Platform: Xbox One

INSIDE

Limbo was a runaway success for Playdead in 2010, back when the term ‘indie game’ actually meant something. Thanks to the growth of digital distribution and early access programmes, of course, video games are now more often ‘indie’ than not.

INSIDE is Playdead’s sophomore effort, a long-awaited return to the industry they helped shape amongst the likes of Braid and Super Meat Boy. It’s a technical progression from its spiritual predecessor, Limbo, and oppressively atmospheric. Unfortunately, this doesn’t always result in something that is fun to play.

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Battleborn: A Post-Overwatch Review

If there’s one genre in vogue right now, it’s the hero shooter. Whilst we have Paragon, Paladins and Lawbreakers to look forward to later in the year, we’ve just been hit by two big ones both vying for our attention: Overwatch and Battleborn. If you follow video game news at all, you’ll know that one is ‘winning’ by a large margin – and it certainly isn’t Gearbox Software’s effort.

Releasing two similar, competing AAA games within a short timeframe is typically suicide for at least one. Battleborn hails from the developers of Borderlands and had the advantage of a slightly earlier release, but it didn’t stand a chance against the indomitable might of Blizzard and the hype train which had been steaming behind Overwatch for some time.

Reasons for comparison are clear. They’re both first-person shooters set in a fantasy universe with a diverse roster of heroes to choose from. To the uninitiated, they’re practically the same game. In reality, this could hardly be further from the truth. And whereas Battleborn is far from perfect and falls short of the refinement present in its adversary, it’s a distinct experience of its own which warrants a look.

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The Witcher 3: Blood and Wine

If forced to sum up the second and final piece of DLC for The Witcher 3, Blood and Wine, with one word, you could do a lot worse than ‘skies’.

Grammatically speaking, just ‘sky’ would be more appropriate, as this is all still one marvellously intricate, interconnected world. But it would be so far removed from the aesthetic and emotional crux of the sort of splash that the early moments of Blood and Wine makes as to actually feel like a cheekily misleading untruth.

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Overwatch

Do you ever have it where three or four games all merge into one in your mind? For the longest time, Overwatch, Battleborn, Paragon, Lawbreakers – it all became too much and turned into white noise for me. I simply stopped paying attention to them all.

This stopped for me when the review code for Overwatch landed in my e-mails, so I had no choice but to take an interest. This was lucky for me as it turns out Overwatch is an outstanding multiplayer shooter, though there are some caveats that I need to discuss.

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Hitman – Marrakesh

You should all be aware by now that Hitman is releasing a new level every month. If you didn’t know that – you do now. I’ve had the pleasure of playing the previous two so it made sense for me to have a look at the third one too. This time it sees Agent 47 visit Marrakesh, which is new, and his job is to kill two targets. Which isn’t new.

Strutting through the crowded markets, making your way to the rooftop of the bazaars before finally entering the Swedish consulate, it’s a real journey that Agent 47 goes through, but is it a journey filled with intrigue and suspense or is it a dull trek past a bunch of stalls selling tat on a hot day?

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Dark Souls III

What’s the first thing you do after being away for a few days? If I was to take a guess, you’re like me and crawl into the warm comfort of your very own bed, pull the covers up and drift off into a nice slumber – safe in the knowledge that this is the bed that had been calling to you all weekend.

Dark Souls III is much like that bed after a few days away. It provides the safe, warm comfort of pitch-perfect gameplay and challenge the series is known for. This time round there are a few changes thrown into the mix, as well as it being a breathtaking visual feast.

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Hitman – Sapienza

It’s safe to say that I’ve had my fill of Paris. I’ve spent time pretending I’m a model, making poisonous cocktails and offing fashion designers that weren’t my target but were too annoying to ignore. In fact, so much time went by that I was starting to worry that Hitman wouldn’t be able to meet its deadlines after promising us we’d have a new level every month.

Luckily, slightly more than a month later, we arrive at Sapienza. A quaint and seemingly quiet Italian beach-side town. You’re greeted with a fantastic view of the piaza, a splendid church and a briefing that tells you there’s a deadly pair of scientists to murder and a deadly toxin to destroy. Sorry Agent 47, this is no holiday. The only break here is the one in your target’s neck.

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Zen Pinball 2: Aliens Pack

I’ve mentioned it a number of times now, but for those that haven’t been paying attention – I’ve fallen in love with Zen Pinball 2. I know, I sit here with technology capable of amazing things, able to transport me to amazing new worlds and whatnot, but what do I do? I emulate an old-fashioned arcade staple which is now practically extinct.

In my defence, Zen Pinball 2 does things that no real-life pinball table could do. Most tables contain all sorts of outrageous animatronics and ramp formations that just couldn’t or wouldn’t get made. So, not only does Zen Pinball 2 create amazing tables, as the title of this post suggests, they pick up some amazing licenses too. It’s fair to say that even if I wasn’t a massive fan of ‘Aliens’, I’d still have glowing things to say about these tables.

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DiRT Rally

It’s almost nine years since Codemasters introduced the DiRT name with the fantastic Colin McRae: DiRT, a game that is remembered well for two reasons. One is that it was both ambitious and enjoyable and set a new bar for rally titles, the other is its release the day before a tragic helicopter accident took the life of Colin McRae, his son and two others.

Since then, Codemasters had not only dropped the use of the Colin McRae name but switched focus from the traditional style of rally entirely. The results were DiRT 2, 3 and DiRT Showdown. These three games, whilst really good in their own right, all had a general focus on the less traditional forms of off-road racing like Gymkhana and Rallycross. They included point-to-point stages, but they were short and typically low in numbers. As a bit of a purist when it comes to a few facets of motorsport, I enjoyed the last few DiRT games to an extent but always felt like Codemasters had lost their way just a little.

Fast forward to a year ago and you can colour me, as just about everyone else, surprised when a Codemasters title named DiRT Rally popped up on Steam Early Access. It was the first case I could remember of a large AAA developer using Steam’s Early Access as a platform for an already established franchise, and I had to jump in on it. I bought into it, and as the months rolled by I watched as the game slowly had content and features added, as well as how engaged the developers were with the community about their development plans going forward. Not only this, but they seemed to be heading in a very good direction. More focus on point-to-point rallying, with long and open stages, as well as Hillclimb, Rallycross and a host of online features. Throw in a focus on simulating real-world handling techniques and vehicle dynamics, and DiRT Rally showed more promise on this front than we’d seen from the previous DiRT titles combined.

It was only a few short months ago in December that DiRT Rally was released properly on the PC, so the wait for it to head to the modern generation consoles hasn’t been a tense nor long one. After spending hours sliding, rolling, spinning and crashing as many rally cars as possible, it’s easy for me to tell you that whilst DiRT Rally redefines console rally games – once again cementing Codemasters’ position at the top of the racing development pyramid – its brilliance shines heavily on the areas it falls short, holding it back from being something truly special.

