Xbox

It’s a sad truth that most games based on the Alien universe are rubbish — just like the majority of the films. Yes, this wonderful intellectual property has spawned more lumpy, unattractive little horrors than any xenomorph queen ever has,…

For more than twenty years now, I’ve loved rally games. Whether I go back to the seminal experience of Colin McRae Rally, or consider the likes of Richard Burns Rally, Rallisport Challenge and the Dirt: Rally series, I’ve always been keen…

With an eight year gap since Orcs Must Die 2, fans of the series could have been forgiven for thinking that Orcs Must Die 3 would never come. As it happens, this third iteration will be the first time I’ve dipped my toe in the series — all…

Recompile doesn’t give it’s best elements enough time to shine. Backtracking is a staple of metroidvania that feels fun with its own twist here. Combat takes a backseat as its unsatisfying or can be completely avoided. The lore is what…

Building interactions are key to high scores and a long game. Each building has a base score that can be modified by placing it near certain other buildings. Mansions like to be near city centres, whilst a shaman hut wants to be near…

New characters can be rescued from the blight if you can find them within a level and then escape successfully after completing your mission. You can find them back at the camp and fall into one of three camps — Warriors, Assassins and…

The Ascent looks and runs amazingly well on the Series X, it’s smooth and whilst the load times are few and far between they are pretty snappy.

Night Book was filmed entirely during lockdown, with the actors not actually doing any scenes in person. In terms of developing an FMV game, this is really quite an impressive challenge to undertake, and I have a lot of respect for Wales…

Omno's lush landscapes make traversal of its various biomes a wonder to behold. Journey with Omno as you make your way towards the Light.

Boyfriend Dungeon is a weirdly wonderful game — wonderful character design, quirky dates, a solid soundtrack.

Death’s Door showcases a best-of in the action-adventure genre. As a crow reaper I faced challenges that never felt insurmountable. A ghastly manor tried keeping me away from its basement. I mazed my way through a temple in ruin. A climb to…

For anyone who follows my writing, you would be forgiven for thinking that Imagine Earth should be right up my street. Attractive, clever and rammed with content, this global-scale economic and environmental strategy simulator tasks players…

You probably know that we play a lot of couch co-ops in our household. With a family of five people who love games, we spend quite a lot of time playing video games together and one of our favorite things to do is play couch co-op ones.…

Yes, Sunless Skies is a rogue-lite, and a hard one at that, but not in quite the same way as many. Your death doesn’t reset the game, rather you create a new captain, who follows your legacy by claiming some of what you’ve lost before…

You are a nameless hunter who travels from their aerial base to a variety of dinosaur infested islands with the goal of hunting the biggest dinosaurs you can find. There’s no explanation for any of this, so just have at it!

I like to think that reviewers such as myself keep an open mind. After all, games are very rarely made by people who don’t care about the subject matter — especially not when you’re talking about independent games that are created outside…

It’s as if The Legend of Zelda and Dark Souls shacked up and decided to create something with the exploration, wonder and scale of Hyrule but with the enemy difficulty and punishment factor of Lordran

Whether it’s zombies in DayZ, robots in Generation Zero or oversized aquatic horrors in Stranded Deep, the survival genre is well and truly thriving. With so many themes already covered, searching for inspiration must be difficult — and…

First things first, this isn’t a “souls-like”. At first glance it looks like one; hopeless premise — check, mystical fantasy setting — check, massive punishing bosses — check.

Whether on the tabletop or in digital form, I’ve always loved turn-based games. From Risk to modern miniatures games like Battle of Pelennor Fields, I enjoy everything from grand, strategic endeavours to more tactical encounters. This gives…