Wreckreation wears its influence in its presentation, mechanics, and throughout many other aspects of the gameplay. It retains some of the bad aspects, sticks a bit too close to some of the good, and is missing maybe a little of both, all at the same time. Ultimately, the act of driving and crashing feels pretty good, but the awkward fast-travel and menus, which feel close to carbon copies, are in dire need of modernization. While the large map has enough variety for a bunch of open, mountainous spaces, the lack of a dense city feels like a step backwards in just about every way, and gives the entire world a more empty feeling. There are plenty of tools at each player's disposal to create tracks and events, but relying on a social experience focused directly on friends means that larger scale multiplayer is hamstrung before it has a chance. If Wreckreation has the opportunity to grow, the foundation is solid, but if it can't or won't, it risks feeling like a knock-off of its primary predecessor to some, and simply an awkward experience to others.

It is not your run of the mill city builder and it is hard to market something so different from the norm. That difference is not just a weakness, though, it is also a strength. I can guarantee you that you’ve not played anything like this before and the community - is - figuring it out, slowly. Urban Empire is a breath of fresh air and for that reason alone it is worth checking out.

Nazi Zombie Army is obviously meant to be played socially. The single-player experience gets boring and frustrating rather quickly.

The foundations are there and the premise is one of the most original we have seen in recent times, but it’s just not quite fleshed out enough.

There are definitely some areas that could use a little polish - inventory and shop system, the save/load points, but those things aside, the game is fun to play.

With cinemas closed and most everyone hunkered down at home, The Complex’s hybrid interactive movie experience might be just what the doctor ordered to remedy your cabin fever. Whether you play it by yourself or navigate via decision by committee with some friends, there’s something to be enjoyed here by everyone. In my mind, Wales Interactive has earned itself a reputation for being the bar to be measured by in the interactive movie genre, and I can’t wait to see where they go with it next.

I really enjoyed the character specialization and tactical gameplay, but during most of Deadline I couldn’t help but feel that it just didn’t make much sense as a zombie game, and would be better if I was fighting other soldiers (there are humans you fight, but not comparatively often).

For many turn based strategy titles it is the combat that keeps you engaged. The Great Whale Road has some really great writing but ultimately that is not enough to carry the game. The combat is so intensely unrewarding that this is one story I’d rather have read in paperback format.

Some of Magnetic: Cage Closed’s themes are interesting, but they are tackled more confidently and effectively both in and out of the medium.

There's simply too much luck and not enough player influence to get a whole lot out of it.

Overall the game is beyond simplistic, but perhaps that's for the best. Overcomplicating things might have made it less fun in the grand scheme of things, and while I can't say for certain if I'll be playing this game a year from now, I do know I can affectionately call it my frightening summer fling for multiplayer. Illfonics has set the stage, it's time for them to keep improving upon this great idea, and for other companies to take the hint and follow in their footsteps. This is asymmetric multiplayer at its most addicting, and horror in one of its purest forms.

Although Sword Art Online: Fatal Bullet is lovely to look at, and the core game mechanics work well, it is the repetition and the stale dialogue that quickly diminished any fun I was having with the game.

Lockdown isn’t a bad game, it’s just one that already feels either dated, or incomplete.

The team at Orange Juice have tried hard to provide a retro feel to Flying Red Barrel, but in the end, it feels like a game that could have been made twenty years ago. The boss battles are enjoyable, but the lack of any upgrades means that each level feels basically the same - but with new opponents. The poor collision detection for enemy fire, the screen that limits your view and a storyline that can only be glimpsed at while you’re frantically fighting the enemy seriously let this game down. If you’re looking for some retro vertical scrolling action, I would suggest Shooty Skies. It does everything Flying Red Barrel does, only much better and with more variation.

