The Legend of Heroes: Trails of Cold Steel had my attention and lost it.

Monster Hunter Stories is an admirable glow up of the 3DS classic that will please fans and newcomers alike.

Full Throttle hasn’t aged particularly well, and it’s made more unenjoyable by a remaster that actively sucks the life out of the game’s personality.

Nintendo’s best development toolkit to date, with a gamified process that makes creating enjoyable, even if the curation tools are sub-par.

Darkside Detective is a quirky, sometimes overly so, adventure game with simple but enjoyable puzzles that's over before you know it.

The first three Final Fantasy Pixel Remasters deftly walk the line between old and new, but might not convert anyone without the stomach for old JRPGs.

This is an excellent representation of what made these games so beloved and enjoyed, not to mention frustrating for gamers.

This might be damning with faint praise, but considering the dearth of games in this genre, Tropico 5 is easily the best strategy game on the PS4 right now.

For JRPG fans, Bravely Default 2 is a new twist on familiar comfort food. Subtle innovations make a proven recipe worth exploring all over again, and JRPG fans will find a lot to digest.

While it does feel like the series hit its plateau a while back, Worms W.M.D is a welcome addition to the series, being beautifully crafted and as fun as ever.

Batman returns in a plotline that finally includes the traditional Joker and a few other fan favourites.

Kingdom Hearts fans - particularly those who can justify the game's astronomical price point of $60 for about five hours of new content - will definitely enjoy their brief time with Kingdom Hearts HD 2.8 Final Chapter Prologue.

Skullgirls 2nd Encore is a much easier purchase to recommend to a PS Vita or PS TV owner who already owns Skullgirls Encore on PS3 or owns a PS4.

Bullet Soul is a solid bit of enthralling bullet hell action, complete with arresting visuals and a stellar score, that makes a compelling offer at its low price point.

Demonschool is a straight-A Turn-Based Strategy game. Thoughtful, stylish, innovative and incredibly fun.

Dragon Quest Heroes II is arguably the best thing Omega Force has ever put out, and the best spin-off to come out of Dragon Quest since Dragon Quest Monster: Joker.

Mario Tennis Fever combines the same fun and technicality of the classics in the series with a wealth of variety and new ideas that make it one of the best in the series.

Gundam Breaker 4 is a well-built return for the franchise that smartly doubles down on what everyone wants the most: customization.

RoboCop: Rogue City excels as an action game with light RPG elements, delivering a lot of hours of high-quality blasting.

Trials of Mana shows the age of its 1995 original, and awful cutscenes distract from its story. However, replay value, competent gameplay, and raw charm still keep it memorable.

The game makes such a point to establish itself as a tangential side story to the franchise that I have trouble recommending it to even the most avid of Persona collectors.

Assassin's Creed Mirage is a great return to form for the series, the gameplay is less bloated and more focused on the minute to minute fun.

The Long Dark is a mostly functional game, but it’s dated survival mechanics make it a mostly forgettable experience.

Legacy of Kain: Soul Reaver 1 & 2 Remastered feels a bit archaic by modern standards, but it still tells a compelling tale of vampires and vengeance that highly entertains while also challenging gamers with brain-wracking environmental puzzles.

Super Monkey Ball Banana Mania is a loving recreation and just pure, uncomplicated FUN.

Doom Eternal’s first piece of substantial singleplayer oriented DLC feels like it is off to a good start, offering a real challenge for fans of the original while feeling like a natural continuation of the base game. In essence, Ancient Gods Part One feels essential to the Doom Eternal experience, rather than something that feels tacked on or unnecessary, while simultaneously setting up some fun narrative beats for part Two of the DLC.

Call of Duty Black Ops Cold War brings Treyarch’s winning formula back with a few stumbles in content, but manages to deliver on a bombastic story, refined multiplayer and vintage zombies with tons of neon glow.

Apotheon is never a bad game, and occasionally, it’s even a great game, but it’s never consistently great enough to become a classic in the same way other indie titles like Journey have.

Once you get over Going Medieval’s initial learning curve, there’s a joyously complex survival city builder to dig into.

Sable borrows a popular and tried and tested approach to open-world game design and gives it a truly unique feel indicative of the works of the French artist Moebius. The lack of combat may turn some off from playing the game—however, for those looking for a casual game where exploration and light puzzle-solving comes first, it's hard not to recommend Sable.

Wizard of Legend is a surprisingly deep game despite its simple premise, fans of dungeon crawlers, roguelikes or just anyone in the market for a fun couch co-op game should definitely check out Contigent99 debut title.

With amazing visuals and a steeper-than-expected learning curve, EA Sports PGA Tour is a welcome return to the market.

