Review: Captain Toad Treasure Tracker: A Hidden Gem

Nick Bartoli
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Review: Captain Toad Treasure Tracker: A Hidden Gem

The Nintendo Switch is home to many slam-dunk titles. Legend of Zelda Breath of the Wild, Mario Odyssey, and Animal Crossing New Horizons are just a few of the many examples of fantastic games that are regarded as some of Nintendo’s best titles in their large ever expanding library. With the Switch having so many well received games it’s only natural that some titles may be missed. One such experience that many Nintendo fans may have overlooked is none other than Captain Toad Treasure Tracker. Although it may not be a masterpiece such as the previously mentioned games, it is certainly an enjoyable experience with a plethora of content that will keep players entertained throughout its runtime.

Captain Toad Treasure Tracker is a spin off of side missions in Super Mario 3D World in which the player navigates the slow Captain Toad around a small map. The player uses the camera as well as some motion controls to locate collectables with a gameplay structure based more on puzzle solving instead of the platforming style Mario games are known for. Although I found the Captain Toad levels to be a fun distraction within the main game of 3D World, I never saw it as anything more than just a small side experience. When I saw Captain Toad was getting his own game, I was very skeptical. Could a collectable driven game with a slow character who can’t even jump be enjoyable? As it turns out, yes it can.

Captain Toad Treasure Tracker makes up for its slower gameplay by having small stages to explore. Most levels can be beaten in under a minute, and none of the levels take longer than five minutes. The main goal of each stage is to navigate Captain Toad to the star at the end of each stage. Each level also has three gems hidden throughout, a bonus challenge that can only be discovered after beating the level, and a mode to locate a tiny 8-bit Toad hidden somewhere on the stage. Although these are optional, a certain number of gems are needed to unlock missions that are required to progress. The game has over 70 missions separated into three episodes, as well as a bonus set of levels. The first two episodes are both 18 levels, and the third level and bonus missions offer a larger selection.

The amount of content is perfect. In my playthrough I collected all of the gems, and completed the hidden challenge before moving on. Playing every mission this way never hit a point for me where I had my fill of the game. Levels were fast enough where I rarely felt I was spending too much time on one mission, but challenging enough for completing a level to feel rewarding. Each level has very unique designs and layouts, but still stay true to the aesthetics of 3D World, and Odyssey that most of the games missions are based on. The music fits each stage very well, but most of the tracks are reused from 3D World. Overall each level feels impressive. Missions that use similar aesthetics have gameplay elements or map layouts that allow each stage to stand on their own and feel unique. I found this to be a nice surprise considering that 3D World struggled in this aspect despite using similar world types.

Despite the simple mechanics, there is a wide variety of stage types. Some missions require looking at the map from multiple angels to determine where collectibles may be hidden. While others are based more on the movement mechanics, creating a compelling platformer level even without the ability to jump. They even have missions that are akin to stealth games where you have to sneak passed enemies without being detected. Although most puzzles within the game are not very difficult to solve, there are enough challenging objectives sprinkled in to keep the game entertaining throughout without being annoyingly difficult.

My favorite objective in each stage is certainly the challenge time the game asks you to complete after you find all three gems, as well as complete the bonus objective in each stage. The challenge time in some stages feel as though the only way to beat the mission fast enough is to beat it in the lowest amount of time that is physically possible. A lot of my successful runs felt as though it was actually impossible to get a lower time. Combine that with the fact that some of these times require perfect movement and execution makes the challenge time mode fairly challenging and extremely satisficing

Although I found this puzzle platformer to be a fantastic yet simple experience the game does have its issues. This game was certainly designed around the concept of completing the game 100%. Sadly, unlike the rest of the game, the Pixel Toad hide and seek mode gets old quick. The mode started off as a fun enough side mission to find a tiny 8-bit Toad hidden on each stage. A problem arises however as the games levels get larger and more dynamic. Finding Toad in the smaller stages that are prevalent through the beginning of the game ranged from fine to a little annoying. Once the second episode starts however, the mode starts to eat more and more of your time as the levels get larger. It just turns into an obnoxious and frustrating chore that you have to complete if you want to 100% the game.

This game starts to lose its luster when missions feel as though the objective is uncomeatable. The Pixel Toad missions certainly gave me this feeling the most, but even searching for collectables had moments like this. Some missions hidden objectives may be to find a golden mushroom hidden invisibly underground that you have to walk over to reveal. Most of these I either found on accident, or by just walking on every part of the map until I ran into its hiding spot. I didn’t mind looking for the mushroom like this, but sometimes I would miss the opaque stem that Toad would have to pull in order to get the collectible. This would cause me to spend way too much time looking for it. Once you are stuck in a situation where it feels as though you’ve done every possible option to find something and have still come up with nothing, the mission can stop being fun.

The lack of touch controls the original Wii U version of the game had requires gyro controls to aim a pointer at different stage elements to move them. Although this sounds like it would be much worse than the touch screen, I encountered very few moments where the gyro controls felt restrictive, but they certainly still appeared.

Captain Toad Treasure Tracker offers a unique puzzle experience that is full of content and compelling missions that can hook the player into saying “just one more level” over and over again. Although the game certainly has its moments where gameplay can get slow and frustrating, especially with the Pixel Toad missions, the overall experience is not ruined by these moments. Captain Toad is a fast and rewarding puzzle platformer game that has gone underappreciated on the Switch. It is the perfect game to pick up while waiting for Nintendo to release their more anticipated titles.

Review: Evolution

Brendan Dick
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Review: Evolution

Having just reviewed Wingspan, the prospect of playing another successful board game port had me champing at the bit. The game of Evolution, unsurprisingly, is a card game that revolves around the idea of competing and surviving in a habitat while simultaneously battling the prospect of extinction. The goal is to consume the most food and grow your animals’ population as your opponent tries to do the same. Unfortunately, where Wingspan’s mechanics and playability shone through in its PC port, Evolution struggles to do the same, ultimately defined by a bug-laden port with repetitive gameplay.

After a helpful tutorial, I feel like I have a solid grasp on the game. In Evolution, you draw from a singular, shared deck, against a number of players (up to 4), and try to gather the most food tokens. From the deck you draw trait cards which help determine characteristics about the animals you’ve played. For instance, you can turn your animal into a “Carnivore” by playing that card. Your animal, instead of eating food from the center, preys on other players’ animal cards and eliminates them from the board. Alternatively, you could play a trait card that helps protect your animals from carnivores such as the “Climbing” card, which forces any opposing carnivores to have the same trait applied to attack you.

In the first phase of each turn, you play trait cards into the center and turn them into food. Each card has a numerical value in the top left corner that defines how much food they add to the pool. Note that you lose this trait card permanently, so choose wisely. This is followed by a round of feeding, and, if any carnivores are played, attacking. You are then granted points based on the amount of food you consumed from the communal pile and points for successful carnivorous attacks.

