IGN Game Reviews – Spoken Edition

Ironically for a game set in ancient Greece, Assassin’s Creed Odyssey is anything but Spartan. This epic-scale action-roleplaying game shines as a grand adventure through a magnificent and beautiful open world on a scale we’ve rarely seen. With so few compromises between quantity and quality, Odyssey vaults over its predecessors to become the most impressive game in the history of the series.

I was worried when I first saw Mega Man 11. Mega Man series lead Keiji Inafune had left Capcom in 2010, going on to make his own Mega Man clone. The new art style initially turned me off as well, as it was not as immediately appealing as the 80s-inspired throwbacks seen in Mega Man 9 and 10. But Mega Man 11 won me over with its delightfully amped-up difficulty and cool time-stopping ability that makes its challenges (barely) possible.

In most squad-based games, communication is king. In the current early access iteration of Post Scriptum, that’s taken to new heights: the need for constant coordination with your team is not only necessary for success, but easily the most enjoyable aspect of this World War 2 military simulation.

Life is Strange 2 features none of the characters or settings of its predecessor. Its new hero, a 17-year-old Mexican-American boy named Sean Diaz, does not have a decision-reversing time-travel ability like Max Caulfield. But the moment an acoustic guitar begins delicately strumming over the sun-kissed title screen, it is unmistakable what you are playing. This may be an unfamiliar story among fresh faces and unknown locales, but in every other way this is Life is Strange.

If you entice me with deep, turn-based RPG combat, clever puzzles, and jaunty, Gaelic folk ballads, you can pretty easily have me eating out of the palm of your hand. The Bard’s Tale IV certainly did for the majority of the 50-ish hours I spent delving its dungeons and enjoying its quirky lore and charming voice acting. The fact that so much of it is so great made it all the more disappointing that it’s hobbled by technical problems too frequently to disregard them.

While the FIFA series has done impressive things on PlayStation, Xbox, and PC, the Switch version is still lagging behind. Despite notable upgrades from the very disappointing FIFA 18, including a glossy, Champions League makeover, inclusion of the enjoyable new House Rules modes, and the ability to now play online with friends, FIFA 19 on Switch is still a frustrating and unrewarding experience, especially on the pitch.

Forza Horizon 4 retains almost everything that made Forza Horizon 3 the best racer in its class and bakes it into a game that doesn’t ever want you to stop playing. The stunning visual quality and sound design, the massive array of automobiles, and the extensive and completely customisable career mode that have become hallmarks of the Horizon series are all here.

A bigger world, higher stakes, and an unexpected spin on Lara Croft’s character make Shadow of the Tomb Raider the most ambitious of the modern trilogy. There’s a lot going on here, but it manages to keep most of its balls in the air throughout its 25-odd-hour running time. As both a rollicking, horror-kissed action-adventure and an introspective story about obsession and family, Shadow of the Tomb Raider works as a powerful finale to this particular chapter of Lara’s history.

Valkyria Chronicles 4 comes off as Sega trying to get the series back on track, returning to its roots and leaning heavily on what made the first Valkyria Chronicles so good 10 years ago. That’s mostly a good thing, and this latest entry adds some new mechanics and balance changes that make it feel like more than just a rehash, even if some of the first game’s issues make a not-so-welcome return as well.

FIFA’s foundation has always been based on two things: presenting a fun, free-scoring game of football and unparalleled authenticity. FIFA 19 takes a small step forward in terms of the former, adding a handful of gameplay tweaks that refine the well-trodden FIFA formula rather than reinvent it in any significant way, but a huge stride forward with the latter, thanks to the inclusion of the Champions League.

After having spent a week with its ominous story and much-improved sandbox, Destiny 2: Forsaken is everything I could have hoped for in an expansion to Bungie’s shared-world shooter – and more. With impressive cutscenes, including the gut-punch death of Cayde-6, it adds drama and a darkness that keeps me motivated.

You and millions of others around the world already know how it goes: in PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds (AKA PUBG) up to 100 players skydive down to one of three distinct islands, scavenge for gear, and race against an ever-closing circle to kill each other (with no respawns) until there’s just one left standing.

After spending time with NHL 19, exploring its different modes and customization options, I think it might be my favorite hockey game. Scratch that — I think NHL 19 is one of my favorite sports games, period. It uses the same animation engine as Madden and FIFA, has excellent presentation and atmosphere, and the players look like who they’re supposed to look like. Part of NHL 19’s appeal is its accessibility.

Frozen Synapse 2 follows up on 2011’s excellent turn-based tactical combat game with another round of meticulously planned shootouts. Its new ideas are a little sparse, though, mostly centered around a single-player campaign in a massive city that looks a lot deeper than it actually is.

Getting into Two Point Hospital is sort of like meeting someone really charming and funny, then after a while, being pleasantly surprised to find they’re also really smart. The readable, disarming art style and chuckle-worthy fictional diseases that make patients think they’re Freddie Mercury or simply turn into a clown complement a layer of deep, strategic problem-solving.