A milestone in the franchise - in both good and bad ways. In the end, the flaws of the 9th generation prevail, these editions do not go beyond disappointing average.

This is not as fascinating as the last bullet hell shmups like Sine Mora or Akai Katana, but nonetheless with the HD remake of one of the final games of the late Dreamcast you’ll get an intense, but rather short arcade shooter.

At its core you’ll find entertaining mechanics. But they are held back by a meaningless campaign and technical issues.

While being nowhere near brilliance in any area, Days Gone still gives you an entertaining mix of exploration, horror, stealth and survival light in mostly stunning environments.

Kona is an atmospheric, surprisingly varied modern adventure, mixing point&click tradition with survival suspense and the exploration aspect of recent game novels..

In terms of content and base mechanics this is just as good as on PC, but Neocore still has problems to translate their engine to console. And it shows in a lot of areas - especially on the standard systems.

In terms of storytelling and mechanics this is a great oldschool RPG, but unfortunately the port is quite sloppy and lackluster.

A charming surreal puzzler that lacks polishing.

There are some problems with the procedural world generation. And the UI lacks a sorting function for objects, while the free building is a little awkward. But nonetheless this is a huge creative sandbox somewhere between No Man’s Sky and Minecraft.

With six people in front of the sensor, the core ingredient of Just Dance, the fun, is more emphasized than ever before.

I wish I could say that this is the better Monster Hunter. But it isn’t. Where Capcom gives you depth and a meaningful daily fantasy business this is merely a collection of fast paced battles against a limited number of enemy types.

Like its PC or One siblings this is an escape simulator that is not without flaw. And it can be quite frustrating. But it also is very rewarding once you get the hang of it.

Quotation forthcoming.

Puddle entertains as much as it frustrates. Some stages you clear at your first try, others you start 40 times or more. But if you are willing to overcome this adversity you`re rewarded with a fascinating physics-based puzzle adventure.

I like the theme. I like the narrative and I think it is an interesting approach to combine storytelling and management. It is in desperate need of variety, though.

If Legend of Grimrock is the mysterious and deadly dungeon crawler counterpart to Dark Souls, then Might & Magic X is closely related to Diablo 3: colorful, entertaining and full of loot- but almost without any sense of danger.

Amusing anime rpg to Hiro Mashimas manga series of the same name.

If you like your action-adventure with a strong dose of 90’s retro flair, this is worth a look. But the challenging jump-and-run mechanics can’t hide the fact, that the mission design is a little too old school for its own good.

Zenimax had a steep mountain to climb: They had to cater to both the expectations of fans of Offline-Tamriel as well as demands of online-mechanics. And even though the result is far from perfect and seems to lose focus here or there, I don’t regret any of the rather large amount of time I’ve spent with TESO.

Quotation forthcoming.

Aragami is a pleasant surprise. It shows some technical deficits and it is not bug-free. But the stealth action is cleverly designed and if you can’t wait for Styx: Shards of Darkness you’ll find an interesting alternative that will keep your hunger satisfied.

I was really looking forward to High on Life 2, and the gameplay itself was solid – but the technical issues put me off. Even as a new iteration, High on Life remains one of the strangest games in video game history. Gameplay-wise, it remains solidly average.

This Ghost Recon focuses more on action and less on tactical advancement. Additionally the campaign is rarely a challenge. If you're hoping to get a continuation of the virtues of Advanced Warfighter, you will be disappointed. Technically the PC-version is way ahead of its' console counterparts, but the multiplayer doesn't offer quite as much.

The presentation is definitely not the strong point, but Unit 13 offers well designed infiltration missions and a very entertaining coop mode.

The classic concept motivates, but Shin'en stays safe. With more content, more diversity and only a few fresh ideas this could have been a download gem in the early life of Wii U.

Farpoint not only looks great, especially with the aim controller, but it plays great too. But the sum of all parts unfortunately isn’t great, since the action itself, with its lack of variation and endless waves, is as generic as anything.

Retro City Rampage is not really a good game. It is nice and entertaining, but also very shallow. But it is an darn good compilation of reminders what was cool and hip in the 80s and 90, it is a declaration of love to the era of big pixels and plastic pop.

Yes, it is rather short. But Geometry Wars 3 aside I haven’t had that much fun with a twin-stick shooter in a while. Be wary of the spiking difficulty in the middle though where it moves from challenging to frustrating for a little while.

In a surprisingly emotional way A Normal Lost Phone not only is a coming-of-age tale. It manages to be informative without being obnoxious, to be authentic while being playful. A wonderfully different storytelling experience.

A decent addition to your library of classic point & click adventures, without anything spectacularly good or bad worth mentioning.

It cannot topple Monster Hunter World from the top of the food chain, but if you like your monster hunting and gathering with a hefty dose of post-apocalyptic atmosphere, this definitely is for you.

