I haven’t been a big fan of Aspyr’s recent remasters of the early Tomb Raider games, either. I’m tired of looking behind, anyway. What I’d like to see next is a brand-new title in the Tomb Raider franchise – one with an approach as fresh as Tomb Raider’s was in 2013, but with the Lara I know and love. Tomb Raider: Definitive Edition just doesn’t cut it anymore.

When you’re used to all of that and know what to expect from each mission, Riftstar Raiders becomes an absolute blast to play. It just might take you a bit of time to get there.

Players into the historical origins of the genres they love will find Dark Alliance 2 worth playing. Anyone comfortable with the mechanics and visuals of recent fantasy ARPGs will probably grimace a bit. Baldur’s Gate: Dark Alliance has enough engaging story and characters to deserve a genuine remake or remaster. For the price, this version just doesn’t go far enough, even for players hoping for a hit of spit-shined nostalgia.

Though it’s no game-changer, Evasion’s unique bullet-hell-in-VR gameplay should please those seeking a tough challenge. There’s not enough content or replayability here to encourage you to return for more after the initial play-through, assuming you can even make it through the campaign in the first place. But if you have a friend to play with, then Evasion will provide a fun distraction while you continue waiting for the next VR hit.

Resident Evil Zero felt like a dated game in 2002, and an additional 14 years hasn’t exactly helped the game feel fresh. While the modern controls are a nice addition, they’re not nearly enough to make this a great game anymore.

The core gameplay is fun, but the constant and unrelenting fists of failure really put a damper on things. Some of the issues I found with Firegirl: Hack ‘n Splash could be improved with more polishing. However, others might take a little more work.

Stela hopes you’ll look at it with the same reverence everyone had for Inside. The problem is that Stela needs to do a lot more than just copying Playdead’s formula. The major difference between both games is that Stela is unfocused. Skybox Labs has designed an interesting world with a handful of cool moments, but it could have been something more with a clearer objective and even a newer art style. I still think it’s worth devoting the 2-3 hours to finish, but if you’re hoping for the next Inside, you’re probably better off just playing more Inside.

One could argue the mystery of the story is enough of a draw but in this gaming age, players expect certain things like being able to save at any point to be a standard option to them. As a first effort game from an indie studio, LKA is to be applauded for tackling such an ambitious project and telling a story that goes beyond the stock ones regularly used by games with far greater resources available to them.

Though there are some definite strengths throughout Past Cure, like the textural environments, the melodies and the overall world duality, it simply fails to really take advantage of the hype gained from its badass trailers.

Doomsday Vault is a charming title with a great message. I just wish there was a bit more of a narrative to help drive the player along, as I didn’t feel particularly inspired to move forward even though I knew I needed to. As a game for casual gamers or for the younger players getting into puzzlers, I would definitely recommend it. If you’re looking for a game with a deep narrative, more challenging puzzles, and question spending approximately $17.99 on a game that can be completed in a little over 2-3 hours, then you may not be as happy with this title.

If you’re looking for a proper Warriors/Musou game for a portable console, Dynasty Warriors: Origins is exactly what you need. The battles are snappy, massive in scale, and crammed with cool mechanics. It’s perfect for a quick session whenever the moment strikes you. On the other hand, the writing and the English voice acting are shockingly bad. Plus, the frame rate gets a little slippy when the battles get big enough. Personally, my heart belongs to the spin-off Musou games out there. But who knows, maybe these epic historical battles are exactly what you’re looking for.

Romance of the Three Kingdoms: Fame and Strategy Expansion Pack is a much needed and sorely missed breath of fresh air into what was a somewhat dull experience for all but the most avid history fans. With new features that bend the rules on re-enacting the noble history of China, Romance of the Three Kingdoms is loosening its tie and taking a moment to remember that it’s a video game, and history doesn’t have to be boring.

If you’re a fan of My Hero Academia, you’ll enjoy My Hero One’s Justice 2. It brings your favorite characters to life and gives you the opportunity to pit them against each other in a solid fighting arena experience. But for the rest of us, this is a pretty lackluster brawler that looks and plays a lot like other games we’ve seen. What it does, it does competently, but My Hero One’s Justice 2 has a long way to go before it can claim the King of Fighters title.

