The generational change hasn’t been felt since PS4, and the PS5 jump is marginal. It’s still awkwardly presented, quirky with glitches, and fighting between simulation and arcade play. Madden 23 never feels comfortable in its own skin, but hopefully Coach, wherever he is, can take solace in what his legacy built. [Issue#20, p.88]

It’s no chart-topper, but the funky flows of Soundfall resonate. However, the constant reprise of its best moments causes the orchestra to miss the beat. [Issue#16, p.131]

The core experience is superb, but the same is true of the now significantly cheaper NBA 2K23. Unless the latest rosters are important to you, buy that instead. [Issue#33, p.77]

Warts-and-all remasters that accept the failings of the original games and make amends where possible, but ultimately too flawed to live up to the name. [Issue#9, p.82]

When it all lines up perfectly, Soulstice can be wonderfully satisfying. Unfortunately, some strange design decisions and camera issues stop it hitting SSS-rank. [Issue#20, p.84]

Infuriating. Fun sea exploration, but we can’t help wondering if Quantic Dream published this to make its own horrible writing look better by comparison. [Issue#33, p.92]

Despite the intergalactic trappings, the bulk of the game is a surprisingly prosaic bartending experience. Don’t expect more than that, and Startenders might surprise you. [Issue#20, p.74]

Awkwardly plotted core cases and an underserved open world detract from interesting characters and a handful of side-cases that show promise. [Issue#9, p.80]

The game’s still visually gorgeous, but interesting characters and stories are sidelined to oblivion. No wonder the druids are so hacked off. [Issue#2, p.76]

Edge Of Eternity has some modern touches – you can freely speed up battles, and a variety of difficulty toggles can reduce the grind. Less care, however, has been given to optimisation. Even on PS5 you’ll fail to get a smooth framerate in performance mode when out in the field, and while teleporting is fast, assets can’t keep up, clipping in sometimes seconds later. It might hold you over until Final Fantasy XVI arrives but it’s hard not to feel like you’re playing, as the French say, a faux pas. [Issue#12, p.75]

A repetitive Dark-Souls-by-numbers is livened up by a universe-swapping idea. Hey, why doesn’t FromSoft steal that idea for its next game? Seems only fair. [Issue#34, p.84]

That difficulty continues when it comes handling your character. You can only shoot forwards unless you’re sliding, but when you slide you move very quickly, which usually results in you ending up in a trap or missing your shot completely. For some players these challenges will be an incentive to get stuck in, but for others, that difficulty plus the lack of instruction will give them good reason to keep avoiding roguelikes. [Issue#2, p.83]

Glimmers of a great throwback are here but nothing holds up upon close inspection. Missions lack depth while this combat was better left in the past. [Issue#34, p.86]

Despite significant technical and in-play improvements for this PS5 version, much of the game’s core remains unchanged. Quest design and storytelling, though not without their moments on the critical path, too often feel rife with unrealised potential. Cyberpunk 2077’s abrasive personality is still clear as day too, inescapable in its script and blaring out from Night City’s many questionable billboards. If you choose to venture into Night City, we hope you find what you’re looking for. [Issue#12, p.72]

With engaging activities, plenty of puzzles, and a zany narrative, Delirium delivers a comical, if somewhat surface-level, throwback point-and-click adventure. [Issue#25, p.91]

A beautifully crafted game about a family breakdown that's unfortunately held back by its lack of story. There's a lot of heart here, but not much depth. [Issue#14, p.82]

It’s hard to ignore this spin-off’s squandered potential – or the deafening silence of Midgard. While we have great fun mixing and matching a wealth of combat options, we can’t recommend it based on that single verse when this game boasts an epic poem’s price tag. [Issue#21, p.83]

Though far from perfect, Vengeful Heart will make you wonder what the team will do next and how they may flourish with a little more experience. [Issue#14, p.78]

The story and treatment of its themes hasn’t aged well, but the shocks land and the sense of being lost in a haunted mansion offers a palpable sense of isolation. [Issue#2, p.77]

While Replica manages to be simultaneously uncomfortable and thrilling, you can’t help but feel it takes on too much for such a small game. It is, however, testament to Somi’s skill in delivering unusual gameplay and intrigue, and serves as an amuse-bouche of sorts for the second game, Legal Dungeon. [Issue#14, p.83]

A clumsy remaster that removes much of Life Is Strange's charm – the persistent glitches are irritating. However, it’s smooth sailing for Before The Storm. [Issue#12, p.84]

Don’t expect a successor to Arkham, slavish to the memory of Rocksteady’s games. This 6 isn’t that. It is a good game in its own right, despite some mistakes. [Issue#21, p.74]

If you’ve fond memories of the early noughties, this might find a place in your heart, but its disjointed style and slogging stretches won’t appeal to all. [Issue#25, p.93]

