PS4 We Happy Few

'We Happy Few' is, to put it frankly, a missed opportunity. The concept and the world are fantastic, the graphics and setting incredible but it doesn't quite come together. The cities never really feel like anything but faceless streets and the harshly punitive 'Joy' meter means you never feel comfortable exploring. The few tantalising moments where you feel you are going to finally be plunged into the world never come to anything. Beautifully scripted scenes are disappointingly cut short in a bizarre fashion, and all stealth and skill forgotten up to that point. This leaves the player feel they may as button bash there way through each mission.The shame, of course, is there is an awesome game somewhere hidden amongst the confusion. Is 'We Happy Few' a survival game, a puzzle, an RPG, a crafting game? It never quite decides, and as a result, the player is left scratching their heads.If 'We Happy Few' can be sharpened and polished, if it can decide what game it really wants to be, if it can left the player feel they are really part of the world; then the fascinating backdrop and story would shine through and this game would have the potential to be among the best.

Buggy crashes corrupted saves. It would have had some charm but it currently is in its box as I’ve lost patience with it. The premise was promising but the gameplay doesn’t live up to it remotely. The crashing and corrupted saves just about takes the biscuit. Load times are a bit over long too. Shelling out for what ultimately is a stinker is quite disheartening.

Okay, to start off I got this for £19.99 my views would be very different if I had paid full price on the day of launch.First off, the graphic engine is glitchy, as you explore the environment there are times when the textures or even whole objects slap you in the face as they pop into existence. An unforgivable feature by current industry standards. Although, it has to be said, I love the story and I found the humour that accompanies it suitably quirky. It does feel like a cross between Monty Python and The Prisoner. It feels very 60s British kitsch but with a dark element to it that I found compelling. The crafting and survival element are pretty standard and without the setting or story I wouldn't touch it because the gameplay alone just isn't enough. It is Marmite!

Was so excited for this game to come out, it had so much potential, feels like an unfinished product for full price.Bugged out after about 8 hours and corrupted my entire PS4 save data so had to do a restore.Stealth mechanic is absurd, just run and hide in a bush/ bin every time you're discovered, no way of avoiding it really.Taking joy to blend in ( you know the whole point of the game) is pointless as it lasts about 10 seconds, and then you get chased around for 10 minutes until you can find a bin to hide in.Loading times are insanely long to add insult to Injury.On the plus side the trade in value is pretty high still so you can get rid of it.Avoid at all costs!!!

The art direction, story, and voice acting in this game is superb. The idea is novel and the game itself looks and sounds fantastic. I have enjoyed the hour ey but there are some large flaws with the game that you should be aware of. The chat mechanics are clunky and the stealth is ridiculously simple and works on a 50/50 basis, and which 50% you get is governed seemingly by an invisible coin toss. So do not expect the game to be a smooth ride. If you enjoy story and creative art and sound though, this game is a must. Definitely not for kids.