Red Dead Redemption II is a technical marvel, attempting to encapsulate one man’s story in the West. It succeeds in crafting an enrapturing world but not without some uncomfortable compromises. Buy it.

If you have a Switch, get this game. If you don't have a Switch, get one, then get this game.

Another remarkable feat of a streamlined tabletop experience by Larian Studios. [Early Impressions]

After over 20 hours spent in this kind of explore-and-bounce-off-a-boss pattern, I still feel like I’ve barely scratched the surface of Elden Ring’s entrancing world (not to mention the many magical systems that aren’t really available to my character’s warrior class). I’m not sure I’ll ever have the patience or discipline to endure all of the punishing boss battles I still have ahead of me. But I can easily see myself just hopping on a horse, picking a direction, and galloping off into the many unexplored corners of Elden Ring.

I went into the new God of War expecting a cheesy, mindless action game with a lot of flash and pizzazz. Instead, I got one of the most thoughtful and well-constructed reboots since Tomb Raider, with plenty of story beats and images that will stick with me for a while. It's not a revolutionary standout in its genre, but the new God of War is still a solid example of how to reinvent a well-loved series for a new generation without ruining what came before.

Shadow of the Erdtree is definitely an expansion, both outward in area and upward in base difficulty. If you've already purchased it and find yourself bouncing off it, give yourself some time, some grace (in-game and out), and come back when you're ready.

If you come to God of War Ragnarök hoping for a story that's as tightly focused and emotional as its predecessor, you're likely to come away disappointed. But if you go in looking for a well-written and well-acted romp with the same kind of high-impact, tactical action combat as the 2018 game, you'll come away with a smile on your face.

It's an absurd value proposition for a game where every moment seems hand-crafted. It's not flawless, but the game's few faults won't diminish the growing return on your investment. Buy it and set aside some time.

Trying to extend the story of The Last of Us in a meaningful way was always going to be an uphill battle. What’s so frustrating about Part 2 is that the game seems to have all the pieces necessary to do just that. But those pieces end up getting lost as the game also tries to tell an entirely new story, one that tries to expand the Last of Us world into a generalized setting for an anthology of loosely connected stories. The end result never comes together in a satisfying way.

The finished product accomplished what it needed to: it proved that Valve still knows how to make a classic single-player adventure—one that will inspire a whole new generation of game fans. It left me hungry for more, which is saying something for a single-player game of this length and scope. The masses may not rush out to buy a VR set to play Half-Life: Alyx. But anyone who loves video games should look at this game as a next logical step in the possibilities of dramatic, interactive storytelling. Bravo, Valve. Bravo. [Ars Technica Approved]

As far as the above-and-beyond touches I generally expect from PC gaming, at least, the combined teams of Sony Santa Monica and Jetpack Interactive appear to have gotten this port right.

Persona 5 weaves engaging JRPG combat around a thoughtful, exquisitely stylish tale of thieves and the struggle to survive in an unfair society.

In good news, RDR2's PC port works as a pretty, settings-cranked-high alternative to last year's console release. Its most obvious upgrade comes in the form of an unlocked frame rate. In one morning of testing, I was already able to crank performance (after downgrading a bunch of settings) to an apparent 120fps-and-up threshold, although random performative spikes—usually triggered by sharp cuts in cinematic scenes—made me glad I had a variable refresh rate monitor...In bad news, RDR2's facial and body animations were never built for these kinds of high speeds.

People expect their sequels to be bigger, better, and more complex than what has come before, while also demanding they stay true to what they know and love. Metal Gear Solid V is one of those rare occasions where a game threads the needle between those two somewhat contradictory expectations, to great effect.

While Uncharted 4 is a beautiful and thrilling way to pass the time, it feels like an insubstantial experience in the end. What will probably be Nathan Drake's final tale feels mostly slick and forgettable, lacking the strong character drama or plotting that can make other cinematic games stick with you long after they're completed. I doubt I'll be spending much time working over the events of Uncharted 4 in my head the way I have for games like Dishonored, Bioshock Infinite, or even Naughty Dog's own The Last of Us. That doesn't matter when you're in the middle of a thrilling firefight, but it becomes apparent quickly once those credits begin to roll.

