Available for PlayStation 5 19/11/20 (PEGI 3) 4 Stars
Youth #Gottit View: Much like the FIFA games if you love Basket Ball this is a must own annual purchase. The player game animation and facial appearance is stunning on the PlayStation 5. A Must own for NBA fans!!!
PlayStation 5 review by Harrison and Con CLICK HERE!!!
Ending off the year with the brand new Call of Duty is always exciting and with Cold War bringing about a setting we have never seen before, there are many reasonings to be excited. The game widely follows its predecessors, with the majority of new mechanics and features being within the zombie and campaign game modes. This game is by far is one of the smoothest CODs to date with gameplay feeling great. The brand new triggers on the PS5 controller give an entirely new feel to the game with the haptic feedback and adaptive triggers complimenting each other to make the PS5 easily the best console input to play on.
Call Of Duty Black Ops Cold WarModes:
Campaign
Starting with the campaign, Cold War offers just under 10 hours of gameplay for an average gamer as you go under the alias ‘Bell’, an American agent as they try to stop Perseus, a one-man threat to the free world. The gameplay within the campaign is very enjoyable but has considerably more action taking place without a gun than previous instalments. You find yourself sneaking round bases and targets homes very often as the game offers you two options to play out many of the missions; a stealthy hitman/assassin’s creed-esque style of gameplay or the classic well-loved guns blazing approach. This is particularly refreshing and makes this game feel unique to any of the other COD. Another brand new addition is the lock-picking skills which tie in nicely with the more covert theme of Cold War to make you feel like a mix between James bond and Catwoman as you prowl the streets and buildings within the Soviet Union. Furthermore, here is a greater incentive for the completionists out there, with the new edition of the clues map. This allows you to not only recap the story far but also is added to whenever you find clues scattered throughout the missions as they unlock various side missions. I, myself, found this led to replay missions in order to unlock these side missions which do a great job in enriching the story.
The actual story is solid with character development being great as the game gives you the chance to walk around your base between missions, starting up conversations with crew members enhancing overall interest in the characters. We see nods to previous characters including Mason and Woods yet Cold War strikes a good balance, only having them momentarily allowing the new characters to really shine. The lack of new guns and varied troops is slightly disappointing and scenes without stealth gameplay become too same-ey as you get to the end of the game. However, although the story sometimes feels a little slow when compared to previous campaigns, the multi-ending scenes are exceptional. It allows the player to get really dark if they so choose so or get the classic happy ending.
To conclude, Cold war’s campaign is pretty good with game play feeling smooth and a new style of more assassin style game play being really refreshing. Its only downfalls are the slightly slow plot points and the lack of innovation within enemies and guns. Overall, I give the campaign a solid 4/5
Multiplayer
This year’s multiplayer is very stripped back with many feeling it is a step back for the franchise. However, I enjoyed the decrease, finding the simplifications in game play really enjoyable. The increased hit count before death provides players with more of a chance to shoot back without making kills too difficult to obtain, increasing the game’s attractiveness to new players. However, other than the change in the actual player mechanics, Cold war’s multiplayer is far from perfect. The new addition of VIP mode is not nearly as fun as past game modes and ‘Dirty Bomb’ also falls short of making any large impact. One great feature, however, is the hardcore modes, in which the increased hit count is reverted, feeling like past CODs. Bugs don’t seem to be a massive problem, and game play feels very smooth however this fluidity seems to come at a cost of a reducing in map features. Maps have a lack of personality and at the moment there are only 10 within the game, significantly less than the 14 maps within Modern Warfare yet, of course, there will be updates to this so I may be being too impatient. Additionally, maps seem to be even less user friendly with the smaller maps having issues with enemy visibility. However, one and perhaps the only map that stands out for purely good reasons is Armada. This map is in the middle of the Northern Atlantic Ocean and provides a great experience for players of all skill levels through its advantages for both long-range and short-range weapons and lack of camping spots which are especially prevalent within Cold war. Overall, Cold War is a good shooter but not a great COD. When compared to past maps, the settings just seem empty. The only consolation is the new style of stripped game play. Overall, I give the multiplayer 3.5/5
Zombies
Although contrary to most COD players, I am not the biggest fan of Zombies as a game mode, however, there is no question about the quality of Cold War’s zombies. Although there is only one map (the Vietnam setting is only rumoured at the time of writing), it is made up for by the new features added. You can now bring your multiplayer loadout with you to start the waves off and special abilities are as fun as ever to use. Weapons are now assigned rarities as they get stronger, making progression more satisfying and random boxes are found throughout the map adding to the excitement. Zombies still provide a major challenge, even without the scrabbling around for weapons due to the higher supply of weapons, and perks are still unchanged. There is now an option to leave the map at wave 10 via helicopter giving an option to end the game sooner for a more convenient playing experience. Overall, I feel the zombies’ formula has only gotten better and is the onslaught of thousands of zombies with 3 friends has remained unbeaten this year. I give zombies 5/5.
