's kind of cute to see Shepard finding love. As for the gameplay, Mass Effect 2 builds upon the starndard third person shooter formula with some innovative features, for instance Shepard and his team can use various abilities in battle, including various technological abilities, different weapon ammo types and "biotics" - psychic-like abilities which can be used for both offence and defence. This seems to make battles flow much more as you swictn betwnn shooting and using your powers to find the best way of dispatching your enemy. The game has a "loyalty mission" system, wherein you can gain special missions from particular characters, and if you complete these missions you will unlock an extra outfitm and extra power and that character's "loyalty" - in the endgame thhis will become very important, so after you start receiving these missions, try to avoid other missions until you have recruited everyone and completed all of their loyalty missions. Shepard can also purchase upgrades for his allies and for his ship, the Normandy - these will also be much needed in the endgame. All in all, Mass Effect 2 is hard to describe with any other word other than its own title. With an awe-inspiring story, action-packed gameplay and endless replay value, no self-respecting gamer should pass it up.

This game does have some good points, for instance it has a nice atmosphere, pretty decent voice acting and an interesting plot with some good ideas, but everything is let down by an overly-tedious prologue, unclear objectives, unreadable tutorials, a confusing inventory system, the inability to access any options during the game, and poor graphics. I reccommend only if you have the patience to wrangle with its confusing and poorly-designed layout, otherwise don't bother.

One one hand, this game is an interesting take on the FPS formula. On the other hand, it's really, really stupid, and intentionally so - the result is an absolutely hilarious game that will have you and your friends aching with laughter. I most definitely reccomend.

At present, these are only my first impressions, but I have to say that from what I've seen so far, this game is really quite enjoyable. I'd describe it as a cross between Bayonetta and Tomb Raider - it's a hack-n-slash by nature but it also has a third-person shooter element, and you can switch between these modes on the fly, which I find to be a really interesting addition - it allows for a unique take on both genre's formulas, and contrary to what you might think, in the midst of a fight flicking between the modes feels rather natural - it almost feels as if the game encourages you to use both in tandem to achieve your goal. In hack and slashes of this game's type, combos tend to be both essential and, for a gamer like me, rather hard to pull off. Blades of Time remedies this a little - whereas in a game like Bayonetta the combos would be a ridiculous string of button presses, Blades of Time has relatively simple button combos, press one button to ready, press another to attack. In that sense I found myself enjoyng the game a lot more, because I didn't really need to worry about all the ridiculous combos I'd have to pull off - While a more hardcore hack-n'-slash fan might not find this appealing, I personally think it's a nice touch, making the game easy to jump in and out of without needing pinpoint-precise button presses. I have but two criticisms of this game: First, the english voice acting is pretty bad, though this is remedied by simply switching the voice language to Japanese, and second, the story makes absolutely no sense - the game goes straight from the title screen into the opening cutscene without a shred of explanation as to what is going on. However, when you're in the thick of it, hacking and slashing and shooting and macgiking enemies like there's no tomorrow, you honestly forget about these errors, because you're just having too much fun to really care. Overall, despite its shortcomings, Blades of Time is a lot of fun, and an interesting fusion of the hack & slash and third-person shooter genres, and I'd reccommend this game if you were a fan of either genre. An underrated gem, this game has enough action to keep you entertained for a long time.

South Park: The Stick of Truth is an absolutely brilliant game, for many reasons. Trey Parker and Matt Stone have excellently translated South Park's style into video game format - this game is fun to play, yet at the same time hilarious in every possible way. A large number of the characters that have ever appeared in the South Park TV show make an appearance in this game, even if some just appear in loading screens, and the dialogue has been carefully crafted to be absolutely hilarious every step of the way, not just for fans of the original series who might pick up on some of the references - even but for these references the dialogue is still hilarious enough on its own to be enjoyable for just about any player, be they a South park aficionado or someone who has never seen the show - Some of the references went right over my head, but it did not detract from the game's experience whatsoever. This probably isn't the sort of game, however, for a hardcore gamer who looks for a deep and rich gaming experience - This may be an RPG, but it takes the piss out of its own genre more than it tries to emulate it, as such it's not the deepest experience gameplay-wise, however in spite of this it is still very much fun to play, because in all honesty it's clearly not supposed to be played as a serious RPG. It's meant to be played as a pisstake of the genre it belongs to, and in that sense it hits the nail right on the head. Another thing that makes this game unique is the fact that, in making The Stick of Truth, Trey Parker and Matt Stone have essentially translated the South Park format directly into a video game, art style and all. It truly feels like you are playing out an episode of the series, which makes for a unique and interesting gameplay experience. A word of warning however: In achieving the level of comedy that it does, the game is also very, very, VERY politically incorrect. Just like the original TV show, there is probably something in there that will offend everyone, from abortions to **** to sex - and if it doesn't offend you, it becomes absolutely hilarious. To summarise, South Park: The Stick of Truth is an absolutely brilliant, game. The dialogue between characters will have you aching with laughter, the gameplay is easy but fun, and the fact that it looks almost exactly like an episode of South Park makes it all the better. True, it may not be the deepest RPG experience, or a very politically correct game, but that's because it isn't meant to be. What it is meant to be is a piss-take of the genre it belongs to and an immensely offensive yet side-splittingly hilarious satire- and just like the series it is based off, it does that very, very well. Final score: 10/10. Most definitely worth your time and money.

