Astro Bot Rescue Mission PSVR Review

Astro Bot Rescue Mission PSVR Review

Platform: PS4

Developed by Japan Studio

The Astro bots have until now, been an annoyance.

A clutch of chirruping characters that were part of the Playroom game launched with the PS4, these critters "live" inside your controller and exist only to showcase the use of the PlayStation's touchpad, and its cutesy edges.

But, now with the Astro Bot Rescue Mission, they come out of the domain of being inessential into something quite impressive in the VR stakes.

Fleshed out from the Robot Rescue mission in The Playroom, Astro Bot Rescue Mission sees you taking control of Captain Astro and simply put, heading into various worlds after your buddies have been kidnapped by an alien bad guy.

Plot-wise, it ain't all that and a bag of chips.

But if you were to be told this is perhaps the most inventive platformers of the year, that capitalises on what VR has to offer, you'd begin to suspect madness has set in. However, it truly is a clever use of the depth and scope the tool offers, recapturing the essentialness last seen in the release title Batman Arkham VR.

In that, the depth added to Batman's world; in this, there's no such sense of landscapes et al, but a desire to create a platformer which uses depth and scale to take you on an adventure that's as impressive as it is fun.

Astro has to rescue his buddies, negotiating landscapes and baddies in the same kind of way that was last seen in Banjo Kazooie and Pokemon Go. Booting the robots as you find them sends them flying back to your controller till the end of the level.

However, it's not as simple as going along a level, bashing some baddies and collecting the robots as well as coin tokens. The VR adds the depth to the levels, and the studio's really take on board the whole concept of it being a wrap around world. This is no flat platformer, this is a fully formed world, where up and down, and behind count.

Fellow robots may be behind you or off to the side, it's a game that really does encourage you to look around, and as well as offering you a token reward, it gives it a visual prowess that's engaging too.
Astro Bot Rescue Mission is a game which makes use of the best of VR, and the controller, long left redundant in your hands. It's a game which aims to delight with cute, and delivers with some sweet touches. If that sounds like praise to damn it, it's not.

VR's been here nigh on two years now, and while some game studios have embraced it, there's yet to be the ultimate experience. VR's never really been about the gaming per se, but Astro Bot Rescue Mission delivers both on the gaming front, and delivers an immersive experience which is beyond belief.

Mega Man 11: PS4 Review

Mega Man 11: PS4 Review

Released by Capcom
Platform: PS4

The little blue battler boy is back in Mega-Man 11, which began all the way back in 1987.
Bringing back both voice acting and a graphic style from the past, it's up to you as Mega-Man to stop Dr Wily from taking you down.

Through a series of eight stages, the Mega Man faces off against Dr Wily's newest Robot Masters - from the likes of Block Man, Blast Man to Acid Man, after they've been captured and corrupted by the Doc.

Using a double gears system which takes in the chance to slow things down as well as fire a massive shot at a cost of some serious energy. And you'll need these skills, because to be frank, Mega Man 11 is pretty tough platforming, no matter what setting you put it on.

And that's frustrating in many ways, as the various checkpoints scattered around aren't exactly the best either. The 2.5D graphics pop off the screen, and while the cut scenes become somewhat irritating, it's nothing to the frustration you'll feel trying to complete levels. Timing problems, miscalculating a jump, failing to duck when you should dive - they're all here for Mega Man to fail spectacularly.

But if you're after a kind of old school platforming challenge like the first Crash Bandicoot gave you, then to be honest, Mega Man 11 will scratch your itch. And bring you out in a nervous rash.

Hard and not quite rewarding enough for the completion, Mega Man's retro looks betray a tortuous gameplay that's almost sadistic in its execution. Long levels make death a real chore, and while games shouldn't pander, Mega Man 11's commitment to driving you crazy is both commendable and frustrating in equal measure.

FIFA 19: PS4 Review

FIFA 19: PS4 Review

Released by EA
Platform: PS4

The beautiful game's back.

And to be honest, the annual iteration of FIFA has become something of a tried and tested formula that does little to break the cycle of the endless Pro Evolution Soccer / FIFA, which is better debate.

But FIFA's last few iterations became a little more compelling with the introduction of their story-led element The Journey, which followed new player Alex Hunter.

This latest release caps off the Alex Hunter trilogy (Fifa 18 was missed by this reviewer) and moves it into the realm of the Champions league in all its glory. Neatly the third part sees a crafty recap to what went ahead and gets you upto speed like some kind of Hollywood film experience, complete with the twists and turns.

But it's smarter moves like taking you to a game from the past where The Journey: Champions starts to grow; and weaving between three narratives also gives it a kind of GTA V flipping that works as well as you go the usual routes of the game.

