Jacob Hull
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Writing For
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2020 has been hurtling down the grid in turbulent air. You know something’s gone awry when Codemasters release the latest in its annual Formula 1 series in line with the beginning of the real F1 season. Usually the developer’s fashionably late; this year, thanks to a worldwide pandemic delaying the start of the season, it’s downright punctual. We’ve become accustomed to seeing modest changes to the series on an annual basis – there are only so many things you can change to an already superb Formula 1 simulator, after all – and the same is also technically true this year. However, given that this is the only way to get a full season of the motorsport in 2020, perhaps this is a more important release than usual – especially for fans.
For a series that has seemingly always lived in the shadow of its publisher’s older siblings, we sure are getting a lot of Star Ocean at the moment; we’ve now had three series entries on PlayStation 4 within the last 18 months. Despite its obvious qualities, the PS2 classic re-release of Star Ocean: Till the End of Time earlier this year showed us just how badly even a great can age. Thankfully, the same cannot be said here; Star Ocean: The Last Hope has aged gracefully, and developer tri-Ace deserves credit for supplying a remaster that markedly improves on the original release.
With Project CARS already in the wild and Gran Turismo Sport on the way later this year, as well as other realistic and excellent racers of their own kind in DiRT Rally and F1 2016 already out, there's plenty of variation and choice in the racing simulator market on the PlayStation 4 right now. But having garnered a hefty following with the modding community on PC, Assetto Corsa finally makes its way to Sony's platform – albeit without the community of tinkerers that perhaps made the game really stand out in the first place.
Narrative is often overlooked in favour of the more natural forms of interactivity that are inherent to video games. But in the last few years, we've gotten a series of thoughtful and engaging titles that have really pushed the medium forward in this regard. Not only have they changed our perceptions of what constitutes a game, but they have also highlighted the narrative flaws of many beloved of the series of the past – no matter how good their gameplay. It's because of this that perhaps the term "walking simulator" is a tad disingenuous. And yes, Oxenfree certainly fits into this category if you're so willing to use it.