Yakuza Kiwami 3 isn’t a perfect remake by any means and comes with some more notable drawbacks than the Kiwami games before it. Still, I can’t deny that I thoroughly loved my time with Kiwami 3 and Dark Ties, even in spite of some hiccups along the way. If you’re like me and still haven’t gotten around to playing Yakuza 3, I think this is a fantastic way to experience the game.

Melody of Memory is indeed a Kingdom Hearts title. It's kind of like Kingdom Hearts Re:Coded in that dedicated fans might not want to overlook this one too much. Really, this is a game made for those fans anyway as it offers a fun way to re-experience the music of the series with some fun Disney extras. With bite-size stages that are easy to take in, it might help alleviate the pains of waiting for the next title just a little.

A hard game to review. Bithell Games has done an excellent job capturing the look and feel of the brand, and there's a lot to enjoy while it lasts. That said, each play through offers a fairly short experience, and it's hard to say whether longtime fans of the franchise will embrace the visual novel genre; it doesn't help that the game ends on a pretty big cliffhanger! It's an intriguing setup for future entries, and I find myself excited to see what happens next, and where Query's new quest will take him. It won't be for everyone, but Tron: Identity is a bold new take on a Disney favorite, and I applaud the company for being willing to try something different.

Just as ridiculous and fun as you remember, and the new coat of paint and modern upgrades make it an adventure that you'll want to take on even if you've already experienced it before. Fans who missed out on the original also owe it to themselves to see what all the fuss was about, because if they do they will find quite a lot to love. It's not perfect mind you, but honestly, you'll be having too much fun to really care about its flaws.

Rugrats: Adventures in Gameland serves as both a love letter to the original animated series, as well as the NES era. It's shocking that the combination took this long to happen, and it all fits together more often than it doesn't. It never really pushes the envelope in terms of innovation, preferring instead to borrow liberally from games like Chip n' Dale: Rescue Rangers and Super Mario Bros. 2. However, as someone that loved the Nicktoon as it aired, and spent my early childhood playing both those NES games, I enjoyed my time with this Rugrats romp. This isn't exactly Shovel Knight, but Rugrats: Adventures in Gameland is an enjoyable throwback for the short while that it lasts.

Back 4 Blood isn't perfect by any means, but it's absolutely the closest we've gotten to a new Left 4 Dead game in the years since Left 4 Dead 2. Because of this, it's hard not to have fun with B4B, even if it doesn't always feel inventive and has some notable drawbacks. Despite some qualms, if you're hungry for a new co-op shooter to jump into with some friends, Back 4 Blood has more than enough meat on the bone to keep you entertained for quite some time.

Scott Pilgrim EX is everything fans of the cult classic game could have hoped for, taking the concept and expanding it into something extraordinary.

After 19 years, Shantae remains an enjoyable adventure, and it's fun to see how the series has progressed. For current fans of the series that never played the original, I absolutely recommend buying it on Switch. However, those that have never played an entry in the series have four other games that will do a much better job showcasing Shantae's strengths. Check those out first and come back to this one.

Anyone who enjoys soulslikes should not skip Wuchang: Fallen Feathers, and it's also perfect for those looking to get into the genre.

It's too soon to tell if Princess Peach: Showtime! will do for the character what Luigi's Mansion did for Mario's brother, but I find myself hoping we'll see Nintendo revisit this concept in the future. Hopefully by then they'll have ditched some of the weaker transformations, and give the graphics an overhaul worthy of royalty.

Call of the Elder Gods is predominantly a puzzle game, so it’s a huge relief they are the best part of the experience. Almost every contraption in the game gives players a decently sized environment to explore in order to gather context clues and notes, many of which also neatly double as bits of lore. Players are forced to explore around and gather evidence in order to piece it all together.

Enchanted by Nature feels like a robust pack that truly delivers a lot of new stuff for Simmers to explore. I didn’t run into any new bugs that seemed pack-specific, so the added content appears to be working mostly as intended. There are some great little details, like how Fairy Sims “go for a fly” instead of a run, and how they can shrink down to play in various household items. The world really sticks to its theme, offering a magical place for Fairy Sims to hang out. This is probably one of the bigger, more involved new The Sims 4 expansion packs we’ve seen lately. If you enjoy the magical, natural living side of things, Enchanted by Nature is probably going to deliver.