Career mode, choosing Champions League teams, and just playing games - it's all what FIFA does, and to be honest, it feels like little aside from some tinkering has changed throughout the game.

Not that what FIFA does isn't good enough, and the big change this time is the timed kicking which gives you two bites of the cherry to fire at the goal. It's a good touch that takes some time to get used to, and which can change the game as well.

Early on, the player arrow on the field took a little getting used to, leading to my feeling that I had the ball when I didn't - a minor quibble again, but one which initially detracts.

But the flow of the game and the ease of it is also worth mentioning and indulging; this is a FIFA that knows what it wants to do on the pitch and keeps on kicking when it should.

It's a comfortable victory for FIFA 19, and the Journey is as strong as it's been - but there's a nagging deja vu feeling that fluid gameplay aside can't shift; it may be the most minor of tweaks that FIFA's rolled out, but the game's still as playable as it always was - and while diehards may see little reason to reinvest, the casual player is better catered for than ever before.

As I say, a comfortable victory, but not a romping win.

The Party: DVD Review

The Party: DVD Review

Continuing the British desire to only unburden repressed feelings in social gatherings, Sally Potter's The Party builds a fragile house of cards at a soirée, only to consequently scatter the deck without any food being served.

Opening with a 'how did they get here?' moment, the black and white melodrama plays out with some acidic aplomb by the troupe of players.

All gathered to celebrate Kristin Scott Thomas' Janet's ascension to ministry and politics, a group of fractured and apparently fragile friends begin to unravel in only the delicious way the Brits know how.

As the group comes together, Timothy Spall's Bill sits solo in the front room, hunched and haunted on a chair, with a wine glass in one hand, and with a near catatonic look on his face. But as the night goes on, everyone comes under scrutiny in some form or other.

Like a scab being ripped off or an itch incessantly being scratched, The Party's thrills come from the unexpected turn of events and the inevitably entangled revelations.

Perhaps it teeters perilously towards the end with disbelief, but Potter's black and white film crackles with dry acidity and typical scorn throughout, all topped off with a deliciously dark dry tragedy languishing within. It's fraught with spoilers to unveil what transpires within, but needless to say the troupe of players from Spall's distanced Bill, Thomas' haughty and yet easy to humble Janet, Patricia Clarkson's acidic April to Cillian Murphy's on edge Tom, all delivering in spades.

It helps the script is laced with one-liners and withering moments, as the sourness of the situation becomes more evident. In many ways, the film feels like a play with its whirling deliciousness on words and desire to ratchet up the moments to near contrived, but in Potter's hand, the curt run time feels just about right; any more would over-egg this pudding and any further reveals would push this dangerously close to cliche.

The Party's power lies in the picking over of the relationships and the unbinding of those ties; it's thanks to all involved that the polish and sheen comes tumbling from the screen; in black and white and close up, every detail is nuanced; from Spall's heavily white flecked beard to Murphy's drug-induced sweats, Potter's camera captures every subtlety.

This is most definitely one party to RSVP to 

She Shears: Film Review

She Shears: Film Review

Director Jack Nicol's She Shears has ambitions.

But it seems primarily these ambitions are confined to presenting a story rather than digging a little deeper.

Entrenched in bucolic touches, She Shears takes a look at the sport of sheep shearing, an industry dominated by men back in the 80s and now seeing an increase in the number of women taking part.

In the 80s, it was 1 woman in 5000, now it's 1 in 40, so there's clearly been a sea change in righting the gender imbalance.

Following five shearers, two of whom are established names - Emily Welch, and Jills Angus Burney - 
She Shears is a pleasant doco that is graced by some stunning cinematography and slow mo shots of the work being done.

It takes a look at this quintet as they look to either enter the world of competitive sheep shearing (Hazel, Pagan and Catherine being the youngest and newest) and their drive and reasons to do so. It goes some way to give us their backstories on the Road To The Golden Shears competition held in Masterton with Pagan's history being the most intriguing thanks to the traditional sports underdog /hit by injury story.

However, it's potentially fair to say that perhaps She Shears should have narrowed its focus a little more on maybe three of these competitors as some have longer in the spotlight than others, and certainly, given the way the competition pans out, not everyone gets to where they want.

It's a frustration to be borne with She Shears - and certainly, the focus feels a little more like it could have done better to spotlight the problems of getting women into this industry.

All five talk of various levels of discrimination in among the support as well - and it's at this stage, the most intriguing and strongest element of the doco emerges that could have provided a sharp sting in a post MeToo world.

