Review Category: Games

WARHAMMER 40,000 CODEX ADEPTUS MECHANICUS (2023)

The grimdark world of Warhammer 40,000 is crammed full of all sorts of weird and wonderful factions. One that stands out above the crowd is the Adeptus Mechanicus, a horrifying branch of humanity in which technology has become a religion and living flesh is regarded as a weakness to be overcome with steel. They’re a strange blend of religious fanaticism and cybernetics who call a ruined red Mars their home and have some of the wildest models, stories, and games in the Warhammer range.

Codex Adeptus Mechanicus (2023) presents the new background material and rules for the tenth edition of Warhammer 40,000. The bulk of the book focuses on being a source of inspiration for building your Adeptus Mechanicus army.

40K is a weird, heavy metal-style setting with horror overtones, and this book is instrumental in getting your head around the aesthetic of these strange beings. This is a faction that distrusts computers so much that it uses human brains as

We get lots of art, some fairly creepy stories and plenty of photographs of the models. The text is clearly laid out and easy to read. It makes for a fun flick-through because this book is more of a reference source for a specific bit of the vast Warhammer setting rather than a straight-up rulebook. We only received the digital version for review, so we can’t confirm the quality of the actual book itself.

Rules-wise, it’s theme first, then playability. In this case, these two things complement each other very well. For example one of the doctrines you can give your army is the Rad Zone Corps; these are units that irradiate the warzone first because radiation doesn’t matter to this army of cyborgs. In the game, this means they’re adamant. On the other hand, we have the Data Psalm Conclave, religious lunatics who use technology to pull off incredible miracles.

Game-wise, this means that key units get better-saving throws and avoid more damage, as their faith (and a little bit of technological know-how) gets them through.

Compared to previous editions of this codex, this has a good balance of rules ‘crunch’ and story-telling ‘fluff’. If you like cool cyborg fanatics and grim dark space fantasy, check this out.

JURASSIC PARK: THE CLASSIC GAMES COLLECTION

PLATFORM: PC, PS4/5, SWITCH, XBOX ONE/SERIES (REVIEWED) | RELEASE DATE: OUT NOW

The early 90s were an absolute minefield of questionable movie tie-in games. A small handful managed to hit the mark (Batman on the NES being a prime example of how to get things right), but many others sank without a trace due to how dreadful they were. The Jurassic Park games fell somewhere in the middle, retaining the characters and setting of the films but straying far enough away from the source material that they might as well not have been related to Jurassic Park at all. However, at the time, dinomania was running wild and 90s kids didn’t give a hoot about whether the stories stayed faithful to the movies or not – all that mattered was that you were running around Jurassic Park, having scraps with rampaging dinosaurs and maybe, if you were lucky, getting to see some wonky digitised versions of Alan Grant.

The Jurassic Park Classic Games Collection rounds up seven titles from the 8 and 16-bit era – the NES, SNES and Game Boy versions of Jurassic Park, the SNES and Game Boy versions of Jurassic Park 2: The Chaos Continues, and the Sega Mega Drive’s Jurassic Park and its Rampage Edition follow-up. Of the three Nintendo versions of JP, which are pretty much identical apart from the obvious hardware limitations between consoles, the SNES edition is by far the most enjoyable with its blend of top-down exploration and dino-hunting, and mindblowing (for the time) transitions into Doom / Wolfenstein-esque first-person 3D sequences. The same can’t quite be said for The Chaos Continues, where the Super Nintendo version’s take on Another World / Flashback-style gameplay pales in comparison to the Game Boy’s more straightforward platforming. Meanwhile, Sega fans were the envy of their Nintendo-owning friends, as the Mega Drive’s side-scrolling run and gun version of Jurassic Park made it possible to play as a velociraptor. The less said about the Rampage Edition, though, the better…

No changes have been made to any of the games themselves, but the usual retro collection bells and whistles like a rewind feature, save states, optional scan lines and a music player are available to make these notoriously tricky relics a little more manageable. It’s a shame that a few of the games are pretty much the same as each other, as there are a fair few obscure JP tie-ins whose inclusions might have made for a more interesting and varied collection, but nevertheless it’s still a pleasure to see these titles getting a new lease of life. They might not all have aged too well, but if you were there at the time you’ll get a kick out of reliving this pixelated part of your childhood.