Gearbox tries to recapture the magic of Tales From The Borderlands, but by abandoning its original motley crew and valuing jokes over story, it offers tame tales only. [Issue#21, p.78]

A delicious stream-of-consciousness journey into geek culture is underpinned by solid combat, but undermined by filler, rough edges, and a void of meaningful cohesion. [Issue#21, p.82]

Ikai’s imaginative puzzles and detailed setting are engrossing, but underwhelming enemies and a lack of signposting make it more frustrating than frightening. [Play #14, p.79]

A compelling detective game with multiple threads to pull you through its dark Sardinian streets. Attempts to add horror to the mix, however, often fall flat. [Issue#21, p.91]

Imaginative and densely populated but also rather samey and sparse at the same time. Technically iffy, but its lock-on gameplay suits the open world playground. [Issue#22, p.70]

Death Crown is fun at first but rapidly shows the limitations of its own simple mechanics. [Issue#3, p.127]

There’s also a lot of grind, which obviously can get tedious. You find yourself repeatedly tracking Alpha Aphids to mine resources2 in order to craft certain upgrades to progress the story (often arbitrary given that these aren’t abilities you’ll strictly find yourself using). But in the end, despite the suite of upgrades on offer, it’s never enough to make Stonefly feel particularly fun or intuitive. [Issue#3, p.139]

A good dose of weirdness in the lore prevents the game being completely one-note, but overall things are spread too thin despite the game only being two or three hours long. This turnip perhaps needed to be left in the ground a little longer. [Issue#24, p.82]

Unfortunately, the attempt to touch on darker themes is also rather ham-fisted, but the concept of exploring the mental effects of being the chosen hero and pressures such a role entails is really intriguing. All in all, Minute Of Islands is promising but a bit muddled. [Issue#3, p.135]

With some mild issues, its repetitive nature, and unanswered narrative questions, The Outbound Ghost doesn’t deliver the most spooktacular experience. [Issue#24, p.83]

Although the effort to make the series fresh and accessible is admirable, it’s backfired. Fans will be disappointed, newbies will wonder what all the fuss is about. [Issue#3, p.144]

A decent update that has a love/hate approach to difficulty. The art style can undermine the gameplay, and on harder settings it feels unfair rather than unforgiving. [Issue#3, p.138]

Ideas borrowed from other shooters are underplayed. Yet Necromunda: Hired Gun finds its strength in its atmospheric Underhive locations and sprawling levels. [Issue#3, p.135]

A PS3 title that received an impressive amount of TLC for its PS4 remaster only gets basic tweaks for PS5. The design and humour show their age. [Issue#3, p.126]

An aggravating mix of truly gorgeous visuals and some fun platforming challenges with unsatisfying combat. It feels often flat, and doesn’t live up to the first game. [Issue#32, p.72]

This online-focussed squad shooter recreates the feel of the Aliens movie perfectly but rarely gives us something original to do with all that pitch-perfect fan service. [Issue#6, p.82]

An enjoyable mystery in keeping with the Hercule Poirot you know and love, but not one with much interactivity beyond smashing together evidence. [Issue#32, p.74]

With a tactile crafty art style, it’s fun to bumble around for an hour or two, but there’s not much variety or even additional missions. [Issue#44, p.89]

While not reaching its full potential, Balan Wonderworld is a grand and well designed adventure, which runs superbly on PS5. It’s perfect for family co-op play. [Issue#1, p.88]

All the ingredients of a great open-world RPG are here, but the lacklustre combat, bugs, and blink-and-you’ll-miss-it story leave an unpleasant taste. [Issue#32, p.86]

This is a beautiful game with a clever concept and a wonderful soundtrack, but it’s unambitious in its execution. The story is an obvious metaphor for Izzy’s grief when her gran has a stroke, valuable for young players but too on-the-nose otherwise. There are very few magic words to use, and no real puzzles to speak of. It offers a sweet story clearly geared towards children like its protagonist, but the gameplay doesn’t live up to its potential. [Issue#1, p.88]

Visually stunning, this is a fun but undeniably flawed visit to the superbly recreated world of Pandora. It should have been better; we’re left feeling blue about that. [Issue#36, p.70]

When it comes to horror games, you could do a lot worse than this, but you could also do a lot better. Its great puzzles belong in a much better game. [Issue#39, p.86]

A disappointing followup filled with gimmicks to validate its existence that end up getting in the way of the core appeal. Perhaps Moving Out 2 was a pivot too far. [Issue#32, p.89]

Recompile ultimately isn’t as tightly designed as a metroidvania needs to be in order to be enjoyable, something best summed up in the fact that at least one fundamental upgrade is actually missable – something we discovered the (very) hard way. There’s a good time to be had in this visually striking virtual world, but you’ll have to work hard to defrag it. [Issue#6, p.90]

