Survival horror Alan Wake 2 is hands down one of the best games I have ever played, thanks to its fantastic narrative, horrifying exploration, and beautiful setting. You are dropped back into Bright Falls, a quaint town, where you must help free Alan Wake from his watery 13-year prison sentence, after the events of the first game. You also get to play as Saga Anderson, an FBI agent written into Wake’s horror story to help defeat the evil Mr. Scratch once and for all. Both characters are controllable in the third-person, just like Alan Wake, but while such controls and perspectives might remain the same, the spooks have been amped up. 

That’s not the only thing that has been amped up. Alan Wake 2 is as high-stakes as you can get from a survival horror game. You are dropped into a strange town and forced to piece together an ever-changing puzzle while fighting off plagued residents known as the Taken. The eerie setting and unsettling creatures will make you jump right from the very beginning, providing some of the worst scares I’ve experienced since Amnesia: The Bunker. However, like any spooky survival game, the more you play, the better it gets as you familiarize yourself with the location, and rhythm of attacks, while also, most importantly, finding plenty of resources to help along the way.

A better way to play

The narrative in Alan Wake 2 is one of its most compelling features, as it should be. Instead of relying on horrific scares, beautiful scenery, or fantastic soundscaping, as so many horror games do, the developers at Remedy Entertainment go the whole nine yards and perform an excellent medley with all these aspects while ensuring the narrative remains the star of the show. 

This sequel was set up wonderfully by its predecessor which provided a fantastic premise and location. However, Alan Wake 2’s story means this second installment really comes into its own and feels like an airtight, complete package that newcomers can also enjoy. This accomplishment is partly thanks to one of the protagonists being a detective; it’s Saga Anderson’s mission to get to grips with the twisting narrative in Bright Falls, which means you can get your head around all the plot points vicariously through her with ease.  

Instead of being bombarded with endless chit-chat from a partner NPC whose job it is to follow you around and explain needlessly obvious things, you’re left to piece together everything for yourself, at your own pace, and in your own time - made easier by the assistance of an extraordinary gift and various manuscript pages you can find lying around the town and its surrounding area. It was a terrifying pleasure to simply exist in this liminal space for however long I wanted, walking the line between dawn and dusk, following a spider web of pathways in the deadly, quiet forest. I enjoyed it so much that I often spent hours searching the woods for strange clues or cultist supply boxes that I could pillage for resources.

Anderson’s special gift is her mind palace. However, instead of sprawling halls of say, a Sherlock Holmes mind palace, this is simply a dimly lit room with various utilities inside. You can profile the people you meet here, ask their subconscious questions, and read through manuscripts left to help you decipher the past or warn you of the future, but most importantly, it is here that you can plot out the story and piece together clues. 

Each case in the game has its spot on the wall where you can place all the clues you have gathered in a sprawling mind map, which helps you think up questions and propels the narrative forward. There are so many reasons why I love this technique, but the best one is that it provides scared players a refuge to take a breath and recap on what they know, fixing one of the problems from the first game: Wake’s endless monologues. Instead of listening to Wake ramble on about everything that's happening, you can read about it at your own pace in a more engaging way.

The future is now 

While the narrative is fantastic, delivering an engaging way of experiencing what is a near-confusing and mind-bending story, the icing on top of the cake in Alan Wake 2 has to be the imaginative cutscenes and fantastic art style. 

Melding together reality and games, you come across multiple instances, while playing as Wake, of the real actors performing scenes. The actual actors are usually found in a late-night talk show studio laughing about all of Wake’s wonderful crime books while a highly disturbed Wake looks on in confusion, questioning his reality. 

Fusing these realities gave me the same chills I felt all those years ago when I first realized I could control my character during Half-Life’s cutscenes. This always looks fantastic and bends your mind, as from here on out, you’re not quite sure what reality looks like. 

There are also the beautifully shot cutscenes during Anderson’s profiling sessions in her mind palace. These seamlessly combine real actors with their in-game counterparts as they flash on and off the screen. These short scenes are wonderfully creepy and beautifully artistic, as they add another layer of confusing and thrilling scares to the game. 

Overall, Alan Wake 2 simply looks terrific. From the first moment you walk down the crooked and root-riddled forest pathway during sunset to the murder site to the reality-distorting sequences in the Dark Place, it never fails to look its best. Even when being chased down bloody halls riddled with mutilated bodies, I still had brief moments where I thought how pretty everything looked.  

Some serious entomophobia

My time in Alan Wake 2 wasn’t all sunshine and rainbows, however. Unfortunately, there was one instance which stopped me in my tracks. Towards the end, I found myself trapped in a room, unable to get past a bug that prevented me from getting further. 

Even in the dead of night, when I wanted nothing more than to shut my eyes and pass out, I tinkered around with this bug in hopes of finding a way to pass through it, simply because I didn’t want to stop playing, I was having that much fun. For prospective PS5 players, worry not; the issue has already been patched out of the game so that all new playthroughs will be unaffected by this game-ending bug. Were it not for this bug, it’s easy to imagine slapping a five-star score onto Alan Wake, but as I can’t see how the story ends and what happens with the game after this point, I can only talk about what I’ve seen so far.

Sign of a good horror 

Despite my time in Alan Wake 2 being cut slightly short, I enjoyed every second of the thrilling and terrifying survival horror game. It scared me so badly that I woke up my neighbors; I didn’t realize how horrifying this game would be in its first few acts. However, I also couldn't ever put it down, despite its scares giving me the shakes. 

Exploring the beautifully terrifying locations, immersing myself in the thoughtful and expertly crafted narrative, and simply experiencing the joys of watching something so artistic and well-choreographed was a pleasure. 

