Review: Final Fantasy XVI

Developer –Square Enix Publisher – Square Enix Platforms – PS5 Final Fantasy XVI, the highly anticipated installment in the legendary franchise, surpasses all of my expectations as a master class of Action-RPG excellence. Developed by the talented team at Square Enix, Final Fantasy XVI showcases the genre’s evolution, delivering a breathtaking experience that will captivate long-time fans and newcomers alike. From the moment you embark on your journey, Final Fantasy XVI immerses you in a visually stunning world that pushes the boundaries of the series. This grounded, M-rated experience pushes the visuals to bloody heights. The meticulously crafted landscapes, intricately designed characters, and awe-inspiring Eikon spell effects create a feast for the eyes. Square Enix’s commitment to pushing graphical boundaries is evident in every frame, resulting in a game that is a true visual marvel. But Final Fantasy XVI isn’t just a feast for the eyes; it’s a symphony for the ears. The hauntingly beautiful musical score, composed by the brilliant Masayoshi Soken, enhances every moment of the game, perfectly capturing the emotions and atmosphere of each scene. From stirring battle anthems to poignant character themes, the music elevates the storytelling to new heights, leaving a lasting impact on players long after they put down the controller. If you have touched FF XIV, then you are familiar with their work. For new players, prepare to have a complex OST that always elevates the action to the next level. Speaking of storytelling, Final Fantasy XVI delivers a captivating, epic, and intimate narrative. The game introduces a vast and intricately woven tapestry of political intrigue, familial drama, and personal growth. Clive Rosfield, the loyal and honorable prince. Cid, the rebel fighting for a better future, and Jill, childhood companion and trusted ally of Clive. They are joined by Torgal, a loyal wolf who is essential to combat. The characters are richly developed, each with their motivations, fears, and desires, making them feel like real individuals with whom players can forge deep connections. The writing is superb, blending moments of heart-wrenching emotion with clever wit and moments of levity. The voice acting is top-notch, further breathing life into the characters and making their journey all the more immersive. This narrative is dark, and grim, and features themes not often tackled by a Final Fantasy. Some moments were shocking, and if you played the demo, you might have an idea of what we are speaking of. In terms of gameplay, Final Fantasy XVI strikes a new path forward with a heavy dose of action-focused experience. The heavy combat focus was initially worrying, as my handicap makes it difficult to keep up with fast-paced gameplay. Thankfully, the Story-focused option and the Timely Accessories kept me in the fight, even when things got hard. The combat system seamlessly blends real-time action with strategic counters, offering players various abilities, magic spells, and Eikon abilities to unleash upon their foes. The intuitive controls and smooth animations make battles a joy to experience, and the challenging difficulty ensures that victory is hard-earned and immensely satisfying.  The character progression system is a bit lacking. You are never in control of your party, and Clive can only equip three accessories and three pieces of gear, and it’s all pretty simple and straightforward. Most of the complexity lies in the choice of Eikons and abilities you decide to equip, rather than RPG elements like skill points and party management. Final Fantasy XVI also excels in its world-building. The vast open world is teeming with captivating side quests, hidden treasures, and memorable NPCs. Every corner of the map tells a story, and players will find themselves fully engrossed in exploring its intricacies. The attention to detail is astounding, with every town, dungeon, and landscape exuding a distinct sense of place and history. The story is long and complex, and although it gets close to venturing into saving the world from the ultimate doom style of narrative, it wisely sidesteps that and manages to keep the story intimate even through the ending. While the game’s technical performance is generally excellent, there have been occasional bouts of slowdown, even with the day-one patch installed. However, these issues do not detract significantly from the overall experience and can be expected to be addressed through future updates and patches. In conclusion, Final Fantasy XVI is a true next-generation entry to the king of the RPG genre. With its breathtaking visuals, enchanting music, compelling storytelling, and engaging gameplay, it is a journey that will resonate with players long after the final credits roll. Whether you are a longtime fan of the series or a newcomer to the world of Final Fantasy, this game is an absolute must-play.

