Welcome to Yara, a tropical paradise frozen in time. FarCry 6 thrusts players into a modern-day guerrilla revolution. Dictator Castillo dreams of his country returning to its former glory, even if it means dragging his citizens through a living hell to do it. His son Diego has a moral compass and disagrees. You don’t play as either of them, instead being a random person driven to incredible violence by sheer circumstance.

Ah, FarCry. I’ve missed you.

So you want a Yaran revolution?

Hype, right?

OK, this is a FarCry game, and it’s a more serious setting than ‘doomsday cult‘ of 5, but still not as engaging as ‘tourists land on drug island by accident’ of FarCry 3. The Yaran revolution (second revolution, really, which goes to show how well the first one went) is a compelling fight. I mean, give me any excuse to join a revolution and I’m there.

The Yaran military are almost cartoonishly fascist. Occasionally you meet a bribeable official, but never a soldier torn over committing atrocities in the name of progress. This works, as you don’t even feel a little bad melting these drones with a flamethrower, poisonthrower, hyper-powered crossbow, or any other delightful flavour of steaming hot death.

FarCry has always (since 3) been known for its stellar gunplay, and I can’t fault FarCry 6 either. Assault rifles feel assaulty, missile launchers feel bulky, and the nail gun is annoying; just like in real life. The level of customisation is also much appreciated. Why yes, Ubisoft, I do want a silenced armour piercing MP7 in matte black that I can use to clear a roadblock in 45 seconds without being noticed. Yes, I do want a compound bow to snipe with in retro style. And yes, I certainly do want an improvised weapon that fires deadly CDs at enemies.

You know me so well.

How Far can you Cry?

FarCry 6’s Yara is a beautiful archipelago, with a rich history full of caves, mysticism, and inexplicably advanced guns hidden in these caves surrounded by mystic symbols. And that’s one of the more beautiful aspects of a FarCry game; the suspension of disbelief is needed, true, but it’s a damn romp.

The driving isn’t great. Never has been in FarCry, really, so nothing hugely surprising. Helicopters, planes, dune buggies, tanks, and a weird hovercraft that handles like a lawnmower (and may have at one point actually been a lawnmower) are all available, but there is only one way to travel in Yara.

Wingsuit.

Seriously, airdropping to a fast travel point and gliding your way to the nearest objecting is now and forever will be the height (ha) of mobility. Yeah your clothing can give you neat bonuses for speed, which of course I use too, but the wingsuit is king, queen, and the whole royal court. Mobility and traversal are how you get me, y’all, and I love the freedom here.

A wheely good dog

I regret that joke. But Chorizo is now the main character of FarCry 6, and I think that’s glorious.

For the last several games, animal companions have been the best part of a FarCry game. And while nothing compares to the wonders of snuggling Primal’s saber-toothed tiger, when you have adorable wheelchair dog and ghost jaguar on your side, you’re still gonna have a good time. Does the ludicrous nature of distracting a fascist military with a special needs sausage dog undermine the seriousness of the revolution you’re a part of?

Yes. Yes it does.

And that’s where we hit a wall. This story may just cut closer for me due to being a bit of a history nerd and recently learning an awful lot about actual horrors that went down in real-life banana republics, but it certainly puts a damper on the fun when the human rights abuses you’re fighting are interspersed with some wicked cool dubstep.

That’s what FarCry does, right? Push the envelope, make things uncomfortable and then cut the tension with a weirdly coloured gun or a crocodile in a jacket. I dunno; fun as it is, are we calling time on good taste here?

FarCry 6 my ass, it’s probably Millhouse

Don’t get me wrong, FarCry6 is a solid game. It hits all the marks of the previous entries, with the trademark humour and a decent dose of absurdity. But it isn’t sharp, or new, and it certainly doesn’t push any boundaries. As a shooter it’s a solid win, but I expected more from FarCry.

I’m an Irish immigrant living in New Zealand, so I’m not the right person to judge how accurate the depiction of a Carribean dictatorship. But it does feel believable, in the “oh hell this couldn’t happen but also it definitely does” kind of way.