While Secret World Legends will continue to stand as a testament to the power of storycraft and world-building in MMOs, I fear it will also continue to remain a niche game.

2064: Read Only Memories has a fascinating world full of potential for great stories, but spends a lot of time focusing on things that aren’t as novel as its best parts.

Epic Mickey: Rebrushed is a welcome return to the world of the Wasteland. While not the most challenging game, it has that Disney charm from start to finish.

Voice of Cards is a neat little RPG that, thanks to its excellent presentation, makes for a fun experience despite a tedious encounter rate and boring dungeon design.

Tales of Kenzera: ZAU is an emotional rollercoaster that doubles as a Metroidvania with edge, at $20 it is a must play title for everyone.

One part retro, one part modern-esque, Lode Runner Legacy marries much of what made the original so memorable.

Star Wars: Knights of the Old Republic II: The Sith Lords remains a masterful and compelling story with enough lore to keep fans satisfied, but for the Nintendo Switch port, remember to save often.

Brotato makes up for its lacking depth, enemy variety, arena variety, and mash-up of mechanics seen elsewhere, by making the best of the combination to create an addictive title that fans of pure, arcade-like gameplay will love.

TMNT: Splintered Fate - Casey Jones & The Junkyard Jam is a welcome addition to Splintered Fates, more for its playable hero than its new level.

While Patapon 1+2 Replay is a pretty straightforward rerelease of its PSP counterparts, it remains an incredibly unique and deeply engaging set of games.

Spider-Man 2 on PC brings with it all the action of the PlayStation 5 release, now in full swing on capable hardware with minimum road bumps along the way.

A re-inventive MOBA that isn't perfect, especially with its free-to-play scheme, but still rises above the pack.

Hob is a beautiful but unoriginal Zelda-like that lacks an interesting story and has mind-numbingly dull combat and exploration.

While Save me Mr Tako: Definitive Edition holds true to its inspired roots, the gameplay and structure of it don’t often hold up to what you’d expect from modern titles.

There are elements of greatness here—the bosses are exceptionally inspired and some of the level themes are great—but so much of DMC4 is antiquated.

Atelier Marie Remake: The Alchemist of Salburg brings the series’ original entry out of the shadows with a charming, thorough aesthetic glow-up, yet retains some of its more archaic touches.

From its unmatched beauty to its heartwarming tale, Lego Builder’s Journey is an experience unlike any puzzle game before it. It’s a game that lets you reconnect with your imagination.

Mario Vs. Donkey Kong is an excellent little pocket puzzler that is sure to please fans and newcomers alike.

Pocky & Rocky Reshrined is an excellent return to form for the beloved Super Nintendo-era action series.

While it remains similar to its predecessors in plot and structure, The Final Season: Episode One starts the finale off strong.

A charming, albeit somewhat flawed experience that ends far sooner than it begins.

Marvel's Deadpool VR is a surprisingly faithful interpretation of the character in a game that feels fun to play while offering enough variety to keep players engaged for its 8-10 hour run.

For anyone wanting a confusing yet ultimately rewarding adventure, Obduction delivers in spades.

Featuring a literally jaw dropping, procedural zombie damage system, a diverse and entertaining cast and high production values from start to finish, Dead Island 2 not only manages to live up to the expectations set by its two mainline prequels over a decade ago--it blows them right out of the water.

When Trover Saves the Universe is funny, it’s VERY funny, but its humor is just not enough to carry such an average, unspectacular game.

RKGK is a valiant first effort for Wabsabi Games and a fun little platformer worth checking out if you're a fan of the genre.

While it is a little rough around the edges, it’s an interesting fighter and a welcomed addition to Nintendo’s collection of one first-party fighting games.

Chaos;Child is a grim, gory murder mystery that could have been brilliant with some judicious edits to its content and pacing.

Brigandine: The Legend of Runersia is a game made almost exclusively for fans of the original, but JRPG fans who put strategy above all else may be able find something to love about this if they put in the time.

Though Tinytopia didn’t strive to keep me motivated, it manages to offer up something special for most kinds of players through challenges, builds and disasters.

Party Animals is a chaotic online game with adorable furry animals punching and wielding weapons to compete in challenges but suffers from being repetitive and maps dragging on.

Bloomtown: A Different Story is a little rough around the edges, but this different kind of RPG inspired by Persona will take over their lives.

The Legend of Heroes: Trails Through Daybreak II is an excellent entry into the ongoing Trails series of games and an easy recommendation to RPG/Anime fans if they played the first.

Ys Memoire: Revelations in Celceta is a solid but somewhat bland port of a classic JRPG that feels right at home on the Nintendo Switch, warts and all.

