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Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater Review - You're Pretty GoodThere's a good chance that, at some point in your life, you've been so enamored of a piece of media that you've considered what it'd be like to experience it for the first time again. Watching Terminator 2, hearing Enter the Wu-Tang, and reading The Dark Knight Returns shaped who I am and, as a result, I remember the moments I experienced them with crystal clarity. Over time, however, those memories have become divorced from the emotions they stirred and what's left in their place is a longing for those lost feelings. Video games are the only medium that I think are capable of making that first-time-again fantasy a reality--or as close to one as we're going to get. Time puts distance between us and the emotionally significant moments we cherish, but it also brings us closer to exciting technologies that can make the old feel new. In the right hands, those technologies can create opportunities to stoke those profound emotions again, even if it's just a little. Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater does exactly that. Before getting into what's new, what can't be overlooked in making Delta such a good game is the fact that Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eater remains a compelling, well-told story that has strong characterization and deals with some heavy subject matter. It approaches this with a strange mixture of self-seriousness and complete irreverence that is uniquely Metal Gear Solid and, for my money, balances both parts better than any other entry in the series. The stellar stealth is supported by systems that feed into the fantasy of surviving in the jungle and braving the elements, whether that be hunting for food or patching yourself up after sustaining injuries. Delta replicates it and, in my opinion, is better for it. The excellent work that the original Metal Gear Solid 3 dev team did remains the heart and soul of Delta, and it continues to shine. Continue Reading at GameSpot

GameSpot - Game ReviewsAug 22

Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater ReviewBetween its old-school stealth-action gameplay and engaging spy-thriller story, Metal Gear Solid Delta: Snake Eater largely succeeds as a faithful, visually impressive remake of the 2004 classic.

IGN PC ReviewsAug 22

Discounty Review - Long Live The EmpireIn the aftermath of Stardew Valley 's success and popularity, there have been many attempts by other developers to carve their own piece of the pixel farm life simulator pie. Whereas those games so often put you in the role of a poor farmer or some other position of struggle, Discounty does the opposite, having you effectively play as the bad guys in Stardew Valley: the outsider that has everything and is trying to weasel into the community. You're not literally playing a mirror of that game's story, but it's awfully close--instead of being the new farmer in a small, struggling town, you're instead the new owner of the big-brand supermarket that's attempting to monopolize the economy and push out existing vendors to increase your profit margins. It altogether makes for a game that is fun to play (in that hypnotic sort of way that's recognizable in so many games that romanticize retail work), but it is ultimately narratively quite uncomfortable at times and too muddled in its storytelling to utilize that discomfort to deliver a compelling message. Granted, you're merely the pawn in the palm of the hand of a much greedier capitalist: your aunt. Roped into moving to her small harbor town of Blomkest to help out with her struggling market, you arrive to find she's sold out to the Discounty chain and rebranded. Your aunt is immediately portrayed as a suspicious person, keeping secrets locked away in sheds, making backroom deals with banks, and firing employees without a second thought. It's all in the name of expanding her supermarket business empire, and you're her most loyal pawn, charming locals into going along with your expansions and acquiring their wares so that citizens have to go to Discounty to buy food and home supplies. And Jordan wept, for there were no more worlds to conquer. It feels scummy, especially since your character has zero backbone, pushing the buck on responsibility and ignoring the consequences of their actions for a big chunk of the game's story, which primarily deals with a hurting community that needs healing. Continue Reading at GameSpot

GameSpot - Game ReviewsAug 21

Herdling Review - Companion QuestAbout a week ago, on the same day I started playing Okomotive's Herdling , I accidentally hit a squirrel with my car. The critter darted into the road, and I tried to evade them, but I failed. They died. It devastated me. I called my wife, physically shaking and tearful, to tell her what happened. I sat in my car for a bit when I got to my destination, needing to regain my composure. Though I knew my intent was pure, I found it hard to accept that I had taken their life away. To no one's surprise, if you're familiar with my work , I saw them not as "roadkill," but as a being with their own interests and goals, however simple those may seem compared to those of humans. It wasn't an ideal starting point for heading into Herdling, a game about trying to guide a family of vulnerable animals out of the city and return them safely to their natural habitat. But I'm sure, even on a normal day, Herdling was going to connect with me deeply on account of its moving depictions of human-animal kindness and companionship. Continue Reading at GameSpot