Painkiller: Hell and Damnation, being a remake of the first Painkiller, retains that which made Painkiller fun - the over-the top violence, the over-the-top weapons, and the general over-the-topness of it all. However I do have some criticisms to make: 1. The voice acting is sub-par. 2. In comparison with the game which it is a remake of, it is incredibly short - it took me about 5 hours to beat, and I have more time than that clocked on the original Painkiller - and I'm not even halfway through that. That said, I'd still recommend this game - it's not quite the original Painkiller but it's fun nonetheless. I played this and the original intermittently, and I must say that both are a lot of fun. If you've played the original Painkiller already, this probably isn't for you, but if you're new to the series, this, along with the first game, is a good starting point.

The best way to describe this game would be part-Bulletstorm and part-Duke Nukem 3D, with some ninjas thrown in for good measure. There's murder. There's samurai swords. And there's not one, but two snarky protagonists. This game is, in essence, a modern shooter whilst still retaining the essence of the classic shooter - plenty of mindless shooting, but also expansive and open levels to explore with plenty of secrets to discover. if you're looking for something challenging, this game is probaby not for you, but if you like good, fun FPS gameplay or are a fan of games such as Doom, Blood, DN3D or as a matter of fact the original Shadow Warrior, this is most definitely worth a look.

A reboot of the best kind, Worms Reloaded feels like a welcome return to Worms' roots - Just as Worms Armageddon brought us much mirth back in the day, so too does Reloaded give us an experience that no other game can offer - making little pink cartoonish worms blow each other up. Sure, there may be some problems, but still... You can make little pink cartoonish worms blow each other up, what more do you want from a game?

Rhythm Heaven Fever (Or, as it is called in the UK, Beat the Beat: Rhythm Paradise) is quite easily one of the best rhythm games out there. It's simple, it's fun and most notably, it's challenging. There is nothing more satisfying than beating the final stage and getting a "Superb!" ranking. The minigames all have little plots, for instance Double Date has you kicking footballs and the like away from you and your girlfriend, in Fork Lifter you're stabbing food which is being launched at you from far away, and in Karate Man, you are hitting flowerpots and varioius other things that are being thrown your way. Each of these little minigames is as challenging as it is fun, and the replay value is endless - you can play each game as many times as you wish. The controls don't make much intuitive use of the Wiimote, but to be honest this is actually a relief - some of the games require you to be spot-on accurate with your moves, and if you think about it, it's easier to do that by pressing buttons than by moving your wrist. The bad... Well, there really isn't much. Perhaps the English voice actors aren't the best, but in the European version you have the option to turn on the Japanese voices, which are better in every way, especially in some minigames where the rhythm of the voices are key to the gameplay, and in some of these games the English voices make it hard to play. In short, this is a fantastic rhythm game and one you most definitely should not pass up. Simple and fun, this game will keep you playing for months, years even.

Playing this game for the first time, knowing the story behind it, after the hype and the fuss has been and gone, is an interesting experience indeed. Looking at it from a gamer's perspective, irrespective of the hype or the overwhelming negative reviews, a lot of the hate for this game just seems to be arbitrary - having played it, I now know what it's like, and to be frank it's not all that bad. It's not a AAA game, but it's far from being a BAD game - matter of fact, Gearbox did a pretty good job given the short time frame they had to fix it up. The controls are solid, the gameplay's relatively entertaining, the only thing that irritated me was a glitch that caused the game to relaunch every time I wanted to quit it. In all honesty, if it weren't for the hype, I reckon reviews for this game would've been mixed to positive. It isn't a bad game. It may not be the best, but it isn't bad by a long shot. If you've never played it, but heard of its infamy, maybe you should give it a try - you might be pleasantly surprised.

I find it plain odd that this game has so many negative reviews - most of them, I note, compare the game to the beta version, which I have never played. Given that, I think that this is not a bad game. The mechanics are fun and so is the gameplay - I found myself on one occasion building multiple structures out into the sea to get a good vantage point for my Marksman... That was fun, and hilarious too! The Minecraft/TF2-style gameplay is an interesting concept, and while it may not be fleshed out completely in this game, it is still expended on enough for it to be playable, for it to be fun. I don't care if it isn't as good as the beta, it is still a good game.

Upon first playing this, I started doubting it a little when I saw it was multiplayer only. That doubt, however, was eliminated when I got into the game. The lack of a single-player campaign is more than made up for in the sheer gameplay possibilities. Respawn most certainly has spared no expense in making this the most action-packed, revolutionary and enjoyable multiplayer shooter that money can buy right now. On the in game battlefield there's two distinct levels of battle - One, the foot soldiers on the ground, like the traditional FPSes from Respawn's Infinity Ward heritage, and two, the battles between the colossal Titans, making the experience all the more exciting as you wait for your Titan to fall into play, allowing you to join the "real" fight. The jump-kit mechanics also offer something new to the otherwise tired Multiplayer FPS genre, in a way combining it with platforming genres - allowing for double-jumps and even wallrunning, and there's a veritable treasure trove of tactics to be discovered with regards to these mechanics. In summary, to describe Titanfall in a nutshell, it's like HAWKEN crossed with the best bits of Call of Duty, with a little Mirror's Edge thrown in. And the result is a delicious and revolutionary action FPS which will always leave you hungry for more.

