PS5 Game Reviews
Review Bleach: Rebirth of Souls (PS5) - A Perfect Example of Style Over Substance
Rebirth of trolls
Bleach, one of the keystone manga and anime franchises of the early 2000s alongside Naruto and One Piece, has finally been given another chance at carving out some kind of legacy in the video game space. Bleach: Rebirth of Souls is a one-on-one fighting game that's easy to pick up and... well, truth be told, it's fairly easy to...
Review The First Berserker: Khazan (PS5) - A Fast-Paced Action RPG Held Back by Its Own Bloat
Great bosses, grating loot
The First Berserker: Khazan is a stylish action RPG that borrows equally from Souls-likes and looter shooters. Set in the world of Dungeon Fighter Online, this single-player spin-off delves into the past, 800 years before the events of the popular beat-'em-up, but you don't need to have played the original to enjoy this...
Review Atomfall (PS5) - British Charm Elevates Riveting Mystery
Work out to help out
For seven years now, British developer Rebellion has honed and enhanced its craft on iterative sequels. A second Evil Genius, a fourth Zombie Army, a fifth Sniper Elite — all perfectly good to great games in their own right, but based on an already fine-tuned formula. Atomfall, then, the studio’s first new IP since Strange...
Review Assassin's Creed Shadows (PS5) - Striking Open World RPG Is a Real Cut Above
The daimyo is cast
An Assassin's Creed game set in Japan. For generations, this was the dream — but when Ghost of Tsushima released in 2020, it felt like the desire dissipated. Sony and Sucker Punch had beaten Ubisoft to the, er, punch, and so, in a weird roundabout way, Assassin's Creed Shadows almost feels like it's late to its own party. As...
Atelier what I want what I really really want
While the Atelier series has been steadily evolving and tweaking its winning JRPG/craft-'em-up formula across 30 years and 20-plus games, Atelier Yumia: The Alchemist of Memories & the Envisioned Land perhaps represents the most radical shift yet. But that doesn't mean existing fans should be...
Mini Review Age of Mythology: Retold (PS5) - Series' Best Stands the Test of Time
Real-time strategy finds a home on console
Age of Mythology: Retold is a remastered version of Ensemble Studio’s hugely influential 2002 original. With a fresh coat of HD paint, a visual overhaul for every game unit, and brand new animations, Retold is a nostalgic jaunt for seasoned veterans and an excellent jumping-on point for interested...
Review WWE 2K25 (PS5) - Unbeatable Value from 2K’s Dominant Wrestling Series
The Island of Relevancy
As we hurtle down the road to this year's WrestleMania, it's time once again to make a welcome pit stop at 2K's annual simulated grapple-fest. WWE 2K25 boasts new features, even more playable superstars, and a brand new multiplayer distraction in the form of The Island. But does it continue the momentum Visual Concepts has...
Mini Review Dungeons of Hinterberg (PS5) - Chill Fights and Vibes in Virtual Vacation
Hit the slopes
If going on holiday is meant to be a time for relaxing and disconnecting from daily life, why can it feel so stressful in the moment? Dungeons of Hinterberg reckons with those mixed emotions as protagonist Luisa takes a break from being a lawyer to try and chill in the Austrian Alps... while putting her life on the line in puzzle and...
Mini Review Wanderstop (PS5) - A Meditative Musing on Mental Health
Turning over a loose leaf
On first appearance, Wanderstop looks like your average wholesome, low-stakes indie game with easy-going objectives and enjoyable, soothing tasks to perform. While the game is exactly that, it layers on top a story that hones in on the central character's mental state, and it's an effective combination. Alta is a fighter...
Two of the best PS1 role-playing games ever made
Suikoden I & II HD Remaster: Gate Rune and Dunan Unification Wars is the unwieldy name Konami has bestowed upon a remastered collection of two of the best PS1 JRPGs ever made, enhanced and made more accessible for modern gamers on PS5 and PS4. Both Suikoden and Suikoden II tell a connected tale...