I personally find balancing to be one of the most important aspects for board games, and Evolution mostly staves off these issues by having you draw from a single deck, but in 4 player matches it is nearly impossible to determine a winning strategy. For nearly every card you can play, there is an effective counter. That’s fair. This is probably preferable to the opposite situation where a counter doesn’t exist, but in big games against AI, the outcome begins to feel fairly random. When I try to play a defensive strategy and protect my flanking cards via my card in the middle, an AI inevitably gets the “Ambush” card and crushes my hopes and dreams. The next round, playing now for population growth, the AI seems to focus its carnivorous attacks solely on my animals.

It never felt like I was in a spot where I was in control of my own destiny. Instead, the game felt much like crossing my fingers each round that I would be ignored by the other players. I was a passive participant in the game.

Fine. That’s all well and good, maybe that’s the way that Evolution is meant to be played. Perhaps, I’m just not very good at the game. But, by the 6th or 7th game, I’m starting to feel like there is only a handful of viable strategies in a seemingly complex game. There seems to be a massive advantage to playing at least one “Carnivore,” as there aren’t many effective ways to completely defend yourself from such attacks, and they require the other player to waste trait slots on their animals without much added benefit. It’s unlikely you ever find yourself in a situation where your potential prey are all perfectly defended.

Also by this point, I’ve crashed to desktop twice. Even when entering my username after the tutorial, the game completely seizes up. For what seems to be a fairly straightforward port, Evolution is disproportionately plagued by bugs. It’s not just my experience either. Sifting through other reviews reveals this to be a fairly common occurrence. I’m not sure what’s causing the problem here. The port is fairly simple. The UI even seems downright utilitarian—reminiscent of games that come preinstalled on computers of days gone by like Minesweeper or Full Tilt! Pinball.

For me, by the time I encounter my third bug, my time in Evolution has come to an end. With my interest already waning, these glitches are the final nail in the coffin. To be fair, I can imagine there are plenty of people out there who might love this game, but I can’t recommend it over the other quality board game ports that are available. Once the small issues are ironed out, Evolution could fill-in a niche spot for board game fanatics, but as it is even diehard fans would be hard pressed to ignore the problems.

Review: Call of the Sea

Daniel Waite
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Review: Call of the Sea

For the many fans of Point and Click, first-person adventures, Myst and Riven have been mainstay titles in their libraries. These games are fantastic at transporting you to a mysterious, strange world with complex problems to overcome, and beautiful worlds to explore. What these games don’t do with their serious take on the genre is allow for new gamers of this current generation to slip into the action with a bright and vivid colour palette and accessible early gaming puzzles to overcome. Call of the Sea by developers Out of the Blue, and published by Raw Fury takes all the best bits from these major titles, but presents them in a much more user friendly way, with a Zelda Wind Waker/Sea of Thieves style world to explore.

The game itself follows the story of the female protagonist Norah, she wants to find answers to the mystery surrounding the disappearance of her husband Harry, who is known to her as her “old pal”. He undertook a journey to find a remedy to Norah’s family disease and leaves no rock unturned while trying to find a solution. Unfortunately, his adventure has taken a turn for the worse, and now it is you saving him, and not the other way around.

The premise of the game is simple. You must explore a mysterious, yet beautiful island that is located off the coast of Tahiti. This landmass that you must explore is unchartered, and the locals refuse to name it. However, you must overcome the obvious signs to stay away, and venture deep into its jungle environment. The game plays out in a first-person perspective where you must search for clues in the surrounding areas, and piece together the small bits of information so you can solve the many puzzles you encounter. The problems that must be overcome to progress the story are usually straightforward, with solutions and hints staring you in the face. But more complex moments are found when you attempt to unlock the secrets of the island. Many of these types of games require spatial awareness and a high degree of logical thinking. Therefore, they may be out of the reach of inexperienced gamers, however, the mixture of puzzling difficulties makes Call of the Sea much more accessible for a wider ranging audience.

While the simplicity of most of the puzzles, it may be dumbed down too much for veteran gamers. But I believe there is enough to keep everyone entertained. What was also fantastic about this game was the pace at which both the story progressed and how the plot unfolded. Clever use of photographs and letters between the pair helped to show both sides of the relationship. As the player, you become engrossed with how the plot unfolds, and the dynamic between the two. You forget that our female lead character is unwell, but small reminders sharply focus you on the dangers they both face. It’s brilliantly written and takes you on a journey of discovery and on an emotional roller-coaster.

Myst and Riven are renowned for being beautiful and atmospheric titles. Whenever I see a game in this genre, I hope that it retains some of these qualities. Fortunately, Call of the Sea does! Wandering around this stunning island you will discover a variety of biomes from; craggy rocks, lush forests, dense marshes and gorgeous beaches. The vivid colour palette gives the world a wondrous and alluring look, where every element is interesting and has a magical undertone. I loved every bit of this puzzling adventure, and the developers have created a glorious environment to lose yourself in.

If you want an example of a game that has near perfect audio, then look no further! The music, sound effects, and acting work in perfect harmony to deliver the story and it envelops you in the world that you are exploring. The music creates upbeat and fun moments, which are immediately juxtaposed with sombre and minor tones that create a serious and ominous atmosphere. The sound effects breathe life into this slow-paced intellectual title, which makes you smile as each different location has its own unique sounds. Norah is voiced by Cissy Jones from Firewatch and Walking Dead Season One. Her tone and delivery of her lines brings warmth and emotion to help build a report with the female protagonist. The audio is a treat, and sounds spectacular through your TV, but for the best experience I recommend playing exclusively with headphones.

Because of the genre of game, most of the action is played out as fast or as slow as you like, meaning that the complexity of the control set up is not an issue. Fortunately, Out of the Blue has kept things simple, so learning the basics is easy to achieve. On the whole, the controls work very well, but I’d still say that this would play better with a mouse and keyboard. At points you will edge towards the item you want to interact with, still finding that you cannot select it. These are the limitations that console gamers accept, and though it was a little annoying, it didn’t break the game, nor did it ruin the immersive nature of the title.

Each chapter you take on is set in a small enclosed area of the island where you are free to revisit, and replay each at your leisure. There are many hidden items, documents, and photos dotted around the landscape, so collecting these will be a challenge the first time that you play. This requirement to find everything to obtain the 100% completion status will not be of interest for everyone, but as each chapter can be selected freely, I believe that most gamers will return to try to find all the secrets that eluded them first time around. At the time of writing this review, Call of the Sea is free to play as part of the Xbox Gamepass subscription, or is available to purchase at around £17. Both options provide great value for money, and I believe you’ll need around 7 to 10 hours to complete this if you don’t use a guide.

