Timespinner is a narratively ambitious 2D Metroidvania that delves into a cycle of war and oppression while boasting a strong art direction and a brilliant soundtrack. It also leaves some of its mechanics underdeveloped, but you know, nothing is perfect in life. Except coffee. There’s nothing wrong with coffee. The game’s protagonist is Lunais, a young woman who lives in …
Read More »PS4
Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice
Based on Norse mythology, Hellblade: Senua’s Sacrifice is psychological horror disguised as dark fantasy: its suffocating atmosphere is the consequence of tackling such themes as depression and grief while diving into the mind of a character whose mental illnesses infuse each event with hopelessness and despair. Hellblade feels quite claustrophobic because it doesn’t observe these issues from a safe distance, but …
Read More »House of Ashes
The third installment in the Dark Pictures Anthology, House of Ashes, is a much-needed improvement over its predecessors, abandoning the ambitious psychological twists that so marred their narratives to instead offer a more straightforward, yet effective, horror adventure. The story starts with an Akkadian king obsessed with blood sacrifices, and so deemed mad by his own general, facing an imminent invasion …
Read More »Sonic Frontiers
The other day, I went to the movies in a shopping mall near here to watch Amazon’s War of the Worlds (I tend to make bad decisions in life), but I never managed to get inside. For as soon as I saw some rails protecting the sides of the ramp leading to the parking lot, I did what anyone in …
Read More »Little Hope
This review contains all the spoilers. All of them. The second game in the Dark Pictures Anthology, the collection of short horror stories presented by a sinister entity called the Curator, is Little Hope, a disappointing follow-up to the already mediocre Man of Medan, falling into the same narrative pitfalls that so marred the first game: it once again suffers …
Read More »Man of Medan
The Dark Pictures Anthology starts with Man of Medan, a game with some good ideas up its sleeve that are ultimately wasted on a very problematic story, which fails to develop interesting characters and build an intense horror atmosphere – especially during repeated playthroughs. The story follows Alex, a young man who has prepared a diving expedition with his …
Read More »ANNO: Mutationem
We gotta love strange, wacky games. ANNO: Mutationem doesn’t seem like that at first, with its overly serious plot and protagonist pointing to a by-the-numbers cyberpunk adventure. But nothing could be further from the truth. ANNO: Mutationem is bonkers, ANNO: Mutationem is bizarre; it’s just shy about it. We play as Ann Flores, who suffers from Entanglelitis, a strange disease …
Read More »A Plague Tale: Innocence
This review contains as many spoilers as the game contains rats. A Plague Tale: Innocence is a stealth-adventure game that greatly succeeds in setting up an intriguing story and building a gripping, oppressive atmosphere, excelling in mood and tension during its first hours. Unfortunately, the latter half is bogged down by an increasing sense of power and an underwhelming ending. …
Read More »Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons
Developed by Starbreeze Studios, Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons is a poignant adventure that combines dramatic and fantastical elements to tell a captivating story. With a simple control scheme that’s brilliant in the way it reflects the relationship between the main characters, A Tale of Two Sons fails only at one precise moment: the twist that leads to the …
Read More »Rise of the Tomb Raider
Oh, Lara Croft, you’re always looking for a lost city, chasing the ghost of your dead father while being hunted by secret organizations. You never rest. In Rise of the Tomb Raider, you’re the same, as the game builds upon the foundations of its predecessor, with a more carefully written story – where your journey is not at odds with how …
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