Dashing from cover to cover while peppering enemies with bullets and lasers as you wait on cooldowns to reset is a truly exhilarating and tense moment The Ascent offers time and time again. Those moments are memorable and are unfortunately far less common than The Ascent’s pitfalls. I’m right near the end of the game’s main story after crossing off plenty of side missions, but with the charm of The Ascent’s firefights and scenery long since expired, there’s nothing much left to inspire confidence in what remains.

Sonic Colors: Ultimate is exactly what I like to see in a Sonic game: it's fun, it's fast, and the level design is exceptional. Developer Blind Squirrel Games has also added some quality-of-life features that make it welcoming for younger fans as well. It would have been nice to see the game's cutscenes receive the same visual upgrade that the rest of the game got, but that's a minor gripe. For fans that missed out on Sonic Colors when it first released, or those looking to revisit the game, Sonic Colors: Ultimate offers one of the best experiences to ever feature the blue blur.

Hot Wheels Unleashed -- in all caps and bolded letters -- is a passable arcade racer that sticks out from other middle-of-the-road racing games thanks to its devotion to nostalgia and some great ideas that are unfortunately not completely realized due to obvious budgetary restrictions. If you're desperate to get behind the wheel of your favorite Hot Wheel, it will scratch that itch, but not much else.

The unlikely direction for the Minecraft formula works well in the first major departure for the franchise, and with how vast the source material is in terms of biomes and content to explore, there’s a lot of room for this sort of thing to grow. It’s a success from the start, and it feels like it’ll only get better with age.

At its core, Harvestella is an exciting promise of things to come for RPG lovers as Square Enix is ready to bring its own farming sim to life. From its gorgeous visuals to its side quests, there is plenty to do and look at while playing. However, players should temper their expectations should they believe Harvestella to be a straightforward sim. This ambitious project is more JRPG than a simulator, and its pacing proves as much. If you are only looking to farm and woo locals, Harvestella will prove more than you can handle. But if a JRPG with simulation traits sounds appealing to you, Harvestella is just what you've been waiting for.

If you’re absolutely craving a new game that has tight gunplay and a loot loop that you can get into for a long period of time, Outriders definitely isn’t your worst option. But if you have played a litany of games like this over the past few years, I’m hard-pressed to think that there is anything about this one that will resonate with you on a greater level.

One Piece Odyssey does have its flaws in how its role-playing experience eventually works out over the course of its many hours, but when stacked against everything that's come before, it really is the best One Piece game yet. It's got a lot of fun things for fans of the series to dig into, and there is a lot of care and attention to detail paid in bringing the Straw Hat crew's various personalities and attacks to life. It might not be the best experience for the more dedicated, but it's definitely a perfect fit for current fans.

I had a lot of fun with Tomb Raider: Definitive Edition. This is a great Switch 2 port, and it may well be one of the best action games the console has to offer so far. The graphics are sharp for a 10-year-old game, the frame rate is solid, and the gameplay is classic Lara Croft goodness with some extra motion control bells and whistles if you want them. And for just $20, it’s hard not to say that everyone who enjoys a good action-adventure game with a side of puzzles should play this on Switch or Switch 2 ASAP.

Once reinforcements do come for Zombies, it will be hard to argue against Vanguard as one of the best and most complete Call of Duty titles in the last decade, potentially of the franchise's entire history. This is one of the rare times Call of Duty has seriously dug into its past, learned from it, and delivered a new and improved experience. Vanguard sets a high bar for Call of Duty as the franchise moves into the next generation.

It’s adept enough to transcend a modernized version of the “DOOM clone” label and rip and tear its own spot in the genre’s hierarchy.

Disney Illusion Island is a love letter to Mickey Mouse, offering a beautifully animated experience with great humor and a challenge level that's welcoming to experienced players and newcomers alike.

Pokemon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl are good remakes of an inherently flawed Pokemon game. The games lean a little hard into recapturing the experience of the originals, which is a detriment and somewhat negates the fantastic visual and quality-of-life improvements. Honestly, it feels that Pokemon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl are a preemptive olive branch to Pokemon fans ahead of Pokemon Legends: Arceus, in that it provides a decidedly retro experience as an alternative option to what is sure to be the most envelope-pushing Pokemon game made since the franchise launched 25 years ago. Pokemon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl are made for those looking to celebrate the past of the Pokemon experience. For the rest of us, it's a nice distraction to hold us over until the launch of the next Pokemon game in a couple of months.

