“Hasn’t this been released already?” You’d certainly be forgiven for thinking as much. Lego Marvel’s Avengers certainly shares some similarities with 2013’s Lego Marvel Super Heroes. There’s a near identical open world hub based in Manhattan and enough comic book characters to make Sheldon Cooper’s head spin. Continue reading Lego Marvel’s Avengers Review – Smashing and hoarding
Category Archives: PlayStation 3
Get a $50 PSN Gift Card for $44.91 / £30.59
If you’re a regular shopper on the PlayStation Network, this could come in handy. Using the Cyber Monday promo code, you can get $50 of PSN credit for $44.91 and it’ll be delivered instantly.
UK buyers can also take advantage of this if they have a US PSN account. This way, you can buy items from the US PSN store without having to own a US bank card. Continue reading Get a $50 PSN Gift Card for $44.91 / £30.59
Tales of Zestiria Review – Needs more ‘Zest’
There was a time when Japanese RPGs were big news on consoles with regular updates from the likes of Final Fantasy and Dragon Quest. There have been slim pickings over the last few years though. Instead, we’ve seen RPG elements creep into more action-orientated games. 2015 has been no different, with the great (Witcher III) and poor (Mad Max) alike bumping their games past the 40 hour mark with skill trees and lengthy upgrade systems.
But what about something unmistakably ‘Japanese’? With the Final Fantasy series going online with XIV or still being miles off (XV), it’s once again up to Bandai Namco and the Tales series to bring fans a slice of old-school goodness. Continue reading Tales of Zestiria Review – Needs more ‘Zest’
Life is Strange Episode 5: Polarized Review – The illusion of choice?
Coming in late? Be sure to check out my spoiler-free reviews of Episode 1, Episode 2, Episode 3 and Episode 4.
Life is Strange’s five part episodic series began life back in January and the last episode was released nearly three months ago. It’s safe to say the release schedule has been a mess. Even the originally-planned six-week gap between episodes should have been flagged as a narrative momentum killer.
Such is life when reviewing and playing episodic content these days. If you’re smart though, you’ll have stayed away until today. Now the final episode is out, you’re free to play through the whole story at your own pace. And to get right to it: you really should. Continue reading Life is Strange Episode 5: Polarized Review – The illusion of choice?
Lego Dimensions Review – Brilliant but blocked
Gamers of all ages have been enjoying Traveller’s Tales’ Lego games for years now, but now they can finally play with real Lego bricks as a part of the game. With the runaway success of the toys-to-life trendsetter, Skylanders, it’s a mystery why it’s taken this long for the Lego games to jump into the genre.
Rather than focus on one IP, this new series is a mashup of multiple franchises and movie licenses. In the box, you’ll find dinky NFC-chipped Lego minifigs for Batman, Gandalf and WyldStyle. Together they must take on evil forces across dimensions to save the day by beating up goons, smashing up environments and holding the Circle button to rebuild odd yet useful tools. So far, so Lego, right? Continue reading Lego Dimensions Review – Brilliant but blocked
Top 10: Most wanted Sony exclusive reboots
With the recent announcement of Hardware: Rivals getting a reboot on PS4, we take a look at Sony’s extensive back-catalogue of franchises and IPs to see what we’d most like to see make a comeback on the PS4 or PS Vita. Continue reading Top 10: Most wanted Sony exclusive reboots
Sony’s Tokyo Game Show presser dissected – A bright future?
Sony’s press conference at the Tokyo Game Show was packed with information and reveals this morning. We set our alarm clocks and watched the whole thing and were presented with some encouraging reveals. So, what did we learn from the show and what sort of future has it shown for the PS4 and PS Vita in Japan and beyond? Continue reading Sony’s Tokyo Game Show presser dissected – A bright future?
One Piece: Pirate Warriors 3 Review – Riot Control, Japan Style
One Piece: Pirate Warriors 3 is all about smashing through big crowds. No matter which character you’re controlling, you’re essentially a god, eternally smashing through thousands of weakling enemies per stage with an extraordinary set of physical skills. It’s gaming in its purest form of empowerment. And it’s enormously fun.
