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PHOGS! review | Xbox One X

2/12/2020

 
PHOGS! get hot under the collar

Sometimes you need a video game to inject some joy into your life, and that applies especially in 2020. Enter PHOGS!, the charming puzzle game about exploring with a double-headed dog in search of bone-shaped treats.

James Michael Parry
by James Michael Parry

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​@james_parry

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Developer: Coatsink and Bit Loom Games
Publisher: Coatsink
Platforms: Xbox One, Xbox X|S, PS4, PS5, PC, Switch
Players: 1-2

The game at first glance seems simplistic, but behind it's bright colours and basic control scheme lies a delightful, engaging experience for all ages. Beyond colour, the aesthetic has a cartoonish, almost cel-shaded style. Its early, food-orientated levels channel greats like Overcooked and Mario Odyssey’s Luncheon Kingdom, before transitioning to a more subdued presentation for the nighttime stages.

Exploring with the PHOGS themselves is fairly linear. While you’ll need to keep an eye out to find all of the collectable bones in each level, tackling each challenge required to move on to the next area is straightforward. Visual tells seamlessly teach you how to complete the various tasks, plus there’s some fun environmental storytelling, making the experience particularly accessible to younger or first-time players.

There’s an emphasis on savoring the experience here too; there are no time limits, no scores and no real penalty for falling off the edge of a level, which keeps stress and frustration to a minimum. There’s a unique approach to the control scheme as well, as you’re asked whether you want to use one or two controllers to play. In the case of the former, buttons are separated in such a way that you can play quite happily after some initial adjustment.

Though PHOGS! isn’t too demanding overall, there’s still an element of challenge to achieving 100% completion on each level. That said, you aren’t overwhelmed by a huge number of collectables - instead, finding them will require observation and persistence to track down. Testing the physics is also intuitive, with only the odd moment where you’re thrown around unexpectedly.

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Your reward for scouring the levels is the ability to spend your bones on a modest variety of hats. Unfortunately, even unlocking everything leaves plenty of bones leftover, and the hats themselves often look better in the customisation room than they do in the flesh. With customisation at the forefront in titles like Fall Guys and the Worms series, this inclusion feels a little under-developed, but nonetheless welcome in the absence of microtransactions.
PHOGS! have fun in the sleep world
PHOGS! is easy to pick up and play and the gradual introduction of different challenges and mechanics is steady, drawing you in and having you eager to lap up just one more level.
The PHOGS (a merging of the words physics and dogs, as seen within the gameplay) exude character as you move them around. If you lazily control a single head at a time, for example, you’ll see the trailing head quickly drop off to sleep. That same level of characterisation extends to the NPCs as well, with our particular favourite being an octopus chef who's increasingly pleased with how his mountaintop soup is turning out, thanks to your help.

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The game’s music has enthusiasm and beaming positivity to match, but at times relies too heavily on a short, repeated phrase that can start to grate. Fortunately each level has a new tune, meaning such earworms are fairly short-lived.
PHOGS! have a snooze on the beach after lots of exploring
PHOGS! is an experience we’ve been hearing about for a long time, and it's a pleasure to finally have our paws on it. The sheer delight at successfully getting Red and Blue to the friendly patchwork-style snake which safeguards the end of each level can’t be overstated. It’s easy to pick up and play and the gradual introduction of different challenges and mechanics is steady, drawing you in and having you eager to lap up just one more level.

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Coming into the festive season, a family PHOGS! session sounds far more appealing than a six-hour argument over Monopoly. It’s also just as fun to watch as it is to play, for any technologically-opposed family members. Coatsink and Bit Loom Games have taken a simple concept and really nailed it. If you’re in the mood for some gaming joy this Christmas, PHOGS! undoubtedly fits the bill.

​Pros

  • Adorable artstyle and characterisation
  • Accessible to all ages and skill levels
  • Hard to resist grabbing all of the collectibles 

Cons
​
  • Music can grate at times
  • Customisation options are underwhelming
  • Controls can occasionally feel a little floaty and imprecise

9/10
0 Comments

Cake Bash review | Xbox One

15/10/2020

 
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With The Great British Bake Off back on our screens, what better time for a sweet treat-themed party game? High Tea Frog and Coatsink present a slice of confection perfection in this bake-em-up; a serving of satisfying sponge smashing great for both distracting from the doom and gloom and venting some pent-up frustration.

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by James Michael Parry

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@james_parry

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Developer: High Tea Frog
Publisher: Coatsink
Platforms: Xbox One, PS4, Steam, Stadia, PS5, Xbox Series X, Switch
Players: 1-4

While a first impression of the premise - fight it out to be the bakery’s tastiest cake - might lead you to Super Smash Bros. comparisons, in fact the experience is more like an expanded Mario Party minigame, with its own minigames sprinkled in for good measure.

