Hardcore Gamer

• 3DS
• 4 / 5
• États-Unis

There's a couple of fun new features implemented in Pokémon Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon, and it's the definitive edition for newcomers, but overall there's not enough to make it worth playing through again for veterans. During the entire build-up to release, it seemed like we were getting a sequel of sorts with in-depth content, but what we actually got was a re-telling of what we've already been through. Perhaps I didn't pay enough attention to the promotional materials, but I was under the impression this was going to be more than a simple remake. Regardless of how I personally feel, however, Ultra Sun and Ultra Moon are the ultimate versions of the games and a whole lot of fun. This being the final 3DS title in the series, as far as we know, is a fine send off. Hopefully, everything is amplified to extreme levels once Pokémon makes the leap to the Switch.

• PS4
• 2 / 5
• États-Unis

School Girl/Zombie Hunter had the potential to be a B-movie style good time that unfortunately is so bad that it’s bad. There are tiny bits of fun to be found among the numerous flaws, but the bad vastly outnumbers the good. Die hard fans of this type of thing could maybe give this a look if there’s a heavily discounted sale, but even then the bad gameplay will overshadow any camp value to be found. Onechanbara Z2 is actually a better alternative to this title, if that tells you anything, since it provides the same level of fan service but with better visuals, music and combat. School Girl/Zombie Hunter is basically Lollipop Chainsaw without the fun or any of latter’s redeeming qualities.

• PS4
• 1.5 / 5
• États-Unis

Road Rage takes the Road Rash formula and fails to live up to any single entry in that series despite great advances in technology since its last entry — let alone its heyday. The racing action struggles due to poor controls, while the combat rings hollow with poor weapon selection and sub-par sound effects. Glitches and other technical problems muddy the experience further, while a lack of polish on everything makes the game feel like a cash-in on a minor “Road Rash revival” sub-genre. The key to any kind of spiritual successor is to do it well and Road Rage does very few things well. Minor graphical flourishes on the roads themselves are undone by sloppy animations and the bland rock soundtrack fails to deliver a lasting impression.

• PS4
• 4 / 5
• États-Unis

LEGO Marvel Super Heroes 2 has a core audience in mind and is especially great for younger players or those looking for a fun co-op experience. While it’s a bit on the easy side, it works well for the genre and creates a fun time for anyone looking for a more simplistic experience with a lot to do. Anyone who enjoys completing LEGO titles will have plenty to do and get a lot of enjoyment out of playing as their favorite Marvel characters, whether from the actual series or their very own custom creation. LEGO Marvel Super Heroes 2 delivers on a fun time in a world made of LEGOs and remains over the top in all the right ways.

• PS4
• 4 / 5
• États-Unis

The Sims 4 on both PS4 and Xbox One is a welcome addition for the series, allowing players that might not have the PC capabilities to enjoy a beloved series. It maintains its level of quality from PC, but still needs some work in various technical areas, seeing as the mouse/camera isn’t the best and the game will consistently hitch, especially with longer play sessions. Everything that makes for a great Sims game is in The Sims 4, and with updated creation options and attention to detail unmatched by other games in the series, The Sims 4 is worth it, giving a freedom of play most games just don’t offer. It’s unfortunate that EA didn’t bring mods over from the PC community, especially with other big games doing this, but maybe later down the line they’ll follow suit. Not to worry, though, plenty of extra content will be available at launch, with four expansion and item packs coming out alongside The Sims 4 at launch, making sure to give much of the available content to console players right away.

• PC
• 4 / 5
• États-Unis

Telltale’s premiere season for their take on the Guardians of the Galaxy proves to be an enjoyable one, as the stellar soundtrack and combat sequences prove to be the high points of the occasionally humorous adventure. A little fine tuning from the dialogue and engine could have gone a long way, but as it is, Telltale’s adaptation of the dysfunctional space family is one worth checking out for fans of the movies or comics, or those looking for a lighthearted sci-fi adventure.

