Check out more from: Luke Maxwell

Cyber Shadow Review

Platforms, Linux , Mac, Playstation 4, Playstation 5, Switch, Windows, and Xbox One I quickly realised something terrible playing Cyber Shadow, a new throwback ninja platformer from Aarne “MekaSkull” Hunziker and Yacht Club Games. I realised that I was absolutely and unequivocally not the kind of person that Cyber Shadow was designed for, nor could […]

DOOM Eternal Review

Platforms: Playstation 4, Stadia, Switch, Xbox One, and Windows (reviewed) DOOM Eternal is a massive disappointment. Believe me, I take no pleasure in typing that, which incidentally, is a little less pleasure that I get from playing through this game’s overwrought campaign. DOOM (2016) was that rate game that defies expectations and ends up setting […]

Panzer Dragoon: Remake Review

Platforms: Stadia, Switch (reviewed), and Windows Panzer Dragoon is one of those imperfect perfect games. When it came out for the Saturn, it was used as ammunition in the console wars. It was a game that bolstered the arcade expertise of Sega’s developers to make a game of pure spectacle. The game’s desolate world overrun with […]

A Short Hike Review

Platforms: Microsoft Windows, Linux, macOS (Steam/Itch.io) Memory is strange. There were moments in my life, as I’m sure there were in yours, that I now wish had lasted forever. There are conversations, situations, and places that I would like to relive again and again. At the time, in the moment, I may not have thought […]

Ape Out Review

Platforms: Switch (reviewed) and Windows When I was five years old, I was bitten by a monkey. I was at a zoo in Portugal on a family holiday. At that time I could not read Portuguese, I still can’t read Portuguese, but if I could I would have read in big block letters: NÃO ALIMENTE […]

Blaster Master Zero 2 Review

Platform: Switch Inti Creates, developer of Mega Man and Mega Man-like games, are not-so-good when it comes to first goes around. To me, a lot of the developer’s initial games in a franchise seem more like a proof of concept for an eventual, better sequel. This is fitting for a company that’s made so much […]

In Search of Departed Slime: Memories of Dragon Quest

Dragon Quest XI is out in English and that’s just the tops. I’m really looking forward to revisiting my 2017  GOTY in the coming weeks and months. Last year, I was living a different life. This year a lot has changed for me: I have a kid now, I changed jobs, and I’ve moved across […]

Dragon Quest III at 30

Today is the 30th anniversary of Dragon Quest III’s Japanese release. DQIII cemented the series as a cultural touchstone and something more than a fad. Lines snaked around blocks, kids played truant and the game became a national talking point. On the whole, the Dragon Quest series is very iterative. Each successive game builds on the […]

The Gate of Firmament Review

All too often when people talk RPGs they’re only talking about JRPGs or European/American computer or console role-playing games. Don’t believe me? OK, let’s do a thought experiment think of an RPG, any RPG, go on, don’t be shy. What were you thinking of? Chances are it wasn’t Xuan-Yuan Sword EX: The Gate of Firmament. […]

Quake: 20 Years On

Quake was released 20 years ago today. I, and millions of others around the world owe a debt to id Software and Quake. The game that launched a million deathmatches, LAN parties and mods. Quake was to Doom what Super Mario 64 was to Super Mario World. It built on the ingenuity, creativity and charm […]