Adam Standing
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GameWatcherLatest Reviews
Coming from the developers of Trine I expected a little more quality from Shadwen, the uninteresting environments echo the bland characters and gameplay that evolves too slowly. A level editor and mod support will give it some longevity and you might find some enjoyment from making a purely non-violent run through the game. But even the extra items couldn’t spice it up enough for me to find Shadwen anything other than a passing curio.
Those gripes I’ve outlined are minor as Battlefleet Gothic: Armada conveys the suitably epic universe of Warhammer 40K in an RTS that offers decent depth and a great atmosphere. The campaign is great and if you allow the game to punish you for defeat it’ll bring more impact and consequence to the later battles. Sure, the story is ridiculous but it’s what you’d expect of a 40K and it fits the genre perfectly. With a multiplayer that has as much nuance and depth as each ship you can man...
The Incredible Adventures of Van Helsing 3 is a good-looking game but the lack of features from the previous entries are a sore point. Allocating skills and levelling up are hindered by a very cluttered UI that would put any newcomer off and the range of classes feels a little false given how similar some are to each other. The snarky commentary of the main leads may also irritate after a while but there’s also plenty of genuinely funny moments to liven up what would be a too-serious gothic...
A homage to retro classics is one thing but having gameplay that’s both challenging and fun makes Axiom Verge special. If you grew up in that era, you’d be a fool to miss out on this and if you’re new to the genre, I can’t think of a better entry.
But here’s where my Assassin’s Creed DNA comes in - I loved the Ezio Creed games and since then the bloated tent pole releases have held little interest for me. Here, with a simple tale set in China I was much more willing to play and invest in Jun’s struggle. Chronicles might be a little tame in places and lack enough variety to keep you interested for long, but it has a charm I feel the other Assassin’s Creed games now lack. If the other two Chronicles games can build on this start ...
If none of that sounds like your cup of Earl Grey and you just love 3D puzzle games then The Talos Principle will be worth the price of entry as you can ignore most of the musings on offer here. But I feel you’d be missing out on what makes The Talos Principle so interesting. It’s an experience that truly stretched different parts of my mind in more satisfying way than Portal. Though the puzzles frustrate at times, most are put together thoughtfully and in a simple enough way that you can...
Lords of the Fallen is easy to dismiss as a lowly Dark Souls wannabe and in many ways you’d be right to think that. With a setting and combat system that’s lifted directly from that inspiration it adds a few tweaks here and there but without changing the overall formula. The world and characters are forgettable and uninspired without any of that deeper lore and storytelling Dark Souls is known and loved for. But despite those criticisms Lords of the Fallen is still worth a look if you’r...
Before playing I didn’t expect to be fully enraptured by Transistor, thinking the spectre of Bastion would haunt the experience too much. But neither did I expect Transistor to take that formula and evolve it into something so sublime and handcrafted that tears would roll down my cheek as the credits rolled. From its combat mechanics and customisation, to the narrative and the visually orgasmic art-style, this is an experience to be savoured, to lock yourself away in the confines of your ga...
There’s no doubt in my mind that this is one of the best games ever made and an entertainment experience that should be unreservedly celebrated. Whether this is your first time in the Mass Effect universe or the third version of the game you’ll own, Mass Effect 2 is completely and utterly essential.