SUPER MARIO RPG

PLATFORM: SWITCH | RELEASE DATE: OUT NOW

Marking a bold departure for the series, 1996’s SNES exclusive Super Mario RPG: Legend of the Seven Stars took its cues from Final Fantasy-style JRPGs, shifting Mario’s usual 2D side-scrolling platforming gameplay to an isometric 3D environment full of turn-based battles. Earning praise for its graphics and quirky humour, the game wasn’t released in Europe until it arrived on the Wii’s Virtual Console in 2008 and, apart from its inclusion on 2017’s SNES Classic Edition, has largely been hidden away on digital services since then, remaining an oddity for those outside of the USA and Japan, making it a prime candidate for a remake to help the game find the wider audience that it deserves.

After a familiar setup that finds Mario needing to rescue Princess Peach from Bowser’s clutches once again, things take a bizarre turn when a gigantic sword crashes down from the sky and embeds itself right into the middle of Bowser’s castle. This heralds the arrival of the Smithy Gang, whose armies spread their evil intentions across the Mushroom Kingdom. To stop them, Mario buddies up with a cast of quirky and colourful characters who all have their own unique powers that can be used in battle.

The turn-based combat is easy to get to grips with and allows for plenty of wacky attacks and special moves that would never be possible in a regular Mario game, and the ability to add extra hits while your attacks are in motion means that you can still interact with the game while your chosen command is in progress instead of simply watching things play out on screen and waiting for your next turn. With enemy weaknesses to figure out, items that boost your attacks or heal your party, and a special meter that allows you to unleash a devastating tag-team move, there’s a fair few things to keep an eye on during battles. A “breezy” difficulty setting is included for those who might not be on board with JRPG mechanics, making battles quicker and easier to get through.

Super Mario RPG features a particularly whimsical take on the Mushroom Kingdom. Its silly and goofy humour and unexpected encounters with all manner of unusual characters make for a truly delightful and joyous adventure, and this remake’s updated sound and visuals allow everything to shine through in a much more vibrant way than was possible in the original game. With a host of quality-of-life improvements that bring the almost 30-year-old game up to date with modern expectations, this is easily the best way to experience this once-forgotten oddity. A tremendous addition to a long line of excellent releases from Nintendo, who seem to be knocking things out of the park at an almost alarming rate days!

TUROK 3: SHADOWS OF OBLIVION

PLATFORM: PC, PS4/5, SWITCH, XBOX ONE/SERIES (REVIEWED) | RELEASE DATE: OUT NOW

Released as an N64 exclusive in the year 2000, Shadows of Oblivion is the culmination of the original Turok trilogy that itself was based on a dinosaur-hunting comicbook character from the 1950s. With the first two games in the series already receiving remasters over the last eight years, it makes perfect sense for Turok 3 to get the same treatment, and the folks at Nightdive Studios have gone above and beyond to bring this underappreciated FPS up to modern standards.

A more linear experience than its two predecessors, Turok 3 offers the choice of two playable characters who follow slightly different paths through parts of the game. Where Turok 2‘s levels sprawled across the map in an almost incoherent manner, its follow-up features smaller environments and fewer obscure objectives to meet – you’ll still need to track down various objects, but there’s much less chance of getting lost and having to spend hours cluelessly wandering around. The decision to swap dinosaurs for soldiers and weird zombie mutants is a bit of an odd one, given that the series quickly became known for its “dinosaur hunter” tagline, but there are still plenty of monsters and weirdos to blast away with your huge arsenal of weapons. The option to play again as a second character adds a bit of replayability, and two further characters become playable after completing the game, one of which provides a fair amount of challenge due to its inability to wield any weapons…

Along with making the expected improvements to visual fidelity, textures, lighting, geometry and sound, character models and animations have been reworked and improved, higher difficulties have been beefed up with extra enemies, and there’s even an extra splash of extra blood and guts that was sorely missing from the original release. There were plenty of other things missing from 2000’s version of Turok 3, with a whole host of assets being removed from the game due to hardware limitations. Apart from a “new” foe and one enemy receiving an extra attack, these assets were mostly cosmetic but nevertheless have been added back into the game, showing the level of care and attention that Nightdive Studios has put into making this the definitive edition of the game. Without a doubt worth adding to any retro fan’s collection!

