Praey for the Gods excels in some aspects but is hampered by a number of tedious mechanics. The boss battles are truly impressive in terms of design and execution and will please fans of SOTC. However, the dated controls make traversal and combat cumbersome. In an attempt to broaden the gameplay, No Matter Studios has added a survival system that is detrimental to the enjoyment. This, along with other needless mechanics, hampers the game. Rather than a tailored, focused adventure, the Praey for the Gods combines too many elements that make this a convoluted experience.

One Hand Clapping is fun for singers and non-singers alike so I’m sure everyone will enjoy this creative experience. You can use it as an excuse to warm up your voice if you’re going out for Christmas caroling, or you can just sing to your heart’s content while actually making progress in a video game. And who knows, maybe you’ll find out you actually have a knack for singing.

The Letter: A Horror Visual Novel is a very good story, with an excellent focus on character relationships. The story uses the structure of the visual novel genre to deepen its quality. This is what a visual novel should be. It doesn’t have the originality of genre classics like 428: Shibuya Scramble, Danganronpa, or the Ace Attorney series. But it is an easy recommendation for fans of the genre, who are looking for more.

There is a lot of content here to experience. The campaign will take you about seven hours. It would be great to have a little more variety in, well, just about everything. The environments all look the same and there are only a few bosses and enemy types. Another option I would love to see is one where you could change the gravity level. The default value is about thirty percent of earth levels. It would be a hoot to try the swing mechanic on a normal gravity level. The inner child of a lot of Spidey fans would be ecstatic, present company included. Despite the limitations of the PSVR tech and the three-year-old game design, Windlands 2 is still worth a try, especially if you have a couple of friends to play with.

The Gunk is a competent product, but it feels very risk-adverse and derivative. You’ve seen and played elements of this game before. It can be fun for a while, but you soon realize that The Gunk has a limited vocabulary and spends too much of its time amicably repeating itself. Instead of being the foundation for something grander, The Gunk is satisfied to make its exploration and simple mechanics the entire game. As a Game Pass product, however, it’s not hard to cautiously recommend The Gunk as a pleasant enough diversion.

If you were unimpressed by Terminator: Resistance, your mind will not be changed by Annihilation Line. For better or worse, it is more of the same. The cast mostly carries over, as do the mission types, enemies, and weapons. It’s a little more challenging, perhaps, and the pace is faster. Annihilation can’t compare to the best recent shooters, but it does have an audience. The ideal player might be a diehard Terminator fan eager for a compact few hours in their favorite sci-fi universe. Players who really liked the main game will enjoy the DLC as well. For everyone else, it’s probably a pass.

For PC gamers who have not played the console version of Final Fantasy VII Remake Intergrade, it’s an easy game to recommend despite the potential technical issues. There is simply too much good. The Remake is one of the best re-imagined games ever made, and the original is demonstrably a masterpiece. We would have liked more options, better optimization, and a lower price tag to be sure, but on PC, Final Fantasy VII Remake looks fantastic and the story, characters, and gameplay deserve every gamer’s time.

Overall, Hextech Mayhem is a good step for Riot to continue letting other developers experiment with their IP. The difficulty can spike unfairly at times and the rarer items require a bit too much trial and error to get behind, but it’s a solid diversion at its price point. I just wish Choice Provisions had taken a bigger (or riskier) swing for their auto-runner to give genre fans something to really dig into.

Playing Serious Sam 4: Planet Badass can be fun. It’s also clear that the franchise is at a crossroads. It wants to steal from other AAA shooters, to have believable characters, NPCs, and a story. At the same time, it goes all-in with a lame-joke cracking juvenile in a man suit and gameplay that is rote, lacks creativity and is repetitive. Long load times and framerate issues don’t help, either. Twenty years on, Sam isn’t edgy, goofy or ironic. Sam’s schtick, and the gameplay that goes with him, are seriously due for a makeover.

There is a lot of content contained in this little game that makes it really hard to put down. You can have a quiet evening and gather items to make new outfits, fish at the lake to collect bubbles, or change your hairdo at Minnie’s salon. Or you can opt to have a productive evening by mining with the Seven Dwarves, warding off ghosts in Hawaii, or ensuring your cafe is fully stocked with food and beverages at all times. Regardless of your mood and what you want to achieve, Disney Magical World 2 was able to satiate my cravings for a good simulation game mixed with some ghost busting and a little bit of side hustling. It can take a while to get to the good and creative parts, but it is definitely worth the wait.

To be clear, there’s a lot of space in this world for gentle, low-impact games. Wytchwood isn’t a bad game because it’s easier than Dark Souls. Difficulty is not the only reason to play a game. But Wytchwood does let the player down with such a vague and uninteresting story. A game needs a hook, and this story ain’t it. Crafting games make me uniquely aware of how much time I am wasting by playing them. But in the end, I like to look back at the little work of art I made by building a house, or a city, or a space station. In Wytchwood I am just collecting ingredients because the game told me to collect those ingredients. It’s an attractive enough game, but it needs something else substantial.

There’re solid game ideas here, and I hope that Serenity Forge’s next title will bring all these elements together. But for now, while Date Night Bowling isn’t rolling complete gutterballs, it’s not bowling any strikes, either.

The Disney Classic Games Collection is very thorough and fantastic. If you have any nostalgic love for these games, then this collection is the best way to play them, and if you’re a younger gamer, who is at all curious as to why some of us adults have a special place in our hearts for 90s 2D platformers, then this collection would be an excellent place to find out. Hopefully this release leads to future Disney Collections. My fingers are crossed for a Mickey Mouse bundle featuring the Magical Quest trilogy, Mickey Mania, the Castle and World of Illusion games, and the Japanese-only Mickey no Tokyo Disneyland Daibōken game. A kid can dream, right?