Review: Street Fighter 6

Developer – Capcom Publisher – Capcom Platforms – PC, PlayStation 4/5, Xbox Series S|X Street Fighter 6 is the latest entry in Capcom’s classic fighting franchise. Following the steps of Tekken 8, Mortal Kombat 1, and other new entries to other classic fighting game series, Street Fighter 6 successfully updates the classic gameplay with new mechanics that mix well with the old ones. Street Fighter has never been at the forefront of great single-player content. It features not just one but two different styles of single-player story modes. World Tour is an enormous open-world story mode featuring a character of your creation. It has a central plot line telling the tale of everybody’s favorite Street Fighters and new characters introduced alongside them. The main story takes place in a timeline, and everyone on the roster gets their Arcade mode to play through that exists alongside the main plot. Overall the stories are well made and do a decent job moving it forward. Don’t expect tons of CG cut-scenes or even in-game set pieces on the level of Tekken 7 or Mortal Kombat 11. The scope is slightly more limited, but the ambition comes in the gameplay and the open-world hijinks. The custom characters won’t be causing any problems right now with the competitive community because customs can only fight each other in Avatar battles. This prevents issues that games like Tekken and Soul Calibur had because the custom fighters can have very different hitboxes, which throws balance out the window. This allows players to make some genuinely freaking characters because balance is thrown out the window in favor of fun, which is an excellent choice for casuals like myself. The game runs fantastically. All versions are locked at 60fps, and no models aren’t brought over from the older games. Each character features unique color schemes that match each fighter’s personality. The sound and music are also stellar, with a hip-hop soundtrack highlighting all the actions and some favorites hidden away as secrets to discover. The most vital part of any fighting game is the fighting itself. Every attack, parry, and throw is lightning-fast and responsive to the touch. The new Drive Impact and Gauge join old mechanics like the guard parry and the super attacks. Capcom also pushes accessibility in the genre forward with extensive options designed for players with a wide range of disabilities. Between the streamlined inputs of Modern and Dynamic Controls, the possibilities for sound based on distance is brilliant for the vision impaired. World Tour features slower enemy attack animations that are perfect for somebody with a slow reaction speed to handle and learn the nuances of the fighting system. This is truly the most accessible fighting game I’ve ever played, and World Tour amplifies that with its silly but fun, light-hearted approach to combat and tutorials. I loved my time with Street Fighter 6. The ease of use, fantastic tutorials, and wealth of single-player options are designed to ease somebody like myself into the action. But the depth of combat and the nuances of the Drive Gauge system seemed intended for expert players to take full advantage of. We recommend Street Fighter whether you want to win Capcom Cup or spend an afternoon smashing trucks with your feet.

Review: Dead Island 2

Developer – Dambuster Studios Publisher – Deep Silver Platforms – PlayStation, Xbox, PC After a near decade long absence, Dead Island 2 comes back from the dead to terrorize a new generation of players, and it modernizes the originals gameplay concepts and ideas. Dead Island 2 is a fun co-op zombie romp, find out what it does right in our spoiler free review. Dead Island is a strange franchise. The original game was the textbook definition of a cult classic. It was technically a mess and not very refined, but it essentially created a genre and its quirks and first-person combat made a strong impression. Add to that the infamous opening cutscene, and Dead Island holds a firm place in many hearts. Since its release, games from that legacy, notably the Dying Light series, have blown up to become mega hits. This leaves Dead Island 2, a sequel created by an all-new development team after years of struggle, to circle back to where it all started. Dead Island 2 takes places in a zombie filled LA, known as Hell-A and its the absolute star of the show. The plot revolves around a handful of survivors in a story filled with dark humor and grisly fates, but told with a confidence and bravado that elevates all of the characters you interact with. At the start of the game, you can select from six characters, each with their personality, skill decks, and play styles. Each character is voiced well, and script lines differ from character to character for scripted moments based on their cultures and heritage. The story is well told, even if it’s unremarkable, but the real star of the show is the characters themselves. Each one, from the player character to NPC, is unique, usually pretty funny, and, most importantly, memorable. They are also brought to life with stunning visuals, as the game ran at a perfect 60 frames per second on PS5 and never gave me trouble at any point. Another staff writer commented on the impact of the sound design, as the vocal performances are fantastic, and the weapons pack an oomph to back up how much they eviscerate the undead hordes of Beverly Hills. Speaking of hills, the location has to be given special notice. Hell-A is one of the best locations to hit any game in quite some time. Each area is broken up into zones, and the tight focus has let them run wild with creative world design and telling stories. Shout out to the Goat Pen, which is excellent and sure to be talked about for a long time. The combat is well done, as the viciousness of each swing of your weapon is detailed to gross effect. Hammers bash jaws in half, spears puncture stomachs and spill guts, and blades main and cut deep. It isn’t all for show, as the damage is visual and lets you know if an attack is working. The only issue I had with itis that after the halfway point, you stop getting new mechanics, and by the time credits rolled, combat didn’t change much from the first moments to the end moments. Guns also are a weak point, as they lack impact and aren’t as fun to use as specialized melee attacks. I loved my time in Dead Island 2, and for the accessibility minded, the online co-op made the game very easy to pick up and play, and I was never frustrated with my time in Hell-A.

