I’ve been quite public about the fact that God of War Ragnarök was my favourite game of 2022. I raved about it extensively in a written review, podcast, end-of-year lists and, even, an emotional personal essay.
But it also suffered from one of my absolute biggest pet peeves in games — characters blatantly spelling out puzzles for you. Spend a few too many seconds figuring out where to throw Kratos’ Leviathan Axe and your companion immediately blurts out the solution. Worse still, there wasn’t even an option to turn this off. A similar — and arguably stranger — issue was present in PlayStation’s other big 2022 exclusive, Horizon Forbidden West, in which protagonist Aloy won’t stop monologuing no matter what you’re doing.
Much to my surprise, then, is the fact that Respawn’s Star Wars Jedi: Survivor has deftly avoided these issues. Released on April 28th, the sequel to 2019’s acclaimed Jedi: Fallen Order sees Cal Kestis face off against a mysterious new threat in the Galactic Empire. By most accounts, it’s an improvement on the original, offering better exploration, more varied loot and expanded combat options. But what I’ve low-key appreciated the most about it in my 10-ish hours so far? The way it takes a step back and lets players do their thing.
From the start, you’re asked if you want to turn hints on, and you can toggle this at any point thereafter. That right there is a huge step up from a lot of the hand-holding we’ve seen in recent AAA games. But as a nice added touch, enabling them still doesn’t mean you’re immediately given clues if the game recognizes you’ve spent a while on a puzzle. Instead, it will still ask you via the D-pad whether you want a hint. It’s a smart way to give you wiggle room for any specific puzzles that might arise to stump you without having to toggle hints repeatedly in the settings.
It’s a simple thing, to be sure, but it feels so refreshing. More often, lately, we have games constantly bombarding you with dialogue that disrupts the flow of your gameplay. In many cases, it’s not even giving you a chance to solve a puzzle yourself, like in Ragnarök. But even something like EA Motive’s Dead Space proves annoying at times by having the rare NPC ally constantly rush you to get a move on when you’re simply trying to read a lengthy document you picked up. It’s a big reason why Elden Ring‘s hands-off approach resonated so strongly last year with people. Players loved exploring The Lands Between without being inundated with hundreds of little icons and markers on a map. Better still, though: Jedi: Survivor gives the player control. Assistive features like hints can prove especially useful for those with disabilities, so I’m happy they’re available for everyone. All that’s needed, though, is to make them fully optional, like in Jedi: Survivor.
Thankfully, Jedi: Survivor’s only real hand-holding comes in scripted cutscenes.
I’ve also appreciated how Respawn’s more laid-back design philosophy extends to exploration. Graciously, Survivor‘s areas are significantly bigger and denser than those found in its predecessor, yet still feel manageable since they’re decidedly not fully open-world. In other words, they feel purposeful, rather than expansive for the sake of it. More importantly, though, Respawn doesn’t bury all of this under traditional icon-heavy maps or other navigational markers.
While you can use your BD-1 droid like binoculars to set points of interest, the real highlight is simply going off the beaten path to see what new enemies, areas and items you’ll find that way. At no point was I prompted to do so by Cal (who’s mercifully less talkative than, say, Aloy) or even in-game text. Even the sidequests are welcomely vague; often, you’ll be tipped off to something mysterious in a particular area, and you have to work your way there. That sense of discovery is lovely, and I’m so glad the game doesn’t lessen that impact through excessive dialogue.
Of course, I’m not even halfway through the game, so it’s possible things worsen later on. But so far, this gameplay loop of Cal, BD-1 and a rotating cast of NPC allies going through fascinating and exotic Star Wars locales has been an absolute blast, in no small part because the game is letting me take it at my own pace. I’ll have more on Jedi: Survivor in the coming days.
Image credit: EA
You can’t use just any drive to upgrade the PS5’s internal storage; it requires a NVMe SSD (Non-Volatile Memory Express Solid-State Drive). This high-performance storage device is designed for use in computing systems like the PS5, PC and beyond.
Sony has kept the choices a little wider when it comes to the brand and make you can purchase for the console. There is no proprietary hardware 
To access the SSD slot, 
Use a Philips Screwdriver to unscrew and lift away the cover. Be careful not to strip the screw and make sure you are using the correct size tool. If the screwdriver isn’t turning the screw, double-check the size. Once the screw is removed, put it aside and be very careful not to drop it into any open areas of the PS5’s exposed innards.
Once the cover is removed, you’ll see a green area with five expansion screw holes. Inside this space, you’ll also find another screw which you’ll need to remove along with its spacer.
