Si Woodhams, Author at Thumb Culture

8Oct

By Si WoodhamsNo Comments

NBA 2K22 Review

With the launch of NBA 2K22 from Visual Concepts, what is new for this edition, and is it a slam dunk for the basketball simulation? NBA 2K22 - seeking perfection As with most annual sporting releases, the updates made to the previous year's edition are very minor. 2021's edition, which you can read up on here, was all about the jump to the Next-gen of consoles and taking advantage of the super-fast load times as well as graphical improvements, NBA 2K22 is no different and takes full advantage of these technological advances. Other gameplay updates are much more subtle and you may struggle to spot them. Gameplay Updates The last edition of NBA 2K game I played was the 2020 version and the gameplay has always been of the highest standard. This didn't stop certain players from feelin...

24Aug

By Si Woodhams1 Comment

Hardware & Tech

HyperX Solocast Microphone

HyperX has been in the peripheral game for a while now, products ranging from its Cloud headsets to its Quadcast microphones (previously reviewed here). Now in post-covid / various lockdown times everyone's Gran, Aunt and a long lost cousin have a need for a microphone that involves no fuss at all. This is where the Plug-N-Play HyperX Solocast hits the spot. Design From the outset, it's obvious what you are getting in the box, and the box imagery couldn't be more perfect. The Hyper X Solocast comes set up in its cradle and ready to rock. Simply plug the provided 2m USB cable in and away you go. It comes in a matt black finish, with a nice glowing red light to show you it is active. This is a design feature which is now common across the Hyper X microphone range. The cradle itsel...

23Aug

By Si WoodhamsNo Comments

Xbox Reviews

Lawn Mowing Simulator Review

After the buzz of the Lawn Mowing Simulator Demo, which when released garnered over 250,000 downloads, Lawn Mowing Simulator is finally here in a full release. Does it live up to its demo hype or is it another in a long list of tedious niche sims? Curve Digital and Skyhooks Games created a huge noise during this phase. They now have to deliver on the full release. Carry on reading to find out what I thought of the game in my first ever simulator review! Lawn Mower Simulator - Watch out for that Gnome! Now, this is the first-ever simulation game I've reviewed, and based on the other TC crews' thoughts around the demo I was genuinely excited to get stuck into Lawn Mowing Simulator. Gameplay There are 3 game modes to enjoy; Career, Challenge, and Free Mow. In this review, I will be...

22Jul

By Si WoodhamsNo Comments

Xbox Reviews

Within the Blade Review

Its Retro, its 16-BIT and brings back all the memories of days-gone-by of sitting in front of a Sega Mega Drive as time flew by playing a certain 2D platform game with a blue hedgehog. From the indie house that is Ametist comes Within The Blade, a 2D jaunt around 1560's Civil war-torn Japan. Let's just get one thing out of the way first. If this game looks familiar to some that is because it is. Ametist originally released this game on Steam under the name Pixel Shinobi: Nine demons of Mamoru way back in 2017, now in 2021 we have it renamed and released for Xbox If you love this game and want to share your thoughts or just like this review, leave us a comment. We always love to know what you think. Gameplay At its heart Within the Blade is a 2D scrolling game, and everything fr...