Xenon Racer isn’t your typical racing simulation experience. It has no in-depth handling or physics model, and it isn’t going to punish you for the slightest slip on the steering wheel or for hitting that apex to hard. Instead Xenon Racer is aimed at the more casual racer, the arcade racer, the fan of all things fast and furious who wants to be able to relax and simply enjoy some racing.
Sometimes a game can come along out of nowhere, sit itself quietly amongst the countless other games available and wait patiently for someone to discover the hidden gem it is. In the case of Degrees of Separation, those titans were Metro Exodus and Far Cry: New Dawn, AAA games that occupied the same launch week as this indie offering. If now though you’re ready to move on from the blockbusters and take on something a little calmer, something that can present a memorable and enjoyable experience, then this little indie gem could be just the game for you.
The real-time strategy genre is one that’s synonymous with the PC platform, with a plethora of keys to obey your every command, as opposed to the rather limited console controller. It’s been a while since I’ve truly enjoyed an RTS on any console; probably back when Command & Conquer titles were frequent. Now though, developers Warcave and Crazy Monkey Studios are trying to deliver something a little different to Xbox One with a Stone Age themed RTS in the form of Warparty. Is it going to rock our world and be a fresh take on the genre that we’ve been crying out for?
Some things in life are just tough. Early starts on cold days, dentist bills, Windows 10 updates. And some things are tougher still. You’ll have your own thoughts on life’s biggest challenges, but trust me, once you’ve played Mars: Chaos Menace on Xbox One, you’ll be adding it to the list.
Sprawling triple-A adventures can allow us to get lost for days, weeks and sometimes even months on end, but on occasion it’s nice to just sit down, relax and push on with something a little simpler; something that doesn’t require months of grinding or levelling up. RICO, the latest shooter to arrive on Xbox One, may just be that little adventure you’re after. You see, it's a simple adventure that still manages to retain all the blockbusting slow-motion you’ll find in your favourite shooters.
This last year has seen me spoilt with a 60's weird dystopia in We Happy Few to the gorgeous mash-up of the UK in the brilliant Forza Horizon 4. But now there is a completely different game, one that is set in the north-west of England, taking us back to the mad heady days of the 1980s and a very different history to what the world was like back then. That game is The Occupation and it whisks us to a place of political cover-ups and detective thrillers, all made rather brilliant by some superb writing and world building.
Depending on how well you keep your ear to the ground of the gaming scene, you will know that there is a series in which the main protagonist must pay back a debt to a higher being in an earlier instalment, whilst the setting for the most recent game in that series is steeped in Norse mythology, bringing a loot-heavy experience that requires constant upgrades to your attacks and weapons.
That’s right, I am of course talking about Void Vikings!
You weren’t thinking of God of War, were you?
The One Piece franchise has been lying dormant on Xbox One for almost three years since making its debut on Microsoft’s latest console. Now though, One Piece: World Seeker has docked upon our shores to deliver a fresh experience for those interested in the adventures of the Straw Hat Pirates. Is the treasure seeking pirate’s life all it’s cracked up to be, or have we stumbled into a booby trap?
I initially mistook Stories: The Path of Destinies as another mediocre indie game that would fail to make a lasting impact. Instead, it tingled nostalgic PS2 platformer roots with simple but compelling RPG mechanics tied up wonderfully in a package that centres on replayability, simplistic and effective story-telling, fantastic combat that mimics the Arkham games, and excellent world-building. This all makes the overall experience pretty great.
Remember when everything was awesome in 2014 and Emmet Brickowski became the LEGO hero nobody ever expected him to be in The LEGO Movie? Well, he’s back with the rest of the gang – Lucy, Batman, Benny etc. – for a sequel in the form of The Lego Movie 2: The Second Part and to coincide with the theatrical release, TT Games have developed an accompanying videogame. Can the appropriately titled The LEGO Movie 2 Videogame prove that everything can still be awesome?
Ah, Dead or Alive, the guilty pleasure of adolescent male gamers everywhere.
This is a series that has always been more famous for the attention to detail in the animation of it’s female protagonists than for the actual gameplay, but is the sixth entry in the series, Dead or Alive 6, any different? With promised tweaks to the way the game plays, and the addition of a "super" gauge and extra moves, has the Dead or Alive franchise finally come of age, or are we going to need seasickness pills to cope with the heaving bosoms? It’s time to strap on our black belts and find out.
Some say there are two kinds of people in this little old world – you’re either a dog or a cat person. Do you like an adorable best friend, who will follow you until the end of the earth, greet you with excitement and affection, and learn new tricks with a faithful wag and a playful demeanour. Or do you like your pets who think you’re subservient to their extreme majesty, would step over you if you were having a heart attack and like to have fight clubs in the back garden at 3am on a Monday.
As you can tell I fall neatly into the first category. But cats are very popular – just look at YouTube – and I guess the developers of I and Me think that too, for it is they who have made two little fur balls the heroes of I and Me.
Making games is hard.
I mean, I’ve never made one, but I imagine that it’s really hard, at least.
So much to code, so much to program, so much can go wrong. But when the final product is a resounding success, this should be celebrated. However, sometimes games may not meet expectations or turn out the way somebody expected, much like any movie or TV show. Crafting a great piece of entertainment is tough. So it gives me no pleasure at all to say that I didn’t enjoy Crimson Keep.
A humorous turn-based strategy game which definitely has flaws throughout, but is thoroughly enjoyable nonetheless. Attack of the Earthlings is a fine game to dive into if you're all for hating your evil human corporations and their plans for sucking the galaxy dry of resources - one lonely planet at a time.