The game is not very impressive graphically and it has some unfortunate flaws, such as the odd freezing glitch and lengthy load times. But despite the flaws, the game is still enjoyable to play, with a great soundtrack and inspired moments from some of gaming’s biggest games.

Online play would have been nice but, still, a worthy effort.

Death end re;quest: Code Z is such a frustrating game to review. I loved the mysterious narrative, dark tone, grotesque art, and beautiful music. But I didn’t like the grid-based procedurally-generated dungeon crawling. The hub map was also a missed opportunity to create a space that would’ve made Death end re;quest: Code Z feel more like world, and less like a series of scenes and menus. I wouldn’t recommend the game to typical JRPG fans. It’d even be a tough sell for fans of roguelikes, because those elements feel so tacked-on. Visual novel fans will likely really enjoy the narrative though, and fans of dungeon crawlers might appreciate how unique the game is. I think the game needed more work in preproduction to tie the combat, roguelike elements, and hub world sections together in more meaningful ways.

In the end, I am a fan of where Weird Beluga aimed but not as much as where they landed. While the world that Clid resides in is full and realized, its characters unique, its level design excellent, and its overall tone unexpectedly great, the gameplay itself, not plague fuelled slugs, seems to be the biggest deterrent Clid needs to overcome. No matter how Weird Beluga wants to tackle this, whether it be leave it as it is or patch it, they still stand as very innovative and exciting developers. As for the gamer, if you think I’m just weak and you can do better managing the punishing level of gameplay, you should definitely pick this up. Otherwise, maybe see what they do moving forward before you dive into this strange and unique foray into gaming.

The stories being told felt sincere and deal with issues you just don’t find in games; especially the fourth patient, a trans-gendered individual in a physically abusive relationship. What hurts this experience is the actual puzzles, which make up the bulk of the gameplay. I just wish more effort was put into developing more meaningful puzzles that were designed to be more intuitive and actually fun to solve.

The creation experience is as simple or as deep as you make it, but strip away the LBP veneer and you have a rather basic karting game.

Visually, the game looks good and the music is pretty much on point for these style games. The various glitches and technical issues were disappointing and the game’s length was a big letdown.

While Foul Play’s art style is amazing, the gameplay is not. Foul Play feels fresh for a few acts, but quickly gets old after that. It feels like so much more could have been done with this title.

If you love tower defense and can ignore some of the game’s quirks, Hero Defense is worth picking up, but there are not enough unique features to recommend this to the broader PC player base.

Bladed Fury looks like an action game you’d want to play, but I’d recommend action fans do something else with their money, as there are other 2D games in this vein that do satisfy on the gameplay. If you’re really in a pinch, you won’t hate it. Bladed Fury is short, affordable, and a very cool art show with questionable fan service. As for me, I’ll be polishing my fighting skills elsewhere.

All in all, Arslan: The Warriors of Legend seems to be a pretty good anime that got turned into an okay Dynasty Warriors-style game.

The initial weapon selection is refreshing, yes. I also love the color palette used throughout the game. But beyond that, this is a bog standard roguelite. Random assortments of enemies attack with increasing ferocity. The bosses require practice and experimentation to master. Your success is determined by repetition and fortuitous reward drops at the end of every stage. Honestly, the short runtime might be an upside, depending on what you’re looking for. Roguelite players may find Lone Ruin rather disappointing. On the other hand, if you’re looking for a short, arcade-style experience, maybe give this game a shot.

It has some positive notes, such as the ability to play single player, couch co-op and online co-op (even going as far as offering unique levels depending on whether you played co-op or alone). The characters have some fun animations and some of the platforming was well-designed – you always get a bit of a rush when you nail a great throw of your partner. Unfortunately, the game also has a number of issues too, such as the numerous glitches and steep difficulty curve (particularly in co-op). If you’re looking for a decent co-op puzzle-platformer, then Shift Happens should be able to fill that void.

Saint Seiya: Soldiers’ Soul is a title that fans of the franchise will enjoy a lot, but unless this is a series you know, or one that you have have been thinking of checking out, you may just be better reading the serializations instead.