Smash Ultimate earns its name not by piling on the content, but by understanding what an adjective like "ultimate" means in the context of a fighting game. Gamers want an essential, badass combat experience no matter which characters square off. Even this early, it's settled: Smash Ultimate nails this expectation. Thus, it is the best fighting-game package to ever land on a Nintendo console.

Just be warned: Inside will not win you over purely as a puzzle-platformer. The game is divided evenly into four types of play: no-challenge traversal; obvious puzzles; annoying head-scratchers; and truly clever challenges. Like Limbo, Inside limits your control to running, jumping, and an open-ended "interact" button. Sometimes, that button lets you push boxes or climb ropes. Other times, its functionality opens up the game's best and weirdest moments.

For now, just know that the game is the most inventive and joyful 2D Mario title in decades, and it deserves a play by anyone who has fond memories of the little plumber.

FH5 is an easy recommendation as part of a paid Xbox Game Pass subscription, and it's a great excuse to flex your newest gaming hardware purchase. But if you're already happy with Forza Horizon 4 or were bored by that one, take your sweet time sitting behind this game's wheel.

There’s something for everyone here. If you’re an old-school Street Fighter player like me, the game is alive and well, waiting for your return. If you’ve never really felt like fighting games were accessible to you, this might just be the game to welcome you in. [Approved]

Also, gosh, it's nice to only wait about eight seconds after a brutal death for the game to load your next life, instead of two whole minutes. That's just one of many ways Bluepoint makes the die-and-retry reality of a Souls-like so much easier to savor on a new console like PlayStation 5. If you own one, and you've got the patience and stomach for challenge, don't hesitate to purchase this remastered classic.

If you missed out on Mario Kart 8 the first time around, Deluxe should be on your must-buy list for the Switch. If you already wore out the original version of the game, try out the Battle Mode and the portable play before you decide to reinvest.

In a single word, "friendly" just about sums up the Overwatch experience in its early days. In the wide array of characters, the smooth sense of progression within each map and easy-to-grasp abilities, Blizzard seems poised to tap into yet another audience—curious but too intimidated by the sheer weight of established brands elsewhere in a popular genre.

The more hardcore sim fans might find things a little too arcade-ish for their liking. Although there are circuit races on street tracks, they'll never compare to lapping Spa or the Nordschleife, and the off-road driving isn't the same test of skill that you'll get from DiRT Rally. But for fans of previous Horizon games or the Project Gotham series, this sequel will probably tick all your boxes.

Ultimately, SMP feels more like a goodie bag for anybody who's worn out Sonic Mania than a red-carpet, welcome-wagon package for anybody new to the series' 2D revival. If you still haven't played the game, ask yourself whether a physical copy is worth a few more bucks to you. And if you've already spent $20 on this fantastic game and like the idea of it getting a "master quest," don't hesitate to throw $5 more on the pile.

The adorable relationship between young Pauline and the silent Donkey Kong is the icing on a very satisfying cake here. Even though Mario is nowhere to be seen, Donkey Kong Bananza seems destined to be thought of in the same breath as the Mario games that have come to define earlier Nintendo hardware launches.

People will talk about this game as an ideal escape during uncertain current events, but I'd like to emphasize how much I enjoyed AC:NH even when I had other viable social and outdoor entertainment options. Animal Crossing games have always delivered a compelling version of self-quarantine, and this one overflows with quantity, without sacrificing quality, to do so at a scale series fans have never seen. Consider this a very high recommendation for anyone who thinks shooting the breeze with neon-colored, gym-loving ponies and hot-pink, coffee-chugging kangaroos is a great idea for a video game. [Ars Technica Approved]

Spider-Man 2 definitely doesn’t rewrite the book of Insomniac’s superhero series. But that’s because it doesn’t need to. Even after pouring well over 20 hours into the game, we’re eager to dive in again to explore every hidden nook and cranny that this expanded New York City offers...And if Insomniac offers another barely different version of the same gameplay formula in a few years' time, we’ll probably sink dozens more happy hours into the same basic gameplay loop.

MSFS's beauty makes it must-play on Xbox Series X, even if only for a one-month free Xbox Game Pass trial. But while its console port is a technological triumph, it might still be too boring for a lot of players. Series S players should temper expectations with a bit less beauty.