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Tom Clancy’s The Division

Tom Clancy’s The Division has been on the radar of many for a long time. Touted as a potential Destiny-killer, it’s the newest entry in the increasingly popular new-gen pseudo-genre of adding MMO mechanics and persistence to everything – in this case, a third-person shooter. With Ubisoft proudly stating that it’s the fastest-selling new IP ever made based on week one sales – yes, even beating the aforementioned Destiny – there’s no doubt that it’s been a commercial success at the very least.

Initial sales for an MMO are only the first battle of a long war, however. Have Ubisoft and Massive Entertainment laid down a solid enough framework to build on with new content and expansions over the coming months and years? Will the endgame keep players satisfied long after reaching the level cap? Is this even a world you’ll want to spend your time in, anyway? After investing a good chunk of time into The Division since launch, I’m not convinced that I can give a wholly positive answer to any of these questions.

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Far Cry Primal

From the moment it was announced, Ubisoft’s decision to make Far Cry Primal was met with intrigue and more than a few questions: How well would a Far Cry game work without guns? Is fighting with stones and sharp sticks going to be as satisfying as with a flamethrower and grenades? Some of my friends thought it was a ‘brave’ move, and all I could ponder was the vast scope of great stories that could be told from that era of human life.

After 30-odd hours of skull-bashing and crouching in the reeds, I feel confident in saying that Far Cry Primal is not really brave, but it does put forward a big AAA take on primitive tribal life, all the while remaining true to the series’ recent direction.

As Takkar (or as his people call him, the Beast Master), it falls to you to explore the land of Oros and reunite your people, the Wenja tribe. Along the way you’ll take on other enemy tribes, hunt down and be hunted by animals and beasts, light giant bonfires and explore a vast and lush wilderness that is as arresting as it is threatening. It’s an inviting mix on the face of it, but ordinary melee combat, stale progression mechanics, a complete lack of co-operative multiplayer, and a narrative that lacks any kind of meaningful hooks make Far Cry Primal fade into history without making any significant impact.

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Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Storm 4

What’s the antithesis to the idea that modern games are devoid of colour? Put simply, CyberConnect2’s latest Naruto game, Naruto Shippuden: Ultimate Ninja Storm 4. This is a game that will bathe you in bright lights and pretty colours for as long as you chose to spend playing it.

If you like Anime, love Naruto, or just want a surprisingly solid fighting game, then this is the game you want to play. It’s not without flaws, but I was genuinely surprised by the way it drew me in, even if I had my fill without extensive play of the other modes.

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Arslan: The Warriors of Legend

Arslan: The Warriors of Legend, is both something of a mouthful, and also the latest non-Dynasty Warriors Musou title to be released by Omega Force and Tecmo Koei. Based on the first season of a new anime series, itself based on a manga, which is based on a long running Japanese book series, which is based on a tale from Persia (thanks Wikipedia!), given it is a Musou game, there’s likely to be little in the way of surprises.

Is it worth a go anyway?

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The Crew: Wild Run

The Crew was a slightly odd proposition, taking Ubisoft’s Assassin’s Creed and Far Cry open-world formula and applying it to a driving game. Now with Wild Run, we’ve got a number of additions that add both graphical touches and a few changes to the existing formula in the guise of The Summit.

Does it hit its peak, or is it running on fumes?

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Hitman

They say that practice makes perfect and it’s clear that IO Interactive believe in this saying. They’ve been making Hitman games for decades now, as this is now the sixth ‘main’ Hitman game. IO have also taken this idiom as a starting point for Hitman’s structure. This is a game that expects you to play through each level multiple times, finding the multitude of ways that you can complete each mission.

I say ‘each level’, yet this is a game that currently only has one full level and two tutorial levels to its name. This is because Hitman is now an episodic title with new missions being released every month. This somehow isn’t a problem and might even prove to be a real strength, assuming future levels are as strong as this first offering.

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SteamWorld Heist

I really don’t play my 3DS nearly as much as I should. I don’t think this is all my fault, though, as a lot of developers keep on making huge, sprawling epics rather than bite-sized chunks of joy that I actually have the time to play. If developers could bear in mind those of us that have full-time jobs, significant others and interests other than gaming in mind, that’d be great.

I say all of this because I’ve found that SteamWorld Heist is a perfect package in just about every way. It’s a perfectly accessible, turn-based strategy game, meaning I didn’t have hours of tutorials to work through. It’s perfectly suited to the 3DS, taking advantage of the layered 3D effects. On top of this, it’s the perfect length, meaning ten hours later and I’d seen and done mostly everything, leaving me completely satisfied.

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Agatha Christie: The ABC Murders

Have you ever wondered what it would be like to be Hercule Poirot, star of Agatha Christie’s long-running detective series? If the answer is yes, then here is your chance; just pick up Agatha Christie: The ABC Murders to become the detective himself.

Except, don’t do that. The latest game from developer Artifact Studios does a terrible job of making you feel like a detective at all, let alone one of the most famous fictional sleuths of our time. Add to that poor design, technical issues and some of the worst voice-acting I have ever encountered and it is simply not worth your time or money.

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Rainbow Six Siege

We’ve all had moments when playing a game where a plan comes together. There’s nothing more satisfying that setting up a trap or carrying out an attack that works flawlessly. This feeling of accomplishment is only multiplied when carried out in a team setting and you get to see everyone doing their bit to complete one goal.

Rainbow Six Siege tries to evoke what Left 4 Dead and, to a certain extent, Payday has done before: Give you a tough task and a team, and force you to work together. Sadly, Rainbow Six Siege is totally unforgiving, meaning the moments where your plans work are amazing, and the more common moments where they don’t are a real buzz kill.

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Just Cause 3

I admit, I haven’t played any of the Just Cause games before, so when the hype began for the third game my interest was definitely piqued. I had always heard of the sheer joy you could experience in Just Cause 2 by running around and blowing stuff up, finding creative uses of the tether and generally having fun. It sounded like the perfect dumb sandbox, so I went into Just Cause 3 hoping for much of the same.

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Blood Bowl 2

Let’s start this off by saying I’m a big fan of Games Workshop. They have produced a number of great worlds and amazing miniatures which I appreciate even though they’re expensive and I’m crap at painting anything smaller than the walls of my flat.

Despite my keenness, I’ve never actually ‘played’ any Games Workshop game. They take ages to set up and are full of dice rolling which is a little slow and a lot tedious. This is where Cyanide’s faithful recreation of Blood Bowl comes in. Its biggest strength is that it’s a streamlined version of the somewhat clunky to play miniature game with some nice visuals. Its biggest weakness is that it’s a streamlined version of the somewhat clunky miniature game with some not so nice bugs.

