That comparison between ChromaGun and Portal has come up a lot, but the game doesn’t suffer for it. In fact, this brazen admission of influence written all over the game works to its benefit.

Old fans of the series will most likely enjoy this entry just as much as the previous ones and any newcomers will be able to pick this up quite quickly and will have a good understanding of what the series is about.

While the story itself is pretty sub-par, the characters are really quite likable, the gameplay is a lot of fun and the need to have a 100% complete map of Celceta is a huge drawing force.

Thanks to its new weapons, excellent characters and nuanced narrative, Dawn Of Ragnarök comes closer than ever before to breaking free of AC Valhalla’s template. Though it can’t entirely escape some over-familiar mission types, Dawn Of Ragnarök does a great job of pulling together several strands from the main game and prior expansions. Svartalfheim and Odin’s quest give AC Valhalla renewed energy and should please both fans and maybe entice some newcomers to dip into the franchise. Dawn Of Ragnarök is a substantial and overall impressive addition to the series.

With some fine-tuning of the AI, the game could own the sim racing manager game niche. This is a good start for a game that seems poised to be the start of a new franchise. Despite current shortcomings, F1 Manager 2022 does make you feel like a manager of an F1 team.

All in all, Marisa of Liartop Mountain is a cute little game that pretends to be complicated than it is. If you’re a Touhou fan who doesn’t mind restarting if necessary, you’ll have fun. Everyone else is likely to get annoyed and drop it.

My five or so hours with Chapter 5 was an enjoyable experience. There were only a couple sequences throughout the game that gave me some real challenges, including the previously mentioned chase sequence that was incredibly frustrating. The game crashed on me once. My oldest son played through the entire chapter too, and it crashed on him once as well (in a different area). However, in my time with Chapter 5, the game was updated four or so times, so clearly the developers are actively ironing out any reported issues and bugs. Chapter 5 is an excellent continuation of the Poppy Playtime saga. Even though it’s likely a year away, I’m eager to see how things play out in the next chapter.

Toukiden: Kiwami has an intricate and expansive system of armour, weapons, mitama and power-ups to keep the gameplay interesting. That said, I couldn’t help but feel that the amount of button mashing was excessive considering the detail put elsewhere.

Yonder: The Cloud Catcher Chronicles does its best to present you with a steady stream of breathtaking vistas, serene escapes and idyllic moments that snap to a picture frame with flawless ease. The core game has all of its slight flaws that came with the other versions, but I found that taking time to frame and save some of what I saw gave me a deeper appreciation of Yonder’s many high points.

There’s plenty to like about Marble It Up! in its current form, but if you’re not a diehard fan of the genre, it may be worth waiting for a sale due to how short Marble It Up! feels. It’s absolutely a well-crafted experience that looks, sounds, and plays great. It’s just a little frustrating to see another indie game on the Switch eShop that feels a little light on content, especially with its price point.

This time around the development team made the decision to mix the new DLC maps with the existing ones which stinks for those who just want to get into the new maps. Regardless, this small annoyance doesn’t take away from Black Ops III’s strong first batch of DLC.

Castlevania Requiem is a decent port of two classic, beloved games. At $20, PS4 players are getting a lot of value for their money. Both games have a lot of content with optional levels & a secret playable character in Rondo of Blood and a massive, open-ended map in Symphony of the Night. Castlevania fans wouldn’t be making a mistake by purchasing this collection.

Few games have been as effective as Clustertruck at making me want “just one more try”. It’s bizarre, wacky, skill intensive, tough as hell, and you could end up needing a new controller or two before you’re through.

White Shadows is a unique title that is a strong argument for the notion of games being art. Not only does it find its individuality with its creative design, but it also has a clear message about societal issues. While some may find sections quite distressing, Monokel’s commitment to tackling sensitive topics is commendable. With this daring release being their debut title, I’m excited to see what the future holds for this talented team. Despite its short runtime, fans of narrative-focused puzzle platformers will adore this insatiable title.

