JB_Whiting

Interesting; the demo didn't give me the strongest impression (felt like it'd be a 6). Seems to be getting a good response from other outlets; I might have to try it after all now.

@kungfumongoose I think it comes down to personal preference. I'm a physical buyer only - for me it's usually much cheaper, and I sell them on once I 100%/platinum them, or if I've had my fill.

When there isn't an option however, such as with this and BG III, well then I sort of have no choice I guess. But I completely understand the frustration.

I imagine there's going to be a large number of cutscenes and FMV sequences, which I'm guessing they're including in the overall length. It's probably also going to have semi-open level design, much like Control; although that's a complete guess, I'm hoping I'm right. Would be nice to be able to explore the eery town a bit.

@Powerplay94 Yeah MK has always had stiff, and somewhat lifeless animation. It's still a blast to play though, just maybe stay away from online, it'll just cause you untold amounts of stress. At least that's what I do!

@Oz_Momotaro I think they mean "looks" like one of the best; bear in mind there isn't exactly a wealth of current-gen only titles to choose from... at least ones that are this gorgeous to look at.

This does look incredible though. Their Northlight engine is just so lush.

Man, the more I see of this the more I actually want this over Spider-Man; I just love the Lynchian worlds that Remedy create. Just sucks it's digital only; might have to purchase anyway.

@Constable_What Hmm I do agree with a lot of what you just said. Having fun experimenting with different builds only to fall back on the ol' dual gatling-gun wielding tank for the bosses does get stale. Wish there was more difficulty in the levels and less of a spike on the bosses.

8 for me (so far). Halfway through second playthrough and repetition is starting to set in... though I am still loving the moment-to-moment gameplay.

Not quite on the level of DS or ER, but it's still a blinder. Maybe 8.5 or even 9 once I'm done with it!

I'll remain optimistic despite EA's control over this; it's just exciting to see Codemasters tackle the WRC license.

Kylotonn had a solid entry with WRC9 but for me fumbled the ball with 10 and Generations (they felt like a step back). It's in need of some fuel injection.

Wait you're telling me you reload with THE PRESS OF A BUTTON??

Think I'll stick with Pavlov.

Had to hit the mute button about 5 seconds in.

@ArmoredMore Glad someone else is so on board with this. This game just trims the fat: no cutscene bullsh*t, no hand-holding, no time wasting - looking at you most AAA games (like Assassin's Creed et al) - and it's just a tonne of FUN. Environments are beautiful and haunting. And IT'S NOT THAT HARD. Don't understand why people don't read around more; don't make a conclusion based on one person's opinion.

@UltimateOtaku91 I will say that the difficulty is a significant step down from the likes of DS and Sekiro; you can pretty much just brute force your way through most situations with the right (tanky) build. PowerPyx has a great guide on what to equip for maximum survivability.

Loving it so far; it's not a Souls game that's for damn sure. Its straightforward, mission-based structure is a nice change of pace, though the lack of exploration is leaving me wanting somewhat.

I'm only on chapter 2 but it's a lot of fun. Probably give it an 8 right now.

@Olmaz I tried it (120hz display here), and it doesn't feel good to me. Feels more like an inconsistent 30fps; I don't think it's worth the extra bump in res and the "RTX" just isn't very noticeable. Definitely stick with performance mode, you'll need it with this one!

@Beerheadgamer82 Looking at the preview videos seems like you'll be with bots instead. Hopefully you won't have to babysit them and can just get on with the campaign at your own pace. First Space Marine was a brilliant single player game, I'm betting this will be just as good, if not better!

@Blofse I only noticed because I work for a company that recently released them in lavish boxsets. They are bloody great films! No wonder you love fighting games haha.

@Blofse You get a bonus like for your Shaw Bros. pfp!

@gbanas92 OK awesome thanks for the clarification!