Astro Boy: Edge of Time is a fun and functional CCG, it just doesn’t do a whole lot to stand out from the many other like it.

2 Ton Studios have succeeded in creating their vision of a challenging 2D adventure game, however, it’s the uncompromising goal that hampers the enjoyment. With sluggish gameplay, a purposely slow, meandering pace, Unto The End fails to live up to its grand visuals and sound design.

Double Dragon Revive isn’t the rebirth fans were hoping for. Its combat impresses with a variety of defensive and environmental mechanics that add real depth to each fight, but other elements drag the experience down. Sudden difficulty spikes create frustration, and the light platforming sections feel underdeveloped. The presentation also needs an overhaul as its uninspired visuals and soundtrack fail to capture the energy and attitude that once defined the franchise. There’s a solid foundation here, but it’ll take more than nostalgia and new mechanics to truly bring Double Dragon back to life.

Earth Defense Force 5, like previous Earth Defense Force games, clearly have a following – and if you’ve enjoyed the games before, you’ll enjoy this one just as much. If you’re new to the franchise, you’re not going to get much depth, but under the right circumstances and with the right mindset, you might be able to squeeze out a fun time.

If you’ve enjoyed previous Artifex Mundi games, then you know exactly what you’re getting into and more than likely you’ll enjoy this one too.

Fortified is compelling enough to get through, in its simple but gratifying gameplay, but it doesn’t offer enough to pull me in.

Suggestions that the collection was rushed to the shelves is also evident by the fact that nine games are not in the Rare Replay files, instead, they’re Xbox 360 games ported over through the backward compatibility emulator on the Xbox One. As a result, instead of booting up instantly like every other game in this collection, it takes you out of Rare Replay, starts the Xbox 360 game you selected, waits for the 360 logo to play, and then begins the game.

Not a Hero is a game that will immediately grab your attention within the first few moments of playing it. By the time you make your way to the middle of the game’s story, some of the charm will probably wear off as you start to see some of the game’s more glaring issues including a ramped up difficulty, no checkpoint system, no auto-reload or missing a piece of cover to be killed by enemies once again.

Disney Interactive’s latest game isn’t a substitute for Tron 3, but it sure is fun while it lasts.

In the end, whether or not you enjoy Unepic will depend on whether or not you enjoy reference humour, and if your enjoyment of the exploration outweighs your frustration with the mediocre combat. Depending on which platform you’re buying it, the game costs anywhere between $9 and $15, so if Unepic sounds like something you’d be interested in, you may want to give it a try. Otherwise, this is one quest you’re better off skipping.

Pineview Drive is not the worst game I have played, and I had some genuine, frightening fun with it at times. The basic environment – that awful, old house – offers a solid butt-clenching experience that is worth a look if you like the genre. But the gameplay is just too one-dimensional, the story is just too thin, and the whole thing grows tiresome after not too long.

Biomutant has ambition but at the end of the day, it just isn’t all that fun. Experiment 101 put together a strange chimera of ideas in their game that never quite connects in meaningful ways. Finding fun was hard because the story isn’t great, exploration is a chore, and combat is serviceable. I did like the puzzle-like nature of the Worldeater boss fights because they break the monotony of quests. Technologically speaking, the game looks and performs well enough. However, I encountered a few bugs that required dying or hopping to the title screen to fix. All in all, Biomutant had the potential to be a frolicking Zelda-like but everything about this ecologically-minded adventure falls short of its ambition.

It’s wacky, balls to the wall approach to open-world crime games is still in a league of its own, but you could just as easily grab the game on a platform where it runs significantly better than it does on this platform.

You know what you’re getting into with Rising. There’s treasure to be found, a town to be restored, and new friends to make. To that end, my recommendation is based on your reaction to that premise. Are you thrilled by the prospect of elevating a town to its full potential? Do you relish the thought of digging up treasure with a growing cast of companions? If so, Eiyuden Chronicle: Rising is just what you’ve been looking for. Otherwise, I suggest you proceed with caution.

Castlevania: Lords of Shadow 2 got a resounding ‘meh’ out of me. While the game play mechanics were fun, they got boring over time and downright aggravating with the plethora of rage inducing boss battles.

