HIGH Playful environments and cute co-op puzzles.

LOW Clunky movement and not enough puzzle variation.

WTF How did two bricks make me tear up like this?

Hi everyone! Eugene Sax here with another review from GameCritics.com!

With so many games that focus on offering hardcore action and explosions, I find myself occasionally searching for something a little more laid back. LEGO Voyagers is absolutely in that camp, and my wife and I had a great time in its meticulously crafted world — this is a co-op–only experience that focuses more on exploration than adrenaline, and it’s great.

Two LEGO brick friends are on an island together, dreaming of space travel because they live so close to a rocket launch site. After watching a rocket crash-land near the island, players control this pair of single-bricks as they solve puzzles and salvage the abandoned spaceship parts. Platforming and puzzles combine together in completely LEGO-fied world that will lead players through canyons, factories, forests, and more. 

These little bricks will jump, roll, and attach to larger LEGO pieces while on the hunt for the crashed rocket parts. While most of the puzzles they’ll need to solve to earn these pieces are simple, they’re effective in how they integrate into each level, and how they utilize multiplayer functions into the challenges.

For example, one puzzle had me control some platforms, flipping them between horizontal and vertical, while my wife had to use another by leveraging momentum. In other parts of the adventure there are vehicles that transport LEGOs to complete a puzzle. Working together with a partner to drive a truck (one steering, the other controlling speed) made for an enjoyable comedy of errors, and was ultimately satisfying when we finally got the truck where it needed to go. 

While my wife and I absolutely had a good time with LEGO Voyagers, there’s no denying that it’s a bit on the shallow end since many of the puzzles amount to repeating the same challenges — finding blocks to make a bridge, to complete a road, and so on.

Some of the puzzles feel a little misjudged, as well. Some took too long, some were too awkward, and some were both. The vehicle puzzles I just mentioned, while amusing, ended up also being annoying due to how long some of the sequences went on.

There were also some puzzles that were difficult thanks to their execution. In the factory, for example, I controlled a crane magnet that could pick up specific LEGOs. My wife had to pick up the correct piece with her character, wait for the me to pick it up and put them on a different conveyor belt so she could grab more LEGOs, and then I had to pick them all up again to go to a third location. Controlling all of those pieces plus my wife felt awkward and took much longer than it should have.

Ultimately, Voyagers lands in a weird place for me as far as recommending it goes, and also with who I would recommend it for. The simplicity and repetition of the experience means it’s hard to recommend to older players who might be looking for a little more meat on the bone. On the other hand, it might not be right for a younger audience due to the execution issues with some of the puzzles. Despite landing in this mixed middle ground, I did have an enjoyable time with my wife, and we walked away with fond memories of it, so for me Lego Voyagers gets 6.5 stuck together bricks out of 10.

Rating: 6.5 out of 10

Disclosures: This game is developed by Light Brick Studio and published by Annapurna Interactive. It is currently available on PC, PS5, Xbox Series X|S. This copy of the game was obtained via publisher and reviewed on the PC. Approximately 3 hours of play were spent playing the game, and the game was completed. The game must be played completely in multiplayer.

Parents: According to the ESRB, this game is rated E. No specific disclosures here, just a couple of people roaming around as Lego bricks in a Lego world. Good for all ages!

Colorblind Modes: There are no colorblind modes.

Deaf & Hard of Hearing Gamers: There is no text in-game. Audio is not needed for gameplay. The game is fully accessible.

Controls: Controls are not remappable, and there is no control diagram. Players will move with the left stick, jump with A, attach and detach to blocks with X, and make noises with B (not required for gameplay completion).

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HIGH The bots all have appealing designs and personalities.

LOW I wish there was a bit more strategy to it.

WTF I still haven’t found an instance where teleportation would be helpful.

It makes me happy to pick up a game that has even half the amount of care and attention that Blade Ballet’s developers put into it. Everything about the presentation feels crisp, immediate, and appealing. Beauty is only skin deep, though.

In Blade Ballet, players control small robots outfitted with swords and shields. The bots can spin, lunge forward, and perform a number of other offensive actions to destroy their opponent. One direct sword hit is enough to destroy a bot, so players must carefully balance caution and recklessness.

There are a number of bots from which to choose, and each is outfitted with a different configuration of weapons and shields. Some have three blades surrounding their hull, making them spiked balls of destruction. Others have one extra-long sword and extra shields, giving that bot the advantage of range, but requiring more precision when going in for the kill.

The bots are fairly maneuverable, but the controls come off as a bit floaty. The floatiness seems intentional, though, almost as if the bots are pucks on an air hockey table.

The predominant form of attack is spinning around using R1 or L1, turning each bot into a whirlpool of blades. As much as I tried to play the patient, thrusting fencer, I found myself being repeatedly beaten by those who constantly spin — they’re like the Tasmanian Devil holding lightsabers.

Because of this dominance through spinning, it becomes, essentially, a game of luck. Whoever’s sword makes contact first wins. I would prefer that the swords instead pushed the opponent backwards when making contact, since all of the stages are peppered with obstacles and traps. As is, the one-hit kill mechanic demands precision, but the spinning and floaty controls favor blind aggression.