These insufficiencies get even more frustrating since they’d likely address the staleness that creeps into Forgive Me Father 2’s latter stages, as well as its difficulty that occasionally borders on being unfair. Boomer shooters don’t always have to be power fantasies, but Forgive Me Father 2 illustrates how one suffers when it submits too much of its power over to the Elder Gods.

Nintendo World Championships: NES Edition has a lot to love, and it would be great to see a similar treatment for SNES and N64 in the future.

It’s a surprising disconnect, one that evokes the game’s very title. Darwin’s Paradox’s name is derived from biologist Charles Darwin’s observation that coral reefs thrive in water without many nutrients. How can something so lively sustain itself in a barren environment? While unintended, Darwin’s Paradox offers up a similar conundrum: How can something so lively and pretty be so boring and bland on the inside?

My only real gripes with the game come from the occasionally too long dialogue sequences (it seems that every character has to quip or comment about Katrielle's current course of action) and the frustrating lack of resolution at the end of the game. Although the game obviously sets up a sequel, neither of the two core mysteries introduced at the outset of the game are solved at all. If you're looking for some charming brain teasers and puzzles to distract you from the current goings-on, give Layton's Mystery Journey: Katrielle and the Millionaires’ Conspiracy a try.

Another Code: Recollection is a welcome addition to the Nintendo Switch library. The puzzles can get frustrating at times, and the gameplay won't be for everyone; I highly recommend those on the fence check out the game's free demo. Despite these flaws, the story and characters make it a worthwhile purchase for fans of the genre. It's great to see Nintendo giving such an unusual pair of games this type of treatment, rather than leaving them abandoned on their original hardware.

For PSVR owners, it's a simple and safe choice to spend the $39.99 for this experience, but for those considering investing in picking up the PSVR towards the end of this console generation's shelf life, well, let's hope they really, really like Iron Man.

Pokemon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl are good remakes of an inherently flawed Pokemon game. The games lean a little hard into recapturing the experience of the originals, which is a detriment and somewhat negates the fantastic visual and quality-of-life improvements. Honestly, it feels that Pokemon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl are a preemptive olive branch to Pokemon fans ahead of Pokemon Legends: Arceus, in that it provides a decidedly retro experience as an alternative option to what is sure to be the most envelope-pushing Pokemon game made since the franchise launched 25 years ago. Pokemon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl are made for those looking to celebrate the past of the Pokemon experience. For the rest of us, it's a nice distraction to hold us over until the launch of the next Pokemon game in a couple of months.

JoJo's Bizarre Adventure: All-Star Battle R is a great experience for fans already familiar with the original series and those that are jumping into the fighter as a result. There is a lot to love in that regard as the personality from the original manga is in full force, but there's much less of that "bizarre adventure" that is also at the core of Araki's series. The fighting has been improved, and there are plenty of characters to mess around with, but more fighting does not always equal more fun in this case.

Ultimately, Mario Strikers: Battle League reminded me a bit of last year's Mario Golf: Super Rush. Both games offer a fun core gameplay experience but are ultimately very thin in terms of content which hinders their replayability. If you don't have a dedicated group who wants to play Battle League on the regular, the game could end up collecting dust on the shelf. Next Level Games has promised additional roster updates and other content releases after release, so hopefully the game grows into a more robust experience after a few months.

Big Brain Academy: Brain vs. Brain is the type of game that Nintendo does better than any other developer in the industry. This is a game that has clearly been designed with families in mind, and it's the perfect way to play together, while also taking in something educational.

At its very best, Sakura Wars made me feel like I was playing through a top-tier shonen or seinen anime, and while the lows certainly exist, they are infrequent and inconsequential enough to the core experience that it makes it easy for me to recommend the game to anyone with a passing interest. While it might be mechanically lacking in some aspects, it smooths over those rough edges with a ton of heart, and I’ll always take an ambitious game that sometimes fails to reach the heights it strives for over a boring, middle-of-the-road title.

There's fun to be had in Evil West but there are far too many chinks in this armor to make it worthy of wearing into the field. 

The Siege of Paris delivers an adventure that I simply could not put down, keeping me riveted to the final battle and beyond, and I would return to this world in an absolute heartbeat. A villain that is nothing like you expect and a rich cast of characters keep you invested the whole way through, and while the game's new mechanics didn't really floor me the way that I'd hoped, they do enough to bolster an engrossing tale of intrigue, loss, war, and forgiveness that I would recommend to anyone who adores this franchise.

