Overall a wonderful game to play, very much like Kanata Zero (must play FYI). Graphic were very good, audio was good and controlled well.

All in all, Cannibal Abduction is an enjoyable, if slight, retro horror title. The cannibal gives up a bit too easily at times, but that doesn’t really deflate the shock value when he appears out of the blue each time we start to get comfortable. Add in a secondary, trickier game mode and for horror fans this is an easy recommendation.

Tekken 8 is a game in which I can’t find any glaring flaws in terms of gameplay or online matchmaking. Sure it’s a pain when playing against an opponent at 200 ping, but those are rare for me. With its amazing story mode, graphics, and improved gameplay mechanics, I find myself always coming back for more. No other fighting game has a chokehold on me as Tekken does. Whether you are new or a veteran to the franchise do yourself a favor and enter the ring. You won’t regret it.

Alisa is as retro-accurate as they come despite being a modern release, and it’s a brilliant reminder of how we used to play, though also of some of the limitations we used to work under. One for older gamers who grew up with the birth of survival horror, but also new players looking to get a taste of where it all began.

Bahnsen Knights proves that LCB Game Studios are leaders in their field. A visual novel unlike most others, but also familiar to anyone that enjoys pulp entertainment.

Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth is a wonderful sequel and I can’t speak highly enough about how this game looks and plays. The story plays with your emotions like always, but it keeps you enthralled throughout. Even if you want to take it easy the game just can be played for the side activities which can just as easily keep you busy. The fact there is so much content in here is honestly staggering, and I can see players both new and old finding at least something in here to enjoy.

Given it’s been well over a decade since a new Prince of Persia game was released, it’s understandable for one to be skeptical about The Lost Crown in spite of the development studio’s excellent pedigree. Rejoicefully, The Lost Crown has turned up at the beginning of 2024 and has laid down a remarkable gauntlet for every game to live up to this year. The combat and the electrifying assortment of powers in The Lost Crown makes battles against all of Mount Qaf’s foes a vigorously moreish delight. Yes, the characters, story and lack of charisma and personality bite is a little disappointing, but when you’ve got a joyously raucous return of Prince of Persia on full display here, any disappointment flutters away and returns into the form of pure elation. The Lost Crown is a celebration of the Metroidvania and you’ll be truly glad to come along for the ride with Sargon and company.

The combination of gunplay, fast movement, upgrades, weapons, and some frankly kick ass dynamic music that reacts to our gameplay has won me over these past few nights. The classic ‘easy to play, hard to master’ mantra is very true of Go Mecha Ball, but importantly it’s never less than a blast to play.

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, it’s nice to be surprised by a game. Narrative heavy games aren’t typically my style, but this one is humorous enough and the core gameplay mechanic of accepting and denying people entry to the kingdom kept me coming back for more. The concept was simple but the extra mechanic twists were welcomed. If it just had some shorter load times (I don’t know why they were so long!) I wouldn’t have much of anything negative to say. I think fans of the old school Lucasarts point and clicks would really dig Lil’ Guardsman.

Overall, Hidden Through Time 2 has been a joy to play. Finding all the little hidden items is a fun time, especially so with the kids helping out, and there are plenty of humorous moments layered in too. Mouse support would have been great – especially for the custom map editor – but for the most part the controller functions well indeed.

Bish Bash Bots is tight, smartly put together game. A single screen tower defence game, with the wobbly controls of a party game. Well worth the price of admission with plenty of variety in each level.

Turnip Boy Robs A Bank proves there is no rest for the wicked. Turning the series into a roguelite was not the wrong road for Turnip Boy. While not all the features of being a roguelite title weren’t implemented, I had a hell of a “thyme” with the game. Going in guns blazing, paired with the OST provided by James “Jake” Currier, was exhilarating in moments and more claiming and vibey in others. Finding my favorite weapons and talking to the colorful and sometimes disturbing cast of characters only added to that experience. The jokes and humor aren’t for everyone, but even looking past them, Snoozy Kazoo’s experiment paid off, leaving me anticipating Turnip Boy’s next federal crime.

Conquest of Eo, to a newbie such as myself, was deeply accessible with a ton of good variety in its combat, exploration and scenarios. It is a strong recommend for fans of the RPG/Turn-based strategy hybrid.