YOHANE THE PARHELION – BLAZE IN THE DEEPBLUE

PLATFORM: PC, PS4/5, SWITCH, XBOX ONE/SERIES (REVIEWED) | RELEASE DATE: OUT NOW

One for the anime fans here – Yohane the Parhelion is a spin-off from 2015’s Love Live! Sunshine!!, which sees characters from the main series re-imagined in a fantasy setting. Wannabe idol Yohane is now a fortune-teller, and her schoolfriends / bandmates have gone missing in a monster-infested labyrinth. Developed by Inti Creates, who have made a name for themselves in recent years with a string of near-flawless 2D action games, Blaze in the Deepblue features all of the usual Inti hallmarks – eye-catching visuals, tight platforming, unique mechanics and an incredible soundtrack.

The dungeons that Yohane travels through are laid out in a Metroidvania style, with some parts being locked off until Yohane acquires a specific ability that will allow her to pass whatever obstacle might be in her way. Blaze is one of the less intricate games in the genre though, with fewer abilities and smaller areas to explore. You’re likely to reach the end credits in around 6 hours, making it perfect for those who aren’t quite willing to spend hours backtracking through the complex layouts of something like Hollow Knight or Symphony of the Night.

As you free Yohane’s friends from their prisons, they become available to provide backup for the rest of the game, lending Yohane the use of their attacks and abilities. These are all delightfully quirky and fun to use, but switching between them can be very fiddly, especially towards the end of the game – remembering which character performs which move and then trying to switch between them in the heat of battle can be a rather frustrating experience. Having said that, the overall difficulty level is generally on the easy side, so you can always afford to make a few mistakes.

If you’re a fan of 2D action games, you can never really go too far wrong with Inti Creates’ catalogue. Blaze in the Deepblue isn’t quite up there with the developers’ finest entries, and it’s certainly one of the shorter and easier Metroidvanias out there, but the presentation, visuals, sound and gameplay are all perfectly on point. Those with a fondness for the genre or who are familiar with the anime are likely to find themselves in safe hands!

STORMVAULT SKIRMISH CASE

If you like to play games on a table rather than via a games console, you’re probably familiar with the basic problem of physically getting your stuff to the table. Sometimes it can be an adventure, especially if the table is eight miles away in someone else’s house. This can be especially bothersome if you have something like beautifully painted Citadel miniatures; you don’t want hours of work ruined simply because you couldn’t pack your team of Ork Squighog Boyz properly.

Over the years, Games Workshop have produced many solutions to this conundrum, mostly in the form of big heavy black boxes filled with foam. The Stormvault Skirmish Case is a more elegant idea. It’s a lunchbox-sized storage solution filled with long and thick rubber bristles. The idea is that these flexible tendrils hold your models in place while they bounce about in your bag.

The box is big enough to hold a small squad, so is suitable for games such as Kill Team, War Cry, Marvel Crisis Protocol or Necromunda. The idea here is to keep just the basic models secure so you can have these toys on your person as part of your day-to-day kit. Games like Warhammer Underworlds can be played in a lunch break with a handful of models in under an hour.

When a sample of this product arrived at STARBURST Towers, we decided to fill the case with some enthusiastically painted Gellerpox Infected and popped it into the bag we use every day. The infected are fairly intricate, if gruesome, models for Kill Team, with plenty of spiky bits and tricky-to-paint parts. The models were not harmed at all, despite being thrown around in a reporter’s messenger bag for about a month.

The little silicon prongs hold the models quite well, though you have to be careful not to overload the box; it’s intended for small unit games, not armies. We tried it with heavier models (resin and metal) with similar results: no breakages, and the pieces presented in good order. The box latches closed with a satisfying click and opens with just enough force to keep the models secure.

This is a good addition to a gamer’s arsenal and a considerate gift for the gamer in your life. A useful, if odd, addition to the tabletop gaming hobby.

