Thursday, 27 October 2022

REVIEW: The Pinball Wizard on Nintendo Switch

What do you get if you cross an old-fashioned dungeon crawler, with a pinball game? You get The Pinball Wizard on Nintendo Switch.

You will use your character like a ball on a pinball table, each level acts like its own little table, and you will "dash, hurl, and flip your way to the top of the tower castle."

Along the way you can level up your characters skills, loot treasure and fight monsters, but all within the kind of confines of pinball mechanics. For example, you will use the paddles to hit your character, direct him to collect things, to hit enemies, and eventually once you find the key, hit him towards the door which takes you to the next level.

Once you reach the top of the tower, you will restore the power of The Eye and "bring peace to the lands".

Full Review at


Monday, 24 October 2022

REVIEW: Where's Rose (2022) - Starring Ty Simpkins and Skyler Elyse Philpot

A 78-minute horror thriller! This is right up my street. I have had Where's Rose queued up to watch for a while, and kept putting it back, I wish I hadn't waited so long, as this is a smart little film.

Eric Daniels (played by Ty Simpkins) is about to leave for college, but just before he is about to go, his younger sister Rose Daniels (played by the very talented Skyler Elyse Philpot) goes missing. The only clue you have at first is when she talks of an imaginary friend to her mother.

Before you know it, Rose is found, and everything seems ok, but of course this is a horror film, so there has to be more to it. Eric watches his sister and is quickly convinced that something is wrong, and that something has changed about her. We then get the obligatory black eyes scene from Rose as she looks at her brother who is snooping on her through a gap in the door. He freaks out, but will anyone believe him?

Full Review at


Saturday, 22 October 2022

REVIEW: Black Adam (2022) - Starring Dwayne Johnson and Sarah Shahi

DC are back with a new Superhero film! And apparently the start of a new "Phase" of films, whatever, I don't really care about all that, I am only interested in this film.

WARNING: There are spoilers in this review, so stop reading now if that is a problem, spoilers are limited, but still I thought I should warn you since this is a new film.

Let's start off with the name of the film, Black Adam, ok the "Black" has nothing to do with being Black, and is purely to do with the colour of his suit. It is also strange that Dwayne Johnson was cast as the lead character that is supposed to be some ancient middle eastern guy, especially as The Rock is half Samoan and half black Canadian. But I guess he looks the part so that's ok.

The film starts in 2600BC, in the ancient town of Kahndaq, basically like somewhere in Iraq. A tyrannical King creates the Crown of Sabbac out of some kind of blue mineral that has special powers. Whoever wears the crown is granted great powers.

Full Review at


REVIEW: Serious Fun Football (Early Access) on PC (Steam)

Although this game looks pretty polished, it is still in early access, and it has a long way to go before it is anywhere near ready for full release.

There aren't many indie football games that have done well, in fact I can't think of a single one off the top of my head. That doesn't mean it is impossible, it just means that in a world that is dominated by the FIFA franchise, and with PES a distance second, to even stand a chance you game has to be very good.

Serious Fun Football tries an interesting approach, games are played in a 3 vs 3 environment. With fences surrounding the pitch, there are no corners, throw ins or even penalties. The game is purely about passing and scoring.

Full Review at


Friday, 21 October 2022

REVIEW: A Winding Path on Nintendo Switch

A Winding Path is a hand-drawn 2D platform game of sorts. With a totally unique monochrome look, you play as a character exploring a world, the rain has stopped, crops are dying, rivers are drying up. Your job is to explore and complete small tasks in the hope of uncovering the mystery, and restoring balance to the world.

You will explore ancient ruins, forests and settlements, you will speak to various people, and help them solve their troubles.

Although the graphics look super simple, you literally control a stick man, everything is actually really cleverly done. You could argue that it is actually harder to animate in this way, using hand drawn sketches etc, than it is to animate in a more classical way.

Full Review at


Thursday, 20 October 2022

REVIEW: Hellraiser (2022) - Starring Odessa A'zion and Goran Višnjić

Hulu are back with another reboot of a classic horror film. This time Hellraiser gets the Hulu treatment.

