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Forza Motorsport Review Forza Motorsport has been, for quite a while now, one of the great racing sim series’ out there. The game constantly featured stellar visuals, great gameplay, and most of all, a Gran Turismo counterpart that Xbox-centric players can enjoy that isn’t just a run-of-the-mill clone. This is, for all intents and purposes, one of Xbox’s premiere IPs and it has proven to be such year in and year out. Despite Forza Horizon launching back in 2021, the Motorsport series has been dormant ever since the release of Forza Motorsport 7 back in 2017. Fans are hungrier than ever for the latest installment, and Xbox has not been shy to show off what the team at Turn 10 has been working on for the longest time. Does Forza Motorsport have what it takes to take the crown back again after a long hiatus? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5FCtm0xew2I First off, and most…

Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Liberty Review Phantom Liberty is the expansion to the highly controversial Cyberpunk 2077, a game that has miraculously redeemed itself from a point of almost no return when it launched with mishaps and issues galore. With the recent launch of its 2.0 update along with the many fixes and tweaks from the developers over the past 3 years, the game is now better than ever and has become a veritable classic. Phantom Liberty follows the ongoing adventures of V and Johnny Silverhand (Keanu Reeves) as they race against time searching for a solution with the Relic implant that is a literal time bomb in V’s head. After receiving a gig request from the elusive Songbird with the plea to save the president of the New United States of America, about to crash land in the savage land of Dogtown; V takes the job hoping that Songbird will…

Gunbrella Review Gunbrella is Devolver Digital’s newest retro platformer from developer Doinksoft. It is a revenge tale about a gruff woodsman looking for owner of the elusive Gunbrella, said to been used to kill his wife and kidnap his daughter. Devolver Digital is no stranger to stylized revenge stories, with Trek to Yomi being the most recent title that comes to mind. The difference between the two is that Gunbrella is told through the guise of the action-platformer that keeps pulling out surprises the further you progress through the game with its challenging combat and engaging narrative. A Bloody Tale of Revenge Gunbrella’s narrative actually unfolds (heh) naturally starting from a simple premise of revenge using a silent protagonist as he traverses through a desolate wasteland where nothing is what it seems. It brings back some nostalgia of old-school 8-bit games where a sliver of story is told during the…

Lies of P Review We’ll all have to agree that the Soulslike subgenre has been very influential, and many studios have come up with their attempt at a title that could emulate the formula. While some may have succeeded (titles like Nioh and Wo Long come to mind), many have failed to capture the magic that FromSoftware regularly conjures. Surely, a South Korean team from Neowiz and Round8 won’t find success in the subgenre, right? Well, Lies of P is anything but a flop, and if you told me that this game was created by FromSoftware, I might have even believed you for a second. Lies of P is a fantastic effort that, despite copying most of the formula down, has enough things to make it stand out from the crowd. Not only does it copy but copies well, something not a lot of previous efforts have the privilege of…

EA Sports FC24 Review Ahh, annual sports games. There’s really nothing like reviewing titles that release annually, and surprisingly, these games really make a lot of money from sales and microtransactions on a regular basis. This time around, the game is sort of new, but also something that we’ve been getting for what feels like a long time already. Enter FIF… EA Sports FC24! EA Sports FC24 is the latest installment in the long-running football (soccer, whatever works for you) series formerly known as FIFA but was rebranded due to contracts and legal intricacies (read as money). In any case, this facelift brings with it some new and exciting additions, but also doesn’t do anything too dramatic to warrant an overhaul fitting of the name change. It would be unreasonable expect sweeping changes to these annual games, especially when their base gameplay is already solid to begin with, so tweaks…

The Crew Motorfest Review The Crew Motorfest is the latest from Ubisoft’s street racing franchise that ditches its roots in favor of an open-world facelift reminiscent of Forza Horizon 5. Set in sunny Hawaii, it’s a veritable festival of motor racing as we get the whole range of cars from modded Japanese rockets, American muscle, and even motorboats, motorcycles, and bi-planes. There’s something for everyone! Is there more than meets the eye with The Crew Motorfest or is it just riding Forza’s gilded coattails? Start your engines, racers, it’s time to soak up that sun, beach, and exhaust! https://youtu.be/ugKIELPN8mI?si=5oMIGj3_1HZ-Xo6X Ticket To Ride The Crew Motorfest continues with what previous installments have established, despite the new open-world direction. Don’t let the sunny disposition of the game lull you into thinking it has eschewed its street racing stripes; its DNA still remains strong with this title, you only need to look. While…

Starfield Review Starfield. One of the biggest games of the year and arguably one of the most important releases for Xbox in quite some time. The game carries with it the weight of past generations along with the dreams of a future where the company makes its long-awaited return to the top of the gaming world. Starfield is Bethesda’s first new IP in 25 years after a long line of Elder Scrolls and Fallout titles that players have enjoyed for years, so you can just imagine how much of a build-up this game has going for it. In a time when Xbox is slowly gaining momentum after a good year and some great showcases, the stakes have never been higher. It’s been described as “Skyrim in space,” and if that’s what the game is, then it has very big shoes to fill. But is it just that? Or does it…

When the Gran Turismo Movie was first announced, I was quite certain that I wasn’t the only one who let out an exasperated “what?!” How were Columbia Pictures and PlayStation Productions going to make a full-length film about a racing game that, historically, doesn’t have a story? It turns out they could, and they did. I’ve never been so glad to have been proven wrong, because the Gran Turismo Movie is actually really great and definitely worth a watch, whether you’re a fan of the series or not. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w5bV3p1Ui4k Before we dive into the movie, what exactly is Gran Turismo? As a brief backgrounder, Gran Turismo is a racing simulation video game series for the PlayStation, with the first game being released on the PlayStation 1 back in 1997. The series was created by Kazunori Yamauchi and was made to simulate or emulate the appearance and performance of real-world vehicles…