CRITICAL ROLE: PRE-PAINTED MINIATURE UK’OTOA BOXED SET

One of the major monsters / villains in Critical Role’s Mighty Nein campaign is Uk’otoa, a sea-serpent like leviathan demi-god that drives a forward a lot of the narrative. In addition to being a nebulous, god-like being, it’s also a massive aquatic snake with blade-like fins, tentacle-like protrusions and a great many eyes sprouting from its body.

The Critical Role: Pre-painted Miniature Uk’otoa Boxed Set is a three-part pre-painted model. We get a huge head, fangs bared, rising out of the water, a mid-section covered in eyes, scales and, tentacle like protuberances and a long swirly end of tale that looks like it would sink any ship that would come near it.

This is a very nicely painted piece. Though an unpainted version is available, the model is so detailed and dynamic that we’d suspected painting this up would be a project for a skilled hobbyist. The biggest flaw of this piece is that three pieces just don’t seem quite enough. This is meant to represent an incredibly powerful, malevolent force and evokes Cthulhu-like vibes in both its narrative and model design. We only get three pieces here, a hand full of tentacles and other similar hazards to use would have been appreciated.

Mostly, we suspect, the Critical Role: Pre-painted Miniature Uk’otoa Boxed Set is going to sit on a Critter’s bookshelf, probably guarding the numerous Critical Role Merch that’s out there. It’s a fun piece and full of character, though very, very specific for what it is. An absolute must for those after a scale model of an eldritch sea serpent.

CRITICAL ROLE UNPAINTED MINIATURES WAVE FIVE

Wizkid’s range of Unpainted TTRPG miniatures is an easy and interesting way to build a collection of models for tabletop gaming. Typically, all of these models are available in a pre-painted form, and it’s quite interesting to look at the commercial paint jobs and see how your skills compare.

The latest wave of these toys for the Critical Role range is a mix of monsters, heroes and villains. All of them are at a scale suitable for playing Dungeons & Dragons and most fantasy table-top miniatures games, and they all come ‘pre-primed’, which means there’s a (very thin) layer of grey paint on each model to make them easier to paint. They’re all fixed-pose, which means that if you have multiples of each model, you may want to give each one a different paint job.

First up in this wave is the Cobalt Golem, which is the large robot-like monster that Grog kicks out the window in the Vox Machina. It’s quite a simple model, essentially being a vaguely knight-shaped robot with a huge sword. Its ‘skin’ is detailed in a rippled and cracked way (much like the finish you get on worked cobalt). It’s a nicely done piece with enough detail to be fun for anyone looking for a painting project without too much of a challenge.

Another golem is the Halas Flesh Golem, a nightmarish melding of corpses that the Mighty Nein faced while journeying through the ancient arcane labs in the Folding Halls of Halas. It’s a very nicely done abomination of the sort that will delight collectors of horror-themed miniatures and looks corrupt and terrifying. Limbs and faces just out of a muscular form. The build is perhaps the one that will require the most work in terms of cleaning and painting, simply because of the nature of the sculpt.

Sticking with the monsters, the Naga Abomination is a large six-headed snake monster, with each head having a slightly different sculpt, giving it quite a lot of personality for what is essentially a giant snake monster. The central head has a cobra’s hood, and the other two have some sort of hair. You could also paint this in multiple colours to make it a little bit Tiamat-like. The Naga Abomination is a callback to the first aired episode of Critical Role, and it’s a fun and straightforward project. You may want to add some sort of filler to smooth the areas where the serpentine heads connect, but beyond that, it’s a pretty simple build.

The wave includes one blister with a Xhorhasian mage and a prowler. Xhorhas is mostly full of drow elves, and these models reflect that. They are dressed in functional finery. The prowler is posed as if they are about to attack someone sneakily. The mage looks austere and angry. Nice, if delicate, models.

The next blister features Lucien Tavalle & Cree Deeproots. Lucien is a major villain from the Mighty Nein Campaign and is posed in a conciliatory way, open-handed and about to deliver a monologue. His companion, the cat-person blood-priest Cree, is posed casting a spell. The spell effect takes up the model’s right hand and is made of translucent plastic. These are well-sculpted plastic pieces.

