Retro Reviews
Did you know that ATV stands for all-terrain vehicle? If nail'd is to be believed, thin-air is a form of terrain
As the title's improper spelling suggests, this is a game made by people who spent their youth listening to Papa Roach records and drawing tattoo designs on their food technology exercise books. nail'd is the very definition of the phrase...
Review Dead Space 2 (PlayStation 3)
Years after the conclusion to the original Dead Space, protagonist Isaac Clarke finds himself locked on the Sprawl -- a metropolis built upon one of Saturn's moons, Titan
Unable to recall the past three years of his life, Clarke finds himself suffering from distorted visions of his deceased girlfriend, Nicole. As the Sprawl finds itself subject to a...
Review Dead Space: Extraction (PlayStation 3)
Extracting fear and limbs
Humanity is sacred. Human beings are characterised by the emotions that flow within them, but yet humans are fragile beings. The line between life and death can be broken in an instant, and extract fear from deep within. Dead Space: Extraction finds a group of humans walking the fine line between life and death in deep...
Review Faery: Legends Of Avalon (PlayStation 3)
Faery: Legends Of Avalon is a well crafted turn-based RPG, dressed in a unique fairytale setting
While the game's lack of variety can lead to repetition, the engaging storyline and differing locales ensure you'll see Faery's adventure right through to its abrupt conclusion. We love fairytales. There's something magical about the way they turn...
Review Zumba Fitness (PlayStation 3)
You'll want to move - as far away as possible.
With the success of Wii Fit, we're beginning to see a steady increase in fitness-style game releases on the various consoles. With Move support rapidly growing in popularity among Playstation 3 owners, it was only a matter of time before the craze would hit the console and this time it's in the form of...
Review Modern Combat: Domination (PlayStation 3)
More bang fewer bucks
Question: how many times has a dinner been skipped or forgotten in favour of online shooting marathons on the PlayStation 3? Gameloft knows it’s happening daily, and with the price tag of a measly $7.99/£6.29, Modern Combat: Domination on PlayStation Network is as cheap as a skipped dinner, but is it worth going hungry? If...
Review Angry Birds (PlayStation Minis)
Those with only PlayStation platforms available to them will find the Minis version of Angry Birds a perfect justification for their curiosity, but we'd urge some consideration first
The PlayStation Minis version of Angry Birds lacks features, despite coming in at a higher price. What's more, we're just not convinced the gameplay is all that great...
Review EA Sports Active 2 (PlayStation 3)
EA Sports Active 2 is a compelling substitute to the real gym, with a good variety of well designed exercises and some excellent progress tracking tools
The heart-rate monitor makes exercising both fascinating and visually beneficial, while the game's sturdy presentation ensures you are motivated whatever your current fitness level. We'd never feel...
Review Blue Toad Murder Files (PlayStation 3)
The Mystery of Whodunnit?
Little Riddle is a quaint British village full of eccentric folk, but everyday life in the village has been disrupted by a murder, and one that only a detective of the Blue Toad Agency can properly solve. Taking the role as the detective for the agency will bring about many thought provoking puzzles and intense mind-benders...
Review Everybody's Stress Buster (PlayStation Portable)
Hot Shot Shorties is a hectic, pick-up-and-play mini-game compilation hindered by the cumbersome method Sony's opted to package it
Splitting the game into four disparate XMB applications adds an additional layer of navigation to what is essentially a jump-in-jump-out package. Once you get there, the underlying gameplay is charming, addictive and...
Review Tetris HD (PlayStation 3)
It's Tetris in the same blocktacular format you've been enjoying since the late 1980's
Tetrominoes fall from the heavens and it's your job to arrange them into solid lines. The PlayStation 3 version may introduce some new features such as 1080p visuals, 5.1 surround sound and exclusive multiplayer modes, but at its very core it is still the same old...
Review Eat Them! (PlayStation 3)
Eat Them
is essentially Rampage on the Dreamcast. The Fluffy Logic developed PlayStation Network title is a monster-themed smash 'em up inspired by Godzilla and Jet Set Radio. Occupying an outrageously attractive cel-shaded visual style, Eat Them! puts you inside a comic-book world where mad scientists create and control monsters at the expense of...
Review Top Darts (PlayStation 3)
Double top
You wait years for a darts game to come to PlayStation 3 with little success and then two turn up in the space of a month – such is the power of the PlayStation Move and its suitability for bringing the sport to life. While PDC World Championship Darts: Pro Tour was a good effort aimed at those who know their Phil Taylor from their...
Gameloft's new kid on the Blokus
More and more classic board games have been making their way into the PSN lately and now a digital version of the classic strategy game Blokus is available from Gameloft, the studio that brought the widely popular card game Uno to the PlayStation Store. The rules to Blokus are simple, but to master this block-laying...
Review echochrome ii (PlayStation 3)
Go to the light
Sony hasn't offered up a huge selection selection of puzzling Move games just yet, with Tumble being the major entry in the genre to date. While that game certainly was a blast, many Move owners have been left yearning for some similarly stellar, motion-infused brain teasers. Enter echochrome ii, Sony's direct sequel to their...
Review Marvel Pinball (PlayStation 3)
Marvel Pinball's visual effects and gameplay frills are supported by a strong physics core and generally good table design
Zen Pinball was one of our most played PlayStation Network titles of 2009, so it was with some anticipation we got thrift of Zen Studios' impending Marvel Pinball — a stand-alone catalogue of four new Marvel themed tables...