This screw and spacer combo will secure your SSD in place once it’s been inserted.
Carefully insert the NVMe SSD into the terminal slot, making sure to line up the pins correctly. Gently push the SSD into the connection area at an angled position. Once it’s seated properly, firmly insert it all the way into the port.
Once the NVMe SSD is correctly connected and inserted in the slot, push it down gently and line it up with the empty screw hole, ensuring the hole is aligned with the top of the SSD. Next, place the spacer inside the screw hole that matches up with the top of the drive. Push the SSD flat and tighten the screw gently into the spacer.
Once the screw is securely holding the drive in place, you can replace the grey SSD cover. Carefully slide it into place and use the screw to affix it to the hardware. Once again, don’t over-tighten it to avoid stripping the screw.
Now it’s time to re-attach the PS5 cover back on the console, I found this to be the most difficult part of the process. The trick is to position it away from the top edge of the body and slide it down. You’ll hear a loud “click” when the cover is attached properly. This will likely take a few tries; just be patient and don’t aggressively force it.
Congratulations! You have successfully installed a new SSD into your PS5. Now you can enjoy more space for games and other content.
The remake’s stronger writing extends to other characters, too. In the original game, the president’s daughter, Ashley, was little more than an annoying damsel in distress for Leon to save. Here, she’s far less whiny and even now has an endearing rapport with Leon, with the two bonding over the horrible experiences in which they find themselves. It also helps that Canadian actress Genevieve Buechner delivers a more understated performance, graciously making Ashley feel more like a character than a plot device. But the character who gets expanded upon the most is Luis. The ex-cop Spaniard had a relatively minor role in the original game, in which he made decidedly distasteful comments about Ashley, but here, he has a meatier role while also dropping the casual sexism. Across multiple sections of the campaign, the remake gives Leon more of an opportunity to get to know Luis, giving them a much more compelling camaraderie than ever before.
But let’s be real — RE4 is, first and foremost, an action game, and the remake hones in on that in all of the best ways. Honestly, it can’t be understated just how much more engaging and thrilling combat can be when you’re afforded complete 360-degree movement. Instead of occasionally fighting with the controls, you’re able to focus entirely on the obstacles in front of you, which allows Capcom to shift focus on getting creative with enemy configurations and the actual layout of areas. Sure, the original game had a level of verticality to it, but the remake’s extra freedom of movement and real-time transitions between vaulting around, climbing up ladders and jumping through windows make everything feel infinitely more seamless. Ashley, too, is less of a nuisance in combat, thanks to better AI and the ability to command her to stick close to Leon (useful when fleeing) or hang back (handy when fighting).
But the single biggest and best change in this regard comes through Leon’s knife. In the original RE4, you would have to awkwardly hold up the blade while making slow slashes, a process that had to be repeated each time you wanted to open a crate and check for resources. This, coupled with the requirement to confirm item pick-ups instead of simply automatically doing so in the remake, made things feel a bit tedious in the original. (The surprisingly addicting Tetris-style case management system does return, though, with a welcome auto-sort option, to boot.) If instant item pick-ups in the remake weren’t enough, Leon’s knife now has greater versatility in exchange for a durability metre, and it’s truly a game-changer.
At the same time, you can find new knives to replace your broken ones and repair your main blade at the Merchant (yes, the lovably goofy and mysterious salesman returns) for a fairly large fee, so there’s a perfectly balanced and rewarding gameplay loop surrounding the knife alone. That’s to say nothing of the glorious assortment of pistols, rifles, shotguns and other weapons that Leon accrues, all of which are upgradable at the Merchant. All told, Resident Evil 4 (2023)’s extensive mechanical refinements result in some of the most pulse-pounding and gratifying third-person combat I’ve ever experienced in a game.
Throughout all of this, Capcom has also been clever enough to make changes to environments and structures where it makes sense. Gone are some of the comically over-the-top quick-time events (QTEs) — fine in 2005, but pretty dated 18 years later — and in their place are interactive sequences that retain the same campy spirit. Boss fights and setpieces that were limited to small areas now feel more lively thanks to larger combat arenas in which Leon can actually properly run around and shoot. After 2020’s 
For years, many have argued that a Resident Evil 4 remake was unneeded, and that’s not without merit. The original game remains playable on pretty much every platform and holds up quite well in many ways. But Resident Evil 4 (2023) shows that such a line of thinking lacks imagination. Against all odds, Capcom has managed to take one of the most beloved games of all time and modernize in it so many brilliant ways, lovingly staying true to the original experience while bolding charting a new path for it. This is easily the greatest gaming remake to date and an early frontrunner for Game of the Year.