PC Game Reviews

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Our detailed reviews help you make informed decisions about your next PC game purchase. We provide a thorough analysis of gameplay, graphics, story, and more.

Lost and Found Co. Review – X Marks The SpotFinders keepers.

KakuchopureiMar 4

Review: Scott Pilgrim EX Feels Even More Like River City Ransom Scott Pilgrim vs The World: The Game was a very River City Ransom- coded game that also felt strongly inspired by arcade beat’em ups like Streets of Rage. Pick a character. Fight through side-scrolling stages alone or with up to three friends. Scott Pilgrim EX ended up a similar sort of experience, only now the structure feels even more like Kunio and Riki could pop up at any minute. This sort of similarity comes up immediately as Scott Pilgrim EX begins. Like many entries in the Kunio-kun line, it begins with members of Sex Bob-omb and friends of Scott and Ramona abducted. Three gangs moved into Toronto, with their members being Demons, Robots, and Vegans. By facing bosses and reclaiming key items around town, as well as dealing with GCorp, we’ll come closer to freeing the city and discovering who’s behind these kidnappings and turf wars. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2vygm3XQUiE I must admit, I found myself a bit disappointed in the story. Bryan Lee O’Malley, the original creator of the graphic novels, is involved. The concept does offer a solid excuse for everyone to be running around on a new quest. However, the characterizations didn’t feel true to their established personalities in either that comic or the Scott Pilgrim Takes Off anime series. This isn’t to say that there aren’t some funny moments, but sometimes I felt like it was a more general action game that happened to feature folks who looked like characters from Scott Pilgrim , rather than it being a true Scott Pilgrim story. But then, that could also partially be because it is a rather short game that you could perhaps finish in a single day with friends. Now, essentially, some elements of Scott Pilgrim EX gameplay feel very similar to what we encountered in Scott Pilgrim vs The World: The Game . This is a side-scrolling, 2D beat’em up. We pick a character from the initially available roster and use their standard attacks, special moves, and items picked up off the ground to defeat enemies. After clearing out a space, there’ll typically be a clearly telegraphed “go” sign encouraging us to move on in a certain direction. These controls feel really tight, with easy to pull off combos that are fantastic for felling foes. Now, I will note that I’m also a little disappointed with the playable characters we can choose from as Scott Pilgrim EX , but it’s mainly a personal preference. While Ramona was someone I’d use in Scott Pilgrim vs The World: The Game, I liked fighting as Knives, Kim, and Wallace most, and none of them are ready to rumble. Instead, we got folks like Scott, Ramona, Roxie, Lucas, Matthew, and Robot-01. The roster that’s there is okay, but they aren’t the folks I expected or hoped to go fighting around the city with on this adventure. Images via Tribute Games When you’re not in the midst of clear the area or objective-related fights, you actually move around places in Toronto inspired by the series. This means entering and exiting stores to purchase healing supplies, stat power-ups, and equipment, popping in at the apartment to swap your playable character, or going to locations to advance the story. In some cases, these are locked away and require you to obtain a key item and a certain sort of The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time style short playable riff to advance. These aren’t actually well-explained in-game, so you’ll pass at least two before even being able to interact with one, but they’re very easy to figure out once you are able to go into them. While things generally worked well, even when playing online, I will note that I experienced both major and minor issues in Scott Pilgrim EX ahead of launch. The smaller ones involved the person I was playing with and I not being able to see when the other was holding things. It wasn’t the biggest issue, but it was odd when I brought up how psyched I was to be holding and fighting with a yo-yo, only for him to say my character wasn’t using one on his end. Or that when we gained access to bombs we could use, he said he was carrying one with us to our next objectives and on my end his character was holding nothing. It’s not the biggest issue, but it was odd. Worse was the game-breaking bug. I’m going to be vague in order to avoid spoilers, but at a certain point in the PC version of the game we found ourselves needing to follow Goth Neil. He went through to the next area, so we did as well. Things then crashed on my end, resulting in a black screen and no way to get back to even the title menu. The person I was playing with, who was hosting the session, said it looked like I dropped. We tried a number of combinations of things, which included things like restarting, and each time I’d rejoin with the party code, it would load up to a black screen for me and him being on the character select with it showing as me “being” there, but not choosing a character. This issue happened on Windows-based devices that were up-to-date with the most up-to-date build of the game at the time, but it hopefully is the sort of thing that will be patched. Images via Tribute Games While there are a few things in need of patching, one thing that is perfect at launch in Scott Pilgrim EX is the design direction. It is on-point. Tribute Games did a fantastic job of bringing the characters and their city to life. Everyone looks as they did in the comic and anime adaptation, and there are a lot of references to the series. Also, Anamanaguchi’s soundtrack is a treat, as always. I admire the fact that Tribute Games embraced the River City style with Scott Pilgrim EX, as it really makes this beat’em up more of an adventure. The artistic direction and soundtrack are perfect too, and the combat flows well. I do wish the story were stronger and some of my favorite characters from the previous game had been playable, and the presence of launch bugs that can affect multiplayer is a downer. But at the very least, after a patch or two, those gameplay issues should be fixed. Scott Pilgrim EX is available for the Switch, Switch 2, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X, and PC. The post Review: Scott Pilgrim EX Feels Even More Like River City Ransom appeared first on Siliconera .