It’s by no means easy, but as you progress and upgrade your mech, you’ll find it strikes a decent difficulty balance. If you’re up for a somewhat challenging game with a very anime-inspired look, then Hardcore Mecha might be just what you’re looking for.

The love and passion gone into the creation of WrestleQuest is clear, however, certain design decisions and a repetitive combat system make this a stumble down memory lane. Although the story is full of intrigue and famous wrestlers form part of the adventure, the repeat deviations quickly diminish interest in the narrative. Combat gets repetitive and animations fail to capture the nuances of the sport. Although fans of wrestling will enjoy seeing legends as part of the experience, some design decisions fumble the finish.

Super Mutant Alien Assault will keep your attention for a few playthroughs, but don’t expect much else.

In essence, Bonaparte: A Mechanized Revolution great game. It has so much potential on its face. For instance, it has some great additions in the idea of the colossi, the rival factions, and the inclusion of historical events through an alternate lens. Yet, it despite some charm and a reasonably fun gameplay loop, it just doesn’t reach the depth it needs to in order to truly make a revolutionary impact in the genre. For those looking for a quick game to play when they want some decent tactical gameplay and big robots, this might be the game for you. Yet, any gamer looking for a truly in-depth tactical strategy game may be left wanting more than Bonaparte has to offer.

Short, contrived, and occasionally frustrating; Episode 4 of New Frontier is so far the weakest of the bunch, and it’s up to the game’s finale to bring this entry back to the top of its game. The chaos of this episode’s conclusion has lots of potential for a thrilling conclusion, but it certainly reminds me why I feel it’s best to binge Telltale games at once, rather than wait through the agonizing weeks and months just to see a weaker episode that you know, will be forgotten.

If you’re looking for depth, Trove will leave you frustrated. The combat is simple, the progression is slow and the quests are all the same. However, if you want a certain kind of fun, you can absolutely find it here. Players looking to wile away the hours fishing, crafting, building and murdering will never want for things to do. The PVP is just as accessible as the rest of the content if you have the patience, and you never have to spend a dime if you want everything the game has to offer.

It isn’t as serviceable to the Lego formula as the games before it, nor is it perfect, but The Hobbit is still worth a play through both for fans of the films or simply the Lego games in general.

Brut@l is a visually unique game that initially feels fun and frantic, but quickly falls prey to a kind of frustration and tedium that will only appeal to a small subset of an already niche fan base. There is a ton of potential for greatness here, but that potential is ultimately squandered in the name of creating a dutiful tribute to a bygone era.

Shortcomings aside the unique visual experience that Black Knight Sword offers up is well worth a few hours of your time. At a price tag of $9.99 you certainly can't go wrong; however, just do not expect an experience you will come back to after you have put the game through its paces.

Operation Serpens has a certain charm to it and if you are looking for a mindless retro arcade style shooter, this one should fit the bill for you.

RPGolf Legends attempts to combine elements from a range of genres to create a sumptuous sporting adventure. Unfortunately, these exist in solitude rather than merge to form a cohesive experience. Although it doesn’t hit the heights of Golf Story, it does have a lot of charm and is a fun stop-gap while waiting for Sidebar Games’ sophomore release.

You can see the growth of InnerspaceVR as a game developer from Fisherman to Maskmaker. Hopefully, with their next project, they will fine-tune their approach and create a game that is both artistically and gameplay-wise, satisfying. If you are patient and OK with playing a slower-paced game, Maskmaker is definitely worth a look.

As it stands right now Defiance 2050 falls short, destined to again become an afterthought.

Despite some interesting situations and engaging puzzles, Vampire: The Masquerade Swansong fails to get off the ground, much less stick the landing. It’s slow and obtuse where it should be visceral and emotional. The writing is pedestrian and the characters are the dullest vampires imaginable. Whether or not they drink your blood, they definitely suck your ability to enjoy the game.

It looks good and sounds good, but the core gameplay tasks aren’t as tight as they should be. The story is well presented but lacks the spark you find in more straightforward RPGs. The documentary framing device is brilliant, but beyond that, there’s not much happening that you won’t find done better elsewhere. Mafia 3: Definitive Edition is exactly that – the definitive version of a so-so 2016 action game.