@PixelDragon My guess is perhaps he isn't familiar with Quake and scored the game itself rather than be like "well Quake is a genre-defying masterpiece, no need to judge the game on its own merits, so here's a review of the package as a whole." Who knows

@__jamiie Yup; I think a lot of people who are a bit sniffy about this haven't played it when it came out and are comparing it, rather unfairly, against modern day games.

This title was a landmark in not just FPS games, but 3D level design, multiplayer and responsive gameplay. The fact that Nightdive went in and improved the enemy AI to make them more aggressive, reactive and unpredictable is utterly commendable. All for the price of a large Mcdonald's meal. This achievement should be lauded.

@StrawberryTurtle I agree but Quake II isn't "good"; it's gosh darn fantastic. If I had to pick a game that came out in the same year, let's say, Tomb Raider II, that game is "good", it was brilliant then, but has aged poorly; no amount of 4K up-res or 120fps will improve its jankiness. Quake on the other hand is smooth as butter. Have you tried it yourself?

7/10; are you actually serious? XD

I've been playing through this and it's an absolute joy; remains insanely satisfying to this day. Not to mention Nightdive studios' incredibly extensive work on it, AND the generous bounty of content. And all for £7.99.

As for hit detection you might want to tweak your controls slightly.

So yeah, this is a 9/10 at bare minimum sorry.

Looks cute! But that looks pure Gauntlet to me. Not BG (maybe Dark Alliance 1, at a stretch)

As much as I love FF16 (and I really do!), the enemy variety and true sense of exploration really underwhelmed me. Would really love a new continent/island to explore filled with all kinds of classic FF monsters: new hunt board, more trials.... and some actual fun sidequests please!

@Anke That's the spirit! I've ordered it too

If you, and anyone else, wanna group up, my tag is JB_Whiting

@Anke Ignore them (especially mio_nakashima). It IS fun. Each mech is wholly unique and the gameplay is fast, fluid and responsive.

@Anke Yeah so, at least what I took from the beta, it's a PVEVP game. The matches I played consisted of a few rounds of just PVE, where two opposing player teams are going through these stages killing dinos, but don't interact. The team that finishes them the quickest, gets the bigger head-start in the final round when the two player teams go up against each other directly.

It's kinda fun, but the PVP bit was too hectic for me. That is just one game mode though and I'm hoping they'll be some where you only fight dinos, we'll see I guess!

@Anke It's definitely that, but when you reach the final round of the match your team is pitted against another player team, and that's when it can get a little stressfull. Like, if your team isn't focused/pulling their weight, you can get wiped pretty easily.

I just hope matchmaking on this is fair and.... fingers crossed, the game isn't filled with semi-pro players and streamers with no lives by the end of the month

"Awful abomination" is a little strong. The beta was fun, albeit lacking in modes and variation. I do wish this was purely PVE but the time I did have with the game, there was enjoyment in it.

Gamepass is the perfect place to try this out and I'm bummed it's not also on PS Extra. C'mon Sony let's start seeing some new releases on that thing!

@Snake_V5 Depends on how well it's utilised. Some games, like this one and The Witcher 3, I'd say yeah, turn it off; it's aggressive and has an obvious ghosting effect.

But some games use it really well, like Uncharted 4 and TLOU 2; they would look worse without. It's because of how modern OLEDs display frames that we kinda need motion blur in the first place. I'd still take blur over judder.

Can I just add that the motion blur in the cutscenes is incredibly well implemented. It's subtle, but it makes those 30fps cinematics seem so, so smooth. So when used well, motion blur is a great tool. But yeah during the game, especially in fidelity mode, it's kinda nauseating.

Wouldn’t be surprised if MGS4 is still stuck at 30fps. Wasn’t that game like impossible to update the refresh rate?

Currently a 90 on OpenCritic, much higher than I predicted! Eurogamer seems to be an outlier with a lukewarm response. Despite them frequently going against the grain I do still take their opinion on board, just to temper my expectations somewhat

@NEStalgia Ah yeah I get you. MGS was probably the biggest culprit for that; that definitely went waaay too far in that direction. I understand about pure gameplay; Diablo IV is a good example, the story is kind of there but it's so focussed on the action that you just sort of get on with it; it trims the fat and always gives you full control, and for that I can't put it down.

