Xbox Series X|S

Twenty-five years after Master Chief first crash-landed on a Forerunner ringworld, Halo Studios has gone back to the beginning — not with a coat of paint like 2011's Anniversary edition, but with a full ground-up rebuild in Unreal Engine 5. The result is a campaign-only remake that mostly earns the confidence of its ambition, even if it plays things safer than a project this size probably should. The Good It finally looks (and sounds) the part. The jump from the original Combat Evolved to this

Polymega Collection Vol. 6 - Heavy Barrel features two Data East-made run-and-gun shooters, neither of which really achieved the same level of fame as the likes of Commando, Ikari Warriors and Mercs back in the day. 1987's Heavy Barrel was clearly an attempt by Data East to muscle in on the craze for horizontally-scrolling shooters, and for the most part, it's a successful clone of the more notable examples from Capcom and SNK. Supporting two players at the same time, Heavy Barrel's levels scrol

8:00 pm: Eugene Harrow has just finished his first therapy session with Dr. Fink. That’s one out of (likely) many, and so he sets up shop in the motel next door; the only one in the small town of Rue Valley. After checking in, he heads to his room. When the clock reads 8:47 pm, he experiences something that’s out of a doomsday scenario: the skies are set ablaze, and the whole world blacks out.   Just then, Eugene finds himself back in Dr. Fink’s office, with the clock reading 8:00 pm. While thi

Once Mecha Man, the superhero behind an armoured suit, Robert Robertson finds himself working for the Superhero Dispatch Network (SDN). This follows a mission where the suit was wrecked. Now working as a dispatcher, he is in charge of managing and strategising a roster of heroes to handle emergencies across Los Angeles.  However, he is not overseeing a regular group of heroes. The Z-team, as they are known, is made up of former villains. On top of attempting to create a synergistic team with thi

Your latest mission as an Earth Directorate agent is to investigate the source of certain perilous rifts. However, the sabotage of this investigation leaves you drifting unconscious through space for a decade.  The galaxy you wake up in is both familiar and different: factions have splintered, emerged or even merged, while the forces of capitalism are as rampant as ever. For you, the objective is clear: track down the one who wronged you and decide on their fate. A return to Obsidian's corporate

Following the arrival of aliens known as Occupants, the world has succumbed to a mysterious disease that they brought with them. Protagonist Watcher’s story starts a thousand years after the first contact, in an underground facility known as the Orchard. It is populated by clones of the immortal Iris, known as the ALLMOTHER among Watcher and her clone sisters.  Each sister has a unique role, with Watcher having the privilege of reliving Iris’ memories through the Communion process with the assis

EA and the newly-rebranded Battlefield Studios had a lot to prove to me with Battlefield 6. The previous game in the series, Battlefield 2042, left a lot to be desired - and truth be told, I was losing a bit of faith in the series ever getting back to its glory days. With BF6 now here, backed up by a pretty smooth opening weekend in my experience, the team is starting to win me over - even if this isn't the perfect Battlefield game just yet. Jumping straight into the action, mind you, and the ga

When it was revealed that PlatinumGames was helping with the fourth major entry in the Ninja Gaiden series, I had two immediate thoughts. How would the Bayonetta studio handle this kind of responsibility, and could another character really lead the next big entry in the modern series, in place of the 'main face' and video game icon Ryu Hayabusa? Fast forward to today and Ninja Gaiden 4 has officially arrived on Xbox. Although the new protagonist Yakumo walks his own path, Platinum (under the gui