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“The Outer Worlds” Review

 

As fun as Fallout 3, 4, and New Vegas may have been, they’re not great as straight shooters; you really have to use the V.A.T.S. targeting system. But it’s a complaint action fans won’t be making about The Outer Worlds (Xbox One, PlayStation 4, PC, Switch), a Fallout-esque open world, sci-fi action role-playing adventure game from the good people of Obsidian Entertainment — a.k.a., the Fallout: New Vegas folk. And while this has its own problems, it still manages to be as effortlessly fun as, well, you know.

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Books Video Games Xbox One

Exclusive Interview: “Halo: Oblivion” Author Troy Denning

 

In 2018’s Halo: Silent Storm, writer Troy Denning explored a largely untapped time in the life of Master Chief: his life before the events of his first game, Halo: Combat Evolved. It’s a story (and a time) Denning is now expanding upon with Halo: Oblivion (paperback, hardcover, Kindle). In the following email interview, Denning talks about what inspired this sci-fi space opera story, the role the Halo overlords of 343 Industries had in crafting the plot, and what kind of game they could make out of this novel.

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Books Video Games Xbox One

Exclusive Interview: Gears Of War: Ascendance Author Jason M. Hough

 

In 2009, ’10, and ’11, the people behind the Gears Of War games released three novels that chronicled what happened in this military sci-fi saga between the end of Gears Of War 2 and the beginning of Gears Of War 3. With the new (and excellent) Gears 5 picking up weeks after the end of Gears Of War 4, the good people at The Coalition who made these sci-fi shooters have again turned to the written word to fill in the blanks. In the following email interview, writer Jason M. Hough talks about what inspired and influenced Gears Of War: Ascendance (paperback, Kindle), and whether he took any cues from those previous gap-filling stories.

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PC Reviews Video Games Xbox One

Gears 5 Review

 

With every successive game, the Gears Of War series has evolved, adding new mechanics and modes to these third-person sci-fi shooters. But while the same can be said for Gears 5 (Xbox One, PC) as well, the changes are the most fundamental and impactful since the addition of the co-op survival mode “Horde” in Gears Of War 2, and the game is all the better for it.

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PC PlayStation 4 Reviews Video Games Xbox One

The Dark Pictures Anthology: Man Of Medan Review

 

In 2015, when Supermassive made the interactive horror movie game Until Dawn, they showed that while they could do the interactive part better than some other movie game people we could mention (and will in a moment), they had a harder time with the horror. Thankfully, they seem to have learned from their mistakes with The Dark Pictures Anthology: Man Of Medan (Xbox One, PlayStation 4, PC). Not only does it have enough interesting interactivity to keep you paying attention, but it’s pretty scary as well.

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PC PlayStation 4 Reviews Video Games Xbox One

“Control” Video Game Review

 

There’s a fine line between “retro” and “dated.” While some things still feel fresh long after people stop doing that kind of thing, others are behind the times or out of step and thus feel like they belong to another, less interesting era. It is in the latter category that we largely find the third-person survival horror shooter Control (Xbox One, PlayStation 4, PC), which often feels like a relic from ten, fifteen years ago, and is far the worse for it.

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Books PC PlayStation 4 Switch Video Games Xbox One

Exclusive Interview: “Alien: Isolation” Author Keith R.A. DeCandido

 

Though it came out five years ago, the stealth action game Alien: Isolation seems to be as resilent as its titular hero. A companion online show Alien: Isolation: The Digital Series came out in February; a Switch version of the game is scheduled for the end of the year; and now, for gamers who read, there’s an eponymous novelization that expands the story in interesting ways.

In the following email interview, author Keith R.A. DeCandido talks about how he came to write Alien: Isolation (paperback, Kindle), what it adds to the game’s narrative, and whether his expansions would work in the game.

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PC PlayStation 4 Reviews Switch Video Games Xbox One

Wolfenstein: Youngblood Review

Shooting Nazis in the Wolfenstein games has always been a solitary experience. But while that’s not the case with Wolfenstein: Youngblood (Xbox One, PlayStation 4, PC, Switch), this first-person shooter has some issues that only exist because it’s a co-op game that you can play solo, and not the other way around.

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PC PlayStation 4 Reviews Video Games Xbox One

Rage 2 Review

Between Far Cry New Dawn, Anthem, and Days Gone, no one would fault you for not wanting to play yet another open world, post-apocalyptic / damaged world shooter like Rage 2 (Xbox One, PlayStation 4, PC). Which is too bad since this sequel to the 2011 cult classic is not only on par with some of those games — and far better than others — but it also has some unique aspects as well.

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