Subscribe to Push Square on YouTube155k Watch on YouTube Review Split Fiction (PS5) - A Truly Outstanding, Peerlessly Creative Co-Op Adventure
You couldn't write it
Split Fiction, like Hazelight Studios' previous titles, is only playable in local or online co-op. To match this collaborative direction, the Push Square review is a back-and-forth between the pair who played through the game, as has become tradition. This time, assistant editor Stephen Tailby had a helping hand from video...
Review Two Point Museum (PS5) - Laugh Out Loud Tycoon Title Is Well Worth the Entry Fee
Curated chaos
The true brilliance of tycoon titles like Two Point Museum is their ability to keep you occupied. In this sequel to Two Point Hospital and Two Point Campus, there’s always something to do: a new interactive exhibit you need to research, a staff member you want to educate, or an expedition you have to send your experts on. If...
Review Monster Hunter Wilds (PS5) - A Timeless Formula Refined to Near Perfection
Wilds thing, I think I love you
Monster Hunter World: Iceborne introduced the Guiding Lands — a dynamic, borderline sandbox map that had monsters of all shapes and sizes come and go as players investigated its more open environments. Monster Hunter Wilds is essentially the Guiding Lands, but spread across an entire Monster Hunter title. And as a...
Mini Review Warriors: Abyss (PS5) - A Decent Descent into Hell for Roguelike and Warriors Fans
The Enemy of my Enma
Truthfully, Warriors: Abyss feels like Koei Tecmo tried to cook up its own budget Hades from the leftovers of last night's Dynasty Warriors and Samurai Warriors. That's not to say it fails to sate the appetite, though. Despite being a bit rough around the edges, Abyss is a solid and successfully addictive foray into the...
Review Lost Records: Bloom & Rage - Tape 1 (PS5) - Slow Burn Opener Means Part 2 Must Deliver
Stand by me
Lost Records: Bloom & Rage Tape 1 is the first in this intriguing two-parter, and an ambitious undertaking from the original creators of Life Is Strange. Establishing two timelines, both in the mid-90s and present day, Bloom & Rage is a return to Don’t Nod’s roots with a killer setting, lovable characters, and plenty of...
Review Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii (PS5) - Madcap Majima Does the Job
Noah's arc
RGG Studio hasn’t been entirely upfront about Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii. More of a side game in a vein similar to 2023’s The Man Who Erased His Name, the developer has suggested in the lead-up to launch it’s quite a bit bigger than Kazuma Kiryu’s tear-jerking interlude. Every bit of that is indeed true, but it still...
Review Sid Meier's Civilization VII (PS5) - Legendary Strategy Series Builds a Brand New Foundation
Settle down
Firaxis' flagship series returns with Sid Meier’s Civilization VII, and, for the first time in the series’ history, it;s released simultaneously across all platforms, including the PS5. For the uninitiated, Civilization (Civ for short) is the quintessential 4X (eXplore, eXpand, eXplot, eXterminate) game where the objective is to...
Mini Review Afterlove EP - Musical Odyssey Emerging from Development Tragedy Is Worth the Trip
All you need is love
Considering the real-life tragedy surrounding the development of Afterlove EP, it would have been easy to forgive developer Pikselnesia for not moving forward with work on the title. To its credit, it's powered forward and delivered a poignant, prescient experience worth your time. You play Rama, a musician who returns to his...
Gods, angels, and mummies
Storied developer Aspyr has been knocking it out of the park recently. It followed the first three Tomb Raider remasters with an update of the beloved Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver games. More recently, the studio threw a satisfying curve ball with Star Wars: Jedi Power Battles, a remaster nobody knew they needed. It now...
Bear the nightmare
Taking place mere months after the events of Trails through Daybreak, its sequel — simply titled Trails through Daybreak 2 here in the west — often feels like a character-driven epilogue rather than a full-blown follow-up. The first Daybreak told a complete tale; the kind of storyline that Falcom usually splits across two...