There comes a time in every game’s life when it’s gone as far as it will go. FarCry 6 isn’t there yet, but this iteration might be writing on the wall.

Still fun though.

The post FarCry 6 review appeared first on 8-Bit Island.

It might not seem possible with how much people have struggled to get their hands on consoles. But the scarcity seems to be helping the PS5 gets snapped up as they have sold over 10 million units.

Even crazier it has sold more than the PS4 which didn’t have issues of scarcity.

Console gaming doesn’t appear to be going anywhere. Well not any time soon.

We reviewed the PS5 and were blown away by the controller. So with the DualSense in tow, we aren’t shocked by the sales.

Blurb

Sony Interactive Entertainment announced today that the PS5 has sold through more than 10 million units globally since first launching on November 12, 2020. PS5 is the fastest-selling console in the company’s history and continues to outpace sales of its predecessor, PS4.

SIE also achieved additional milestones across its portfolio of PlayStation Studios games, including:

●        Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales from Insomniac Games has sold more than 6.5 million copies* since releasing on November 12, 2020

●        MLB The Show 21 from San Diego Studio is the fastest-selling title in franchise history with more than 2 million copies* sold across all platforms. The game has reached more than 4 million players since releasing on April 16, 2021

●        Returnal from Housemarque, a new IP that launched to critical acclaim, has sold more than 560,000 copies since releasing on April 30, 2021

●        Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart from Insomniac Games has sold more than 1.1 million copies* since releasing on June 11, 2021

“I can’t express enough the deep gratitude we feel for our passionate community of PlayStation fans who have embraced PS5, and the world-class development and publishing partners who bring such incredible gaming experiences to our platforms,” said Jim Ryan, president and CEO of Sony Interactive Entertainment. “While PS5 has reached more households faster than any of our previous consoles, we still have a lot of work ahead of us as demand for PS5 continues to outstrip supply. I want gamers to know that while we continue to face unique challenges throughout the world that affect our industry and many others, improving inventory levels remains a top priority for SIE.”

Looking ahead, the lineup of exclusive games coming from PlayStation Studios includes a new God of War from Santa Monica Studios, Gran Turismo 7 from Polyphony Digital, and Horizon Forbidden West from Guerrilla Games. Some of the highly anticipated games from SIE’s partners include Battlefield 2042 from Electronic Arts, DEATHLOOP from Bethesda, Far Cry®6 from Ubisoft, and Kena: Bridge of Spirits from Ember Lab.

The post The PS5 has sold over 10 million units appeared first on 8-Bit Island.

One of the first games I played for this site was Matterfall, an excellent bullet hell game developed by Housemarque. On a related note, Returnal is an excellent bullet hell game developed by Housemarque.

That’s it, that’s the review… Fine, I’ll tell you why.

Point of No Returnal

Returnal sees you as Selene, an Astra-naut (I refuse to call her anything else) investigating a mysterious signal on a dead planet. Unfortunately, she crash lands and, with her ship Helios all jacked up, decides to wander into the world of Atropos to investigate the spooky signal on foot.

Look, with this many Greek names flying around, including two Titans and one of the Fates, things aren’t gonna turn out smoothly. You’re on a planet named after one of the Fates, there’s gonna be some shenanigans.

This is an exceptionally jumpy game. Mobility is king, queen, and gender-non-conforming ruler in Returnal, and standing still is a quick ticket to the grave. Luckily there is plenty of weaponry available to provide hot death in a variety of exciting flavours to whatever fauna decide they want to chomp on you. My favourite was a type of toxic grenade launcher, which was highly effective in my ‘spam from a distance and run like hell while reloading’ playstyle.

Pro tip, that.

When we say bullet hell, by the way, we mean it. The sheer numbers of things doing things on the screen can cause a bit of thing related confusion. Good? Bad? Harmless? Glitch? Who even knows sometimes. But they were all very pretty particles.

Returnal to Sender

In a move no other game has ever made, probably, you get a little into Returnal before being brutally killed by something it seems should be killable. But it’s ok, because you get all resurrected and sent back in time to when you first crashed.

Prepare to die, amirite?