Review Cabela's Dangerous Hunts 2011 (PlayStation 3)
Become the prey
Hunters around the world often talk about the “thrill of the hunt”, but Cabela’s Dangerous Hunts 2011 brings a whole new meaning to this saying. Seeking out a great spot to hunt and long waits for that perfect shot are nowhere to be found here, as instead hunters will be fighting for survival in the deep wilds of several...
Review A Space Shooter For Two Bucks! (PlayStation Minis)
Two Bucks?
Frima's super self-aware A Space Shooter For Two Bucks hits all the right notes with smooth, space-blaster gameplay, a solid progression system and some comical, if cliche, dialogue. Frima's latest PlayStation Mini is probably the best they've released, but we can't help but feel like the game's title does it a disservice. Sure, the...
Review Blimp: The Flying Adventures (PlayStation Minis)
Blimp: The Flying Adventures is a simplistic navigation title built around a strong physics core
The first game Blimp: The Flying Adventures reminded us of was Crazy Taxi. Sure the game's two-dimensional, set in outer-space and puts you in control of a zeppelin rather than a taxi, but stay with us. It reminds us of Crazy Taxi because the core...
Review Kung-Fu LIVE (PlayStation 3)
The technology behind Kung-Fu LIVE is incredible at times, transforming the PlayStation Eye into a competent full-body motion controller that literally puts you inside the game
The problem is that the same technology can also be fiddly, with a lengthy set-up process required to get the game working correctly. Even then, though the concept is novel,...
Review Sackboy's Prehistoric Moves (PlayStation 3)
Sackboy’s got the Moves
LittleBigPlanet released on PS3 over two years ago and instantly concreted itself as a landmark title for the system. Sackboy, the adorable stitched doll who is the main character, has become an icon for the PlayStation brand, and is about to partake on his second retail game release in LittleBigPlanet 2 in early 2011...
Review Tron Evolution (PlayStation 3)
Derezzed to kill
One of the biggest surprises about the story of a video game coding whiz transported into a computer's mainframe is that after 28 years there are still not many games set in the awesome Tron universe. It started well enough with Bally Midway's 1982 coin-op, but slowed down significantly until the PC's Tron 2.0 in 2003 and Discs of...
Review PDC World Championship Darts: Pro Tour (PlayStation 3)
Oche dokey
For what it's worth, PDC World Championship Darts: Pro Tour is the first darts game to hit the PS3, and comes fully equipped for PlayStation Move support - though DualShock 3 is also supported. With a host of licensed players, tournaments and sponsors it’s certainly not a half-hearted effort, but it falls just short of hitting the...
Review Deadliest Catch: Sea of Chaos (PlayStation 3)
Dead in the water
Discovery Channel's Deadliest Catch has been a massive television success, spanning six seasons and still going strong. Fishermen risk life and limb to catch King and Ophelia crab off the coast of Alaska in the brutal Bering Sea, and the risk is worth it in massive pay-outs that can stretch to over $1,000 an hour. Fighting near...
Review Dead Nation (PlayStation 3)
Dead Nation creates an unbelievably tense atmosphere through frustrating methods
The game's dark, zombie-laden world is enhanced by an incredible lighting engine, but is hindered by a distant camera and an imprecise aiming mechanic. What's more, for as much tension as the game's sporadic checkpoints create, their limited nature concludes in...
Review Funky Lab Rat (PlayStation 3)
It's time to get funky!
2D platformers have seen a revival in recent years, with the rise of downloadable games, which has brought us many fantastic titles such as Super Meat Boy and Braid. Now, imagine a mix of the time travel elements of Braid with the puzzle mechanics of Tumble and you'll have a pretty good idea of what to expect in Funky Lab...
Review Deadstorm Pirates (PlayStation 3)
Davy Jones' lock-on
Over the years Namco has been prolific in developing light-gun titles including Ninja Assault, Point Blank and most prominently the Time Crisis series. Earlier this year it unleashed two-player on-rails shooter Deadstorm Pirates as a sit-down booth coin-op, so considering the possibility that your local arcade has not invested in...
Review Swords & Soldiers (PlayStation 3)
Don your Sword and ready the Soldiers
A port taken from the the popular WiiWare title and recreated with HD graphics and a new game mode, Swords & Soldiers recently received a free patch to support PlayStation Move. In a tower defence style of gameplay, gamers control troops and advance them forward while trying to both take the opponents base...
Review Pac-Man Championship Edition DX (PlayStation 3)
Pac-Man Championship Edition DX is a delightfully addictive sensory experience
Everything about Namco's re-reboot is perfectly tuned and overwhelmingly memorable. A must-have. Pac-Man has always been a bizarre game. Take a moment to digest the original's pitch: an incomplete pizza roams around a haunted maze scoffing tablets. Weird, right? Pac-Man...
Review Beat Sketcher (PlayStation 3)
Who said games can't be art?
Beat Sketcher combines the art of “light drawing” and music creation to create a new and unique experience for PS3 gamers, and using the PlayStation Move lets budding artists draw highly detailed pictures and share them with friends and family. When the game is first loaded a thorough calibration process kicks in,...
