October, 2023 - Organizer

Gigabyte Radeon RX 7700 XT Gaming OC review: great performance for the price

11:58 pm | October 31, 2023

Gigabyte Radeon RX 7700 XT Gaming OC: Two-minute review

The Gigabyte Radeon RX 7700 XT Gaming OC is the best version of a difficult card to recommend generally, but it goes a good way towards ameliorating the biggest issue I had with the AMD Radeon RX 7700 XT: its price.

The Gigabyte Radeon RX 7700 XT Gaming OC is available for $439.99 (about £360/AU$695), which is only $10 less than AMD's official MSRP for the RX 7700 XT, so it's not the biggest savings here, but it does make this card at least somewhat more competitively priced with the Nvidia GeForce RTX 4060 Ti, which comes in at $399.99 (about £320/AU$630).

However, it's not just a price cut off the reference MSRP from AMD that makes the Gigabyte RX 7700 XT card a good bargain. You also get some extra perks over AMD's reference specs to make it more enticing as well, making it one of the best graphics card options for midrange gamers on a tighter budget.

A Gigabyte Radeon RX 7700 XT Gaming OC on a desk — (Image credit: Future / John Loeffler)

Starting with the design, you get a triple-fan design that definitely helps thermal performance, which isn't egregious on the RX 7700 XT to begin with. There is no reference card for the RX 7700 XT, mind you, but given that the AMD Radeon RX 7800 XT does have a reference card that sports a dual-fan design, you do get something over the higher-tier AMD card.

That's not nothing, and the card itself isn't so long that it can't fit inside a typical midtower PC case. The RX 7700 XT does require a good bit more power than the RTX 4060 Ti (245W to the 4060 Ti's 160W), so it needs two 8-pin power connectors to run it. On the other hand, it doesn't require a 16-pin power cable like the rest of Nvidia's reference RTX 4000-series cards.

The Gigabyte card also lacks any real RGB lighting beyond the Gigabyte logo along the top edge of the card, which is either a good thing or a bad thing, depending on your perspective, but it's good to have options regardless. Non-RGB fans will appreciate the more subdued aesthetics of this GPU for sure.

In terms of ports, you have your standard 2 x HDMI 2.1 and 2 x DisplayPort 2.1 output on most AMD RX 7000-series cards, so you can hook it up to several of the best gaming monitors of your choosing.

Performance-wise, you can read more about the individual benchmarks in my RX 7700 XT review, and for the most part, the Gigabyte RX 7700 XT Gaming OC card performs a few percentage points better than the XFX Speedster QICK319 RX 7700 XT Black card given that it has about 100MHz higher game clock and a roughly 55MHz faster boost clock.

The difference is only going to be a few fps depending on the game you're playing, but given the Gigabyte card is cheaper, you're really getting extra FPS for less money, which is a fantastic deal no matter how you look at it.

In the end, then, the Gigabyte Radeon RX 7700 XT Gaming OC makes a strong case for the RX 7700 XT, especially if spending north of $400 is really stretching your budget to the max. My original criticism that the RX 7700 XT is just too close in price to the AMD RX 7800 XT to make it the best 1440p graphics card to buy still applies to this card, but Gigabyte at least offers more than a non-OC card at a better price to make it a much more palatable purchase if you can't go for the RX 7800 XT.

Gigabyte Radeon RX 7700 XT Gaming OC: Price & availability

How much does it cost? $439.99 (about £360/AU$640)
When is it available? Available now
Where can you get it? Available in the US, UK, and Australia

The Gigabyte Radeon RX 7700 XT Gaming OC is available now for $439.99 (about £360/AU$695). This is cheaper even than the AMD reference spec's MSRP of $449.99, and offers a better value by giving you some extra performance thanks to its factory overclocking.

It also brings you closer in price to the Nvidia RTX 4060 Ti while generally outperforming it. All in all, this is still too expensive to be the best cheap graphics card on the market, but it's definitely the best cheap midrange graphics card you're going to find.

Gigabyte Radeon RX 7700 XT Gaming OC: Specs

Should you buy the Gigabyte Radeon RX 7700 XT Gaming OC?

Buy it if...