A beautiful, difficult, and masterful swan song for 2D platforming on the Xbox One. Buy it if you have any interest in the genre.

TSP:UD is better equipped than its predecessor to offer a substantial comedic reward when messing with players' apparent choices (or lack thereof). Between novel camera cuts and out-of-nowhere environment transformations, the game constantly shows how development studio Crows Crows Crows has only gotten better at this stuff after both the original game and the madcap nonsense of Accounting. [Ars Technica Approved]

Into the Breach is just as charming for boiling down similar thrills found in FTL and making them work for pretty much any experience level of computer gamer. [ARS Approved]

The modern-aesthetic upgrade more than makes up for the game's lowest lows. Horror fans should immediately buy.

It's 50 hours of arduous combat trials speckled with some of the best boss design this series has ever had. And just like so many times before, it's a battle of attrition I came to love.

As to whether or not the game is worth your money, for the F1 fan, I have few qualms recommending it. The game will keep such gamers busy for weeks with both Career and Championship modes. In fact, just the addition of the classic cars to the game is probably reason enough for someone to pick up a copy. For the gamer who's not quite as passionate about Formula 1 or racing in general, it might be worth trying out before coughing up your hard-earned cash. But even then, I think you'll find it engaging.

Bowser’s Fury is a decent diversion for the four hours or so it'll take an experienced platform player to beat (with maybe four more hours of diversion for completionists). Overall, though, it feels like a half-baked proving ground for some new gameplay ideas that aren’t fully fleshed out as they would be in a standalone Mario release. But Bowser’s Fury works just fine as an added bonus packaged with an under-appreciated platforming gem from the Wii U era. If you’ve never played 3D World before, this is a great chance to catch up on a fresh take on 3D Mario design. If you’re mainly interested in Bowser’s Fury, though, maybe wait until the strong ideas get expanded into a full, standalone game.

I know how silly this might sound, typing it outside the soothing VR cocoon that is Tetris Effect, but I stand by it. I have never felt so connected to a greater human truth, a cheesy feeling like the one in that quoted song, than in the act of clearing line, after line, after line within this beautiful video game. [Ars Technica Approved]

A must-buy for existing Cuphead owners. It's short, but Last Course is definitely a fair value at $8. Anyone on the fence should give this a shot if you're starved for quality 2D gaming. [Ars Technica Approved]

Let's be clear: this is nowhere near the rushed mess that we got from 2018's Radical Heights. There's plenty of fun to be had here for the low, low price of free (or at least "free"). But it's also a really strange release from Respawn—as in, this is the first playable product they've released since Titanfall 2 in late 2016. (And it's apparently the only thing we'll see for a while, as the team has confirmed in interviews that there's no Titanfall 3 in the wings.) Just one map? Barely any new combat ideas? More originality and spark in its microtransaction store than its "TF2 but slower" gameplay? [Impressions]

The classic game runs efficiently on lower-specced machines, owing to its low-poly aesthetic, while the game's newer "Area X" zone will run fine at 1080p with some settings turned down on weaker systems. Should you have CPU and GPU overhead to work with, you can turn on updated 4K-friendly textures (yes, this game has some), full-blast anti-aliasing, and some serious super-sampling. As in, up to 250 percent. In the original game, I cranked this all the way up to a 9,600 x 5,400 resolution without a single stutter on my 1080 Ti rig!

Horizon is huge in every way that counts, and it should be celebrated for doing what too many games don't these days: telling an enthralling, time-consuming journey that's already complete on the disc—and one we'll remember for years to come.

Stardew Valley is a sweet, well-made, and forward-thinking meditation on country life that borrows intelligently from games like Harvest Moon, Animal Crossing, and Zelda, without simply being a tired copy.

If you have the bandwidth to play this emotionally brutal adventure one more time, or if it's new to you, TLOU Pt 1 is the best version yet. If you need more than upgraded combat to put you over the top, wait for a sale.

A quick, satisfying tale that should appeal to anyone interested in effective video game storytelling.

War of the Chosen is the definitive way to play XCOM 2. Even if you weren't impressed with the original package, this feels like a whole new game.

If you have any fond memories of 2D Mario games, you owe it to yourself to examine their construction first-hand; and you'll have a great time doing so, too. Buy it.