• PS4
• 3.5 / 5
• États-Unis

While not the most robust of the PlayLink games, Knowledge is Power is still a fun, playable game show that family and friends will easily be able to pick up and play. Games are short, which means that it's not something you have to dedicate a night to, but also sets you up for rematches galore. The questions are interesting and niche, which makes them harder while at the same time making you feel like you know the answer. The way they've implemented the Power Plays is a nice touch, allowing you to slow your opponents down in a game that's all about speed. So if you've been liking the games that Sony has been offering with their new PlayLink initiative, Knowledge is Power is another one to pick up.

• PS4
• 3.5 / 5
• États-Unis

• PC
• 3 / 5
• États-Unis

• SWITCH
• 4 / 5
• États-Unis

It’s clear, beyond the obvious limitation with resolution and frame-rate, that DOOM for Switch has had to make some restrictions. Even so, for those who haven’t yet experienced one of last year’s finest, most surprising releases, DOOM even now represents one of the genre’s finest moments for some time. Clearly those who already own the game on another platform will have to think long and hard over the novel value of having a game of this caliber on the go. And while the visual blemishes and rough edges do detract on occasion and are clear to spot, playing DOOM on the Nintendo Switch still conjures that same jubilant energy that id Software’s behemoth has long been praised for. Tainted in its visuals it might be, the heart, soul and demon-crushing ferocity of its gameplay, in the end, shines through regardless.

• PC
• 4 / 5
• États-Unis

Spintires: MudRunner doesn’t make a lot of sense on the surface. “Drive slow, deliver logs” isn’t the usual recipe for a good time. It works amazingly well once you get used to it, though, and while there’s a learning curve, it’s one that takes place in untamed nature where you’re driving giant trucks through the mud. The terrain ranges from unfriendly to downright brutal, with rocky ground, standing water, muddy roads, and tire-grabbing ruts absolutely everywhere. Navigating this is a slow, deliberate affair, but each stretch of road (if there’s one to drive on) has its own new difficulty that makes pushing on through a good challenge rather than an exercise in extended patience. At times the overwhelming Russian-ness gets a bit much, with the grey landscapes only getting good colors during sunrise and sunset, but then a short drive by the rushing waters of a turbulent river makes it all better. Spintires: MudRunner is a giant game of trucks played in as close to a literal sandbox as possible, and while they don’t have Тонка stamped on the back, the spirit of playing with the big toys shines through.

• XONE
• 4 / 5
• États-Unis

Super Lucky’s Tale is a fine 3D platformer. It blends in more types of platforming than most entries in the genre and keeps the collect-a-thon to a minimum. The core of the game is platforming and that keeps the pace of the action fairly fast. There’s always something to do here and it’s usually fun. The biggest flaw is that it fails to leave a major impression despite getting most things right on a point-by-point basis. It controls well outside of some camera issues and looks gorgeous. The sound design is impressive, while the soundtrack leaves a bit to be desired. The overall game isn’t a classic, but everything is done well and there isn’t much outright wrong with it.

• PS4
• 4.5 / 5
• États-Unis

Call of Duty: WWII will be fascinating to study from a business standpoint: will consumers embrace the product they have long been clamoring for and how will Activision handle its business strategy moving forward? Will they dive exclusively back into World War II until gamers tire of it again or cycle between different eras from here on out? Whatever happens, there’s a fantastic game at the center of this future case study that proves that no matter the ballyhoo, Activision will ensure a superb experience is delivered. Weaving through explosive action set pieces, Call of Duty: WWII features the franchise’s most grounded story in years that doesn’t revel in unnecessary convolution, although can sometimes feel too conventional. Combined with some of the more visually-realistic cutscenes yet and there’s a story that deserves to be experienced even if it doesn’t reach the heights of the best WWII films. The many who look at Call of Duty squarely as a multiplayer experience won’t be let down either. The expertly-designed maps recall the glory days of mid-aughts WWII shooters while still advancing the mechanics as a whole. Headquarters is a intriguing addition that makes Call of Duty feel more community oriented as it flirts with MMOs. While it’s hard to top the neon thrills of last year’s Zombies in Spaceland, Nazi Zombies refines gameplay in key areas that make the experience easier to delve into yet boasts more longevity. Call of Duty: WWII is a return to form for the series and it’s clear that Sledgehammer didn’t cut corners conceiving it. There’s nothing revolutionary here, but it’s about as tight as a shooter can get and offers up several notable new features while remaining an admirable tribute to the greatest generation.