The titular bash is an up to 4-player stand-off  in an appropriately-themed battle arena with one of five slightly different objectives. This might be trying to stay underneath a shower of sprinkles, fill a pie with fruit or smashing up fortune cookies, but each twist on the formula becomes a balance between trying to complete the objective and sabotage your opponents.

You may be taking on other players, either via online coop or locally (but not a mixture of both, sadly), or a collection of bots, which are particularly well balanced for this title. Not pushovers nor over-zealous killers, the computer players put up a decent fight (and often know what they are doing more than you) without grinding you to dust and putting you off playing.

Between the fights themselves are affectionately-named “treats” which are non combative minigames like icing scones and smores, swatting away wasps or serving up a constantly moving caterpillar cake. These eight flights of fancy are a neat way to break up the main game, which sees you run through a mixture on the way to the final judging, but like the bash types themselves, could do with even more variety to keep things fresh.

There are five levels to choose from, which, like the other options, unlock pretty quickly through standard play and can be mix and matched along with game types in the more arcadey Recipe mode.
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Unfortunately there’s no way to set up custom matches with friends for now, as you’re limited to the more structured, standard experience online, but you’ll want to do this anyway to keep unlocking more skins for your various cakes and pastries.

The soundtrack has a similar vibe to Two Point Hospital or even Animal Crossing, which the artstyle also shares some cues, while the visual presentation overall, as well as its theme, conjures memories of frantic Overcooked sessions, but the game still stands on its own.
Cake Bash might not be absolute perfection, but it is a fun time with minimal calories.
​Gameplay is solid, though extended play sessions will lead to things starting to feel repetitive, as the, at times, imprecise controls catch you out. Still, the whole experience is greatly enhanced by the joy of taking on other players and perfect for a warm up before a more longform gaming evening.

In all there is a certain charm in a game which feels distinct in the execution of its premise as well as the quality of its production for a small scale title. While we played on Xbox One, we can see greater potential in its Switch version (due out soon) in particular, due to the platform’s flexibility.

There are no soggy bottoms on show here, and with how quickly it is to tuck into, you’ll likely surprise yourself, coming out with phrases like “As an éclair, I’ve never looked better” and “Oh no, I’ve been impaled by a fork.”

Certainly more than worth checking out if you’re in need of a tasty distraction, Cake Bash might not be absolute perfection, but it is a fun time with minimal calories.

Pros
  • High production values
  • A simple idea executed well
  • Satisfying sponge smashing

Cons
  • Could do with a few more options, stages in particular
  • Controls feel unintentionally spongey at times
  • Doesn’t take much for you to feel full up

9/10​
0 Comments

In Death: Unchained Review | Oculus Quest

23/7/2020

 
In Death Unchained Review Oculus Quest - Pass the Controller

In Death: Unchained brings the VR Rogue-lite to Oculus Quest for an untethered, wireless experience after its debut on PSVR and PC. Clever subtitle aside, the procedurally generated shooter has been expanded with all-new content to ramp-up the difficulty and keep players busy for longer. Packed with religious iconography, is this trip to the afterlife destined for heaven or hell?

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by Sam Sant


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@SlamShotSam


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Developer: Superbright
Publisher: Superbright
Platforms: Oculus Quest
Players: 1
Porting In Death to Quest has been handled by Superbright, in place of original developer Solfar. Though the game might look ever-so-slightly worse without a PC or PS4 powering it, it’s not hard to argue that this is the definitive version. The additional Abyss level takes the game’s total to a healthy three, while its hellish theme makes for a more complete tour of what may lie beyond the mortal realm.

As far as a storyline goes, that’s about the extent of it. You battle through purgatory, heaven and hell - in that order - whilst confronted by challenging enemies and randomised level layouts. You’ll die over and over again until you finally get proficient enough to reach a level’s boss encounter, then probably die again. Each time you’ll head back to the start and face an altered challenge, your choice of longbow or crossbow in hand.

Levels do adapt somewhat to mirror player proficiency, but there’s no getting around the fact that In Death: Unchained is difficult. In a VR market stuffed with lite “experiences” it can be bruising to begin with, though dying does actually facilitate progress. As you play, you’ll unlock a variety of in-game achievements (unfortunately, they don’t appear on a system level in the Oculus Scoreboards app) which grant different buffs.

Landing a certain number of headshots in one run rewards you with a permanent boost to headshot damage, for example. In addition to receiving these tangible benefits, your manual skills should also develop over time; the result is an engaging sense of progression that helps to take the edge off permadeath.
 