PC News Category - SiliconeraMar 3

Scott Pilgrim EX ReviewAnother retro beat ‘em up revival that builds on its predecessor while adding depth and replayability.

IGN PC ArticlesMar 3

Under The Island ReviewLife's a beach The post Under The Island Review appeared first on WellPlayed .

Reviews PC – WellPlayedMar 3

Key Fairy ReviewPeace is always an option The post Key Fairy Review appeared first on WellPlayed .

Reviews PC – WellPlayedMar 2

Marathon Review So Far20 hours with Marathon have left us wanting more.

IGN PC ArticlesFeb 27

Under Night In-Birth 2 Sys:Celes ReviewClassic 2D anime fighting game action with all the modern conveniences

IGN PC ArticlesFeb 27

World of Warcraft: Midnight Review So FarWoW's latest expansion has been a delight in its early hours.

IGN PC ArticlesFeb 27

Review: Gumball in Trick-or-Treat Land Has GBC Vibes Exquisite Laundry Pet’s Gumball in Trick-or-Treat Land is a love letter to Game Boy Color RPGs. It’s the sort of game that doesn’t take itself too seriously, sticking strictly to a silly Halloween theme. Which can be quite fun, thanks to unusual characters, turn-based battles, and clever writing. However, the limitations also mean it might get a little frustrating. Gumball is an actual gumball. They were in a machine, but after you select a flavor (color scheme), you drop into Trick-or-Treat Land. You want to get home, but the Chaos Sweets are ruining everyone’s day. If you want a mysterious Scarecrow to use magick to send you back, you need to reach every Hallowed Patches to restore it, dealing with unusual enemies and making the world safer along the way. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0tsOQlg5afQ It’s probably obvious after seeing some screenshots and that trailer, but Exquisite Laundry Pet went for a Game Boy Color aesthetic for Gumball in Trick-or-Treat Land , even adhering to those limitations so strictly that it is available on both a cartridge for Nintendo’s handheld and PCs via Steam . It’s the game’s greatest strength, I’d say. The restrictions forced the developer to get creative with its themes and gameplay, and when you keep that in mind with playing, it really does feel as though it’s calling back to that moment in time. The presentation and gameplay do remind me of what it was like to go through the Final Fantasy Legend or Magi Nation games. Still, even with needing to stay within certain boundaries, there is a whole potion ingredient and food and drink system and quite a few sidequests that unlock things like extra shops to add to its range. That is a bit of a double-edged sword, however. While Gumball in Trick-or-Treat Land is charming and features a surprising number of side quests in addition to the main storyline, it’s also very open-ended. You need to go everywhere and talk to everyone to figure out where the seven Hallowed Patches. On the plus side, finding quest items isn’t difficult and even the people you talk to who don’t offer valuable information have fun things to say. However, I do strongly recommend having a notebook nearby so you can jot down who wants what, where they are, and maybe even draw a lil’ sketch of their sprite to ensure you won’t forget their fetch quest. Images via Exquisite Laundry Pet While things are very open-ended and require you to pay attention, the Gumball in Trick-or-Treat Land combat system is quite simple and sticks to the theme. As you’d expect from a Halloween-themed affair, Gumball uses treats in addition to spells and skills when fighting. The “treat” action is a basic attack that may or may not land, the abilities are also candy-themed items you pick up as you progress through the world and are far more reliable methods of defeating foes at the cost of MP. You’ll even eventually recruit partners who can join in the fight and help you out! The downside to it is, as this is a very freeform game where you aren’t told where to go and when, it’s very easy to wind up in an area with too-strong opponents and perhaps get frustrated by a one-hit KO. Especially when you’ll have only a few points of HP at the very start. Gumball in Trick-or-Treat Land succeeds at keeping the Game Boy Color RPG vibe alive. It offers a lot to do while staying within certain limitations. However, those boundaries also mean it can sometimes be difficult to discern your next steps or running into fights you just can’t win at that point. Still, it’s a cute game and Exquisite Laundry Pet embraces that Halloween and GBC aesthetic. Gumball in Trick-or-Treat Land is available on the PC and Game Boy Color . The post Review: Gumball in Trick-or-Treat Land Has GBC Vibes appeared first on Siliconera .

PC News Category - SiliconeraFeb 27

'A Reputable Source for a Quarter Century' — Metacritic Pulls Resident Evil Requiem Review Over AI Slop Claims, Issues Warning to Other SitesMetacritic has been forced to remove a suspicious-sounding Resident Evil Requiem review published by a previously high-profile website, after claims that the outlet was now pumping out AI slop.

IGN PC ArticlesFeb 27