REVIEW: Sherlock Holmes Chapter One on Xbox

Review by Jon Donnis

Sherlock Holmes Chapter One is an open-world detective mystery with you playing a young Sherlock Holmes.

You find yourself returning to your childhood home of Cordona, a 19th century, British occupied Mediterranean island, that I assume is made up. You return there as you learn that they may be more to the death of your mother, than originally thought.

Since you are playing a young Sherlock, you have to accept that the game developers have to try something different, so Sherlock is a fresh faced, slightly brooding type character, and Sherlock even has an imaginary friend type deal, with a person called Jon, a pre-cursor to Watson I would assume. Seems strange that a man of logic would need an imaginary friend to throw ideas at, but like I said, this is a young Sherlock, so I suppose this could be akin to the older Sherlock having a mind palace.

The main idea of the game is to solve crimes, and if you want, get into slightly pointless fights, all of which can be skipped if you want. However, the fights, if poorly implemented, do help break up the gameplay. While fighting someone you can use your observation skills to help you win the fight, see vulnerabilities, use the surroundings to help you win. It is a nice change to the usual punch, punch, kick, kick style of fightings we sometimes get in open world games.

The graphics are amazing, and straight away you will be reminded of some of the Assassin's Creed games, sadly the freedom of those games is not available here, and although the game is "open world", you simply cant interact with as much as you might want to. You will however get the expected side quests, (30+), which are always a fun distraction from a main story of which there are 5 main parts.

There are lots of people to talk to, stories to learn, and locations to explore. And there is plenty of variety in these, that means that things are never too reptitive in nature.

We do need to talk about a few of the problems with the game, the investigations themselves, it almost seems like you cant really get anything very wrong, there is no real confirmation that you have made a right conclusion, in your case files, you have the documents and recaps, and a nudge in the right direction, but it does seem to be a strange way of doing things in what is a detective game, that you don't properly make wrong decisions.

And as already mentioned the fight scenes are poorly implemented, they feel like an afterthought, and although they do break up the action, the fact you can completely turn them off, and skip them, kinda makes them a bit pointless in the game.

The dialog is good, the story is also well written, the side quests are fun, and help give the game some longevity, as if you stick to the main story, the game can be completed pretty quickly. There are hidden coins to collect, which also add an extra element to the game.

The Good

The graphics and general presentation of the game is of an exceptional standard, really is glorious to see.

The Bad

The fights with bandits are terrible and pointless, and the game pales in comparison to similar open world games with investigative gameplay mechanics, think Batman or any Assassins Creed game.

Overall

A decent game in it's own right, but does have a few problems that game testers should have spotted early on.

The sheer beauty of the game, and the decent storyline carries it further than it should.

I score Sherlock Holmes Chapter One on Xbox a generous 7/10

Out now on Xbox

REVIEW: Lumote: The Mastermote Chronicles on Xbox

Review by Jon Donnis

Lumote: The Mastermote Chronicles is a 3D puzzle platformer from Luminawesome Games and published by the great people at Wired Productions.

Now I am a fan of puzzle platform games, so I was excited to try this game out.

You play as Lumote, a kind of bioluminescent blob character, and you find yourself on a quest to overthrow the Mastermote.

You can move your character, jump (and double jump), and possess. As you start the game you find yourself in an area, the red areas are controlled by the evil Mastermote, (is he/it evil? I don't know, but for the sake of this review I am calling him/it evil!) and the blue areas are controlled by you, to progress to the next area, you need to turn everything blue, and unlock the door (a big flower thing).

You can possess Motes (creatures that inhabit this weird world), which will help to allow you to turn areas blue, when you are in control of them, they help you, when you are not in control of them, they can hinder your progress.

The game is one big area, with six towers that need to be taken over, and fifty puzzles that need to be solved along the way.

Right from the start you are thrown into the action, there is little to tell you what to do, or even where to go, you need to figure things out for yourself, as you first start exploring, you will get on screen prompts of how to control your character as well as the interactive areas, but that is it.

Despite the lack of a level select, or much instruction, the game is pretty easy to figure out, and before you know it you will be solving some pretty complicated puzzles. For example, you might need to control Motes to position in a different area to change things to blue, but the Motes are hidden behind hard to reach areas, or you need to position multiple motes in a certain order, to reach another Mote that is needed to progress. Various obstacles will make your journey trickier, and all need to be overcome using good old-fashioned logic.

There is a steep learning curve here, there is no easy first 10 puzzles, pretty much from the get go you need to get your thinking cap on.