Earning some unavoidable achievements can work against you, however. Killing large numbers of specific enemy types will summon their meaner counterparts, which prevents you from just snowballing in, power unchecked. 
Since unlocks aren’t a complete crutch, developing your physical skill is key. Aiming takes genuine finesse without crosshairs or any form of aim assist, and getting a feel for the gradual drop of an arrow or bolt also takes some time. At first you’ll be whiffing shots at close range, before eventually hitting headshots over long distances like it’s nothing.

Solid motion tracking on the Oculus Touch controllers makes things painless, which is handy, as combat requires juggling way more than just archery. There’s a defensive shield (which can also be turned to offence with a close-range shield bash), though it often pays to physically dodge incoming projectiles and melee strikes so as to not obscure your vision. The Quest’s lack of wires can really help out here.

It’s possible to briefly trigger slow motion by bringing up the real-time arrow switching menu, which helps if you’re in a small play area and need to be careful with regards to how you move. If space is at a real premium, you can even opt to play stationary and seated. Firing teleportation arrows is probably the best movement option to match, though there is also a free locomotion setting available at launch.

Regardless of your preferred settings, a short-range teleportation shard also occupies your arsenal for clutch dodges and quickly popping around corners or through doorways. You can best use it to your advantage in attracting enemies’ attention and then retreating slightly to draw them into choke points. The AI is pretty exploitable if you pull enemies gradually, though things get hairy when you mess up and they bombard you all at once.
In Death Unchained Review Oculus Quest - Pass the Controller
Special arrows can save your afterlife in these situations, doing things like freezing enemies in place and sticking them with explosives, channelling the iconic Gears of War Torque Bow. They’re an absolute must during boss encounters as well; bosses annoyingly spawn in waves of minions, so your best bet is to end the fight before it has a chance to really begin using your heaviest artillery.

Emerging victorious will grant you access to the next level, though being able to start a run from that level (i.e. opting to begin from two at the menu instead of clearing one to get back there) requires hitting an arbitrary overall completion percentage first. Gating is probably intended for players’ own good, but when we’d nearly finished the final level and died it was annoying to learn that we’d need to backtrack and earn 7% more in order to spawn there for an immediate second crack of the whip.

Still, returning to the previous level, Paradise Lost, wasn’t all bad. Cathedral architecture is elaborately laid out amongst the clouds and we found that being mobile and aggressive worked best on the armies of flying cherubs and grounded witches. It can be easy to get lost in the lavish labyrinth and cherubs in particular have a nasty habit of appearing right behind you for cheap hits, but it's still a lot of fun to play the role of ordained executioner.
In Death: Unchained features an engaging sense of progression that helps to take the edge off permadeath.
In Death Unchained Review Oculus Quest - Pass the Controller
A major strength of virtual reality gaming is the use of 3D audio, but the implementation here is underwhelming. Enemy sound effects never really cut through the bog standard atmospheric background score, which makes it hard to instinctively pinpoint their locations and can lead to missing enemies standing right by you.
 
In Death: Unchained is immensely replayable and, impressively, a grander prospect than its higher powered PC and PlayStation 4 counterparts. It’s challenging and moreish, while also being a great fit for the Oculus Quest platform specifically. Permadeath and towering reliquaries – shrines that serve as in-game shops and save points – make the game easy to play in short bursts, lending itself well to the headset’s portable nature and limited battery life.

Pros

  • Challenging, involved and skill-dependant gameplay
  • Definitive version thanks to new content
  • Progression and procedural generation make for huge replayability 

Cons

  • Bosses are uninspired and rely on spawning in drones
  • Audio is limp, with enemies being especially underwhelming
  • Cherubs can teleport directly behind you and steal cheap hits

7/10
0 Comments

Vitamin Connection | Review | Nintendo Switch

11/3/2020

 
Vitamin-Connection

Created by Shantae and the Pirate’s Curse developer WayForward, Vitamin Connection is a new and exclusive IP for the Nintendo Switch. It tasks players with saving the fictional Sable family (and by extension, the world) from an all-consuming pathogenic outbreak. Far from a sombre reflection of the present-day Coronavirus situation, Vitamin Connection and its cheery, colourful gameplay could very well prove to be the antidote for those seeking shelter.

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by Liam
Andrews

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@liam_andrews5

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Developer: WayForward
Publisher: WayForward
Platform: Switch
Players: 1 - 2

Rather than combating microscopic germs with self-imposed quarantines and better hand washing routines, Vitamin Connection sees players take control of the Joy-Con-esque Capsule Ship. It’s piloted by two silent protagonists, Vita-Boy and Mina-Girl, as they endeavour to navigate maze-like 2D levels.

​The game’s six campaign missions - each of which takes place inside a different member of the Sable family, from the baby to the dog (and even the TV) - include a handful of infected locations that players must clean up. That gameplay loop is bookended by cartoonish cinematics through which snippets of the game’s rather bonkers plot play out.