Fantasy Zone is an excellent, and difficult shoot ‘em up. For fans of any Gradius-style game, I highly recommend you play this classic that still holds up. Its cartoony visual aesthetic gives it a charm, and its difficulty will keep fans shooting for a long time.

Normally, I’m laser-focused on the mechanics in a given game. The plot and the world-building are cool, but they don’t keep me coming back. And yet, Witchspring3 never quite hooked me. It turns out that compelling mechanical systems can’t make up for a fatal deficiency in writing. Perhaps this whimsical tale of an isolated deity reaching out to a human boy is an excellent one. It’s quite impossible to say, given what we’re presented with here. On the other hand, if you truly could care less about the plot, there are some fascinating mechanical elements to mess around with here. Using homebrewed potions to level up is a terrific idea. Having a difficulty scale that’s both harsh and forgiving is a great way to hook a wide swath of players. And the hefty list of skills, spells, and summons means you can fight every battle in a new way. But otherwise, you’d best be wary about picking up Witchspring3 Re:Fine – The Story of Eirudy.

Realistically, patches that are coming for the game may continue to make The Last of Us on PC even better. If the patches can improve the playability then the port will become akin to its console predecessors and contemporaries. However, for now, the crashes, visual bugs, texture glitches, and stuttering is not something that can be ignored. Until then, if you’re a first-time The Last of Us player and you’re looking for a seamless and non-buggy experience on PC, it may be better to wait for patches to truly get the best out of this incredible story and game.

It’s a solid game with an interesting story which could have been improved tenfold if given that bit of extra loving. Regardless, if the story doesn’t sate your need then it can easily fall back on the strategic gameplay.

I went into Gundam Versus looking to get pulled in to an awesome title of battling robots but it just doesn’t grab me. The unlockables aren’t worth it, there is no story to speak of, its just a simple arcade game, with simple being the keyword. It doesn’t give me a reason to keep playing because there is no real change if I do.

Between the game’s breathtaking visuals, candid humor, and heavy emphasis on cooperative play, the horizon is bright for Rare’s swashbuckling shared-world adventure.

In spite of all my grievances, these are still two classic RPGs. Suikoden I&II are enormous adventures full of interesting characters to recruit, and epic plots to discover. To be perfectly clear, my final score reflects these games as remasters for a modern audience rather than as games in isolation. I loved the new sprites, and the levels do look better than ever before (even if the aesthetic saddens me). I wish more mechanics had been modernized more than anything else. We’ve come too far to go back to this kind of awful inventory management. But the point remains – this is the best way to play these games on modern hardware. If you simply must experience these games, then Suikoden I&II HD Remaster Gate Rune and Dunan Unification Wars is the way to do it.

There’s another way to look at War Hospital which is as some sort of RPG/visual novel. I think this change would actually benefit the themes of the story. There are already existing characters in the story. They are where the game comes closest to realizing its vision. The randomly generated patients by comparison, all feel like unimportant NPCs. War Hospital is all about taking on a role, but you express yourself through tactical decisions. If I spent less time choosing the mortal fates of random named guys, maybe I could have spent more time learning to be Major Henry Wells.

There is some fun to be had with this game, and there is definitely a lot of potential given how the game is still evolving even though you can play it now.

Ironically, The American Dream’s political aspiration is both its selling point and its downfall. It doesn’t say anything beyond what you can already discern from the game’s trailers, but there’s still plenty of fun and laughs to be had in this offbeat depiction of America.

Despite its flaws, Eternal Step isn’t a terrible little indie game if you’re a fan of the roguelike genre. It has enough gameplay depth to keep things fresh, at least for a while.

I feel like if this game had one more overall draft to marry the story, script, puzzles, voice acting, and environments, it could have easily gotten a high 80 or more from me. As it currently stands, I can only recommend Relicta to the hardcore lovers of physics-based puzzles.

Playing this game on your own is a punishment. With some friends, however, it’s pretty fun.

