Fresh Look: AAA Gaming Is Following the Hollywood Blockbuster Playbook
As budgets climb and development cycles stretch, Fresh Look’s Neal Sayatovich worries that AAA gaming is adopting Hollywood’s safest habits with fewer enormous bets on new projects and less room for unusual ideas that might become tomorrow’s cult classics.
Save State: 7 Days to Die 3.0 Makes the Sandbox Wilder
Save State’s Vincent Mahoney and his friends returned to 7 Days to Die for its 3.0 update and found a new version of the zombie survival staple that adds multiple endgame hooks, fresh customization options and a lot more room for crazy chaos.
Fresh Look: EA’s Latest Sports Ad Plan Raises Bigger Questions
Fresh Look’s Neal Sayatovich takes a look at EA’s new advertising platform and argues that even if the company says the changes are aimed at sports titles, the bigger concern is what more in-game ads could mean for players and across the industry.
Save State: Celeste Has More to Offer Than Tough Platforming
This week Save State columnist Vincent Mahoney writes about how Celeste combines tight controls, optional high-level challenges and a touching story into one of the most rewarding indie platformers of the past decade.
Fresh Look: Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order Is Still Worth the Trip
Fresh Look columnist Neal Sayatovich this week enjoys the action-adventure title Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order. A deep sale finally gave him the excuse to try Fallen Order, and he describes his amazing Star Wars experience.
Save State: Vincent Has a Shell of a Good Time With TMNT: Splintered Fate
Save State columnist Vincent Mahoney takes a look at TMNT: Splintered Fate and finds a fast, colorful roguelite that borrows smartly from Hades, adds co-op chaos and becomes especially hard to resist when found at the right price.
Fresh Look: Finding Fun With Star Wars Outlaws in an Uneven Galaxy
Fresh Look columnist Neal Sayatovich returned to Star Wars Outlaws expecting a rough experience but found that it was more enjoyable than its reputation suggests, even if its worlds, systems and story never dig quite as deep as they should.
Save State on the Secret to Unlocking Powers Earlier in Crimson Desert
Returning to Crimson Desert with more knowledge and better routing, Save State columnist Vincent Mahoney finds that some of the open world action adventure’s most exciting elemental powers can be earned much earlier than expected.
Fresh Look: Going Back to War With Total War: Rome Remastered
Fresh Look’s Neal Sayatovich this week enjoys Total War: Rome Remastered, the remastered version of one of his favorite strategy titles. He finds that it does exactly what a good remaster should do: preserve the feel of the original while making enough smart improvements for a modernized experience.
Save State Enjoys the Explosions of Confetti and Coins in Vampire Crawlers
Save State’s Vincent Mahoney takes a look at Vampire Crawlers, a stylish first-person deckbuilder from the Vampire Survivors team that trades brutal challenges for big combos, fast progress and the joy of feeling wildly overpowered.