Adventure

There are certain things that will always be of interest to hidden object and casual adventure enthusiasts: anything with a little intrigue and classic literature. Jane Austen's Estate of Affairs, by Legacy, has both, but is that enough to keep you clicking?

Where do I begin? Where do I end? Where do I middle? When it comes to The Stanley Parable, there's no real way to review it, just as there is no real way to play it, or finish it, or even describe it on a basic level. In the spirit of The Stanley Parable, allow me to go a bit meta – when I write a review, I like to spend the first couple of paragraphs giving an overview of the game. The story, the setting, but here, there is no proper story, there is no proper setting. Do you see the quandary? Maybe there's only one way to review it...

I’m sure when most people think of Amnesia they think of creatures popping out at them, chasing them and constantly trying to kill them. Well Amnesia A Machine for Pigs takes a completely different approach to scary, and in my opinion it works. So expect more of a looming feeling of uneasiness then pure outright terror that comes across as you play. It is unfortunate the amount of bad feedback this title has received because expectations were that of the last Amnesia title. I feel AMFP was a short and creepy experience with some brilliant story work intertwined.

The general interest in Splinter Cell Blacklist seemed to be practically zero ahead of its launch. A change of pace in its predecessor, Conviction, as well as a new Sam Fisher and a series of generic trailers meant that release came and went with little fanfare.

If you’re a PS3 gamer, then you’ve probably heard of Quantic Dreams previous title - Heavy Rain. More story focused with simplistic gameplay, with a large portion of that being quick time events, people had mixed opinions on this style of game. It was criticized just as much as it was praised for its style of gameplay and its plot heavy nature, but how does Beyond: Two Souls compare?

Enslaved Odyssey to the West was a criminally underrated title based on the Chinese classic Journey to the West, made popular in the UK by television show Monkey (or Monkey Magic, if you're from the US). Unfortunately, sales seemed to be about as lousy as the reviews, and with the announcement of DmC: Devil May Cry, Enslaved got thrown out by the anti-Ninja Theory crowd. Released on PC for the first time last week, Enslaved has a second chance to thrive in a post-Last of Us world. Will people finally recognise it for the diamond in the rough it always was?

In the gaming days of yore, things like tutorials, objective markers, and pop-up hints were very uncommon. For some, these forms of guidance take away exploration, self-discovery, and challenge, and they yearn for more titles to be like those of old. The developer duo Kazuya Asano and Takemaru Abiko apparently agree, because that's the basis for Starship Damrey, their entry in Level-5's Guild02 compilation.

Gone Home is special. A creation designed to grasp the industry and its fans by their collar, and show them how a mature and painfully honest story should be told. While some games are set in fantastical worlds, such as a floating city or an apocalyptic world, Gone Home prides itself on its simplicity and intimacy. And like any good novel, Gone Home’s strength is the way it rewards people once they uncover and solve the game’s many metaphorical and clever puzzles. It isn’t fantastical by any means, nor is it complex mechanically, but it is immeasurably genuine.

Following the success of The Walking Dead, developer Telltale Games continues its trend of churning out compelling narrative experiences with the recent release of The Wolf Among Us. Based off of the Fables comic book series created by Bill Willingham, which follows recognizable fairy tale characters living in 80s New York, The Wolf Among Us is a delightful prequel that beautifully introduces the creative world Willingham was able to forge back in 2002.

The time has finally come for The Raven: Legacy of a Master Thief to reach its conclusion. This Agatha Christie inspired mystery has had its ups and downs, but has been a relatively enjoyable experience thus far, flaws notwithstanding. The second chapter followed through with the solid writing featured during chapter one's final act, but does it continue here in the third chapter, A Murder of Ravens? Do the puzzles get better, or are they the same humdrum offerings? The answer: not really.