Shinorubi fits the classic phrase “easy to pick up, tough to master” to a tee. For simple, immediate fun it will fit the bill nicely, but those looking to really sink their teeth (and free time) into a new Shmup, then Shinorubi comes highly recommended.

Baldur’s Gate 3 Is everything I expected from the game and more. I can totally see why it won awards as just for pure content alone it’s top tier. For storytelling, it is top tier and the gameplay is as complex as you want to make it to appease the long-term fans and the newcomers. It is very involved and not some you can play in short bursts. You need to clear your schedule to lose yourself in the game properly.

I had hoped to start the year of with a bit of a lighter game, and The Spy Who Shot Me looked to fit the bill. Sadly, while the jokes and presentation are fine enough, the terrible feeling aiming ruins what could have otherwise been a fun take on retro FPS action.

Ubisoft know they can do much better, they’ve shown that various times in the past, but Frontiers of Pandora is helplessly mediocre, wallowing in better Ubisoft franchises in a vain attempt to conceal the disappointingly stale reality that it’s just not good enough to be anything more.

The mechanics of Berzerk: Recharged are excellent and I can’t fault it. Dowside comes when you’ve played a few levels, they are more or less the same. While playing I was reminded how this would be a wonderful 90’s arcade cabinet game and have everyone queueing up to play. But for a modern-day console game, it does hit all the right shots. Co-op was fun and made the game more palatable.

All in all, we ended our time with Gray Dawn having enjoyed its grim tale, but it’s also not something that will live long in our memory, or have us clamouring for a second play through. One for those looking to sample a new thriller, having exhausted other options already out there.

Rogue Trader is a fantastic narrative embracing the satire, the self-importance, and the pompousness of the Warhammer 40K world. The turn-based combat is not quite a fully fledged but that doesn’t take away from it being a must play.

While Born of Bread was in my top videogames to look at this year with its great art style, the game overall didn’t match that hype. It was fine and I’d recommend it to those looking to get a younger player into games of this style but hardcore fans of turn based RPG’s could easily miss this one without feeling something was lost. It does nothing downright bad but nothing rememberable either.

Make Way offers something new and unique in the racing genre, and is perfectly suited to game nights with a few friends (and a few beers). Camera hang ups aside, the track construction idea is great, and it’ll no doubt be a fixture of our gaming nights for some time yet.

Jumanji: Wild Adventures takes us back into the world of Jumanji as the follow up game from Outright Games. When it came to actually playing it, I found myself uninterested after just a short while unfortunately. The levels seemed to drag on and any kind of upgrades were boring for the most part. I wanted to like it more than I did but sadly that wasn’t the case. Fans of the first game have all of the same reasons to enjoy this iteration but otherwise I’d say it’s a pass.

Nova Lands is exactly what you need if you need a less stressful session of gaming. That is not to say it is not frustrating as at times you will feel like an underappreciated supervisor when the bots are not doing what you are expecting them to do. But you are the master of these bots and they are as only as good as your strategy. It is a neat little game but something you will only play through once.

Alina of the Arena is a great proposition for players that love Slay the Spire and Into the Breach.

Turok 3: Shadow of Oblivion‘s remaster here is really only going to serve fans of the original release, being as it is a bare bones up-spuff of a game that isn’t all that memorable or worth rushing out to pick up. It’s not a bad shooter as such, just one that has since been outclassed at every turn in the years since.

I loved the SteamWorld Dig games and was excited for SteamWorld Build to give Xbox fans another opportunity to play in this fun universe. SteamWorld Build took what some might consider a niche genre and made it super easy to get into no matter the player’s prior experience. The fun persisted and the progression was constant which made for a great time even in my replays. I recommend this to anyone looking for a chill game to help pass the time.

To sum up Bluey: The Videogame would be to say that a dad had a fun time playing this game with his kids. It may have been a short experience for us totaling up to a few hours for the story and all collectibles, but they certainly had a good time. Our main feedback comes down to the length and nitpicky details like repeated dialog and camera controls when playing with multiple people. Overall I can recommend this game for families of young kids (or fans of the show I suppose) that want to get together around their Xbox together for a few hours.