Finally, we have one blister pack for two terrible siblings: Percival Fredrickstein von Musel Klossowski de Rolo III & Cassandra de Rolo. The former is the gun-slinging hero from Vox Machina, and he’s posed donning his plague mask and holding a pistol. His sister is posed with crossed arms, looking very much the diplomat. Both pieces are well made and paint well.

Wave Five is a solid mix of useful monsters and character pieces and a fun project for any Critter.

CRITICAL ROLE: EXANDRIA UNLIMITED – THE CROWN KEEPERS BOXED SET

The Crown Keepers are a team of adventurers from Critical Role’s Exandria Unlimited spin-off series, which uses dungeon masters and players outside the core cast. The Crown Keepers are interesting because about half of them then feature in Campaign Three as part of Bells Hells.

The Critical Role: Exandria Unlimited – The Crown Keepers Boxed Set is a box of six pre-painted minis and does not include Fearne or Orym, who can instead be found in the Bells Hells box.

First off, we get Dorian Storm, who guested in Campaign Three as well. A version of this character can be found in the Bells Hells box, but this version of Darian wears a finer cloak and is wielding a lute and a smile. It’s a more vibrant take on the hero than we see in the other box, but its inclusion in this set reduces the overall utility; you don’t need many Air Genasi bards in any collection. It’s a nice piece, though.

Next up is Morrighan Ferus, a lagomore rogue, or, to put it another way, a leather-clad thief with bunny ears. This is a very nicely sculpted model and a great-looking rogue, though the rabbit ears do make it stand out.

Opal is arguably the main character when it comes to the Crown Keepers, as they are the one who literally keeps the crown. This version of the character is Opal as we first meet her, garbed in a purple and pink outfit with paired knives, rather than the slightly more corrupted hero we encounter later on in the show.

Fy’ra Rai is a powerful monk from the plane of fire, and the character model is appropriately impressive. This is perhaps the nicest model in the set, and you’ll absolutely find a use for it if you’re a dungeon master. The model for Dariax Zaveon is also nicely done; the gutter dwarf looks almost heroic and is very well sculpted.

Finally, Dungeon Master Aabria Iyengar gets their own model in this set. At a pinch, you could use this well-sculpted model of a lady in a nice dress as a sorcerer or wizard, but mostly, it’s nice to have.

Critical Role: Exandria Unlimited – The Crown Keepers Boxed Set is a good addition to a Critical Role fans collection and a fairly handy mix of cool models for the D&D/TTRPG table.

LIKE A DRAGON GAIDEN: THE MAN WHO ERASED HIS NAME

PLATFORM: PC, XBOX ONE/SERIES, PS4/5 (REVIEWED) | RELEASE DATE: OUT NOW

It wouldn’t be a memorable year in gaming if it didn’t include a new release in one of SEGA’s most popular and longest-running franchises – so up steps Like A Dragon Gaiden: The Man Who Erased His Name (it wouldn’t be Japan if it didn’t have a long title!).

Set after the events of Yakuza 6 and before the upcoming Like A Dragon: Infinite Wealth, this game’s story follows a returning fan favourite, the infamous Kazuma Kiryu, after the end of his initial journey (no spoilers here), and documents his adventure between where we left him and how he gets to appear in the next instalment led by new series protagonist, Ichiban. Kiryu, in order to save those he loves and cares about, must turn to the Daidoji to fake his death in exchange for the protection of the children of Morning Glory Orphanage – but the other factions that Kiryu has crossed paths with before, along with some new ones, want to prove that the Dragon of Dojima is still alive and vie for control of him.

Like A Dragon Gaiden is the shortest game of the series, clocking in at around 15-20 hours for the main story, but that doesn’t mean it lacks any sort of punch. The real-time fighting mechanic that has been perfected over the series’ nearly 20-year history, and the inclusion of Special Agent gadgets into Kiryu’s arsenal, provide some truly unique, interesting, and free-flowing combos that range from the spectacular to the ludicrous – the true Yakuza charm. Couple that with a brilliant LAD story along with plenty of the usual minigames (karaoke, golf, darts) and some great side missions, and you have an entertaining little package to keep Yakuza fans happy before the “monstrous in length” Infinite Wealth launches in January 2024.