Certainly there's great disparity on display when the commentators of the Golden Shears markedly and pointedly refer to the male and female competitors in different terms. "Two little girls there" is the worst offender and points to some signs the entrenched sexism exists within - certainly, there's no diminutives levelled at the male competitors. It's a shame this narrative isn't expanded out, and Nicol's spotlight wasn't shined more at this, because it provides a stronger proposition to the film as it goes on. (And is mentioned by all five in their careers and how people view it).

That said, Nicol gives his doco a wondrously filmic approach in its shots of competition, with wool being flung in slow motion, shears guided around hindquarters and sweat dripping from competitors all looking glorious in slow mo and on the big screen. Nothing's been held back in ensuring the look of this generally pleasant piece is anything but top notch.

Ultimately, She Shears feels like a doco that slightly tracked down the wrong way for its focus. Granted, it gives the women competitors their time in the spotlight, and while narrowing that focus may have paid dividends, it does show that when it comes to showcasing and capturing the countryside, its animals and its people, Nicol has a sharp eye for what looks sensational on screen. 

Sicario: Day Of The Soldado: DVD Review

Sicario: Day Of The Soldado: DVD Review

The start of Sicario: Rise of the Soldado plays out like some kind of fever dream for current events, discussions and a wet dream for US President Donald Trump.

Under the watchful night eye of a US squad, a group of hopeful migrants race toward the US border - but their fleeing freedom is stopped by soldiers. However, surrounded, one of them reveals they're wearing a suicide vest, before detonating it. Moments later, a group of nondescript men walk into a supermarket, and blow themselves up.

Visually, it's shocking and terrifyingly present as well as prescient.
Yet, unlike the opening of the original 2015 Sicario where bodies in walls were discovered, it lacks the subtlety of horror and sets the stage for what loosely could be defined as a Call Of Duty: Cartels version of the movie.

Returning once again are Josh Brolin's gruff Matt Graver who teams up with Benicio Del Toro's Alejandro as events begin to unfold. With the US Government deciding to sanction an illegal kidnapping operation to spiral a war between the cartels, the duo are thrust into the middle of proceedings as leader and recruit respectively.

However, as the operation goes on, the duo find their allegiances and their quests tested.

There's no denying the tension of the grim and gritty Sicario: Rise of the Soldado. Scenes unfold with sickening dread and as the knotty politics play out, there's a feeling that what's happening is not going to end well.

Wiry and spry, Del Toro is excellent, as is Brolin, whose actions convey more than his words could. In fact, both these two do more with less throughout as the spiralling threads of the web unravels - minimalism may be the soldier's way but these two make it watchable and compelling throughout.

And while the film's executed well, it feels less fresh and enticing as 2015's Sicario did. It lacks the addition of an innocent face in proceedings (as provided by Blunt's agent in the first flick) and consequently becomes a grim exploration of politics, rather than the human touch brought by the first.

There are elements of that humanity within Moner's performance, as she goes from hard-bitten scrapper-in-the-school-yard to victim of her father's connections, but it's nowhere near as strong as the previous narrative.

Sollima (TV's Gomorra) strings together a series of overhead shots, convoy tensions and scenes of conflict with certain directorial flair (even if the menacing OST drowns things out at times) and despite some grim humour, the film grips but never fully suffocates as the first did.

There are a collision of seemingly disparate but ultimately interconnected threads, but disappointingly, a last act moment loses power by the lack of courage of conviction of the writers. 

This is a world that shocks, and to lessen the shocks of one such consequence is a disappointment and is one that shows the film to lack the cojones and volatility it needs.

Make no mistake though, Sicario: Rise of the Soldado is no less a compelling watch because of it, but the strength and power of the first Sicario still outshines what feels like a story that wants to shock and outrage but lacks the finesse to fully do so on a narrative front.

TWO BRAND NEW CALL OF DUTY: BLACK OPS 4 TRAILERS DROP AHEAD OF TOMORROW'S LAUNCH

TWO BRAND NEW CALL OF DUTY: BLACK OPS 4 TRAILERS DROP AHEAD OF TOMORROW'S LAUNCH

Only one more day until the world goes black for the launch of Call of Duty: Black Ops 4!

Today, Activision has launched not one, but two new trailers to get you hyped to jump in!

The first gives you a taste of what’s to come with Treyarch’s famous zombies - this is 'Blood of the Dead' in Call of Duty: Black Ops 4, a reimagined return of a fan-favourite, complete with surprises hidden within the iconic penitentiary.

The second is Blackout 101 - battle on land, air, and sea to be the last one standing. Drop into Call of Duty’s biggest map ever in an all-new Battle Royale mode.

Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 launches worldwide on October 12 on PlayStation 4, Xbox One and PC. For more information and the latest intel, fans can check out the Call of Duty website, YouTube and follow @CallofDuty_ANZand @Treyarch on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.