Rift Apart is a welcome and well-polished return to the Ratchet & Clank formula that has served Insomniac well for nearly two decades now. As long as you go in expecting that—and not yearning for some thrilling gameplay revolution driven by new hardware and technology—you’ll come out feeling satisfied.

There is a story, told mostly through notes left strewn around the environments, but I’d be lying if I said I paid any attention to it. The draw here is the gameplay loop, and if what I’ve described above sounds tedious to you, the game is absolutely not for you. Rogue Legacy 2 is a game about repeated failure, and only slow, incremental progress will lead to your success.

A near-perfect sequel and a great strategy game. XCOM 2 has the style to match its systems’ substance, and it rightfully stakes a new claim to be the king of tactics games.

Celeste does so many amazing things. It organically teaches players while cleverly inserting new game-changing powers into its worlds. It gives players breathing room so that they can play however they want, all while choreographing some of the most memorable platforming sequences I've ever played. It pays homage to classic, tough-as-nails platformers while climbing its own unique path...The first must-own single-player game of 2018.

But if you forced me to pick only one February game to recommend, I'd point to H:FW as the month's best testament to how beautiful, thrilling, and emotional video games can be. It also gets bonus points on the recommendation matrix for its healthy accessibility sliders, which, among other things, let anyone downgrade the combat to either "simple" or "cakewalk" difficulty levels. I still think H:FW is more fun with difficulty cranked up, so that players can't stupidly melee their way through some of gaming's most thrilling herd combat. But that's your choice to make, not mine. [ARS Technica Approved]

If "classic 2D adventure on Switch" puts the same tingle in your spine as it does mine, Mercury Steam will not lead you astray with this impressive sequel. Buy.

Even in my limited pre-release testing period, with only a few creators' levels to pick through, Super Mario Maker 2 has already proven itself a wonderful package. Course creators can look forward to an amazing game-making tool set whose depth is matched by its accessibility, while players have a functionally endless set of Mario courses to dig through over the course of years. What’s not to like? [Ars Technica Approved]

Transformative controls, mostly steady 30 fps combat make this a must-own on Switch.

Civilization VI isn’t the complete package, but it has the makings of one. Buy it now to get acclimated to the new mechanics before the inevitable expansions.

If you have a decent gaming PC, this is a must-buy. If you love online shooters, this is a must-buy.

As the conclusion to a more than 17-year-old saga, Legacy of the Void isn’t a great place for newcomers to jump in. For those who want to wrap up the story or see the pinnacle of the series’ multiplayer, this is probably your last best chance to jump on for a good, long time. Try it.

Legion succeeds at making you feel important, even if Azeroth itself sometimes feels bland by comparison. Buy it.

Pillars of Eternity 2: Deadfire is a broad, deep, and excellent RPG in the tradition of Baldur’s Gate. And it has pirates. Buy it.

Doom Eternal is a thrilling return to form and a high-water mark for fast-paced twitch shooting. Buy it.

Night in the Woods wastes just a little too much time before getting to the heart of a story about the value of life when life doesn't seem worth living. Buy it.

Nioh makes no bones about standing in the shadows of giants, but it extends and polishes the Dark Souls formula so much that it manages to shine just as brightly. Buy it.

It may not surpass Dark Souls as my favorite game in the series, but Bloodborne is still a wonderful way to usher the franchise onto a new generation of consoles, for new and old players alike. Buy It.

A solid if unambitious expansion pack—and that should tell you whether to buy this one or catch up on Hitman 2 instead.

Injustice 2 continues NetherRealm’s tradition of best-in-class story modes with solid, complex fighting to back it up. Learning the ropes could just be a little more convenient. Buy it.

Every version of the game is perfectly playable, but you want to play BF1 on a souped-up PC if possible. The console versions of the game are locked at a crisp 60fps refresh and offer beautiful lighting and massive draw distances, but explosions, particle effects, and textures are clearly better on PC.

What's not to guess is that I'm in. Square-Enix, I don't care what you call the next one: FFVII Remix, FFVII Reunion, FFVII 2.8 Enchanted Forest of Midgar Dreams, whatever. I'm sold. I'm buying in. I'm playing the next one. But since I have your attention following such a nice pledge, here's a request: do me a solid and hire a new translation team next time, won'tcha?