I thought I was going to love Hi-Fi Rush, but I didn’t. There is the kernel of something interesting here. Maybe if they used house music and had the player blending tracks during attacks it might have been more musically engaging. It’s a game that would have worked much better for me in arcade-y, short bursts, because playing through the levels was a slog. The gameplay is so simple that it actually might work well as an intro action game for someone new to the genre. But there are way better rhythm games, and way better third person action games out there. I know a lot of people love Hi-Fi Rush, so if you’re curious I would still give it a chance, but my experience was underwhelming.

Ultimately, I wanted to like this game more than I actually did. The pacing is excellent, the systems are deceptively deep, and the interface is well-crafted. Plus, your consequences for failure are expertly balanced, giving you a lot of freedom to fail. On the other hand, the constant repetition is exhausting. It feels like the roguelike treadmill set to a dead sprint. And while you’re forgiven for failure, you’re also not pointed to success. I had to poke, prod, and muddle my way to any sort of goal. You can absolutely succeed, but the road to that point is a long and meandering one. If you’re looking for a unique take on Chinese history, you’re in luck! But be warned: many pitfalls and dead ends await you.

Whether you enjoy KJG depends on what kind of fun you’re looking for. If you want a racing game, this might not be for you. If you want to ogle and/or glam up a squad of anime girls, then you’re in for a good time. This is one of the central tenets of XSEED and Honey Parade’s line of games. Whatever main activity is being advertised is likely not what got you to buy the game. And honestly, the extra content is usually more fun anyway. Mini-games, customization, item collection, and light fan service are the areas where games like Kandagawa Jet Girls shine brightest. So long as you understand this caveat, you’ll have a ton of goofy, slightly pervy fun.

Even with the new additional content in this “Game of the Year” like instalment, it would have been more ideal for the new content to be a DLC package for Deception IV: Blood Ties instead of part of this re-released version.

It’s not amazing, but it’s definitely not awful. While it functions well enough as a platformer, performance issues keep it from being a stand out in the genre.

I’ve always been a staunch supporter of the idea that a game doesn’t always need to break new ground in order to be good so I won’t say that Juju is in any way a bad game. I just wish it had something to it that really made it stand out from the impressive list of amazing games it so clearly borrowed from.

It’s like that easy beach reading book that you enjoyed for a few hours on holiday, and then put back on the shelf never to read again.

I can live with many of Need For Speed Unbound’s faults. Admittedly, there were fleeting moments when I enjoyed the routine of earning cash, upgrading, outrunning police, and climbing Lakeshore’s underground racing ranks. But, when a Need For Speed game spits in the face of people that use wheel and pedal setups, it’s tough to feel a need for anything other than a need to play a better game. There’s a foundation here to build upon, but EA and Criterion have their work cut out for them if they ever hope to compete with the giants of the racing game scene.

While I wasn’t a fan of the resource management and crafting system as a whole, due to frustration and lack of hints, those with patience and who love experimentation will no doubt see hours pass by as they try to survive one more day to find that one item you’ve been searching for.

After waiting for Below for over five years, I’m left conflicted. On one hand, it’s a beautiful and deeply engrossing roguelike with fantastic art direction and stunning music from Jim Guthrie. But it also doesn’t quite jive with some of its gameplay systems and, at times, feels like a confusing mixture of ideas. Despite this, however, I still don’t regret my time with Below. Even though it doesn’t always feel cohesive, it’s certainly worth playing, especially if you’re a fan of roguelikes —just know that your mileage may vary in the enjoyment department.

Dragon Ball Z: Extreme Butoden is in an unfortunate position where the core game is kind of good, but everything surrounding it is kind of bad.

There’s an existential discussion to be had over whether or not games need to be fun, and I’m not prepared to have it. Dark Train is not fun, but it is beautiful.

I loved the idea of this game and enjoyed a few missions here and there, telling my agents where to go and having them exercise their particular skills in saving a prisoner to the backdrop of Cold War espionage chatter and tensions. Yet the gameplay and plot never lived up to its potential, and my expectations slowly lowered themselves into a shallow grave as the gameplay, initially full of potential, let me down through repetitive gameplay and a cliché plot.

While Tales of Hearts R succeeds in providing interesting gameplay, it fails to offer a compelling storyline. The battle and upgrade mechanics are sound, but the juvenile dialogue might turn some people off trying it.