I’ll be playing Alan Wake 2 repeatedly, exploring new undiscovered crevices of its map, uncovering more clues about the true nature of the townfolk in Bright Falls, and looting the local cult for everything they have. There are so many sides to Alan Wake 2 to enjoy, which is why it easily earns its mantle of being my game of the year.  

Accessibility  

There are average accessibility settings in Alan Wake 2. While there isn’t a dedicated accessibility page in the menu, you can find multiple features that will help ease your time in this frightening game. For those playing with controllers, there's aim assist, single tap walk, and quick turn. There are also general interface options such as subtitles, which you can change the size and background of, and HUD alterations for visual accessibility. Finally, there are a few audio accessibility options which can help customize how intense you want the experience to be. 

How we reviewed Alan Wake 2

After over 18 hours in Alan Wake 2, I made it right to the end before I was prevented from going further. However, over those dozen and a half hours, I managed to experience every aspect that the survival game offers including side cases such as cultist supplies or trying to unravel the mysterious case of the children’s lunch box. I played it at the standard difficulty and am pleased to say that while it’s challenging, it’s by no means impossible. However, there are options if you want to make it easier or harder. 

I reviewed Alan Wake 2 on my PS5 preferring performance over quality. I didn’t encounter any hiccups until the end, and there were smooth transitions, and quick-loading screens, and the visuals were beautiful despite not choosing the quality setting.  

For more spine-chilling titles, check out our list of the best survival games, and best indie horror games that you can enjoy right now. 

Gliding through Ghostrunner 2 can be a balancing act. On one end of the precarious see-saw, you feel like an unstoppable cyber-ninja that can defeat even the fiercest of foes. On the other, you’re faced with furiously complex challenges and frustrating bugs, which go a long way in slowing you down. 

Luckily, the objective of Ghostrunner 2 is simple. Mr tall, dark and swordy is set in an apocalyptic future where humanity is confined in one last liveable city, Dharma Tower. Here, there is a dangerous threat of the Asura, a group of Ghostrunners hunted to near extinction. This blood-thirsty organization plagues Dharma Tower and is hell-bent on destroying it and bringing about a new age ruled by Ghostrunners. Alongside the Interface Council, a group of humans fighting for freedom, you must navigate the tower and the outside world to bring down these enemies. 

It’s a lot of pressure to place on a new Ghostrunner; for better or worse, you’ll feel this stress throughout your time in Ghostrunner 2. While you’re gradually introduced to all the mechanics in your arsenal, meaning you can slowly get to grips with traversing the high-stakes and dangerous environment, the skill ceiling spikes and ebbs throughout your playthrough. The next challenging section could be right around the corner, and you won’t know until you’re in the thick of it.  

Soaring through the skies 

Ghostrunner 2’s biggest draw is its fast-paced traversal and action sequences. You can’t help but feel cool as you’re racing through cybernetic cathedrals and pokey alleyways that crisscross Dharma Tower. You have multiple abilities that make navigating these locations simple, which is more than welcome when you’re flying hundreds of stories up in the air. 

The setting is incredible; as a fan of futuristic cityscapes, Ghostrunner 2’s environment is a predictable win for me. But to be fair, it is expertly crafted and beautiful. Inside Dharma Tower, you’re constantly bombarded with cybernetic neon lights and ominous towers that reach up into the heavens. Outside in the wastelands, you’re greeted with a different reality, one full of monstrous creatures and magnificent landscapes that reach as far as the eye can see.  

It’s here where you also realize the scale of Ghostrunner 2. Climbing to the top of old derelict factories set in the apocalyptic deserts in search of Asura members is frighteningly beautiful. I’m not a massive fan of heights, so when you’re skimming the cloud line standing on a precarious rusty sheet metal, my heart starts to race more than I’d like to admit. 

You can’t wall run and latch onto every structure, but this isn’t an issue, as everything you can use is signposted to make snap decisions in the heat of the moment. While I did have more than a few fumbles where I just missed a ledge or overshot a jump and tumbled into a black abyss, the environmental traversal was easy and fluid almost all of the time. 

Having something simple and fun to rely on when the stakes are so high is excellent. Usually, you’re racing across corridors filled with enemies, so not having to think about whether you’ll make that crucial jump is a stress reliever. Instead, you can worry about the several enemy types that all call for different attacking approaches and when mixed, may change your way of overcoming a problem. 

Know your enemy

You’ll have to face up against several types of goons while navigating Ghostrunner 2. You have the classic enemies, which merely hold a blade, as well as two kinds of gun-wielders, one with an automatic rifle and another with a slow-firing rifle. There are also various other types with more complex abilities. Some shoot a laser beam that you cannot block, some jump towards you, crashing down and knocking you back, while others dual wield katanas and must be stopped with pinpoint timing. 

All these enemies call for different attacking approaches; some you can face head-on, others you need to conserve stamina during a fight to dodge or block. More complicated enemies call for careful planning and the use of barriers as shields. These groups of enemies are also found in various locations, all of which are laid out differently. This means no encounter is the same; you’ll likely have to consider different approaches and strategies when encountering a new group of enemies. 

While it may seem like a lot of effort, the quick respawns help ease the pain. It means you can rapidly dive in and out of combat, trying new strategies or killing off the enemies in different orders to see what works best. However, killing off every single enemy in a complex and nail-biting acrobatic fight only to be shot by a lone ranger hidden up in a corner is still infuriating. It puts a dampener on what are otherwise fun fighting sequences. 

A glitch in the system

Despite Ghostrunner 2 being full of astounding settings and thrilling fight sequences, a couple of aspects weigh it down. In a few instances, I encountered rendering issues, which saw my character fly into a glitching maw of darkness, unsure where I was meant to go or if one step would send me flying off the map; I had to stay deathly still. This problem didn’t happen often, but combined with the long loading screens, pausing the fast-paced action can be quite frustrating. 