With Evolution's pedigree in mind this is not the racer every PS4-fan was hoping for. The challenge system provides a good amount of fun and motivation but in terms of general content, it leaves a lot to be desired.

A successful multiplayer adaptation of the film franchise of the same name, which suffers from bumpy tutorials and inconsistent matchmaking.

The enchanted scenery could have been bigger, the story longer than roughly five to seven hours, but nonetheless Ashes of Ariandel is a good expansion.

Solid collection with three classics, all of which still pack a punch. I would have expected more than a mere resolution upgrade to 1080p, though.

Controls are easy to pick up, the rank and reward system is motivating, the choice of playable characters is surprisingly large. But when it comes to maps and modes, the content falls short.

This still shows off one of the deepest characters in franchise history, but came across (and still does) mechanically as old-fashioned.

The tasks are superficial, the controls not always accurate. Nonetheless this a charming little puzzler that I don't want to miss.

Visually impressive rejuvenation of the well known shooting gallery Modern Warfare 2. No frills, but a lot of fun.

A nice entry to the block building worlds à la MineCraft that’s perfectly suited for beginners. But don’t expect the complexity of Mojang’s masterpiece nor the roleplaying ingredients of Dragon Quest Builders.

Challenging and an audiovisual gem: While the concept might seem simple this is a breath of fresh air that is as good on Switch as ever.

A good twinstick shooter. Accompanied by cool electro-beats creates a martial flow, but in the long run you'll miss greater variety.

Likeable characters and exciting decisions create classic Star Trek flair - despite many small technical and playful quirks.

A charming, wacky 2D adventure that keeps you motivated even though the tasks you’ll encounter could be more varied.

Is it surprising that InoCo Plus' turn based premiere can't keep up with Civilization? Not really. But for just being a "Fantasy Civ" it offers surprisingly good strategic entertainment.

One of the best GT3-simulations is held back on PS4 by technical problems and missing features.

The redux versions on console are definitely more entertaining than their PC brother – mainly thanks to the various difficulty levels, more areas and fresh enemies. But some main problems like the missing flow you’d associate with Descent-style games are still existent.

Even with slightly less impressive visuals due to a lower resolution than on Rift Valkyrie shows how immersive and engrossing action can be if it is developed for VR and VR only.

Grueling solo survival with too many bits and pieces as well as unintuitive management and a short exploration leash.

The entanglement of two realities is an interesting concept. But The Medium shows too many design weaknesses, can become tedious and doesn’t live up to the expectations you might have in an intense horror game.

With over 120 characters to choose from to form your fighting trio and a plethora of weapons Koei gives you a solid tactical foundation for the mass brawling. If you avoided the Warriors games so far, Orochi 3 could be the one to change your mind.

It feels good and the minimalistic visuals draw you in, but soundtrack and content are disappointing.

Cool stunts embedded in challenging turn-based tactics will spark your interest. Unfortunately there are still control issues present.

A great artdesign and a good direction make this a very special horror experience. But you have to get over some mechanical flaws.

This is a fountain of youth for shoot-em-ups: It is idiosyncratic and boisterous, but creative at the same time, resulting in a thoroughly motivation gem.

An interesting take on stealth action with a flawed checkpoint system and a serious lack of challenge.

While campaign and interface are not on par with genre standards, the skirmishes against AI controlled opponents and human generals surprise with explosive battles and unit variety.

In times of roomscale tinkering like Fantastic Contraption the conservative experiments of Crazy Machines 3 feel a bit outdated, but still manage to deliver solid puzzle fun.

It as a solid Trials Evolution clone through and through – minus the editor and the excellent level design.

Legends of Eisenwald tries hard to challenge the competition. But as a roleplaying game it is either corny or boring while the turn based tactics are standard respectively borderline uninteresting.

If you like games like The Witness, The Talos Principle or Obduction, this solid puzzle-adventure might scratch your itch.

Great art design and well constructed puzzles. The controls on Switch are not ideal, though.

This is the essence of everything Assassin’s Creed – good and not so good. While it is nice to see Ezio again and sneak as well as fight through dozens of hours of proven gameplay elements, you can’t help to think that even back then the progress within the franchise was limited.  


This is the first VR surprise of this year. The simple duel concept keeps the tension high behind the headset and with added puzzle elements and weird story surprises this one-shot-one-kill-nervewrecker will keep you on your toes.

The biggest problem is the low resolution screen with a 60 Hertz refresh rate, which produces nasty blurs on head movements.

Quotation forthcoming.

In terms of complexity, this is a monster. Even experienced turn based strategists will have their patience tested. But in the end they might find success and satisfaction.