Directed by David Bruckner this is the second adaption of the 1986 novella The Hellbound Heart by Clive Barker. Of course, the first adaption being the 1987 film Hellraiser. Now whatever you think of the original film, I know some love it and think it is the greatest horror film ever made, others not so much, it is fair to say that one character really stands out, and in quite a terrifying way. Yes Pinhead. Played by Doug Bradley, it was a truly scary character. The way he spoke, moved, the eyes, everything. He was a horror icon! But of course, this is 2022, so everything has to be woke, but we will get onto that later.

We start off with a woman buying a case from a man on the street, she is buying it on behalf of Roland Voight, we quickly then move to a party hosted by said hedonistic millionaire Roland Voight (played by the always interesting Goran Višnjić), in his mansion. A male prostitute, Joey (Kit Clarke) approaches the same woman as earlier, Joey wants to meet Voight, she tells him to go to a place in the mansion. He obliges. He soon finds a mechanical looking puzzle box. As he does Voight comes in, and insists Joey solve the puzzle box. As he does, the box stabs him. Voight then traps Joey in the room. A door then opens, and chains fly out and rip Joey apart. Voight looks to the sky and demands an audience with Leviathan.

Full Review at


Monday, 17 October 2022

REVIEW: The Greatest Lie Ever Sold: George Floyd and the Rise of BLM

When George Floyd died there was a media outcry, which resulted in the famous BLM riots across America, over a billion dollars worth of damage. People murdered, and society changed forever.

Candace Owens has made an incredibly detailed, and well sourced documentary looking at the death of Floyd, and specifically the rise of the BLM movement.
Candace looks at how the media controlled the entire narrative of what happened with Floyd, which in turn deeply affected the trial of the cop accused of killing him, as well as how the media reported on BLM.

We also see how after she first spoke out, Dave Chappelle attacked Candace in one of his shows with a sexually charged, brutal misogynistic take down, something that I as the viewer had no idea he had done, mainly as no one reported on it. Is the reason that it was not reported on because Candace is a black, female conservative?

Full Review at

Saturday, 15 October 2022

REVIEW: Pnevmo-Capsula on Nintendo Switch

Pnevmo-Capsula finally gets its console release on the 19th of October, after being out on Steam for a year or so.

Set in an alternate utopian atompunk world in what looks like anywhere between the 1930s to the 1960s, you control a small trolley that delivers mail, your job is to traverse a series of rails, tracks and pipes, and ultimately deliver the mail.

Of course, things are not as simple as they might seem, in your way are obstacles to get past, barriers to overcome, dead ends, and maze like structures to find your way through.

The various levels are laid out across interesting backdrops, "caretaker's booth" on a power pole, made of sleepers; "Air platform" with houses at a height; "The artist's hut", fixed directly on the power line, and so on.

Full Review at


REVIEW: Amberial Dreams on PC (steam)

If there is one thing I like, it is 2D physics-based precision platformer, and what do we have here? Yes, it is a 2D physics-based precision platformer.

You control a ball or as the game calls it a sphere, and you have to get from point A in a level to Point B, in as fast a time as possible. You can only move the ball left or right, so have to make use of the environment to cleverly move you around the level. For example, hit a ramp at speed, or move onto a bouncing platform, move through an antigravity area and so on. Apparently, this is the 5th game in the series, but as far as I know this is the first time, I have played any of them.

With 50 levels to beat, with varying difficulty, the game presents quite the challenge. Each level offers 3 achievable points. First to pass the level, second to pass the level in under a certain time, and thirdly to do that while also collecting a moon icon, that is usually positioned in a difficult to reach place. Do all three, and you have fully passed the level.

There is a story too,

"Follow the story of Amber as she wakes up from her long slumber, alone, to find her former idyllic world transformed to the core. Incarnate her avatar and explore 4 different biomes, each with their own gameplay twists and narrative. Change the world as you progress and uncover hidden secrets. Where are your missing sisters and why did everything change so drastically?"

Full Review at


Friday, 14 October 2022

Halloween Ends (2022) - Starring Jamie Lee Curtis, Rohan Campbell, Nick Castle and James Jude Courtney

I was never a big fan of the original Halloween films, I was more of a Friday the 13th and Nightmare on Elm Street fan, but I did watch and enjoy the original films, and even some of the sequels, reboots and reimagining's. So here we are again, with yet another Halloween film, the 13th in the franchise, and I think the 4th in this timeline?

