Editorial Review for January | Zing

Martin is closed

We spent most of last year sort of “complaining” about the absurd amount of games being released, not a single month was quieter, and on top of that huge number of games, there were actually a lot of really good quality ones. If the first month of this year is any indication of what it’s going to be like this year, it’s going to be even wilder than I can honestly imagine. In other years, January would be a quiet, peaceful month where everyone would catch up on vacation and relax after the holidays. But instead, this year we got two bombastic JRPGs – Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth sent us to Hawaii with a bunch of 40-somethings, and Perona 3 Reload offered an unforgettable (school) year with Japanese schoolchildren. The Return of the Prince of Persia was also an exceptional success. In addition to the great traditional games, there were some great games released in Early Access – be it the strategy game New Cycle or the enjoyable madness called Palworld.

In addition to the games themselves, we have also witnessed the start of this year’s gaming shows, which began in January with a nutritious Xbox Direct. Today, PlayStation will follow with its State of Play, from which we also expect a lot. And it’s no secret (actually it is, but somehow a “public” secret) that Nintendo is also gritting its teeth over some kind of revelation for this year, such as a new console. In any case, the hectic gaming season will continue in February in earnest, with, among other things, the long-awaited Final Fantasy VII Rebirth or the mysterious but very tempting duo of Banishers: Ghosts of New Eden and Pacific Drive. We are already hard at work on some February reviews and are looking forward to sharing them with you.

Jan Urbanczyk

While January is usually one of the quieter months, this year it was definitely not. There were a lot of games waiting for us, and I certainly didn’t even have time to try all the ones I wanted to try. I spent most of the month finishing the Apollo Justice: Ace Attorney Trilogy collection, which is really cool and you can read more about it in the review (also in video form). Paradoxically, two months spent on an adventure visual novel didn’t mean I was lost to the genre, but on the contrary, I wanted more. So a few days ago I played the first part of the Zero Escape series (999) on Steam Deck, which I still really like.

I also reviewed the highly successful Metroidvania Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown (again, also in video form), the unconventional strategy game War Hospital, which was unfortunately quite disappointing, and wrote up my impressions of the surprisingly well-designed strategy game New Cycle, which hit Early Access a few weeks ago.

Even in February, there will be no shortage of games. I’m looking forward to Exiles: Ghosts of New Eden, as well as Miracle Worker, the Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons remake, or the Mario vs. Donkey Kong remake. There are also two big JRPGs coming out that I’m still not sure I want to play, but I’ll probably give Persona 3 Reload a try just because it’s on Game Pass. And of course, I can’t forget about the Legion Tales DLC for Last Train Home, which comes out tomorrow.

Pavlina Nouzova

In January, I got rid of the new games and got stuck into the old ones. And boy, did I enjoy them! First, I played through the second round of Hades, where I did my best and discovered some important details I’d missed the first time around all those years ago (you know, for example, what happens when you “strengthen” the friendship between the Minotaur and Theseus? Not nice). And then I fired up the amazing year-old detective The Case of the Golden Idol on my laptop. If you’ve missed it yet and you enjoy solving murders, dabbling in the occult, and solving puzzles, you should definitely catch up. While the game’s quirky graphics won’t please the graphically-hungry eye, they will entertain. And we’ll probably get another episode this year.

The next month is a big unknown for me. But I want to move on to a small title called Open Roads, which also features Kaitlyn Dever, the actress who would be seen a year later as Abby in The Last of Us. This “more cinematic” game, with an emphasis on story rather than gameplay, will follow the journey of a mother and teenage daughter who try to get to know each other better during their journey. The game is also influenced by the case surrounding Fullbright, the studio that initially worked on it, but over time began to suffer due to the behavior of founder Steve Gaynor. So it will be interesting to see how the final part turns out.

Daniel Jarocki

In the first month of the year, I returned to some old games. Perhaps a little paradoxically, I spent the most time on Dakar Desert Rally, which, even more than a year after its release, still has a number of bugs and shortcomings. However, since the real Dakar took place in the first half of the month (the famous long-distance competition on which the game is based), thanks to the complex navigation system and licensed content, I was still able to enjoy its gameplay branch. However, the main thing is the attractive theme and the connection with this year’s famous competition.

Looking at the February offer, it becomes clear that a weak month is definitely not in store for us. For myself, I would especially like to highlight the remake of the cooperative adventure game Brothers: A Tale of Two Sons from the pen of Josef Fares and the licensed racing game Le Mans Ultimate from the studio 397. However, I was also interested in the non-traditional “car” survival Pacific Drive or the ambitious action-RPG Banishers from the materials at the moment: Ghosts of New Eden, behind the creators of Life is Strange from the studio Don’t Nod.

Philip Svoboda

January, and even December before that, weren’t exactly gaming months for me. Despite the rather “study period”, I got around to Baldur’s Gate 3, for which I also wrote brief impressions, focused mainly on the Xbox version. I’ve completed the first act, and now the rest of the adventure awaits me.

The upcoming Hellblade 2 has me revisiting the first game, which was slowly fading in my memory. I remember the beautiful atmosphere, but was very pleasantly surprised by the story and its narrative. Not to mention the incredible sound. Last week I also installed a really old resto in the form of Obsidian’s Pentiment.

February is the first year that I’m really interested in. I consider myself a Don’t Nod fan, so Banishers was immediately on my wishlist. I’m also really interested in Thaumaturge, which is published by 11 Bit Studios. I’m also looking for a Persona 3 remake, but after my experience with five I’ll probably wait until I have a few hundred hours of free time.

Ondrej Zeman

It’s the start of a new year, and with it a gaming drought. Yes, that’s right. I finally got a break. While I spent a lot of time playing Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown, I spent most of my time this month playing board games. That allowed me to play through the dark story of the Island of the Sun trilogy, travel to Japan to chop off heads in Senjutsu, encounter the universe in MLEM, or fight for survival in the depths of a Mars facility during the Nemesis: Lockdown campaign. In short, I wasn’t bored even during this “drought.”

In the case of February, I expect more workload in games. I’m probably looking forward to the hellish strategy Solium Infernum the most, the format of which I like, as the creators have come up with. However, I hope that while conquering the depths of hell, I’ll also find time for the isometric RPG The Thaumaturge or the “relaxing” game Mario vs. Donkey Kong. However, overall, the beginning of the year looks calmer, which I probably welcome as a result.