There were also a couple of times when the difficulty became too much with no real sense of progression. One of the boss fights you come up against involves you fighting the Architect; this is an excruciating sequence that demands flawless accuracy and fast reactions. However, the difficulty here isn’t the issue; it’s a major boss fight. The problem lies in the random encounters with mere goons, which are made needlessly hard thanks to the layout you’re fighting in, and the groups of enemies attacking me.  

On a few occasions, I was forced to forgo the fast-paced fights for hiding behind barrels and waiting for my shuriken ability to charge up so I could take enemies out one at a time from a distance. This isn’t how you’re meant to play Ghostrunner 2, but sometimes all you need to do is progress, so cyber ninjitsu be damned. The worst part is that all this pain and hard work is ultimately useless, as all you’re rewarded with is an open door, and more enemies to fight off. Ghostrunner 2’s reward just isn’t worth the risk.  

Coming out on top 

Despite its fluctuating skill ceiling and occasional rendering issues, Ghostrunner 2 is still a fantastic thrill ride through a cybernetic and dystopian world. You not only get to enjoy the creative and marvellous settings but also get to know the group of humans striving to make Dharma Tower safe for all. While you don’t get to spend much face-to-face time with your team, you do get to have a chat over your intercom every now and then, usually whilst you’re fighting through hordes of undead wasteland creatures. It’s not a game-changing feature, but it does make for some nice background noise. 

If you’re a fan of fast-paced, action-packed games, then Ghostrunner 2 should be high up on your list of titles to check out. Its fluid fights, thrilling abilities, and fantastic visuals will keep you hooked from start to finish. 

All I’ll say before you dive in is to remember to take deep breaths often, and regardless of what happens, don’t take it out on your controller; it didn’t do anything to deserve being broken into a thousand pieces. 

Accessibility  

There isn’t a dedicated accessibility settings page in Ghostrunner 2. However, you can find some features that may help customize the game to your liking. For example, there are subtitles which you can change the size of. As well as turning the camera shake or the UI on or off. Otherwise, there is a combat assistance that you can use to help during brutal fights. Like the first game, this feature gives you a shorter cooldown for special skills, slower fights, and even the ability to take more than one hit.

How we reviewed

There aren’t various difficulty settings in Ghostrunner 2. However, I refrained from using combat assists to better understand how difficult this cybernetic slasher is. While I did manage to complete it, it wasn’t necessarily the cleanest run, as I replayed various sections a tear-inducing number of times. 

I also had some technical difficulties while playing through Ghostrunner 2. My PC isn’t the newest spring chicken, but with a 3070Ti, it can often handle everything thrown at it, so the hitches and stutters were disconcerting.  

For more thrilling fights, check out these best fighting games, as well as the best survival games, which are sure to keep you on your toes. 

Endless Dungeon’s aspirations to fuse the tower defense and roguelike action RPG elements fall flat, hampered by a game loop that just doesn’t satisfy. Dull characters and repetitive mechanics make traveling through the sci-fi corridors of Endless Dungeon’s abandoned space station a chore, despite an excellent soundtrack and impressive visual style.

Developed by Amplitude Studios, Endless Dungeon takes place in the ‘Endless’ universe, the same setting as its well-received 4x sci-fi strategy series Endless Space and its previous roguelike tower-defense mash-up Dungeon of the Endless. The premise is simple: a group of heroes has crash-landed on a mysterious space station. To escape, they’ll need to guide a fragile robot through the station’s maze of procedurally generated corridors to the core; a process that will set them free. Should you perish - and you will - you’ll be “reloaded” back at the heroes’ base camp: a visually pleasing space-western saloon.

Each hero has their own passive, active, and ultimate ability, as well as their own starting firearm which can be swapped out over the course of a mission. Every room in the station also features several nodules on the floor, where you can set down turrets of various kinds. As you adventure through the station, you amass resources, using them to research more advanced turrets, upgrade your heroes, or construct the turrets themselves.

On paper, it’s a compelling setup, but, in practice, Endless Dungeon fails to provide the moreish, repeat-friendly game mechanics that keep roguelikes interesting. The game’s characters and main storyline are also shallow, doing little to keep you invested in the protagonists’ quest to reach the station’s core. 

Live, die, repeat  

The arsenal of weapons on offer feels samey and uninspired. Though different sorts of firing patterns are available, their effects aren’t quite distinct enough to keep things from going stale. Whether the attack takes the form of a hail of bullets or a beam of lightning, your shots collide with the enemy in the same fashion, doing little more than to lower one of the many spongey, walking health bars heading your way. Without any reloading or attack-timing mechanics, it’s optimal to continually spam your weapon of choice, making the process of fighting artless, and hampering each weapon’s ability to distinguish itself. 

The turret management system has slightly more to offer, providing a wide selection of different emplacements, each with a range of different damage types and effects. Some simply launch projectiles while others provide buffs and debuffs, like protecting allied turrets or slowing enemies. There’s genuine variety here. The problem is that, since you’re constantly having to escort the crystal bot as it makes its way from objective to objective, you’ll rarely get to see the turrets you’ve constructed work first-hand. Instead, the only indicators of their effectiveness are in the thinning number of blips on your minimap. In Endless Dungeon, you will rarely be able to see the fruits of your turret-placing labors up close.