You want great 1440p performance on a tighter budget
This card offers great 1440p performance for the price, especially if you can't stretch your budget to the RX 7800 XT.

You want some extra overclocked performance for free
Normally, OC cards cost more than the reference card, but this one actually costs less than AMD's official MSRP.

Don't buy it if...

You can stretch your budget to get the AMD RX 7800 XT
With the AMD RX 7800 XT offering such incredible performance, if you can stretch your budget to get that card (especially the Gigabyte Radeon RX 7800 XT Gaming OC), you absolutely should.

You want better content creation performance
If you're a content creator working with 3D rendering or other GPU intensive creative workloads, chances are an Nvidia card is going to offer much better performance than anything AMD can offer.

Gigabyte Radeon RX 7700 XT Gaming OC: Also consider

How I tested the Gigabyte Radeon RX 7700 XT Gaming OC

I spent about three weeks with the Gigabyte Radeon RX 7700 XT Gaming OC
I used it to play games, produce and edit creative content, and more
I used our standard battery of benchmarking tools to test it

I spent about three weeks with the Gigabyte Radeon RX 7700 XT Gaming OC, running my standard suite of benchmarks as well as assessing its general performance in real-world use cases.

I paid special attention to its gaming performance, since this is specifically targeting gamers, and paid less attention to its content creation performance since non-Radeon Pro cards are generally not marketed for those purposes.

I've been a computer hardware reviewer for years now and have tested all the latest graphics cards of the past several generations as well as having nearly a decade of computer science education, so I know my way around this kind of hardware. What's more, as a lifelong gamer, I know what to expect from a graphics card at this price point in terms of gaming performance.

We pride ourselves on our independence and our rigorous review-testing process, offering up long-term attention to the products we review and making sure our reviews are updated and maintained - regardless of when a device was released, if you can still buy it, it's on our radar.

Get a grip

Screenshot from climbing game Jusant — (Image credit: Don't Nod)

Thankfully, there's no way you can plummet to your death if you do mess up a maneuver. You’re always attached to the rock face thanks to your trusty rope, and pitons you can bang into the wall, a safety feature and vital progress saver if you mistime a jump. However, both have their limitations. Your trusty lifeline is not infinite, meaning if it runs out mid-climb you'll need to back up and find a more efficient route to your destination. You only have four pitons so you need to be strategic when using them on long stretches of climbs. And finally, there’s your stamina meter which depletes as you climb. You can partially refill it by resting regularly, but you'll need to find solid ground to stand on for it to completely replenish. All these restrictions mean that you need to carefully plan your route, mentally mapping how you’re going to navigate tricky stretches as well as how to overcome environmental obstacles. You're essentially trying to solve one big vertical puzzle.

Sometimes solutions won’t present themselves until you're mid-climb, and that’s where Jusant’s flair for drama kicks in. On top of figuring out what climbing technique is best for this situation, how many pitons you've got, and how much rope you have left, you also need to grapple with the game's control scheme. Jusant takes influence from 2015's climbing game Grow Home, where the controller's two triggers control each of the character’s grip - the left trigger for the left hand, and the right trigger for the right hand. This means as you climb, you need to keep switching between triggers as the traveler climbs the wall. It’s an incredibly tactile climbing system, and there's always a constant underlying tension that if you let go, they let go.

Best bit

Jusant’s environments get more treacherous the further up the tower you go, putting all your acquired climbing knowledge to the test. Each stretch of the climb you complete - no matter how short - feels like a massive triumph, especially when up against an onslaught of elements like heat, wind, and rain.

Everything comes together to create some sensational climbing sequences, and you can feel the drama from the tips of your fingers through to your toes. In moments of pure adrenaline as I hurled myself at a ledge I wasn’t sure I could reach, I gripped the controller like my life depended on it. My toes would curl when I mistimed a jump and ended up slamming into rocky wall. My heart leapt into overdrive at one point when I had to climb over the side of a cliff face that was so vertical the climber was forced to use only their hands while his feet dangled into oblivion. My entire body would sigh with relief as I pulled myself to safety over the last ledge after a long stretch of treacherous climbing. Jusant has a wonderful way of connecting with your body - it’s incredibly visceral.

