- Trust me, what the game lacks in graphical splendor it makes up for with gameplay.
- To start with, the character creation options can be daunting
- Believe it or not, this is a town. You’ll be seeing it a lot.
- The game frequently presents you with some stunning views of the world.
- Heists are a new gameplay feature in GTA V, but are sadly under-utilized and developed.
- Divers rejoice! Now the ocean is as much your playground as dry land.
- After their absence in GTA IV, planes can once again be piloted.
- Outside of the main city, there’s a huge world just waiting to be explored.
- That the game even runs on the Xbox 360 and Playstation 3 is a hugely impressive technical feat.
- Say hello to Trevor - a character you’ll love to hate (and hate to love).
- While the game doesn’t look quite as good as these screenshots on the last generation of consoles, it’s not far off.
- The game has the best water this side of Assassin’s Creed IV.
- Boss fights remain as tedious as ever, unfortunately.
- Origins introduces an assortment of new villains to the series.
- Batman and Alfred’s relationship is decidedly prickly in this prequel.
- The game delights at throwing huge amounts of enemies at you.
- The game is set before Bane’s transformation into the mass of veins and muscle from prior games.
- You won’t just collect heroes - every villain you defeat is added to your playable roster as well, some with unique powers.
- The game features plenty of classic Marvel locations - such as Asgard, featured here - but many others fail to appear.
- It’s actually a highly attractive game, even on the Xbox 360
- Believe it or not, the screen scrolls down, and many characters have multiple versions with different abilities - Iron Man, for example.
- Like other Lego games from the developer, interaction is restricted to specific places in each level.
- Each character has their individual superpowers faithfully represented, though some such as Mr Fantastic tend to get more use than others.
- Flying isn’t quite as joyful as you’d hope thanks to some questionable controls.
- As you earn currency and level up, you’ll be able to afford power-ups to make subsequent drops a little easier.
- When you first start, you’re tiny and a single collision will bring your run to an end.
- After painting a certain amount of pixels, you’ll briefly grow to a huge proportion and crash down the screen at high velocity.
- Even in quieter scenes, the game maintains a well-judged atmosphere of mystery
- It wouldn’t be Broken Sword without a dead body or two.
- The painted backdrops are frequently gorgeous.
- The mix of 2d and 3d art works pretty well and is mostly seamless.
- The game flits between trips to Paris and London. Both locations are evocative of their real-life counterparts.
- The cast of characters is small, but memorable.
- Quotes from the novel accompany failure.
- Customiszation options are sparse.
- Gameplay is kept simple and easy to understand.
- You’ll need to use all of your abilities to survive each run.
- Some levels require you to outrun an approaching hazard.
- Once again, collecting Lums is the order of the day.
- Enemies litter most levels and will normally spell instant death.
- Subtle visual effects bring each level to life.
- Things get challenging very quickly.
- From start to finish, the artwork is utterly gorgeous.
- Each vehicle can be upgraded in 4 categories. You’ll struggle to notice the difference they make, though.
- Even minor dips like this can inexplicably cause your car to flip over and explode.
- What goes up, must come down. It’s the “down” part that causes frustration.
- Aside from hills, courses also feature crumbling sections, moving platforms and death traps like fire pits.
- Controls are kept to a minimum.
- The game certainly looks good, it’s just a shame it doesn’t have the gameplay to match.
- There’s a variety of vehicles to unlock, though you’ll need to grind the same content over and over to unlock them.
- The graphics are looking lovely for fans of retro pixel art
- Killers must be apprehended by your Detectives
- New rooms and furniture can be purchased with bounties
- Edward is no saint - for much of the game he maintains an uneasy relationship with the Order.
- For a game about Assassins, the series has never particularly favored the stealthy approach.
- Deep-sea diving is a new addition to the series.
- The feeling of being on a real sea-faring vessel is impressively realized.
- The game features some stunning vistas.
- After battering a ship into submission with your cannons, you’ll need to board it to force the crew to surrender.
- Some excellent lighting lends certain sections a palpable atmosphere.
- Combat retains the simple rhythm of previous games in the series.
- Aside from the greater emphasis on your ship, gameplay remains largely unchanged.
- He’ll have someone’s eye out with that thing.
- “Oi lads, looks like Sushi is on the menu for dinner!”
- Naval battles feature prominently after their introduction in Assassin’s Creed III
- The ocean depths hide a large amount of secrets.
- For a game set solely in the Caribbean, the visual variety is impressive.
- Combining meat from dead zombies and cell phones from murdered humans allows you to create your own undead army.