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BlazBlue: Chronophantasma Extend

BlazBlue is one of those fighting game series that I really admire, but have never been able to truly master. The last time I delved into the series was for review, in fact, back when BlazBlue: Continuum Shift Extend launched alongside Vita. Though I declared it one of the finest fighting games ever made, due to its complexity I’ve still yet to hit the same rhythm that I’ve always found so natural with the likes of Street Fighter, Mortal Kombat, and, after many attempts, Marvel vs. Capcom 3.

With their latest entry, BlazBlue: Chronophantasma Extend, it seems that Arc Systems Works have taken great strides to ensure that this BlazBlue not only flows a lot more naturally, but is a lot more welcoming to all…

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Halo 5: Guardians

Ever since I bought my very first Xbox with Halo: Combat Evolved in the bundle, I have been a massive Halo fan. It was the fiction that drew me in, that first game creating a universe I wanted to invest time in. Each subsequent game has added to it, and now with books, films and comics, the fiction has become massively fleshed out.

The latest release in the epic saga is Halo 5: Guardians, with a story that goes in unexpected ways and interesting changes made to the multiplayer. Not all of those changes seem to work, but 343 Industries latest game is still a fantastic shooter.

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Need for Speed

Having grown up a fan of the original Need for Speed series since its early days on PC during the mid-nineties, I was one of those that watched the series’ transition from exotic, high-performance sports cars through to the Underground, tuner-era Toyotas and Nissans with disgust. That dash of car-related elitism, combined with my rather cynical view of the typical EA blockbuster formula, put me off many NFS games since. Of the few that I did actually play, I was put off even further by the feel of the driving, which is a failure to nail the most integral feature in any car game.

I’ll completely admit it: I came into this expecting the worst. Let’s be honest here, it’s really easy to be cynical about Need for Speed. Ghost Games decision to use story through live action footage has been endlessly dissected before release, and with good reason: It’s bloody terrible, but I’ll unpack that more in a moment or two. Plus, how many times have we seen the term “reboot” become associated with under-realised potential?

In many ways, my preconceptions were entirely unfounded; in spite of some spectacularly poor design choices that hold it back from being something truly special, Need for Speed nails the fundamentals vital to an arcade racer.

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Star Wars Battlefront

A long time ago, in a galaxy not too far away from this one (because it is this one) I, like many Star Wars fans, got very excited at the prospect of playing a new Battlefront. The series was, in my opinion, one of the best Star Wars franchises to come out of Lucas Arts, and their dissolution came as sad news to all that were hoping the rumours of the in-development Battlefront III would become a reality. When EA took up the mantle of the White Knight to ensure a Battlefront release on DICE’s Frostbite 3 Engine, people were rightfully excited.

Since that initial announcement however, EA did what it does best by slowly and surely letting down its user base with news of less maps, less game modes and lower player caps. The final product has me mimicking my reaction to the to the Star Wars movie prequels: A sense of awe at once again being immersed in the Star Wars Universe, but also an uneasy hollowness, as it only digs superficially under the surface of the immense source material…

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Assassin’s Creed: Syndicate

Whether you love it or hate it, Assassin’s Creed has been coming and going on a yearly basis for a little while now. After the abysmal time Ubisoft had with the launch of Assassin’s Creed: Unity, it looked like the series might have started going the way of its once-beloved Desmond Miles. Alas, Ubisoft Quebec have done a pretty good job of helping pull the series back up on its feet, but sadly it’s still wobbly in some of the usual places.

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Transformers: Devastation

“A cursory evaluation of Decepticon capabilities indicates a distinct tactical deficiency.”

Perceptor calls that out to Ultra Magnus during the attack on Autobot City in the 1986 classic Transformers: The Movie, and it pretty much sums up the war between them.

Optimus Prime and company took on a superior force, one that has no regard for sentient life, and won every time. Yes, it became predictable, but Transformers hasn’t become a classic franchise for nothing. The brand may have been diluted with the recent Michael Bay movies, but Platinum Games have just released Transformers: Devastation; a G1 inspired game that ticks all the right notes for fans of the bearer of the Matrix, but it might leave more casual fans, especially younger ones that only know the live action movies, a little cold.

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Bedlam

The premise behind Bedlam is intriguing. Taking its cue from a book that itself is a love letter to gaming history, the game is an first person shooter that jumps around a few genres. Unfortunately, this grand idea is let down by some very poor execution.

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Pro Evolution Soccer 2016

There was a time when Pro Evolution Soccer (PES) used to be the unrivalled king of football games. Sure, FIFA’s always had the official licenses and had the privilege of using real footballer’s names but PES was always better. Having my beloved Arsenal be referred to as North London Reds was a price worth paying.

Notice I said ‘was’. FIFA is now not just the official product of the officially corrupt governing body of world football, but EA’s games have been absolutely cracking for the last six or so years and as such, PES lost its crown and has been nothing more than an also-ran in the race for football game supremacy. This year? It’s safe to say that this is a beautiful rendition of the beautiful game.

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Destiny: The Taken King

In the infinite vastness of the universe, a year is but a moment. A fleeting period that adds little to the ever expanding void, but to sentient beings can seem like forever, where even a fraction of it can change their lives forever.

In gaming terms, a hell of a lot can change in just one year. The Taken King is Destiny’s newest expansion, bringing with it a raft of changes and an update to the version number: This is Destiny 2.0 and the game is all the better for it, feeling like this is the game Bungie wanted to put out in the first place.

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FIFA 16

In terms of football games, with the exception of the excellent (and infuriating) Football Manager series, nothing really matters outside of the realms of FIFA and PES, right? As things have panned out for the past several seasons, FIFA has had the upper hand both on and off the virtual pitch. Whilst I agree largely with that sentiment, I’m not so sure that’s going to remain the case with FIFA 16. Off the pitch, FIFA is still number one with all the licences and the high-end production values that you’d expect from an EA title. On the pitch it’s a different story though, with very little change overall from last year’s entry.

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Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain

After confirming the identity and location of an injured prisoner from a Soviet Compound in Afghanistan, I could make my escape. The prisoner in question is an expert in biomechanics and extracting him to my offshore military base would allow me to develop the technology to increase the durability and power of my prosthetic arm, making enemy close-quarter takedowns more time efficient. Unfortunately, his injuries won’t allow him to sustain the shock impact of a Fulton extraction, so he would have to be carried out of the base to a safe distance where the support helicopter could land without sustaining heavy damage and pick us both up.

