Agoners Reviews

To understand our review methods, please read this article explaining our game review categories and standards.

You will also want to read The Beautiful Game to fully understand how our criteria came to be, and if you’re interested in how we define our competitive design criteria, please read Competitive Gaming 123 and 456 for an in-depth discussion.

The Agoners Steam Group Curator page lists the titles below that are recommended and also available on Steam, as well as some summary review text.

See the list below of all the games review scores & summaries. Click the links for the more detailed reviews or browse through all our Review Posts

TitleExcerptScores
Alawishus Pixel An extremely basic platform-puzzler with little to recommend itOverall:
*
Challenge:
*
Apple Jack Recommended this game for years since it’s first XBLIG incarnation, it’s awesome. Far better than every Mario & Sonic gameOverall:
****
Challenge:
****
Apple Jack 2 A highly recommended game overall, even if it doesn’t quite hit the heights of AJ1 for me Overall:
****
Challenge:
***
Assassin’s Creed Syndicate The only Assassin’s Creed game I bothered to play enough to give a fair review score to… GOD I WISH I HADN’T Overall:
*
Challenge:
*
A Virus Named Tom Not bad single player but gets really fun as a co-operative challenge title. Really under-rated and under-noticed Overall:
***
Challenge:
***
The Ball It’s not complete balls, but just feels a bit lacking in just about every area except graphicsOverall:
**
Challenge:
**
Bastion Seriously under par as a challenge title, but I just barely recommend it anyway – mainly to mong out to the lovely graphics and audio Overall:
***
Challenge:
**
BattleBlock Theater A fun co-op challenge. A bit lacking in variety, but the humourous style is great and keeps your interest Overall:
****
Challenge:
***
Batman Arkham Asylum QTEs, backtracking all over, weak combat system. Generally meh in all areas than graphicsOverall:
**
Challenge:
**
Blood Brothers An embarrassment to the ‘games industry’ (and perhaps even the human race) that things such as this existOverall:
0
Bomb The Zombies A very weak challenge title, spoiled further by pointless touchscreen controls Overall:
*
Challenge:
*
Braid Really good and difficult puzzle challenge title with platforming elements Overall:
****
Challenge:
****
Bullet Witch Some really promising stuff here for my taste, but let down by awful grind-to-upgrade re-play mechanics rather than actual challenges Overall:
**
Challenge:
**
Call of Duty 3 Overall:
**
Challenge:
**
Call of Duty 4: Modern Warfare Overall:
**
Challenge:
**
Competitive Design:
*
Call of Duty Modern Warfare 2 In MW2, hidden away in the usual COD crap, are the excellent co-op challenge “Special Ops” missions – this is recommended only for those! Overall:
***
Challenge:
***
Competitive Design:
*
The Cave Overall:
**
Challenge:
**
Darksiders Really tedious and really buggy Overall:
*
Challenge:
*
Divekick Online is barebones and a huge disappointment, but the actual gameplay is great fun with a competitively minded friend or 3 Overall:
****
Challenge:
**
Competitive Design:
**
Competitive Gameplay:
****
Dying LightCan adding zombies and co-op play save the incredibly dull Assassin’s Creed open world formula? Nope, it cannot. Laughably poor plot and boss ‘cut-scenes’ and being unable to even finish the game in co-op rounds this off.Overall:
*
Challenge:
*
Electronic Super Joy Very challenging but not (usually) too punishing platformer with loads of interesting achievements, great soundtrack and silly retro graphics Overall:
***
Challenge:
***
Fantasy StrikeSuperb netplay, stunning fighting mechanics, great characters & now with a super generous free-to-play model. Even has better solo challenge modes than most FGs. Game of the decade if not the century perhaps!Overall:
*****
Challenge:
***
Competitive Design:
*****
Competitive Gameplay:
*****
ForcedVery good & challenging co-op action game for 4 players. Some small problems with difficulty curve and sequence challenges in places, but still very strong and we might even be underrating this.Overall:
****
Challenge:
****
Gears of WarA very good co-op challenge Overall:
****
Challenge:
****
Gears of War 2 A superb co-op challenge title Overall:
*****
Challenge:
*****
Gears of War 3 Became way more repetitive and generic than the previous Gears games, and the 3 and 4 player co-op mechanics were a huge let down compared to the co-op of the previous games Overall:
***
Challenge:
***
Guacamelee Pretty good fun co-op platform-style fighting & exploring game. I’ve not played the “Super Turbo” version so I don’t know if it’s worthwhile Overall:
***
Challenge:
***
Half-Life An atrocious challenge-based game due to it’s pathetic save system & many of the puzzles are also incredibly weak. The only strong point is the story Overall:
**
Challenge:
*
Half-Life 2 I was actually glad & relieved when I finally finished this rubbish so that I’d never have to play it again, please never make Half-Life 3 if it’s anything like this Overall:
*
Challenge:
*
Halo Reach This is a ‘more than the sum of it’s parts’ game that is pretty darn good at everything  & has lots to offer, but it’s a shame it never really found a tight competitive game mode Overall:
****
Challenge:
****
Competitive Design:
***
Competitive Gameplay:
***
Hero Academy A good asynchronous strategy game. Android/iOS portable device required to really play. Could’ve reached excellence with better competitive features Overall:
****
Challenge:
**
Competitive Design:
**
Competitive Gameplay:
****
Killing Floor This had potential as an interesting co-op challenge in the vein of L4D, but is ruined by pathetic grinding mechanics Overall:
**
Challenge:
**
Left 4 Dead Whilst it’s hopeless as a competitive game, it makes up for it by being one of the best co-operative challenge titles ever made. It’s so good it got me to like FPSs! Overall:
*****
Challenge:
*****
Competitive Design:
*
Left 4 Dead 2 Not close to the excellence of L4D1, but still very enjoyable as a co-operative challenge. Be warned, competitive play is still a joke Overall:
***
Challenge:
***
Competitive Design:
*
Lollipop ChainsawOverall:
**
Challenge:
**
Lost Planet Overall:
**
Challenge:
*
Ms ‘Splosion Man Ms isn’t quite as good as the original game, but it’s still fantastic! Full review of ‘Splosion explains why Overall:
****
Challenge:
****
New Super Mario Bros. WiiDefines most things I don’t like in platform games. Awful as anything other than a playground toy.Overall:
*
Challenge:
*
Outland A shame that the utter disaster of the health and checkpoint system conspires to damage everything else that’s good about the game Overall:
**
Challenge:
**
Plants Vs Zombies (PC) Overall:
**
Challenge:
**
Plants Vs Zombies (360) Good co-op play drags this a nudge above the usual tower defence game problems Overall:
***
Challenge:
**
PortalHugely over-rated, but it is a solid 1P puzzle challenge. Taking the only good bits of Half Life and condensing a game to just them was a good idea Overall:
***
Challenge:
***
Portal 2Single player drags a bit, but co-op with a friend is a really fun challenge and experience Overall:
****
Challenge:
****
Remnant: From the AshesDecent gunplay & mechanics spoiled by awful time-wasting “padding” loot & grind mechanics, and a laughably poor storyline. Co-op play also poorly tacked on (but still the best thing about it)Overall:
**
Challenge:
**
Scary GirlOverall:
**
Challenge:
**
Sonic & Sega All-Stars Racing Weak for competitive play, but the single player mission mode is a really fun challenge and difficult in places too Overall:
***
Challenge:
***
Competitive Design:
**
Competitive Gameplay:
**
Soul Overall:
***
Challenge:
**
‘Splosion Man This may very well be the perfect puzzle-platformer for my taste and skill Overall:
*****
Challenge:
*****
Stacking At its best, Stacking is an interesting logic puzzle. At its worst its an exercise in dumb trial and error Overall:
**
Challenge:
*
StarCraft II Wings of Liberty StarCraft II online with Battlenet 2 is a poster game for exactly how things should be done as far as competitive gaming design goes Competitive Design:
*****
Street Fighter V Despite the improvements it’s made in some areas, the flaws mentioned here, and the fact they all exacerbate each other, means that I can’t score it any higher than SFIV in terms of its overall competitive gaming design Competitive Design:
***
Super Street Fighter II Turbo HD Remix This is close in skill-tests and design goals to being my ideal competitive fighting game, but the online gaming system is what lets this amazing game down Overall:
*****
Challenge:
**
Competitive Design:
**
Competitive Gameplay:
*****
Super Street Fighter IV Arcade Edition Ver 2012
It’s kinda sad to say it, but at the time this game set the standard for online fighting game competitive features – albeit it’s at a pretty low bar Competitive Design:
***
Transformers: War for Cybertron Would be MUCH improved if it had proper Steam integration and achievements etc, but still a fun if repetitive co-op shooter. Roll out with 2 friends! Overall:
***
Challenge:
***
Thomas Was AloneFar too easy, but fun and engaging platformer whilst it lasts Overall:
***
Challenge:
**
Trine Overall:
**
Challenge:
*
Ultra Street Fighter IV It’s kinda sad to say it, but at the time this game set the standard for online fighting game competitive features – albeit it’s at a pretty low bar Overall:
***
Challenge:
**
Competitive Design:
***
Competitive Gameplay:
***
VVVVVV Solid platforming challenge title with some awesome music. Desperately needed proper Achievements or a leaderboard or something though Overall:
***
Challenge:
***
Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine Overall:
**
Challenge:
**
Warhammer: End Times – Vermintide A would-be fun co-op L4D style challenge, all but ruined of any longevity due to stupid grind-based mechanics. Such a waste of potential Overall:
**
Challenge:
**
World of Goo Easy puzzle challenges that then force an utter chore of implementing the solutions precisely enough Overall:
*
Challenge:
*
Yomi Probably the best competitive card game around. No pay2win, grind2win rubbish, great balance, matchmaking, leaderboards – perfect competitive design Overall:
*****
Challenge:
***
Competitive Design:
*****
Competitive Gameplay:
****