If you are looking for an interesting title that allows you to play at your own pace, and lose yourself in the beautiful world it’s set in, then look no further than this game. A wonderful story with great voice work awaits anybody that wishes to take this on. You won’t be surprised when I recommend that you give this a go! Can you help Norah overcome the variety of puzzles that block her progress? Will you be able rescue her “old pal”, and in the process save herself? Take on this adventure and see for yourself.

Win Fatal Fury : First Contact on Nintendo Switch

Andrew Edney
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92
Win Fatal Fury : First Contact on Nintendo Switch

We have a digital copy of Fatal Fury : First Contact on Nintendo Switch to give away.

How to enter to win

We have a copy of Fatal Fury : First Contact on Nintendo Switch to give away, simply enter below:

Win Fatal Fury : First Contact on Nintendo Switch

The contest closes at midnight on 19th January 2021.

Review: Drunken Fist

Daniel Waite
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Review: Drunken Fist

Young readers may not know the joys and pain of getting so blindingly drunk that the world turns into a blur, and you become a monster. Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde have little on most people when they’ve had a skinful of ale, and my latest review title aims to show this experience. Drunken Fist by developers DEKLAZON and Eastasiasoft Limited, and published by the latter, is a 3D drunken-physics, beat ’em up, action game. The aim of this title is to make it home, fighting everyone while attempting to stay firmly on your feet.

The gameplay spans 7 small stages where you must overcome an increasing number of enemies, all while searching for food and drink to consume. You control a stumbling mess of a man who; slides, flaps and trips down the road. Each level starts with a set of objectives clearly shown in the top right corner of the screen. You must destroy a set amount of; punks, hipsters, jocks, and more on your way to achieving victory and making it to the sanctuary of your front door.

The unnamed drunken hero has limited statistics that you must observe, but the few that he has makes him a needy, annoying, buffoon. Like most drunk people, he has a bladder the size of a pea, and constantly needs to relieve himself where he stands. This urine magically pools on the floor and is slipperier than an eel. If used correctly, it creates an amusing banana skin effect that floors any opponent. Alongside the desire to urinate, he must devour burgers he finds on the floor to fill his health bar, and top up his alcohol level with the bottles of wine found strewn around the bins, and on the ground. This guy has no standards! Eating from the floor and drinking wine found in a bin is even below my level of acceptance, yet this guy loves to fill his body with discarded waste.

Drunken Fist is an amusing insight into how people behave when inebriated. The fighting isn’t complicated, and is usually over in a couple of hits, but when you miss, and it goes wrong, the outcome is hilarious. The lead character falls at the slightest of nudges, so when you attempt and miss with a mighty Haymaker, the inevitable tumble into the gutter shouldn’t come as much of a surprise. This drunken-physics element forms the backbone for all the action. Walk or run too fast, you’ll fall. Step off the curb too quickly, yep you’re on your behind again. Step on your pee, and you better believe that’s a one-way ticket to floorsville, population, you! You spend most of your time; laughing, fighting, and getting up off the ground.

The floppy and uneasy nature of the hero makes moving and completing most tasks frustrating, it’s like trying to put clothes on a toddler who’s having a tantrum. I was glad that the gameplay difficulty was low. The lack of a challenge wasn’t a problem for me, it allowed me the freedom to act like an A-hole, and not worry about the consequences.

Graphically, it personifies the indie title look, as it has a simple artistry with an interesting yet basic landscape. The physics style and look reminded me of Human Fall Flat, but was not as polished. A dark colour palette and tone, enhance the twilight atmosphere, and the blurred imagery represents a drunk person’s outlook on life perfectly.

The audio reminded me of the classic side-scrolling beat ’em ups such as Streets of Rage. Synthesised music, and over the top sound effects accompanies all the action. It felt like a badly dubbed Chinese martial arts film. It was outrageous, but I loved it.

For a drunk who can barely stand up, he has a lot of different moves that he can perform. He can; kick, throw punches, complete combos, and more. There is a lot to master, yet it’s easy to pick up and learn. The developers have been too generous with the special attack ability. The bar fills too quickly, and landing this attack knocks out your foes instantly, making you the most powerful drunk to ever exist. Apart from this needing a minor tweak, the gameplay is well balanced, and the controls are responsive enough.

The simplicity of this title and the lack of difficulty impacts the replay value. All achievements are unlocked within 1 hour of playing, and once you’ve finished the 7th level there isn’t much else to do. You are free to replay the game as much as you wish, punching as many people as you see fit. I think the developers missed a trick when they; failed to mix up the objectives, didn’t implement an NG+ mode, or mix neutral NPCs into the action. Any of these things would have added a new layer to the gameplay, and would have increased the desire to want to return.

Physics-based games aren’t everyone’s cup of tea. They are harder to master, and you always have to consider your actions. This adds a frustrating element to the gameplay, but it is also rewarding when you achieve perfection. Though Drunken Fist has its shortcomings, it’s an enjoyable title to play, even if it is only for a short amount of time. Do I recommend it? Yes. I laughed throughout and thoroughly enjoyed how DEKLAZON captured the drunken nature of the lead character. Can you fight off the people that stand in your way and make it home? 7 levels, lots of burgers, alcohol and fighting stand between you and success.

Review: Goetia

Daniel Waite
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Review: Goetia

Point and click titles have been slowly dripping their way onto the console platform, allowing this player base the opportunity to try out what has long been considered a PC genre. Whenever I’m offered the chance to review a point and click game on Xbox, I’m a little reserved about the idea. It’s not because I don’t like to play them quite the opposite. I enjoy the relaxed and laid back nature of the action, but I have an issue with the control system when it’s not on a PC. For me, at least, the use of a mouse and keyboard works better with the User Interface, and this makes for a more enjoyable experience. Can my time with Goetia prove me wrong? Will it be as immersive with a controller? Will I stop posing questions like this? Who knows, but these questions and more were answered as I delved further into my playthrough.

Developed and Published by Forever Entertainment SA, this point and click game focuses its efforts on unravelling the mysteries of a supernatural horror story. You play the part of Abigail Blackwood; she awakes as a spirit some years after her death. This young girl remembers the world in which she lived, and the family house that you must explore, Blackwood Manor. The world that she now sees is very different, and she has no memories or idea of what has transpired across the 40 years since her untimely demise.

As the story unfolds, you discover that Abigail’s family were obsessed with mysticism and fanatical experiments. Her father messed with powers that he shouldn’t, and perhaps it is these forces that awoke her from her slumber, and dragged her back into the land of the living. You must piece together all the clues, searching every room and return to unsolved problems when you have acquired new powers. What was once muddled and confusing will then become clear, and mysterious problems will be solved.