Mini Review Tiny Terry's Turbo Trip (PS5) - A Simple, Delightfully Silly Sandbox
Joyride
Tiny Terry's Turbo Trip is a short but sweet open world adventure about one kid's ambition to drive into space. After acquiring a car to call his own, Terry's main objective is to make it go so fast it can escape his planet's gravity, and to do that, he'll have to explore every inch of his hometown and help out the locals. It's refreshingly...
Mini Review Ninja Gaiden 2 Black (PS5) - Fun Slasher Shows Its Age
All slice, no dice
Ninja Gaiden 2 Black is like a time machine back to the halcyon days of PS3, featuring over-the-top violence, ridiculous action, and a globe-trotting campaign. Black sparkles up those graphics for PS5, and while fun, it isn’t quite enough to counter how much this hack-and-slash experience has aged. With the threat of demonic...
Review Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 (PS5) - Immersive Knight Sim Makes for a Peerless RPG
Fortune favours the brave
With Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2, Czech developer Warhorse Studios demands a seat at the table of role playing masters with a dangerously immersive WRPG that, almost disappointingly, is polished to mirror-brightness, like a dazzling suit of tourney plate. Armed with a bizarre mixture of mechanics seemingly inspired by...
Mini Review Ender Magnolia: Bloom in the Mist (PS5) - Peak Metroidvania Action
Bloomin' brilliant
There must be something in the water during January, for after Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown got the Metroidvania genre off to a flyer in 2024, Ender Magnolia: Bloom in the Mist is doing the same 12 months on. The follow-up to Ender Lilies: Quietus of the Knights refines what co-developers Adglobe and Live Wire achieved four...
Mini Review Citizen Sleeper 2: Starward Vector (PS5) - Don't Sleep on This Deeper RPG Sequel
More space
Citizen Sleeper 2: Starward Vector successfully builds on what was achieved in the original to deliver a compelling and challenging sci-fi RPG. It's a tricky game to discuss without spoiling things, but it's safe to say if you liked the first, you'll want to check out the sequel. Playing as a sleeper, an android with an emulated human...
Mini Review Tails of Iron 2: Whiskers of Winter (PS5) - A Simple Tail of Bigger and Better
Doesn't rat-tle the cage
Tails of Iron 2: Whiskers of Winter is your classic sequel — a bigger, better game than the inaugural animal action RPG. Playing as a new character in a different part of the world, this follow-up builds on the groundwork laid by the original game, with bigger scope and deeper systems as you hunt down the bats that...
Review Sniper Elite: Resistance (PS5) - Much More of a Good Thing
Henry Hawkeye
Sniper Elite: Resistance is a lot like a sequel out of the PS2 generation. Rather than building on and expanding what it achieved in Sniper Elite 5, developer Rebellion has gone with more of the same. The old-school TV advert practically writes itself: eight new levels, a returning playable character, and more weapons and gadgets to...
Mini Review Tales of Graces f Remastered (PS5) - Classic Tales Game Is Better Than Ever
Aging gracefully
In this modern era of games getting rereleased, it’s crazy to think it’s been over 12 years since Tales of Graces f was released on western shores. Thankfully you no longer need to dust off your ancient PS3 to play, as Bandai Namco has spruced up this classic RPG for modern consoles with Tales of Graces f Remastered. As you’d...
Review Dynasty Warriors: Origins (PS5) - Peak Dynasty Warriors Is Back with an Almighty Bang
Wei to go
What a difference seven years makes. In 2018, the dismal Dynasty Warriors 9 effectively put Koei Tecmo's storied hack and slash series on ice, but Dynasty Warriors: Origins is a completely different beast. For the first time in generations, the franchise feels fresh again — a genuine evolution of what's come before. To be clear, Origins...
Proceed directly to jail
Freedom Wars Remastered is the triumphant return of the fan-favourite, fascistic Monster Hunter-style action game, originally published by Sony for the PS Vita in 2014. As the PS Vita (sadly) never achieved the breakout success it deserved, we always felt this forward-thinking title didn't get a fair shake. With "volunteers"...