Prey [official site] isn’t the game I thought it would be. Clearly, Prey isn’t the game that anyone thought a game called ‘Prey’ would be until relatively recently, given its years in development hell and eventual total departure from both the first game to bear that name and the axed second one that was supposed to. But even when I played it twice over the past couple of months, doing so within time constraints, with my eye only on making progress, I formed an inaccurate impression of Prey. I thought I knew exactly what it was, and I knew I’d like it, but I wasn’t sure I’d love it. I certainly didn’t think it’d turn out to be the game I’ve enjoyed the most so far this year. … [visit site to read more]

The highly-stylised community architecture management project, Block’hood [official site], is moving out of early access on 11 May and plopping its futuristic boxes into the spacious environs of full release. … [visit site to read more]

A vehicle I’m told is “the world’s largest farm tractor” has arrived in Farming Simulator 17 [official site] as paid DLC. The Big Bud 747! Four metres high! Eight metres long! 960 horsepower! When fully fuelled and loaded, it weighs the equivalent of 61,234 one-kilogram bags of sugar. It is a big tractor. But while I’m told that the Big Bud is a big tractor, you can’t tell me that Big Bud isn’t the name of a covers band who love to rock on AC/DC, Led Zep, and Skynyrd. In fact, all the other brands and products in this DLC sound like bands. Let’s go over them once I’ve explained this DLC. … [visit site to read more]

A beautiful and novel game suffering from something of an identity crisis, Scanner Sombre [official site] is the latest from Introversion Software, making a play for artfulness after a few years of successfully popularising themselves with Prison Architect. But though Scanner’s central conceit – using a laser scanner to ‘paint’ dot-array colours and shape onto your pitch black, subterranean surroundings – is gloriously atmospheric, it lacks the lightness of touch needed to achieve the emotional clout it so clearly wants to have. … [visit site to read more]

Rakuen [official site], the first game from Laura Shigihara, has been five years in the making, and is out today. “Laura Shigihara?” you say, “I know that name from somewhere!” Indeed you do – Shigihara came to fame when she wrote and performed the fabulous song that accompanied the original Plants Vs Zombies. She has since composed and performed music for many independent games, perhaps most notably the gorgeous To The Moon – a game that was a big inspiration for Rakuen. … [visit site to read more]

Vanquish [official site], the superfast and supersilly third-person shooter from PlatinumGames, will finally come to PC on May 25th, Sega have announced. Platinum are best known for hack ‘n’ slashing in games including Bayonetta (which finally hit PC in April) and Nier: Automata, and Vanquish is an interesting game for carrying some similar ideas. Vanquish can be played like any cover-based shooter but that seems a waste when you can also zip around with rocket-powered knee slides in slowmo. … [visit site to read more]

Have You Played? is an endless stream of game retrospectives. One a day, every day of the year, perhaps for all time.>

I didn’t expect much from Asterix at the Olympic Games, and that’s definitely part of why I like it as much as I do. I think it’s a genuinely good PS2-era action-platformer though, and one with a delightful, meta story.

… [visit site to read more]

I have a question for you. How do you approach a big game? … [visit site to read more]

Crafty space sandbox Starbound [official site] will add the ability to build your own space station in its next update. Living on planets is for lahoo-oo-oo-serrrs so Starbounders and starcads will get to build their own space base out of snap-together modules, shaping and decorating stations as they please. Me, I’d want my station to be a space bar in a space garden but I am of course aware that a large number of space tadgers will be built. … [visit site to read more]

The only good claw machine is a dead claw machine as Socrates once said. HOWEVER Socrates was rubbish at claw machines so he WOULD say things like that. If he had been slightly more contemporaneous with Itch.io he could have honed his claw machine skills with Clawfish [Itch page], a claw machine fishing game made for TOjam. TOjam is the Toronto game jam, FYI, and the theme this time was “Prepare for disappointment” so a claw machine is a pretty good fit. … [visit site to read more]