The film starts off in 2019, and it is Halloween night, Corey Cunningham (Rohan Campbell) is babysitting Jeremy, a young annoying boy who is suffering with behavioural issues. The boy pulls a prank on Corey, and locks him in the attack, the boy is taunting Corey, and brings up Michael Myers, Corey hears a bang so picks up a knife, Corey then starts to kick the door, and eventually he breaks through, but in doing so the door hits Jeremy sending him flying over the banister and hitting the floor, instantly killing him, and just as this happens, his parents return home. As the parents walk in, they look up to see Corey upstairs looking down, holding the knife.

Full Review at

Halloween Ends (2022) - Starring Jamie Lee Curtis, Rohan Campbell, Nick Castle and James Jude Courtney


Wednesday, 12 October 2022

The Handmaid’s Tale returns to Channel 4

The Handmaid's Tale, which is an adaptation of Margaret Atwood's classic novel of the same name, tells the tale of life in the totalitarian dystopia of Gilead, which is located in what was formerly the United States. As a reproductive surrogate for a powerful Commander and his bitter wife, Offred (played by Elizabeth Moss), one of the few fertile women known as Handmaids in the authoritarian Republic of Gilead, fights to survive.

The latest series will see June (Moss) face the consequences of killing Commander Waterford (played byJoseph Fiennes) while struggling to redefine her identity and purpose. The widowed Serena (Yvonne Strahovski) attempts to raise her profile in Toronto as Gilead's influence creeps into Canada. Commander Lawrence (Bradley Whitford) works with Aunt Lydia (Ann Dowd) and Nick (Max Minghella) as he tries to reform Gilead and rise in power. June, Luke (O-T Fagbenle) and Moira (Samira Wiley) fight Gilead from a distance as they continue their mission to save and reunite with Hannah. Other cast returning to the series are, Madeline Brewer as Janine, Amanda Brugel as Rita and Sam Jaeger as Mark.

Channel 4 is officially set to return with the fifth series of The Handmaid's Tale airing later this month.

Friday, 7 October 2022

REVIEW: Jeepers Creepers: Reborn - Starring Imran Adams and Sydney Craven

One of the biggest problems in rebooting/re-imagining/rebirthing a classic horror film, is that you lose the initial surprise build-up of the main character, and even if you never saw the original 3 films, if you come to this film completely fresh, you are more than likely going to search on google for Jeepers Creepers, and in doing so, you pretty much learn everything about the main character in a few seconds looking at a few posters or screenshots. So out of the window goes the old reveal and element of surprise, which you only ever truly get to do once.

Perhaps realising this Jeepers Creepers: Reborn takes a slightly different approach, and instead of making this a sequel, or even pretending that the original films never happened, Reborn takes the unusual step of referencing the original films.... as films. Yes, the original Jeepers Creepers trilogy exists in the Reborn universe as 3 films.

The film starts with a short re-enactment of the original film, 23 years ago an older couple are driving down a road when a big red truck speeds up behind them, it eventually passes them, but later in the drive they see the driver of that truck dumping something down a large pipe that goes underground, by an old house. Suddenly the truck appears behind them again, they manage to escape, but return to the house to see for themselves what was being dumped. They look down the pipe, scream, and we quickly fast forward to the present.

Full Review at


Thursday, 6 October 2022

REVIEW: XEL - Nintendo Switch

XEL is a top-down 3D action-adventure game, set in a futuristic world, where you play as Reid, you find yourself shipwrecked on XEL, a very strange world. Of course, it goes without saying that you have no memory of your previous life, because why would you? Your job in this game is to explore the world, find out about your past, why you are here and what your connection to XEL is.

"Ready your sword and shield as you explore the overworld of XEL and dive into imposing Zelda-like dungeons full of unforeseen threats and challenging puzzles. Throughout your journey you will make new friends and foes, learn new moves, find new gadgets as well as being able to jump through time and space. As Reid delves deeper into the mysteries surrounding XEL, she discovers an endless cycle of peril. Will she be able to break free from it and what will it take?"

As you play you will soon find a sword and a shield, which will be your main weapons for attack, as you explore you can find large pillars that allow you to save your progress, as well as treasure chests, all handily marked on the map. As you explore the area and try to progress to the next, you will of course be met by creatures/robot minions that want to kill you, battles are straight forward hack and slash affairs, some enemies can fire projectiles which is where your shield comes into good use. Boss fights are as expected, learn the attack pattern, avoid the attacks, and attack back when you can.