Forward momentum through levels is handled automatically, with players only needing to move and rotate the Capsule Ship in order to avoid obstacles and battle enemies. The latter is done through a combination of the ship's Vitamin Beam (a directional attack mapped to the right stick) and an extending claw that can pinch and pull apart tougher bacteria, and also grab floating obstacles to use as makeshift shields.

Clearing out the main infected areas of any given host is achieved through the completion of challenges, titled sub-games. These usually only take a few minutes to complete, and, while some can fall a bit flat (like Escaper, which requires getting from A to B without collisions), the Dance Festival, Wire Coaster and Medicine Ball (read: air hockey) games are plenty fun. Even more so in co-op, in fact, with players able to replay favourites at any time once they’ve beaten and unlocked them.
Vitamin Connection definitely feels like it’s best experienced in co-op, and while it’s possible to see and experience all that the game has to offer solo, it’s certainly more enjoyable with a partner along for the ride. It’s a shame, then, that progression between solo and cooperative campaigns isn’t shared and there’s no drop in/drop out support for spontaneous sessions. 

​Rather than simply throwing in another Capsule Ship for a second person, Vitamin Connection’s asymmetrical co-op mode sees players splitting the duties of a single craft. With the left Joy-Con, one player controls ship movement and activation of the Vitamin Beam, while the other, using the right, deals with rotation and aiming.

The added layer of teamwork helps lift the relatively straightforward gameplay and adds a whole new level of humour to proceedings as players endeavour to coordinate attacks and evasions. Sub-games also benefit from the addition of a second player, with WayForward making good use of some of the Joy-Cons’ lesser utilised features, such as motion controls, and even the IR sensor for reflex-based challenges.
Vitamin-Connection
Dance Festival has players pulling off moves in time to a musical beat, and is great fun with a partner in tow.

It’s innovative touches like these, along with a ridiculously catchy J-Pop soundtrack and a bright, cartoony aesthetic, that help Vitamin Connection, at times, feel like it could have come directly from Nintendo themselves. Unfortunately, however, the game also has more than a few frustrating quirks that spoil the fun and stop it from being something really special.

​Levels often feel samey, despite belonging to different hosts, and sub-games are repeated throughout the campaign with only slight variations to colour and design serving to set them apart. It’s also far too easy for your ship to get stuck in narrower sections of levels and end up being left behind, doomed to a slow death, as the screen, cut scenes and action all continue to move on without you.
Vitamin-Connection
Levels are littered with these ribbons, which are incredibly satisfying to break with the corresponding colour.

Away from the actual gameplay, a number of technical issues also dog Vitamin Connection. Controls can become unresponsive after switching from handheld to TV mode, or vice-versa, and the Joy-Cons too easily lose calibration during co-op sessions. The latter is particularly frustrating during the Dance Festival sub-games where precision is key; since you’re unable to recalibrate until the challenge is over, the only choice is to either continue using wonky inputs or reboot the game and start over.
Vitamin-Connection
Vitamin-Connection
Medicine Ball and Wire Coaster were two of the standout sub-games.
Still, when everything’s going well, Vitamin Connection is a fun party game that’s both challenging enough to keep regular gamers hooked and intuitive enough for casuals to keep pace. With around 5 – 10 hours of content as standard and the challenging post-game Pro Campaign to boot, there’s plenty on offer for the £15 price tag. 

While it might not be an entirely sweet remedy, Vitamin Connection is certainly no bitter pill to swallow.

Pros
​
  • Bright, cartoon-like aesthetic
  • Great in co-op
  • Catchy soundtrack
  • Novel use of Joy-Con features

Cons
​
  • Repetitive levels and challenges
  • No drop in/drop out support
  • Joy-Cons often lose calibration

7/10
0 Comments

The Ninja Saviors: Return of the Warriors | Nintendo Switch | Review

29/8/2019

 
The Ninja Saviors: Return of the Warriors review - Pass the Controller

While some of us at PTC Towers were only wee lads back in the 1990s, the decade's pedigree can't be denied its role in propelling console gaming to the heights it has reached today, spawning influential games left and right.

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​​by James
Michael
​Parry

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​@james_parry

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​Developer: ININ/Taito
Publisher: Strictly Limited Games
Platforms: Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4 

Players: 1-2

One of my all time favourites, the Streets of Rage series - which will soon return for a belated fourth outing - was among those to popularise the beat-'em-up genre back in those days on the Sega MegaDrive (or Genesis, if you must). 

But where does The Ninja Saviors: Return of the Warriors come in, we hear you cry? Well, it seems clear its original incarnation, Ninja Warriors on the SNES, was influenced by that very franchise, and those similarities continue through to its latest incarnation. 