The way that Call of Duty has been going these days, I was not expecting much with this game. However, I was pleasantly surprised by this Call of Duty outing. Call of Duty games of late have not been very variable. The campaigns have been basically shooting into huge crowds of enemies while trying not to be killed, and the multiplayer's just been the same, but with minor changes. With Black Ops 2, however, this has changed slightly. The campaign does have its fair share of shooting and running and craziness, but there's also some stealth elements mixed in there, as well as some interesting new mechanics, for example the Millimeter Scanner which can detect cloaked enemies, and the real-time strategy-esque"Strike Force" missions which can also be controlled with a Wii Remote. This on top of a surprisingly good storyline helps to breathe a little new life into the ageing Call of Duty series. The multiplayer's had some changes as well - Whilst retaining the gameplay of previous games, new weapons and attachments make the game just a bit more interesting. In addition, the Create-a-Class menu has been completely reworked, now allowing players to select more than one attachment by default, as well as the new Wildcards, taking some of the Perks from previous games and reworking them. The online community is a lot more pleasant too - much fewer "CoD Kids" who throw a tantrum every time you kill them. The use of the Wii U GamePad is also quite interesting - classes can be changed and killstreaks used through the touch screen, overall making the game much more streamlined. All of this makes Call of Duty: Black Ops 2 one of the better Call of Duty games, up there with Modern Warfare. If you're going to play any Call of Duty game, this game, and this particular version, is the way to go.

Since this was my first Fire Emblem game, I wasn't sure what to expect. But when I did play it... I most certainly was not disappointed. There is so much that is good about this game. As a turn-based strategy, it is as engaging as it is fun. It's always so satisfying to see your character smashing another to bits with his huge axe or slicing another with his sword, maybe even frying him with a lightning spell. Another upshot of this game is its characters. Every single character has their own backstory, their own strengths and weaknesses, their own style of play. You can run in all-guns-blazing with Barbarians and swordsmen, or you can play more craftily, attacking enemies from afar with magic and bows. And each character is likeable in their own way, be it because they're funny, because they're cute or because they're just plain awesome. Fire Emblem: Awakening has a character for everything. As I said before, this game is as engaging as it is fun to play, but that's not the only upshot to the game. This game's replay value is endless. You can play it over and over and over again, to perfect your strategy and build the best team you can. And in a game of its type, that is a great addition. The game's utilisation of StreetPass is among some of the best I've seen - one can battle, buy items from or even recruit other players' avatars, making the possibilities all the more endless! There are only two reasons why I did not give this game a perfect score. One, the voice acting. To be more specific, the English voice acting. Some of the characters' voices are good, but some don't really fit their character compared to the Japanese voices, and a fair few (I'm looking at you, Sumia) are absolutely awful. However, the game also includes the option to have the Japanese voice instead of the English, which works around that problem. The game also lacks online multiplayer, something which would make this game ten times more replayable than it already is. However, the StreetPass functionality more than makes up for this. To summarise: For many reasons, Fire Emblem: Awakening is an absolutely amazing game. Owning a 3DS and not also owning this is absolute sacrilege.

I will admit, this game is not perfect, but it is damn close to being so. As someone who played the original Deus Ex: Human Revolution on PS3, the new additions and changes made to the game just make it a much better experience. After the first boss in the base Human Revolution, I was blown over by the sudden switch to full-on combat when I was playing a stealth game. Director's Cut mitigates this by adding stealth and ranged options to the boss fights, making the game much more streamlined. Porting the game to the Wii U was one of the best ideas. The inventive use of the Wii U GamePad makes the game just that little bit more interesting, especially the hacking mechanic, which can now be performed much more quickly with the touch screen. The only criticism I have is the choice to show the sniper reticle on the GamePad, which can sometimes be slightly awkward to use. The game also has some minor framerate issues in the opening movies, however but for its flaws, Director's Cut is a fantastic update to the brilliant game that was Deus Ex: Human Revolution.

I cannot understand how this game is universally acclaimed. For starters, it has way too many flaws. The story is good, but that's the point - the game's all story and no gameplay, to the point that you have to create the gameplay yourself by going and smashing stuff up, diverging from the plot. And as a story gamer, that is something I simply can't do - Early in the game it destroys Nico's character. In addition, the car controls are awful - it feels like I'm driving on a black-ice rink. The missions are boring too - it's just "go drive somewhere and wach a cutscene" or ""take this girl out on a date". In a game like GTA, I want ACTION, not boring stuff like this. I bought this game, expecting something amazing. But what I got was something very, very boring. Grand Theft Auto IV is thoroughly boring and hideously overrated. I might as well play Saints Row, it's the same gamee but done right!