Shadow of the Colossus - authentic and atmospheric

In a harsh, almost empty world, a guy tries to revive a girl. He needs to murder quite a few amazing beasts - and this looks a lot like an awful crime, totally not a great feat. Players touch the atmosphere of despair, witness struggles of the hero, and battle fantastic creatures, exploring the deserted mountain lands... The experience is so unusual and authentic!

Shadow of the Colossus was initially released in 2005-06 for the PlayStation 2 consoles. A remastered version is available on the PS3 and also through the game streaming service PlayStation Now. In 2018, the gaming world got a strongly improved remake for the PS4. Many gamers think it’s a unique gaming masterpiece, totally worthy of delving in.

So, why is Shadow of the Colossus so awesome? What should gamers expect from this game?

Hyper Scape - a futuristic iteration of the Battle Royale genre

A group of people (around 100 usually) lands on an island or on a limited territory to… actually to kill each other. Only one of them or only one team will be a winner of this battle, everyone else should die... 

Wait a moment! What are we talking about? Is all of this about a scary bloody nightmare of a retired military paratrooper? No. We really are talking about gaming here, and quite a popular one in the community. That was a general description of the Battle Royale genre. It’s been popular since the glorious release of PUBG and Fortnite. Many considered it another one temporary hype (like Pokémon Go), but years pass by and Battle Royale is still here. Lots of gamers enjoy such cruel matches and big companies try to get their pieces of this pie.

Now it's the turn of Ubisoft to release their Battle Royale. They burst into this sweet market with a free-to-play game Hyper Scape, available on PC, PS4, and Xbox One. Did they do a good job? Is the game worth trying out? Why is Battle Royale so addictive? This review on the Very Good Games gives some answers.

Casual fights in Tekken 7 - is this possible?

Some game genres have a very high threshold for newcomers. You should invest a lot of time into a MOBA to start getting victories in multiplayer matches, or even just enjoy the game (Dota 2). Players have to spend many hours in card games to understand all the abilities and get a better deck (Hearthstone). And you must develop specific skills in fighting games to become a decent opponent at least for CPU opponents, not to mention the competitive community out there.

Tekken 7 is one of the most popular fighting games. It does not have well-known characters of Injustice 2, but this series has developed its own Universe for quite a few years of existence.

What about playing Tekken 7 on the casual level? Is it good for people, who don’t want to participate in esports events but plan to just have fun? 

The Little Giant - free online platformer

A little blocky creature suffers from its size. Other living blocks are giant and they laugh at the poor thing. But it’s not a reason to cry! In this free browser game, you can make the hero bigger and mightier. Just help it collect parts, hidden on many platforms, among many traps.

This adventure of the Little Giant is rather a light playing experience. Of course, you need to act accurately to reach the goal - don’t let the hero fall into the abyss and avoid spiky objects. Still, this gaming mission is quite relaxing.

Pirate Cards - play free online

Your brave pirate starts quite an unusual adventure. On the way, he meets treasures, potions, cannons, and of course, other pirates. It sounds like quite a normal day for such a sea gangster. Still, by the power of gaming magic, the guy with other persons and objects were turned into cards. And you control where he goes and what happens to him.

Ghost or Samurai? Choose your path in Ghost of Tsushima (game release)

The Mongol army invaded the Japanese Tsushima island, so all the local samurai united to battle this common enemy. They failed and many died. Jin Sakai, one of the samurai, was badly injured but he managed to survive. He understood that his battle technique is weak against Mongols and needs to be improved. Jin starts his astonishing journey across Tsushima, and players help him to fight everyone openly, in battles, or act rather silently and demonstrate miracles of the stealth style.

The game Ghost of Tsushima is a great chord in the swan song of the PlayStation 4. It’s an exclusive for this game console, released on the threshold of the PS5/XSX era. And this is one of those games for which many people think about purchasing the PS consoles.

Jigsaw Puzzle Deluxe (a free browser game)

It’s nice to have a relaxing gaming time in such big games as Animal Crossing: New Horizons, and still, it may be nice to open time after time something much smaller but with the same calming effect. So, what about a relaxing playing experience? Jigsaw Puzzle Deluxe invites you into a calm atmosphere and offers a lot of pictures to assemble from many pieces. Colorful flowers, cute animals, peaceful landscapes - choose whatever you like.

Hard or Light: 7 games for your style

Usually, gamers look for perfection in their virtual adventures - perfection of visuals, storytelling, multiplayer interaction, and various gameplay mechanics. The game difficulty is one of the most significant but often not so obvious aspects. Would you prefer (almost) a sadistic level of Dark Souls or the cute simplicity of Poochy & Yoshi's Woolly World? 

There are lots of games somewhere in between, and sometimes they tend to come much closer to hardcore or casual. Let’s take a look at 7 very good games: 4 unexpectedly difficult and 3 relaxingly simple.

PlayStation 5 / Xbox Series X - the choice beyond specs

Two major console manufacturers have already presented their new devices - gamers saw the Xbox Series X in late 2019, and Sony revealed PlayStation 5 in June 2020.

Once again, the gaming community becomes divided on fans of Xbox or PlayStation and those who witness their pointless fight. For the fanguys, the choice has been made already - and that’s great because it’s ok just to enjoy the hardware, ecosystem, and games of your choice without any thinking. For many others, it’s a work in progress. Good news: we still have time till the holidays 2020 (and many years ahead).