In conclusion, the campaign is fun and brings a new outlook to the original trigger happy experience through its spy-like game play yet due to the story seeming to be missing something and enemies being boring to fight against, it receives a 4/5. Multiplayer is very fun but the mixture of not up to par new game modes and boring maps lead it to get a 3. Finally, zombies is almost perfect, providing a really great experience for players looking for an onslaught, hence why I gave it a 5/5.
Available for PlayStation 5 19/11/20 (PEGI 18) 4 Stars
Youth #Gottit View:
A must own for all ‘Call of Duty’ fans and with regular game play updates. The combat fun will keep coming and coming and coming. Looks stunning on the PlayStation 5!!!
PlayStation 5 review by Con and Harrison CLICK HERE!!!
Ubisoft broke the trend back in 2018, announcing that there would not be a new Assasins creed game in 2019 and that they would instead spend an extra year perfecting the final chapter of Layla’s story and man did it pay off. Valhalla takes place in the year 873 AD within the setting of the highly requested Viking invasions of England and between the mix of its ridiculously large, beautiful map and the rich amount of substance and number of great characters within the story, it has combined to be one of the best AC games of all time.
The game starts you off in the shoes of a young, Scandinavian child, Eivor, who watches their family get slaughtered by a rival Viking leader. We then cut to the same young Viking but now a fully grown man (can also choose a female protagonist) and the adoptive son of the local Viking king, as he explores the beautiful yet briefly visited setting of Norway in search for answers to the strange visions he seems to be receiving from the Gods. One thing Valhalla does really well is the execution of religions within its world, as the interpretation of Norse mythology really shines through as a standout feature of the game. Furthermore, the ideas of Christianity and its roots within England and the Roman Empire are really fascinating to explore, adding to the classic ideas of science vs religion and themes of an almost modern-day renaissance so key to the series. The real story begins, however, when Eivor’s brother adoptive Sigurd seeks to create his own story separate of his father by sailing to and taking over England. So after a brief encounter with some wandering members of the assassins, Eivor sets off in hopes of new glory and riches within England.
This game is probably best described through the word MASSIVE. From its over 70 hour main story to its combined 140km² of playable terrain, Assasins Creed: Valhalla will keep you entertained for a very long time even if you aren’t one for completing all the side missions or a collectibles addict, however, this itself is also a massive improvement from the previous instalment, where side missions and discoverables are far less crammed down your throat and instead provide an actual fun storyline and challenge to complete. Additionally, the use of brand new combat mechanics including a total of 8 brand new equitable abilities at any one time and an outrageously satisfying set of kill animations make the more horde heavy fighting style the last 3 games have been starting to lean toward, even more fun. The inclusion of the brand new skill tree adds a new way to sculpt your character gaining more and more perks as the story continues through its constellation-like layout. There is a decreased emphasis on the Assasin’s side of the game as for the first half of the game, they are merely dangled above you like a cat trying to get a beam of light on the wall leaving small hints to their existence until we finally get to see them in all their glory. Although it seems to be inevitable with a game of this sheer magnitude, the beginning of the game lacks the proper pacing yet after around the 10-hour mark, it severely picks up its stride keeping you captivated at every moment.
