Stuart, Author at Thumb Culture

29Jan

By StuartNo Comments

Thumb Culture Retrospective – Prey

For gamers of a certain age, the names Shodan and Xerxes are likely to trigger the urge to smash the nearest computer with a wrench. Long before Amazon’s Alexa was around to remind us to buy toilet roll, the megalomaniacal Artificial Intelligence of System Shock and its sequel ran amok in deep space, causing sleepless nights and the occasional nervous twitch for the players who stood against them. Xerxes did not care about your bathroom essentials; Xerxes wanted to eject you from an airlock and laugh as you crystalized in space. Not only a masterclass in sci-fi survival horror and storytelling, the System Shock games are also the spiritual predecessor to games such as Bioshock, Alien Isolation and Bethesda Softworks’ 2017 blockbuster, Prey. To say that Prey’s creation has been influe...

Razer Thresher 7.1 Review – Is it a cut above the rest?

24Jan

By Stuart2 Comments

Hardware & Tech

Razer Thresher 7.1 Review – Is it a cut above the rest?

After taking the delivery of the Razer Thresher 7.1 Wireless headset I was excited to see what they sounded like. Along with the quick facts on the box promising up to 16 hours of charge, lag-free wireless and a retractable boom mic I was excited. Was my excitement short lived or did Razer deliver a great headset, lets find out Build First off the bat lets talk about the construction. Taking the unit out of the box I was surprised at how light the headset was, compared to my current headset (Turtle Beach Stealth 520) it feels a crazy amount lighter. The construction is mostly plastic, but this doesn't mean that the product feels cheap, quite the opposite in fact. It looks premium, it feels sturdy and I didn't feel that at any time the plastic would snap or shear off. With noise-isolating...

Let Them Come Review – Endless Destruction

8Jan

By StuartNo Comments

PC Reviews

Let Them Come Review – Endless Destruction

Let Them Come is one of those games where it doesn't really need a massive amount of description, it is what it is, and what it does, it does incredibly well. Developed by Tuatara Games and published by Versus Evil you control Rock Gunar on this pixel art shoot 'em up. So what do you do? Let's take a look. Gameplay You are tasked with preventing the alien hordes from getting past you. In its simplicity you stand with your gun aimed at the aliens and you blast them all away. Or at least that is how it was going to go in my head. In actual terms, what you are playing is a simple game that is difficult to master, with battle tactics having to be used throughout your time. Simply holding down the fire button will only get you so far. As you kill the aliens you get coins that you ca...

L.A. Noire Remastered Review – Unneeded But Welcomed

5Jan

By StuartNo Comments

PC Reviews

L.A. Noire Remastered Review – Unneeded But Welcomed

So before we dive into Team Bondi (now defunct) and Rockstar Games' remaster of L.A. Noire, let's set out the stall for this review. I am going to be writing this from the perspective of a new review. Some of you may not have played the original, so therefore it doesn't seem right to pass judgement on the remastered side of the game. All it really means is that there are prettier visuals than its original counterpart, honest. So what is L.A. Noire? What do you do? Why was it so groundbreaking? Let's find out! Gameplay L.A. Noire is set in 1947 in Los Angeles, USA, and lets the player control an LAPD (Los Angeles Police Department) officer by the name of Cole Phelps. You take control of him as he moves up the ranks within the LAPD through five divisions, including homicide and arson among...

22Dec

By StuartNo Comments

PC Reviews

It’s Quiz Time Review – Quizzy Rascal

It's Quiz Time by Snap Finger Click is a party game that see's you taking part in a...erm...quiz. Which is no surprise when you look at the team behind the game and read that they worked previously on the Buzz series. Giving claim that its the biggest quiz game on consoles...EVER! Let's dive in and take a look at what is under the hood and see if It's Quiz Time lives up to its Buzz heritage. Gameplay Essentially you are taking part in a quiz game show, but with a twist. You don't use your controller, you connect your phone through an app and join the game by using a Room Code and then the fun begins. With up to 8 players being able to take part, you can rest assured that there will be some intense quizzing going on throughout the game. When you start you are greeted with a number ...