The best adaptations feel like they exist in the world of the original, rather than trying to redo what has been done. Starship Troopers: Extermination accomplishes that. It gives you the familiar action from a new perspective. The fights herein are chaotic, seemingly-insurmountable, tactical, and satisfying. The Troopers' signature assault rifle feels as it should, the Arachnid are tough-but-not-to-tough, and building defenses feels meaningful. The biggest knock against its effort can easily be addressed as the game lives on: it is entering a crowded market without much innovation, and a relatively light plate of classes and weapons. As a package, it can be exhilarating, especially with a group of friends, big or small. [Early Access Provisional Score = 90]

Ashwalkers has it’s issues with pacing during some of its more severely-weathered environments, but, even so, it stands as an immensely moody survival-lite game that tells its story of desperation, loneliness, and even hope surprisingly well.

Despite its issues, The Dark Eye: Demonicon remains a fun adventure that, while lacking polish, is an enjoyable journey through The Dark Eye setting.

No matter how fun a game is, or how hard the developers worked on it, I can’t recommend someone buy a title that doesn’t work.

For now, however, Sacred Citadel is only recommended for fans of the franchise or genre. There is fun to be had here but only in small bursts, so it's hard to recommend the $15 investment. With a disappointing combat system and ineffectual character progression, the game falls short of its potential.

Broken Roads is certainly a tribute to Outback Australia as much as it is to role-playing games of the past, and as an Aussie myself, I found this refreshing.The bleak surrounds and the harshness of many of the characters really set the tone of the post-apocalyptic storyline. The Moral Compass and the ability to level up your character’s abilities in any way you choose ensures that the game feels more personalised as you travel from one location to the next. And although the questing can feel somewhat laborious at times, and the citizens can be somewhat abrupt, there is a story behind every interaction - one that provides hope for those that have struggled to survive the 'wide brown land' they call home.

It is a shame, then, that this is such a clunky, ugly mess of a game. It is rare enough that an English version of a Romance of the Three Kingdoms comes to Western shores by any other way than import and it makes me sad that – this – will be the first experience with the series for new players.

At the end of the day, I enjoyed my time with The Keep. I wouldn’t go as far to call it especially memorable, but the accessibility of its gameplay deserves recognition for anyone not-so familiar with dungeon crawlers. It’s the sort of game you can dip into, kill a few monsters and hop out again with a nice sense of achievement. Admittedly there is an elephant in the room, Legend of Grimrock from 2012 does almost everything The Keep does, except better. That isn’t to say The Keep doesn’t have a place, as if you aren’t familiar with RPGs and would prefer a much more casual experience, it’s still worth a look. The spellcasting has a surprising amount of depth too, so maybe if you’ve already tried Legend of Grimrock and want to play more, The Keep will keep you satisfied.

In all, Skully is a quirky and entertaining romp with fun puzzles and platforming, amusing character interactions, a good story, beautiful music, and awe-inspiring landscapes. Easily an entertaining game that this reviewer can and will gladly come back to time and time again, no bones about it.

Isekai Chronicles is an enjoyable game, simple with surprisingly satisfying combat thanks to comboing techniques and enemies having elemental strengths and weaknesses. That being said, any non-fans of Reincarnated as a Slime may not have as much to gain from the game as those who are actually aware of the series. If you're a fan of the Isekai Genre or Slime in specific, then this might be one to keep an eye on.

What Happened is not the kind of game you want to jump into on a weekend for some light-hearted fun. The game takes its subject matter seriously and delivers an experience that’s not “fun” so much as it is emotionally engaging. Like watching a sad movie, you need to go into What Happened with the right mindset and expectations. If you do, there’s a wonderful journey to be found.

If you played the original Wings! all those years ago, then you'll definitely enjoy the Wings! Remastered Edition. If you're a newcomer, there should be nothing stopping you from picking up a copy. Wings! Remastered Edition does everything right.

For all of the meddling with time Perils of Man focuses on, it feels like time is the one thing it needed more of to really develop itself into another classic adventure game.

Although Riptide features a New Game Plus mode, I find myself calling it a day. I enjoyed the game, just as I enjoyed the original, but that's the thing: I enjoyed it -just- as I enjoyed Dead Island. Riptide offers very little to keep the franchise fresh and instead focuses on giving us more of the same. For series newcomers, Riptide is undoubtedly the better game. As a fan, I was happy to receive it, but until a numbered sequel comes along, my time in the tropics is through.