There is promise, but it wasn’t quite executed to its full potential. This is a series that would benefit greatly if it strayed away from the yearly instalment model to really refine every aspect of the franchise. This was a chance to right the ship, but Ubisoft really didn’t do a lot to make this game stand out. Assassin’s Creed Syndicate suffers from clunky gameplay and a paper-thin plot filled with flat characters.

For a pocket-sized RPG that will provide hours of gameplay, it’s certainly worth a look.

By ditching previous entries' clumsy attempts at innovation, Super Mario Party reminds us how fun it can be to crowd around a TV and roll dice with the Mushroom Kingdom crew.

It’s certainly not a bad game by any means, it just doesn’t do enough with the Mario and Luigi RPG or Paper Mario brands to really stand out.

A pretty solid first outing for a small studio. I love the original take on a classic formula as far as setting goes (despite all my characters looking like total dorks), and it’s refreshing to see. However, the linear gameplay, chaotic combat, and lack of items and sidequests really holds it back from being a huge success.

Evil Dead: The Game is a 4v1 asymmetrical multiplayer game that is more speed and combat-oriented than the stealthy slay-fest that is Dead by Daylight. It's a bit repetitive and doesn't add anything substantial for fans of the series, but it's still a bloody decent time.

MachineGames’ latest take on Wolfenstein is a very good shooter that is only a few missteps away from being, like its predecessor, a truly great one.

I quite enjoyed my short time with Momodora: Reverie Under the Moonlight, even if it is quite short and simplistic.

Deponia Doomsday is an experience hardcore fans of these series will love. Its humour is as crude as ever, the story is confusing, and its characters are still missing a few vital brain cells. But with a beautiful art style and interesting puzzles, Daedalic has delivered yet another solid adventure game.

Wild Bastards is everything a Rougelite should be: challenging, fun, stylish and deeply engaging.

In the torrid desert of the AAA industry, Ever Oasis stands out as the rejuvenating refuge so desperately needed.

The Final Station ends up being a linear game in the end (I dispelled the illusion of choice by playing it again and finding not much changed), but this short train is worth riding at least once. Combining light simulation aspects that only get better over time with a survival mode with diminishing returns is an interesting concept that shouldn't be ignored.

Revenge Of The Savage Planet is an explosive sequel that ups the ante in every aspect, making for one the most fun co-op experiences of 2025.

Microtransactions and the brutal learning curve make UFC 2 hard to play and even harder to recommend.

SUPER CRAZY RHYTHM CASTLE is a weird mishmash of mechanics all thrown at the players at lightning speed. Sometimes it works, and other times it is down right frustrating, but either way it certainly lives up to its name.

Honestly, I can’t think of a single moment I was having fun playing Top Spin 2K25 even when I was winning. Every victory felt hollow in the face of awkward controls, mindless gameplay—that somehow finds a way to be overindulgent—and outdated visuals. I know I implied that Mario Tennis prioritizes fun over technicality, but after replaying it during this review, not only is it incredibly fun, but there really is a surprising amount of nuance to not just the N64 version but newer versions like Mario Tennis Aces.

A great leap forward for Criteron and easily the best title in the series in years.

It captures the spirit of Warhammer's lighter side and translates it beautifully onto the screen.

Heading Out is a decent game for those looking for primarily a driving-based game, and it delivers a fun, fast-paced adventure game where you choose how your story will play out.

While not quite reaching the heights of its predecessor, Subnautica: Below Zero is still a survival game worth diving into.

Strong writing and design makes Scene Investigators well worth playing, even if some of the logic and questions don’t pass the smell test.

Nicktoons & The Dice of Destiny has some promise with its stacked cast of characters but never pulls the idea off. Middling gameplay, poor visuals, and mediocre writing really hold it back.

Lawbreakers is Cliff Bleszinski's new hardcore competitive shooter that doesn't do enough to stand out from the competition and has a steep learning curve.

Escape Academy is a family-friendly puzzle game that will give you hours of fun at a very reasonable price point.

Far Cry Primal is a fantastic standalone title that also has enough historical research meat to keep history nerds happy.

The Evil Within 2 is horrifying delight, using a feeling of vulnerability to make players appreciate every moment they’re still alive.

With an emphasis on stealth and a healthy dose of absurdity, Mutant Year Zero is a unique take on the XCOM formula that is as challenging as it is engaging.

The definitive way to play Days Gone—regardless of the issues that come with the game.

I feel like I'm getting my money's worth and I enjoy the tight and polished yet simple gameplay.

Rise of the Ronin was the near-perfect samurai/ronin open-world RPG that I have been starving for, and offers players a lot of choice in their playstyle.

Surviving Mars is a challenging yet engaging city builder that makes me want to colonize Mars again and again.

Carrion is a very cool concept held back by frustrating map design and repetitive combat.