SkateBIRD
SkateBIRD at one point reminded me of that strange, absurd joy I had playing Katamari Damacy the first time. My tiny “birb” was serenely cruising through a human-sized bedroom on his skateboard, a greasy pizza box acting as a makeshift ramp towards higher sections of the room. Everyday objects like bowls and a chain of paperclips allowed for rails to grind and ramps to perform tricks o...[Read More]
Street Fighter 6
Crouching in the corner of the Amazon River Basin, Blanka furiously swiped at the oncoming threat. Whatever humanoid this was–be it Guile, Ken, or Ryu–would not break his resolve, regardless of the elegant combos inputted his way. This basic attack was crude, sloppy, and showed none of the finesse a proper Street Fighter should have. If he was lucky, Blanka would occasionally erupt in ...[Read More]
Dead Island 2
Dead Island 2 is a bit of a nostalgia bomb for me. At perhaps my last or second-to-last E3 I sat in a room and watched an early demo of the game. Like many, I had been wowed by that stellar trailer for the original Dead Island but disappointed the game didn’t deliver any similar gut punches. Dead Island: Riptide was one of the first cooperative games I played with a group of fellow writers a...[Read More]
Fatal Frame: Mask of the Lunar Eclipse
During the mid-2000s I spent a generous amount of time barrelling through a number of classic PlayStation games. My well-documented devotion to Nintendo began to wane in the latter years of high school when I acquired my cousin’s PlayStation 2 for a dirt-cheap price. But being a kid with no job and little income, I could only play games new games at a trickle. First was Final Fantasy X, then...[Read More]
Powerwash Simulator (PS5)
Last summer I borrowed a powerwasher from a friend and blasted the grime and dirt off the vinyl siding of the home I bought the year prior. After years of renting, it was surreal being responsible for a home’s upkeep without having to depend on an unreliable landlord. It appeared as if no one had ever washed the building before. Streaks of green from countless mowed lawns lined the bottom. D...[Read More]
Scars Above Review
When playing Scars Above it is difficult not to have thoughts of other games bouncing around in your head. The most common of these is painfully obvious. Scientist lady stranded on desolate and hostile alien planet shooting guns. But the Returnal resemblance only encapsulates thematic similarities, despite Scars Above featuring exotic guns shooting exotic creatures from a third-person perspective....[Read More]
Life is Strange 2 (Switch)
It’s hard to believe that eight years have passed since the release of Life is Strange. I fondly remember reviewing the first season, impressed by its sincerity and ability to differentiate itself from the trend of The Walking Dead-like narrative games. More surprising was the fact that Square Enix was branching into unknown territory. Troubled teens usually would only be explored in a fanta...[Read More]
Season: A Letter to the Future
Season: A Letter to the Future is not for the cynic. Or, perhaps, it is. The opening hours of the game may be too densely packed with exposition that reads too flowery, too self-important. Its sweeping music and cleverly-timed panning shots of gorgeous pastel landscapes too manufactured. Like anything asking for more introspection, Season could be approached as trite nonsense. More concerned with ...[Read More]
Yuppie Psycho: Executive Edition
Capitalism kills. Money is the root of all evil. The devil… is in the dollar? Yuppie Psycho embraces the insidious culture of climbing the corporate ladder. It is Silent Hill meets The Office. A black comedy meets demonic slasher. Playing through the glut of first-person horror games over the past several years, sussing out a title that isn’t bottom-of-the-barrel Steam trash has been d...[Read More]
Forspoken
Forspoken feels intimidated by its players. A strange sentiment, certainly, but one that became apparent the longer I played. Games should be fun out the gate, right? Forspoken instead takes its time to becoming truly engaging. Layers of foundation are built with truly admirable bricks but you’re also spending that time watching the materials cure in the sun. Years ago, Final Fantasy 13 was ...[Read More]
Marvel’s Midnight Suns
Marvel’s Midnight Suns proves the comic book/superhero formula can be successfully applied to almost any scenario. Who would have expected players to be rubbing elbows with Blade and Spider-Man? Or trying to flirt with an Avenger? Would it have really sounded exciting that saving the planet would be determined with careful card selection while players scratched their heads for the best plan ...[Read More]
The Callisto Protocol
The Callisto Protocol succeeds because it deeply understands players’ expectations of horror. What we expect is Dead Space. Not from Visceral Games but from Striking Distance Studios, the developer behind The Callisto Protocol and comprised of former Dead Space talent. As player deeply fond of Dead Space, I went into The Callisto Protocol with the highest expectations. Striking Distance Stud...[Read More]