The sun was rising and without the cover of nightfall, I was at risk of being spotted by one of the guards in the tower. With little time, I opted to ‘go loud’ to ensure the quickest optimal route. By taking out the base’s air communications satellite with a C4 charge, my support would be able to land close to my current location and evacuate quickly before the Soviets could effectively respond. It was a risky move. The helicopter sustained heavy fire but I was able to lay down suppressing fire with the chopper’s Gatling gun for just long enough to exit the hot zone. The mission was completed but I had lost points for raising an alarm and killing the guards as the chopper ascended to ‘Flight of the Valkyries’ blaring out of the speakers. Had I equipped myself with the appropriate camouflage for the rocky terrain or invested in a more durable suppressor for my tranquilizer gun before attempting to rescue the POW, I could have netted myself those extra points and a better mission rank.

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Rugby World Cup 2015

When I think about it, sporting World Cups are pretty amazing things unto themselves. Millions of fans, usually from all corners of the globe, converging to the one place to celebrate the sport they adore and to watch the best players in the world battle it out on the field. The planning and dedication it takes from everyone involved in pulling these tournaments off is quite staggering, but it’s all done for the good of the game.

From the opening kick-off, it becomes flagrantly apparent that Rugby World Cup 2015 does not care for the ‘good of the game’. Not only is it poorly presented, with its bland menus and outdated looks, but it’s essentially a re-skinned version of the previously released Rugby 15. That, in itself, raises a whole bunch of issues in my book, but I won’t touch on them here. All you need to know is that Rugby World Cup 2015 is objectively, a bad game.

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F1 2015

In the real world, the Formula 1 paddock is currently on its summer break with the teams and drivers all enjoying a well-deserved rest. The rest of us, meanwhile, are left wandering the landscape looking for ways to get our F1 fix. Is F1 2015 the best way to get that fix? Well… yes, but that’s also like describing Pastor Maldonado as a Grand Prix winner, which in fairness he is. But he’s still Pastor Maldonado.

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MotoGP 15

Motorcycle racing, even just motorbikes in general, are pretty difficult to translate into a fun video game. Compared to cars, bikes are unresponsive and difficult to maneuver. This rings true in MotoGP 15, and being more a racing car guy, I found the transition from four wheels to two to be not only frustrating, but also challenging and rewarding at times. It’s not going to set the racing world on fire, but MotoGP 15 is a good representation of modern-day motorbike racing that fans will mostly appreciate, although it suffers a few technical setbacks along the way.

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The Witcher III: Wild Hunt

There’s not much that can be said about the latest instalment of The Witcher franchise that hasn’t already been said. Visually it is impressive, with an engaging story, set in a world overflowing with character, life, and humour. Having missed the boat with Dragon Age: Inquisition, it was nice to truly engage myself with this world and its inhabitants.

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SteamWorld Dig (Xbox One)

SteamWorld Dig has been out for almost two years, and is on basically all of the platforms imaginable. Back in August 2013 on the Nintendo 3DS it received a very warm welcome, as did the following Wii U and PlayStation releases. Just recently, Image & Form put its action-digging platformer on the Xbox One, and I had my first chance to check it out. As has been echoed by Neil Hickson in his review, SteamWorld Dig is simply wonderful. It’s not a long tale, the campaign coming in at just over 6 hours for me, but so fulfilling and well-paced is the journey that you could easily return for a second or third playthrough.

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Project CARS

The rain is driving down hard at Watkins Glen International as the rolling grid moves towards the start/finish line. I’m starting well towards the back of the 36 car grid in my LMP1 Prototype, and I can hardly see a thing. The setting sun is heavily veiled by storm clouds as I turn my headlights and wipers on, but there is already such little visibility from the cockpit that there is almost no point. My mind turns to survival; I have to make it through the first lap, and from there I can build a rhythm.

“One corner at a time“, I tell myself as the field edges closer to the green flag. My race engineer barks loudly over the intercom. “We’re coming to the green… I’ll call it for you” he says. The tension rises as I roll towards the lights, waiting for the call.

“Green green green!”

Project CARS is a unique racing title brought to life by the experienced crew at Slightly Mad Studios (SMS), of Need for Speed: Shift fame. Funded via their unique, in-house WMD (World of Mass Development) Portal, SMS positioned themselves as such to allow player involvement from the very outset of development. The result is a broad-reaching, highly scalable simulation that succeeds in pushing the limits nine tenths of the way, only to sputter across the finish line.

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Dark Souls II: Scholar of the First Sin

Let me get this out of the way up front: Dark Souls II isn’t that hard. Shocking, I know. Is it demanding? Hell yes. Does it require you to pay attention at all times? Definitely, but I do not consider it hard, just a game that requires you to think about what you’re doing and actually play it, and that makes it a bit of a revelation.

Dark Souls II: Scholar of the First Sin is the updated and remastered version of the original Dark Souls II, this time including all DLC and with a visual upgrade to bring it to PS4 (the version I played) and Xbox One. I haven’t played any of the Souls games before, nor Bloodborne, but having put many hours into this remaster, I can honestly say I should have played them well before now.

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Dragon Ball XenoVerse

Dragon Ball XenoVerse is a love letter to fans of Dragon Ball. It’s not even really for just casual fans; it’s for the hardcore fans that have watched Dragon Ball Z in its entirety and are intimately familiar with its characters and story. Right out of the gate, XenoVerse welcomes you into a narrative that is well underway. If you are unfamiliar with what happened on the show you will be lost, and nothing in the game will make an effort to help you find your way.

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Borderlands: The Handsome Collection

Super-slick remasters are all the rage at the moment, although it’s fair to say that a few of them have been closer to a rust bucket with a slap of new paint rather than a thorough refurbish. I’m looking at you, Halo.

The good news is that this is far from the case with Borderlands: The Handsome Collection. It’s not free from faults (or vaults); not at all, but this solidly remastered, collaborative effort by Gearbox Studios, Armature Studios and Iron Galaxy Games, packs so much bang for buck on the one disc that it’s hard to come up with any reason not to add this to your… handsome collection…

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Ride

The last few weeks I have found myself engaged in a battle that has tested me like no other. Every time I think I’ve sorted it out, something comes along to knock me back down to size. All the while I’m wondering what is wrong with me, and why others don’t seem to have the problems I’m having. Maybe I’m just not strong enough to endure. Despite this pain, I keep trying, only to fall on my face again.

‘Yeah, but everyone struggles with Bloodborne, it’s meant to be a challenge’, I hear you say. That may be true, but this isn’t Bloodborne I’m talking about; it’s Ride, the latest motorcycle racing release from Milestorm Studios. I don’t think I’ve experienced a game that makes me question my gaming abilities so much.

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Life is Strange: Episode 2

Life is Strange: Episode 2 continues the tale of Max, a gifted photography student who also happens to have the ability to alter time. In the first episode, premonitions of giant twisters, drug-dealing students waving guns about and the rekindling of an old friendship were the main focus.