Full Review at


Sunday, 2 October 2022

Review: Vesper (2022) (a.k.a. Vesper Chronicles) Starring Raffiella Chapman

Sadly, this film has nothing to do with the Italian brand of motorised scooter, instead the film opens up with an eco message.

"The New Dark Ages, Humanity tried to prevent the impending ecological crisis by investing massively in genetic technology. It failed. Engineered viruses and organisms escaped into the world. They wiped out edible plants, animals and large populations of humans. An oligarchy now thrives in enclosed cities called "Citadels" while everyone else struggles to survive. For food, people rely on seeds traded by the Citadels. However, these are coded to produce only one harvest."

Well, that's a nice cheery message to start off with. I would argue that they never failed, but instead it was all by design, but then I am a conspiracy theorist.

Our lead character is Vesper, (Raffiella Chapman) a 13-year-old girl who lives in a house with her paralyzed father Darius (Richard Brake). She spends her days scavenging for seeds so she can grow her own food and she looks for any kind of power sources, which she can use to help keep her father alive.

Full Review at


REVIEW: Pretty Girls Tile Match on PC (Steam)

Zoo Corporation have just released the 18th "Pretty Girls" game in the series and they have sent me a key to check out the game.

I have reviewed a lot of the Pretty Girls titles now, and all of these games have one main thing in common, "Pretty Girls" (KAWAII -  the culture of cuteness in Japan) wrapped around either a classic game or a reimagining of a classic game, well Pretty Girls Tile Match is no different.

A simple concept is used here, you play with mah-jong tiles that are spread out randomly on the table, your job is to match 3 of them, when you do that they disappear from the playing area, once you have cleared the board, you have completed that level.

Each level you complete gets you points, and you can then use those points to unlock costumes and backgrounds for the "Pretty Girls", which you can then position on a diorama, when positioned how you like, you can then save that image, to use however you like, most likely use is for Wallpaper for your computer.

In total there are 120 levels to complete, 20 levels per characters, with 3 different difficulty settings.

Full Review at


Thursday, 29 September 2022

REVIEW: The Infernal Machine (2022) - Starring Guy Pearce, Alice Eve, Jeremy Davies and Alex Pettyfer

The last time I saw Guy Pearce he was making a cameo in the last ever episode of Australian soap Neighbours, well he is back in a feature film called The Infernal Machine, sadly this is not some sci-fi film about erm.. an erm.. Infernal Machine, no that is the name of a book written by a reclusive author Bruce Cogburn, (played by Guy Pearce).

Cogburn has been living alone for years after a book he released inspired Dwight Tufford (Alex Pettyfer) to kill 13 people in a school shooting, he did so using a rifle while positioned on a clock tower, we learn of the tragic events through a news report. Cogburn hasn't written a book since the tragic events.

Despite living in the middle of nowhere, with no phone and no television, Cogburn starts receiving letters from someone called William DuKent, DuKent is seemingly a crazed fan, and he starts sending more and more letters and parcels, and keeps managing to find Cogburn's location.

Full Review at


Wednesday, 28 September 2022

REVIEW: Flashout 3 on PC (Steam)

For nearly 30 years we have been waiting for a game to truly take over the wipE′out mantel as THE anti-gravity racing game. Many contenders have come and go, and in recent years the best of the bunch was Pacer, but even that had a lot of flaws, which I upset the developers by pointing out in my review. More quietly a series of anti-grav games have come and go under the Flashout banner, in 2012 we had Flashout 3D, and then a few years later Flashout 2. both had moderate success, well now the long awaited third game in the sequel has been released, the imaginatively titled Flashout 3.

Now it is worth noting that the Original 2012 game Flashout 3D has also been released and remastered and is available for free!, so check that out.

Let us ignore the problem of calling the first game in the series Flashout 3D and then the third one Flashout 3, and hope that people don't confuse the two, as I did.

Full Review at


Tuesday, 27 September 2022

REVIEW: Tip Top: Don't Fall! - Nintendo Switch

I was asked to check out Tip Top: Don't Fall! on Nintendo Switch.