Despite its jagged, toothy edges, Evil Dead: The Game remains one of the more pleasant surprises of this year so far. Gripes are pushed to the background when you possess a survivor and use them against their team or rend a Deadite to bits with a chainsaw and even with some movement hang-ups on both teams, every match plays out relatively smoothly. If Saber Interactive keeps up with community feedback and delivers more DLC down the line, Evil Dead: The Game could solidify itself as one of the truly great asymmetrical horror experiences.

For many NHL franchise players, the career mode has never been the reason to pick up the game, so it's easy to live with this lackluster story. The other game modes in NHL 21 are as good as ever. You may not be a big hockey fan, but if you enjoy sports games, it's hard to do better than this.

Ultimately, Legend of Mana presents a fun and enchanting world to explore. The gameplay is simplistic and clumsy, but the tedium is alleviated somewhat by M2's modern additions. If players avoid getting bogged down by the unnecessary side systems, they may be able to capture Legend of Mana's lost spirit of adventure.

Ultimately, Hooked on You has some funny aspects to it that are worth checking out for Dead by Daylight fans, but for everyone else who might not be familiar with the lore, this feels like a weaker dating sim that isn't able to truly feel like its own game that's independent of the main series.

Nintendo Switch Sports shows that Nintendo still does motion control multiplayer games better than any other company, but a few different decisions would have made it a much easier recommendation.

Frontiers of Pandora may not blow you away with its story, but it will immerse you in its world and give you a rush of adrenaline. For those just wanting to take a trip to Pandora, this should satisfy you until Cameron releases Avatar 3 in 2025.

Kingdoms of Amalur: Re-Reckoning’s story is fascinating and still holds up eight years later. The combat is basic yet enjoyable, providing several opportunities to be a deadly assassin, unstoppable warrior, or powerful mage. However, the near-constant technical issues derail this game almost entirely. Kaiko has since provided a significant quality-of-life patch after the game’s release, so fans may not run into the same issues. The early impressions show improved performance and fewer framerate issues.

FIFA 21 is an exercise of refinement, not evolution. The newest installment highlights the downsides of annualization, but also highlights that EA is listening to fans. FIFA 21 doesn’t make a million changes and improvements from FIFA 20, but the changes and improvements it does make go a long way in enhancing the experience.

John Carpenter’s Toxic Commando delivers a wild ride through the undead apocalypse with just enough new to make it worth your time. It takes the familiar bones of the genre and wraps them in something bigger and louder. Sometimes that spills over into repetition, but when everything clicks, which it will for your first several hours of play, it feels like standing in the middle of a raging river (of zombies) and letting the current (of zombies) carry you straight through the storm.

It can be challenging to wrap one's head around Stranger of Paradise: Final Fantasy Origin. On the one hand, it is utterly steeped in Final Fantasy mythology. And yet, it's a far cry from a traditional Final Fantasy game. In a way, it feels like an attempt to apply the Final Fantasy VII Remake approach to a game much less suited to such treatment, with fascinating, if not entirely successful, results. Fans of heavily customizable action games will find a lot to love but might be divorced from the nods and homages to Final Fantasy history. It'll be the players who have a foot in both worlds that will most enjoy Stranger of Paradise, but despite some narrative pacing issues and a bit of bloat, most players will find it an enjoyable, action-packed fantasy adventure.

LEGO is all about taking pieces and connecting them together to build something new, so it's only fitting that LEGO 2K Drive combines parts from so many other great games; combining pieces of Mario Kart 8, Forza Horizon 5, Sonic and All-Stars Racing Transformed and the LEGO games of Traveler's Tales has resulted in a surprisingly high-quality racer. Sometimes last millisecond losses can feel a little bit cheap, and the building mechanics can feel a little bit daunting. Despite these minor issues, LEGO 2K Drive proves that there's still a lot of gas left in the tank for the LEGO brand, and brick fans of all-ages should drive away satisfied.

It is a game that does one thing, and it isn’t reinventing the wheel. It’s just golf, and without those extra levels of unprecedented creativity, it isn’t going to be the most memorable title to come out this year. If you don’t like virtual golf, this isn’t going to change your mind. If you do enjoy golf and miss the days of having Wii Sports golf be relevant, then it’ll be a fun, if not mindblowing, experience.