Jusant isn’t a complete thrill ride, though. When you get into the rhythm of climbing - sensing it’s time to put in a piton for safety, the rhythmic switching of left to right, making careful and informed decisions based on the rock face - there’s a genuine feeling of flow. Between the nerve-shredding jumps and dizzying heights, there’s a sense of peace, too. Taking the time to plan your route and then carefully carrying it out step by step has its own quiet satisfactions, and together with the game’s peaceful music, it can be incredibly serene.

Catch your breath

Most of Jusant is pretty sensational, but there are some frustrating moments. When exploring on foot, the climber easily clips into objects and can accidentally wedge themselves in environmental nooks and crannies if you’re not careful. There’s also a mechanic (that thankfully doesn’t hang around) where little light creatures can boost you a short way up the rock face. You'll be connecting with the tower's critters on your journey, but this particular instance feels lofty and fumble-prone, not fitting in well with the game’s overall appreciation of careful and accurate climbing.

Making mistakes stings and losing progress on a climb can be disheartening, but it often happened when I wasn’t paying enough attention or was too keen to finish a long stretch. Jusant is a game that can't be brute forced, and the sooner you learn that the fewer mistakes you’ll make.

The environment tells a quiet history too, with peculiar sights like boats nestled into parts of the tower hundreds of feet from the ground

There's also Jusant's story, a big contributor to the game's more tranquil moments. You're ascending but also exploring, poking in and around the long-abandoned villages and rickety structures embedded into the tower. Letters and notes scattered around these living spaces tell the story of the civilization that once lived here and, eventually, decided to leave. The environment tells a quiet history too, with peculiar sights like boats nestled into parts of the tower hundreds of feet from the ground, and caverns filled with plantlife that usually thrives under the ocean. I enjoyed finding these oddities, but the tower's elusive history might have been better told if Dont Nod let the environment do the talking, instead of pages upon pages of text.

Regardless, Jusant’s story hits home. It tells the tale of returning to a place long forgotten and restoring something that was once lost, a pursuit the young traveler finds so important that they'll undertake this mammoth venture. Together with its tactical climbing system, heart-racing thrills, and tranquil reflections, Jusant's climbing adventure is pretty epic, and definitely its own endeavor worth pursuing.

Accessibility features

Jusant has a handful of accessibility options. You can completely remap the layouts for controllers as well as keyboard & mouse inputs. Game text size can be altered (and there’s also a dyslexic font option). Hints and mechanics reminders can be toggled if you find them interruptive and the level of camera shake can be adjusted and set to auto-follow if needed.

How we reviewed Jusant

I played Jusant for around 12 hours: my first play-through took five hours, and then I replayed levels from a chapter menu to find all the secrets and collectibles in a second playthrough which took me around seven hours. I played on PC with an Xbox controller. The game recommends playing with a controller which is something I echo, notably for game feel rather than for any particular practical reasons.

If you're looking for more small adventures check out our rundowns of the best indie games, and best cozy Switch games too.

Tineco Pure One S11 smart vacuum review: an effective and robust cordless vacuum with some niggles

6:00 pm |

Author: admin | Category: Computers Gadgets Home Small Appliances Vacuums | Comments: Off

Tineco Pure One S11: Two-minute review

The Tineco Pure One S11 may not be as advanced as the pricier Tineco Pure One S15 Pro (one of the best cordless vacuum cleaners on our list), but it’s a very efficient option for those looking for an affordable model with powerful suctioning. And one that gives Shark’s more popular vacuum cleaners a good run for their money.

Now, Tineco isn’t exactly a household name – at least not yet – but it is a good lesson in product diversification. This lesser-known company offers great-quality alternatives to big-name-brand products that may have fallen behind in terms of quality due to complacency and lack of competition. And, speaking as someone who has owned and used her share of subpar models from bigger brands, I am absolutely here for it.

Sitting in the same price range as many of the best Shark vacuum cleaners and a couple of Dyson’s 'budget' offerings, the Pure One S11 is more of a mid-range purchase, one that’s not cheap but won't burn a massive hole in your bank account either. However, there are many things it does better than the most popular Shark models that make it an easy recommendation to consumers who want the convenience of cable-free cleaning.