- The game features some lovely hand-drawn artwork outside of the actual gameplay.
- The title’s Game Jan origins can be seen in the stripped-to-the-bone mechanics
- See that Camper Van? That’s you, that is.
- The game hasn’t lost its sense of over-the-top humor, despite early concerns
- Character models rarely repeat themselves due to some nifty procedural generation.
- This bad boy is a source of frequent joy.
- If you think this is ridiculous, then just wait until you see the rest of the game’s arsenal…
- This street is positively empty compared to what you’ll frequently see in the game.
- Despite the whole world being explorable - inside and out - interiors of buildings are all unique.
- Levels are frequently strewn with hazards at every corner - a steady hand is required to negotiate screens safely
- For such a simple game, it’s frequently a visual treat
- Icycle demonstrates a clever use of perspective. Despite taking place purely on a 2D plane, some clever tricks convey a sense of false depth.
- A clever use of colour and visual themes not only ensure that each location has a different feel, but conveys a sense of progress as you move through the game.
- The platform here is precariously balanced; move too slowly and you’ll find yourself hitting the spikes on the ceiling just above.
- Sabrewulf is an absolute beast of a fighter (no pun intended).
- Jago is free to all and handles almost identically to Street Fighter’s Ryu.
- Is there such a thing as a skinny character in fighting games? We can’t remember any off the top of our heads.
- XP can be spent on a huge array of unlockables.
- Instinct mode brings with it some gorgeous visual effects.
- Glacius is a slow mover, but an array of devastating ranged moves force you to consider space close in fast.
- Sadira is a newcomer to the series. You’ll soon learn to fear her.
- Thunder has some utterly fearsome grapple attacks. You’ll need to think about keeping your distance.
- Gameplay is fast and fluid; static shots really don’t do it justice.
- Combos can be broken with some canny timing, so scenes like this needn’t be a common occurrence if you practice.
- It might not be 1080p, but the game is frequently gorgeous to look at. Just wait until you see the particle effects.
- Special moves bring with them some lovely visuals.
- Oooh shinies! You’ll be constantly distracted by gems hidden in the dirt.
- Steamworld Dig has been a huge hit for the developer; but they’re not resting on their laurels.
- As you dig down, the environment changes, keeping things fresh.
- You’ll need to take care of enemies as you explore the depths of the mine.
- Trips back to town are frequent, but never to the point of being annoying.
- Every member of the team has a caricature of themselves on the wall. Here’s Brjann’s.
- Brjann (front, center) is proud of what he and his team have accomplished.
- Their office overlooks the Gothenburg river. Several times a day, cruise ships can be seen passing out on their way to Denmark.
- This mural is the most ostentatious display in the office, and even that is hidden en route to the kitchen.
- A fan of Steamworld Dig sent in this recreation of Rusty, made from beads. It takes pride of place in the office.
- These clear pipes make a frequent appearance; at junctions, you can change direction to end up in different areas of the level.
- Levels are built to accommodate both solo and co-op play. The cat suit will fast become your favored power-up.
- A number of levels take a break from platforming and introduce a puzzling aspect.
- The game introduces a sense of vertical scale that has been absent from the series for a while. Most of the game’s secrets are hidden in high-up places.
- Bowser is back of course, but this time it’s not Peach you need to rescue.
- Things may start easy, but make no mistake - 3D World is among one of the most challenging games in the series in later stages.
- As is the norm for Mario games, Lava, Ice and Underground levels are all present and correct.
- Evocative of Super Mario Sunshine, this level has you riding the back of a Yoshi at high speed through a winding river.
- The lighting is sublime, lending familiar themes a whole new personality and feel.
- For a game with such a simple visual style, it can be very attractive.
- Fear the penguins. FEAR THEM!
- Miss too many enemies or ascend to slowly, and you’ll find yourself rapidly fighting against rising lava.
- Action quickly becomes frantic. In later stages it starts to resemble a bullet-hell shooter.
- The game offers a large amount of upgrades and it’s too its credit that it doesn’t fall back on in-app purchases to make them affordable.
- The art style evokes titles like Alien Hominid and Castle Crashers.
- Between stages, you can spend cash on adding new segments, repairing your monster or starting with a power-up
- Each region of the world has a distinct visual feel, though the differences are purely aesthetic.
- A variety of different weapon choices means you can experiment with finding the right balance.
- The level select screen is simple but nicely done.
- New sections will need to be frequently slotted into place if you’re to continue your rampage.
- Though it can look like it in screenshots, the game isn’t a bullet-hell shooter.
