Forspoken Review: Braving The Break
Ali Hasan February 5, 2023
Forspoken was first revealed during Sony’s June 2020 PS5 showcase, known as Project Athia back then. The game would not release for another three years and would face a long and tremulous development cycle marked by delays, setbacks, and a demo that some would argue did more bad than good. The good news, however, is that Forspoken is a largely solid game, introducing some incredible ideas that I could see being played around with by other studios and building on some gaming fundamentals that for the most work extremely well. Forspoken is a good game but one that is not without its caveats which can be overbearing at times but ultimately melt away and are eclipsed by its other facets as you embark on Frey’s journey of heroism and discovery. Athia is a Beautifully Realized and Unique Game World Forspoken takes place in the world of Athia which opens up
Read MoreThe Callisto Protocol Review: Identity Crisis in Space
Ali Hasan December 19, 2022
The Callisto Protocol has drawn comparisons with Dead Space ever since its reveal in August and rightfully so, the game is led by the co-creator of the legendary trilogy, Glenn Schofield who reworks his original pitch for the first entry into this game. Developer Striking Distance has had a lot to prove with what is essentially a Dead Space game in everything but the title. Not only did The Callisto Protocol have to live up to the grandiose of the Dead Space trilogy but also improve and twist the formula in a way that makes it excel above its spiritual predecessor. While it does turn in incredible visuals, a deep and gory combat system and manages to keep you on your feet with a sense of ever-present tension and horror, it tends to be flat in its execution, marred down by puzzling design choices and sometimes a more than needed
Read MoreNeed For Speed Unbound Review: Racing into Next-Gen
Ali Hasan December 8, 2022
Need for Speed has long struggled to find a solid foothold in the everchanging gaming landscape of today. After a slew of hits during its early years with the likes of Most Wanted, Underground, and Carbon, it started to run into stagnation despite branching out to other ideas and innovating the overused street racing formula. Whether it was Need for Speed 2015’s always-online requirement, Payback’s card customization system, or Heat’s very balanced take on street racing and professional race events to appease both sides, there was just something that wouldn’t click with players and longtime fans. Year after year we have been disappointed with mediocre releases but Need for Speed Unbound, the series’ latest entry looks to rectify this. Need for Speed Unbound is the 23rd mainline installment in the long-running series and is probably the boldest and most daring outing to date. Not because of its story or the
Read MoreWarzone 2.0 Review
Ali Hasan November 30, 2022
Call of Duty Warzone took the world by storm when it was first released in 2020, a battle royale game wasn’t something new for Call of Duty as the series had experimented with a similar title through 2018’s Blackout, as part of the release with Call of Duty: Black Ops IIII. Warzone, however, took it one step further by building what was at that time the most robust and expansive battle royale game. Over the course of the next two-years Warzone had its ups and downs, with two map refreshes and an abundance of new weapons that were added with the launch of Call of Duty Black Ops Cold War and Call of Duty Vanguard but towards the end of 2021, the game had hit a massive slog. Warzone had become overstuffed and overcomplicated, moving away from its original philosophy which was a simplistic yet fun battle royale game that
Read MoreGod Of War Ragnarök Review
Ali Hasan November 15, 2022
2018s God of War set a gold standard for narrative-driven games, Kratos and Atreus’ long and emotional journey was a far cry from what the franchise had previously seen. Making Kratos a multi-dimensional and layered character who not only had to fight the demons of his past but also had to deal with being a father felt like a natural evolution for the character and one that worked remarkably well in the context of the themes and tones of the game. The narrative was so perfectly presented in a world so beautifully realized, that it often felt like the studio wouldn’t have anywhere to go but despite this, Santa Monic Studios one-ups itself once again with God of War Ragnarök, taking the player on a poignant story complemented by incredible performances, surprising twists and turns and everything else you’ve come to expect from a God of War game! God of
Read MoreCall of Duty Modern Warfare II Review
Ali Hasan October 30, 2022
Modern Warfare II, the nineteenth title in the Call of Duty series kicks off a new era for the franchise. Being the first game in the series’ almost two-decade-long history to have a two-year life cycle the pressure is on. Not only does Infinity Ward have to put up a title worthy of the Modern Warfare name but also a game that will be the main Call of Duty game for a lot of players for the next two years. Infinity Ward iterates on the formula while also making some questionable choices to deliver a title that isn’t perfect by any stretch of the imagination but is serviceable enough to build upon for the next two years while also being incredibly fun and entertaining. Modern Warfare II Does Not Live Up to Its Predecessor’s Campaign Rolling the credits on the Modern Warfare 2019 campaign left me with a sense of
Read MoreA Plague Tale: Requiem Review
Ali Hasan October 28, 2022
A plague Tale Innocence, for a lot of people, including me was the biggest standout title of 2019. Coming from Asobo studios, a studio that had mostly developed smaller and more arcadey titles a game of such narrative prowess and well-written characters was a surprise for sure but one that was very welcome. Three years later the team is back with A Plague Tale: Requiem. The next outing in Hugo and Amicia’s journey, building on the foundation of its predecessor to deliver what I found to be a very pleasant and polished experience with all the story beats and emotional hooks that make a narrative-driven game enjoyable. Requiem dials up the elements that made Innocence great but often struggles to evolve beyond the confines of the first entry Amicia and Hugo are the Centerpieces of the Incredible Story Requiem picks up roughly six months after the events of the first
Read MoreGotham Knights Review
Ali Hasan October 22, 2022
Gotham Knights has fought an uphill battle from the get-go. Not only is this the first Batman game since 2015’s Arkham Knight but it is also the first game not to feature the titular hero as a playable character. As such not only has the game some big shoes to fill but it also faces a lot of pressure in nailing a Batman story without the caped crusader directly involved. Gotham Knights, for all intents and purposes, gets a lot right but fails at some of the fundamentals, and frustratingly so. At its core, it ticks off all the right boxes for open world superhero co-op game complete with an excellent game world and characters but some design choices leave a lot to be desired. When the Knight Falls… A New Guard Must Rise Gotham Knights picks up immediately in the aftermath of Bruce’s death following a big blowout with
Read MoreOverwatch 2 Review
Ali Hasan October 9, 2022
Overwatch 2 presents a peculiar case in its release. For a game on the decline and one that has been constantly overshadowed in the past few years despite its incredibly popular launch, releasing a new entry makes total sense but how little it does in setting itself apart from its predecessor, and in many ways even taking steps back, the 2 at the end of the title makes no sense, the game constantly begs the question: is Overwatch 2 a sequel? Or simply just a glorified update? Overwatch 2 is an excellent game but in some ways hurts the legacy of the original, the high octane over the top yet whimsical combat returns but is marred down by not nearly enough changes to truly set itself apart from the original along with a terrible monetization system, that will hurt the game for a very, very long time unless it’s addressed.
Read MoreFIFA 23 Review
Ali Hasan October 1, 2022
FIFA 23 marks the end of an era as the long-running and much-beloved football simulation series is set to receive a marked branding change for next year’s title. In its final outing with the FIFA license, EA has delivered a few new flourishes to the gameplay, new gameplay features and the evolution of the hyper motion technology to deliver a proper send for this era of EA’s football game series. Although It isn’t perfect and lacks any new bold direction for the series, long-time FIFA and football fans will be pleased will the overall package. HyperMotion Kicks into the Next Gear Delivering True-to-life Animation Work HyperMotion made its debut in last year’s FIFA 22 and returns this year with all new bells and whistles. For those uninitiated with the technology, HyperMotion is essentially a proprietary motion capture technology that uses actual motion capture data from a football match and combines
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