The Texas Chain Saw Massacre Review The Texas Chain Saw Massacre is an asymmetrical horror game based on the iconic 1974 horror film directed by Tobe Hooper. I’m not a huge horror fan, but I know about it and the terrifying Leatherface, and if you do too, this game should have piqued your interest ever since it was first announced. Instead of going for the more obvious (arguably) third-person survival/action horror game a la Resident Evil, The Texas Chain Saw Massacre goes asymmetric, employing an intriguing 3v4 scenario that’s distinctly different from many similar titles that usually goes with a 1vX with an overpowered villain. It is, then, quite unfortunate because the game has some good bones, but there’s a distinct lack of meat that could have made it shine in a sea of asymmetrical horror games. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jxbEynEDY7Q If you’re unfamiliar with asymmetrical games, the loop consists of a “weaker”…

Armored Core VI: Fires of Rubicon Review It’s been a while since the last Armored Core title, and fans of the series have been brimming with excitement ever since it was first announced late last year. With previews and a ton of new information going up last month, including our very own, it was almost safe to say that FromSoftware and Bandai Namco Entertainment have another banger on their hands with Armored Core VI: Fires of Rubicon. Armored Core VI: Fires of Rubicon is the latest installment in the series and one that we would say benefits from the many learnings of FromSoftware over the years. Their more recent titles were Soulslike, but doing so had them almost perfecting the formula that Armored Core VI benefits from in a big way. Friends, we’ve got another good one here, and Armored Core fans should be extremely psyched for it because it’s…

Immortals of Aveum Review Immortals of Aveum is a brand new first-person magic shooter from EA Originals and developer Ascendant Studios, helmed by Brett Robbins, who has worked on titles such as Dead Space and Call of Duty. Their industry goal is to create well-developed games of the highest quality, and with this as their first foray into the scene, they look to be starting on the right foot. Immortals of Aveum tells the story of Jak, a talented former street rat who has been recruited to become part of an elite battlemage force, The Immortals. They are tasked to win the Everwar with their longtime enemies, The Rasharn, led by the fearsome Sandrakk. All the while, the world of Aveum is ravaged by the Wound, an irreversible calamity that threatens to consume the world and all its inhabitants. Will Jak and the Immortals win this neverending war and ultimately…

Blasphemous 2 Review Blasphemous 2 is the new action platformer from Team 17 and The Game Kitchen, and a sequel to the cult classic Blasphemous. In this gothic-themed saga, we witness the return of The Penitent One, who is tasked to prevent the return of the Miracle. Having played the brutally difficult first game, Blasphemous 2 returns with the same brutality but with also a much more defined non-linear Metroidvania world and gameplay. Will it stand up to the original’s cult status? Take up your blade, Penitent One, and complete your Penance! https://youtu.be/9N_wPU58y7o The Weight of Sin Blasphemous 2 doesn’t waste any time onboarding you to the game. After you select from the three main weapons: Veredicto (the war censer), Ruego Al Alba (the scimitar), and Sarmiento & Centella (the rapier and dagger), you’re introduced to an initial boss fight that will basically outline what to expect in at least…

Vampire Survivors Switch Review Vampire Survivors took the gaming world by storm when it was first (officially) released back in October 2022. Owing to its absurdly simple yet addictive gameplay sprinkled with roguelite elements that keep players coming back for more, the game even took home the best game award during the BAFTA Game Awards earlier this year. The game was a perfect fit for the portable Steam Deck, and it would have been nice if it were more widely available on another handheld… Well, good news! Starting today, the game is finally available on the Nintendo Switch! The Switch release brings with it all post-launch updates, along with the latest feature in 4-player local couch co-op, so players are getting the latest and greatest version of the game. Safe to say, one of the best games of 2022 just got better. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-j2budq0Qpo For the uninitiated, the aim is to…

Remnant II Review Not having played the first game, I was looking forward to Remnant II due to two reasons – strong word of mouth from friends who played the original back in 2019 and my having played a 30-minute preview of it last month at Summer Game Fest. It indeed lived up to its “Dark Souls with guns” reputation, which immediately sold me on the prospect of the game. Playing it fully this time around, I think it says a lot about a game when it makes you want to check out its predecessor altogether because Remnant II is both fantastic and exhilarating for solo players, but even more so with a group of friends. It can get frustrating, but the feeling of progressing through the game far outweighs the frustration by a mile. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zU6_2QnhP3U&pp=ygUZcmVtbmFudCBpaSBsYXVuY2ggdHJhaWxlcg%3D%3D Remnant II is a third-person shooter that offers procedural generation as the centerpiece of…

Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart PC Review First released back in June of 2021, the dynamic duo of Ratchet & Clank have now jumped into another dimension, landing on Steam for this interdimensional PC port. Rift Apart was touted as a title that took full advantage of the blazing-fast SSD of the PS5 and something that could not have been possible in the previous console generation. It looked and played like a dream, with Ratchet, Clank, and the rest of the crew enjoying the fruits of the latest hardware that offered players a silky smooth experience and a charm that only the duo could provide. Fast forward to 2023, and now we see Rift Apart available on various PC configurations, with even the lowest spec not needing an SSD at all. Was the SSD a marketing ploy all along? How will our duo fare in this new and uncharted PC…