Episode 2 concentrates mainly on the re-united friends of Max and Chloe, as they see if their relationship is as strong as it was or if too much has changed in the intervening years. Like the previous episode of Life is Strange, it’s mainly a sedate adventure game that doesn’t have you making life or death decisions all the time. This episode goes a little too far with the laid-back tempo, however, and turns into a lazy afternoon with an annoying acquaintance rather than an engaging series of events.

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Dynasty Warriors 8: Empires (PlayStation 4)

When you’ve never tried even a single iteration of a long-running franchise, it makes you wonder what you’re missing out on. Since its inception in the PlayStation 2 era (in the form we’re familiar with, at least), the Dynasty Warriors series has probably put out something like seven-hundred and eighty-one games out by now, give or take; but until recently I was yet to try one. Having a couple of mates that are long-time fans, I wanted to see what all the fuss was about. So with the seven-hundredth and eighty-second title coming out on PlayStation 4 and Xbox One, Dynasty Warriors 8: Empires, I thought it was about time I put it through its paces.

I’m sorry to say that I needn’t have bothered. Despite being far from a dreadful experience, Dynasty Warriors 8: Empires feels dated to the point that I can’t imagine it must have evolved far past its PlayStation 2 roots.

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Resident Evil: Revelations 2

It’s fair to say that Resident Evil has had an image crisis over the last decade. Having been removed from its survival horror roots, Resident Evil games have gone from light-gun games, to online shooters, to all-out action games. All achieving varying degrees of success, these games have made it hard to say what a Resident Evil game is or what the series even stands for any more.

Then along came Revelations. Returning to traditional Resident Evil values of tight corridors, limited ammo and shambling creatures, the handheld title found a lot of love (though I wasn’t keen on the PS3 version). So that’s why we’re here with Resident Evil: Revelations 2. Does that mean we’re dealing with a game that has some real bite, or has the series finally lost all of its teeth?

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Zombie Army Trilogy

Sometimes, ‘by the numbers’ is a good thing. NASA checking off by the numbers before a shuttle launch is a good thing. Painting by the numbers is a good thing, assuming you have no talent that is. Stock market trading, by the numbers, is what it is all about.

When it is bad though, you make a game like Zombie Army Trilogy. The latest title from Rebellion is a perfectly working, competent game, ticking all the boxes it must to do exactly what it sets out to for a third person shooter. There just isn’t any soul.

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Dragon Age: Inquisition

I learnt a lot about myself in 2014, but pertinently for my games writing, I learnt that it’s probably not a great idea to take on four reviews with a potential 350-400 hours combined gameplay at the same time. Dragon Age: Inquisition was ultimately the game that suffered the most as a result of a busy period that gave me an unprecedented writing and gaming burnout, something from which I’m only just recovering.

Out of the four games I was reviewing at the time, Inquisition was actually the one I started first and, at around the twenty hour mark, I found I just still wasn’t enjoying myself. It was weird, I liked the previous entries and it had all the hallmarks of a game I’d enjoy, but something just wasn’t clicking.

After consulting with some peers, I decided that I might have been the problem. I was possibly too obsessed with ticking off the quests as I would have – and have loved doing – in something like Skyrim, and wasn’t enjoying the structure as perhaps intended. I decided at that point I would have to accept that I’d be delivering a very late review regardless, take a break from it, finish other outstanding work and come back later with a fresher frame of mind. That time is now.

Sadly, time didn’t quite make the heart grow fonder in this instance, as while I can accept I had some failings coming in to it, Inquisition has enough of its own too…

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LA Cops

When I think of isometric shooters, my mind is cast all the way back to my childhood and a game called Syndicate by the since-defunct Bullfrog Productions. The developers of the newly released LA Cops actually cite Syndicate as one of their inspirations, and it’s no surprise; Syndicate was a wonderful game for its time.

What LA Cops is not, however, is a wonderful game. Its frustrating lack of cohesive gameplay, along with its poorly written and performed narrative, casts a shadow over anything it does right. That, unfortunately, is very little.

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Resident Evil HD Remaster

I’m going to be honest. I’m a bit late to the party on the whole Resident Evil thing, my only foray into the franchise being Resident Evil: Revelations on the Nintendo 3DS. So when Capcom released a high definition version of the GameCube Remake, I decided it was about time I gave it a crack.

I’m glad I did…

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Evolve

If you strip away the monsters, the sci-fi setting and the lovable rogues, Evolve – the latest game from Left 4 Dead developer Turtle Rock Studios – is about friendship, pure and simple. Assuming you actually have friends to play it with, Evolve will provide you with a great night of entertainment for all.

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Dying Light

I’ve never been too keen on zombie games. I’m a casual fan of Call of Duty but stay clear of the Zombies mode, and even the very popular Left 4 Dead doesn’t particularly float my boat. I can’t put my finger on why, but I rarely feel much more than apathy over most titles featuring the shambling undead.

Dead Island did not buck this trend: after a little while repetition started to set in, and I found navigating the map a chore. On reviewing its sequel, Riptide, I discovered the same problems. The flawed level scaling of the enemies left progression feeling meaningless too, as the zombies actually seemed to get tougher as you levelled up.

You’d expect that Techland’s next zombie game, Dying Light, would foster the same lack of enthusiasm in me. I’m pleased, and surprised, to say that it’s a very different story.

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Saints Row: Gat out of Hell

Are you tired of games launched on last-gen consoles getting re-releases? Well, I’ve got some bad news for you, because here we’ve got Saints Row 4 making its Playstation 4 and Xbox One debut. The good news is that Saints Row 4 was a hell of a game and this new version comes bundled with the Gat out of Hell expansion and a bunch of DLC.

Whilst we won’t be going over the details of Saints Row 4 again (go back and read our original review here), we will be looking at the Gat out of Hell add-on. A stand-alone title, Gat out of Hell is less of an expansion and more of a spreading of existing content over a new town. The question is, is it spread a little too thin?

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The Escapists

Did you ever see The Shawshank Redemption? Ever wanted to know what it’s like to be Tim Robbins, carefully planning and executing an escape plan, years in the making? The Escapists is about as close as you’ll ever want to get to picking fights with inmates, chipping away at brick walls with forks, or tunnelling with plastic spoons.

Sadly, that can be as frustrating as it sounds.

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Lords of the Fallen

Thanks to From Software and the Souls games of the past few years, a new sub-genre of the nails hard action RPG is gradually arising, with many enjoying the exceedingly tough challenge they present. Deck 13 Interactive and CI Games are the latest developers to give it a go with Lords of the Fallen, which owes more than a passing nod to the Souls games.

Is this a Souls-crushing victory, or a soul-crushing disappointment? The truth is somewhere between the two.

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Assassin’s Creed: Unity

The French Revolution was one of the most notorious and volatile periods of history that ushered in a new age of democracy and socialist thought. It was rife with famine, disease and ghostly spectres that passed freely through walls and floors.