The game plays out a slow pace, with information unfolding before your eyes in a timely fashion. The complexity and style of the puzzles vary, and though some are straightforward to solve, others will leave you scratching your head while you search for a solution. I wouldn’t say this is is ideal for new players to the genre, but if you fall into that category, I suggest practise and plenty of logical thinking will help to get you to the finale. Forever Entertainment SA has relied partly on its narrative to drive this game forward. With a dark and unnerving plot that makes for uneasy reading, it really emphasises the creepy nature of this horror supernatural themed game. However, the winning elements of this title, and what ensures that the characters and plot are brought to life, is the use of atmospheric audio and grainy imagery.

Each backdrop comprises a still image that you are free to explore and investigate. The mixture of sepia and earthy tones and a grainy filter give the visuals a classic old-school Polaroid style. This not only made the game appear darker and more sinister, it was also in keeping with the era that the story is set. I have perfectly good vision, but I struggled to read a lot of the text when it was first presented to me. Fortunately, the developers have allowed you to zoom closer when you view information in your journal. Though the handwritten documents suited the game, there should have been an option to read the text in a clearer and larger modern format.

Now, I really liked the visuals for this. They were simple, and enjoyable to look at, but what stole the show for me was the audio. The game opens with a statement that the gameplay is best experienced with headphones, and the developers weren’t lying. An eerie soundtrack will send chills down your spine. Creaking floorboards and doors, the sound of paper rustling, books slamming shut, and audible clues for puzzles all helped to build the suspense. It all works brilliantly and keeps the theme alive throughout.

As you may recall (if you can’t, you have a really short memory), my gripe with point and click games on console is the control system, namely the lack of keyboard and mouse finesse. Unfortunately, this issue reared its ugly head in Goetia as well. When selecting clues, you could not back out using the B button. Instead, you had to move the cursor over the X to back out. All the cursor movements felt slow and arduous, and broke the immersion created by the well worked aesthetics. This would work much better on a PC and be a much more enjoyable experience. I have to say that this isn’t a fault of the game, but I wanted you to be aware before you jump in and start playing. Other than this problem, the User Interface is clean, crisp, and well laid out. The button mapping is well organised, and this portion works as well as if it was mapped for a keyboard.

Because of the complexity of the puzzles, and the engrossing nature of the narrative, Goetia has both a lengthy game time, and a good replay value. A small list of achievements can be unlocked during your time with the game, and your only limitation to obtaining them all, is; time and a lack of logical thoughts. At the time of writing this review the final achievement worth 200 Gamerscore is bugged, but it will be addressed in the near future, so don’t let this put you off.

Other than the obvious issues I had with the controller, I loved my time playing this game. Forever Entertainment SA have created an interesting and dark story that will keep you hooked from the beginning to the end. Do I recommend that you play this? Of course! Heed the developers’ advice; “play in a dark and quiet room with headphones on for the best experience.” Do this and you will be taken on a supernatural horror trip like no other. Find all the clues, and help Abigail answer the many questions she faces.

Review: Panzer Dragoon: Remake

Daniel Waite
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0
Review: Panzer Dragoon: Remake

I remember gaming in the 90s, and the shear enjoyment that consoles gave me as a teenager. I can recall the rumours, and the hype that surrounded the Sega Saturn. As a young man I should have been put off by the price tag, but the draw of Sega made me determined to own the next big thing. One of the launch titles that I was obsessed with was Panzer Dragoon; the colourful world, amazing audio and the lore that surrounded the gameplay was fantastic. The series is synonymous with the Sega franchise, so when I heard that a remake was being worked on for modern consoles, I admit I was giddy with excitement.

Panzer Dragoon Remake has been developed by MegaPixel Studio S.A. and published by Forever Entertainment S.A. this new version of the game retains the soul, and arcade playstyle, while allowing its new, and existing fans to enjoy a polished environment, and smooth cut scenes. Now, I remember playing through this as a teenager, but I couldn’t recall the fundamentals of the storyline, or the characters. The cinematic does very little to clarify this, so let me give you a quick overview. You play the role of Keil Fluge (thank you Wikipedia), he is a member of a hunting party who observes a fight between 2 dragons, a black and a blue one. The rider of the blue dragon is mortally wounded in battle, and his last dying wish is that you complete his mission, and destroy the black prototype dragon, thus begins your adventure. The story is based in a post apocalyptic world, where the empire uses the technology of the ‘Ancients’ to maintain power. The machines they created were used for both war and work, and are used against you throughout to prevent you from completing your objectives.

A 3D shoot ‘em up, adventure game that asks the player to complete 7 short, but hectic episodes. You fly through each level on a preordained path. Just like a roller coaster, once you are strapped into your seat, you can’t get off until the ride is over, so think of each playthrough as one ride on this post apocalyptic roller coaster of doom. 6 of the 7 stages asks you to dodge, float, and destroy any enemies you face. You are armed with a gun that has two settings; single fire with an auto aim function, and when unlocked, you can use rapid fire. At the end of each chapter you must face a different boss. Each of these gigantic foes has its strengths and weaknesses, it is up to you to work out the best way to take down each opponent, while surviving the fight. 99% of the time, if you simple spam the fire button, you will be victorious, with little risk to your life.

Once you have finished an episode you are awarded credits, these are used to allow you to continue if you die (this won’t happen that often). The game has 3 difficulty settings; easy, medium, and hard. If you play without using cheats, or the auto aim function, the hard mode is brutal, and you will have to have the reactions of a cat, and accuracy of a sniper to survive the full 7 levels. Things can be made much easier with a classic arcade hack known as god mode. With this activated, you can float through each stage taking no damage, and completing your run with little skill required, and no stress incurred. It’s a great mode if you want to observe the world around you, and to take in the old-school art style.

As the game runs on a rail with no ability to control the path of your flight, some players will not like this restrictive approach. It can frustrate, especially when you crash into objects, and your opponents fly out of sight. The developers have solved some of these issues by allowing you to pan around your own body with 4 different camera angles. Though it’s not perfect, it allows you to observe your surroundings, and carry on blasting your foes.

Though the game has been enhanced for next gen gaming, and looks much more polished than it did in the 90s, it still retains much of the Sega charm that we have all come to love. Bold colours, massive landscapes, and unusual character models make up the core elements of the art style. A distinct Asian influence can be seen, with the protagonist having an obvious Samurai style. The fast-paced nature of the gameplay makes it hard to follow all the action, and at times the amount of enemies was overwhelming and hard to follow. Even with so much going on, I suffered no issues, and there were no drops in frame rate. It won’t wow modern audiences, but I had to admire how improved it was over the original, and I was in awe of how good the game looked compared to many other titles that were released in the mid 90s. If you have played the original, you will notice that there is a lack of reflections in the water, and the shadow effects have been reduced. I also noted that the new version is much brighter and colourful than the original. It doesn’t affect the gameplay, but it’s odd that a definitive art style has been eliminated from the latest version.