Wild Hearts brings the heat with Golden Tempest Kimono reveal trailer

Tame a world gone wild.

Review: God of War Ragnarok

Kratos and Atreus are the heart and steel that forge God of War Ragnarök into a flawless and fitting end to the Norse Saga

Review: Soulstice

Developer – Reply Game Studios Publisher – Modus Games Platforms – Xbox Series, PS5, PC. Release Date – September 20, 2022 Soulstice is a cinematic character action game focusing on tight gameplay design and the relationship of its dual protagonists. Briar and Lute are sisters who have fallen to the Wraiths, an enemy from the Veil. They are reborn as Chimera. At the same time, Briar gained strength and physical power. Her sister, Lute, bound her soul to her and became a Shade. Together they must save the city and figure out the mystery of the Wraiths and the Veil. It’s a unique story, whereas most character action games feature brooding men with over-the-top attitudes. Briar and Lute bring a fresh perspective to character action, reminding me of Senua in Hellblade. Diverse character choices in hardcore action games are a welcome change, and the best part of Soulstice is the relationship these sisters share. A few months back, I got a hands-on preview of Reply Games’ upcoming action experience titled Soulstice. It was a fun dive, but a brief one. After 17 hours can firmly say Soulstice is a great throwback and homage to games such as DMC and the vibes original Bayonetta perfected. Soulstice was introduced as a kinetic character action game focused on respecting the golden rules of the classics in the genre. Classics such as Devil May Cry and Ninja Gaiden were mentioned as some of the games that helped create that gold standard that Reply Games followed in creating Soulstice. When I asked the developers which golden rule for action games is essential for them to nail, they wanted to focus on character and action responsiveness. Inputting an action and having the game respond is key to a great action game. Nothing is worse than a sluggish character response for an action game; in my hands, they adhere to that design philosophy. The other rule they wanted to respect was depth in combat choice. Soulstice features that in spades with its unique world and selection of playable characters. Soulstice takes place in a sprawling city called Ilden. You play as Bryar and Lute, soulbound sisters who have become powerful Chimera. Unlike most action games, these are not two characters that you select and play at different times; you play as them in tandem. Lute was sacrificed in the ritual, and her soul is now bound to her sister. You can use each of them in combat to perform stylish and powerful team The general flow and progression into the city and development of each sister’s power set is the baseline for all progression systems. You can use each in combat to perform stylish and powerful team attacks. The flow of narrative and action is kept concise but clear. The level design can get repetitive near the middle chunk of the game, but it opens and closes with some great-looking environmental design. Character upgrades are limited to new skills and promotions for each character, but this is not a loot-driven game. Your sword is your sword, your hammer, and this design helps keep the action laser-focused at all times. The dual character mechanics push Soulstice into a different category of action. Managing both sisters in tandem is difficult at first, but the controls are snappy, and each of the sister’s strengths is evident. Use the big hammer on armored enemies and filling up a stun meter will allow you to juggle and launch even heavy hit stun immune foes. Soulstice is a fun character action game, and the passion from the developers and their adherence and respect to the golden rules were apparent. The game features five difficulty options, with the two latter choices relegated to New Game Plus. These difficulty levels are where Soulstice shines. The heightened difficulty pushes you to take advantage of every weapon type and Lute’s abilities to augment Briar’s combo potential to the fullest. If you’re a fan of classic character action games and want something new and fresh, Soulstice is the perfect fit for you.