GameSpot - Game ReviewsAug 21

Drag X Drive Review - Kind Of A DragDrag X Drive comes at an interesting time in the launch lineup for the Nintendo Switch 2. Rather than numerous day-one first-party releases that may risk overshadowing each other, the company has been releasing them one at a time, monthly. First we had Mario Kart World--alongside Nintendo Switch 2 Welcome Tour, which kind of counts--followed by Donkey Kong Bananza, and now, Drag X Drive. The unconventional sports game is unique in the lineup for not centering around a known franchise. Instead its hook is an almost exclusively multiplayer focus and a novel control scheme based around the system's mouse functionality. But while it's a neat showpiece for how dual-mouse controls can create new game experiences, in practice it's mostly just physically uncomfortable to play and too bare-bones to hold your interest. Drag X Drive follows in the footsteps of games like Rocket League, mixing various influences to create something new. In this case, its closest analog is wheelchair basketball, a Paralympic sport that allows disabled athletes to play with some modifications. It adds a slight twist to that foundation, though, by taking place inside a skateboarding bowl, allowing players to build up speed and do trick shots to earn score bonuses. It's a neat concept, and one that could pay homage to the athleticism of the real thing while giving it a wild variation. The hub area even has the look and feel of a basketball skate park, with courts living alongside loads of ramps and stunt areas. The real hook is its control scheme. While other games have made light use of the Switch 2 mouse controls , Drag X Drive is centered completely around it. You detach both Joy-Con controllers and turn them on their side, and sliding them forward together approximates pushing the wheels of your wheelchair. Doing it in rhythm for a while gets you up to top speed, which is what enables your ability to vert off ramps and do tricks, or just rush into other players for a tackle to steal the ball. You lift a hand and flick your wrist to toss a ball into the basket, and tackling a player from the side or back staggers them for a moment and can throw off their attempted shot. Pressing the shoulder buttons acts as your brakes, and the HD Rumble feature lets you feel the tread of the tires as you roll. In theory, you can even pull off hairpin turns by braking with one wheel while pushing the other, or sliding them in opposite directions.You can pull off more complex tricks like a bunny hop or a backflip off a halfpipe for additional style points. And since the controllers map onto your hands, in the lobby you have free control to do things like wave or high-five. Continue Reading at GameSpot

GameSpot - Game ReviewsAug 15

OFF ReviewOFF certainly shows its age as a remaster of the RPG Maker cult-classic from 2008, but it deserves respect as a pioneer in the indie RPG scene.

IGN PC ReviewsAug 15

Madden NFL 26 ReviewIt’s hard to overstate what a leap this feels like both on and off the field.

IGN PC ReviewsAug 14

Madden NFL 26 Review - The Best Madden In YearsThe Madden curse is lifted. No, not that one--the one I alluded to at the end of my review last year . I'd said it felt like I was cursed to play a frustrating football game year after year forever, because I liked it enough to invest my time (if only for my job and my online league ), but I never felt like it was living up to its responsibility as the only NFL sim available on the market. Madden NFL 26 finally gives me hope. Supplementing the great on-field gameplay with a Franchise overhaul that turns Madden into a sports RPG in the way it should be, this is the best Madden in a long time. Sunday Spectacle Madden's on-field gameplay has been improving year over year for a good while now. It's not that it can't improve any more , but it's finally in that stage, like some other sports games have reached before, where the foundation is sturdy and, with the most important aspects in a good place, the development team is now focusing on enhancements more than fixes. Continue Reading at GameSpot

GameSpot - Game ReviewsAug 12

Mafia: The Old Country ReviewMafia: The Old Country is a conventional but effective return to the linear and tightly story-driven format of the original Mafia and Mafia II, and it boasts a wonderful eye and ear for detail.

IGN PC ReviewsAug 7

Mafia: The Old Country Review - Look But Don't TouchThe Mafia series has always been an outlier in the open-world action genre. While the 2002 original could have easily been written off as another Grand Theft Auto clone, Mafia and subsequent titles in the franchise carved a niche for themselves by being narrative-driven experiences built around a specific time and place. Empire Bay from Mafia 1 and 2 is an amalgamation of Chicago and New York created to capture the feeling of 1930s and 50s gangster culture, while New Bordeaux from Mafia 3 attempted to depict the Vietnam-era in the south. Mafia: The Old Country successfully continues this trend with its depiction of Sicily in the early 1900s, but is ultimately held back by its shallow mechanics and dated design. Mafia: The Old Country follows Enzo Favara as he falls in with the Torrisi Crime Family. After fleeing the sulfur mines, Enzo is saved by Don Torrisi, a soft-spoken and enigmatic mob boss that sounds like another very famous soft-spoken crime lord. Torrisi sees potential in Enzo and puts him to work at his vineyard where he meets Luca, a mentor-like figure to Enzo; Cesare, Don Torrisi’s hot-headed nephew; and Isabella, the Don’s daughter with whom Enzo has an instant connection. Throughout the course of the 12-hour story, Enzo sinks deeper and deeper into the criminal underworld. It’s a fairly predictable mobster story that’s elevated by strong characters, great performances, and thoughtful writing. Protagonist Enzo staring down an adversary That said, Mafia: The Old Country’s cast doesn’t make the best first impression. Enzo is very quiet and standoffish in the early hours; Don Torissi, at times, sounds a little too much like Michael Corleone; and Luca--despite being one of my favorite characters by the end--comes across as just another rank-and-file mobster. Fortunately, after the first couple of chapters, their personalities start to come through more strongly. This is especially true for Luca, who helps guide Enzo through his new life within the Torrisi family. Meanwhile, Cesare develops beyond a simple hothead as he struggles to live up to his uncle’s lofty expectations. The only exception to the slow burn of character personalities is Tino, Don Torrisi consigliere. Portrayed by Anthony Skordi, Tino makes a chilling impression out of the gate and frequently steals whatever scene he’s in. Continue Reading at GameSpot

GameSpot - Game ReviewsAug 7