When you combine the words; arcade and Sega in the same sentence, you know that you are going to be in for an overwhelming audio. The sound effects are basic, and sound like they belong in the Sci-fi genre. Shots from your gun fly across the screen with a whining squeal, the flap of your dragon’s wing makes a delightful whooshing noise as it flaps through the sky. The sound effects bring the game to life, this combined with the upbeat, and folksy style musical score gives Panzer Dragoon Remake a sense of both an old world fantasy setting, and dreamlike futuristic world.

Because you have no major control over what your dragon does, over than the occasional bit of dodging and weaving, the control system is easy to pick up and learn. The panning of the camera is easy to perform, with several buttons mapped to complete this task. Shooting is also a simple task, the only downside to the controls is the lack of being able to alter them during a playthrough. Any setting changes must be implemented before you start your journey, which can annoy you to begin with, but once you have your setup completed, it matters not.

It takes approximately 1 hour to complete all the episodes, and the action repeats the same sequence no matter the difficulty. The bosses will not challenge you, and once you’ve completed the game once, there is little reason to want to return. Yet, you still will want to play again! The arcade nature of the game gets under your skin, and the pace at which you can finish a run will inspire you to return. Each episode has a hit percentage for you to try to improve on, and the addition of the cheat modes adds a fun element to the gameplay. The achievement list is easy to unlock except for the final achievement, which requires a ridiculous 100 hours game time to add to your Gamerscore. The replay value is limited, but the action is fun and addictive.

I had to be careful when I reviewed this to ensure I wasn’t biased as I love the franchise. What I found was an enjoyable, nostalgia filled game, but it wasn’t perfect by any stretch. The graphics look great, yet the developers ripped out a part of its soul when they took away the shadows and reflections. The audio is fantastic, and the controls make this arcade game easy to play. Do I recommend that you play this? Yes! If you have played the original, then you will undoubtedly love it. If you are new to the franchise, then you will enjoy a fast-paced shooter that will transport you to one of the best 90s titles. Though it doesn’t keep all the heart and soul of the original, its new polished look does a darn good job at allowing new gamers to experience a classic Sega title.

Review: Not For Broadcast

Brendan Dick
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Review: Not For Broadcast

Look, Ma! I’m on TV!

Sort of. Actually, I’m the guy behind the scenes. I’m running the entire operation—or at least trying to. I’m sitting in a booth, surrounded by an array of plugs, buttons, and knobs whose purpose I’m not entirely sure of. I might as well have a blindfold on at times. It’s in this chaos that the brilliance of Not For Broadcast is revealed. The game is at its best when you have absolutely no idea what’s going on, which, if you’re like me, is quite often.

In Not For Broadcast, I’m placed at the helm of a broadcast studio for the National Nightly News, a whacky, never quite in control, news station. My job is superficially simple: mix, edit, and censor the news to satisfy the viewers (represented by the score bar at the top of my control panel). But, like the National Nightly News, things always seem to get out of hand quickly. The difficulty is juggling all the tasks I’m confronted with at once. I’m trying to account for interference while simultaneously making snappy editing decisions when suddenly one of my guests disrupts the broadcast with a string of curse words. My ratings begin to plummet.

Oddly, the controls in Not For Broadcast are intuitive. When first faced with the control panel, I’m a bit intimidated. But the built-in tutorial is effective at getting me up to speed, and the game does a great job of ramping up the difficulty slowly. By the time I’m facing nudity on the screen and thunderstorms at the station, I’m an old pro.

I’ve got to point out one obvious but important fact: all of the news segments in Not For Broadcast are actual videos performed by hired actors. Truthfully, I was a bit worried. This could have gone either way. It could have been pain inducingly bad or, as it turns out to be, pretty darn good. By just the second broadcast, when a man in full bondage gear falls out of a cupboard behind a conservative preacher, I actually find myself laughing. At these moments, Not For Broadcast feels more akin to watching a quality Netflix show than it does to actually playing a game.

Unfortunately, this sort of spawns one of the main problems. I can’t exactly follow the storyline too easily while playing the game. I find myself too caught up with the perfect timing and editing to pay any real attention. To be fair, Not For Broadcast offers me the ability to rewatch all of my work, so I could easily go in and catch myself up on any of the story I missed, but this feels like a chore. It would be ideal if I could naturally follow along with the narrative while focusing on the game, but I find myself too often overwhelmed by the task.

I’ve got the gist of it. The National Nightly News segments seem to mostly feature guests that are either for or against the status quo. You can craft the news more or less to your liking, and any decisions you make will have consequences. In between segments, I’m faced with events that are tangentially related to the goings-on of the broadcast booth. But the tone of these two sides of the game seem at odds. I’m confronted with super serious political decisions, but when I return to my booth, I’m hit with a barrage of Monty Pythonesque goofiness.

I know it’s not a choice, but if I could, I’d just stay in my booth and play through the game’s creative and silly segments. Whenever I’m drawn back into my apartment, and the on-the-nose political commentary begins, I find myself yawning. It’s not that I’m offended by it or that it’s not well done. The problem is that I just don’t care. The core of the game is so playable that I find myself eager to get back to it. I’ve seen this narrative played out before; I’ve never edited the news. Simple as that.

Don’t worry. The small issue of the narrative doesn’t even come close to undermining what’s good here. Not For Broadcast is easily one of the most unique games I’ve played. Not only that, but you literally see the work the team put in. The humour and the pacing of the videos pair seamlessly with the game’s mechanics. It’s chaotic, it’s stress-inducing, it’s beautiful. You’ll often feel like Homer Simpson sitting at the nuclear power plant blindly pressing buttons, but you’ll enjoy every second of it.

Review: Freddy Spaghetti

Daniel Waite
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Review: Freddy Spaghetti

The world of science is a crazy place, many people fear it, yet it has advanced mankind to the beings we are today. Some of our greatest achievements have come to life thanks to the brightest people that exist on this little blue planet. Can you imagine that moment when Earth’s greatest mind decides that he is going to use his phenomenal discovery to give life to a piece of spaghetti. Yes, you read that correctly a piece of spaghetti that can; move, think, and solve problems all by itself! This is the concept of Freddy Spaghetti, which has been developed by the aptly named Playful Pasta and published by Ratalaika Games.

