Serious Sam: Shatterverse: PS5 Review

Developed by Behaviour Interactive
Published by Devolver Digital
Platform: PS5

The multiverse concept has a lot to answer for.

It's provided homecomings for Spider-Man, and chaos for the Avengers - but it's also proved to be fertile ground for the gaming world too.

The latest to make use of the concept is rogue-like Serious Sam: Shatterverse, which brings the mayhem of the Serious Sam franchise and dials it up a notch with the chance to take on other Sams from previous games.

This time as series villain Mental breaks the walls between universes, he unleashes shifting universes in his desire for power - and only one person can stop him. That person - or in the multiverse case - is Sams, the heroes from the original shooters.

Essentially a FPS which forces you to play through a series of levels before fighting off a boss and then making you do it all again to fight an even bigger boss, Serious Sam: Shatterverse's commitment to gun-soaked anarchy is admirable, even if the end result is occasionally irritating and tougher than expected.

Built for one to five players, the game's better as a multiplayer proposition, rather than a single player which ends far too quickly as you're offed by the hordes of bad guys and lack of cumulative fire power.

Instead of being a campaign over levels, Serious Sam: Shatterverse is more about runs, sending you into collision with enemies and worlds from Sam's past, present and future. Along for the ride are alternate Sams and their endless quips - but Serious Sam: Shatterverse is more concerned with a run'n'gun approach to the game which does play off, but as mentioned, if you're solo, requires an element of skill that may prove too difficult to master at times.

Fortunately, the game's not too bothered about taking itself seriously and the Dead by Daylight developers know a thing or two about hordes and dealing with endless creatures. It makes this part of the game stronger than you'd expect and while Serious Sam: Shatterverse is a solid FPS at a very reasonable price, it's also one which proves to be more disposable fun than you'd expect.

By Any Means: Movie Review

Cast: Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, Mark Wahlberg, Giancarlo Esposito, David Strathairn, Josh Lucas

Director: Elegance Bratton

There's a kernel of a great idea in 1960s-set crime drama By Any Means. 

Unfortunately, this tale of a mob turned FBI stooge and enforcer (played by Wahlberg with increasing inflection as if he's been possessed by Andy Samberg) and his team up with an overlooked black FBI agent (Wonder Man's intense Abdul=Mateen II) delivers a script and tropes that are as plain to see on the screen as the large prosthetic nose on Wahlberg's character.

Abdul=Mateen II's G-man Special Agent Wayne Strider is a returning hero to his Mississippi home town - but unfortunately, despite the adulation of the locals who see his rise in the force as something to be proud of, his superiors are holding him back from cases.

However, he gets his big break when American Civil Rights movement leader Vernon Dahmer (an all-too brief appearance from Esposito) is murdered during an attack by the Ku Klux Klan for his work trying to help recruit Black voters to the polls.

But he soon finds he's forced into a partnership with mafia hitman turned FBI informant Gregory Scarpa, who's already helped uncover what happened to three young people trying to sign up voters years ago in the same town.

As Strider deals with his growing resentment of Scarpa's methods (while housing his own righteous anger at what's happening), he soon finds himself caught in a powderkeg of a situation as their investigation is stonewalled.

Director Elegance Bratton could have brought a seething anger to this story, but mixing the kind of relationship that was central to Oscar winner Green Book and giving it a broad Mafia twist proves to be anything but potent in this formulaic plodding approach to a story based on true events.

The underwritten story is sizzling with potential, but delivers a flat, uninspired and predictable piece that just lacks any kind of hint of tension or suspense. Wahlberg is nothing but cliche in his performance as Scarpa, using the broadly written story to deliver little to no nuance to the Mobster who clearly is from the streets, but appears to have been written as an outtake from Goodfellas.

Abdul-Mateen II delivers some gusto, but the conflict within him is never really given time to build to a crescendo, and while he brings some of the boiling moments that are needed, the script fails him badly.

Most of the film uses its overly familiar soundtrack to do the hard lifting, even if it rolls into familiar grounds with an almost Jan Hammer-inspired music score for a chase sequence that feels like it's taken from the 1980s.

The most interesting part of the film comes in the footnotes that accompany the credits, hinting at what could have been a sensational story and a great origin tale for Scarpa's informing. But sadly, By Any Means delivers what it wants to - it's just a shame that it does it by any means other than justice to its leads and its inspiration.

Star Wars: The Mandalorian and Grogu: Disney+ Movie Review

Cast: Pedro Pascal, Sigourney Weaver, Jeremy Allen White, Steve Blum, Martin Scorsese
Director: Jon Favreau

The question of how to expand The Mandalorian's world hangs deeply like Damocles Sword over the cinematic version of the Disney+ series which began back in 2019.

