When I first played System Shock in 2011, I was introduced to the series as a whole; I’d never played one or two. It was overwhelming at first, but luckily I had my partner, who had already beaten it, so I had a human in my ear on the citadel to help push me in the right direction. The beginning of system shock was, like I said, overwhelming, as I had so much to wrap my head around. But once I got into the swing of things, it quickly absorbed my attention. The game has a level of interactivity and immersion that’s almost unrivaled.

The visuals and level design are staggering for 1994. They captured the feel of 2001, a space odyssey, so well.

I love the cyberspace sections; they may be dated now, but they have this indescribable 90s feel to them. But one thing that always caught my attention was how deliberate and immersive the game is. The game doesn’t treat you like an idiot, and you’re fully expected to use your brain. I love that the game throws all these tools and features at you and just tells you to do what you want with them. Towards the end, I became almost a god, almost unstoppable. I wish more games allowed you to just be yourself and think through problems.

SHODAN as a character is fantastic; the voice actress did a phenomenal job. I love the malicious and sometimes ethereal taunting that it does to you, jumping from a soothing female voice to a demonic sound. The cracking of its voice and the change in tempo really set the mood.

One thing that’s always struck me is the citadel. itself. It’s almost like you’re inside of SHODAN's mind; it’s twisted, full of hate, and incredibly violent. The citadel is SHODAN, and you’re in her domain. Playing is such an incredibly uncomfortable experience. I found the replay of this game to hit me much deeper than it ever did before. I have Stage 4 cancer, and I couldn’t help but associate SHODAN with my cancer, and while I was playing, it’s like I was trying to sever its connection to my body. Just the gameplay loop felt like I was acting as chemotherapy, and after beating it again, I felt this weird feeling.

This game is a favorite, and I think everyone should try it. Although I know the remake will have more of an allure for new fans, the charm of the classic is still worth it.

Half-Life 2, episode 2, is another amazing continuation of one of my favourite series. I first played this again on the orange box and then again on the PC. This is my favourite of the two episodes, basically due to the Vorts; they are so humorous to be around, and I love the voice acting. The scene where you have to battle waves of bugs and then everyone freaks out due to the lights going off, and then it's just the three vorts, and the way they all talk to each other is amazingly funny. “No pit would be complete without a freeman climbing out of it,” that being also my last name, always cracks me up! I think that’s why these games capture my heart so much; having the main character have the same name as me creates a more personal experience.

I really have a deep love for these games; me and my first partner (who got me into them) would play them all the time. My favourite memories are sitting with a small laptop, under the covers, and just spending time essentially in the source engine, like a holiday home.

Dog having a showdown with the strider is awesome; I let out a cheer whenever he arrives. The white forest segment is one of my favourite areas because, despite the linearity of the game, the area feels so organic and is a callback to the confined spaces of the first game. Each character bounces off of each other so naturally.

I love Half-Life, and I want an ending!

Half-Life 2, episode 1, was so fun to revisit. It's incredibly manic; there isn't as many varied environments, but I absolutely love the citidel scenes and getting everyone to the train; it felt like a full battle for liberation. It's really fun, and I first played it on the orange box, but it's better on the PC. Gordon and Alyx get to have a more intimate relationship; you're together more, and I really like the character development; she's such a great character. Oh yeah, and dog is still my good time boy.

Half-Life 2 is everything modern FPS games wish they were; keeping people coming back after almost 20 years is a feat most can't attain. The beginning of the game starts with being introduced to City 17, and you get to see all the oppression and hopelessness, and within those first few moments, the game instills a sense of both fear and rebelliousness, making you want to fight.

Each subsequent chapter gets better and larger. Ravenholm and the Citidel are some of my favorite areas. Gameplay is still fun, and the gravity gun is still one of the greatest weapons in any game. Alyx Vance is one of the best supporting characters. I love each interaction with her, which is helped by the phenomenal animation. Dog is everyone's favorite pet and having the Vortigaunts now on the players side was a great decision. I feel bad for killing so many of them now, poor guys.

The world is beautifully crafted, from the way the gunships move, the daddy longleg-like striders, the mysterious combine, and never really seeing the true powers that be. The way the game made me feel is indescribable; it makes you feel proud to be human, and they really instilled this level of protection you feel towards your own race on this godforsaken Earth.