Freddy Spaghetti is a 3D action-adventure title that asks you to control the newly intelligent piece of pasta who has been created by Dr. P Starr. He has named his creation, Freddy. As Freddy you must; leap, stretch, fall, dodge and avoid obstacles on your way to the end goal. This physics based patience testing title has you exploring 50 short levels across 5 different scenarios. As the game progresses, the spaghetti becomes more intelligent, and the objectives become progressively more challenging. Each different stage that you’ll face is punctuated by some of the funniest narration that I have heard in a long time. It reminded me of the title Thomas Was Alone by Mike Bithell. The voice over work is; dry, witty, and progresses the story at a comfortable pace.

The concept of the game is as simple as it sounds, making this an accessible puzzle adventure for players of all skill sets. For veteran gamers of this genre, you will find the only challenge that you’ll face is keeping your temper under control, as some levels are more luck than judgment. Freddy is moved by interacting with either end of his spaghetti body. His elastic, al dente structure makes him very flexible, and he can fling himself to great heights (which is lucky, as he has to overcome many gaps on his journey). During your new existence as a piece of pasta you may; smash up kitchenware, play football, leap from neon shapes, jump spikes, avoid cars, and more. I could never dream that life as a piece of spaghetti would be so exciting, so this was an eye-opener for me.

The story that is told alongside the basic action keeps this title from becoming boring and keeps you focussed on wanting to complete all 50 levels. Like in Thomas Was Alone, you soon discover that giving intelligent life to an inanimate object is a regrettable decision, and how this plays out across the length of the gameplay is both heartwarming and amusing in equal measures. The game mechanics follow a very similar pattern, which allows players to accuse the developers of creating a relatively repetitive title, yet, I think that the minor tweaks to the difficulty and landscapes, combined with the storytelling give this enough variety to keep you interested for the short time needed to run through every stage.

As this is an indie title set in a 3D world, I think that you have to come into it with a relatively low expectation on how you hope it would look. Fortunately, Playful Pasta have created a fun and colourful environment for you to explore. Most of the action takes place from a bird’s-eye perspective, with everything playing out in front of you using a fixed camera angle. Several levels buck this trend using side-scrolling gameplay, which helps to mix things up, and alleviates the aforementioned problem with repetitive gameplay. The imagery uses a cartoon art style and relies heavily on vivid colours and tones. It was pleasant that each of the 5 different scenarios had a unique look, and I could not find any glitches or glaringly obvious problems during my short playing time.

The main body of the game uses a mischievous and playful audio that plays gently in the background as you progress. It helps to support the story, and changes suitably to match the nature of each different section of the tale. The sound effects are as expected, and neither disappoint nor wow you, they exist to give depth to the actions you complete. The pièce de résistance for this whole game, and the resounding success, is the spoken narrative. Frankly, it’s brilliant, and I would happily play all 50 levels to hear his dulcet tones again. The writing is so good that I now refuse to eat spaghetti as I worry that I will devour one of Freddy’s family (This isn’t entirely true as pasta is still on the menu in my household, but it’s not every day that you feel empathy for this Italian food staple).

When I’ve played any physics based game that revolve around flimsy protagonists (I’m looking at you Human: Fall Flat) I always worry that the controls are going to be infuriating to use. It always feels that the developers are making it too hard to control the lead character to enhance that floppy status. Freddy Spaghetti can be guilty of this, mainly when he is required to leap in the air. It was a bit hit and miss which way he would go, and how high he would jump. Though it was annoying, it never turned me off wanting to play, and on the whole it was an easy title to pick up and play.

I’ve mentioned the word “short” several times during this review, and that’s because a run through will take you between 1 to 2 hours, and that will also allow you the 100% completion status. So that makes the replay value 0 then? No, it doesn’t! Each stage is timed, and you are free to play each one as many times as you wish. It’s the perfect title to practice your reflexes and speedruns on. If you combine this with the brilliance of the narration, then I’m certain that you will want to come back for more. It’s a cheap title at around £4, so even if you were to play it once, it still represents great value for money.

Though Freddy Spaghetti won’t push your abilities, and the world that you explore isn’t the most up to date looking environment, it all works well, and is a fun game to play. What I’ve learned during my time with this is that you never give food items the ability to think for themselves, it just ends up with issues. Do I recommend that you play this? I do. Your patience will be tested, as will your eye hand coordination. But what you will love is the storytelling, and the warmth of the narrator. Empower your spaghetti to evolve, after all, what is the worst that could happen?

Review: Faeria

Jeremiah Foo
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Review: Faeria

Collectable card games (CCGs) have become an increasingly popular genre over the years, following the release of Hearthstone in 2014. Since then, many other CCGs have tried to emulate Hearthstone’s success, with even table-top card games such as Magic the Gathering creating its own online version to enter the CCG market. Most of these CCGs are relatively easy to get into and understand for the most part. Faeria, however, is not. It is likely the closest online collectable card game you could find that is as intricate as a chess game, which makes it so much fun to learn and so rewarding to play. The game has been out since February 2016 for PC and just made its way to the shores of the PS4 and Nintendo Switch a while back. I was fortunate enough to get a review copy for the PS4 version of the game, and as a big card game fanatic myself I got hooked.

The game features a hexagonal grid board that is filled with water. Players must place lands on the board in order to cast spells, summon creatures and move them around the map. Certain cards can only be used when a certain type of land is placed, or when the player controls a certain number of lands on the map. For example, green cards can only be placed on forests, and some green cards are only made available for play when you control 3 forests. Players must place land each turn via the action wheel at the bottom left-hand corner of the screen. Additionally, players can choose to gain mana or draw additional cards instead, which opens up more possibilities for playmaking. Each player starts with 3 mana a turn which rolls over to the next turn if unused. There are also mana wells which give the player 1 additional mana per turn, but only if there is a creature next to the well on the board. As one could already guess, the possibilities for strategizing are endless. I often wonder if I should gradually move around the map, slowly collecting mana to summon bigger creatures or go straight for my opponent’s face. Nine times out of ten, this decision you make at the start of the game determines if you win or lose.

Face is the place!

Faeria’s single-player mode is wonderfully structured, as well. In addition to single-player campaigns that pit you against AIs, there are also fun puzzles that challenge your problem-solving skills. I found myself playing lots of the puzzles available and learnt many new things about the game’s mechanics along the way. More often than not, I prefer to stray away from the single-player modes of CCGs, but Faeria’s single-player content was so fun that I ended up spending countless hours playing puzzles and testing my decks against the AI. In addition to the single-player campaigns, Faeria also has a draft mode similar to Hearthstone’s arena mode. The player is given 5 cards each picking phase and picks one card to be added to the deck. This goes on until all 30 cards are selected, where the player then goes on to face other players with similarly constructed decks online. The more wins you get, the better the rewards. I personally loved drafting for every card game I’ve played, and Faeria was no different.