Energetic and charming, the structure is spread too thinly and too repetitive as it stands, leaving us wishing for more of the more authored stages. [Issue#44, p.96]

An enjoyable Age Of Sigmar campaign, nicely presented and newcomer-friendly, but convoluted controls hamper yet another RTS game on console. [Issue#36, p.80]

An ambitious though rough first effort from a fledgling Polish studio, and a poignant exploration of how history can still hit close to home. [Issue#1, p.93]

Seabound play is great fun, initially at least, but the longer your voyage lasts, the more Skull & Bones struggles to provide new, interesting things for you to do. [Issue#39, p.98]

Despite a nice map, the content and additional mechanics never really come together, and Havi’s adventure feels notably weaker than Eivor’s.[Issue#13, p.86]

A series high for PvP, a series low for Zombies and the campaign. Worth it for multiplayer, but paying for the whole package leaves a sour taste. [Issue#35, p.70]

The central hook almost carries this dungeon crawler, but it struggles to stand out in a crowded field. There’s loot to be found here, but more like a puddle’s worth. [Issue#37, p.78]

Flashes of brilliance dulled by technical issues, and an obsession with making things difficult for you. There’s fun here, if you’re willing to fight for it. [Issue#27, p.80]

The VR game’s as short-lived as the PS4 version, while the optional objectives that pad out a level rarely have anything to do with killing spiders, though completing them does earn you upgrades to make mass arachnicide easier. If you’ve killed them with fire once already, however, the promise of doing it again in virtual reality isn’t quite so tantalising. [Issue#35, p.82]

While the old-school charm remains, from the pleasing voiceover announcing your achievements to the random live-action skits starring a couple of bemused kids, it’s a rather short-lived and shallow affair – especially when you could just replay the fireworks level in the superior Tetris Effect instead. [Issue#27, p.82]

The problem is that these mechanics don’t evolve. [Issue#35, p.82]

We don’t want to call this the Dark Souls of potion crafting, but in this game the journey is the destination, and your path will be littered with failed potions. [Issue#37, p.93]

Tactica lovingly translates Persona 5 to another format, but once you grasp the basic activity, the lack of variety both in action and story make it drag. [Issue#35, p.87]

It’s smooth, fast, and sounds cool, but unquestionably lacks the romance and magic of its muse, which remains gorgeous after 35 years. [Issue#15, p.87]

A short, schlocky blast from the past with some welcome modern additions, but hardcore fans may prefer to track down an original arcade cabinet instead. [Issue#15, p.86]

A return to form, for better and worse. Though we enjoy our time with this sleuthing pair, the mystery they’re chasing runs out of road all too quickly. [Issue#40, p.95]

A game that copies the ARPG masters – but isn’t as interesting. Souls-infused combat and a massive unlockable wardrobe are what keep us coming back. [Issue#41, p.76]

The campaign requires patience and a high tolerance for internet searches, but the creative elements are full of possibility if you’re able to put in the time. [Issue#41, p.80]

The strong shell-switching hook and charming writing float to the top, while a myriad issues at launch drag down this treasure chest of promise. [Issue#41, p.84]

Success is leaning into the saccharine story of a witch on a quest for candy, which also helps save the world (and a fairy world) from darkness. Apparently. With this in mind, the sparkling visuals and sumptuous colours make sense. Neon bullets shine as they whizz across the playing field and each explosion feels like an evening of serotonin-boosting fireworks. It’s a joy to experience. However, with only a few modes of play and score-based leaderboards, this Reboot! may leave competitive players and retro fans wanting more. [Issue#5, p.77]

Feeling excellent in the hands, it’s a shame that the repetitive missions almost entirely feel like side-quests, seemingly hampered to fit the multiplayer vision. [Issue#7, p.75]

With patience, you should find an accomplished metroidvania in FIST, especially in its rich visuals and varied levels. But if you prefer more carrot than stick in your games then, like Rayton, you may not be a happy bunny. [Issue#7, p.78]

Remnant II is capable of surprises with its varied world design, and offers an enjoyable co-op experience, but its combat loop is needlessly stodgy and repetitive. [Issue#31, p.70]

The unpredictability of stages definitely gives Curved Space a unique feel for a shoot-’em-up. However, the novelty wears off when you realise it also often means having to navigate these bizarre layouts in search of any specific or leftover targets. The way objectives evolve constantly should be an asset, yet it ends up being a hindrance and slows the pace. Couple this with bland-looking enemy types and levels primed to induce nausea, and Curved Space is a fun but forgettable blast-’em-up affair. [Issue#4, p.88]