Unfortunately, even for a asking price of £16.99, discounted on release (or £25.99 boxed later this month), this release offers only a brief stint of excitement over its eight stages (each ending with a customary, overpowered boss), clocking in at just an hour or two of face-slashing action.

Of course, there are ninjas involved, which immediately makes it better, but even during its short tenure enemies become overly repetitive quickly, with early level bosses being doubled up and introduced as foils a couple of levels from the end, and the screen often being filled with pairs of identical enemies determined to take you down.
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​Standard baddies go down in a single hit, making them often more of an inconvenience, whereas the aforementioned bosses suddenly ramp up the difficulty at every turn, with only a couple employing interesting tactics and none having any real semblance of character.

Though you have three playable ninjas to choose from, each has the same screen-wiping special attack and a handful of moves to deal damage with. The designs are cool enough but there's little to make the play styles feel different compared to the variety seen in, say, Streets of Rage 2.
The Ninja Saviors: Rise of the Warriors - fight!
There’s a two-player co-op mode on offer, but only accessible locally, and you can also begin to feel like a bit of a spare part if you're a newbie and your co-pilot is a veteran. You can opt for a harder difficulty if you do find yourselves sailing through, which opens up two new characters to try out, but bizarrely only in solo play...

In typical arcade fashion, you're offered only one life and therefore a single try to get through the game without being taken down. If you decide to continue after dying you'll get going again from a fairly recent screen, but the game stops counting your time, and with no in-game scoring system to speak of there's now just pride to play for.

If a nostalgia hit is what you're looking for, The Ninja Saviors: Return of the Warriors could scratch an itch. It’s a well-made if slightly one-note adventure that won't kill a huge amount of time.

Pros

  • Technically sound and well ported
  • A few interesting enemy encounters
  • Ninjas!

Cons
​
  • Incredibly short
  • Overpriced for what you get
  • Fairly derivative

5/10
0 Comments

Subdivision Infinity DX | Nintendo Switch | Review

16/8/2019

 
Subdivision Infinity DX review on Pass the Controller - attack!

The trouble with space is that it's mostly empty. Venturing into the unknown in a tiny spaceship in Subdivision Infinity DX, you feel that sense of scale immediately, as enemy ships, gun turrets and collectables flicker as pixels in the distance - particularly in handheld mode.
James Michael Parry

by James Michael Parry

Twitter @james_parry

​@james_parry

Subdivision Infinity DX
Developer: MistFly Games and Blowfish Studios
Publisher: Crescent Moon Games
Platforms: Steam, Nintendo Switch
Players: 1

While almost certainly what developers MistFly Games and Blowfish Studios were going for, it can make things a little difficult to pick out at first. What you do get though is a space adventure you can jump into with both feet from the word go.

With a pokey little starter ship and some tutorial missions awaiting you, you’re introduced to your avatar - a fairly standard-looking white guy - and have a little text-based chat with AV-2, your friendly(?) robot “guy in the chair” who sends you on your missions and often updates you in the field.

Before long you’ll have started to build your supply of coins, used to upgrade your ship, but sadly the better ships and upgrades are level locked. This makes even the early missions quite challenging without taking the time to replay stages in order to make the most of the upgrades you can purchase early on.

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There are five star systems to explore, each with a few standard missions and a couple of exploration missions which have a very strong emphasis on the exploration, as you might expect, opting not to give you much in the way of direction of objectives. It’s here you’ll do the bulk of your grinding, uncovering hidden crates of supplies and taking down enemies.

​Battles can be a bit frantic, feeling like aerial dogfights as enemy ships whip past and force you to turn around in pursuit. Even your starting lasers lock on once you’re in range, simplifying the often tricky 360-degree targeting system, but enemies seem to have pinpoint accuracy from the word go, meaning you’ll find yourself running for cover (and eventual health regeneration) frequently. Manoeuvrability isn’t a problem, fortunately, with a boost for a bit of added speed and tight controls, once you’ve adjusted the sensitivity to your preference.

Subdivision Infinity DX review on Pass the Controller - exploring space
Subdivision Infinity DX as a whole doesn’t offer a huge amount of variety, and with limited progression and customisation on offer, at least early on, momentum can start to drain fairly quickly. If you absolutely need a space shooter to play on the go, though, Subdivinity offers a taste of the sort of experience you might expect from something like Everspace at a fraction of the cost. What you’ll miss out on is the depth, variety and graphical polish - though it’s a step up from something like Event Horizon or Vostok Inc. - and experience the odd bit of slowdown when things get busy. It all depends what you’re looking for in a space adventure.

Pros

  • Controls are fairly straightforward, once you get used to them
  • Simple presentation lets you jump right in
  • Flying around and dogfighting in outer space

Cons
​
  • Graphics and production values don’t really impress
  • Little variety in the formulaic gameplay
  • Often difficult to make things out playing in handheld mode

6/10​
0 Comments

Hamsterdam | Nintendo Switch | Review

8/8/2019

 
Hamsterdam review on Pass the Controller - attack!