The game uses a party system which does add some variety to the mix. When you venture out from the Saloon, you’ll put together a team of two (later three) heroes and, in single-player mode, you’ll be able to alternate between controlling each one. However, though these heroes have distinct abilities, they rarely feel distinctive in play. This is because all of them use one of two weapon types: light guns or heavy guns. The majority of the time, Zed, a sci-fi soldier-type that's straight out of Aliens, plays indistinguishably from Blaze, the robot cowboy because both use the same roster of heavy weapons. Plus, with only one active ability each (two if you include their ultimates), the characters’ distinctive features shine only infrequently. 

The party system does yield a little more in the game’s co-op mode, where players can work together to time their abilities and cover ground more strategically than their AI counterparts. However, this comes at the cost of the variance and strategy that comes with being able to liberally jump between heroes in single-player mode.  

Empty space

The roster of characters themselves, though visually appealing, offers little tangible depth. Though each has their own backstory and motivations, these are difficult to discern, unless you decide to trudge into the game’s off-puttingly dense library of lore. Beyond the occasional one-liner during combat, the game’s protagonists don't have much to share by way of dialogue, voiced or otherwise. This causes them to feel skin-deep and one-dimensional, like extras in a generic sci-fi movie who are there to kill time before the real heroes show up. 

The characters have their own quests, but these are accompanied by so little emphasis or ceremony that it can be difficult to keep track of how many you’ve even completed. This aimlessness extends to the narrative as well. The game begins with a strong opening, showing off a ship’s janitor bravely taking up arms after the rest of his ship’s crew were killed in the opening cutscene. However, once you reach the saloon, it swiftly becomes clear that the rest of this Janitor’s story will be told only by the very occasional block of text in the game’s library. This salt-of-the-earth sanitation worker deserved better. 

Every one of the characters on offer suffers from this issue which, in turn, causes the game’s roguelike structure to suffer. Part of what makes the best roguelike games so compelling is how the narrative is used to compel you to go out for more runs. Hades may have strong action-based mechanics, but it’s the desire to help Zagreus leave the underworld that keeps players trying their luck at continuous escape attempts. 

Style over substance 

Despite its problems, Endless Dungeon does offer some stellar presentation. The game’s menus are sleek, and the soundtrack is toe-tappingly appealing. There are even some beautiful vocal tracks available in the saloon by singer-songwriter Lera Lynn, which are as catchy as they are haunting. 

The weapons and turrets look and sound far more distinctive than they actually feel. Bright blue arcs of lightning and toxic green gouts of acid pop amongst the darker tones of the space station’s interior. The characters also look fantastic, too. The distinctive array of designs and silhouettes on offer have the style and visual appeal you’d expect from the likes of Overwatch 2. It’s just unfortunate that, once you scratch the surface of these designs, you find that there’s little underneath. 

Endless Dungeon may look and sound excellent, but the things that you’re hearing and seeing just aren’t worth the trouble. Bland characters, repetitive encounters, and a lack of distinctive weapons make for an experience that’s more tedious than not. Without a fleshed-out storyline to keep me invested or variable game mechanics to keep things interesting, there’s little reason to return to the twisted corridors of Amplitude Studios’ latest offering.  

Accessibility

Endless Dungeon offers fairly little in terms of accessibility features. That said, the game does allow you to adjust the size of subtitles as well as the scale of the UI. The game also allows you to adjust the level of screen shake in addition to an aiming laser, which is toggled on by default.  

How we reviewed  

I played approximately 10 hours of Endless Dungeon, seeing almost every zone the space station had to offer. I also played as a variety of attack, defense, and support characters, being sure to see as many of the abilities and weapons as I could. 

I have hundreds of hours of experience with isometric action games and even reviewed Diablo 4 earlier this year. I’ve also spent a great deal of time with roguelikes including Hades, Into the Breach, and FTL.   

Looking for an alternative? Check out our lists of the best co-op games and the best roguelike games. 

Detective Pikachu Returns is a simplistic, yet charming mystery-solving game that will delight younger gamers and families. That said, no amount of Pokémon-induced nostalgia can make up for the razor-thin game mechanics, predictable mysteries, and dated visuals - all of which will likely frustrate older fans. 

As its title suggests, Detective Pikachu Returns is a game about solving crimes and mysteries. Blandly good-natured protagonist Tim Goodman takes center stage here. The earnest college student joins his partner, a Pikachu in a fetching detective’s hat, to form an unlikely duo of mystery solvers. This is all thanks to their uncanny ability to fully understand one another - a rarity in the Pokémon world. 

The game follows two years after the events of the original Detective Pikachu for 3DS. Since we left them, Tim and his partner have developed a reputation as famous sleuths after successfully preventing a city-wide disaster. However, the mystery of the whereabouts of Tim’s father, Harry, remains unsolved, offering a key plot hook for Detective Pikachu Returns' central story. 

Developed by Creatures, the studio behind the original Detective Pikachu, Detective Pikachu Returns uses a simple system of dialogue to carry its story forward over six distinct adventures. You’ll build up testimonies and search crime scenes before using your journal to piece together information by making deductions about what happened.  

This is reminiscent of the investigation segments in the cult classic visual novel series Phoenix Wright. In practice, the system is let down by oversimplistic mysteries that fail to demand very much of the audience.  

Bolts of brilliance 

Despite its lackluster game mechanics, Detective Pikachu Returns has plenty to offer in the charm department with cutesy animations and funny one-liners that often left me smiling.

The good detective himself is a far cry from the cutesy figure you might expect from the Pokémon animated series. The titular Detective Pikachu speaks with a gritty, authoritative voice in both the Japanese and English dubs, offering dramatic remarks that playfully ape the classic noir formula.  