Aspire: Ina’s Tale is an audacious game that manages to create a remarkable world which you’ll want to explore. The incredible design is consistent for the duration making each area a joy to discover. Puzzles vary and offer a suitable level of challenge, however, the stiff movement in platforming segments hinders the experience. Whilst the game’s runtime is relatively short, this memorable stroll through a stunning gallery is worth your time.

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.

If you’ve ever wanted to learn more about marine life or wanted to explore the ocean depths without fear of having to fend for yourself, this is the game for you. Not to mention Beyond Blue would be a fantastic way to get children more immersed and aware of underwater creatures. However, suppose you’re looking for a game with a bit more to offer in terms of gameplay and content. In that case, you may be better off sticking to games like Subnautica that provide the same exploration with added goals and an even higher arching narrative.

The combination of rumor, magazine publication, and CD trading is what made the Monster Rancher games special. It’s hard to recreate that kind of feeling today. But, Koei Tecmo did it very well. The only problem is that there’s not much content in the game, and without multiplayer capabilities, mileage doesn’t go very far. If I have any advice for anyone attempting to play this game, it’s to share this nostalgic story of how the game worked, and don’t just look up the stats of the best monsters on the internet. Play with some friends, use your favorite albums, and see what you get, because that is what makes Monster Rancher 1 & 2 DX unique. Monster Rancher 1 & 2 DX is an effective nostalgic novelty, but as a monster raising sim, it’s pretty meh.

MXGP 21 is a tough game to review. Riding on dirt tracks is a much harder thing to simulate than doing so on paved ones. However, one can only judge a game by how much enjoyment it creates. For myself, I was often more frustrated than elated. Though the game includes a bevy of options to make MXGP 21 accessible to everyone, it’s a niche racing genre that will appeal mainly to dedicated fans. The other big knock on this game is the changes from the 2020 version are only incremental.

Aeterna Noctis is a stunning Metroidvania that incorporates the many assets of the genre into one magnificent experience. Combining systematic combat and accurate platforming, the game is varied and challenging. The beautiful artwork makes each area unique helping to make this a truly memorable experience.

UnMetal is an incredible tribute to one of the greatest franchises in the medium. While the game pokes fun at the title and highlights flaws and silly elements, it’s clear that it is done with love and admiration for the series. Similar to how Mel Brooks lovingly rips Hitchcock apart in High Anxiety, UnEpic Fran does the same with Kojima. The varied gameplay and creative storytelling will keep you in hysterics throughout. Although some may find the retro gameplay a little grating, fans of Metal Gear and the stealth genre need to experience this side-splitting tactical espionage adventure.

All in all, this is a much more relaxed experience than the PC version, for better or worse. It’s still incredibly satisfying to one-shot an enemy as the rogue, tank as the warrior, and unleash armies of the dead as the necromancer. If you didn’t get the opportunity to play Loop Hero the first time around, I heartily recommend checking it out on Switch. But if you can play this game on PC, you probably should. There’s nothing overtly wrong with the Loop Hero Switch port, especially given the game’s control scheme. It’s just hard to beat the original.

Wolfstride might have gotten off to a rough start, but I think if you go into it knowing that it’s a story-forward game, you’ll enjoy it quite a bit. I ended up liking the game way more than I thought possible. It kept surprising me. It hooked me with its style, then its humor, and when I thought I knew everything, it showed me its heart. For only $18 CAD, Wolfstride has my strongest recommendation.

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.

Both new and returning players will be challenged by Aiko’s Choice, but the rewards are worth the effort. Effectively completing the game’s missions is satisfying in the same way as solving a tough puzzle. Added to that are the game’s lovely art and music, a cast of engaging characters, and an interesting story. I suggest playing the base game first, though, if for no other reason than to get up to speed on the mechanics. It’s a shame that Aiko’s Choice doesn’t welcome new players a little more, but those who persevere will be rewarded. For fans of the original, the expansion has been worth the wait.

Solar Ash is a spectacular achievement and a worthy successor to Heart Machine’s previous release. The fast and fluid movement makes exploration a delightful dance through the absurd. Although the structure is a little repetitive, the moment-to-moment gameplay is thrilling. Large and intense boss battles are the highlight of the game, creating jaw-dropping sequences that will leave you yearning for more.

I've shared many gripes I have with Halo Infinite. I've shared them meticulously because I love this franchise and want it to continue succeeding. Beyond them all, I absolutely love playing it. The campaign's open-world gameplay is phenomenal, and I can't wait to play through it again on legendary, especially with a friend in the future. Despite my disappointment in the narrative, the lead performances are strong, and the presentation is cinematic. I've been playing Halo multiplayer with my friends for nearly twenty years. We've kept up with the Master Chief Collection over the years, but Infinite is the most addicted we've been in a long time. It's far from perfect, but I can't wait to see how Halo Infinite evolves over the coming months and years.

More arcade shooter than sim, Chorus fits into the long tradition of space dogfight games. Its combat can be furious and fun, but some missions suffer from repetition, some mechanical weirdness and poor pacing. Chorus takes itself and its story too seriously for its own good. In place of plain, old fashioned joy at blowing up stuff in space, we get angsty, mystical mumbo jumbo and a spacecraft with a guilt complex.

If you crave more after Arcane you’d do right by Airship Syndicate’s latest RPG outing. Even if you aren’t a League aficionado, you’ll feel right at home here it’s friendly to new players. You’ll just notice a bit more fan service here and there if you’re familiar with the universe.