Latest Reviews
A lot of effort was clearly put into Sword Art Online: Hollow Realization, because almost every aspect of its gameplay has an underlying set of properties and nuances to come to grips with. While I usually love that kind of complexity, here it rarely felt meaningful or even coherent. Paired...
Eagle Flight
Eagle Flight surprised me with how quickly I felt at home flying and fighting with other birds above Paris. It features some of the best and most responsive and comfortable gameplay available on the PSVR, though like most current VR games its appeal may be short-lived if you’re not a...
Dishonored 2
With two unique sets of skills to play with across 10 themed chapters that keep things interesting and a gorgeous, evocative world that feels alive, Dishonored 2 is a remarkable experience. Though I would have liked a little bit more originality in its central story, which again revolves around a...
Tyranny
Tyranny is a memorable RPG that looks great and feels fresh, even while largely working in the confines of the old Infinity Engine style. It's also the rare sprawling RPG that invites you to replay it, as its comparatively short running time and significant changes based on choice greatly change...
Put simply, Modern Warfare is no longer modern — though the combat and, in some ways, the action-movie story at its foundation are ageless, its level design and lack of campaign progression reveal its true age. But it’s not outdated, it’s classic, and the considerable effort that has gone into...
There's a massive amount of content in Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare, though especially if you played Black Ops 3 last year there’s little of it that’s particularly impressive. The campaign is ignorable and the multiplayer needs a little technical work to be as good as last year’s, but the...
Owlboy
Owlboy shines thanks to surprisingly varied, Metroidvania-style gameplay and a charming cast of unlikely heroes whose bittersweet journey is among the best I’ve experienced in recent years. Its remarkably detailed pixel art makes every scene more breathtaking than the last, but it’s the relationships between characters in both story and...
Hitman Episode 6: Hokkaido is one of the best levels this season and a great mission to end the year on. The map itself is very good, the atmosphere is excellent, and the hits are challenging. Tricky and more than a little James Bond-esque (the snowed-in private clinic has a...
If you’ve never experienced Skyrim, the Special Edition is certainly an adventure you can’t afford to miss. It still includes many of the original version’s bugs, ugly character models, and weak combat animations, but the memorable world benefits hugely from improved lighting and effects. There's also some appeal here if...
It’s rare that a sequel evolves on every part of the original concept so consistently for the better, but Titanfall 2 is that exception. Its feelgood movement is the foundation for both the engaging action and platforming gameplay of its strong campaign and its over-the-top competitive multiplayer. With bolstered progression,...
Dragon Ball Xenoverse 2’s ambition is admirable, and though it’s riddled with a lot of silly little inconveniences, it mostly succeeds in giving DBZ fans an authentic-feeling world to dive into for the long haul. Though no individual element of its roleplaying or brawling gameplay is overly complex, taken as...
There's a lot to love in the way Clockwork Empires attempts to break up the construction sim framework with Lovecraftian creatures and almost assured destruction, but it often takes too long to get to the best parts and fills that time with dull busywork. For most of the hours spent,...