Half Life 2 is in my top 20 games of all time, and although I prefer the first game, the second really pushed the limits on what a first-person shooter could be and that they can tell incredible stories along with addictive and fun gameplay.

While Ghost of Tsushima is undoubtedly a visually attractive game, I believe that it lacks depth outside of its gameplay and plot. My impression of it was only made worse after my second playthrough. I want to concentrate on what it accomplished well before discussing the drawbacks. The sword fights were really fantastic, and I really enjoy the gameplay. This game with a samurai theme is everything I could have ever desired; the plot seems to have been taken directly out of a Kurosawa vault.

However, I think the game ultimately has the ubisoft issue; while it's not nearly as horrible as other titles, the game environment isn't engaging, and the extra activities are meaningless filler. Most of the side missions weren't worth the time.

The game just drags on, and by the midway point, I just want to stop playing.
I can see why this game is so popular; it would have been incredible to my 13-year-old self, but as a masterpiece, it just fails to measure up.

Half-Life 1 is a magnificent game; it spawned so much. But to me, it’s aged like fine wine. I played this game late, like around 2011 the first time. And it quickly became a favourite.

The gameplay is immensely enjoyable; it’s just constant; it’s a continuous stream of combat and mayhem. All the fluff is not here; there are no huge exposition dumps and lengthy tutorials; the story happens around and independent of the player; the game wants you to do four simple things: run, think, shoot, and live. I wish more games showed and didn’t tell.

Half-life can be unforgiving, but this just amplifies the fun. The nature of free will is also beautifully explored through its gameplay. I’ve always liked the use of trains to basically show this and that Gordon is a prisoner. Freeman being his last name (and mine) is ironic, I’ve always thought. You’re constantly questioning everything around you: who is the G-man, What on Earth is actually happening around me?

There is a level of Lovecraftian horror to it—that something or someone is always just out of view, watching, and wondering if your actions even have any effect.

Half-Life is a simple game on the surface, but I’ve always liked that no matter how many times I play it, I find something else to talk about.

I love games like The Raven, which reminds me of Broken Sword sleeping dragon, which I loved as a kid. Like a good A.C.Doyle or Agatha Christie book, the game nails its mystery and builds up to the drama of the who done it. Anton Jacob Zellner is a great character. I want a friend like him. I hated that, towards the end, they introduced other playable characters, because it was too late by then to care about them. I just wanted to continue as the protagonist. The second half definitely faltered a bit.

Overall, the gameplay, soundtrack and environments helped to create a slow build up of the charm of the 1960s gentleman sleuth.

Trek to Yomi really grabbed my attention as soon as it started. It's hyper-stylised and takes most of its inspiration from the late Kurosawa. Which it does perfectly, with the black and white grain look and the fixed camera showing beautiful shots. The environments are beautifully detailed. These things were also its downfall. The gameplay was massively neglected, it was tedious and, after awhile, I became an unstoppable force. Just by using one combo, it's so broken.

I would prefer if they kept mythological elements out and stuck to the hard reality of the 16th century. But this is just nitpicking. I gave up playing towards the end as I couldn't force myself to finish.

This game made me so happy! It took me back to the first game when I was a kid with my younger brother. I don't just mean the nostalgia, but the way the game felt, the way it was structured. It gives me hope for Sony's future.

The gameplay, running at 60fps, was beautiful and felt great to play. The colour palette and lighting as my enforcer lit up a room of goons-4-less was stunning. I haven't seen anything like it on the PS5. The game itself looks incredible, the graphics are stunning.

Rivet is a great character, and I can't wait to have a Rivet and Kit game. The story was basic, but hey, it's fun, and that's all that matters with Ratchet and Clank. One of the first games this year to make me excited about a sequel!

Doom eternal was pretty awesome, many games can only hope to be as optimised as this game. The first thing I noticed was just how smooth and well formed the gameplay is, and I'd be insulted if it wasn't to be honest, as this is Doom. It's an incredibly addictive game. Once you get that rhythm going, it's hard not to fall into the zone.
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I did prefer Doom (2016) as I found Eternal to be too geared towards its other features. I feel this game doesn't have the most replayability.

The game looks fantastic, the whole Mars sequence and subsequent set pieces are just fantastic. Overall, Doom eternal is great.