It's a well-known fact that there simply aren't enough hamsters in games these days. Fortunately for the sake of humanity, Hamsterdam is here to put the world to rights. Self-styled as an arcade brawler in which you'll become a "Hamster-fu master" patrolling a charming iteration of (you guessed it) Amsterdam, the game seeks to overpower you with cuteness from the word go.

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​by James Michael Parry

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​
​@james_parry

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Developer: Muse Games
Publisher: Muse Games
Platforms: Nintendo Switch, Steam, Android, iOS, Mac
Players: 1

Your hero, Pimm, must take on the fowl tyrant Marlo (a particularly angry-looking chinchilla) and free the fair city of Hamsterdam from the Vermin gang. If that all seems a bit silly, then you're underestimating just how much a cute fighting hamster who occasionally wears oven mitts can get away with.

The anime artstyle is sublime, giving a suitably over-the-top feel to match the game's tone and keeping things fairly family friendly for youngsters, too. You'll find three reasonably chunky worlds (or areas of the town) comprised of linear levels, which - like most brawlers - are a series of gradually escalating battles.

Gameplay keeps things simple, opting to shun complex combos or multiple stat meters, mostly restricting your attacks to a single button and the odd flick of the left stick. ​You'll build up a single KO bar to unleash a devastating, enemy health-depleting attack that’s complete with its own modest animation which helps to maintain a consistent pacing.​

Hamsterdam’s challenge becomes timing your attacks and counters to avoid damage and down foes as quickly as possible, doing so with finesse to grab the extremely satisfying 3-star clear rating. Numerous extra objectives are dangled for a bit of extra challenge on each level, which reward you with seeds to spend at the in-game shop and deck Pimm out in new threads. As well as the aforementioned oven gloves, there's also headwear and jackets which either make the game easier or harder depending on what you fancy. 
Mini-bosses and bosses shake up the gameplay with a more side-scrolling approach to action, featuring a few QTEs for good measure. This succeeds in effectively mixing things up, but robs you of some of the satisfaction of taking down the game's beefiest villains. As a result, the difficulty curve also feels a little spikey, since these sections require completely different timing and skills, but after a few determined attempts it’s possible to power through.

Fortunately, the experience remains on the entertaining side of challenging even at those sticky moments, and it's impossible not to fall in love with Pimm and her adorable, increasingly impractical outfit choices. At the price point (less than £10, whatever your platform of choice), Hamsterdam poses great value for money and is an absolute joy.

Pros

  • Enough charm and style to fill a hamster’s cheeks
  • Easy to pick up and play
  • Overall quality means cute isn’t a crutch

Cons
​
  • Bosses shift gameplay and cause difficulty spikes
  • Targeting one specific enemy can be tough
  • It’s over too soon! More Hamster-fu, pls

9/10​
0 Comments

Redeemer: Enhanced Edition | Xbox One | Review

30/7/2019

 
Redeemer: Enhanced Edition | Xbox One | Review - Pass the Controller

There's something quite satisfying about pulverising someone with a large axe. While Redeemer (the prettier Enhanced Edition, in this case) isn't the first game to offer that combat experience, it is an experience which defines it, or at least the broad strokes of its main character Vasily, who utilises elaborate melee strikes and environmental executions to deal devastating killing blows.

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​ by James
 Michael
​ Parry

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@James_Parry

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Developer: Sobaka
Studio
Publisher: Buka
Entertainment
Platforms: Xbox One,
PlayStation 4, Switch, PC
Players: 1
Vasily himself has a sense of tragedy about him, conveying echoes of a past with John Wick-like beats to it. He initially seems to have ditched his troubled life to see his time out with a quiet existence in the mountains, only to then be drawn back in when he's discovered by a shadowy corporation. We're only ever given short animated glimpses into his motivations, though, offering little reason to really connect with the character. In fact, on the face of it, Vasily comes across as a watered down version of Kratos from God of War in many ways.

You’ll guide watered-down Kratos through labyrinthine corridors, which come to feel repetitive quickly but are littered with neat little details, such as enemies getting up to mischief just outside of the gameplay area. Additionally, environments are littered with fuse boxes, spiked walls, statues and pillars which you can use to execute enemies, cutting even some of their harshest ranks down in one hit.

The animations thereof are satisfying and, provided you don't zoom the tight isometric camera in too closely, quite impressive. As things progress, enemy numbers are something which not only start to push the game technically - even on Xbox One X - but feel like a cheap way to ramp up the level of challenge, making it more satisfying (and closer to the intended feel, we’re sure) to knock the difficulty level down a peg in order to power onwards.