There’s a problem though, and it’s one familiar to anyone that’s played a Dynasty Warriors game or one of the earlier One Piece titles – there’s really not much else to it. But in the right sized doses, this could find a place in your heart.
Continue reading One Piece: Pirate Warriors 3 Review – Riot Control, Japan Style
Life is Strange Episode 4 – Darkroom Review
Coming in late? Be sure to check out my spoiler-free reviews of Episode 1, Episode 2 and Episode 3.
Life is Strange is becoming known for killer WTF endings to each episodes, making that damn six week gap between episodes absolutely excruciating. Don’t worry I’m keeping up the habit of not giving away any past plot events for those of you waiting for the season to wrap up before diving in, Netflix-style.
The opening section of Episode 4 is a radical departure for the story given the ending of the last entry. Max’s whole reality is seen from a new point of view. There are new entries in her SMS log, a new group of friends and her relationship with Chloe has transformed. Continue reading Life is Strange Episode 4 – Darkroom Review
Lego Jurassic World (Review) – Closed for maintenance
Frankly, it’s a surprise it’s taken this long for the team at Traveller’s Tales to get their hands on the Jurassic Park license. But on the plus side, it’s meant they have managed to squeeze the brand new Jurassic World entry into the game alongside the original trilogy.
In fact, if you want to dive into the new movie straight away, you can after the prologue level. But if, like us, you love the original movies, you’ll want to play through from the very start. By now, TT are seasoned pros at reproducing iconic moments from films into family-friendly games. They’ve had their work cut out for them though as the original movie is surprisingly violent, so the game has been heavily reimagined or cut. So nobody really dies, goat spines don’t land on sunroofs and you certainly won’t be seeing Samuel L. Jackson’s severed arm flopping onto Laura Dern’s shoulder. Hell, even Dennis Nedry has even been slimmed down (because Lego doesn’t do fat). I’m surprised (disproportionately outraged) the electric fence scene has been completely cut though. Continue reading Lego Jurassic World (Review) – Closed for maintenance
Sony’s PS Now UK Rental Prices are taking us for chumps
UK Beta users of game streaming service, PS Now, have reported that the new prices that have been added to the service and they’re pretty outrageous. How Sony expects to succeed with such high prices for rentals is beyond anyone’s imagining, especially seeing as many titles can be bought outright physically for similar prices. There’s a lot of work to be done, if PS Now wants to survive beyond launch. Continue reading Sony’s PS Now UK Rental Prices are taking us for chumps
PlayStation + June 2015 lineup back on track?
Next month’s PlayStation Plus games have just been announced and it looks like the lineup has stepped things up a little after a few thoroughly average months. Or has it?
If you’ve already bought Metal Gear Solid V: Ground Zeroes during one of it’s many placements in the PSN sales, then you could argue that you’re looking at another decidedly indie lineup. Call of Juarez: Gunslinger (ok, not very indie) is certainly worth a look if you didn’t play it two years ago. The remaining titles range from the vaguely familiar (Cloudberry Kingdom) to the incredibly vague (Super Exploding Zoo).
Continue reading PlayStation + June 2015 lineup back on track?
Life is Strange Episode 3 – Chaos Theory Review
Coming in late? Be sure to check out my spoiler-free reviews of Episode 1 and Episode 2.
I expected the dramatic conclusion to Episode 2 to be the catalyst that would drive the series’ pace forward with a much needed boost. More so with questions about the events at Arcadia Bay’s school and the strange events around town being no closer to getting answered.
The first part of Episode 3 starts with Max and Chloe breaking into the school Principal’s office. To get through the locked door, you have to sneak through the school at night to find a few items. It feels a bit by the numbers really, with only bonus photo maintaining my interest. Continue reading Life is Strange Episode 3 – Chaos Theory Review
Pressure mounts on Sony for this year’s E3
As expo season hurtles towards us once again, Sony’s PS4 has a comfortable lead over Microsoft’s Xbox One. But Microsoft’s console has a premium Christmas lineup of mass appeal console-exclusive titles including Halo 5, Forza 6, Gears of War Remastered (probably) and Rise of the Tomb Raider. Expect them to market Call of Duty: Black Ops III so heavily as to make it look like an exclusive too.