One of the many puzzles in Faeria

Faeria does market itself as having little to no microtransactions, which means that farming all the cards through hours of grinding is possible. This honestly was a big minus for me. As I started opening packs in-game, I received legendary cards after legendary cards. I realized that it just wasn’t that much fun opening packs anymore, knowing that I wouldn’t get duplicates and eventually hold the entire collection. The fun of opening card packs was that you didn’t really know what was going to be in them, and the joy of getting really rare cards added to the excitement of it all. Even though Faeria’s business model might put less pressure on our wallets, it really takes away a fun element of card games.

Playing on the PS4 felt a little wonky. There were times where I would place a creature on a wrong tile due to the hexagonal features of the map not lining up with my 4 direction D-Pad. It also requires a PS Plus subscription for online matchmaking (though it really is a Playstation problem rather than the game’s problem). Speaking of which, Faeria’s online queue times are exorbitantly long. There was once I waited almost 7 minutes for an online opponent. But then again, due to the game’s steep learning curve, I can understand why there aren’t many people playing the game in the first place. I wouldn’t really recommend playing the game on a console for that matter, and since cross-play is enabled it might be a better idea to buy the game on PC instead.

Faeria does have issues with its queue times and online gameplay, but it really is a remarkably well thought out game. The sheer amount of thinking that goes into each and every turn makes the game difficult to understand and get into. Most people wouldn’t go through that much effort to learn the game, but those who do will definitely find it a truly enjoyable CCG.

Review: Overcooked All You Can Eat

Jack Boreham
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Review: Overcooked All You Can Eat

The top of the food chain

Overcooked All you can eat should have a warning sign attached. Be warned; This game could ruin multiple relationships many times over! But this is by no means a criticism. Overcooked All You Can Eat is the perfect swan song to a set of games that reinvented the cooperative cooking simulator genre. It provides all the Overcooked games and additional content that fans of this genre love. It offers all of this content, coupled with the intense cooperation fans crave in a fun and charming accumulation of the genres finest.

A classic level

Overcooked All You Can Eat consists of Overcooked 1, 2 and Extra Trimmings, a DLC pack essentially adding new stories and adventures for your chefs to go on. Individually the games stand out in their ability to encapsulate highly addictive gameplay. Which involves perfect cooperation to complete recipes under a specific time limit. With charming music, intricate level design, smooth gameplay and laugh out loud food humour makes each level a genuine pleasure to play within each game. I found myself in mystical castles, cooking up burgers for wizards and floating above the clouds cooking Sushi. As a result, Overcooked 1, 2, and the Extra Trimmings each individually stand out as excellent pieces of content and come together to create an unrivalled cooking simulator experience. 

Cooperation is key

However, each is at its best when you play cooperatively. You feel the heat of the kitchen when you are cooking up recipes alongside friends, family and significant others. Under that intense time limit. One slip up could cost everything and your teammate’s patience! It is the perfect party game, all wrapped up in a package of fun and charm. On the flip side, the single-player element is still the weakest point of the Overcooked series. Although playing on your own does not provide you with a bad experience. It is inferior compared to its cooperative play. Playing each games main campaign puts you in control of two chefs. The constant back and forth between chefs to cook up recipes still is fun. But lacks that magic of cooperative play with a teammate, which is the preferred way to play this game. 

Cooperative fun out at sea

Let’s Taco ’bout content. 

Although it is much harder playing without a teammate. Overcooked All You Can Eat does a successful job offering different modes such as Assist mode to ease the difficulty and vis versa. Although you can’t change the mode, you play each campaign after starting the story, which is frustrating. This addition does offer an excellent cooking simulator experience for both new players and well-established players, used to the cooking simulator genre.

The amount of content available within Overcooked All You Can Eat is also outstanding. You not only get Overcooked 1 and 2 and DLC the Extra Trimmings but an arcade mode. In which the game offers both cooperative and online versus modes. The value for money that Overcooked All You Can Eat offers through its content is excellent. It is undoubtedly All You Can Eat! Sure to satisfy new and old players to the genre for a very long time. 

Two chefs on the road

Verdict

Conclusively, Overcooked All You Can Eat is nearly perfect in every way. Despite minor nitpicks. It is the perfect love letter to the Overcooked series of games. It illustrates what makes the Overcooked series stand out within the cooking simulator genre and how it will stand the test of time as one of the genres very best. 

Review: Manhattan T3-R Freeview Play 4K Smart Recorder

Andrew Edney
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Review: Manhattan T3-R Freeview Play 4K Smart Recorder

Here is our review of the Manhattan T3-R Freeview Play 4K Smart Recorder.

Features

  • Record, pause and rewind over 85 TV channels: the T3-R 500GB records up to 300 hours and the T3-R 1TB a massive 600 hours
  • Catch-up with brilliant on demand TV from BBC iPlayer, ITV Hub, All 4, My5 and more
  • Watch YouTube and YouTube Kids on the biggest screen in the home
  • Experience programmes in stunning Ultra HD 4K HDR
  • Connect to a rooftop aerial to enjoy Freeview and by Wi-Fi or Ethernet for on demand TV

What’s in the box?

The box contains the recorder, a power supply, controller, cables and manual.

A Closer Look

Final Thoughts

The Manhattan T3-R Freeview recorder is quite small – smaller than a number of other Freeview recorders on the market. It looks at home on your shelf and only has a single light on the front to show if its on or in standby.

Connecting up the T3-R was easy – connect up the HMDI cable to your TV or amp, plug in an aerial and that’s it. You can also plug in an Ethernet cable or use Wi-Fi if you want, I used an Ethernet cable.

Following the on screen set-up prompts was really quick and easy and within no time at all the recorder was ready to use.

The remote is quite large but isn’t heavy so it’s easy to use, you can even program it to control your TV if you want to. Scrolling through menu options and making your selection is easy and comfortable.

Using the T3-R is very easy – just choose what you want to watch and that’s it. You can also easily set up things to record and playback too, and is also has a live pause function which lasts for about 2 hours if you need to pause for that long!

If you choose to delete a recording it is sent to the trash which is automatically emptied after 30 days, but if start to run out of space then the T3-R will remove recordings in the trash first, followed by the oldest recordings. Personally I prefer to have my recordings only deleted when I want them to be so you will want to go through the various settings and set up the T3-R to however you want it to be.

There is a FEATURED section on the Home screen that shows top pics from the UK’s on demand players organised into genres. This makes it very easy to find things to watch you might have missed.

One of the major selling points of the T3-R is that is supports up to 4K Ultra HD HDR resolution and the quality is excellent.

If you are looking for a high quality 4K Freeview recorder then look no further than the Manhattan T3-R, it’s great!

The Manhattan T3-R Freeview Play 4K Smart Recorder is available now priced from £169.99.