​​You’re given a range of scrolls, perks and upgrades to boost your moveset, but keeping track of what does what is tricky, and, other than perhaps move unlocks, the buffs don't jump out as particularly game-changing. As a result, gameplay fails to significantly develop as Redeemer plods along, further hindered by the fact that new enemies are introduced as standout mid-bosses before being tarnished when they’re subsequently thrown at you in their droves.
Melee weapons quickly degrade too, leading to a map littered with half-broken hatchets and electric batons which are largely interchangeable, but crucial to dismantling some of the larger enemies. There are guns on offer as well, but they’re often difficult to use at range due to the aforementioned camera perspective.

Overall, while Redeemer: Enhanced Edition might be a fun way to pass the time on your commute (should you opt for the Switch version), it's difficult to wholeheartedly recommend you devote your time to it at home.

Pros

  • Brutal, savage takedowns
  • Clearing a room with multi-kills is satisfying
  • Some endearing set dressing

Cons

  • Repetitive gameplay and environments
  • Characters and enemies show little personality
  • Largely redundant progression system

6/10
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Tinymetal: Full Metal Rumble | Nintendo Switch | Review

26/7/2019

 
Tinymetal: Full Metal Rumble | Nintendo Switch | Review - Pass the Controller

​The world of strategy has been simmering away under the surface of the mainstream for a few years now. Long since the heyday of Westwood Studios, which ruled the real-time strategy genre with its Command & Conquer and Red Alert series, it’s been turn-based games which have been all the rage, thanks to the rise of Firaxis’ excellent XCOM revivals.

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​by James
Michael
​Parry

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@James_Parry

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Developer: Area 35
Publisher: Area 34
Platforms: Switch,
Steam
Players: 1 - 2
Between the two eras was nestled a little gem - Advanced Wars on Nintendo DS - and its from that franchise which Tiny Metal: Full Metal Rumble draws the most inspiration. Not just from the look and the two different viewpoints you’ll encounter (one for movement and one for battles), but even the units and its futuristic, Japanese parody of US military bravado.

There’s a lot to take in from the get go, especially for those who aren’t Advanced Wars acquainted, so initially games can feel slow to get going. After a couple of campaign missions - which attempt to trickle in elements at a slow pace, but seem to tutorialise them the mission after you really need them - things pick up as more diverse unit options are introduced to bolster your arsenal, but also the tactical range of your enemy.

Units themselves have some character, cheerily riling off their canned lines as they move and attack, with the most personality saved for the 16 hero units, who carry their progression between battles. The generals too each have their own colour scheme, but besides from a fairly straightforward superpower a piece, which might boost attack power and capture speed for a couple of turns, aren’t as exciting in their own right.

​​While there’s a cost for producing new units in the game, all take just a single turn to appear, leaving you to decide which factory to spring a tank (known as a Metal) from for maximum tactical advantage. Learning which units can attack which takes time, making the difficulty curve not exactly steep but bumpy, and it takes a while for games to feel satisfying as you’re rapidly surrounded in the early game.
Soon, such is your efficiency at producing and preserving units, either by merging wounded squads or healing them at a player-owned city or facility, you’ll quickly find the map overrun and units begin to block each other from moving around effectively, leading to a major risk of bottlenecks if you aren’t too careful.

While the game works well in docked mode, this title has more of a handheld feel, and the turn-based nature lends itself to pulling it out for a few stops on the bus or morning train commute. Matches themselves, even early in the campaign, can easily last over half an hour a piece as games run across 15 or 20 in-game days (or turns) before one team’s HQ is ultimately vanquished.

Tinymetal’s music is fairly unmemorable and doesn’t get across the sort of drama and excitement you might hope for, especially compared to some of those iconic Red Alert or XCOM tunes. It should be noted that we haven’t unlocked the additional tracks with in-game currency, however. Visually, it’s fairly straightforward, but certainly more stylised, exciting and accessible than the somewhat similar Tiny Troopers Joint Ops XL.
Those looking to scratch a strategy itch won’t be disappointed here, with fun and games to be had for a budget-friendly asking price, but the repetition of the experience will start to grate for some before too long.

On top of the main campaign there’s Skirmish, where you battle AI using custom maps and settings, and also an online multiplayer component - but seemingly one too sparsely populated to find a game, even during peak hours.

In the end, Tinymetal: Full Metal Rumble on Switch is a fun little way to spend some portable gaming time, but doesn’t do too much to be exciting or bring a new twist to the genre or platform. There’s little to master, other than the patience for slow-moving and resource-limited units, but there’s still something endearing and easy to enjoy about the game.