Tip Top is a simple climbing game, with procedurally generated routes, the idea is simple, climb from the bottom to the top, and once you reach the flag, you have completed the level. Sounds easy right? WRONG.

The game starts out with some surprisingly nice animation to set up the game. You will start off with the tutorial which should get you up to speed on how the controls work. Basically, you control each arm of the character, and using the bumper buttons one hand or the other will hold on to a surface, if that is available. You then need to position the character to reach the next ledge, switching between hands, and positioning the character in the best way is the key here. Before you know it, you will have to make strategically timed jumps, with just one mistake meaning death. You also have limited stamina in each arm, stamina runs out and you will fall, you can regain stamina by moving one hand over your chalk bag.

Full Review at




Monday, 26 September 2022

REVIEW: Blank (2022) - Starring Rachel Shelley and Heida Reed

Take a look at the three posters for this film that I have conveniently put side by side for you. If you only looked at the posters, you would think these were three different films. The first one (red), would describe some kind of Terminator like film. The second one (white) kind of looks like a coming of age feminist type film, and the third one (blue) is probably the most accurate one of the three, but also the most boring one.

So we are back again with a film that has AI going wrong, Blank stars Rachel Shelley as Claire Rivers, Claire is a writer suffering from writer's block, as she looks at blank pages (blank hence the name of the film), she is having to put up with pressure from her agent and bills that need to be paid, but without a finished book, she finds herself stuck.

Claire decides to do what all writers do when they face writers block, she decides to go to a creepy futuristic retreat with AI and Robots. What could possibly go wrong?

Full Review at



Sunday, 25 September 2022

REVIEW: NeverSynth on PC (Steam)

From Whale Rock Games comes NeverSynth, a self-described rhythm driving simulator.

The game itself is very simple, you control a vehicle on a never ending 4 lane highway, there are no other cars, no real obstacles, you just drive, pick up "beats" which is money, avoid pillars which slow you down, and that is about it. Once you have enough money you can drive in new locations and with different cars.

There are 6 locations to drive and 6 cars to drive. But forget about that, this is more about chilling out, listening to synth wave music. The graphics are pretty unique, and on the highest graphics settings are pretty damn cool to look at.

One cool feature is the ability to upload your own music to drive to.

Full Review at


Wednesday, 21 September 2022

REVIEW: Stowaway (2022) Starring Ruby Rose and Frank Grillo

A tenacious party girl fights to survive after three thieves commandeer her luxury yacht. Unable to escape and trapped on the yacht at high seas, she turns the tables on the intruders and takes matters into her own hands.

I cannot remember the last time i saw a Ruby Rose film, however I seem to see Frank Grillo in films almost weekly. With that said, this is very much a Ruby Rose film.

Ruby Rose plays Bella Denton, her father has died and left her a beautiful yacht, despite her fear of water and being unable to swim, when she sees the fancy boat which includes a master bedroom, bar, and a jacuzzi, she quickly learns to appreciate this amazing gift her father has left for her.

After being shown around the boat, she is told she can't stay on it until the paperwork has been completed, so she heads off to a bar. She "pulls" Michael (Patrick Schwarzenegger) and invites him back to the yacht for a night of passion once the area is quiet. When waking up she realises the boat is no longer at the port and that a group of three men have taken over the boat with the aim of breaking into the safe. Michael decides to jump and swim for it to get help, Bella due to not being able to swim, stays on board.

Full Review at


Saturday, 10 September 2022

REVIEW: Blood Waves on Nintendo Switch

"Sometimes You" are back with their latest release Blood Waves. Released on consoles, Blood Waves is a hardcore and bloody shooter. Playing a bit like a mini game you might find in the Assassin's Creed franchise, but with a Lara Croft like character, your job is a simple one, repel wave after wave of zombies.

You start off the game with just a simple pistol and a knife, and are stuck in some kind of underground dungeon area. After dealing with the first wave of zombies, then the game opens up its main "gimmick", between waves part of the dungeon opens up and you spend a few minutes preparing yourself for the next wave. Luckily as you destroy zombies they will drop cash, you can then use this cash to buy ammo, upgrade your character or buy new weapons, but better still you can also buy and then place barricades and traps in the main fighting area. This brings in a whole extra level of tactics. Do you spend your money on more powerful weapons, do you place traps and barricades behind which you can hide, or do you spend the money upgrading yourself, giving you new abilities, more health and so on.

