Tag: Soapbox - Page 4
Soapbox I'm Collecting Every NFL Game Ever Released on PlayStation
Third and long
What’s wrong with me? I’ve been planning for a while to clear out my cupboards from the countless PlayStation discs I’ve accumulated over the years, but just as I’ve started making progress on that process, I’ve been unable to resist the temptation of adding new cases to my collection. There’s a twist, though: I’m only...
Soapbox Judgment and the Yakuza Series Are the Undisputed Kings of Minigames
Kamurocho's true calling
If you've played a Yakuza game, then you already know how good the side activities are. Often far more in-depth than minigames have any right to be, these optional distractions can be ignored entirely -- or they can soak up hours and hours and hours of your life. I recently played through Judgment for review. Essentially a...
Soapbox Why Sony's PS5 Strategy Will Pay Dividends
Sammy believes giant is right to target hardcore gamers
Stop me if you’ve heard this one before: the PlayStation 5 is poised to "fail", and op-ed writers around the world are scrambling for the hottest take. One article published by financial site CCN – not to be confused with American news network CNN, to be clear – was bold enough to declare...
Soapbox Nintendo Switch Lite Signals the Need for a PS4 Super Slim
Sammy reckons it's time for one last revision
I don’t know if you realise this, but the PlayStation 4 still costs $299.99 officially. Sony has added value to the console by increasing its base hard drive size and also by bundling in software, but it’s more or less maintained the same MSRP for nearing three years now. That’s a testament to the...
Soapbox You Should Check Out Horizon Chase Turbo When it Drifts onto PS Plus This Month
Don't try to OutRun it
In case you somehow missed it, July's PlayStation Plus lineup was announced yesterday. In addition to PES 2019: Pro Evolution Soccer, you're also getting an arcade racer named Horizon Chase Turbo. But what the heck is it? You'd be forgiven for not knowing much about this indie title, but in truth, this is a solid little racing...
Soapbox Are We to Blame for the Lack of Gameplay at E3 2019?
Sammy reckons outrage culture may have played a part
I’ve been thinking a lot about the lack of gameplay at E3 2019, and I’m starting to wonder if we’re to blame. Do you remember ‘Puddlegate’ at all? It was a ridiculous controversy that marred the launch of Marvel’s Spider-Man, driving thousands of views to our website – even though we...
Soapbox Why 3D Audio Will Be PS5's True Game Changer
Sound
Stop me if you’ve heard this one before: diminishing returns. Whenever there’s a new console lurking around the corner, you can guarantee you’ll stumble upon at least one spoilsport, cynically proclaiming that video games have reached their peak. The insinuation is often that, even with all of the computational power in the world, it’s...
Soapbox Days Gone Is the Biggest 180 I've Ever Done on a Video Game
Liam actually likes Days Gone now
Had you told me a week ago that I would be thoroughly enjoying the Days Gone experience in seven days' time, I'd assume you had gotten me mixed up with someone else. I couldn't stand the opening handful of hours, but the more I forced myself to play it, my opinion began to change. You may have picked up on that...
Soapbox Why Syphon Filter Must Make a Return
Sammy's pining for Gabe Logan
I really like Days Gone. I wouldn’t say I was particularly excited for the apocalyptic open worlder, but somehow it’s become one of my favourites of the year. I can accept that it’s a flawed title that’s not doing anything especially special, but occasionally a bang average game comes along that appeals to me...
Soapbox 7/10 Is a Bad Review Score? The World's Gone Mad
Days Gone? More like head's gone
Love them or hate them, review scores are a big deal. You may say that they're unnecessary or that they distract from more important conversations about game criticism -- and that's fine -- but there's no denying that a lot of people care about that all-important number. Need proof? Just take one look at the recent...
Soapbox Mortal Kombat 11's Devs Have Missed the Point of the Loot Box Discussion
Lloyd isn't impressed by NetherRealm's loot box solution
With Mortal Kombat 11 launching earlier this week, the franchise has reached a new zenith. The last few instalments have made great strides in terms of mechanics, as the series has come to transcend its reputation as "the fighting game with all the gore" to become a damn good game in its own...
Reaction Sony's Surprise PS5 Reveal Was a Stroke of Genius
Shock and awe
We’ve been here before, haven’t we? I remember the halcyon days of 2013, when a less jaded Sammy and a much smaller Push Square quivered with anticipation as Sony announced the PlayStation Meeting which would later play host to the PlayStation 4. The event was revealed days after a cunning Kaz Hirai had told a business broadsheet...