The central conceit here is that Pikachu has the mannerisms of a grizzled 1920s detective in the body of an adorable electric mouse. It’s very silly, but also a recipe for laugh-out-loud moments. For instance, as you make your way through the game’s colorful locales as Tim, Pikachu will run behind you with all the grace of a middle-aged man late for his train home - an animation that never gets old.

Adding to this are numerous segments where Pikachu will ride a larger Pokémon in what amounts to bite-sized mini-game sections. Early on in the game, you’ll mount up on a Growlithe to follow the scent of suspects across town. In terms of mechanics, it amounted to little more than holding down a button and following a glowing trail, but it was delightful to see the otherwise dignified detective bouncing along on the back of his canine companion. 

The charm is more than just visual, too. Pikachu will moan about his cholesterol level and offer witticisms befitting his hard-boiled detective persona. The opening cutscene where Pikachu narrates the events of the previous game in a serious, noir style while stoically sipping a coffee had me in stitches. Detective Pikachu Returns revels in its own absurdity and is stronger for it. 

Child’s play 

Unfortunately, these delights do not extend to the game’s mechanics, which often fall flat due to their simplicity. The deduction system, though elegant in principle, rarely offers a challenge. The answers here are usually obvious. I often found myself having worked out the mysteries long before Tim and Pikachu caught up. 

Outside of the deductions, the game’s mechanics boil down to simple mini-games and quick time events (QTEs). Though the mini-games rarely overstay their welcome, they are too basic to provide much of a palette cleanser between mystery-solving sections. One section in the game’s third mission had me navigate through a maze while trying to avoid an ornery Pokémon. It was a trivial puzzle to solve and didn’t leave me feeling particularly satisfied. The QTEs themselves involve little more than button mashing, though they are often accompanied by fun little cutscenes, such as Pikachu climbing the massive neck of an Alolan Exeggutor in the prologue.

Unfortunately, though the game is full of animations that will enchant Pokémon fans young and old, the game’s visuals themselves leave something to be desired. Though the game performs far better than the likes of Pokémon Scarlet and Violet, the graphical style occasionally lapses into the uncanny valley with just enough detail to make the characters look human, but not nearly enough to make them look like realistic humans. Though not enough to spoil the experience outright, the cavalcade of empty, staring eyes and blank expressions did undermine the more human-centric cutscenes.  

We all live in a Pokémon world 

That said, Detective Pikachu Returns is refreshingly immersive at times, offering a surprisingly in-depth look at the Pokémon setting. Being able to walk the busy streets of Rhyme City makes for a surprisingly intimate look at a world that, despite its popularity, rarely finds itself under the microscope. In Detective Pikachu Returns we get to see a glimpse into the day-to-day lives of those who actually inhabit the Pokémon setting - a real treat for fans. 

Detective Pikachu Returns also wrestles with some surprisingly dark themes, though always in a gentle and family-friendly way. The central story approaches themes of divorce and institutional corruption, offering a surprisingly nuanced look at how law enforcement can abuse its power. Without spoiling too much, the game’s fourth mystery has Tim and Pikachu directly investigate police corruption, uncovering a sinister conspiracy that threatens the entire city. 

Despite clearly being aimed at younger gamers, Detective Pikachu Returns respects its audience, addressing mature themes in terms that, although accessible, never come across as patronizing. This in itself is an achievement worth celebrating even if the game is held back by its rudimentary mechanics and flat visuals.

Detective Pikachu Returns is a perfect introduction to mystery games for younger gamers, as well as a solid title for families looking to play something together. However, older Pokémon enthusiasts are likely to find the bare-bones game mechanics and simple mysteries a little too bland and predictable.  

Accessibility 

Detective Pikachu Returns offers fairly little by way of accessibility features. Although text display speed and character movement speed can be adjusted, there’s no provision for colorblind players. The game uses subtitles by default, but there are also no settings that allow you to adjust text size or background. A disappointing showing from a Nintendo title. 

How we reviewed Detective Pikachu Returns

I spent 10 hours with the game and played through the majority of the mysteries as well as numerous side quests. I played the game using both the Japanese and the English dub so as to get a feel for the full range of voice-acting on offer. I predominantly played the title in handheld mode. 

I’m a Pokémon fan and a big enjoyer of mystery games like Phoenix Wright. I previously reviewed Pokémon Scarlet and Violet for TRG and have spent hundreds of hours playing Pokémon titles since the launch of the first generation back in the late 1990s.

Looking for an alternative? Our list of the best Pokémon games will set you on the right path as will our round-up of the best RPGs.

The story of Basim Ibn Is’haq and Assassin’s Creed Mirage brings the blockbuster stealth series back to its roots with enormous success. Brilliantly modernized stealth action and one of the finest settings the series has ever seen combine with one of the most interesting assassins from recent years to produce spectacular results.

The story of Basim and his rise to assassinhood is full of mystery, discovery, emotion, and splendid character development over its 15 or so hours. With a minimum of modern-day storytelling, Mirage begins with a series of focused cinematic stories that revolve around cleansing the rot that lies under Baghdad’s golden veneer. At the core of this is Basim’s goal: unraveling the mystery of The Order of the Ancients and loosening their grip on Baghdad. Intel is thin on the ground, so there is an emphasis on finding the information you need before you're able to act on it.

Knowledge is power

Basim’s investigations take him across Baghdad’s districts, with each target needing to be unmasked and identified through some serious detective work and investigation. Basim needs to go target by target and case by case to gradually reveal more information about the target’s work, habits, base of operations, and, ultimately, identity. These investigations are always interesting and multi-faceted. Each of these cases gripped me, and I was drawn in by everything from the tiniest of clues to the full-blown, climatic, and bloody missions that cap off each investigation.

