The Long and Short of It

Licence to discuss granted. Welcome to a brand-new side series from The Long & Short of It, where we revisit every official James Bond film from beginning to end. We begin where it all started with Dr. No. Does Sean Connery's debut still hold up over 60 years later, and how well does the very first Bond film stand the test of time?

Before the tuxedo, before the gadgets, before the licence to kill. We follow a young James Bond's first mission and ask whether 007 First Light earns its place in the long history of 007.

Rescuing Teensies, dodging nightmares, and running through castles to the beat of the music. We revisit Rayman Legends to see whether this platforming masterpiece truly earns its place among gaming's greats...

Before immersive sims became a genre buzzword, Deus Ex was already doing it all. We revisit the cult classic to see if its freedom and ambition still hold up more than 20 years later.

From bizarre meme levels to genuinely impressive creations, Dreams lets players make almost anything. But does that freedom translate into a great game, or something easier to admire than actually play?

A dying forest, a tiny guardian spirit, and some of the most beautiful platforming of the last decade. We dive into  Ori and the Blind Forest  to see whether this emotional Metroidvania truly deserves its place among the greats.

A deck of cards, a handful of Jokers, and numbers that spiral into the millions. Is Balatro the ultimate ‘just one more run’ game, or clever maths dressed up as chaos?

We’ve already tackled  MGS3 , so now it’s time to revisit it in a new skin. A legendary story, rebuilt for a modern audience. We return to the jungles to see if  Metal Gear Solid Δ  enhances what made  Snake Eater  special - or risks tampering with something that never needed fixing.

We’ve already been down this road with  Horizon 3 . Now it’s time to see if shifting the festival to Britain and adding seasons makes  Forza Horizon 4  the peak of arcade racing, or simply a very polished remix.

A sprawling Metroidvania that refuses to hold your hand. Is Hollow Knight one of the genre’s greats, or simply the most stylish way to get lost underground?

A short and stylish indie that tries to rewrite the rules of the rescue mission. Smart commentary or just another quirky experiment lost in the noise?

Following Dear Esther, we stay in walking-sim territory with What Remains of Edith Finch, a game of memories, loss, and imagination. Is it the genre’s masterpiece, or just another melancholy stroll?

Minimal gameplay, maximum atmosphere. We step onto a desolate Hebridean island to see if Dear Esther is a haunting masterpiece - or an overrated stroll.

Welcome back to Racoon City, with Resident Evil 2. CapCom brought back one of survival horror’s crown jewels with a fresh coat of paint. But does Leon and Claire’s nightmare still terrify - or is this remake more nostalgia than substance?

Ding Dong.... The 90s served us a wisecracking gecko in sunglasses—because of course they did. But is Enter the Gecko a hidden gem or just channel-surfing nonsense?

Hello hello! Welcome back, where this week we go back to the beginning of the trilogy reboot of The Hitman Series. IO really went all in when they started slowly releasing this game back in 2016, but did it carry on the heritage and pomp of The Hitman Series, or was it a bit of a flop?

Join us this week with a foray into Paradiso & Inferno, where we tackle Bayonetta 2. One of the more unique games on our radar, with a very fierce fan following - we discuss where this game ranks amongst it's genre peers & if it deserves a spot in the OpenCritic List!

Welcome back, where this week we take a trip to Rainbow Road & discuss the 8th entry into the Mario Kart franchise. Surprisingly this game didn't appear on the MetaCritic list - so why is that? Should it have been there?

We're back with another biggie. Today we take a look at the newest remaster from Bethesda, Oblivion Remastered. We played the original Oblivion back in 2021 - so here we discuss the changes to the original and whether or not this is a god jumping off point for newcomers to TES series.

A different one today, with a text parser game, reminiscent of games from the 80's & 90's. Crimson Diamond is the topic & one we've not really tackled before. Murder mystery, or was playing this game just straight up murder...?

A slightly different episode for you, whilst we play through the next game! Join us for an extra episode, where we discuss the recently announced Nintendo Switch 2. From the exciting game releases coming up - to the contentious price point and game costs moving forward, join us for an off the cuff chat around the next big console!

Hoo boy, here's an episode with some potentially controversial takes. Join us on our trip back into the world of Final Fantasy, with the newest entry into the series 'Final Fantasy 7: Rebirth'. With this being a follow up to Laurence's favourite game of all time (kind of) - how did it land in the grand scheme of the world of FF7?

Well well well, here we are once again with an indie darling. This week, we find ourselves playing the dystopian indie game - Inside. From talks of themes, video games as art & gaming signifiers in general, join us for this deep dive on a slightly different kind of game.

To mark 5 years of The Long & Short of It, we thought we would mark the occasion with a celebratory game this week and cover the 2024 Game of the Year - Astrobot. This one kind of came out of nowhere ,but has bundles of charm and leaves a smile on the face - but where does it fit in the top games of all time? A side note - thank you to all our listeners, followers, subscribers who have been wi...

Welcome back, where this week we delve into the first of the Horizon games to show up on the list. Today, we are focussing on the 2016 game, Forza Horizon 3. As pretty much the midpoint in the series, this game is beloved by many, but also comes with some division, as some players think that this is where the games started to go downhill. Join us to hear our thoughts!