Nat Patterson
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Writing For
Checkpoint Gaming Latest Reviews
Every once in a while a game comes along and catches you completely by surprise. Picture this: it’s 2016, and I’ve just been given a PlayStation Vita for Christmas, as well as an obscure JRPG I’ve never heard of. That game was Persona 4 Golden and it consumed my entire life for the next few months. Fast forward to the present day, and Persona 4 Golden is now playable on modern consoles. Am I about to lose another 100-odd hours of my life? You bet your bottom, golden dollar I am.
Like a blessing from the JRPG gods, Atlus and Sega have shone their favour upon gamers and bestowed Persona 3 Portable to us to play on modern consoles. Hailing from the post-Golden Age of JRPGs in the mid-2000s, Persona 3 Portable was originally an updated version of the PS2 classic Persona 3; a dark, brooding teen drama which helped bring Persona into the wider JRPG fan consciousness. The Portable edition launched on PSP in 2009 and added a bunch of features not seen in the original release...
It has been a red-hot minute since a Need For Speed game captured the attention of racing fans. Not since the glory days of Underground, Underground 2, and Most Wanted has one of EA’s racers really excelled. Most recently, Need For Speed Heat found itself on my PS5, courtesy of PlayStation Plus, and it certainly didn’t knock anyone’s socks off. Now comes along Need For Speed Unbound, a hyper-stylised, narrative-focused entry in the long-running series, and once again, my faith in the se...
I’m a big fan of metal. I’m a big fan of video games. I’m also a big fan of shooting demons and ripping them apart. Metal: Hellsinger combines all these qualities into one tight package I never knew I needed. Clearly, people like me were on the minds of developers The Outsiders while concepting Metal: Hellsinger. Look at it from one angle and it appears as just another demon-blasting shooter romp, but look from another angle and Metal: Hellsinger is a creative, engaging, arcadey experie...
I really am a lover of the Soulsborne genre. Possibly one of the newest and most definitive game genres around, the style mixes intense challenge with rewarding gameplay, cryptic and dense plot and lore, and larger-than-life themes. Many games, both indie and big budget, have stepped up to the plate to challenge the big dogs (Dark Souls, Bloodborne, and Nioh to name a few) and failed. Some have succeded to carve out a niche audience for themselves, such as The Surge and recently Stranger of P...
Souls-like games truly are a dime-a-dozen these days. After the success of From Software’s flagship series, Dark Souls, and the subsequent smash hits Bloodborne, Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice, and most recently Elden Ring, the genre is well established as one of the most dominant and popular flavours in the current market. Alongside these large, sprawling 3D beasts are a humble smattering of 2D games that echo the same game design sentiments: overcoming immense challenge, decisive gameplay, and...
If there is one thing Square Enix has managed to consistently bank on, it is the dedication and love their fanbase has for their “classic” back catalogue of titles. On one hand, Square Enix has been striking out hard with some recent releases (looking at you, Babylon’s Fall), yet has been using their other hand to periodically feed us remasters, remakes, and ports of their old classics. As a major Square Enix sweater, I have been consuming these nostalgia-grabs with furious gluttony; I...
As I write this, I am shaking my head. Not in disbelief, but in the bitter realisation that everyone was right. All the signs were there: Babylon’s Fall is going to flop… and it really cannot be understated how hard it flopped. Babylon’s Fall is categorically one of the most disappointing games of the generation so far, and I would posit that it will end up on many “Worst of the Generation” lists. From ham-fisted live service integration, a bland and meandering plot, and visuals tha...
With a name like The Gunk, I really didn’t know what to expect. Upon first hearing the name, my eyebrow cocked and my head turned; what on earth could this game be about? As a primarily PlayStation gamer, it is rare I keep super up-to-date with the happenings on Xbox and PC. However, with 2021 being an absolute banger of a year in the Microsoft space, I am glad I found time to spend with titles such as this. The Gunk is a comfy, cosy, weirdly whimsical little jaunt on an alien planet that ...
From the get-go, Monster Crown wears its inspirations on its sleeves. From the chip-tune melodies, 8-bit Gameboy-esque visual style, and charming monster designs, it is pretty clear what players are going to be in for with this game. Recently coming out of early access on Steam and also launching on Nintendo Switch, Monster Crown aims to bring back the feelings many of us had collecting, battling, and evolving creatures while undertaking a coming-of-age RPG tale. I’ve always been a pretty...