When it comes down to it, I don’t really understand who this game is for because I can’t tell fans they’d love it and I can’t tell the uninitiated to pick it up because the story is baffling, and the gameplay isn’t great. So, even though there are aspects of the game that are solid, this one gets a hard pass from me. Hopefully, I have fewer nightmares about this game than I did about the Skeksis for pretty much my entire childhood.

The game’s biggest problem is the nature of its choice mechanics in that they are almost inconsequential.

With a striking visual art style and an initially promising light and dark mechanic, Black & White Bushido could have been everyone’s new go-to party game. However, not enough modes of play, repetitive map design, and an overall lack of personality put a damper on what is otherwise a decent arena combat game. The gameplay is polished and fluid and the controls are easy to grasp, everything that makes a game like this worthy of play. Black & White Bushido is indeed fun for a few rounds but the experience never feels compelling enough to keep playing. Better keep this one sheathed for now.

It’s a generally appealing game with decent graphics. Gloomhaven appears to be a fun turn-based adventure but requires a significantly higher amount of strategy than expected. Assigning unique quests to heroes, and having an ever-changing party when they finish their tasks, those are the ideas that make Gloomhaven stand out in a fun and engaging way. The actual mechanical experience feels like being asked to solve a Rubik’s cube every five minutes rather than immerse yourself in a fantasy world. For some, this might be exactly the tactical experience you want. For most, it’s more of an exercise in exasperation than imagination.

Defiance can be a fun game, though it is difficult to enjoy its many features when so many bugs run rampant. The visual slowdown combined with the Internet related issues creates quite a mess at times, but when the game is working I can appreciate its uniqueness.

Deception IV is a game that will give you back exactly what you put into it. If you show it some love, it will most likely show you some love back.

Edge of Eternity is almost brilliant. The writing is great, but the graphics, gameplay, and especially the camera angles drag it down. If you crave some dark JRPG action and are willing to put with questionable combat mechanics, by all means, check it out. However, if you hate the idea of trying to plan out a strategy when you can’t see half the enemy forces or you get motion sick easily, maybe give this one a pass.

With a colorful and wild presentation, Micro Machines World Series is a hectic and incredibly fun racing game that manages to be both challenging and light hearted. The level designs, details, vehicles, and game modes are all superb, and the game’s announcer has a wonderfully over-the-top comedic delivery that adds to the excitement. It’s a game full of laughs, but like a good joke, the laughter ends. Micro Machines World Series simply doesn’t offer enough to players to keep them invested beyond playing it as a party game with those who remember the original toy line from the 90’s.

Clockwork Aquario is a product of its time. The short game length and high difficulty are similar to its 90s counterparts. Unfortunately, due to this, there aren’t many reasons to revisit the game after playing through the meager number of stages. The score-based gameplay is a fresh twist and makes for an addictive platforming experience. Gaining multipliers and working out routes is fun whether playing on your own or with a partner. Even with its beautiful, chunky pixel art and vivid backgrounds, the game’s shortage of content and high price, make this a forgettable re-emergence rather than a celebrated return.

At the right price, Zombi is a worthy purchase for some. Unfortunately, some of its technical shortcomings and painfully repetitive sequences kill much of the enjoyment. Not to mention some of the clumsy combat and dated gameplay makes for an experience that is far more tedious than it needs to be.

The best compliment I can give Windlands is that, for other developers, there is a lot that can be gleaned from this experience soaring through the skies, and the game is worth checking out for that reason alone.

Drag x Drive packs in plenty of interesting ideas, but they never quite merge into a compelling eSports experience. The mouse and motion controls are impressive in isolation, yet in the chaos of high-speed competitive play, they can become a source of frustration. With minimal offline content and few incentives to return online, it risks being overshadowed by stronger competitors. Without significant expansion to its bare-bones structure, the game may struggle to hold onto its player base.

When Steel Rats works, it works really well. Levels where you’re gunning it through well-charted courses, flipping and spinning through the air, burning through obstacles like a hot knife through butter—these are an absolute joy to play. Somewhere in Steel Rats is a game I would gladly play and recommend. Unfortunately, the pieces just didn’t fall into place often enough for me to call the full game good. The game overall is a very stylistic “okay.”