I suppose it feels different to the old FFs where you read the dialogue at your own pace, and still had a sense of control of the story's pacing; reading gives the player a little more input than just passively watching.

I'm confident that when it opens up the combat will really show its colours, and give players full control and individuality on how they approach battles. But yeah I guess we'll see, hopefully it'll turn out to be a classic.

@NEStalgia I'm curious why you find the cutscenes too long? I mean I know there are others on here that share the same sentiment, but I understand that with a lot of RPGs they do get off to a slower start than most other games. I guess it's just setting everything up. I'm sure once you set out into the world it'll be more gameplay focused; especially when places open up and sidequests/hunts become available.

Also despite the length of the cutscenes I do think it is quite engrossing, and the little lore and details you can bring up during them is genius. Maybe the story hasn't grabbed you yet.

I wouldn't write it off just yet!

An absolutely STONKING opener, like, holy cow it had everything: world-building, political intrigue, monsters and demons, war, familial tragedy, espionage, a coup d'etat, murder, emotion. All packed into the first couple hours; and it ends on a proper cliff hanger like, GIMME THE GAME NOW.

Felt like a pilot episode of a really good show.

EDIT: Also the music...... THE MUSIC.

OK the video they released just piqued my interest. I pictured this game to be kinda like Mech Warrior - very slow and methodical but damn, it's definitely more akin to Zone of Enders. It's got my money.

I mean, this is the gaming equivalent of liquid crack so like, yeah of course its great. As others have mentioned, i'm not super into the connected overworld; it's weird being able to walk from a snowcapped mountain top to an arid desert in like 2 minutes; feels small and constricted.

Also not a big fan of the level scaling; it's just... wrong. Other than that i'm having a blast with my rogue. That sweet, addictive loop oh boy.

Why does everyone keep saying June 1; it’s saying 6th when I order?

I didn’t want to give Acti any money but DAMN IT you and many other outlets have convinced me otherwise 😤

I didn't quite get the feeling of a proper, current-gen sequel after that footage; more evolution than revolution I guess. At first glance it looks just like the PS4 original. Still, it'll be a great game no doubt.

Nice to see a bit of Iron Maiden used in marketing material!

@WallyWest I think they're rewinding the clock (again!) with Kronika defeated and the sand dial thingy smashed... can't actually remember the end haha.

But will this mean we won't be getting Liu Kang and the other OG characters? Either way it's gonna look gorgeous; MK11 was a real looker. I just hope we get some really grim fatalities!

@Paranoimia Completely agree about Deep Rock! The community is great and very heartwarming actually; I think that's mainly due to the fact it's exclusively PvE, and of course the "rock and stone" communication button

Arc Raiders could be another DRG but alas, the excitement I had has been completely drained now.

@AinsleyE This. While it's good to get the most out of a fantastic engine, I don't want majority of AAA games to only rely on a handful of engines.

For example, GoW uses its own propriety engine that Santa Monica developed, and it looks and plays like a dream - with its distinct stylings - I wouldn't then want future titles moving over into Decima or UE5. We don't want games looking homogenised visually.

@nocdaes I don't know about that, I mean MK11 sold something like 15mil copies! The IP is the strongest it's ever been so I'm not surprised they're charging ahead with another one.

Maybe when the new DC film universe arrives they might try something then.

@PenguinLtd I think (I hope) there will be. I reckon Remedy would have taken on board what they've learned from Control and put gameplay at the front and centre. That being said they did say this was more traditional survival horror so perhaps less shooty shooty this time round?

I'm glad everyone in the comments is calling out the bait and not taking it; well played to you all. This article is sludge.

@MergeAmbrose There are most likely far more revealing outfits for those characters out there; also their proportions are exaggerated. Do you see Leon's penis being enlarged? I don't think so. Double standards in this area do not exist because men are not CONSTANTLY the subject of objectification and physical critique. Go outside more.