Dying Light 2 Stay Human is the sequel we hoped for and nearly everything Techland promised. There are some technical issues that can affect your quality of gameplay, but I have all the faith in Techland to iron those out, possibly even before its official release. This is going to be the game to beat this year.

Cat Quest II is pretty much more of the same you experienced in the first game. It’s a winning formula though, so that’s not a bad thing just yet, but could be in future entries to the series.

Kingdom Come: Deliverance is an extremely immersive and ambitious open-world medieval RPG unlike any we’ve ever seen. But its attempts to remain engaging are ruined by a plethora of technical issues and an overall lack of polish.

WarioWare: Get It Together! is short but it’s an absolute blast to play and will keep you hooked with everything it throws at you. The single-play story can beaten quickly but the replay value is in the different characters and figuring out how they handle each puzzle. The graphics are wild and fun, the controls are really solid, and the wealth of multiplayer options make this a blast for multiplayer couch sessions.

Despite another slow start to the episode, a classic suspenseful cliffhanger has us yearning for the conclusion to this emotional and heartfelt prequel.

While Pac-Man 99 brings that fun, fast-paced nature of Tetris 99 to yet another beloved franchise, it doesn’t translate as well here. Many of the rules never get explained and poor visual choices make for an occasionally scream-summoning experience, even for a veteran Pac-Man player like myself.

PGA TOUR 2K23 doesn’t hit you with a shipload of content, but with some of the best gameplay ever in a golf game along with returning features like MyCAREER, Societies, Quick Match, and the course designer as well as the addition of Topgolf and the new MyPLAYER Archetype/Skill system, there’s plenty of replay value at the virtual links.

While there are redeeming qualities in Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War, the multiplayer offering just can’t hold up to its predecessor and the cross-platform bundle doesn’t offer enough to make up for the price boost on PS5.

Bandle Tale is the video game version of a warm, freshly baked cookie. With 40 to 60 hours of gameplay, it's not just a quick visit to Bandle City - it's a long, joy-filled vacation. Think of it as your favorite series - you won't want it to end."

Artifact is one of the most polished digital card games available. The game’s multi-lane mechanics bring MOBA elements into card game form, providing challenging strategic gameplay. Valve still has a way to go to prove Artifact’s long-term viability though due to its lack of a progression system and ranked modes.

Bugs, lackluster graphics and questionable design choices prevent Temtem from becoming the Pokemon alternative many had hoped it would be.

While a really fun experience, its lacking environments and incredibly short playtime make this a hard game to recommend at full price. But it most definitely is a game worth playing on sale or if you have it already and want to check out the PS5 or Xbox Series X upgrades. The frustrating combat scenes, simple environments and plain environments make it hard for even Lo Wang to quip into greatness.

Scott Pilgrim vs the World: The Game is amongst the best that the beat em’ up genre has to offer. The game feels like one of the few purely-good entertainment that this volcanic eruption of a planet we reside on has to offer.

A gorgeous looking farm sim that doubles as a dungeon crawling adventure game, you can spend your days farming and crafting or fighting and solving mysteries. It’s all there plus romance options. The sound design is a little odd at points and a lot of the NPC dialogue is flat, but the game’s charm and feeling of progression that occurs as you achieve more goals more than makes up for it.

For both big and casual gamers, lore lovers, and those seeking a narrative-rich experience, Song of Nunu is a frosty gem worth every second. And, echoing my twins’ sentiments: “Can we have some more Yeti hugs, pretty please?”

For some, grabbing the latest hockey game annually is as habitual as picking up their daily Tim Hortons. NHL 18 does bring a great Threes gameplay mode, advanced stick maneuverability and expanded franchise functionality while doing little to address play-by-play commentary, single-player campaign and microtransaction concerns. Great to pick up for the first time in years, but not as big a step forward for year-to-year fans.

Last Day of June emphasizes emotional, visual, and aural beauty and excels in all three departments to the detriment of its gameplay loop.

Absolver spends so much time honing the development of its fascinating, ambitious combat system that it leaves a shallow narrative structure in its foundation. An ever-evolving gameplay mechanic cannot carry a game's excellence on its own merit, and unfortunately, there is little draw to the world of Adal than the encounters within it.

Clearly inspired by old-school action platformers, Angry Video Game Nerd 1 & 2 Deluxe presents two beautifully remastered games complimented by a rocking soundtrack. The game’s vulgar language and brutal difficulty won’t appeal to everyone, but retro gamers and AVGN fans will really appreciate everything this game has to offer.

In essence, Battle Chasers: Nightwar is a pretty average RPG with some interesting tweaks to combat, but suffers from tedious crafting, bad party management, and padding and serious crashing issues that need to be addressed immediately.

Amnesia: Rebirth is terrifying, with the capability to break even the most seasoned of horror fanatics down. A treasure in the rare cosmic horror genre, Rebirth’s biggest weapon against the player is their own mind and it uses that weapon with the precision and finesse of a master artist. If it were not for the cliche story and lack of self-contained experience, this game could have easily made it’s way to the top of the series.

If you missed Bulletstorm the first time round, The Full Clip Edition leaves no excuses to impoverish yourself of this cult classic any longer. While there’s not a whole lot of compelling additions to the remaster, the ever gratifying pulpiness of Bulletstorm’s inventive and versatile gunplay – juiced up by a healthy assortment of technical improvements – justifies a return to the maniacal playgrounds of Stygia, even if some of the game’s more outdated components remain in need of a revision.

Evil Genius 2 is a beautiful game that is created by a team that had an obvious love for spy comics/cartoons. However, after the first few hours, the game lacks a diversity of content for players to explore.

If you want a simple and clean action RPG that loves immature humor and the zombie apocalypse then you should give Eternights a try. It won’t make you delete Resident Evil, Breath of the Wild, Persona, or Darksiders, but there is enough meat on the bone to get this game on sale. Play it for the dark sci-fi story and the fun of playing anime Tinder, but also thank your lucky stars that this game is 1000% less complicated than Kingdom Hearts.

Toejam and Earl: Back in the Groove does offer a lot of the same fun found in the original, but a meaner edge and some annoying changes keep it from surpassing its still easily available predecessor.

While those who long for the button and joystick WarioWare games may be let down, this still feels like the kind of content you come to WarioWare for. A story about a wacky event, bizarre fever trip mini games, trial and error discovery, it’s all here with some well tracked motion controls. The content feels bizarrely minimal, but as far as party games are concerned, this comes through in a big way.

If you go into The Medium with very high hopes, you will be disappointed, but if you walk in just looking for some eerie atmospheres, some award-winning voice acting and some nostalgic horror feels, then you will have some fun.

Ghostwire: Tokyo is a beautiful and eerie jaunt through the streets of Japan, coming face to face with lore and legend while fighting for your own quest and purpose. With seamless gameplay and fighting mechanics, 40 hours of exploration will seem like no time has gone by and it will leave you wanting more time running the glistening streets of Shibuya.