Discover why ‘Solar Ash’ is a perfect game for the holidays, and learn all about Sennheiser’s MOMENTUM 3 Wireless headphones.
Looking for something fresh to fire up before we usher in the new year? Here are five games that are worth your time and money…
1- Solar Ash (PS5, PS4, PC)
From the moment you start Solar Ash you’ll blown away by just how bloody beautiful the whole game is, but this stylish PS5 platformer packs plenty of substance as well.
It all starts when you take control of Rei – a ‘voidrunner’ who is capable of exploring black holes. Turns out that’s a pretty darn handy talent, because there just so happens to be a black hole threatening Rei’s planet and she’s the only one who can fix it.
Thanks to Rei’s ability to seemingly skate across surfaces, exploring the artistic landscapes of Solar Ash is an absolute treat from start to finish. Movement is fast, fluid and frantic – creating exciting platforming opportunities and tense combat encounters. Even many hours into the game, exploration always felt good. There’s also a pretty developed narrative that will see you speeding towards the finish line.
Sure some elements of Solar Ash can feel a tad easy or become slightly repetitive (especially in the latter stages), but if you’re looking for something fresh and new to boot up on your PS5 over the break, you won’t regret it.
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https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hqdFAn2T2UI
2 – Big Brain Academy: Brain vs. Brain (Switch)
Nintendo has always done well to produce games that get the whole family involved and Big Brain Academy is a shining example of that.
A mini game collection for the mind, Brain vs. Brain breaks things up into five categories: identify, memorize, analyse, compute, and visualise. Each category is designed to test different parts of your brain, but all will likely result in a few laughs as you compete against friends or family.
This is especially true of the Party Mode which is where the game comes into its own thanks to the potential involvement of four players. Trying to identify a zebra as it slowly comes into focus, break blocks to match the shapes or help guide a train to its goal might sound simple, but the competitive nature adds a good amount of pressure and things can get a fair bit more difficult.
This is a perfect crowd-pleaser you can throw on during any holiday gathering.
3- Loop Hero (Switch)
Loop Hero won over a lot of gamers when it debuted on PC back in March. Now it’s headed to the Switch and the transition works better than you might think. The premise is devilishly addictive: your hero constantly loops around an environment until they eventually die – battling enemies and collecting resources. These resources will in turn help you be better equipped to push further and further than you could before. The twist is that you’re the one placing enemies, buildings, and terrain along each expedition via a deck of mystical cards.
It sounds complicated, and there’s a bit of a learning curve, but once you get a grasp on the gameplay it can get deeply strategic and even more satisfying. Each run will be a textbook example of risk vs. reward and easily punished our greedy ways.
We’ll admit that playing Loop Hero on Switch took some getting used to, but the port does well to squeeze the PC experience onto the handheld. It’s also not enough of a pain point to prevent you from trying out one of the most unique games of 2021.
4- Chorus (PS5, Xbox Series X, PS4, XBO)
Space shooters are hardly a dime-a-dozen these days, so it’s good news then that Chorus does well to nail most of what it sets out to achieve.
Without getting too deep into the game’s story (which can get a bit too intense with the lore) you follow the plights of the highly-skilled pilot Nara. Nara is haunted by her past, but despite all the exposition, her quest mainly equates to you either exploring Chorus’s galactic map, or trying to shoot things to pieces.
Encounters can be frantic and tense, but you’ll have a decent arsenal at your disposal, and new abilities will help keep things exciting as you attempt to hunt down each foe. If you’ve got yourself a DualSense, battles will feel pretty good too.
Well worth checking out for space lovers.
5 – The Eternal Cylinder (PS4, XBO)
A delightfully quirky survival adventure, you’ve almost certainly not played anything like The Eternal Cylinder before. In a nutshell, the game sees you take control of creates called Trebhums who are survive life on a planet where the titular Cylinder (a giant death-dealing rolling structure) threatens to flatten all life. We warned you.
But while your Trebhums start off as weak prey, the longer you play The Eternal Cylinder, the more you’ll mutate and become better equipped for the world’s numerous perils and puzzles. It’s an intriguing loop and one that you will see you quickly invested in this unique tale (especially thanks to the inclusion of a rather enjoyable narrator).
The Eternal Cylinder is odd in all the right ways and should not be ignored.
Hands-on with the Sennheiser MOMENTUM 3 Wireless headphones
Considering Sennheiser is one of the leading manufacturers of headphones, speakers and all things audio, we expected the MOMENTUM 3 Wireless headphones to be good when we first threw them on our head. Now, after spending a few weeks with the company’s latest over-ear offering we can confirm they live up to the hype.
As we mentioned in our tech-focused Xmas gift guide, one of the biggest compliments we can give the MOMENTUM 3’s is their aesthetic. While many headphones get lost in outlandish colours or literally weighed down with too many features, the MOMENTUM 3 strikes a great balance between form and function.
The leather headband and matte steel arms creates a simple yet comfy design profile that suits any situation, meaning whether you’re wearing them outdoors or in the office you won’t go raising any eyebrows. We also appreciated how easy it is to fold the device up for safe travel, although we do wish the travel pouch had a bit of sturdier design. It’ll do the job, but you will want to make sure there’s nothing too weighty in your bag pressing against it.
Aside from that one minor gripe though the MOMENTUM 3 is a dream to use. Having your usual slew of audio controls on the right ear cup made switching up content a breeze and resuming a song as soon as the headphones sensed being atop of our head was always appreciated.
Plus, once you’re in the middle of a track you’ll realise the strength of the MOMENTUM 3’s audio performance. From The Weeknd to Banks, every song we trialled packed a rich sound profile, which was only improved thanks to some exceptional noise cancellation technology.
These are some pricey headphones (retailing at about $599.99) but if you’re looking to invest in a flexible offering that matches style and substance, the MOMENTUM 3’s are well worth a look.
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