There’s so much originality here and it feels like you’re actually cracking a case as you follow the different threads. When things get tricky, you can use Eagle Vision (an assassin’s sixth sense which can reveal enemies, loot, and clues) to assist in your search. It will highlight evidence, but as it’s so effective at revealing clues it can erode your sense of immersion, undermining otherwise tense searches and missions across a beautiful Baghdad that’s full of life and character. 

From the stillness of the desert at night to the hustle and bustle of the market districts, the city of Baghdad is absolutely spectacular and a distinct character in its own right in Mirage. It is certainly one of the series’ most beautifully realized city settings. Getting to see and explore parts of the Alamut while it’s in construction is a thrill too; it oozes a sense of place even in its state of incompletion.

The only thing perhaps more interesting than Baghdad, however, is Basim himself. There’s more to him than meets the eye - much more than many other assassins we’ve played as, and his growth and journey in Mirage make for a wonderful story arc. Whether Basim is a street thief or a fully-trained Assassin, he is smart, perceptive, and ambitious. However, he is also very aware of himself and what being a Hidden One (the early name for Assassin in the game’s lore) entails in terms of ending lives and working in the shadows. Often wrestling with the ideals of the brotherhood and Hidden Ones and what it stands for, he is plagued by nightmarish visions of shadowy figures in his dreams. Yet he is calm, likable, witty, patient, and determined - and the climax of his story in Mirage is deeply interesting. 

New tricks, old habits

Basim is a superb free runner; quick and nimble, able to deftly navigate corners and heights. His parkour feels familiar, being the same moveset as that of recent Assassin’s Creed games - this isn’t a full-scale overhaul of the movement and fluidity - but it’s massively elevated by Baghdad’s tight design and layout that lends itself to smooth and fun parkour. There are always multiple routes over, around, up, and across buildings and walls. You can put some seriously elegant and fluid runs together as Basim moves at top speed across Baghdad.

Basim fights like a nimble, lightly-armed, assassin who’s more used to stealth and the shadows. That’s not to say he can’t handle himself with his sword and dagger, but there is a greater emphasis on deflecting, parrying, dodging, and timing compared to previous games where you could rely on pure muscle to get you out of a bust-up. Waiting for the right time to strike, examining your enemy's moves, and trying to outmaneuver them are far more important. I was much more successful in fights against guards when I stopped trying to pummel them continuously and instead took a patient, analytical approach. What’s more, even the most ordinary of guards can really dish it out on Basim; so he’ll fare better in the shadows rather than in open conflicts.

Stealth rules

The stealth in Assassin’s Creed Mirage is possibly the best in the series. From Basim’s tools, the reliance on the hidden blade, and reimagined aspects of social stealth, there’s a great blend of old and new. This comes with a greater emphasis on patience, choosing routes carefully, and generally being super sneaky. Your small but honed assassin’s toolkit that gives you everything you need. While previous games’ stealth skillset had a lot of filler and little killer, Basim is going to need every single skill and gadget in Mirage. You need to use your limited throwing blades carefully, while also knowing how to distract and move guards around. You'll also need to be patient, looking for the time to strike, as well as where to place traps preemptively in anticipation of guards' patrol routes or when they give chase. Basim’s Assassin’s Focus ability - a skill where Basim can mark up to five targets with time suspended, and then teleport between them to assassinate them) is powerful, but it’s not something you can repeat at will. You’ll need to perform stealth kills to fill up its meter, and invest in skills (another honed selection of just three small trees that are woven neatly into story progression) to make that meter larger. However, when you get it right, unleashing a fully upgraded Basim to chain assassinate five blissfully unaware guards is hella cool.

Social stealth makes a fantastic return too, with the likes of eavesdropping, blending in with crowds, pickpocketing, and tailing suspects all worthy and well-implemented elements. The pickpocketing in particular is deeply satisfying and trying to master the technique is a fun challenge. When it comes to being social with Baghdad’s residents, you’ll have to be careful as your notoriety will increase with each theft or kill you perform. This can lead to Basim being recognized in the street, right through to having special enforcer enemies sent after you - once again, being patient and staying stealthy is king, as you don’t want to be running around with full notoriety trying to tear down posters or bribe town criers (but only if you have the right token - a currency that can be used for merchants, speakers, and gangs et al - about your person).

Mirage is not totally blemish-free, though. Basim and his story lean on and are tethered strongly to Assassin's Creed Valhalla, making knowledge of that game nigh-on essential. In-game, the AI and enemies are fairly ignorant in familiar ways. It’s very easy to separate guards from each other, or get away with brazen assassinations in full sight; lightly bumping into them can still take them straight from ‘chilled’ into ‘pursue to kill’ mode which is annoying, too. The parkour can still be ‘sticky’ in places and the series’ famous opposite-direction jumps are still present and can ruin the flow and land you right in trouble - literally. While excellent for jeopardy and encouraging stealth, the notoriety meter does build up staggeringly quickly - it can feel like the citizens of Baghdad are using walkie-talkies with the guards to insta-report your exact crime, appearance, and location. 

However, these tiny gripes don’t get in the way of the fact that Mirage is a fantastic Assassin’s Creed game, truly - and perhaps one of the very best to date. The way it mixes the old and the new, polishing up classic Assassin's Creed features for a modern game and audience, creates something special - it turns out you can teach a new game old tricks. Add in the fact that it’s got heart, a deeply interesting protagonist who really feels like an assassin, and some seriously deep and high-quality investigation missions and it all culminates in a game that’s better than those it’s taken most inspiration from. It feels great to be an Assassin again.

Mirage is a brilliant, bloody, patient, focused, and exquisite Assassin’s Creed adventure that’ll live long in the memory - and hopefully represents a solid bedrock on which more lean and focused entries in the series can build.