Despite the many bugs at launch, which seems a theme synonymous with the AC franchise at this point, they don’t seem to overpower the actual gameplay with the majority of bugs being purely funny rather than game-breaking. The only issues with gameplay are sometimes within dashing when fighting and parkour. Movement is sometimes clunky and Eivor is often struggling to climb up or down supposedly easy settings, sometimes leading to enemies being alerted of your presence. However, this is not too much of a problem as Valhalla never fails you for being noticed and bashing Saxon skulls as a Viking is one of the few things which feels just as good as stealthy assassinations.
As a character Eivor is excellent, being in my top 3 AC main protagonists of all time, unfortunately, many of the side characters do not share this wealth of characterization yet this isn’t really the games fault due to many characters only appearing for a few hours as you complete an area then never being seen again, resulting in development being difficult. Layla’s arc is completed well as she earns herself the spot of the best modern-day hero yet that is not too difficult since Desmond is the only one to have anywhere near as much game time and Desmond is just… Desmond. Enough said.
Overall, the game is amazing with the world being beautiful and the story being engaging and interesting. Valhalla provides players with many opportunities to embrace your inner Viking and go crazy within England slaughtering all in your path. A couple of bugs and movement annoyances are minuscule in comparison to everything the game does right. The dark brutal natural of Viking madness has never felt so good!!!
Available for PlayStation 5 19/11/20 (PEGI 18) 4.5 Stars
Youth #Gottit View:
This is a HUGE game with loads of action and it looks absolutely stunning on the PlayStation 5. A must play for fans of the franchise!!!
PlayStation 5 review by Harrison and Con CLICK HERE!!!
When announced back in June, the Demon Souls remake had fans in a frenzy, I mean what’s not to love about such a classic PS3 game being updated and adapted for modern technology, and, for the most part, it is a highly successful addition to the Souls franchise.
The graphics are stunning and I would go so far to say this Demon soul is a visual masterpiece. From attack animations to ways the objects around you break, everything is perfect in this department. Settings leave you mesmerised and the flash of Dragons flying by as they breathe fire obstructing your way is always a spectacle.
As someone who had never played any of the Souls games, I was excited to take on the challenge, which is synonymous with the Souls name and compared to games today, it definitely did not disappoint. I even pride myself on the fact I play almost all games on the hardest difficulty, however, Demon Souls was a different beast. Nevertheless, I pushed on, largely due to the fact my pride had been hurt after finding out it was the easiest game in the series, and soon learned the patterns and combinations needed to deal with the foot soldiers and bosses after many, many, MANY deaths.
It was largely a great experience with both the puzzle aspect and combat being fun, yet I found the lack of checkpoints, which I later found was a decrease from the original, making the game slightly too intense for my liking yet many hardcore fans will welcome this change. I found boss fights to be a blast, with no one fight being anything like the other, yet felt that it could have had a more linear structure in terms of the difficulty. The soundscaping and audio are amazing, pulling you in and not letting go from its continuous intensity which when complemented by the visuals, make the game one of the best out on PS5 right now.
Available on PlayStation 5 19/11/20 (PEGI 18) 4 Stars
Youth #Gottit View:
This certainly lives up to its reputation of being one of the hardest games on the market and it may be a little too frustrating for some gamers. The graphics are stunning on the PlayStation 5!!!
PlayStation 5 review by Con and Harrison CLICK HERE!!!
Tenet review by Harrison (Completely Spoiler Free review)
Available on DVD, Blu-Ray, 4K and Digital Download10/11/20 (12) 5 Stars
Youth #Gottit View:
Christopher Nolan meets David Lynch. Its a really hard story to explain but its a genuine work of art and very, very exciting throughout. Tenet is rated 12A – but its at the top end of 12A’s and close to being a 15 rated movie in content. A must see for 2020 – Highly Recommended!!!
This is such a must see show – every episodes a corker. Incredible cast, great stories and very funny. You’ll struggle to not consume the whole series in one sitting – Highly Recommended!!!
Playmobil Back To The Future Advent Calendar review by Harrison
Available from all good retailers (6 Years +) 4 Stars
Youth #Gottit View:
Playmobil is traditionally a toy for youngsters – but this new Back To the Future range is certainly not just for children. This new Advent Calendar is a must own for all Back To The Future fans!!!
Kidzcoolit – Playmobil Back to the Future – DeLorean and 1955 Marty McFly & Dr Emmet Brown review by ConCLICK HERE!!!