Review: NBA 2K23

Developer – Visual Concepts Publisher – 2K Sports Platforms – PC, Xbox Series| One, Playstation 5|4, Nintendo Switch When NBA2K21 hit next gen, it still felt like the final year of the last gen’s versions, with some growing pains in the next gen transition. I felt like it was time to take a look at how this series has evolved with much more time spent on next generation platforms. NBA 2k22 was a good next step, but NBA 2K23 feels like the full package has truly benefited from the extra power. Audio sequences reviewed by Rectify Staff Right away, some things immediately stuck out to me. First, the trend of Ultimate team that EA started is not as in your face as prior years. The seasons now apply to the entire game, so even if you don’t engage in with it, you have new ways to play and fun unlocks to chase. Last year’s soundtrack as just okay, but I love this years soundtrack, and hip-hop is better integrated in the game, especially career mode. Seeing J.Cole in the campaign mode was a treat as a fan. The core game modes and things I care about are back and much improved over last year. The My player career mode has seen a huge overhaul. VC, which I know was a problem in previous games was never a problem for me. I was able to work my way up and it is a grind to get high stats, but not one that feels unfair or punishing for not spending any real life money. The way My player is incorporated with the City is incredible. Being able to interact in the city and park with my story mode character but also advance my NBA career is a game changing feature. The facial scan feature is a blast. Seeing my huge face on a super athletic body made for some pretty entertaining story mode moments. The on court presentation and sound design were as stellar as I remember them being years ago. Great camera work, announcing, sneaker squeaks and player chatter really help bring the game to life. I know none of this is new, but it’s an easy thing to take for granted. The thing that’s always impressed me most about NBA 2K, is still the animation. NBA 2K23 has an absolutely absurd number of great animation detail layering every part of the gameplay. Inbound passes, fouls, reverse fades, it all looks so smooth on the court. It’s impressive how the responsiveness is still sound despite the staggering amount of animation. Even as a power forward with low stats, I never felt sluggish to move around or control on the screen. The park was probably the biggest feature to see massive improvements, and I had a ton of fun diving into it. Even as a novice, I’ve been able to get into frequent games and outside of a toxic point guard here an there, it’s been a chill experience. The city also feels alive, with massive environments and ton’s of NPC’s to speak too. Of course, the on court NBA basketball is stellar, and the new pro shot stick took me quite a while to adjust. I do like it, and I think it will help create a skill ceiling beyond mere stats and play time. Defense on and off the ball is significantly improved, and being able to better attempt steals and blocks without getting into constant foul trouble makes playing defense rewarding. I’m curious to see how NBA 2K will evolve moving forward. My biggest gripe with this game is still the VC, despite not having any issues with my progression otherwise. Despite less than a year turn around, it feels very different and far better in every facet from NBA2K22. I imagine that feeling must be really felt by players who have played each one without missing a beat. The Era’s feature might be one of the most fun additions to any sports game in quite some time. I’m really enjoying my time with NBA 2K23 this year. The next gen versions have really benefited from the extra time in the market, and NBA2K23 is a superb improvement in every facet from last year’s game.

Review: MX VS ATV Legends

Developer – Rainbow Studios Publisher – THQ Nordic Platforms – PC, PlayStation, Xbox REVIEW UPDATED AS OF THE LATEST PATCH Year after year, the absence of a good MX vs. ATV title has been highlighted by the continued growth of its natural rivals. Fortunately, the long wait is over. After the very competitive, focused off-road racers, Mx vs. ATV Legends roars back into the genre with accessible but solid off-road fun. The consistency of the Mx vs. ATV series has always been impressive, but losing that casual side and some of the fun modes that came with it made it seem like it would never remember players like myself. This game succeeds, in part, because it remembers those old ways and strikes a fantastic balance between the competitive racer and the casual fan who wants to drive to the edge of a map and get shot like a cannon back into the map. Legends feature improvements and upgrades expected from a sequel, with some unfortunate technical shortcomings. Thankfully, as of the most recent July updates, many career mode issues and technical problems have been smoothed over, albeit not eliminated. It performs well on every platform, but the PC version is clearly superior. It runs better, looks better, and suffers fewer technical errors than its console cousins. The same physics system returns. With several improvements from previous entries, the feel of every bike and quad is handled well. The tuning allows you to control just about every aspect of a motorcycle. Even for rookies, such as myself, the basic tier of upgrades does provide a tangible difference and feel for each one installed. The assists all return and haven’t changed much from previous iterations. They are functional and keep the game fun, even if you’re not exactly a road warrior. Online play is in and is a bit barebones but functional when playing with friends. After long sessions, roaming the open world is a fun experience, if ultimately shallow. The audio work is not great, but the soundtrack is solid. Engines and music are vastly improved from previous titles. I have spent a lot of time playing MX vs. ATV Legends, and the thrill of off-roading has reminded me of the earlier PS2 days. It isn’t perfect, but with the recent updates, Mx vs. ATV Legends is now easily recommended.