Unfortunately, what emerges from this romp through the Star Wars galaxy is little more than an extended episode moulded into a TV movie of the week. And certainly, neither Din Djarin (Pascal, helmeted throughout save for 13 minutes) nor Grogu go through deep arcs or take their respective characters anywhere particularly new.

However, that's not to say that this adventure isn't widely accessible and offers a sporadically fun return to Mando's world.

In the ashes of the demise of the Empire, the New Republic is trying to chase down Imperial Warlords who are determined to revive the evil ways. It's into this that the Mandalorian and his childlike charge Grogu are thrust, taking on bounty hunter contracts for Weaver's Commander. Determined to track down the Ace of Staves from the New Republic's most wanted pack of cards, at the behest of a pair of Hutt twins, the Mandalorian and Grogu find themselves caught up in a scheme to free Rotta the Hutt (The Bear's Jeremy Allen White), a gladiator son of Jabba the Hutt.

However, what seems to be a simple job soon turns into something more complicated...

Star Wars: The Mandalorian and Grogu isn't exactly the creative film perhaps Lucasfilm were looking for when they decided to launch the first cinematic film since 2019's The Rise of Skywalker. 

It's not that it's entirely bad, more that aside from looking incredible in swathes of sequences on the IMAX screen, it doesn't really serve a wider purpose. Long-term fan Favreau has kept most of his enthusiastic edges reined in throughout (apart from a very familiar finale set piece) and delivers some impressive CGI-heavy action sequences, worlds filled with a myriad of creatures and a sense of expansion within the Star Wars universe. Characters from Star Wars: Rebels make an appearance and there's a genuine feeling the film's shifted from the insular Skywalker origins that began to be a creative albatross around its neck.

But a third act shift sees the already overlong movie suffering from a pace change that feels out of place - even if it does provide a chance for Grogu to shine and parallels to Yoda to emerge. 

Three seasons of The Mandalorian provided diminishing creative returns and it's hard to see how this latest will boost an adult audience, though families with small children will likely get some thrill from it. It's telling that Ludwig Göransson's score does a lot of the emotional heavy lifting that's missing from the story - and that Grogu is nearly acted off the screen by acclaimed director Martin Scorsese as a nervy, four-armed street food vendor.

In among the gunslinging and the father-son messages, Star Wars: The Mandalorian and Grogu begins to feel depressingly light - there's a feeling that perhaps this story belongs in a time and a galaxy far, far away.

The Blood of Dawnwalker: PS5 Review

Developed by Rebel Wolves
Published by Bandai Namco
Platform: PS5

RPGs have largely felt like they've had stale mechanics for a while - and in terms of storytelling, the narratives have all began to drift into each other, all a variation on a theme.

So it's refreshing to say that The Blood of Dawnwalker takes the mechanics and the staid narrative and drives some new ambition and idea into it.

Set in the 14th Century Carpathian mountains, in a world riddled by plague and also with famine nipping at the door, it's the story of Coen, a peasant whose life is changed when he encounters some local vampires known as the Vhrakhiri. With the creatures offering the humans an escape from a world that's on the edge of extinction, Coen soon finds himself converted to their ilk and driven by a desire for revenge, as well as blood.

After a fairly exciting prologue which hints at what's ahead for Coen, and introduces some of the combat, The Blood of Dawnwalker settles into familiar tropes and mechanics of the RPG world. From chopping wood for the family at night to various fetch quests, the game breeds a kind of familiarity for anyone who's ever had cursory interactions with their ilk.

It's no surprise you'll likely recall The Witcher 3, given the fact Konrad Tomaszkiewicz, the former game director for The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, is in charge of proceedings. (And the fact Coen looks like kind of Alan Wake Geralt cross won't exactly harm that perception either.)

But make no mistake, The Blood of Dawnwalker is no lazy ripoff or addition to the genre, thanks to a 30 day and night timer that clicks down for Coen. With time ticking against him as he races to save his loved ones, the game bestows on players both a sense of foreboding and urgency as it plays out.

Whether it's making every decision feel like it truly counts or adding pressure to any side-quests you may choose to indulge in, this mechanic shakes up the gameplay and even brings a level of poignancy to the idea of a Dawnwalker, a vampire who can exist in night and day.  

Graphically, the game occasionally dips below its frame rate and there are a few moments when it feels like interacting with the world around Coen doesn't quite gel as it should. But the pull of the time deadline, which is split into 8 parts during the day and 8 parts at night means you're willing to forego some of the occasional drops.

The sharp focus of the gameplay means that every moment feels like it's dripping with potential and also opportunity. It also means no two players will have the same experience as priorities will differ over each mission and every twist and turn.

Combat deals with striking and blocking, with every move feeling like it's more urgent than just button-mashing as the time ticks away in the background. Whether it's draining blood from his enemies to regain health or scrapping away, there's a feral nature to Coen that befits the transformation he is undergoing and the life that has befallen him.