Microsoft will splash the cash on an intense marketing barrage on our TV, laptop and tablet screens over the all important Xmas holiday season with this selection of familiar brands. As things stand, Sony’s Christmas lineup so far is certainly lacking titles to resonate with masses. But this could all change by the time Sony leaves the stage at E3 2015. Continue reading Pressure mounts on Sony for this year’s E3
Tower of Guns (Review) – Run n’ Gun Fun
The roguelike genre has been spreading through the videogame genres over recent years in everything from RPGs to platformers, but now we have one for the FPS genre too. And it’s an absolute delight for anyone that remembers shooters before aiming down the sights was a thing.
The graphics-style may appear dated, but for the most part the controls are incredibly smooth and the twitch-handling is a fond throwback to older shooters; the responsive controls are fantastically fluid as you strafe enemies or nip between the hail of slow but thick storms of enemy fire. It has to be said though, there’s some awful slowdown in the larger rooms when they try to pack in too many enemies at once. It’s not a regular thing though. Continue reading Tower of Guns (Review) – Run n’ Gun Fun
These 5 fun games will cure your Bloodborne rage
As much as we’re enjoying Bloodborne here at Dealspwn, there comes a time when we need a break. From Software’s game is extremely punishing as you know and it’s good sometimes to step back and play something else for a while to chill out and remember that not every game makes your blood boil or punishes slight slipups by snatching away all your progress from the last hour. So here’s a list of therapeutic games to play when the red mist builds up too much and you fear for your DualShock 4’s safety. Continue reading These 5 fun games will cure your Bloodborne rage
Life is Strange Episode 2 – Out of Time Review
Seven weeks is far too long to wait between episodes. Episode 1 was a fantastic opener, but the initial six-week wait between episodes became seven after a small delay. Considering Capcom recently released four episodes in four weeks for their episodic Resident Evil: Revelations 2, it would seem to make much more sense to follow their model by finishing development of a game and then releasing it, rather than frantically trying to meet deadlines every six weeks.
More to the point, with story-heavy content like this, it can be difficult to remember just what the hell is going on. The major events stuck in my head easily enough, but some of the interactions with smaller characters were much harder to recall. That said, checking Max’s diary and her character bios was a big help, and for the most part, I felt like I was up to speed enough without needing to replay the first episode. Naturally, if you’re holding off until every episode is out, you’re not going to have a problem. Continue reading Life is Strange Episode 2 – Out of Time Review
Resident Evil: Revelations 2 Episode 4 – Metamorphosis Review
Missed the earlier episode reviews? Use these links to get to Episode 1, Episode 2 and Episode 3. Unlike the previous episodes, I’ll be putting a score at the end of this one that reflects the complete Season Pass / retail release.
This is it then, the finale to what has been a very encouraging episodic series debut from Capcom and the Resident Evil series. This is where we find out what happened to Claire and Moira as they make their way to the top of the tower and we’ll find out if Barry and Natalia can catch up with them and get some answers of their own. Continue reading Resident Evil: Revelations 2 Episode 4 – Metamorphosis Review
Resident Evil: Revelations 2 Episode 3 – Judgement Review
Missed the previous episode reviews? Here you go: Episode 1 | Episode 2
Capcom’s penultimate episode to Resident Evil: Revelations 2 edges us ever closer to what has so far been a very successful experiment for the series as it tries out an episodic model with four episodes over as many weeks.
Like previous episodes, you’ll control Claire and Moira for the first part and Barry and Natalia for the second. Given the ending of the last episode, you may be desperate to find out what happens to the latter pair, but you’ll just have to wait. Continue reading Resident Evil: Revelations 2 Episode 3 – Judgement Review
Remember Me – A memory worth saving
Reviewing a game always comes with some degree of time pressure. We can pretend it doesn’t, but it does. Even with no official deadline, it’s sometimes hard to just play a game at your own pace. Bit bored? Tough. Stuck on a boss? No time for a breather – and so on.
I didn’t review Remember Me when it originally came out in 2013, but the game has been sat in my PlayStation + collection for a while now and I finally got around to playing it over the last few weeks. Some days I’d play for twenty minutes, others it would effortlessly pull me in for hours.
The No Sleep Gamer 