Full Review at


REVIEW: Wire Room (2022) - Starring Bruce Willis and Kevin Dillon

Lionsgate is back with a new release featuring Bruce Willis in one of the final films of his career. Willis stars as Home Security Agent Shane Mueller, who is in charge of the Wire Room, a high tech command centre that surveils dangerous criminals, watches them through hidden cameras, and listens in on conversations.

Now although Bruce Willis is the big name attached to the film, if you have been reading my reviews long enough, you know that often these films are actually vehicles for other actors, and this one is no different. Kevin Dillon is the real star of this film, he plays Justin Rosa, a new recruit to the Wire Room, he is tasked by Mueller to monitor an arms-smuggling cartel member called Eddie Flynn, played by Oliver Trevena. Despite being from London, Trevena has a pretty convincing Irish accent, and I would suggest the Eddie Flynn character has to be based in part on Conor McGregor.

Full Review at


Friday, 9 September 2022

REVIEW: Pinocchio (2022) - Starring Tom Hanks and Benjamin Evan Ainsworth

Pinocchio is one of those titles that has been made and remade many times, and although the Disney cartoon version is the most famous, there have been plenty of other films and cartoons made, mainly due to the fact the story went into the public domain in 1940.

Well for reasons that no one has explained, Disney has decided to remake their own version of Pinocchio from 1940, this time in a live action format with CGI characters.

We find ourselves in 1895 in a small village in Italy, Jiminy Cricket (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) has entered the home of an elderly woodcarver Geppetto, played by a curly haired Tom Hanks.

Full Review at


REVIEW: GOLAZO! 2 on Nintendo Switch

It has been a while since I have played a simple arcade style "soccer" game, and despite most the of the civilised world calling it Football, I thought I would check out new arcade Soccer game "Golazo 2". Now I have never played the original, nor have i heard of it, so I am coming at this game from a totally new perspective.

Since this is an arcade game, there isn't much in the way of depth, so if you have been playing FIFA then this game might seem very simple in comparison.

When you start you are given a few choices, Quick match, Street Tour, Tournaments or World League. You can play with National Teams or "Street Teams", which craftily gets around any licensing issues. 58 national teams with 10 international stadiums, 6 Street fields with 12 street teams.

Full Review at

Sunday, 4 September 2022

REVIEW: Chenso Club on Nintendo Switch

Chenso Club is a Japanese style 2D side scrolling action platformer, I say Japanese style as it is actually developed by Swedish studio Pixadome and published by Curve Games.

"The Chenso Club girls are sassy, strong and eager to show off their moves. Our heroines want any excuse to use their newfound powers. It's up to you to master their moves, increase their power and show the world the might of the Chenso Club."

As you start the game you will first be able to choose one character to play with, but as you progress more will be unlocked. All the characters are female, which is a cool touch and not something you see that often. You will start off with a character called "Blue" which is a Chainsaw wielding android, but you will soon gain access to Carmine who wields a heavy hammer. With 5 characters in total, all very unique with their own fighting style.

Full Review at


Friday, 2 September 2022

REVIEW: Fall (2022) - Starring Virginia Gardner and Grace Caroline Currey

Sometimes films are made which are totally predictable, almost from the very start to the very end, you the viewer can call out in advance pretty much everything that will happen. Fall is one of those films. But that doesn't always mean the film is bad, we as humans like patterns, we see them everywhere, we like to be able to predict things, as it makes us feel better about ourselves, throw in a story that will set your anxiety levels to the very top, and you can sometimes end up with a pretty decent outcome.

The film starts with Becky (Grace Caroline Currey) and Hunter (Virginia Gardner) climbing a mountain, along with Dan (Mason Gooding), everything is going well until Dan falls to his death. As you can imagine this is not an ideal situation.

Before you know it, Becky and Hunter have decided to honour Dan by climbing a 2000 foot, abandoned radio tower in the middle of nowhere, to not only conquer their fears and push their limits, but also so they can release Dan's ashes from the top.

Full Review at


REVIEW: Funko Fusion (2024 Video Game) on Xbox

"Funko Fusion" is an action-adventure game that celebrates pop culture by bringing together over 60 characters from more than 20...