Travis Brown

Skater XL on PS4 is the skateboarding game I've been waiting for. It's not similar to the Tony Hawks Pro Skater series, or EA's SKATE trilogy, and that's what makes it so good. It's not an arcade game, or a cheesy skateboarding "themed" story, so this really isn't for everyone, but if you skate, or are a fan of actual skateboarding, this nails it! The basic goal is to skate however you want, on whatever you want. The control scheme takes about an hour to get used to, but after that initial "how the hell does this work" phase, it's a complete joy to set up a starting marker and get that trick on that handrail, or try for my tenth time in a row to make every trick in a 6 trick line smooth, then film it, which is how real skateboarding is. The joysticks control each foot, L2 and R2 control turning, and the main pad lets you go straight into replay editor. Controlling your style on tricks is so awesome. As someone who's been skating for more than two decades, I can say that nothing feels better than landing a trick you've been trying all day, or that week, and in some cases, years, and rolling away from it, and I think XL captures that feeling without the rolled ankles, broken boards, and cheese grated palms. There are some minor bugs that the day one version 1.04 patch fixed, so you'll want that downloaded before you start, but that's to be expected from a smaller company who you can tell just wanted to make a skateboarding sim that other companies and franchises have failed to make. The replay editor works well, and hiding the interface allows you to hold the Share button to get an awesome screenshot or clips that do look surprisingly realistic. I don't have a pc and haven't been able to play a decent skateboarding game without blowing the dust off the PS3 and settling for SKATE 2 or 3, which by all means was sufficient for the time, as well as being able to play with friends in sessions of "do tricks as realistically as possible". I love skateboarding, so for me, this game was absolutely worth the $40 and the wait. I do hope there are future updates and features that allow me to play with a friend, as well as an in-game dedicated screenshot and clip sharing option. Maybe some more music and character creation options would be good, but as of right now, I can easily see myself putting in hundreds of hours just getting to skate highly detailed real world skate spots and making some sick lines and getting creative with these environments. Thank you Easy Day Studios for bringing this gem to consoles and I look forward to future projects from you guys!

BioMutant is a truly excellent game. I wasn't entirely sure what to expect, and I was skeptical as to how "open" the open-world would be. It's absolutely massive! The settings are as diverse as the mission sets and characters. I always wanted to see what was around every corner, unlock my next upgrade, check that one nook to see if something was hidden there, and most of the time there was something to help me either craft an entirely new and unique weapon, a random quest, a box of health, or little mini foxes to pet and collect to increase my light, and a host of other little nifty finds. Along with having multiple endings that I'm in no rush to get to (I'm 20 hours in and 3% done... it really is a huge game) I can see myself playing for a good while to come. It has a similar feeling to Horizon, but it's a post apocalypse, apocalypse, and your choices decide the fate of the world you inhabit. The weapons are fun to use and the wung fu (kung fu, gun fu), as well as complete unarmed combat are intricate and satisfying. I have heard people complain about the narrator being the only main voice, but I don't feel like it detracts from anything. I waited for this game for many years, and not only was I not disappointed in any way, my expectations were surpassed in the amount of content and creativity that went into this game. It's a beautiful and chaotic world with a lot of interesting mechanics and things to discover. I am thoroughly enjoying it. Way to go Experiment 101!