Regardless, Moon Moon takes all this in her stride, carrying on as if her only care in the world is getting off the aforementioned world. Which, of course, it is. The world itself is hauntingly beautiful, from the overgrown forest you begin in through deserts of sand and ice, and ruined cities of bizarre architecture… Bizarrechitecture. All of this looks glorious though, and I cannot even fathom criticising these environments.

Problem is, there are some other mischiefs going on…

The Mummy Returnals

Sometimes you’ll see a white sided, good old Midwestern US house incongruously plonked in the middle of an alien biome. And, even by this game’s standards, that’s mildly unsettling.

Inside you’ll deal with the personal story of Selene, and I refuse to spoil anything else because it’s weird as hell. Did you like P.T.? I hope so, because there are huge vibes here. Echoes of Gone Home and Resident Evil 7 abound as well, but the Playable Teaser is perfectly clear whenever you turn a corner and meet something bizarre or unexpected.

All of this is pretty cool, and the shift to a first person perspective with slow, investigative gameplay is an excellent break in the otherwise frenetic gameplay. The first time you lose your progress to a freeze or glitch, though? That’s not so rad. That happened to me midway through the second area early on and, while I believe this has been patched out by now (I forgot to hit publish on the review :/), it was enough to make me get up and walk away for the evening.

Returnal of the King

Not that there was ever any doubt, but Housemarque has done a great job with Returnal. Clearly the PS5 exclusive cheddar has led to some great strides in technical capability, but the talent was there.

Hands down my favourite part was the haptic controls made possible by Sony’s DualSense controller. Using the same triggers at different pressures to activate different weapons, the vibration mimicking everything from blazing energy to soft rain, and using the speaker in ways I haven’t enjoyed as much since Infamous: Second Son, the DualSense is the real star in this galaxy of innovation.

The game itself is also stellar. Returnal is a game you might want to put down every so often for a bit of a breather, but you’ll definitely find yourself returning for another go.

The post Returnal review appeared first on 8-Bit Island.

It is official.

PlayStation 5 Launches This November At:

NZD$649.95 For PS5 Digital Edition
NZD$819.95 For PS5 With Ultra HD Blu-ray Disc Drive

DualSense Wireless Controller (standalone) – NZD$124.95 (RRP)

PULSE 3D wireless headset – with 3D audio support and dual noise-cancelling microphones NZD$179.95 (RRP)

HD Camera – with dual 1080p lenses for gamers to broadcast themselves along with their epic gameplay moments NZD$109.95 (RRP)

Media Remote – to navigate movies and streaming services with ease NZD$54.95 (RRP)

DualSense Charging Station – to conveniently charge two DualSense Wireless Controllers NZD$54.95 (RRP)

Preorders are up on Mighty Ape and EB Games.

The post PlayStation 5 Launches This November for $649.95 Digital Edition, $819.95 For Disc Drive appeared first on 8-Bit Island.

Square has confirmed that Marvel’s Avengers will be coming to PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X.

Better than that, they have also confirmed if you buy the game on PS4 or XB1, you will get a free upgrade to the new system on Day 1. So no need to hold off for the new systems to upgrade.

The post Marvel’s Avengers Confirmed for PS5 & XSX and will include a free upgrade appeared first on 8-Bit Island.

One of the new IP’s announced this morning includes the interesting looking PROJECT ATHIA.

SQUARE ENIX todayunveiled PROJECT ATHIA (working title), the first game from its newly established studio, Luminous Productions, an other-worldly adventure in development for the PlayStation 5 (PS5) system and PC.

Designed for PS5, PROJECT ATHIA will harness the full power of the console and demonstrates Luminous Productions’ philosophy to provide a gaming experience like never before, fusing together the latest technology with art.

PROJECT ATHIA will transport players to a world filled with beauty and dismay as they set upon a thrilling story-led, action-packed adventure which can be twisted, tempestuous and forbidding.

PROJECT ATHIA is being developed simultaneously for PS5 and PC. 

The post Square Enix announced new IP PROJECT ATHIA which will be exclusive to PS5 and PC appeared first on 8-Bit Island.