This is the 18th Century Paris that Assassin’s Creed: Unity sought to create. Otherwise, I can’t think of any other logical explanation as to why Ubisoft would ever want to retroactively adjust the last detail in the retelling of the famous setting.

Jokes aside, Assassin’s Creed: Unity had a rocky start to say the least. It was wrought with game breaking bugs, visual glitches and a drop in frame rate that made PC gamers everywhere cry out in anguish. We lowly console gamers had a rotten taste left in our collective mouths too, when Ubisoft announced the game would be locked at 30 frames per second on the next gen systems with a resolution of 900 pixels. It was a strong blow and hard to understand the justification when it had been touted as the ‘definitive next-gen experience’.

With that in mind, Ubisoft employees have spent their time since Unity’s release with their heads dragged along the ground, presumably to have the position already assumed when bowing in shame for being just the worst. Something happened however, halfway through reviewing this game… A four gigabyte patch.

With that in mind, I made my best efforts to revaluate my jaded view of Unity to see if any diamonds could be found in the rough.

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Life is Strange: Episode 1

Don’t you get tired of games that keep on asking you to save the world, otherthrow oppressive governments or take on entire armies? It’s nice to see that Life is Strange is a game that’s about life as a gifted photography student in a small American town. No frills, no fuss – wait – she can rewind time. Oooh…

Still, the first episode of Life is Strange is a relatively sedate and unique experience that sets up a bunch of questions and offers very few answers. Only time will tell if this is a series that will pay off but the main thing is that after my time with episode 1 of Life is Strange it left me wanting more. That’s about as much as you could hope for the first in a five part series.

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Far Cry 4

‘If it’s not broken, don’t fix it’. How much do you buy into that maxim? Do you seek games that present brand new ideas that aren’t available anywhere else? Do you bemoan AAA game development for the way it uses cookie-cutter templates to produce games that increasingly share their ideas. Are you tired of Ubisoft’s ‘Climb a Tower to Find Missions’ game design philosophies?

If you answered yes to the questions above, Far Cry 4 is not for you. It’s a game that treads old ground, wears its Ubisoft heritage proudly and never dares break any mould of any sort. It’s also a lot of fun, so you’d be kind of missing out. Kind of really missing out.

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The Crew

Back in November I previewed the Beta of Ubisoft’s road-based RPG, The Crew, and had a good time with it. Now that it’s been released and its full suite of features are open, has my opinion changed?

The short answer is ‘no’. The Beta gave a taste of the huge playing field, complete with a plethora of activities, and I considered the experience good, solid fun – albeit with some flaws. This still remains the case. The Crew feels unashamedly like an Ubisoft game, but I strangely keep finding parallels with another, completely unrelated, title: Destiny.

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Grand Theft Auto V (Now includes PS4/Xbox One)

Few franchises can generate the incredible amount of hype that Rockstar’s Grand Theft Auto amasses, but it’s easy to see why. This is a series that changed our perception of open-world games and pushed hardware as much as it did boundaries. A series that with a single online trailer can bring the internet to a crawl as it struggles under its demand.

Despite the hype, however, it also rarely fails to deliver.

It’s fair to say that the latest iteration, GTA V, has been one of the most hotly anticipated games of all time. Now that it’s out in the wild is it everything we’ve been promised?

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Pro Evolution Soccer 2015

Go back a decade and, while you would still find the FIFA series a huge money spinner for EA, it was another that captured the hearts of game-playing football fans. Konami’s Pro Evolution Soccer may have lacked the glitz and glamour of its bigger-budget rival, but through its design philosophy of gentle refinement year-on-year, it always delivered where it counted. PES regularly provided the most realistic game of football, with a pace and flow that FIFA development teams could only dream of.

Of course, during that last decade, things have gone topsy-turvy; FIFA has consistently been the better game, and PES has struggled to find its form, floundering between painfully average and downright ruddy awful. In a way, it’s been like watching my beloved Liverpool.

Still, after spending plenty of time with Pro Evolution Soccer 2015, it seems that someone at Konami or PES Productions has finally remembered what made the series a favourite all those years ago. After making the brave decision to skip the new-generation for the first year, this entry represents an amazing return to form.

So impressive is this return to form, in fact, that within minutes it’s apparent that PES 2015 trumps FIFA in the most important area; gameplay. In fact, I’m just going to outright say that in pure footballing terms, PES 2015 is a much better game than the very good FIFA 15.

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NBA 2K15

For a number of years now, the 2K produced series of NBA games has been held up as the pinnacle of Sports Simulation and not without merit. The level of detail in the series is, quite simply, second to none and we find ourselves in a situation where all other sports simulators are inevitably compared in some way, shape or form to this masterpiece.

Last year was my first hands on experience with the franchise and, as a basketball novice, I found myself out of my depth on a few occasions during the review, but still managed to enjoy the experience overall; the love and attention paid by the developer to its subject matter was nothing short of amazing. With NBA 2K15, though, I find myself somewhat more overwhelmed despite that year of exposure, as developer Visual Concepts have taken that attention to detail to the nth degree.

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Sleeping Dogs: Definitive Edition

When Sleeping Dogs was released on last-gen systems, it took me somewhat by surprise. Reviews were positive, not least our own here on TIMJ, but as it arrived during a glut of excellent titles, I missed it until it made an appearance on PS Plus. What followed was my “trying it out” turning into my ignoring a wealth of quality titles asI blazed a trail across Hong Kong, kicking ass and taking names in a style that John Woo would be proud of.

Now here we are on PS4 and Xbox One with the release of Sleeping Dogs: Definitive Edition, which packages a newly buffed and shined main game along with all of the DLC. This includes cars, clothing, and more importantly a couple of pieces of standalone DLC, but is this all enough to warrant another run as Wei Shen?

To cut to the chase and answer the question above, yes, but it’s difficult to recommend to anyone who’s already played it.

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Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare

The Call of Duty franchise needs no introduction. Love it or hate it, it’s still a behemoth of the games industry regardless of its critics and dwindling year-on-year sales. Last year’s Ghosts was the first to really fall out of favour with many of its fans, and was the most poorly reviewed release to date. With a lack of innovation causing Call of Duty to stagnate, something needed to be done about it – and what better way than to put it in the hands of a newly-formed development studio and propel the series into the future?

Even from the title, it’s quite obvious what Sledgehammer Games are trying to achieve. Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare – a less than subtle nod to the series’ fourth iteration, which launched its popularity into the stratosphere – is trying to recapture that lightning in a bottle, exploring a new frontier to firmly cement Call of Duty’s position on the new-gen consoles. As it turns out, Advanced Warfare is not the revolution it could have been. Yet despite playing it too safe, it’s still the most fun I’ve had on Call of Duty in a long time.