Longtime Pokémon fans can buy without hesitation. New or lapsed Pokémon fans will have an easier time picking up Sun and Moon than any other main series Pokémon game in recent memory.

You'll never have more fun being nagged to work faster. Buy it.

Nothing about GT7 is revolutionary, but the game feels like a GT title through and through, striking a careful gameplay balance with just the right amount of grinding. It's the kind of game that can turn a 30-minute session into a marathon before you know it, with a dose of comfortable familiarity thrown in for good measure...I'll be playing this one for quite some time.

Nintendo took a safe chance with Link's Awakening, but it was a chance nonetheless. And in spite of graphical hitches and an adherence to the design of old, the full experience—however short and predictable it is in 2019—is absolutely worth diving into if you missed it the first time around... or deleted your old GameFAQs bookmark.

Spider-Man is happy to confirm your superhero-gaming bias. If this adventure isn't ultimately your cup of tea, it won't be for a lack of effort, polish, and content on Insomniac's part. [Ars Technica Approved]

Longtime Pokémon fans can buy without hesitation. New or lapsed Pokémon fans will have an easier time picking up Sun and Moon than any other main series Pokémon game in recent memory.

The game's wet race simulations are exceedingly convincing, and I write that as someone who has driven in a lot of wet races and who enjoys racing in the rain. The selection of cars is eclectic, and they look gorgeous, particularly in ForzaVista mode, as do the tracks, both new and revamped. If you like cars or racing games and you own an Xbox One, you should buy this game.

Deathloop may ultimately go down as my biggest gaming disappointment of 2021. I love its "bonding" system for earning and keeping upgrades, which forces players to make some compelling choices from run to run. I like getting to know this game's cast of characters. I smile when a particular stretch of finding paths and sneaking around evokes the genius of this studio's best Dishonored levels. And I'm always down for shameless homages to Majora's Mask. But the total package collapses beneath a mix of too much ambition and not enough content. It's just hard to ignore signs that seem to imply someone on the production end said, "Eff it, let's ship this game already."

The Witness juggles the seemingly contrary concepts of precision and ambiguity in ways I've never seen a game, nor a book or play or film, ever do—and that, more than the beauty or the puzzles or the clever twists, makes it one of the most impressive video games I've ever seen.

The whole Double Fine team pulled it off. Psychonauts 2 is one of the best video games I have ever played, and if anything in this review sounds like you and your family's bag, don't hesitate to join me in loving the heck out of it. [Ars Technica Approved]

Despite its presentational flaws, PES 16’s skilled mechanics make it an instant classic, showing that sports games are at their best when the fundamentals are respected and imitated as a priority.

The writing in this game comes with plenty of biting satire and sarcasm that lands in amusing-not-preachy territory, but on more than a few occasions, you can see an older, wiser design team wanting to share a different kind of adventure game story through the eyes of characters they've grown up writing for. I began Return to Monkey Island thinking this game would merely be a fun, comforting return to a classic, but I left the island believing that I'd played a refreshing and absolutely necessary game—one that employs interactivity to speak to the human spirit in ways that a film or book never could. I love Return to Monkey Island, and I'm excited for you to learn its secrets, too. [Ars Technica Approved]

Total War: Warhammer 2 shakes up the wonderful strategy of its predecessor with new factions and locales. Although the DLC X-factor could shake up the campaigns even further. Buy it.

The game is hard as heck, yes, and easily more difficult than its predecessor. But Spelunky 2's design language is also incredibly clear about what's happening and why, in ways that are far more accessible to understand, yet far more diverse and varying in every randomly generated run, than you might find in your average Souls-like game. In some difficult games, I might growl or throw a controller when things go wrong. In Spelunky 2, I regularly bellow a loud sigh-laugh after my worst failings. [Ars Technica Approved]

Highly recommended on high-end gaming PCs. Everyone else should wait for day-one impressions—or take the plunge for roughly one hour, then use Steam's built-in refund service in the event that early performance is as bad for you as it was for us.

Halo Infinite's campaign sets the stage for an incredible sequel someday. Today is not that day. Consider this a fine rental or excuse to burn through a single month of Xbox Game Pass, either now or whenever the co-op mode finally goes live in 2022.

