Hard Reset Redux (Xbox One, PlayStation 4, PC)

GAMES have grown up.

Over the last few years players have seen more and more games with immersive stories and tough moral choices or those where the gameplay requires thought and strategy to succeed.

It has been a battle for games to be considered in the same regard as the likes of films and TV shows in terms of depth and quality.

But thankfully there is still plenty of room for fun, over-the-top shooters like Hard Reset.

If you did not play the original for the PC, you should think of this polished-up version of the cyberpunk game as the equivalent of an action movie.

The plot is pretty inpenetrable but it basically imagines a future where mankind is being killed off by machines.

That is your cue to become a one-man army using ridiculously big weapons to see off waves of enemies in the style of games like Painkiller and Serious Sam.

Hard Reset is a game you have to stick with as it gets more enjoyable as you go along.

You start out with quite basic weapons – an assault rifle and plasma rifle.

But by the end you will have so many attachments and secondary modes you will be launching grenades one minute and a homing bolt of plasma the next.

Developer Flying Wild Hog have also added a katana which never loses its appeal – or sharp edge – in close quarters.

The challenge gets steeper as the robots get faster and bigger but you never feel outmatched thanks to conveniently placed explosives and terminals that unleash bursts of electricity

It runs smoothly on the Xbox One version tested and the new quick-dash manoeuvre is a welcome addition to the fast-paced gameplay.

Following the revival of Doom, Hard Reset Redux proves there is still a place for unashamedly old school games on the modern market.

DAVID MORGAN