I really wanted to like 12 Minutes. It's a compelling concept, but the game's rigid structure and lack of options make it feel less like a game about a time loop and more like a narrative adventure where I kept having to sit through "Game Over" screens because I didn't make the specific choice necessary. As a result, it feels like the most irksome elements of Capcom's Ace Attorney series, without the rewarding aspects. At times, I was genuinely surprised by the options made available to me, but far more often, I found myself feeling like the game's concept was basically just window dressing. 12 Minutes feels far too limited for its concept, and that makes the game feel like a chore far more often than not.

I'm hoping that Modus will continue to support the Cris Tales with patches to address some of its technical issues. Decreasing load times might be too much to hope for on Switch, but game-breaking bugs are another story. I feel optimistic about it because Cris Tales is too good of a game to leave things like this. It puts new spins on some classic JRPG elements and creates an aesthetic all its own, telling tales that are universal and troublingly timely. Technical flaws aside, Cris Tales is a potent blend of the best of the JRPGs that inspired it and fresh ideas from a unique and personal perspective. Playing it is like discovering a fantastic SNES RPG from another timeline (with much more advanced graphics), serving as both a love letter to the past and an invitation to push forward, and it is likely to capture the imaginations of anyone who embarks on Crisbell's journey.

Unfinished Business as a whole is a worthwhile addition to the RoboCop lore. Its thoughtful narrative and empowering gunplay are unique within the first-person shooter genre and loyally translate RoboCop’s core tenets into an interactive form. Some of Rogue City’s issues, like abysmal lip syncing and awkward dialogue camera, have carried over into this standalone expansion, but those are relatively small dents in this game’s shiny armor. Like most bullets, they bounce off RoboCop’s chassis and don’t impede his ability to serve and protect.

Compared to other recent open world games, even those released on the Nintendo Switch years ago, Pokemon Scarlet and Violet is something of a disappointment especially in the graphics department. But for better or worse, Pokemon games are rarely judged by their immense fanbase against anything that's not a Pokemon game. And as a Pokemon game, Pokemon Scarlet and Violet is an absolute joy with a deeper storyline than usual, a ton of fantastically designed Pokemon, and continued quality-of-life improvements that makes for a less tedious Pokemon experience without sacrificing any essential bits. Pokemon fans will love Pokemon Scarlet and Violet, and even casual players or lapsed Pokemon fans will enjoy the allure of "catching 'em all" provided they don't place a premium on graphics.

The Battletoads reboot has a little something for everyone. It's accessible, well-executed, and largely rewarding. It captures the energy and spirit of the franchise for diehard fans while also providing the best possible entry point for new fans. Sure, it might be a little simpler compared to some of the more expansive titles available today, but it does a stellar job of bringing Battletoads into the modern era while also harkening back to the days of playing the game on NES. It's the kind of game you'll want to spend hours in... even if you want to rage quit here and there.

The Marvel MaXimum Collection follows the trend of modern collections to simplify the game, which does take away some of the natural challenge and engagement. When lives are infinite in X-Men: The Arcade Game, then some of the tension of battles and the excitement of victory are undercut. The whole point of these collections is to recreate those original games in all their weird, fun, colorful glory. This isn’t a problem with the Marvel MaXimum Collection alone, but it does reflect the idea that this game feels more like a museum piece than a full-throated embrace of the titles. It’s still a very good piece of superhero gaming history that remains a lot of fun to play, but it doesn’t perfectly capture the feeling of playing those original games quite like some other collections have in the past. Luckily, the strength of the presentation and the enduring quality of the games featured in the collection deliver a timeless experience.

If you're looking for a solo shooter that will keep your attention, you might want to steer clear of this one. For everyone else, Rainbow Six Extraction is a fairly enjoyable experience.

I often felt like the game gave me multiple chances to save a character so that, even if I missed a vital item previously or erred in judgement otherwise, one bad decision isn’t a death sentence. Like a horror trivia night centered around a game you’ve never played or a movie you’ve never watched, Little Hope feels best when you try to get in the heads of the characters and imagine what they’d do and how others would respond. There are characters that’ll make you swear in the beginning that you don’t care what happens to them, and you may even root for their downfall, but you’ll be cheering them on by the end.