Despite some good design decisions, the more you play, the more issues it smacks you in the face with. Wait until the price has been hack-and-slashed. [Issue#4, p.87]

Clever puzzles and enjoyable platforming don’t disguise repetitive action or the lack of visual variety. It’s fun but best experienced in smaller bursts. [Issue#15, p.94]

A collection of small quests, no story is given the attention it deserves, the one glaring fault of a beautiful game with a clear desire to innovate. [Issue#4, p.80]

Cris Tales uses tried-and-tested activity and story tropes, but can’t manage to imbue them with anything interesting – though not for a lack of trying. [Issue#5, p.88]

A gaming pill best swallowed with a heaped spoonful of nostalgia, this is good but not great. In space, no-one can hear you scream ‘Where do I go now?’ [Issue#42, p.92]

A pretty game for PSVR2 but ultimately its action feels a bit lacking in variety, and the story feels like it’s barely getting started before the credits begin to roll. [Issue#31, p.88]

With a lack of options for expressive movement and clunky controls, boarding the platforming ship hasn’t paid off, though it’s still colourful and pretty. [Issue#31, p.89]

More of a playable movie than an adventure game, Last Stop boasts great characters and intriguing mysteries. Just don’t expect to have much of an impact on any of it. [Issue#5, p.87]

This is a solid VR racer but it lacks depth and offers a limited single-player experience. Fans of the anime will enjoy the extra polish, but there are better PSVR games. [Issue#4, p.81]

Fans will love another outing with Tak and the gang. Despite improved combat, worse stealth and stripped back exploration can overshadow it. [Issue#7, p.88]

It’s a shame that despite a story about finding balance, Yomi doesn’t manage to achieve that itself, being a handsome cinematic homage on an indie budget, but sadly lacking the smooth and satisfying swordplay to back it up. [Issue#15, p.78]

The fundamentals are kept simple. [Issue#26, p.81]

Out at sea, it’s a lovely vibe just sailing to the other half-a-dozen or so islands, each with its own quirks, from a maze-like bamboo thicket to ancient glowing structures that can be used as warp points. But while there’s an intriguing mystery bubbling beneath the surface, you’ll have to work through more arbitrary crafting checklists to uncover it. With limited inventory space, it’s no surprise our boat quickly piles up with junk, a sight that’s less than chill. [Issue#26, p.81]

The writing and the design butt heads a little too often, resulting in an expansion that keeps getting in its own way. There is gold; just not enough. [Issue#43, p.98]

Pretty where it counts, you can’t get past some of the rough edges that sometimes unceremoniously dump you from one scene to the next, making things hard to follow. But it’s an interesting case, we’ll give it that. [Issue#28, p.84]

A delightfully constructed character-first narrative that balances humour with heavy themes, though we wish the hacking and slashing had more depth. [Issue#26, p.95]

Impressive visuals, tense environments, and a main character you can believe in will keep your attention through the more unsatisfying and sluggish moments. [Issue#26, p.94]

The Mageseeker’s cameos from other League Of Legends characters leave Sylas in their shadow, making this missable for all but the most dedicated lore nerds. [Issue#28, p.85]

It gets the tone and characters right enough that Marvel-heads will want to see this story 6 through, but make someone else play it while you munch popcorn. [Issue#8, p.78]

It does look nice on PS5. Keeping the squad alive is a tense affair and the creature design is a highlight in the face of so much else that turns out to be toothless. [Issue#8, p.86]

The fun level will tumble off a cliff after the first few hours for many players, but future updates just might help this become the game it wants to be. [Issue#10, p.81]

All the more tiring intricacies and slightly railroady objectives melt away in the light of the dastardly fun Sandbox mode, however. As well as perfecting your Lair more freely, you can undergo a variety of challenges to see how well it holds up when the Forces Of Justice attack, testing out your traps and the open-ended building design. Sandbox mode is often the highlight of this kind of game, and Evil Genius 2’s is as solid as you’d want. [Issue#10, p.86]

Bland and glitchy scenery does nothing to endear you to the one-note gameplay. It’s decently playable, and controls well, but the magic of the first game is gone. [Issue#29, p.97]

In desperate need of repair work, Pacific Drive is a patchwork of glorious, memorable moments held together by the duct tape of frustration and technical issues. [Issue#38, p.88]

Working your way through the world with your miniature army solving these environmental puzzles is a lot of fun, but having to plan exploration around the game’s day/ night survival cycle, lacklustre crafting, and particularly tough enemies dampen that excitement. The Wild At Heart’s beautifully crafted world and spriteling critters are great, but not enough to distract from this fantasy adventure’s other headaches. [Issue#10, p.86]

A misjudged leap forward. While refined and polished, its fresh ideas cannot disguise the fact that we’ve passed that one parked car on Edwards Island before. [Issue#30, p.95]