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Byte Size – Objects in Space Review (PC)

Barrie Clarke 1253 Views ,  ,  , 

Objects in Space from the self proclaimed smallest of the small game developers, Flat Earth Games, is so strangely familiar to me and any gamers who played through the 1990’s will no doubt feel pangs of good old retro revival.

The Good – Upgrades to not only your ship but also pretty much every subsystem, along with trading, bounties, exploration, and combat makes for a really full on experience. And because of the gameplay, I found Objects in Space to be quite relaxing to play.

The Bad – For me the biggest hurdle was the font used for communications. When dealing with traders and the likes I found myself having to give my eyes a rest after each paragraph or so.

The Overwhelming – As mentioned, there is a fair amount to take on in Objects in Space, you can just stay in safe systems and trade your way to riches or head out to the new worlds, a much more dangerous affair. Then you have upgrades, trade prices, navigation, repairs, the list is endless in the life of a solo space captain.

Closing Comments – As we say down here in New Zealand and Australia, bit of a Marmite game this one. You will either love it or hate it.

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Byte Size – Guns ‘n’ Stories: Bulletproof, PSVR Review

Guy 1257 Views ,  , 

Waveshooters have unfortunately been the staple diet of the Playstation VR for over 2 years, Guns’n’Stories: Bulletproof is no different.

The Good – The variety of weapons and the changing game-world was entertaining, as it kept me on my toes over the roughly 90min romp.

The Bad – It’s a wave shooter that does little to revolutionise the genre and frankly there are better titles on PSVR that should be played first.

The Ugly – The missions are just too long and overstay their welcome.

This is far from a ‘must buy’, but it actually looks quiet good and is mechanically sound to play. Simply put, it was a fun way for me and the kids to spend a rainy Sunday afternoon. It has to be given credit for doing what it says on the box and doing it well. There are GUNS, and they are fun. There are STORIES, and they are (at times) quite funny.

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Byte Size – Far Cry New Dawn Review (Xbox One X)

Barrie Clarke 1705 Views ,  ,  ,  , 

Returning to Hope County 17 years and a nuclear war after the events of Far Cry 5 finds the county some what brighter than one would expect.

The Good – It is the Far Cry 5 we all know and love, but with and excellent splash of colour and some RPG-lite elements thrown in.

The Bad – Like Far Cry 5 you can have an ally along side to help out. Just don’t rely on them to get the job done.

The New – Since the map is effectively the same as Far Cry 5 the addition of Expeditions has been made to create a bit of variety. The Expedition maps themselves are a good mix and some pretty cool locations too.

Overall I found Far Cry New Dawn more engaging that Far Cry 5, considering this is just a re-skin, and what some would argue should have been just a DLC, it shows it has something special.

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Metro: Exodus, PS4 Review

Guy 1526 Views ,  , 

I like Russia. Not so much for the long history of political intrigue or its civil rights abuses, but for its tough people and their underlying ability to just get shit done with very little. The Metro games are about survival in a post nuclear war Russia, and as I just alluded, not surviving in some luxurious capitalist-pig fallout shelter…….but like a tough as nails Russian, on little to no resources, ammunition and intel.

Now, its not lost on me that the developer 4A Games is in fact Ukrainian not Russian. However, as a nation with a long standing connection to Russia, (for both good and bad reasons) it gives them the unique ability to give Western gamers a glimpse into what a post-apocalyptic Mother-Russia might look like. Suffice is to say they know what they are doing and the end result is… brilliant and terrifying.

Check out the Video Review – Click It, Like It, Share It!

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Byte Size – God Eater 3

Richard Armitt 1233 Views ,  , 

The God Eater series is not something I am familiar with, lets have that out in the open. As a sci-fi soap opera, I’m sure it would be interesting to delve into, but as it stands being a virgin in the God Eater universe I’m a little more dazed and confused than leading the charge.

The Good – There’s a deep sci-fi canon on offer if you can listen to the dialogue, and the unfeasible weapons are impressive. The bullet building feature is the highlight.

The Bad – Angsty teen styled dialogue, overly complex controls and too much to remember.

The Ugly – The graphics need a decent feed. Combat missions are way too short.

The combat is fun to a point, but given some of the controls and the reliance on remembering how or when to use certain combos it never really gets past the hack and slash approach for me.

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Crackdown 3 Review – Xbox One

Richard Armitt 1282 Views ,  ,  , 

A long time ago when the xbox360 was young there were games that defined the console, one of them was Crackdown.