Soapbox One Year Later and God of War's Overall Quality Still Blows My Mind
Looking back at one of the PS4's best
Can you believe that it's already been one whole year since God of War launched? Sony just celebrated the game's anniversary by releasing a bunch of free avatars and a PlayStation 4 theme, and it got me thinking about just how good God of War is as an action adventure title. I think it's a game that oozes...
Soapbox Sony's Done an Outstanding Job with PSVR
Credit where credit's due
I remember prior to the release of PlayStation VR there was a lot of chatter on this site in particular that Sony would scrap the headset like previous platforms should it fall short of expectations. To be fair, the organisation’s track record isn’t great: the EyeToy was prematurely given the boot, opening the market...
Soapbox Sony's Server Shutdown Strategy Is Making the Publisher a Laughing Stock
Sammy's dismayed by the DriveClub debacle
If our gaming future is to exist largely online, then I’m becoming increasingly sceptical of whether Sony deserves my money. The company has built the PlayStation Store into an unparalleled empire, but it’s about to gut popular racing game DriveClub and wipe it from its servers. If you already happen to...
Soapbox ANTHEM Has Crash-Landed, and Now It Needs to Win Players Back
Lloyd analyses ANTHEM's rocky first few weeks
Hope is a fragile thing in the world of video games. For every E3 showcase and launch trailer, there are day one patches and server queues. It’s natural to want something to be better because only the coldest of hearts would wish failure on a creative endeavour that so many have poured so much into...
Soapbox I Should've Scored The Witness 10/10
Stephen reflects on his original 9/10 review
There comes a point in any reviewer's writing career where they'll wish they'd scored something differently. Personally, there are a handful of games I've tackled for Push Square over the years which deserve higher or lower scores than I gave them. I won't be going through all of them here, although let's...
Soapbox ANTHEM's Load Screens are Killing the Game for Me
Time waster
ANTHEM's load screens shouldn't be allowed. It's as simple as that. You get to a point where it starts to feel like you're spending more time look at load screens than you are actually playing the game, and it's beyond frustrating. I've had ANTHEM on PS4 for a couple of days, and it's been a bit of a middling experience so far. After a...
Soapbox Why Early Access Is Ideal for Dreams
Sammy's in dreamland
I’m going to be honest with you: I’d already heard that Dreams was going to launch in Early Access, so I’ve had a little longer than everyone else to wrap my head around the idea. It’s been fascinating waiting for the official confirmation, as I’d been curious how Media Molecule would roll out the news, and more...
Soapbox Crackdown 3 Is Proof That Microsoft Is Still Playing Catch-Up to Sony
Liam questions what Microsoft does with its time
My Xbox One rarely sees the light of day, but since its release last week, I've been playing Crackdown 3. It's dumb, mindless fun that doesn't move the needle in the slightest. Announced nearly five years ago, it needed to be more than that for Microsoft, though – a company in dire need of something...
Soapbox Can We Please Kill Cursors in Console Games?
Sammy's cursing up a storm
I tolerated the cursors in Theme Park and Theme Hospital on the PSone because even as a nipper I knew that these games had been ported from the PC and there was really no other way deliver them on Sony’s grey device. The Horde, too – one of my absolute all-time favourites on the ill-fated Panasonic 3DO – had...
Soapbox I Spent the Night Playing Bingo on PS4, And It Was Wild
You won't believe what the gingerbread men said
We published our Best Free PS4 Games list on Push Square today, and it prompted me to do something I’ve been meaning to for months: download a bunch of free-to-play titles. I don’t know why I’ve put releases like World of Tanks on the back burner seeing as they don’t cost a penny to test out,...
Soapbox The Problem with ANTHEM Is That the Storm Javelin Is Way, Way More Fun Than the Other Suits
Balancing act
There are four character classes in ANTHEM. You've got your rather standard Ranger, your tanky Colossus, your agile Interceptor, and your unmatched, Godlike Storm. There's a surprising amount of variety between them, but there's currently one glaring issue: every other class seems woefully boring when compared to the Storm. Everything...
Soapbox I Didn't Get a Dreams Beta Code, and I'm Fine with That
Stephen's not upset at all about his missing beta code
It's okay, Media Molecule. I forgive you. With Dreams, the studio is creating something truly special -- essentially a game engine that practically anyone can use. A new play, create, share experience that's far and away more advanced than the wonderful LittleBigPlanet titles. I once made an...
Soapbox PSVR Bargain Adventure - One Man's Attempt to Reclaim His Gaming Glory Days
"I've gone from has-been to has-it-all"
Last autumn, my wife went away for a while. I got to thinking: What if I bought a massive pile of PlayStation VR kit on eBay, spent every waking hour catching up on years of missed gaming, then sold everything again before she came back, as if nothing ever happened? Would that even be possible? How much would...