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The Evil Within

When arranging with the team who would be reviewing what during this year’s silly season, I had a choice between two horror games, Alien: Isolation and The Evil Within. It’s pretty obvious what I opted for as, well, I’m talking to you right now in a review titled ‘The Evil Within’ and Matt Parker has already delivered his thoughts on the former. I made my choice on one basis: The Evil Within was created by Shinji Mikami and his new studio, Tango Gameworks. Mikami was, of course, the lead behind the second best game of all time, Resident Evil 4, and more recently entertained me greatly with his campy collaboration with Suda 51, Shadows of the Damned.

Thankfully, despite the occasional hiccup, The Evil Within delivers another satisfying, brutal survival horror experience typical of its creator.

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Never Alone

I booted up Never Alone to be greeted with a nondescript title card of a young girl and a fox staring out into a night-soaked tundra. There was little to go on from this imagery, as I had no preconceptions of what this game was actually about.

In the menu, there was a section entitled ‘cultural insights’, which featured a short film about the Inupiaq people, their culture and their small community. After watching that, I had a better sense of what to expect. The minute-long film I saw was one of twenty-four, with the rest being unlocked as I progressed through the short story. I was fascinated to learn more about a people I had little-to-no knowledge about, so I proceeded to start proper to find out more…

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FIFA 15

FIFA made a pretty strong debut on the new crop of consoles last year, making decent use of the extra grunt without losing any major features in transition. Despite the new engine, however, FIFA 14 on PS4 and Xbox One only refined an already solid experience, never straying too far from the blueprints of its last-gen counterparts.

This year, however, we see EA Sports take a few more risks and evolve their systems a little more and while, realistically, you’re never going to see a drastically different game as long as the formula is this successful, FIFA 15 feels like a solid, natural progression.

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Styx: Master of Shadows

Stealth games are cool, right? They offer us something different to the norm. Guns and rocket launchers are replaced by swords and throwing knives, and they require a level of patience over and above the likes of Call of Duty or Grand Theft Auto, having you watching and learning the patterns of guards and slowly finding your way from A to B.

Such is the way of things in Styx: Master of Shadows. The World Tree’s heart is full of Amber, and Styx (a two hundred year-old Goblin and self-confessed fan of thieving and murder) is after it.

Unfortunately for him, it’s kept in the giant Tower of Akenash, a humongous castle. No small task for a tiny Goblin.

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UFC

The crowd cheers, music plays, and you can feel the excitement and expectation in the air. The fighters are about to head out, for a brutal piece of entertainment, taking in punches, kicks, grappling, throws and some very painful looking submissions. Then… “Gameplay recording paused because you entered a blocked scene.” Get used to seeing that message, and the corresponding one telling you recording is enabled again when playing UFC, you’re going to see it a lot.

That’s perhaps a harsh introduction to EA’s first attempt to capture the Ultimate Fighting Championship, but it’s fair to say I found that small aspect fairly irritating. Beyond that though, things look brighter.

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Plants vs. Zombies: Garden Warfare (PC)

It’s not uncommon for established franchises to diverge into a completely different genre for a spin-off, or even a permanent change of direction. We’ve had a Metal Gear Solid card game, a music rhythm Final Fantasy, and Dead Island as of late seems to want to dip its rotten toes into as many genres as possible. That said, it can still be alarming when a franchise we know and love takes a surprise step into unfamiliar territory.

It’s for that reason that when Plants vs. Zombies: Garden Warfare was announced, I couldn’t help but do a double-take. Plants vs. Zombies – a touch-screen optimised tower defense game that helped pioneer mobile gaming – was now becoming a third-person, class-based console shooter? Garden Warfare invaded the Xbox family of consoles with moderate success earlier this year, however, gaining some detractors but also a lot of fans along the way. You can read Matt’s thoughts on that. Now the game has fully bloomed and crept its way on to the PC on which I’ve finally been able to try it for myself, and I’m pleased to say that PopCap has allayed my fears completely.

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Valiant Hearts: The Great War

Many games try and stand out from the crowd by being bigger and louder. In a day and age where a game’s resolution, polygon count and licensed soundtrack are scrutinised to death, it’s refreshing to see some games shy away from this ‘more is more’ mentality.

Valiant Hearts: The Great War does things differently. It can be best described as a 2D action-puzzle game, but that doesn’t quite do it justice. With a few ‘boss’ battles littered throughout and stunning visuals, Valiant Hearts is a game that contains plenty of touching moments, some simple puzzles and a couple of ropey set-pieces.

You might also learn a thing or two.

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Watch Dogs

Touted as being one of the biggest games to come in 2014, the hype leading up to the release of Watch Dogs was either going to doom it into oblivion or give us everyone’s game of the year. I wasn’t quite sure what I was expecting to get out of it, but hacking an entire city sounded like a decent concept. My biggest concern was simply whether Ubisoft would get it right following some recent missteps with the Assassin’s Creed series, though Black Flag did admittedly strike the right balance.

So, during my time with Watch Dogs, I had a lot of ups and downs. For everything I found that bugged me about gameplay and story, I also found something else to redeem it. Although it’s probably not the best way to present a game, it’s all I had to work with.

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Child of Light

Ubisoft hasn’t ever really been known for a prolific role-playing output, but after sampling Child of Light, it makes me wonder why the hell not. Using the always impressive Ubiart engine, Ubi Montreal has turned in a terrific RPG with a style and verve that suggests they’ve been churning them out for years.

Notably, of course, Child of Light is undeniably a visually striking game, but strong mechanics definitely lie behind its charismatic exterior.

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Murdered: Soul Suspect

Murdered: Soul Suspect has been on my radar for quite some time. Let’s face it, what could possibly be cooler than a detective solving the ultimate murder; his own? It’s one thing investigating a murder in the first place, but that’d be positively boring in comparison to solving your own, surely?

Unfortunately, come the end of Murdered I was left a little let down by this story-focused, supernatural thriller. Yet, while it never hits its full potential, there is some enjoyment to be had in following the story through to its shocking conclusion…

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Sniper Elite III

With a title like Sniper Elite, you could probably make a good guess at what the game’s about. With a title like Sniper Elite III, you could also make a good guess that what you’re about to play has been done twice before. To an extent, you’re right.

Sniper Elite III, Rebellion’s latest cranium-splitting ‘snipe ‘em up’ arrives with a bang. The series’ infamous ‘kill-cam’ is as gory as ever and those nasty Nazis are still absorbing your bullets in gloriously gruesome slow-motion. Now set in Africa, the levels you’ll be skulking around are larger than any previous Sniper Elite games and offer you loads of options on how to approach your target. The bigger levels, on top of enemies with A.I. that you can gleefully play with, easily makes this the most enjoyable Sniper Elite to date.