Review: F1 22

Developer – Codemasters Publisher – EA Sports Platforms – PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series S/X, PC Before we start, I’d like to make one thing clear: I am a huge racing game fan. I enjoy a good arcade racer and occasional race against a friend. Sadly, the arcade racing genre as a whole is not something that has thrived as of late. Outside of Forza Horizon and the Dirt series, new arcade racers are so few and far between. So have been looking outside of arcade racing to get my fix. Thankfully, F1 22 goes further beyond arcade racing and refines and builds upon the excellent F1 21. Grid Legends featured a fun take on arcade mixed with sim racing. The later Horizons lost that smooth blend and Gran Turismo doesnt have a great in-depth racing feel on the track. F1 22 takes place in several different environments. The story mode is gone, which I miss dearly, but the overall refinements to the racing itself shine through. Speaking of old sim racers, F1 22 blows away the competition with its top-class online feature set. Every single mode that you play, be it career mode or standard races, can become an online lobby seamlessly. A friend can hop online, and smoothly integrate into a career mode as a fellow team driver and it’s such a stellar feature. For accessibility-minded players such as myself, co-op helps even the playing field, and co-op is sadly a feature not commonly seen in many racing games. Every individual tune and upgrade imparts a noticable change in driving, The visuals are not quite GT7 or Horizon level but do a fantastic job on this front. Damage modeling is also superb. My only desire as a deaf player was better subtitle options. What is presented is servicable as most of the action is focused in menus or on the track anyways. Progressing through the campaign, performing and discovering objectives such as high placements and wins can all help with career progression. Having a racing team and coordinating with friends online has led to some tense moments. F1 22 caught me off guard with how skill-based it is. The AI on harder settings can be tough, and one slip off the track can end any hope of victory. It features an excellent array of options to customize the entire experience with. The moment-to-moment racing is very tactile, and mastering its driving mechanics is essential to victory. There are multiple ways to play multiplayer with the inclusion of co-op online racing! It’s not often racing games allow this, and it was fun to blast around the track while my son was blocking cars for me in career mode. If you’re itching for a fun but deep sim racer, you can’t go wrong with F1 22. The tracks and car graphics are solid, the core gameplay is fast and there are plenty of things to keep you engaged.\

Review: Fire Emblem Warriors: Three Hopes

Developer –Koei Tecmo Games, Omega Force Publisher – Nintendo Platforms – Nintendo Switch I will admit right up front, that I was completely caught off guard by Fire Emblem Warriors. As a spin-off, the integration between Fire Emblem and Dynasty Warriors worked far better than I even hoped. I’ve long been a fan of Fire Emblem, and Three Houses was one of my absolute favorite games the year it was released. It’s been great watching Omega Force develop and use licenses in great ways through the years but when they announced Three Hopes, my expectations were high. When I first booted this up, I honestly wasn’t quite sure what to expect. The very opening of the game, in which you play as a new mercenary and face off against Byleth, set the tone for the rest to follow. ACCESSIBILITY The accessibility in Three Hopes is standard, but fully functioning. This game consists of a lot of gameplay features and menus, which makes navigating and deciphering what to do next a simple process. In battle, location warnings for enemy attacks and the incredible orders system help manage the chaos of battle a great deal. Multiple difficulties and casual mode help round out the package and makes this one of the more accessible Warriors games I’ve had the privilege of experiencing. As the story and roster grew, mission after mission, it was pretty easy to see once again why Fire Emblem was such a great fit for the Warrior’s style of beat em’ up. Even the story premise is pretty straightforward. Instead of a prequel or sequel, Three Hopes is a dramatic retelling of the Three Houses story and plot. Featuring many of the moments, characters, and drama that I loved in that game so very much. Despite the dramatic change in main character and villain, Three Hopes does a remarkable job of keeping the story concise. As a Three Houses veteran, each character feels very well developed, and all of their motivations are told in various sub-missions and through in-game cutscenes. The support system returns with even more content than you’d expect. Even the character dynamics and pairings have new story beats, so it isn’t all just a rehashing of what was done before. Now obviously it’s not recreating the Three Houses one-to-one, but this was sufficient motivation to continue the story and find some new favorite characters and plot twists along the way. Gameplay-wise, Three Hopes differentiates from the traditional formula by the sheer breadth of its characters and RPG mechanics. Various combo strings, special moves and super abilities are all here, but so are the adjacent system, dynamic support system, and hefty camp and base building mechanics. Every character has varying degrees of in-depth air juggles and combo opportunities. The Fire Emblem class structure is here in full force, with more than a dozen available classes and some advanced late-game special classes as well. Three Hopes also features various major boss battles. These battles use a lock-on feature and are home to some of the more intense set-piece moments. Three Hopes features local multiplayer, and even on a split-screen, this game runs far better than Age of Calamity does. Omega Force has really improved performance, and in portable mode, Three Hopes never breaks a sweat. Three Hopes is far more than just a Warriors spin0off. The love and attention to detail with every aspect of gameplay are evident. The sheer amount of gameplay systems is vast, but each layer of progression is doled out smoothly through each chapter of the campaign. Omega Force did a great of bringing these characters to life and beloved story to life. Even as a stout Three Houses fan, they did that game justice, while elevating their own gameplay and style to new levels.