Is it one of the best vacuum cleaners on the market? It does come with its share of niggles that might make some doubt its eligibility to that exclusive list. However, it does follow in its more premium brother’s footsteps in the world of cordless vacuums.

Tineco Pure One S11: Price and availability

How much does it cost? $399.99 / £269 / AU$699
When is it available? Available now
Where can you get it? Available in the US, UK, and Australia

On par with many vacuum cleaners from Shark and Samsung Jet, the Tineco Pure One S11 has an entry price of $399.99 / £269 / AU$699. That isn’t what many would call cheap – there are a lot of cordless vacuums out there that are about half that price.

However, it’s what I would expect a more robust and powerful model to cost. My own Samsung Jet 70 Pet Cordless Stick Vacuum bears the same price tag, and is actually a little more rudimentary in features – though it has proven to be a powerful option robust enough to be your long-term cleaning companion.

It costs about $100 / £100 less than both the Shark Stratos Cordless (which claims the top spot on our cordless vacuum list at the time of writing and is lauded for its smart Clean Sense IQ feature and powerful suctioning) and the Dyson V15 Detect.

Value: 4 / 5

Tineco Pure One S11: Specs

The Roborock S8 Pro Ultra comes with a robot vacuum and base station.

Tineco Pure One S11 in use by author — (Image credit: Future / Michelle Rae Uy)

Tineco Pure One S11: Design and features

Solid build and great design but top-heavy
Squeaky wheels on the power brush
Controls aren’t the most convenient

If the Tineco Pure One S11 looks familiar, it’s probably because it has the same rounded architecture as Dyson’s offerings – so much so, you’ll be forgiven for thinking that Tineco is coming after the popular premium brand. It even comes with an LCD display and power brush illumination, two things the Dyson V15 Detect has that most of its competitors don’t.

And, honestly, hats off to Tineco for the valiant attempt because while Dyson’s products should be lauded for their thoughtful features, they’re also known to be overpriced and overrated when it comes to performance. But, I digress.

The Pure One S11 is solidly built, with parts that feel robust and premium, and its Dyson-inspired design not only sets it apart from others but also makes it look like a luxurious item. That’s especially true with its black, white, and dark gray colorway.

I especially appreciate that its LCD display is at the front so it’s easy to look at when the vacuum is in use. However, while the one on the V15 Detect or the Pure One S15 Pro offers a lot of information, this one just displays battery life and lets you know if there are any device errors. The light ring around the display, called the Dust Monitoring Loop, also alerts you to the amount of dust in a specific area by changing colors from solid blue to pink to magenta.

While this cordless vacuum is slightly more lightweight than the V15 Detect, it is a little heavier than my Samsung Jet 70. While that isn’t a big deal – there are, after all, even heavier vacuums out there – it's also top-heavy. The top part that houses the motor, battery, filtration system, LED display, and dust bin bears most of its weight, making its weight distribution a lot more uneven than my Samsung and easier for users to experience hand, wrist, and shoulder fatigue. That’s despite the fact that the handle is spacious and comfortable to hold.

That’s not the only gripe I have about its design. The controls on the Pure One S11 aren’t the most convenient. Instead of pressing a button to turn on the vacuum, you pull a trigger, which starts the motor when pressure is exerted and stops it when that pressure is taken away. I get the energy-saving aspect here – if you have to do something else like move things out of the way, the vacuum stops running when you take your finger off the trigger. However, it also means that you have to keep up that pressure while you’re vacuuming.

There is a trigger lock you can use to give your finger a rest, but accessing that lock, located to the side of the trigger, means overextending one of your other fingers or using your other hand instead. I found this to be a little inconvenient, especially when I’m also picking up stuff off the floor.

While this vacuum is one of the quietest I’ve ever used (more on that later), the two wheels on its power brush are squeaky. I’m not sure if this is true on all units or just mine, however, I have to mention it as it is a point of annoyance when I’m vacuuming.

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Still, there’s a lot to like about the Pure One S11’s design and features. I love that all its removable parts snap in place as well as come off easily, making it convenient to do things like swap out the removable battery (another plus as you can purchase an extra one if you’re covering a large area), empty the trash bin, clean out the filters, and swap out the tools.