Bleach Rebirth of Souls excels rather well as a fighting game but less as a complete package. The story mode, most of all, feels a bit sloppy, which is a shame considering the source material. Still, this is Bleach’s best video game outing by far and a great fighting game in general. You’ll be hard-pressed to find a game that turns the tides as much as Rebirth of Souls does. While not perfect, it has what it needs to become a staple title for anime/manga fans to enjoy.

Ultimately, Story of Seasons: Pioneers of Olive Town is exactly what you would expect from the beloved staple. The farming sim makes some bold leaps with its crafting system, but there is nothing groundbreaking in its formula. You can expect the same charming and wholesome aesthetic from this game much like all those that came before it. And even so, this routine will keep fans of the franchise coming back for more.

Compared to other recent open world games, even those released on the Nintendo Switch years ago, Pokemon Scarlet and Violet is something of a disappointment especially in the graphics department. But for better or worse, Pokemon games are rarely judged by their immense fanbase against anything that's not a Pokemon game. And as a Pokemon game, Pokemon Scarlet and Violet is an absolute joy with a deeper storyline than usual, a ton of fantastically designed Pokemon, and continued quality-of-life improvements that makes for a less tedious Pokemon experience without sacrificing any essential bits. Pokemon fans will love Pokemon Scarlet and Violet, and even casual players or lapsed Pokemon fans will enjoy the allure of "catching 'em all" provided they don't place a premium on graphics.

Sand Land is a gorgeous game that is far larger than you might expect, and it's ultimately worthy of a journey, but there are several factors that are holding it back from being one of the biggest anime games of all time.

FAIRY TAIL is bombastic, breezy, and full of fun to watch characters, except, this time, it's us making it all happen.

NHL 22 didn't do a whole lot to improve on its predecessor, but it didn't have to. The important part is that the development team didn't do anything to change the game for the worse. The franchise was already a ship sailing smoothly, all anyone needed to do was keep it steady.

The Medium certainly has a story worth telling, but the stop-and-go nature of the vehicle for the narrative may prevent some from fully exploring it. The Xbox Game Pass release seems like a smart route for the game because of that, and while I’m normally hesitant to experience games in this way, I feel like I would have enjoyed The Medium much more if I’d watched someone else play it.

Blades of Fire is a promising game, especially for a new IP. MercurySteam has laid an excellent foundation, picking and choosing the best elements from other action RPGs and combining them with new ideas to create this engaging amalgamation. The world is fleshed out and a delight to discover, and the combat is the perfect balance of challenging and rewarding. The story of Blades of Fire needed more time and attention, but it served as a fine enough vessel to propel me through the delightfully dark world.

While the home base aspect of the game is underdeveloped, the combat at the core of The DioField Chronicle is a breath of fresh air. Paired with a story steeped in intrigue and drama, The DioField Chronicle will likely satisfy fans of the genre while possibly charting a new path for it in the future.

The reason RPGs first hooked me as a kid is because they always felt like they were my journey. There was something really charming about being able to name your character after yourself and feel like your decisions had an impact on the experience. Miitopia is a perfect evolution of that concept, giving players the freedom to make an experience that's truly unique to them. It can drag at times, and die-hard RPG fans will likely scoff at the difficulty level, but it perfectly distills that core appeal of the genre in a way that really works. Miitopia is whatever you want it to be, and if you're willing to lean into the absurdity, you'll love the ride.

Ultimately, Lords of the Fallen is a good enough "Soulsborne" entry, but a number of its technical issues and gameplay foibles stop it from being truly great.

While decisions may not have always been as weighty as I would’ve liked and the marionette movements were often distracting, Last Stop, for the most part, succeeded where it needed to. It provided three distinct stories that were surprisingly deep considering it only took about six hours to tell them all and allowed players to feel like they were in control even if that might not have always been the case. I never felt like my time was wasted in Last Stop, but if the game ever gets a follow-up, it’ll have to be more polished with some meaningful changes to warrant a return to its stories.

This title certainly marks the next phase of Just Dance, and it makes baby steps towards innovation. If you were hoping Just Dance 2021 would revolutionize the franchise as a whole, well, you will be disappointed there. The game feels and functions much like recent entries from 2019 and 2020. Still, its challenging choreography and updated features are sure to please newcomers and diehard dancers all the same.

EA Sports makes some fun changes on the surface, but the more you play, the more you see all the same problems bubbling to the surface. I think this year's version is marginally better than Madden NFL 24, but not in any way that's going to matter to most fans. Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm going back to College Football 25.