Accessibility features

Ubisoft has provided a host of accessibility options to make playing the game easier or more difficult. You can adjust the core difficulty at any point but can turn on things like automatic pickpocketing, and aim assist to tailor the playstyle more specifically. You can change the language of voices and subtitles, and you alter the size and effects of the latter, while controls can be changed to your preference. There are also three colorblind modes (for tritanopia, deuteranopia, and protanopia) and Ubisoft’s (rather robotic) screen narration is also present.

How we reviewed Assassin’s Creed Mirage

I played Assassin’s Creed Mirage on PS5 with a Samsung QLED Q6F 4K TV and experienced its audio through a soundbar setup but also with a headset. I have played for more than 20 hours, finishing Basim’s story in 15 hours, and spending the rest of the time hunting for collectibles and tying up side stories. I tested both High Framerate and Quality graphics modes and recommend playing on the High Framerate mode, though Quality mode has noticeably more detail.

Assassin’s Creed Mirage is one of the best single-player games of 2023, but if you’re after something else, check out the best co-op games.

The Turtle Beach Scout Air wireless gaming earbuds manage to get the job done on a number of fronts and are a solid option if you’re in the market for a pair of simple and effective mid-range buds.

Don’t expect incredible quality here though, as nearly everything about the Turtle Beach Scout Air gaming buds is pretty middle-of-the-road. Audio for gaming and casual music listening is decent without feeling particularly full-bodied or accentuated in any one area. Plus, the overall average battery life and awkward form factor make them rather unsuitable for extended listening sessions.

It’s not all bad news, though, and these buds do excel in some pretty important areas. Their low-latency Game mode is fantastic for providing accurate and responsive audio while gaming and a high water resistance rating means they’re perfectly suitable for both indoor and outdoor use. If you can deal with their shortcomings, the Turtle Beach Scout Air gaming earbuds are a solid pick if you’re after a well-rounded and versatile pair of buds.

Price and availability

You can get the Turtle Beach Scout Air gaming earbuds for $99.99 / £89.99, either from the brand’s official website or other big box retailers. This is fairly competitive as far as gaming-focused true wireless earbuds go, coming in much cheaper than the Razer Hammerhead Hyperspeed earbuds for PS5 which cost $149.99 / £149.99 / AU$259.

While you’ll get overall better performance from non-gaming earbuds released around the same timeframe, such as the Creative Outlier Pro for $119 / £84.99 (around AU$159), you’ll find that the Turtle Beach Scout Air buds are discounted quite regularly, making them worth keeping in mind during key sales periods.

Design and features

The Turtle Beach Scout Air gaming earbuds come in a pocket-friendly charging case that features a lightweight design and form. A line of three white LEDs on the case indicates the state of charge for your buds, too, which is a welcome addition for seeing how much battery they have at a glance. On the rear, you’ve got a USB-C for charging up the case, and buds, once it’s run dry.

Flip open the charging case to find the earbuds inside, and you’ll notice that they have a rather distinct look. While there are no complaints to be had in terms of overall build quality, the stems of the buds are slightly angled by design, and the buds themselves don’t rest well in the ear without some fidgeting. Readjusting them mid-session was a fairly common occurrence just to make sure they wouldn’t slip out.

This form factor led to the buds becoming more uncomfortable over time; in fact, after just a couple of hours, I felt I needed to place them back in the case to give my ears a bit of a break. The buds made my ears slightly achy and overly warm over the course of a cross-country train ride, and it was a relief to stop using them for a bit.

The Turtle Beach Scout Air gaming earbuds do excel in other areas, though. Bearing an IPX4 water resistance rating, they can operate in conditions equal to an average amount of rainfall, and are resistant to small splashes of water. This makes them ideal for out-and-about play just so long as you’re not running into a storm with them.

As for connectivity, you’re strictly dependent on Bluetooth with the Turtle Beach Scout Air gaming earbuds. While that makes them ideal for Nintendo Switch, Steam Deck and Android-based devices, you’ll need to look elsewhere if you’re after buds that’ll be compatible with PS5 and Xbox Series X|S.

Performance and battery life

The Turtle Beach Scout Air gaming earbuds perform adequately in terms of sound quality, but they’re not particularly special. The overall sound profile is decent but rather flat. Music with particularly high production value - like the Sonic Frontiers soundtrack or Tool’s 10,000 Days, for example - doesn’t sound as rich or full-bodied as it should when listened to with some of the best gaming earbuds around.

The earbuds do fare better for gaming, thankfully. A built-in low latency Game mode helps to reduce delay inherent with Bluetooth connectivity. The mode allows for accurate, responsive audio which makes them an excellent choice for Bluetooth-ready devices.

Connectivity in itself can be an issue, though. When pairing the buds to my Android phone (which you can do by flipping open the charging case with the buds remaining inside), I often found that only one of two earbuds would pair. As a result, expect to have times when you’ll need to unpair the device and try again. This is a substantial frustration and one you wouldn’t expect to deal with when spending nearly $100 / £100.

Battery life is acceptable, with the charging case providing up to 20 hours of battery when it’s fully topped up. It’s a shame that the earbuds themselves can only hold up to five hours of charge, but that should still be enough for most daily activities, and it helps that the case charges them fairly quickly, in roughly 60 - 90 minutes from empty to full.

Overall, the Turtle Beach Scout Air wireless gaming earbuds are a decent pair if you can grab them in a sale. It’s hard to recommend them at full price given their relatively flat sound and occasional connectivity issues. That said, they’re about as affordable as true wireless gaming earbuds get. If you have the budget, then, we’d recommend a higher-quality pair like the excellent Epos GTW 270 Hybrid Earbuds.