Coen himself benefits from a feeling of tragedy when his world falls apart and he's gifted the curse that will aid his quest and fuels his desire to defeat those who've oppressed his land, his family and his own future. It's here Rebel Wolves' writing comes to the fore and while interactions usually lead to further questions and dialogue options, it's worth noting that none of it ever feels surplus to requirements or like padding in any form.

There's a subtlety at play in The Blood of Dawnwalker that proves to be engaging for even casual fans of the RPG genre and the idea of adding in vampires to the mix is a potent one that the developers have used to their advantage.

What works most about The Blood of Dawnwalker is the fact the game feels like a real world. It's full of people who are suffering, who have a story and who have a say in the ultimate dispatching of those oppressing them - consequently, Coen feels of the people, rather than just a lone wolf who works for the people 

It may have plenty of familiar elements wrapped up in its gameplay, but The Blood of Dawnwalker:benefits from adding a burst of bloody freshness and ambition to a genre that's become tired and stale and less appealing as time goes on.

I Swear: DVD Review

Cast: Robert Aramayo, Shirley Henderson, Maxine Peake, Peter Mullan, Scott Ellis Watson

Director: Kirk Jones

There's plenty in I Swear which feels formulaic.

Beginning with a present-day event (meeting the Queen, before swearing at her) and then zipping back to his earlier years, this feel-good film about Tourette Syndrome sufferer John Davidson takes on a more poignant and tragic edge, given his recent appearance at the 2026 BAFTA Awards.

Yet, this at-times heartbreaking underdog biopic is extremely uplifting, thanks to a compassionate direction and an extraordinary performance from both its leads - Watson as the young Davidson and Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power's award-winning Aramayo as the older version.

In 1980s Galashiels in Scotland, John is a happy boy. On the cusp of starting secondary school, he's the apple of his dad's eye, thanks to his goal-keeping prowess. But a few days into a new life, it all begins to unravel when involuntary tics emerge and his life devolves into mockery and ostracism at the hands of others - including a family break-up and a cold, clinical mother (Henderson) who's incapable of any empathy.

Things change for Davidson when he meets Dottie (Maxine Peake), a mother dying of cancer, who gives him the sympathetic support he's been denied by society.

What happens next is very easily telegraphed in the world of movie-making - a series of obstacles to be overcome, before inevitable success. (Though any success will feel bittersweet after Davidson's use of the N-word at the BAFTAs).

And while you'd expect a film about this subject to use the Tourette's as a punchline of absurdity thanks to its appearance at the most inopportune moments, every outburst is utterly demoralising and hard to behold.

If Watson is deeply moving as the younger version, Aramayo absolutely knocks it out of the park as the older Davidson. From hints of sadness and frustration behind his eyes to a physical performance which is difficult to watch, he is astounding, while never losing any of the likeable everyman who has a wicked sense of humour.

But rather than mocking Davidson, the film - and by default Aramayo - give him wide berth to show the reality of living a life like this, the isolation and the utter frustration at an inability to just have a normal day. This so easily could have been a film that made a mockery of its subject matter - instead, it becomes a touchpoint for discussion, a window into humanity and a relatably human story about dealing with what life's delivered you.

A truly moving and joyful experience that could have easily lost some of the film's back third, I Swear is the kind of life-affirming thing British cinema does so well so often. It throws open a window into a world we barely know, floods it with pathos and delivers something that's truly unforgettable.

Truxton Extreme: Xbox Series X Review

Developed by Clear River Games
Published by Clear River Games
Platform: XBox Series X

It's hard to believe that shoot-em-ups endure after so long - especially in a world where gaming has become more immersive, more story-driven and more visually rich.

Yet at their heart, the simplicity these games bring with them continue to be their USP - and along with nostalgia for the days back when, the genre continues to grow and endure.

The latest reappearance of an old franchise is the Genesis favourite Truxton, which last vertically blasted its way onto screens some 38 years ago. 

Retooled for the next gen consoles without losing any of its sheen, the game follows the simple method of dodging bullets, shooting enemies and trying to survive - as mentioned, it's simplicity itself and while there is a story mode which incorporates comics and episodic edges, the game really is just keen to continue to do what it needs to - provide bullet-filled levels of colourful chaos.

With power ups to collect and bombs to deploy which soak up both enemy health and on-screen bullets, the game makes use of its mechanics to provide a gameplay experience which is both enjoyable to endure and also offers up a challenge that's hard to sometimes beat.

It helps the package has included a range of modes, from the more forgiving Heart Starter mode to allow you to get used to it, an Arcade style which brings continual action and a 2-minute time trial which is about clearing the enemy away in record time.

Quite happy to do what it says on the tin, Truxton Extreme offers a solid blast of nostalgia to wile away the shoot-em-up urges. It may not deviate from what it has to do, but in truth, that's no bad thing.