Pros
​
  • Nice aesthetic brings the battlefield to life
  • ​Isometric blocks hiding the fog of war present challenging sightlines
  • A multitude of accents and quirks do enough to make units interesting

Cons

  • Hero units aren’t the silver bullet they’re made out to be
  • Repetition can set in quickly
  • Online multiplayer is barren

7/10
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Etherborn | Xbox One | Review

18/7/2019

 
Etherborn | Xbox One | Review - Pass the Controller

Three months ago we previewed Etherborn and opined that the indie debut from Altered Matter - helped to fruition by FoxNext and investors on crowdfunding platform Fig - looked set to impress when the full game landed. Now it’s here; an excellent puzzle-platformer which ignores the laws of gravity, requiring you to throw out conventional logic in order to wrap your head (and featureless in-game avatar) around its brain-teasing levels.

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by Sam Sant

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@SlamShotSam


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Developer: Altered
Matter

Publisher: Altered
Matter

Platforms: Xbox
​One, PS4, Switch, PC
​(Steam)

Players: 1
The voiceless, translucent humanoid you control is born - ethereally so - into a visually immaculate, minimalist world where truly 3D stages are suspended against colourful backdrops of nothingness. As you come to appreciate the elegant visuals, inspired by 20-21st century art, the sultry tone of a disembodied female voice beckons you. Seeking its source is the only way to discover your purpose.

Since there aren’t any hints or HUD element to speak of, getting there is a learning experience, and that’s no bad thing - you’ll more firmly grasp Etherborn’s genius mechanics when you parse them for yourself. Through experimentation and some early deaths, players learn that the effects of gravity apply perpendicular to the surface they’re currently standing on, demolishing the concept of any ‘correct’ global orientation.

With this new perspective in mind, you learn to read environments differently in both obvious and subtle ways, like watching for smooth corner transitions to allow for switching gravity’s axis by walking across shear surfaces, or recognising that you’ll need to snake all the way around a level to reach a location right in front of you. Uniquely, stages must be approached as structures which you manipulate yourself over, under and around.

Etherborn isn’t a game where puzzles are a brief aside that mostly serve to control pacing, rather it is in itself one large-scale problem to solve. With so many modern games simply handing out answers, it can be frustrating when an outlier refuses to stroke your ego, but Altered Matter nip that potential problem in the bud by having every asset project serenity and almost hypnotise the player into a meditative state of calm.

The relaxed mindset it encourages - further helped along by the fact that there are no distracting collectibles or secondary objectives to consider - allows you to ignore any inhibitions and try the sorts of unconventional solutions years of gaming have likely conditioned you to assume won't work - only, in this instance, they more often than not do.
Etherborn isn’t a game where puzzles are a brief aside that mostly serve to control pacing, rather it is in itself one large-scale problem to solve.
Based on our early look at Etherborn, which we now know featured quite a large portion of the game, we wondered aloud how it might evolve in terms of its structure. There are only two additional stages in the final product, both built around the same concept of using light orbs tucked away within them to transform the landscape and allow for your passage. Much the same then, but not disparagingly so, since aesthetic diversity partners with a greater focus on platforming elements and more sprawling real estate to keep things engaging right to the end.

So engaging as to warrant an immediate second playthrough, in fact. Game + mode takes place across the same suite of levels, but the light orbs within them are now deviously concealed from view. This is the first time you’ll really need to manipulate the camera, which closely tracks your movements on an initial playthrough in order to help guide you, whereas in Game + those viewpoints are utilised to mask solutions instead. Again, it’s hard to protest it being unfair that something is hidden off-screen when at the same time you’re serenaded by Etherborn’s gorgeous, equilibrium-maintaining soundtrack.
Our preview also left us with an impression of the game’s story we deemed “vague and introspect”, based essentially on its first half. Having now seen it through, the narrative is largely open to interpretation, but does a good job of getting its abstract concepts across. Our take? A sombre and gleeful exploration of the eternal struggles of the human mind. Fitting, as the game being an effective form of meditation means it also doubles as mental medication.

Etherborn is poignant and not precisely like any other game, perhaps feeling closest to Tetsuya Mizuguchi’s focused body of work (Rez, Child of Eden, Tetris Effect) in the flow state it so easily elicits. It’s a thoroughly lovely, meditative experience that’ll have you sink deep into your seat and slow your breathing while exploring the 3D environments in all of their dimensions. It’s outstandingly clever and effortlessly spellbinding, despite the work it no doubt took the talented team at Altered Matter to get there.

Pros

  • Ingenious level and integrated puzzle design
  • Gorgeously minimalistic art
  • Warm, soothing soundtrack and voice acting
  • Beneficial to mental health and acuity
  • Game + is a good means of extending longevity...

Cons

  • … Yet it’s still over all too quickly

9/10


For more on Etherborn, check out our interview with the game's Creative Director, Samuel Cohen.
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