You can control the camera in a fully 3D manner, from side, around and above viewpoints, this does help you figure out what you need to do, and although sometimes you might prefer a fixed camera, I didn't find the 3D camera too much of a bother. It also helps you to have a good look around for any secret collectables.

Solve all the Puzzles, takeover the 6 towers, turn the world blue, and extinguish the red light of the Master Mote to complete the game. Sounds easy, but is much harder in reality.

The Good

Super colourful game, perhaps a bit too colourful, but that is part of the story of the game. The puzzles are tricky but all solvable with a bit of thinking.

A good challenge awaits anyone who wants to take on the Mastermote.

The Bad

The camera can be a bit of an annoyance at times, when you have to keep re-positioning it to see what you need to do next, I do wonder if a fixed AI controlled camera view that moved as you do, to show you the best view would have been a better choice? 

And yes, the puzzles get tricky, pretty fast, so if you are a Gamerpoint collector, those achievements are going to take some hard work. No easy 1000 points here!

Overall

Lumote is a proper challenging 3D puzzle platforming game. The challenge betrays it's fun graphics.
I really enjoyed playing Lumote, and am still playing it. Tough but fun game that I can highly recommend for any Puzzle fans wanting a new challenge.

I score Lumote: The Mastermote Chronicles a solid 8/10

Out now on Xbox

https://www.xbox.com/en-gb/games/store/lumote-the-mastermote-chronicles/9mzv9h5hpcq1

REVIEW: LIT: Bend the Light - Xbox One

Review by GamingCouchPotato.co.uk Staff

LIT: Bend the Light is a simple puzzle game, set in a time before electricity had been harnessed, and the world was taken forward by great inventors, you find yourself moving mirrors, prisms and glass shapes to reflect light from point a to point b. 

Each level has multiple ways to be completed, and with relaxing music, this is a game that should satisfy your average puzzle fan.

There are only about 30 odd levels, and you will complete the lot in about 2 hours, they have tried to counter this by awarding achievements for solving the levels in different ways, but still the game is very short and doesn't offer much more than a few hours of chill out music, and basic puzzle play.

The controls aren't the best either, and some levels need an almost pixel perfect lines, and some levels you will find you will complete almost by accident, and here is where the biggest problem lies, because of the lack of levels and the need for more than one way to complete a level, you can find yourself just completing levels by randomly moving things, thus taking away the skill, and unless you are the kind of gamer that wants to play properly even when a shortcut is glaring you in the face, you will find yourself doing this the moment you figure out it is possible. Not to mention that some of the multiple solutions to a level are near identical, and it is hard to remember which ones you have already used. 

The Good

Presentation is very good, everything looks great, and the soundtrack is very relaxing.

The Bad

Frustratingly short game, hampered by poor control mechanics. The game is unoriginal, and despite the best attempts to give it some kind of background in a time before electricity, at its base it is a laser reflection game which we have seen a million times before. And with only about 30 levels which you will complete pretty fast, you will be left feeling like you may have wasted money on this.

Overall

Fun idea, nice graphics, but spoiled by poor game mechanics, and limited levels.

I score LIT: Bend the Light on Xbox One a frustrating 4/10

Out now on Xbox on https://www.xbox.com/en-us/games/store/lit-bend-the-light/9njqwh8z687x

REVIEW: Ganryu 2 on Nintendo Switch

Review by Jon Donnis

Ganryu 2 is a retro style, 2D arcade platform game, instantly reminded me of Shinobi. 

Let's take a look at the storyline.

"After his victory against Kojiro, Musashi decided to meditate and try his hand at art, in the north of Japan, in the province of Hokkaido. During one of his meditations, a spirit contacted him : "Miyamoto Musashi, our fight is not over, I am waiting for you to finish our fight once and for all! All of Japan will pay for your insult! I'm waiting for you Miyamoto Musashi!"

There is no doubt for Musashi that the voice was the Sasaki Kojirō's one. His body was defeated, but his spirit remains, and his intentions were destructive. Miyamoto Musashi then understood that he would have to travel across Japan from north to south and go to the island of Ganryû-jima, where he firstly defeated Sasaki Kojirō, to fight again and liberate the spirit of Kojiro forever."

You might guess by the name, but Ganryu 2 is a sequel, now you will be forgiven for not hearing of Ganryu, since it was a late 1990s NeoGeo game.

You play as Miyamoto Musashi and travel through a 17th century fantasy Japan. The levels are split up, which as a whole become a Stage, and there are various Stages to complete.