The wonderfully well-tuned bosses alone might be worth your while. But in a currently crowded pantheon of exploration-heavy 2D platformers, Iconoclasts is one that doesn’t fire on every cylinder. That alone might be an excuse to check out your other options.

Series fanatics probably shouldn't cancel their pre-orders, but they should definitely check their expectations about ambition and next-gen series boosts at the radioactive vault's doors.

Project Scorpio doesn't yet exist, but comparable hardware does, and FH3's phenomenal 30-frame-a-second performance is a pretty good money-where-the-mouth-is declaration of what level of performance we should expect from the company's next living room box.

Like so many classics of the 8-bit era before it, Cuphead extends its length via a brutal difficulty that will require hundreds of cumulative deaths for all but the preternaturally gifted.

If you love ARPGs and enjoyed the combat of Diablo 3 and the atmosphere of Diablo 2, I think you're going to love this game. It's not as brain-meltingly complicated as a Path of Exile, but it doesn't want to be. This is streamlined, big-budget loot hunting, and I absolutely love it. Ignore the monetization nonsense, vibe out on the demon slaying, and you'll have a great time.

Vampire Survivors has me seriously jonesing for a portable version; its pick-up-and-play simplicity seems tailor-made for on-the-go play. If you have a Steam Deck, the game is a perfect fit; it was the most-played title on the system in both August and September. I don’t, so I’ve taken to playing it on my laptop because I just can’t get enough.

I've not driven an F1 car in real life, but I do get to drive a fair few different racing games each year, and I'm happy to report that F1 2020 is up there with the best of them in terms of being fun to play. It's incredible engaging with a wheel and pedals, and you can customize the game to match the difficulty level you're looking for. It looks good and sounds as good as you can hope a turbocharged hybrid F1 car to sound. If you're a fan of the sport, it's probably worth picking it up.

Gears 4, more than the other Xbox Play Anywhere games that have launched thus far, seems poised to scale across various Windows 10 rigs. This gives players real choice between higher frame rates and higher visual settings. A smooth 60fps refresh at Xbox One quality levels (or better) can easily be achieved with the right toggles on our test rigs. That may not prove out over every processor+GPU+RAM+HD combination in the wild, but so far, the game appears to be both highly optimized and infinitely customizable.

Those nitpicks aside, Free Roam mode is what I'd consider the best realization of Mario Kart World's open-world ambitions. The more traditional racing modes can be too frantic and time-sensitive to let you enjoy the obvious care and attention to detail that has gone into building out the world around Mario Kart's racing tracks. And while racing around those tracks feels as satisfying as ever, this time around, the game's structure tends to get in the way of that satisfying core experience.

Dishonored 2 is one of the smartest, most well-designed games released this year. If you fancy a challenge, this one is a no-brainer.

In all of the best possible ways, Bayonetta 3 is leaning into the parts of itself that are more earnest than ever—all while going harder than ever on doing whatever it takes to simply be cool as hell. If you're looking for a strong, coherent storyline, this was never the series for you. But if you are a fan of flashy spectacles, a varied and creative arsenal, and larger-than-life characters, Bayonetta 3 more than delivers.

FFXII: The Zodiac Age offers some fundamental changes to make a great game even better—even if it could have used one or two more minor improvements.

In great news, everything you do in the game looks tremendous thanks to MachineGames' use of the idTech6 engine, which is an upgrade from the last game's idTech5. I tested the entire game on a souped-up PC and had the game cranking at max settings in 4K with zero hitches in frame rate or responsiveness, and this was in spite of the game throwing up all matter of gorgeous particle, shadow, and lighting effects.

Sonic Mania comes packed with enough delicious, best-in-series goodness for any self-proclaimed Sonic fan to buy it immediately, with the caveat of a few bugs in the near term. Lesser series fans should tread carefully between those bugs and the pacing issues mentioned above.

This new game also shows up just as people start to ask, "how do we do horror in VR?" RE7 doesn't just answer that question. It slams its winning, bloody hand onto a table like a defiant poker champ. To be fair, the game still leaves some VR territory unexplored, particularly things like hand-tracked controllers and room-scale experiences, but its tasteful handling of comfort, presence, and jump-scare gimmicks has no peer. Flat-screen players will have plenty to enjoy as well, but strap into the VR mode if at all possible. Either way, Resident Evil is back.