See the Manhattan website to learn more about the Manhattan T3-R Freeview Play Recorder

Review: The Falconeer

Sean McCarthy
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Review: The Falconeer

The end of the 2020 gaming year was just busy as all hell with all the big blockbuster names all enjoying the holiday season and post new generation console launches and I got to admit, I was lost in at least four different 100hr + games during Christmas. But one game certainly took me by surprise and was really one of the first games I got to test out my new Xbox Series S console with, a game that was almost buried by the bigger named titles but one that going into 2021 and the usual January absence of big releases and one that should make a nice entry into the new year if you missed it….you could say, The Falconeer is a great way to ‘fly’ into 2021 with!

Before I head into talking about the game it needs to be said that this entire game is the brainchild and hard work of just one person, not a big developer team with a massive budget but the sole work of just one person. That in itself is just a staggering fact to take into account even before you hit that start button. The Falconeer is truly ambitious and in many ways, it manages to give an experience that some AAA Games have failed to deliver but it also has some flaws and issues that show the problems when it is a very small team, or in this case just one person, trying to make a complete video game come to life.

At its core, The Falconeer is an open-world air combat game with a huge focus on the dog fighting style of aerial combat, which is a style of flying game I have loved for many generations from Star Fox to Wing Commander. I also arrived at playing The Falconeer are several joyful months of playing EA’s Star Wars Squadrons so it was actually rather nice to find another albeit indie attempt to keep the genre alive and kicking. It also offered a rare chance to see the very big difference that going from a big budget, big developer team produced game like Star Wars Squadrons to a much smaller scale single developer team with a much smaller budget with The Falconeer can be and yet there are times when The Falconeer manages to outdo what Squadrons accomplished and, in some areas, failed in the same ways.

I do have to begin by just applauding the visuals and art style of The Falconeer especially playing this on an Xbox Series S as well as an Xbox One X. Set in the world of The Great Ursee, a world that is mostly covered in water with four factions on islands making up the political war that is currently wreaking havoc in the world. You as the player, take the role of a protector of one of the factions, with other “chapters” having you fly on behalf of another faction for that chapter. You pilot on the back of a giant Warbird as you fly and explore the world taking on missions and the open world element and freedom is where the art style helps bring this world to life. Soaring high above the world or dive bombing and flying just above the water is a wonderful joy at times. From incredible storms to jaw dropping sunsets and sunrises, The Falconeer is a gloriously beautiful game that has a tremendous musical score. Being in this world, riding on the back of a giant bird of prey is at times very meditative and relaxing as it is exhilarating when you get into a good dogfight.

The world itself will reward the player for exploring every inch of it by revealing more and more of the lore and history of the world as you take on each of the four chapters which means working for one of the different factions. Going back to the fact that this is all the work of just one person, there is a hell of a lot going on in this world and the universe building with the lore and locations that makes it all the more impressive if you give yourself the time to really dive into it. The art style will certainly keep you wanting to experience more of the world and the flying mechanics ,which do take some getting used to at first, makes traversing the world a definite reward.

Missions can be taken which range from escort duty to courier style missions which will see you gather supplies or similar and tasked with delivering them safely. The variety allows players to tailor the experience they want to have in their gaming session and the Chapters which you would at first feel should work like a traditional story campaign in that you move from one to the other in a chronological manner actually all run at the same time, you are simply given the freedom to play them in any particular order which can be a little messy seeing how each chapter or faction play, will give you access to a different Warbird with different stats making it either very easy or very hard to adjust depending on when you choose to tackle them so I would recommend playing them in numerical order before maybe experimenting with that order in a new playthrough.

The combat however is really where the action of the game and the dog fighting can be truly intense right from the start with a short tutorial which gives you the basic elements of flying and fighting but once you are in the world itself it can still be overwhelming when you start off, almost punishingly so. The main flaw is that the targeting reticule moves so slowly compared to your turning, which if you have played any dog fighting aerial game is key to the combat. This can feel very clumsy sadly and though with upgrades to weapons and some practice you can adjust your playstyle to adapt to it, it really should not be a factor. After some frustrating combat scenarios, I would just go off and explore the world, focusing more on flying than fighting which thankfully the game does allow you to do.

This naturally brings me back to the reality that this was made by just one person, Tomas Sala, who should be absolutely commended for what he has achieved with this game, for the beauty of it and its flaws. I am being more forgiving for the fact this is an indie game and the work of just one person because the size and scope of The Falconeer is truly remarkable but it does have issues but despite them, for the low price of the game right now, for the beauty of the world which is impressive alone to experience on your new Xbox Series S or X then this is not a bad way to kick off 2021 especially as it just received its first DLC content which is FREE to all owners of game with “The Kraken”.

One thing is for sure, I would make a point of remembering the name Tomas Sala because I sense we will be seeing far more from him in the years to come and if given a larger team and budget, I am very excited to see what games he works on next.

Reports say that Jodie Whittaker will Leave The Show after her Third Series.

Sean McCarthy
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Reports say that Jodie Whittaker will Leave The Show after her Third Series.

Following the New Year’s Day Special ‘Revolution of the Daleks’ there has been an abundance of speculation yet again that Jodie Whittaker is set to leave the show at the end of this year’s season, set to air in the autumn of 2021 with filming still going on until at least the summer. Rumours had circulated that she would only do two series along with show runner Chris Chibnall but if reports are to be believed, Chibnall will actually stay on as show runner but Jodie will bow out this year leading to a regeneration and 14th Doctor carrying on.

So far the BBC has refused to comment on anything related to the report in British Tabloid The Mirror which is the norm until an official announcement is made. The next series will also be a reduced eight episode run due to complications with filming due to COVID 19 so if Jodie is leaving than this would be the opportune time to do so, following in the footsteps of many other actors to play the Doctor only doing three series, Matt Smith and Peter Capaldi immediately come to mind.

Of course this might not actually be a surprise to most Whovian fans as during the press run for the 2020 series, Jodie was interviewed by Entertainment Weekly who directly asked her if she was going to be staying in the role to which Jodie responded:

“Yes, I’m doing another season, that might be a massive exclusive that I’m not supposed to say, but it’s unhelpful for me to say because it would be a massive lie! I absolutely adore it. At some point, these shoes are going to be handed on, but it’s not yet. I’m clinging on tight!”

I actually liked Jodie Whittaker’s Doctor but I do feel that yet again, just like with Peter Capaldi who I feel was totally let down by Steven Moffat, her Doctor has yet to really had the opportunity to shine as Chris Chibnall not only rewrote 60 years of Whovian lore in the last season but has had to share the screen with three other characters in the TARDIS. But fans will will have to wait for the next series to see how her quite likely departure will be handled and how it will set up a show which is currently just two years away from the big 60th Anniversary special.

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