Ashes Cricket Review – Is It A No Ball Or A Hat Trick

5Dec

By StuartNo Comments

PC Reviews

Ashes Cricket Review – Is It A No Ball Or A Hat Trick

Cricket games are often seen as the lower end of sports games, with the beautiful game not getting its air in the mainstream, however released by Big Ant Studios to coincide with the real life event, we are given Ashes Cricket. Preening their cricket gaming skills on the previous Don Bradman Cricket games as well as a handful of Rugby League and even a Lacrosse game, we got on our pads, slid on our gloves and strapped on our helmet....oo-er. So does Ashes Cricket live up to the glory days of cricket games when Brian Lara Cricket was available, or is it a ginormous disappointment? Thankfully is the former. Lets read and find out some more. Gameplay Usually on a review of a game we would go through the game modes available to you in depth so that you know what you are getting into, and ...

Need For Speed Payback PC Review – Get Your Motor Running

23Nov

By StuartNo Comments

PC Reviews

Need For Speed Payback PC Review – Get Your Motor Running

Need For Speed Payback developed by Ghost Games and published by EA supposedly brings high-octane stunts, devastating car battles and jaw dropping set piece moments. As well as build upon the iconic customisation that the Need For Speed franchise is famous for. So, how does the latest game with the Need For Speed title fare? Does it live up to the hype like a Supercar? or does it suffer from turbo lag and struggle to get going? Let's find out. Gameplay With Need For Speed Payback you are given the standard revenge trope, person gets betrayed, person builds up a reputation to take down the betrayer. Set in the bright and varied city of Fortune Valley you take control of a number of racers; Tyler “Ty” Morgan the natural-born Racer, Jessica “Jess” Miller the Wheelman always on the ...

Eat Lead: The Return of Matt Hazard – Forgotten But Not Gone

16Nov

By StuartNo Comments

PlayStation Reviews

Eat Lead: The Return of Matt Hazard – Forgotten But Not Gone

Something that has always interested me as a gamer and reviewer is looking back on the older console generations and picking up the games you may have missed the first time around. I’ve done it before and discovered some great games. Some great older games are now some of my all time favourites, with the likes of Mario Kart 64 and Metal Slug 3 being members of that list. Other times though you do have to admit that the older games you missed out on really aren’t worth it. It really doesn’t help that I often go out of my way to buy a terrible game. Parody and comedic games are something I find very interesting indeed. Oddly terrible games have become a genuine interest of mine. The incredibly dull Duke Nukem Forever was definitely on the right wavelength but it’s just so bad I barely mad...

Space Pirates And Zombies 2 – A Moonlight Review

10Nov

By StuartNo Comments

PC Reviews

Space Pirates And Zombies 2 – A Moonlight Review

Space Pirates And Zombies 2 was an interesting title to come my way. It is developed and published by MinMax Games Ltd. I have never heard of the previous SPAZ (Space Pirates and Zombies) but immediately started to love this one. From the whacky cast of characters that I have come to love, and hearing them talking about the meaning of insanity, making a blatant and funny Far Cry joke. It kept me playing for hours at a time. Gameplay The gameplay is very fun with some minor learning curves. This is something I have come to expect after playing games like Rebel Galaxy. Space games seem to always have a learning curve to them, this game being no different. You start the game off in a “janky” mother ship, tasked with fixing her up with better parts. The tutorial section of the game is int...

Call Of Duty: World War II Campaign Review – Brutality At It’s Most Beautiful

10Nov

By StuartNo Comments

PC Reviews

Call Of Duty: World War II Campaign Review – Brutality At It’s Most Beautiful

So usually you get a review of a game as a whole over here at Thumb Culture, but with Call of Duty: World War II we are going to do things a little different. This latest installment of the franchise (the 14th main release for all you number hounds) see's Sledgehammer Games take on World War II. WWII hasn't been tackled in the franchise since World at War back in 2008. Because this is such a high profile game we couldn't give it a score for the game as a whole, so we are splitting it into three separate reviews, Campaign, Zombies, and Multiplayer. So sit back and relax as we dive into the Campaign with as little spoilers as possible. Ladies and Gentleman, Call of Duty: World War II. Gameplay So as with any Call of Duty game, World War II is no different. Its a heard pounding ride ...