This single-screen platformer takes us back to the days when games required not only lightening quick reflexes but also a vivid imagination. We’re talking beyond the 8-bit era here and into Atari 2600 territory – a time when box-art helped illustrate a developer’s vision, for all you were presented with on screen were super-sized pixels …
Having played most – if not all – of the promotional freebies that have appeared on Xbox Live over the years, we feared the worst when taking this cunningly disguised movie tie-in for a spin. It was the achievement list that set these fears into motion – it has clearly been designed so that every …
EA’s latest shooter shuns soldiers and all things military in favour of cops, car chases and organised crime. Set amidst Miami’s seedy underbelly, the single-player campaign sees police detective Nick Mendoza being paired up with the headstrong Khai Minh Dao to find those responsible for the influx of a new drug known as Hot Shot. …
As Rebellion’s own Sniper Elite series proved, it’s entirely possible to centre a whole game on one faultlessly executed idea. That idea was, of course, the gratuitous slow-mo sniper shots. This current-gen only series spin-off retains the grizzly sniper kills but the focus now lies on co-operatively mowing down zombie hordes. Every kill is as …
Frontier’s fascination with rollercoasters continues in ScreamRide, but unlike management sim Rollercoaster Tycoon this isn’t something that’s quite as easy to categorise. ScreamRide’s trio of distinctly different challenge types can easily be broken down and described though, taking the form of on-rails arcade-like racing, sandbox coaster construction and a spot of physics-based destruction. We were …
Capcom’s first foray into episodic gaming doesn’t mess around. During a casual evening event Claire Redfield and her fellow TerraSave terrorist-fighting buddies are confronted by mysterious, gun toting, party crashers. Following the surprise attack, Claire awakens in a disused penal colony with some kind of electronic tag bound to her arm. Dubiously coloured water runs …
Surrounding the player in just the right amount of chaos is a tricky task. If things get too hectic then all sense of being in control is lost and the player will no doubt feel frustrated as a result. If a developer gets it right though, controlled chaos can be a wonderful thing. Titanfall creators …
Developer Dontnod – of Remember Me fame – gave themselves a tall order to fill with Life is Strange’s debut episode. Not only did female protagonist Max and her cohorts have to be introduced and the plot outlined in a suitably enticing manner, but Max’s freshly awakened superpower also conceived and successfully woven into the …
The gaming community has had an influence on #IDARB’s development right from the outset. It all began with a screenshot posted on Twitter showing a red rectangle stood amongst a few grey and white platforms. “Where do I go with this?†questioned designer Mike Mika. Suggestions came flooding in and soon a green rectangle joined …
After making a splash on mobiles and tablets, Vector Unit’s futuristic racer arrives on Xbox One. Don’t let the fact that it’s a mobile conversion put you off – there are no microtransactions in sight, and for something arriving with a mere £3.99 price tag it’s accomplished enough visually. Not a stunner by any means, …
Although not overly fond of the first two Dead Island games, we’re still willing to admit that they had their virtues. Namely, the weapon crafting and the ability to slay zombies with others online. This spin-off does away with these (debatably) redeeming features to allow for a slower paced single-player adventure. It’s an incredibly unstable …
When first presented with one of Telltale’s episodic adventures we compared the £3.99 asking price to that of a cinema ticket, due to the price: length ratio. A similar comparison can be made with this snow covered side-scroller, albeit with the price of a new DVD – it too costs just over £10 and provides …
A year has passed since Adventure Time: Explore the Dungeon… was released yet we’re still dumbfounded as to how WayForward managed to create something so joyless. A harsh and gruelling slog, those who had patience to see it through to the end genuinely have our respect. Whereas ‘Explore the Dungeon’ took influence from good old …
Any number of developers could have easily produced a twin-stick shooter baring the Geometry Wars name. Activision thankfully chose not to take the easy route, opting instead to go that extra mile to find the right team for the job. That team was Lucid Games, home to numerous ex-Bizarre Creations staff. It’s times like these …
It doesn’t take long to realise Platinum Games were up against a very tight schedule with this Nickelodeon tie-in. For us, that moment became all too apparent when being ushered down one narrow corridor to next in order to fight yet another bunch of identical enemies. Platinum’s experience with the scrolling brawler genre – for …