PS5 games

The Iron Fist of Level Gating: The Curated "Open World" Frustration Once again, I'd like to start with my greatest grievance, which is the excessive and complex level gating. Orchestrating players through a story, preventing them from encountering exposition that might spoil the story, or facing significant hurdles too soon is an attempt that I appreciate. It severely constrains the ability to roam around the world, however. The stunning and spellbinding views of soaring castles are completely wasted as getting anywhere near them would result in 'instant death'. This interrupts all momentum because the phrase "I can go anywhere" has turned into "I can go anywhere in the world, but only after I complete enough side quests to unlock an arbitrary cap." This creates a sub-optimal narrative-driven gameplay loop where the exploration is no longer free form, limits emergent interplay of challenges, and fosters frustration among players who prefer ...

A New Tone, At Last Borderlands 4 finally outgrows its adolescence. The franchise has always swung between two extremes: the stark, Western-flavored nihilism of the first game and the clownish carnival of memes that consumed the third. This new entry threads a middle line with sharper intent. The humor is still irreverent, but it no longer stumbles over itself to tell a joke every five seconds. The writing shows restraint, which paradoxically makes the humor land harder. There are moments when the narrative breathes, moments of silence or solemnity, and in those beats the game earns the gravitas it had been pretending to hold for years. Borderlands 4 understands what its predecessors didn’t: humor without contrast is noise, and noise quickly dulls. The story feels more carefully woven, less like a string of gags stapled to a quest log. Set on the new planet of Kairos, the tale explores themes of legacy, survival, and self-delusion. Where Borderlands 3 leaned on spectacle, 4 builds ...