John Walker
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Writing For
Rock Paper Shotgun
Eurogamer
KotakuLatest Reviews
So, yeah, bit of an odd spot, in the end. It was free for a bit last year, which makes it strange that it now costs over a tenner. It is definitely visually improved, but still looks very dated. And the remastering apparently didn’t include addressing the game’s many issues....
The game’s huge for its genre, a good dozen hours at least of bouncing, flinging, zapping and triple-jumping. The new sections only make it better, the new skills fit in perfectly. Few games come close to being this well made, this lovingly animated, and so madly pleasurable to play. If...
Whether it actually improves your typing I'm not sure, but it gives you statistics on your speed and so on, which you can compare before and after I guess. I'd not see the game that way at all, though, and instead recognise it as a novel (fnarr) way to play...
Samorost 3
And you can’t stay mad even when bumping against one of the few frustrating sections. Samorost 3 is so bursting with life, so lovingly crafted, that it’s impossible not to adore. I cannot think of a game whose soundtrack comes close to this, and few that are so pretty. Gnome’s...
The overall result is a delightful, charming, and relaxing affair. It's a Sunday afternoon television of a game, and goodness me, does that have a place. It's funny, daft, and the look is incessantly fantastic. Backgrounds are beautifully drawn, characters are well animated, and the voice cast are all modestly...
I still adore this game. It’s still the smartest, most elegant, most entertaining adventure game ever made. And now, if you want, it looks new and sounds amazing. Not having Laverne sound likes she’s underwater is a real joy. More could have gone into adding detail to particular scenes, and...
Shardlight
A rushed ending is really the game’s only let-down. A larger conspiracy, or more surprising reveal, might have given it a heftier punch. And it certainly needed a few more puzzles in the later stages, a bit more to do. But these are minor niggles in a really splendid adventure...
Bombshell
I’ve admittedly not gotten an enormous way into the game, because good gravy, no one would want to. But it’s been a tortuous, buggy, and most of all, deeply uninteresting slog. If a sudden delight were to arrive around the next corner, it wouldn’t have been worth the effort of...
LEGO Marvel's Avengers
There’s loads to do in Lego Marvel Avengers, but only when you’ve found it. And of course the animation is well done, the ridiculous amount to collect relatively compelling, and if your kid 100%ed Marvel Super Heroes, then this will likely give them a new fix. But it’s a despondent...
Nuclear Throne
If you’re the sort who shies away from bullet hell twin-stick shooters, or finds the permadeath of roguelikes to be too punishing, I think Nuclear Throne might be the game to try. It might well ease you into those troubling waters. I tend toward those instincts too, but this is...
Skyhill
But still, it’s undeniably repetitive. I like the game a lot, and in a large part because of its simplicity. But it’s certainly walking a fine line, possibly limiting how many times someone might want to take another trip down its randomly generated tower knowing they’ve encountered many of its...
Refunct
But what I think Refunct most importantly demonstrates is the nascent skill of developer Dominique Grieshofer. This appears to be his first public project, and what's displayed here is a rare talent for communicating what a player needs to do in a game without ever having to actually say it....