Should I buy the Turtle Beach Scout Air gaming earbuds?

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How we reviewed the Turtle Beach Scout Air gaming earbuds

I tested the Turtle Beach Scout Air gaming earbuds over the course of a couple of weeks, ensuring to use them in a range of environments including both in and outdoors, as well as aboard public transport. Both casual listening and gaming were tested, and I played many of the best Nintendo Switch games to get a feel for what their low-latency Game mode offers. 

If you’d prefer higher-quality audio while gaming, consider checking out our guides to the best PS5 headsets, the best Xbox Series X headsets, and the best Nintendo Switch headsets to experience a more immersive sound.

Under The Waves is an awe-inspiring story-rich adventure into the ocean's dark depths and one man’s psyche. While the grand ocean canyons are glorious, soon you'll realize that this underwater world is somewhat empty. 

However, follow the story through completing the various missions, and you’ll find a story which is just as fulfilling as it is sad. The meat here is slowly learning about the main character's past and what drove him to venture deep into the depths. 

You’ll follow protagonist Stan into the North Sea as he works for a company that becomes more sinister the closer you look. Throughout your time monitoring their submarine facilities and repairing broken machinery, you appreciate not only the beauty of the sea but also the ugly nature of what humanity is doing to it as you clean up plastic and cover up oil spills. In this solitary confinement, Stan also has no choice but to reflect on the recent passing of his daughter. This experience makes for some truly insightful and heart-wrenching experiences that’ll resonate with you long after you close down the game. 

Don’t look too close 

Under The Waves is a stunning single-player game with forgotten rocky crevices and vast open water sections that house all sorts of magnificent creatures. Exploring the map in your trusty submarine nicknamed Moon is all sorts of fun. I loved racing through schools of fish or watching from afar as a gigantic whale made its way slowly across my screen. If you’re a fan of the lonely adventures in the dark bottom of the ocean, then Under The Waves has a lot to offer. 

There are also several structures to enjoy on the ocean bed, each with its own distinct ambience. Having the cozy and safe structure of the base was a welcome change from drifting around in the cold and harsh sea. While activities were limited in here, crafting supplies, making a coffee, or even just staring out your porthole from a warm and soft bed gave me some much-needed respite from the otherwise emotionally taxing story.  

There are also several structures to enjoy on the ocean bed, each with its own distinct ambience. Having the cozy and safe structure of the base was a welcome change from drifting around in the cold and harsh sea. While activities were limited in here, crafting supplies, making a coffee, or even just staring out your porthole from a warm and soft bed gave me some much-needed respite from the otherwise emotionally taxing story.  

On the other hand, you have the decaying corporate structures scattered across the map, such as The Terminal. This emits an entirely different atmosphere from your warm deep sea base. Swimming around the dark, or ominously glowing red hallways made my imagination run wild. While this certainly isn’t a horror game, I couldn’t help but feel on edge at almost every moment in these claustrophobic corridors.

Unfortunately, as soon as you look a little closer at Under The Waves, the atmosphere crumbles under the weight of  various glitches and bugs. At moments when I would be travelling across a seriously strange and awe-inspiring dreamscape I’d at times accidentally turn the camera so I could see the character’s face while talking. Instead of focusing on the glorious landscape or heartfelt words all I could see was Stan’s mouth garbelling at random as he desperately tried to keep up with the words leaving his mouth. 

There’s also very little in the way of crafting and action. While there are a few adrenaline-filled moments, you're mostly guided through this story with convenient item drops, which meant I had to spend very little time crafting or searching for materials. 

These small quirks plagued my time in Under The Waves. Whether it was my character jankily repositioning himself to get through small entrances or accidentally phasing through one particularly happy and friendly seal. While this doesn’t mean that this story rich game is unplayable, it does put a damper on what would otherwise be a terrific emotional experience. 

The sound of the sea 

However, there are so many more elements of Under The Waves that round this title off beautifully. One of my favorite elements had to be the soundscaping and music that accompanied my dangerous endeavors. 

As previously established, the story at the centre of Under The Waves is more than just a little emotional; while the fantastic voice work ensures that you feel the main character’s pain in every way, the soundtrack was the nail in the tissue-filled coffin for me. Traversing through strange dreamscapes or seeing an image of your daughter again is always paired with heart-wrenching music or ethereal sounds, which make the emotional impact all the more devastating.  

On the other hand, I also enjoyed how quiet Under The Waves was while you’re traversing through the open desolate ocean. The quiet and distant bellows of sea creatures, along with the reliable hum of your submarine, permeates the vacuum-like ocean floor, making me feel smaller than I ever had before. It’s a feeling that you can’t get from many games, and one that I greatly enjoy, in a twisted sense.

While Under The Waves does lack some final polish, it delivers an emotionally thoughtful story, beautiful landscapes and an equally brilliant accompanying soundtrack. If you’re a fan of narrative-driven adventures and don’t mind an adventure game that’s on the easier side, then Under The Waves is just the tale for you. 

Accessibility 

Accessibility features for Under The Waves are solid for a game of its size. You can toggle subtitles and change their size as well as the background to suit your needs best. There's also options to change the HUD color as well as its radar size and objectives size. Finally, there is the possibility to change button mash interactions as well as enable or disable camera sway and vibrations. 

How we reviewed 

It took me about seven hours to complete the main story of Under The Water, while I tried exploring for a bit which added some more time. On top of this, I soon found myself out of ideas and ways to explore the ocean floor. While there were some constant glitches for both the main character and the wider landscape, these never felt as if they impacted my experience to a massive extent while in the story-driven game. 

If you're a fan of expansive landscapes and thoughtful tales, be sure to check out these best story games that are available to play right now.