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Wolfenstein: The New Order

Wolfenstein: The New Order is something of an enigma for me. It’s a game of contradictions; a modern-day first person shooter that embraces old school design philosophies; a thoughtful, sometimes touching alternate history war story that also manages to be a stylish, dumb action movie. It’s tonally all over the place like this, yet somehow it comes together, resulting in one of the year’s most pleasant surprises.

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Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes

As I wrote last year for IGN, I recently became something of a Metal Gear convert (and an egg convert too, but I’m not going into all that again). Because of this, after years of indifference towards Kojima’s hugely popular stealth franchise, I only lately found myself able to muster excitement for the next new instalment Metal Gear Solid V: The Phantom Pain and its newly released prologue, Ground Zeroes.

Only, while the open-world Ground Zeroes – acting as a surprisingly short teaser for the former – aptly demonstrates exactly how the winds of change can be a massively positive thing for Metal Gear Solid, I can’t deny that its new tone left me a little fearful for the series’ trademark charm.

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Thief

Is it weird that I love stealth games but haven’t played anything in the Thief series before? You’re right, it probably is a bit weird, but hey-ho, you can’t have played everything, right? Well, my time has finally come, as Eidos Montreal and Square Enix saw fit to breathe new life into this long dormant prowler, rebooting the adventures of master thief Garrett for a new generation.

The result is an able stealth adventure that shines occasionally, but ultimately sees ungainly technical errors ruin its otherwise impressive illusion.

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Need for Speed: Rivals

When Criterion Games took on the Need for Speed franchise a few years ago with Need for Speed: Hot Pursuit, it seemed like a marriage made in heaven: A classic arcade racing game picked up by the developers of Burnout, arguably the best arcade racing series ever, could only yield great results. Sure enough in Hot Pursuit and then Most Wanted it certainly did so. Here we are now, with a large part of the Criterion team having formed a new studio, Ghost, to make the latest in the annual franchise, Need for Speed: Rivals.

Have they managed to continue the trend of great openworld racing action though, or is this latest release a ghost (ahem) of its former self?

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Tomb Raider (Definitive and Regular Editions)

There was a time when I’d have called Core Design and Eidos’ Tomb Raider one of the most important franchises in the industry. Our busty heroine, Lara Croft, grew well beyond her original aim as a fantasy object for young teen boys and became a pop-culture phenomenon in her own right. Gracing the covers of magazines, advertising countless products and coming to life in two movies, she almost could do no wrong – until 2003’s dire Angel of Darkness hit, that is, and then the wheels fell right off.

With Core Design removed from development duties as a result, Crystal Dynamics were the team tasked with bringing the old girl back to our attentions in 2006 with Tomb Raider: Legend. It was a decent game, certainly, but Lara’s relevance had already started to wear thin. By the time of their third game at the helm, the outdated Underworld, they’d been bested at every single level by Naughty Dog and the Uncharted series. With Lara’s image no longer what it was, the time was right for Crystal Dynamics to give Tomb Raider the fresh start it so desperately needed.

Thankfully, this reboot is so much better than I could ever have imagined, and the newly updated Definitive Edition on next-gen consoles provides a worthy facelift.

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Assassin’s Creed IV: Black Flag

I was a huge fan of Assassin’s Creed, especially the Ezio trilogy, and then Assassin’s Creed III came out. Sadly I found it to be disappointing, not least because Connor and Haytham failed to adequately replace the charismatic Italian, proving to be rather dull company in comparison.

Rather than moving away from the Kenway family though, Ubisoft made the rather brave decision to make their fourth main Assassin’s Creed game with Connor’s grandfather Edward, a pirate in the Caribbean, as the lead. This has proven to be an utter masterstroke…

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FIFA 14 (PS4/Xbox One)

It’s almost a guarantee that with every new console launch, a version of EA Sports’ FIFA series will be found among the initial software line-up. Traditionally these launch iterations of FIFA are shallow husks of the prior ‘last-gen’ release, admirably built from the ground up but ultimately rushed to make tight deadlines. They’re usually devoid of series-established features, riddled with bugs, and are generally sloppy in production.

Change is upon us, however; as for the PS4 and Xbox One, EA have brought us a FIFA that not only matches the depth and feature set of the previous generation’s, but just about surpasses it in gameplay too.

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Battlefield 4 (PS4/Xbox One/PC)

I have to admit to becoming mostly tired of war-themed video-games these days (with Spec Ops: The Line being the obvious exception), but if I had to nail my colours to a post in the battle of the big two, I’ve always much preferred the larger-scale warfare of DICE’s Battlefield series to the more intimate skirmishes of Activision’s Call of Duty. Sure, CoD is always a tight, adrenaline-fueled precision shooter online and generally has a competent-if-silly campaign, but Battlefield’s vast arenas, destructive oomph and reliance on the team effort has normally sated me in the moments when I’ve felt the need to jump online to exchange virtual bullets with others.

The last-gen versions of Battlefield 4 reviewed favourably when Matt gave us the lowdown just a few weeks ago, but the issues with the PC and new-generation versions have been well documented. Thankfully, at the time of writing this late review, most problems appear to have been fixed (at least with the PS4 version, which I’ve been playing), and although some snags still diminish the fun from time-to-time, Battlefield is as explosive and enjoyable as ever.

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LEGO Marvel Super Heroes

With next generation consoles finally out and so much emphasis on something that’s new and ‘more High-Def’, it’s very easy to overlook the cross-generational games, and this is something I’m guilty of myself. It’s very easy to dismiss games that cross the generational gap as being a bit rubbish purely by association; Tony Hawks: American Wasteland immediately springs to mind.

Breaking this paradigm however is one of my old favourites. Traveller’s Tales’ LEGO series has grown from strength to strength in recent years, taking on franchises like Star Wars, I’ll openly admit that when playing some of the more recent LEGO games, such as LEGO Batman 2: DC Super Heroes, I was becoming a bit put off, almost starting to feel that that the franchise was losing some of its magic and razzle dazzle. Fortunately, despite its innate flaws, LEGO Marvel Super Heroes has come along and reminded me that the LEGO games are still well worth a look, and on this quality I hope they’re still with us for a while to come.

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NBA 2K14

Very few sports truly pass me by. Throughout school and into my adult life I am pretty confident and proud of the fact that I play, watch and have an interest in almost anything that involves teams or individuals competing. Alas, we can’t always know everything, can we? Basketball is one of those rare sports where I have to hold my hands up and say I genuinely have no idea and, in all honesty, have no great deal of interest. I was actually surprised to learn recently that Michael Jordan is no longer the poster boy of the sport and the Chicago Bulls are not, apparently the only team. Who knew?

As such, NBA 2K14 is my first experience with the franchise that is to the NBA what Madden is to the NFL, or FIFA to the world of Association Football. Given my only previous experience of a Basketball video-game was NBA Jam, I was a little unprepared for just how deep the level of detail goes. 

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