• PS4
• 4 / 5
• États-Unis

Summon Night 6: Lost Borders excellently brings together visual novels and tactical RPGs. Fans of the visual novel portion may be turned off a bit by the English voice-over work, but the story itself is amusing. It may not be the most memorable out there, but it works as a slice of life with a supernatural twist. The tactical RPG portion of the game is its strongest point — and good enough to where any fan of that genre should consider Summon Night 6 to enjoy that alone. It has a much brisker pace than most and keeps the action moving when other games would have a lull. The graphics are strong — especially given it being a Vita game at its core — and the overall audio work is great thanks to a well-crafted soundtrack and strong design.

• PS4
• 3.5 / 5
• États-Unis

Bubsy: The Woolies Strike Back may not be perfect, but it’s easily the best Bubsy game ever made. As a side-scrolling platformer, it’s a rock-solid entry in the genre. Bubsy now controls far better than he did in prior games and while there is an issue with a lack of life within the character due to poor body language, it’s a worthwhile pickup for platformer buffs. His new pounce is tough to learn, but is an effective tool to quickly run through the game. The 2.5D appearance is good overall — with an impressive amount of lighting and detail in the environments. Bubsy’s soundtrack is a bit weak now — but his voice clips work shockingly well this time around.

• SWITCH
• 3.5 / 5
• États-Unis

Poi‘s greatest weakness lies in its sound design, but the core game is well-crated and a lot of fun. The smaller world size keeps players focused on the task at hand, while keeping mandatory collect-a-thon parts to a minimum puts a stronger focus on the platforming action. Thankfully, this is the game’s strongest point and anyone looking for a solid 3D platformer should check out Poi. It controls nearly-perfectly, with only an iffy camera causing issues from time to time. It looks solid for the most part too, with impressive lighting adding some impressive visual flair to what can sometimes be bland-looking stages.

• PS4
• 4 / 5
• États-Unis

Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus delivers an enjoyable action packed first person shooter experience. The alternate take on history makes for an interesting story populated by characters who are easy to care about. The characters that the player is supposed to hate are quite easy to despise since the game doesn’t hold back about cranking up their despicable level. Some sequences are hard to sit through since they don’t shy away from racism, antisemitism, animal cruelty, domestic violence and just sadistic behavior in general, but this features Nazis, so expecting sunshine and rainbows would be a naive viewpoint. Overall Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus delivers a memorable experience that doesn’t pull any punches to get an emotional response but still maintains the over the top action movie camp factor. Most importantly, it delivers fast paced shooting action and explosive carnage which is what people typically want from a first person shooter.

• IOS
• 3.5 / 5
• États-Unis

Simulacra might not be perfect, but it highlights that the found phone horror concept is one that has a significant amount of potential. For anyone looking to venture into uncharted territory with horror, Simulacra is a choice that brings a fresh, exciting new experience compared with many other titles on the market. It has a well-constructed story and demonstrates that branching narratives are built for horror titles. Kaigan Games has only scraped the surface of found phone horror, though. Should they choose to return with another installment and be able to improve on some of the notable flaws, it could end up making the real impact that it’s looking for with found phone horror on the mobile market. For now, however, Simulacra is a must-own title for any horror enthusiast. Even if it’s only for a single playthrough, it’s enough to make any player want to talk to their friend about this found phone horror title they’ve discovered.