Putting you in the shoes of a super-human Agent, the game had you reclaiming an open world one task at a time and mowing down a hefty roster of bad guys. All sounds pretty familiar, well yes it was, but then there were Orbs and the way you skilled up and the subtle effects that came with those skills, not to mention the small army array of weapons at your disposal. Having recently hit the backwards compatible pile and being free to download I had a recent spin around the original and it didn’t disappoint.

Yes, by today’s standard the open world was fairly bare and the cel-shaded aesthetic wasn’t much to write home about. However, the game had chops, big furry, playable chops and people loved it.

There is a lot to like about Crackdown 3, while it may feel like an older game, it is built using a formula that works and you don’t have to worry about getting chores or conversations. As a great example of keeping it simple we have a Crackdown for people to enjoy, a game that doesn’t get bogged down in drawn out narrative, rather a game that wants you to play it.

Get out there and kick some ass Agents.

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Conviction: An Anthem short movie by Neil Blomkamp

Richard Armitt 1285 Views ,  , 

Anthem will be with us by the end of the month and what better way to celebrate it than give us a surprise Short Movie by sci-fi stalwart Neil Blomkamp (District 9 for example).

Given the design and nature of his movies, bringing the Anthem world and its Javelins to life must have been a no-brainer on both sides.

There is currently a teaser up on youtube.

The full short will be available on the 14th.

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Byte Size – Riot: Civil Unrest, PS4 Review

Guy 1231 Views ,  , 

Living in New Zealand in 2019, I don’t tend to be exposed to large scale civil unrest. So as a resident of gods-own, Riot: Civil Unrest immediately caught my attention, for being about something I have little knowledge or experience of,  and frankly it is one of the more unique ideas for a video game I have seen in recent months.

The Good – The scenarios are based around real world incidents, including ‘The Arab Spring’ and the game is nuanced enough, even with its limited art style, to relay how difficult civil unrest is on both sides of the riot line.

The Bad – At times the 8bit art style looks great with cleverly designed sprites, but it very quickly becomes a blur of activity and it is hard at times to know whats going on.

The Ugly – The designers have made a strategy game with only one way to approach any given scenario to properly win, which for an RTS, takes the fun of choice away.

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Resident Evil 2 (2019) Review – Xbox One X

Barrie Clarke 1468 Views ,  ,  ,  , 

Even though this is a remake I don’t want to spoil anything for first time players or absent minded older gamers who are revisiting Raccoon City.

So consider this a SPOILER FREE REVIEW.

Now you would have to have been living under a rock not to have heard of Resident Evil, or Biohazard for those from Japan. The games have been around for over 2o years, along with comics, novels, toys, several movies, and now rumours that Netflix have a Resident Evil series in the works.

I guess that all this longevity and multi format content just shows how good the story and characters are in the Resident Evil Universe. Obviously this game isn’t the second release in the series but a remake of the 1998 version.

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Ace Combat 7: Skies Unknown, PS4/PSVR Video Review

Guy 1550 Views

I am a flight-sim nerd from waaaay back, but nowadays most of my gaming is on Console and even arcade flight games, especially this generation, are pretty thin on the ground. When I heard Ace Combat 7 was planning a landing on PS4 and PSVR my Top-Gun-Loving heart skipped a beat.

Unfortunately my prayers for a hard-core sim have not been answered, however what I got instead, was one of the most fun Arcade Flight titles I have played in years. It is brilliant! ..and there is some PSVR in the mix too!

To get the full run-down on whats what, and whether ‘Ice-Man’ and ‘Maverick’ will be friends after all…… check out the Video Review below.

Click it, Like it, Share it!

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Byte Size – Hitman 2 Review (Xbox One X)

Barrie Clarke 1410 Views

So everybody’s favourite barcoded bald badass is back and kicking things off in Hawkes Bay, here in good old New Zealand. Who knew we were such a haven for bad guys? Anyone who can make a shaved head and red tie look this good has got my attention, that is for sure. Assuming most, if not all gamers out there will have at least heard of Agent 47.

The Good – Well it’s Hitman isn’t it.

The Bad – If I had to pick on something it would have to be the visuals. Hitman 2, even with One X Enhancements, looks a bit dated.

The Loose Steering Wheel – As you can imagine, there is more than one way to skin a cat, or in this case knock off a bad dude along with other variables in each mission. This means more than a few plays through each assignment will be required.

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