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One tool I like in particular is the pre-filter cleaning tool, which most cordless vacuums do not have. It also comes with an extra pre-filter inside. Though you do have to manually turn it, it lets you clean a dirty pre-filter without the mess as it attaches to the vacuum. This lets you suck all that dust straight into the dustbin. It’s another thoughtful addition to a vacuum full of thoughtful details.

Design: 4 / 5

Tineco Pure One S11 on the author's floor — (Image credit: Future / Michelle Rae Uy)

Tineco Pure One S11: Performance

Efficient suction that can tackle particles small and large
Very effective smart dust sensor that adjusts suction power automatically
Great tools for versatile cleaning

Tineco advertises the Tineco Pure One S11 as having “whisper-quiet” operation, though that's not quite accurate. However, I do have to give it credit for being one of the quietest vacuums I’ve ever tested. Comparing it to some of the cordless vacuums I have at home, it scored a quiet 60 dB – Tineco rates it at 72 dB(A) – on average on the decibel meter I was using. That’s impressive considering my Samsung Jet 70 Pet Cordless scored an average of 68 dB, while the Shark Wandvac scored an average of 70 dB on the same test.

The Pure One S11 also shines in suction prowess, often only requiring a single run of a section to suck up all the tiny particles, including the smallest pieces of litter and the finest pet hair. It also does a good job of sucking up pieces of cat food or kibble, something the Jet 70 Pet Cordless ironically struggles with. Kudos to the motor for being that powerful and making it all look – and sound – effortless.

And its iLoop Smart Dust Sensor does a fantastic job of sensing when there’s more dirt in the area, alerting the vacuum to automatically adjust suction power to Max for even stronger suctioning.

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This capability isn’t just limited to the multi-tasker power brush, which by the way has LED lights that highlight the area directly in front so you can see the finest dust particles better. It works effectively with all the other tools too, including the mini power brush, which I use to clean litter track and cat hair off my couch, and the dusting brush, which I use to clean hard surfaces in my apartment.

What’s more, it does a fantastic job of minimizing dirt and particle kickback – definitely better than the Jet 70 Pet Cordless. This is a massive time-saver as I don’t have to go back and clean areas I’ve already vacuumed.

The Pure One S11 also has great maneuverability, despite the annoying squeaky wheels on the power brush. I would say that my Jet 70 Pet Cordless is better at accessing crevices, rounding at tight corners, and ducking under furniture – the Pure One S11’s power brush has an attachment that angles down so that when I’m trying to reach under my coffee table or TV console, it lifts the brush up when the vacuum hits that 20-degree angle with the floor – however, that doesn’t take away from the fact that it’s easy to maneuver.

Performance: 4.5 / 5

Tineco Pure One S11: Battery life

Up to 40 minutes of battery life
Trigger helps save energy
Battery is swappable

The Tineco Pure One S11 may not have fast-charging capabilities or the longest battery life. But at full charge, it does offer up to 40 minutes of runtime on auto. During my time using it, I could clean the floor of my entire one-bedroom apartment and still have some juice left over for dusting some furniture and vacuuming the debris on my couch.

Both its auto mode and trigger help save energy so that it’s not using up that battery life unnecessarily. Meanwhile, its removable battery means you can purchase another one so you can have up to 80 minutes of juice – just the ticket if you have an entire house to cover.

Battery: 4 / 5

Should you buy the Tineco Pure One S11?

Buy it if...

Don't buy it if...

Tineco Pure One S11: Also consider

If the Tineco Pure One S11 isn't for you, why not consider other cordless vacuums?

How I tested Tineco Pure One S11

I tested it for a week
I used it to clean floors as well as appliances and furniture
I tested its features and tools plus checked its noise level with the Decibel X app

Giving the Tineco Pure One S11 the temporary role of being my main vacuum cleaner for a week, I ran it through its paces by using it to clean my one-bedroom apartment, carefully observing how effective it is at picking up different-sized debris like cat litter, which my cats track around every time they use their litter box, and pieces of dry cat food, which are much bigger and something my trusty Samsung Jet 70 Pet Cordless has trouble picking up.

It comes with many of the tools I need for keeping my furniture and appliances cat hair free, an almost impossible task with my two boy cats running rowdy all day, so I was able to test all those. I also made sure to use its nifty pre-filter cleaner to see how easy it is to use and how effective it is at cleaning the pre-filter.