Conceptually this mixture of bullethell-shmup, sidescrolling action and a Diablo’esque loot system is interesting. The execution doesn’t live up to it, though.

The idea is good – the game unfortunately isn’t.

Not as rich and stylish as the competition, but an entertaining construction kit for straightforward online games.

It is content rich and delivers a solid turn based strategy experience with gorgeous battles. Story and presentation are not the strengths of these battle worlds.

Unlike the action-adventure that started it all this is rather point&click’ish. But nonetheless this for me is one of the most interesting VR titles as of late. The script is top notch, the immersion impressive thanks to the beautifully designed areas. You feel like you’re starring in VR motion picture.

Quotation forthcoming.

A fascinating mixture of Outcast and Myst.

The strongest criticism to the original release was the pad controls. This game was screaming for motion tracking and roomscale of sort. Now it has it and delivers. Still some potential is left untapped.

Little Nightmares 3 does what you'd expect from a game in this series. It's dark, scary, delightfully repulsive, and bizarre. The fact that the co-op mode is only available online is a bit of a bummer. The playtime could also be longer.

This is kinda weird. On one hand Transport Fever manages to improve an almost everything that was good on its predecessor. But on the other hand some of the weak points like the abysmal economic system remain untouched. But if you are into figuring out the best logistics route for a variety of goods and needs, this is definitely for you.

Don’t be fooled: At its core Edge of Nowhere is nothing more (and certainly nothing less) than old school survival horror – unfortunately blended with too much stealth. But it is nonetheless a very good example that you don’t need new concepts to deliver an engrossing VR experience. [Tested with Oculus Rift]

Its biggest downfall is lack of useful content. With just five maps and three modes it's not enough to keep you playing for a longer period – even though the frantic action is quite entertaining. With better matchmaking and less focus on DLC the impostors would have a bigger survival chance.

Soulslite with an immersive world, a foxy companion and a mystical touch – Flintlock: The Siege of Dawn follows a few good approaches that are quite successful for a game of this size.

After quite a few systems, dozens of planets and hundreds of scans you don’t feel like a conqueror, but rather like Haviland Tuf from George R.R.Martins novel “Tuf Voyaging”: You’re a collector and explorer. But you can experience truly magic moments in this interstellar Terra Incognita. Nonetheless the fascination fades eventually and is replaced by frustration about the frequent crashes that in the end are effectively killing your motivation to continue.

A nice mixture of classic platforming and puzzles set in an interesting VR world.

Of course it doesn’t change the fundamentals of the reboot that was established last year. But with additional modes and gameplay tweaks fighting with (or against) your friends for fame and gold it reaches a new level of fun.

It looks stylish and gives the slick Street Fighter 4 from Capcom a run for its money. Unfortunately the art design is the only area where JoJo is a competition. Cause behind the façade hides a rather generic beat-em-up.

The stylish art design and the story are convincing while the gaming experience falls short.

Unfortunately this is not the spiritual successor to ThrillVille. What it gives you is a tremendous editor with convincing physics that tries to camouflage that the attached mini-games are average at best.

This anime roleplaying game from the Neptunia team is full of charming antiheroes as well as redundant mechanics.

The episodic concept worked well already in Crimes & Punishments and serves its purpose here as well. Even with the low difficulty level spending the time with the sleuth was worthwhile.

As a successor to the glorious Ridge Racer franchise Unbounded is quite disappointing, the controls are sluggish, the AI is unfair, the destruction feels superficial. Almost everything that you once associated with Ridge Racer is gone. Thanks to the editor and the well executed online mode it might still be worth a look for some.

Miles better than its predecessor, but still not outstanding: Lords of the Fallen is a rock-solid Soulslike in which a few major strengths collide with many small weaknesses.

Sonic's new open worlds prove delightfully engaging and imaginative, despite lacking polish and sloppy fixed-camera "cyberspace" levels.

The relentless difficulty level hides some potential for frustration. But nonetheless the handling is surprisingly simple, the level design is interesting.

Technically the Switch version of Resident Evil Zero delivers. Mechanically though the co-op focus was and still is a downer.

It fails to replicate the disturbing psycho-horror of its predecessor whilst adding deadly threats. Instead only the frustrating trial&error as well as the shock recycling get under your skin.

Crossing Souls is a charming adventure trip into the 80s. But the mix of mechanics is too rough around the edges. It has a decent amount of references to movies and games though that might keep you entertained where the gameplay doesn’t.

Lego Horizon Adventures looks absolutely amazing, but its gameplay is lacking in almost every way. Kids could nonetheless find fun in hunting machines in the coop-mode.

Competent real-time strategy with a varied campaign but overall too little scope.

Yes, engine and presentation are old-fashioned. But the mixture of exploration, hunting, gathering and fighting still works. The turn based battle system was tweaked here and there and is more attractive than ever.