Some levels will have you playing your classic side scrolling type arcade action, which is throwing ninja stars, or performing Ninja style attacks. Each level will have a boss, which you need to beat to progress. Some levels do change, for example the second level in the game has you riding on train tracks, where you have to time jumps from one trailer to the next, all the while fighting off the enemies. 

You will see some of the same types of enemies over and over, and the bosses although tough at first follow a routine that as soon as you learn, are quite straight forward to beat.

There are your usual collectables, 1ups, and health boosts and so on.

This is predominantly an arcade game, and in that sense, when you die, that's it, there is no playing from a level you reached previously, it is back to the start. This isn't a massive problem but might be frustrating to younger gamers who have never stood in front of an arcade machine putting in 10p after 10p.

The game is quite tough and unforgiving, and the controls can be a bit frustrating, the wall jumping can be tricky to master, and one little mistake with an enemy is costly.

The Good

I am a fan of the old school arcade side scrollers, this is what I grew up on, and playing this on a Switch Lite was fun. This is the kind of game you will pick up, play for 20 minutes or longer, usually till you die, and then put down until the next day.

The graphics are exactly what they are supposed to be, the sounds are as dodgy as they were in the 90s, so fit in well.

The Bad

The controls could be better, there seems to be options for the character that don't make much difference, and special attacks that are too rare to be used tactically. I also think you need to have a regular arcade mode, and a separate story mode that keeps your progress. Getting far in the game and dying, and knowing that you have to start from the beginning again feels more frustrating than it does challenging.

Overall

A game that reminded me of the countless hours spent in the arcade. 
More of a nostalgia game for people over 35 I suspect, but I thoroughly enjoyed playing.

I score Ganryu 2 a solid 8/10

Out Now on Nintendo Switch

https://www.nintendo.co.uk/Games/Nintendo-Switch-games/Ganryu-2-Hakuma-Kojiro-2175787.html

REVIEW: Chernobylite on PS4

Review by Jon Donnis

I have played a few Survival games recently, with mixed results, I still feel that I have not found a truly great survival game yet, so I come to Chernobylite with an open mind.

Chernobylite is a science fiction survival horror game. It somewhat mixes the classic survival type games with something more akin to a first-person RPG/Adventure game.

The game features a somewhat non linear story, although the start of the game is very linear until you get to the missions.

You play as a physicist Igor, an ex-employee of the famous Chernobyl Power Plant. You have lost your beloved Tatiana, and want to find them, hopefully alive. Although you play for yourself, you do have AI team mates, who you can send on missions, but you also need to make sure they stay healthy, have food, medicine, weapons and so on.

Once past the initial parts of the game, where you see ghostly images of Tatiana, you will settle down with your crew in a deserted building, each day you need to complete missions, as you complete the missions you will meet people, how you treat them and interact with them, will decide whether they become friends or enemies. You will also need to build up your base, craft beds, work stations and even mushroom gardens.

There is combat in the game, but stealth is your friend. There are also supernatural entities to worry about. Once a mission is complete you can use a portal machine to return to base, but sometimes it is worth searching around before going back, as there are often collectables around you will need to survive. Machine parts to craft items, gear, weapons etc, food, and more. The better prepared you are, the more chance of success you will have.

Making choices is a big part of this game, and those choices may or may not affect how things go later on. Now a great part of this game is that when you die, and you will die, you find yourself in a dreamscape of sorts, where you can see the results of your choices, and you can choose to go back in time and make a different choice, which of course then will change the future, change allies or enemies, even parts of the area itself, if you avoid destroying something you did previously.

The main object of the game is to reach the Heist mission. Now you can actually attempt this pretty much straight away, however without a team built up, weapons and full preparation, you will fail, so you might as well complete the daily missions, and make yourself and your crew as strong as possible.

The Good

The game looks great, the area the game takes place in was actually 3D scanned, so about as realistic as can be.
The gameplay is good, the mission concept works well, along with the crafting of items. The fact that choices really can make a difference is very much welcome.

The Bad

Controls at time can feel a bit clunky, and combat itself is not great, so you might find yourself playing in more of a stealth way, simply because that is easier and more fun. There are a few bugs in the game, especially early on. Things like a character getting stuck behind a door with no way to free them, so there only way to continue is to restart the checkpoint.

Overall

Chernobylite finds itself sat in many genres, without ever quite mastering one. Not fully survival game, not fully FPS, not fully RPG.

With that said, Chernobylite is an enjoyable game. And although the PS4 version is decent, the PS5 version is graphically a big difference.

I Score Chernobylite a solid 7/10

Out now on PS4 and PS5 at https://amzn.to/3MhHRJC