Yooka-Laylee (PS4)

I have read a lot of the reviews on here and, as a lifelong gamer who was born in the 90's, I stand by all the 5 star reviews. I have to say to all those negative commenters - this game is not MEANT to be a graphically intense, open map World, voice acted modern style game - it is meant to be a modern visual interpretation of the classic 90's platform game! And that is exactly what it is!The negative reviews on here are from people who are crying because they can't defeat the boss levels, or find the idea of irregular checkpoints too much to cope with. Newsflash: 90's games were like that! They were hard! We, as modern gamers, have become used to the laziness of new games. Savepoints all over the show, super sensitive controls, human voice overs for characters and more leniancy when it comes to game character survival. Play Crash Bandicoot and touch a baddie with your pinkie toe, that is all I am saying.And whilst this may be a product that is primarily aimed at youngsters, I do believe that it gives us 90's gamers a beautiful flashback to the past with the advantage of modern graphics. I thoroughly enjoyed this title because I bought it and saw it for what it was meant to be - a new take on old games.

I was intrigued to play this game as it harked back to memories of Banjo Kazooie, which was a game I really enjoyed. Yooka Laylee certainly plays in the same spirit as the aforementioned, but there's something lacking that I can't quite put my finger on. I whizzed through the levels in the first session, with only one area really proving troublesome (a cave area in the snowy level - took about 20 tries), but therein lies the issue with the game I think; there's little longevity. It's nicely rendered and the characters are well thought out, but it all seems too easy to get through in one sitting. Contrariwise there were times when it wasn't obvious where you were supposed to go next, and I found myself returning to the same area over and over because all paths led there. This game would suit speed runners mostly, but the casual player would find it not as rewarding - there's no recognition for getting 100% on a level. Not even a passage of text saying well done, nothing.

Yooka Laylee is an "ok" game. It has all the charm and quick wit of Banjo Kazooie and Conker, but it doesn't expand on those games and feels like it could have been a sequel to either.The gameplay is sluggish and feels strained; the age-old enemy of platform titles makes a return, the camera. Some jumps become incredibly tiresome and there are certain areas of the game which require a well-executed effort to progress through, which can be frustrating.It's not a bad game. I just feel with the hype and advertising we had, it should have been better, especially given the developing talent behind it.

This is a good old-school 3D platformer, similar to Spyro or Croc or Super Mario 64.The graphics are nice and it's reasonably fun to play.However, if you have to choose between this or Spyro Reignited there is no contest, Spyro is a much better game in every aspect.Also, the frame rate seems to be a little low and it's not super smooth at times, even on a PS4 Pro.

So many elements from Banjo Kazooie are in this game. The sounds, the look, the characters, the story line, the fonts, the saved game screens, everything is all so familiar.If you're not into old N64 games, and are into serious games, then this would be a no for you. But if you play games as a young family, it's a genuinely funny 3D platformer.