Make Way PC review | Steam31/12/2023  There's something about arcade-style racing which makes it approachable for everyone. Even if you haven't played a game before, it tends to be easy to grasp that a car goes forwards and backwards, and turns from side-to-side, with just a few button presses. With effortless simplicity, Make Way is already sitting on the start line, raring to go.
 This first phase plays out a little like Ultimate Chicken Horse, a mad dash to make your mark on the course before someone else adds a corkscrew to an already windy section, or throws in a speed boost just as you're putting down a bollard, doubling the jeopardy once you all get on the track. The final piece of the puzzle comes during the races themselves, as you're given all manner of weapons to cause even more grief for your fellow players. Whether it's more traditional weapons like chain guns, shotguns or mortars, or more surreal powerups like sticky gunge cannons, boosts or electromagnets, there's more than enough to mix things up.  Of course, if this all feels like a bit much, never fear - multiple modes give the option of different levels of mayhem, depending on your mood. A straightforward "Race" takes it back to basics, sticking to placing track pieces and then trying to outwit your opponents with skill alone. Contrast this with the aptly named "Chaos" mode, which not only throws in weapons and hazards everywhere, but also removes walls which help keep you on the track. If you take a step back and look at the bizarre gauntlet you've created, it's a surprise how quickly it grows into a twisting, turning nightmare... The madness is all fun and games though, as the balance of gameplay, and the fact that you can respawn at each checkpoint, mid-race, keeps the down time to a minimum. After even just a few track pieces have been placed, if you take a step back and look at the bizarre gauntlet you've created, it's a surprise how quickly it grows into a twisting, turning nightmare.  While this game is an indie title, largely put together by one extremely talented developer, in this case that's no caveat for quality. Performance is strong, the visuals have a crisp charm, and the music sets the tone perfectly for the borderline insanity to come. Even though there is a lot going on, the simplicity of the controls and the gameplay as a whole mean you can get up to speed quickly, and gradually get more comfortable with when to race and when to use a weapon, where to place a hazard or when to actually slow down to avoid them. With crossplay possible and offline and custom options for 1-4 players, there's plenty of replayability here already. Add to that the almost endless combinations of different track pieces - more of which are unlocked as you progress through levels after each race - and you've got a fun, energetic party game for the whole family on your hands. As we cross the finish line of the year, we look ahead optimistically to a release date announcement for the PS4 and PS5 versions, which are sure to be a huge boost to the player base, given the experience is very much built with a controller in mind.
In the meantime, you may struggle to get a full game online, but it's an experience that's best shared with friends you can shout at anyway. Make Way is another fantastic example of a simple idea executed well, and then iterated on to cram in more and more ideas, so it feels full to bursting with opportunities for fun and games. So, gather your friends and start your engines, the checkered flag awaits. Pros
9/10  While the Ghostbusters franchise has had its ups and downs in pulp culture over the years, the core idea of paranormal rat catchers has always leant itself to a game, and so Ghostbusters: Spirits Unleashed is here for another round of busting, with an Ecto Edition Switch release of the 2022 game.
 The game is cross-platform, so the pool of players is big enough that you won’t have too much of a wait on your hands, and you can always try a private match with AI if you want to hone your skills before getting out there, but, generally the variety of experience is limited. The game could thrive if it happened to be dished out free on multiple platforms at once, bringing all the Ghostbusters enthusiasts together to have some fun with the experience... If you can get a group of friends together, it’s a different story, combining parts of Dead By Daylight and Left 4 Dead in a package with a few unique quirks. Over time you can beef up your character’s kit, and unlock additional cosmetic options, but otherwise the replay value is limited to a more creature-focused mode alongside matchmaking.  Musically, besides the main theme, the rest of the score is a little heavy-handed, a bit too eager to be playfully fun and a little too loud to really gel with the gameplay (though of course this is easily adjusted in seconds). Technically, this version does show cracks here and there, with some texture pop-in and a few low quality textures in general, but it still plays fairly smoothly and is robust enough to give you an end-to-end experience that isn’t distracted by bugs or crashes.  In all, the game achieves what it set out to do without really showing us anything we haven’t seen before. It feels like the sort of game which could thrive if it happened to be dished out free on multiple platforms at once, bringing all the Ghostbusters enthusiasts together to have some fun with the experience.
As it is, it’s not an essential experience on Switch, but certainly a serviceable one and something which younger players in particular might get a kick out of. Pros
Cons
7/10 |
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