STACK #162 April 2018

GAMES REVIEWS

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Out now at JB Hi-Fi RECOMMENDS

GENRE: ACT/ADV PLATFORM: PS4 RELEASE: OUT NOW MULTIPLAYER: NO NI NO KUNI II: REVENANT KINGDOM

How could you possibly hope to follow up on one of the most widely-acclaimed JRPGs of the last console generation, Ni No Kuni: Wrath of the White Witch ? The answer seems to be fairly simple – don't change much. With residual members of Studio Ghibli along to help them, Level 5 have crafted a worthy successor to their previous game with Ni No Kuni II: Revenant Kingdom . It's true that not much has changed from the original, with the exception of the combat; it's received a

complete overhaul and is now (thankfully) much more fast-paced. The combat on NNK2 is now real-time, and your higgledy pals will provide great elemental assistance to you and your friends as you take on the world around you. Ni No Kuni II: Revenant Kingdom puts you in the shoes of young Evan. He hopes to create his own kingdom and unite the nations of the world, and you'll spend a good 40 hours doing just that. Fight baddies, take on heaps of side quests, and literally build your kingdom as you traverse the beautiful wide open world. Though you won't really be drawn to the characters, the fast-paced new combat is an undeniable improvement on Wrath of the White Witch, and Ni No Kuni II: Revenant Kingdom is a must-play JRPG adventure for all ages.

BURNOUT PARADISE REMASTERED GENRE: RACING PLATFORM: PS4 | XBO RELEASE: OUT NOW MULTIPLAYER: YES

As kids, we could never understand why we would get beautiful, shiny new Matchbox cars, then proceed to smash them all up. Burnout Paradise helped us get it. You’re dropped into Paradise City, given an old clunker to drive, and let loose on the streets. It’s a sizeable open world, from city to country, with all manner of obvious and hidden areas to explore. Most every intersection houses an event, be it race, survival or otherwise, and the more of these you tick off, the quicker you’ll graduate to the next licence – and better vehicles. Burnout Paradise Remastered is all about the fun. Destroy billboards because it's fun (and, often, puzzle

solving). Careen through gates that give you handy shortcuts – because it's fun. Get airborne over insane jumps and try to land them successfully, because – you guessed it – it's super-fun. This ample fun factor is bolstered by the inclusion of all the content DLC from the original release. A garage full of vehicles includes everything from Back to the Future and Ghostbusters rip-offs, to cutesy, Chibi-styled toy cars. Then there’s Big Surf Island, which is a whole new area to explore to the east of Paradise City. Into looks? The sprawling Paradise City has been given a now-gen makeover that’s impressive, with 4K support on both PS4 Pro and Xbox One X. If you want a spectacular motoring blast that delivers all the thrills without taking itself particularly seriously, Burnout Paradise Remastered is the classic arcade racer you deserve.

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APRIL 2018

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