I’ve been testing and reviewing vacuum cleaners, home appliances, and smart home devices for different digital publications for years. Currently, I’ve taken on the role of Interim Homes Editor for TechRadar.

Read more about how we test

First reviewed October 2023

Robocop: Rogue City review – aye, robot

5:51 pm |

Author: admin | Category: Computers Gadgets Gaming | Tags: Mortal Kombat | Comments: Off

Review information

Platform reviewed: PC
Available on: PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, PC
Release date: November 2, 2023

It only takes the length of the pulse-pounding TV station shootout that kicks off first-person shooter Robocop: Rogue City for you to feel like ol’ chrome dome himself. Whether it’s the recognizable Auto-9 in your hand, the clunking gait, or just the fact your 9mm pistol is blowing off limbs with spurts of claret, it’s immediately apparent that this isn’t just another run-of-the-mill shooter, but a faithful adaptation of the Robocop universe.

Rogue City makes a hell of a first impression, and while it doesn’t deliver on its promises all of the time, it’s charming and full of ambition. It’s also a hell of a lot of fun, a combination of my own personal nostalgia and the fact that it’s a very solid shooter that constantly mixes up what you’re fighting against. There are, however, a lot of bugs here - I had to restart at a checkpoint several times because a gate wouldn’t open or a hidden enemy was blocking progression, and when that happened I was happy with the generous checkpointing. Elsewhere, some assets were in Polish and had not been translated, and at the start of one gunfight, I strafed left and dropped through the world.

These experiences showed off the game’s low-budget status, but they didn’t really hinder my enjoyment.

If you’ve never seen RoboCop, it’s a dystopian vision of the '80s but flung into the future. It’s 2043 in Detroit, Michigan, and capitalism has won. The police force is privatized and Robocop is a, er, robot cop. It’s a vision of 2043 where people still use VCRs and payphones, a terrible future where the criminals are all tremendously evil people and nuance is just a thing Robocop has crushed under his big metal feet on the way to gunning down another perpetrator.

The Robocop of the films immediately feels like a video game character already, with an unlimited ammo sidearm built into his leg, nigh-invulnerability, and a built-in targeting visor that highlights enemies and has a little heads-up display too. As a result, developers Teyon have merely lent into this and given us a faithful rendition.

He’s the cop that can’t be stopped

Robocop: Rogue City screenshot — (Image credit: Nacon)

In the original trilogy of films, it’s all a satire - although I try to forget the terrible Robocop 3 exists - and the game is clearly swinging for that same position. This is, ultimately, a story about corporate greed and the militarization of police that’s as relevant today as it was back in the late 80s. It doesn’t quite have the same bite of Verhoeven’s original movie, but it feels like a facsimile of this, and the branching storylines and skill-specific dialogue options remind me of Alpha Protocol, an unsung classic that I suspect will be joined in the cult status basket by Robocop: Rogue City.

This story is set between Robocop 2 and 3 and does a much better job of capping things off than the third movie, and it’s incredibly compelling. Welling returns to give his likeness and voice to the role of Robocop, a role he’s returned to for KFC commercials and an appearance in Mortal Kombat 11, but hasn’t been the lead in since 1990’s Robocop 2.

Best bit

A shootout at an arms fair highlights everything Robocop: Rogue City is best at. The flimsy walls come apart under the heavy gunfire and explosives while you can get your hands on some of the meatiest weapons in the game, even hurling prototype missiles at your opponents. It’s an arena shooter moment in the best way.

When you’re not blasting baddies you’re digging into investigations and exploring a chunk of downtown Detroit in a hub world that you’ll revisit time and again. This is most involved the first time and has you solving murders, investigating an arcade, and issuing citations for crimes, with the choice often being a binary one of warning the criminal or fining them for their misdemeanor. This can be a little agonizing because the area is decently sized and Robocop moves slowly, but it’s almost like the game is bored of serving this up to you too because there are fewer and fewer of them each time you revisit the hub.