Soapbox Ubisoft Has Earned The Division a Second Shot
Lloyd's been left impressed by the publisher
Cast your mind back to just before the start of this console generation. At E3 2013, there was a game that had the industry abuzz: Ubisoft’s closer to its press conference, a new Tom Clancy title called The Division. Promising engaging co-op play amidst a backdrop of chaos and the fall of Manhattan’s...
Soapbox The Destiny Divorce - What Bungie and Activision's Split Could Mean for Destiny
Lloyd ponders the game's future
It happened. Bungie and Activision have parted ways prior to the end of what was a seismic ten year publishing deal for Destiny. While Bungie’s staff allegedly popped champagne and cheered the announcement, and Activision thanked the fans for their participat
Soapbox Beat Saber Has Brought Serious Beef to Push Square Towers
War never changes
There’s a battle brewing at Push Square Towers, and I’m not going to lose it. In lieu of having anything better to do on New Year’s Eve, I decided to buy Beat Saber – the extortionately priced rhythm sensation that sees you wielding lightsabers and chopping blocks to the sound of terrible electronic music. While the songs...
Soapbox Spending My Christmas with PlayStation VR
Stephen's seen the virtual reality light
My interest in virtual reality never really went away, but over the course of 2018, it definitely grew. This is most likely down to the fantastic drip feed of quality titles that lead to PlayStation VR having its best year yet -- WipEout Omega Collection got its free VR update, and we had several highly...
Soapbox PSVR Quietly Had an Outstanding Year
Sammy reckons 2018 has been strong for VR
Rightly or wrongly, Sony’s earned a reputation for scrapping unsuccessful products. I don’t think it’s always fair because, when you see the sales data on PS Vita’s software for example, you can’t really expect a company to keep throwing cash at a system that’s clearly never going to stick. That...
Soapbox I Would Never Have Played the Excellent Bloodborne if Not for PS Plus
Stephen tells the tale of how he joined the hunt
For those that aren't aware, I'm a proper wuss. I have an irrational fear of spiders and other creepy crawlies, and I'd much rather watch the works of Walt Disney than Tobe Hooper. The scariest film I've ever seen is probably Alien, and I'd say the scariest game I've ever played, until recently, was...
Soapbox I'm Tired of the Constant Teasing in the Lead Up to a Video Game Event
Liam wants all the announcements to be saved for the night
It's probably a little bit counterproductive of me, a writer for a video game website, to be getting tired of the hints towards what we should expect at the next videogame extravaganza, but here we are. The Game Awards are taking place tomorrow night, and host Geoff Keighley has been teasing...
Soapbox Fans Think PlayStation's Losing Momentum, And Sony's to Blame
Sammy's fed up with Sony shutting us out
How strange it is to think that in a year where Sony’s secured an unprecedented 20 nominations at The Game Awards and had to revise its sales forecasts due to the continued success of the PlayStation 4 five years into its lifespa
Soapbox I'm Spending More Time Grooming Red Dead Redemption 2's Arthur Than Myself
Sammy's turning into a turn of the century stylist
Madness is spending several minutes taming Arthur Morgan’s in-game mane when you’ve got an untended neckbeard making you look like more of a hillbilly than the cast of Red Dead Redemption 2 combined. I’ve never been one to invest significant time into character customisation, but Rockstar’s...
Soapbox Castlevania Requiem’s Release is Vamp-perfectly Timed for Halloween
Jamie is Iga to sing Castlevania’s praises for its Gothic atmosphere
Not only is Castlevania: Rondo of Blood my first pick when playing a traditional-style Castlevania arcade platformer, but Castlevania: Symphony of the Night is possibly my favourite PSone game of all time. It’s conventional for gamers to play spookily themed titles during...
Soapbox Why the PlayStation Classic's Game Lineup Could Never Please Everyone
The classic case of a console being too good
Everyone remembers the PSone differently, and that’s perhaps the beauty of it. While the Nintendo 64 was defined by Super Mario 64 and The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time and the Xbox was defined by Halo: Combat Evolved and, well, Halo 2, Sony has always cast its net so wide that you rarely get the...
Soapbox Don't Sleep on the Hitman Series Or Its Upcoming Sequel
Lloyd loves strangling strangers
The Hitman franchise is an anomaly. It's a game focused on the act of killing, but it's not a shooter. Instead, it's a puzzle game with dozens of variables and parameters. It's a stealth game where you can walk out in the open. It's a series with not one but two (pretty dismal) Hollywood adaptations, with a stoic...
Soapbox Can You Truly Appreciate a Game with Walkthroughs?
Step-by-step
I remember getting quite far in The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time before turning to a guide. It was probably the Water Temple that did it; that topsy-turvy dungeon with rising-and-falling fluid levels was a nightmare – so much so I’m pretty sure it was altered in the Nintendo 3DS re-release. Patches weren’t a thing when I was...