While it may borrow from games we already know and love it does so with its own flair and separates itself from other less than spectacular zombie themed games out there.

Fans of the genre will find plenty to love about this game as it keeps enough of the genre staples while still trying to keep you on your toes with some variations. I, however, think I have to hang up my Musou holster. I can respect that Omega Force has made strides to stand out from all of the other games in the genre, but after so many years, it isn’t enough to keep me interested.

Where Winds Meet is over-ambitious, messy, opaque, and inconsistent. It has too many gears that don’t mesh, a lot that’s poorly explained, and it refuses to give the player a moment of unproductive time, even at the cost of coherence and comprehensibility. For all that, Where Winds Meet is a lot of fun. It often looks incredible and the world is certainly filled with content, whether for a single player or in a group. Even without touching the cash shop, Where Winds Meet provides a huge amount of free game play. Right now, Where Winds Meet is a little shy of greatness, but with some technical improvements and time it could get there.

Under normal circumstances a title like this wouldn’t have been worth a $60 price tag, but free is an entirely different story. It has a surprising amount of content, but ultimately suffers from lack of variety.

Bye Sweet Carole is a promising adventure that needs some refinement. Platforming and general movement feel slow and clunky, making traversal a chore. Each area features a range of strong puzzles, though some bugs affect your ability to complete certain tasks. Narrative inconsistencies further diminish the enjoyment of what should have been a magical adventure. Despite its stunning presentation, with beautiful hand-drawn visuals, smooth animation, and a lovely orchestral score, it ultimately struggles to deliver an experience as magical as its visuals suggest.

Scott Pilgrim EX takes a beloved formula and boldly restructures it. The blend of interconnected exploration, refined brawling, and engaging RPG mechanics creates an experience that honors its roots while feeling distinctly modern.

Journey to the Savage Planet provides highly rewarding exploration and discovery bundled with a genuinely funny sense of humor to make for a worthwhile first-person adventure experience. The game is clearly a labor of love and is only hindered by a few unrefined elements that don’t significantly detract from the overall enjoyment. Though the planet is a savage one indeed, in this case, the risk is absolutely worth taking.

Mordheim manages to create a turn-based experience that is not quite like the now seemingly industry-standard XCOM but which finds its own way to tweak the genre.

God Eater 3 is a middling experience of ideas and gameplay that paradoxically work and don’t work. It can be a lot of fun and it can be a slog of dialogue. It can be an intense firefight and epic battle, but only last less than a minute before returning to base. Somewhere beneath the tangled web of ideas lies a wonderful game but for now, in its current state, it’s a serviceable experience to pass the time on the go if you ignore the narrative and stick to the hack and slash chaos. I had hoped for more out of the level design and overall presentation but sadly it feels like something from the late PS3 era. Hopefully Marvelous will learn from this experience to make God Eater 4 everything we could ever want in the end times.

Disney Speedstorm is a solid racer that ties a number of franchises together in one fun experience. Seeing fan favorites share a racetrack is a thrill, however, a variety of issues stop this from reaching the greatness of its influences. The restrictive nature of its character selection and the confusing number of currencies hinders the enjoyment. Mix in the performance issues and this racer narrowly misses the podium.

With so much to see and do, Swords of Ditto is a heart-warming adventure I simply can’t get enough of.

If you’re looking for some serious tactics fun and have been craving some of that late 80s or early 90s campiness, do yourself a favor and pick up Chroma Squad on just about any platform of your choice.

Tachyon Project does enough things to make itself stand out against the bigger names in the genre and be competent, but falls short on doing much else to really rise above and beyond the kings of the category.

Rescues and level subgoals add a lot of additional meat and challenge, but this is a very simple shmup. There is no interesting key gameplay mechanic, no waves of bullet hell, no fast speeds, and no interesting setting. In a world where Bug Princess is 13 years old, Ikaruga is 16 years old, and 1942 is 33 years old, there is absolutely no reason to play a shmup so basic.