Combat feels pretty distinct in Robocop: Rogue City too. Part of this is down to your sluggish movement and the fact you feel like a tank, with even sustained small-arms fire being barely an inconvenience. Enemies will throw grenades at you or open up with heavy machine guns and sniper rifles to do damage, but generally in the early days, you’re free to move through combat in a fairly relaxed way, a predator amongst a pool of enemies that really can only hope to overwhelm you with numbers.

Later, you’ll fight more heavily armed gangs, corporate mercenaries, and even a variety of different robots, but the power curve is often just about right and you never feel outmatched, at worst it’s just harried by the enemies that have the sheer insolence to try and bring you down.

Of course, Robocop’s iconic Auto-9 is the star of the show. This would have happened regardless - the three-round burst is iconic and makes an absolute mess of enemies. But the game has a ridiculously convoluted upgrade system for the sidearm that means you can power it up and ensure it’s a high-quality weapon throughout. Elsewhere, every weapon from the Robocop series shows up for a little bit, whether it’s the Steyr Aug’s used by megacorp OCP, junky submachine guns, and even the iconic Cobra assault cannon, used in one memorable scene.

There’s an RPG-lite skill system that gives you percentage-based increases to different stats (the worst), which is a series of linear paths with unlocks given when you hit certain milestones. These are often very powerful: max out your armor and not only will you negate 50 percent of your damage, but all small arms fire will also ricochet off you, hitting nearby enemies. Max out your health and you’ll regenerate 75 percent of your health without needing healing items.

As you can see, I built my Robocop in the “being a tank” style, but I felt like the combat was already punchy enough. I also put a lot of points into scanning so I could ricochet bullets around corners to hit enemies - a cool idea that rarely works in the game as I just throw explosives at anyone silly enough to hide and most enemies just assault you regardless - and deduction which gave me a 30 percent experience point boost, which is incredibly useful but very boring to write about. It’s a lightweight system but like everything else in Robocop: Rogue City punches way above its weight class.

You can feel this particularly in how authentic the game feels. Whether it’s in how “Robocop” you feel as the leading man, the exhausting police griping in the station, or even just the way everyone in a suit is trying to ruin your day. It also looks the part, whether that’s the grainy scanlines when you hold right-click to enable Robocop-vision or just the haze coming off the streets. It’s also clearly made by fans, because there are a lot of fan-serving moments here, both in terms of some impressive boss fights but also in terms of beats of dialogue and even some of the areas you’ll throw down in.

At times, Rogue City feels like a five-star game. Flashes of brilliance that go above and beyond what I’d expect. Sadly, the lack of budget means that things feel unpolished and occasionally cheap. Again, it doesn’t hinder my enjoyment, but with a little extra polish, this could have been an all-timer, instead of a faithful adaptation of the franchise.

Still, perhaps that’s fitting. The game here feels like Robocop himself, a shiny exterior sitting on top of a mechanically sound but clunky chassis, backed up with a human side that elevates the mechanical.

Accessibility

There’s no dedicated accessibility menu here and the offering is fairly weak. Subtitles can be turned on and off and there are options to lessen screen shake, but that’s about your lot. There’s also a toggle to reduce how loud Robocop’s footsteps are, which may not seem useful now but is likely to feel incredibly worthwhile after playing the game for ten hours.

How we reviewed Robocop: Rogue City

I played Robocop: Rogue City for 13 hours on PC, finishing the main campaign, every quest, and only missing out one secret area - I have 25 of 27 achievements for the game so I feel like I’ve seen pretty much all of it.

There’s no New Game+ mode or anything of the sort, so it feels very much like a one-and-done game.

Want even more game recommendations? Visit our list of the best FPS games or the best free games.

Samsung’s Auto Blocker protects your device as part of One UI 6

5:31 pm |

Author: admin | Category: Mobile phones news | Comments: Off

Samsung has released a new device protection tool as part of the One UI 6 update, called Auto Blocker. The opt-in feature protects your Galaxy device from a variety of security risks. If enabled, Auto Blocker can protect your device from sideloading - the app installation from an unauthorized source. Auto Blocker will also block apps from unauthorized stores. Keep in mind that these features need to be specifically enabled. Auto Blocker will also enforce app security checks, detecting potential malware and preventing harmful commands. It will also safeguard against harmful installs over...

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