Liam's loving the lack of stabilisers
The sheer existence of Assassin's Creed Odyssey's exploration mode feels like acceptance from French publisher Ubisoft. After a generation of games plagued by the "Ubisoft formula" of climbing towers to unlock new missions and locations, side activities that flood the map with icons, and sprawling skill trees,...
Soapbox Kingdom Hearts III Was My First Taste of Kingdom Hearts
Did the light defeat the dark?
I’ve had a morbid obsession with Kingdom Hearts III for a fair share of its worryingly protracted development cycle. See, here’s the thing: I kinda like Disney – well, mid-90s Disney anyway. I was a snotty nosed tween when the company was enjoying its cinematic renaissance, so I grew up with legendary movies like...
Soapbox Destiny 2: Forsaken Has Rekindled My Love for the Game, But at a Cost
Lloyd thinks the expansion's a blast
The year was 2014. Following a really exciting beta, Bungie’s first post-Halo effort hit PlayStation 4 and Xbox One. A “shared world shooter”, Destiny was envisaged as a ten year project, constantly being iterated on. A shooter clad in MMO trappings, first impressions suggested that its estimated five...
Soapbox Publishers Want You to Pay to Play Early, And It's a Worry
Sammy on the dangers of double release dates
If you’ve ever lived in Europe, you’ll know the pain: the eternal wait for release dates, while the rest of the world gads about in the next great game. It wasn’t so bad during the PSone era: the Internet was less established in those hazy mid-nineties days, and so magazines were the main source of...
Soapbox Warhawk Is One of Sony's Greatest Online Success Stories
Sammy and Stephen remember a PS3 classic
Sony’s known for its single player, story games these days – but at the start of the PlayStation 3 era, that wasn’t necessarily the case. With the likes of Halo running amok on the Xbox and the PlayStation Network needing to establish itself, the platform holder pushed new multiplayer series like...
Soapbox Marvel's Spider-Man Has the Most Fun Photo Mode on PS4
Stephen says it's all the better for keeping things simple
Photo mode is an unusual phenomenon, isn't it? Who'd have thought that we'd warm to what is quite an involved, fiddly screenshot generator? The DualShock 4's Share button enables us to immediately upload our best efforts to social media, but we can spend an incredible amount of time fine...
Soapbox Sony's in Danger of Becoming Closed Off
Sammy's not enjoying the silence
Gamescom 2018 is almost over, and it’s clear at this stage that we won’t be hearing a peep from Sony again. The platform holder was never likely to hold a press conference in Cologne – I’ll actually be surprised if it has a briefing at Paris Games Week or PlayStation Experience – but it’s been busy on the...
Soapbox 5 Things I Wish I Knew About Shenmue Before Playing for the First Time
About that day...
Thanks to the HD re-release of these two Dreamcast classics, many of you will be experiencing Shenmue for the very first time. I'm one of those people too, and after receiving my pre-order a fair few days early, I've been able to make a decent amount of leeway into my search for the killer of Ryo Hazuki's father, the...
Sammy Barker recalls his history with Yu Suzuki's hit series
Republished on Thursday, 18th August 2018: We're bringing this article back from the archives in celebration of Shenmue I & II's impending release on the PlayStation 4. The original text follows. Originally published on Thursday, 16th July 2015: I don't remember the day that the snow...
Soapbox 1979 Revolution: Black Friday Honours the Past with a Political Deep Dive
Iranian learnings
During the late 1970s, Iran underwent a radical transformation as continuous protesting managed to overthrow Mohammad Reza Shah Pahlavi, the last Shah of a monumental 2500 year long reign by the Persian monarchy. 1979 Revolution: Black Friday puts you in the midst of those demonstrations, and it's an experience that is both...
Soapbox Madden NFL’s Longshot Is the Kind of Direct-to-DVD Drama I Adore
Baffling in the best way
Okay, we’ve got to talk about Madden NFL’s Longshot mode, because I feel like this is flying under the radar. I quite like FIFA’s rags-to-riches stories, depicting the rise of Clapham’s finest forward Alex Hunter, but I absolutely love Devin Wade and Colt Cruise’s pursuit of NFL stardom. Playing through Homecoming,...
Soapbox Playing The Persistence As My First Ever PSVR Experience
Jamie and the magic torch
I felt well situated to visit Firesprite to play its PlayStation VR stealth horror game The Persistence for Push Square recently. I’m local to Merseyside, so travelling from my home to its Liverpool office took twenty minutes in total. I’m also a keen retro gamer, and once I had the fascinating opportunity to talk to...
