Push Rewind

We’ve gone a little review crazy here at Push Square towers, working our way through a whopping ten titles over the past seven days. Elsewhere, we tossed out some emerging rumours regarding Sony’s impending E3 2014 press conference, and also picked our Game of the Month for April. Here’s your regular roundup of everything that mattered on Planet PlayStation this week.

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Reviews

Bound by Flame - 6/10

If you've been burning with anticipation for a fantasy RPG on Sony's newest console, Bound by Flame may be worth a look – but be sure to keep your expectations lukewarm. Much like its lead character, the release is a conflicted creation that's eager to prove its worth, but fails to set its ambitions alight. Not quite a product forged in the fires of Hell, Spiders' latest isn't a bad game, but it's never going to be much more than a flicker of light in a dark age of absent RPGs.

Outlast: Whistleblower - 8/10

Outlast: Whistleblower doesn’t muck around with a formula that’s already proven to work, and it subsequently succeeds at extending the spooky atmosphere of Red Barrels’ survival horror release. The new campaign accompanies the original game well, and even improves upon it in many ways. It also ups the ante in the terror department, hitting harder and more frequently, without relying too heavily on jump scares. As such, if you liked the main game, this expansion is a real scream.

Other Reviews

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Features

Feature: Why Sony's 'Leaked' PS4 Press Conference Is Pure Fan Fiction

While the majority of our time at Push Square towers is spent trying to think up cringeworthy puns, we also waste a great deal of our day sifting through rumours. Whether they’re sent to us via email, Twitter, or posted on the forums, there’s never any shortage of speculation to work through. Sometimes we post these articles, sometimes we don’t. On the occasions that we don’t, this is usually because we’ve been unable to verify the source, or simply don’t feel confident in what’s being claimed. This was the case when Sony’s entire E3 press conference supposedly leaked, prompting us to giggle and turn our attention to more pressing matters. Alas, the story – which originated on DualShockers yesterday evening – has picked up steam all over the web overnight, so we’re here to tell you why you shouldn’t believe everything that you read on the Internet.

Game of the Month: April 2014 - Child of Light

April may not have equalled March's onslaught of great games, but it still managed to play host to a number of smaller titles that ended up occupying large chunks of our time. Enjoyable downloadable releases were aplenty, with the likes of Octodad: Dadliest Catch, Trials Fusion, and Child of Light all vying for Push Square's coveted Game of the Month award. After much heated debate, it was decided that Ubisoft's picturesque platforming role-playing game was the best game that last month had to offer.

Other Features

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News

Sony Wasn't Allowed to Tell You What the PS4's Light Bar Is Really For

To date, the PlayStation 4 controller’s light bar has caused two accidental marriage proposals, a minor earthquake, and aliens to avoid contact with Earth. Granted, we read all of this on the Daily Mail’s website, but it hopefully illustrates the serious issues that the DualShock 4’s illuminated surface has caused not just around the world, but also in outer-space.

Naughty Dog Struggling to Squeeze The Last of Us Remastered on a PS4 Blu-ray

While it may not have been developed for the PlayStation 4 first and foremost, Naughty Dog is packing so many improvements into The Last of Us Remastered that it’s currently struggling to squeeze the game onto a single Blu-ray disc. Speaking with EDGE magazine, creative director Neil Druckmann explained that the re-release will boast in-game character models on par with those seen in the PlayStation 3 version’s cut-scenes, as well as re-rendered cinematics and more.

Need for Speed Spends Some Time in the Garage as Series Skips 2014

Those looking for some fast and furious fun may have to make do with this year’s Need for Speed movie, as EA Games has announced that it’s put the brakes on the brand until 2015. Despite being an annual fixture in the firm’s lineup for as long as we can remember, there’ll be no new instalment this year, as Swedish developer Ghost Games quietly pushes the production pedal on an “innovative” new entry away from prying eyes.

How Much Money Is Being Spent on PS4 Shooter Destiny?

Bungie better pray to the gaming gods that first-person shooter Destiny generates a more favourable reaction than its recent seven minute gameplay trailer, because publisher Activision is investing – wait for this – $500 million into ensuring that the property is a success. That’s more money than company gaffer Bobby Kotick keeps under his bed.

Marvel at DriveClub's Delicious Dynamic Lighting in Fresh Gameplay Footage

It’s the hook that's hard to communicate, but these brand new DriveClub gameplay videos do a decent job of demonstrating the upcoming PlayStation 4 exclusive’s dynamic lighting engine. The first clip shows a race taking place at midnight through until sunrise, while the second runs from dusk until dark.

Other Noteworthy News

Video of the Week

Video: Watch As We Recap April's Best PlayStation Games

Regular readers will recall that this dulcet toned editor was promised an all expenses paid trip to WrestleMania last month – a reward for lending a very capable larynx to the Push Square cause. Alas, no such tickets arrived, causing another minor melodrama in the office that resulted in not one but two glasses of spilt strawberry milk. All’s well that ends well, though, because this humble movie maker has managed to convince Sammy to stump up for next year's event. Just 11 videos to go...