For these reasons, Blade Ballet feels a bit confused. On one hand, its quick death mechanics and wide selection of fighters imply that it aspires to be a more strategic game of positioning and spatial awareness, like Nidhogg or Furi. On the other hand, its floaty controls and reliance on unpredictable stage hazards seem to indicate that it wants to be a wacky party game, like Starwhal or Gang Beasts. As it is, it doesn’t dedicate itself to either and serves as a lesser approximation of both.

While the visuals are appealing and the bots are full of life, I find myself a bit let down by the gameplay. It’s not precise enough to be a true ballet of blades as the title implies, and really, it’s too bad since the market has room for a top-down Nidhogg. On the other hand, it’s too precise to be a wacky laugh-with-your-mates brawler like Gang Beasts, which it could have done equally well. As is, it is a decent game within reach (in either direction) of being something much greater. Rating: 6.5 out of 10

Disclosures: This game is developed by DreamSail Games and published by DreamSail Games. It is currently available on PS4 and PC. This copy of the game was obtained via publisher and reviewed on the PS4. Approximately 2 hours of play were devoted to the multiplayer-player mode. There is no single-player mode.

Parents: According to the ESRB, this game is rated E10+ and contains Fantasy Violence and “Users Interact”. Though it is a game about blade-based combat, there is absolutely no gore or dismemberment of any kind.

Deaf & Hard of Hearing Gamers: The game can be played without audio without any detriment to the experience.

Remappable Controls: No, this game’s controls are not remappable

Colorblind Modes: There are no colorblind modes available in the options.

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HIGH Looks and sounds awesome.

LOW Needs a little more variety.

WTF Only four character models for multiplayer.

Pac-Man is a classic that’s been around for over 30 years. In those three decades Pac-Man has had some great games and some awful ones. A few years back, Pac-Man Championship Edition was released, and it reinvented the series’s gameplay to be faster and more neon-filled. Pac-Man 256 follows a similar approach by taking the elements of Pac-Man that everyone knows and loves, but creates something that feels new and fresh. And thankfully, this creation is a blast to play.

Pac-Man 256 was originally released on mobile devices so I was nervous about how it would hold up on a TV, but it’s made a fantastic transition to consoles–the visuals look great, everything looks crisp, and the colors are vibrant. Using a controller instead of touch controls feels like a huge improvement, and the game also ditches microtransactions–just pay the $5 purchase price and that’s it, with no ads to deal with or any little chests or gifts to buy.

Play-wise, Pac-Man 256 translates the field of the original into a neverending maze that players have to navigate using the d-pad while collecting dots and dodging ghosts. As Pac-Man travels, he’ll encounter power-ups that shake up the gameplay.

There a ton of power-ups (over 15 of them) and upgrading them with credits earned in-game is permanent. Pac-Man 256 is similar to a roguelike in this respect–each run gains the player more credits and moves them closer to unlocking a new power-up. Unlocked and upgraded items make it easier to push deeper and faster into the maze… And the player will need to move fast.

Following at all times is an ever-growing cloud of broken numbers and glitched letters, and if they catch up to Pac-Man, it’s game over. The “256” in the title is a reference to the kill screen that occurs when a player reaches the 256th maze in the original arcade game, and the cloud of broken code chasing Pac-Man looks just like that famous glitch. It’s a cool idea for a game and a nice way to use a well-known piece of game history.

In addition to the core mode, Pac-Man 256 offers multiplayer where up to four people can work together. They each have a separate score, but they also cooperate to get a high cumulative score. It’s a nice bonus, but I’m not sure I want to play it again. Having four players at once is madness because the camera can be annoying, and it’s local-only with no way to play online or competitively.

This lack of modes and any online component contributes to the biggest problem with Pac-man 256–after a few hours, I felt bored. There are some skins to change the look of the game, but beyond that there isn’t much else to it. It seems perfect for quick bursts of arcade fun in a waiting room or right before bed, but sitting down with it for a few hours doesn’t do it any favors. Despite being available on consoles, this is still a bite-sized game.

Despite its lack of long-term staying power, Pac-Man 256 is a fantastic reinterpretation of an arcade classic that looks and plays great, and this port is easily the best version. That said, it’s not meant for extended sessions, so I recommend playing in small chunks to avoid burnout. Rating: 8 out of 10

Disclosures: This game is developed by Hipster Whale and 3 Sprockets and published by Bandai Namco. It is currently available on iPhone, Android, PC, PS4 and Xbox One. This copy of the game was obtained via a code provided by Bandai Namco and reviewed on the PS4. Approximately 6 hours of play were devoted to the single-player mode, and the game was not completed. 2 hours of play were spent in multiplayer modes.

Parents: According to the ESRB, this game is rated E for Everyone and contains: mild fantasy violence. The violence amounts to Pac-Man eating ghosts. There is no blood or screaming. No swearing either. Totally safe for kids of all ages.

Deaf & Hard of Hearing: Pac-Man 256 can easily be played without sound and there are no subtitles. Any threats are clearly marked and easy to see.

Remappable Controls: No. There are no remappable controls of any kind.

Colorblind Modes: There are no colorblind modes available in the options. I’m not colorblind so I can’t say for sure, but some aspects of the game rely on color. Specifically the ghosts. They each have different colors representing their behavior and they flash blue when they are vulnerable to Pac-Man.

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