The Sims 4 Businesses & Hobbies is a solid Expansion when it comes to adding new mechanics for running small businesses. These features do as intended and add a level of depth to gameplay for Simmers who enjoy this style of play. For those looking for a massive new world full of new pre-built lots and items, it may not quite live up to its price tag, but for aspiring Sim Tycoons, this pack will feel like a dream come true.

At no point during my playthrough of Scorn did I ever consider it a "fun" game, and to its credit, developer Ebb Software has made no effort to disguise the game as such. Through all its grit and grime, Scorn's more of an experience than anything else. Completing only one playthrough may mean leaving some secrets and story threads likely left uncovered, but one playthrough is more than enough for the grotesqueness of Scorn to leave a lasting impression.

While combat is the driving reason for Code Vein 2, it isn’t the only aspect. The game aims to deliver scale, freedom, and flexibility, but these come with tradeoffs. While the world is visually striking and filled with potential, it does not always feel as lively or narratively driven as it could be. The result is an experience that excels mechanically but sometimes struggles to give those mechanics the emotional weight they deserve. Still, soulslike fans do not want to miss this difficult RPG.

I've enjoyed my experience in Pokemon Unite, and I feel that the core 5v5 matches are definitely something that players can sink a lot of hours into. The gameplay is a bit more forgiving than League of Legends to newcomers, but you'll still have to work to figure out how to master a particular Pokemon's skills and fit them into a wider team strategy. The pay-to-win criticisms lobbied by the fans are valid and are concerning given the Pokemon franchise's younger demographic. If Tencent can tweak their revenue strategy to make it so that players don't need to pay money in a free-to-play game in order to compete, than Pokemon Unite should have a long shelflife and could be Nintendo's first successful foray into the MOBA competitive scene.

Atomic Heart can be a frustrating experience, but it also gives you as the player more than enough variety to warrant a look if you are searching for an interesting shooter that has lots of options when it comes to your play style. There are some compelling ideas here, but much like the entirety of the game, they're a mixed bag. It's a little rough around the edges but there definitely is a good time to be had if you're looking for a spiritual successor to the Bioshock franchise.

Not everything in High on Life 2 is as symbiotic, but it’s still a quality experience that’s a clear step up from its promising predecessor. Like that original, not every attempt at humor lands, however, enough of them do and make for a sequel that is both funnier and more consistent. Gunplay isn’t able to keep up with this consistency, as it requires more than a few upgrades and stronger firearms to more accurately fulfill its potential. Perhaps another follow-up could smooth out these rougher patches and be a more powerful dose of Squanch Games’ signature comedy shooter blend, but High on Life 2 is still a potent enough high.

Mario Golf: Super Rush is just about everything a player could want out of a Mario sports title. Nintendo and Camelot really threw the kitchen sink at the game, giving players a plethora of options to make the experience whatever they want it to be. The three modes available in Play Golf are a blast solo or with other players, and Golf Adventure is a meaty single-player experience for those that want one. Re-doing the same challenges in Golf Adventure can be a bit of a pain, but it can also be pretty satisfying completing some of the tougher tasks. Mario Golf: Super Rush continues the proud legacy of the series, offering just about everything a fan could ask for.

The Callisto Protocol isn't necessarily bad, but it doesn't do much to verify why survival-horror fans wanted these types of games back in the first place. With a bit more depth to its various systems and mechanics, The Callisto Protocol could have been far more enjoyable from start to finish. Instead, my main takeaway from Callisto has simply been that I'm now that much more excited to play a number of other survival-horror games that are set to release in 2023.

Digimon Survive really just gets in its own way. Fans of the anime will find it familiar, but will be able to appreciate what the extra layer of violence adds to it. Getting through it is the tougher ask. Dialogue options leading you away from where you want to go (and potentially disconnecting you to the characters), key battles being few and far in between, and asking you to jump back in multiple times despite all of that seems like rubbing salt in the wound for those who already had notable issues. It's a story fans will want to check out, but maybe not as many times as Digimon Survive wants.

Trek to Yomi starts to come into its own only as it heads towards its finish. It's easy to admire what Flying Wild Hog set you to do with Trek to Yomi. It's an attempt to blend the appeal of the classic samurai film genre with the interactive moodiness of fellow indie games like Playdead's Limbo or Inside. It's partially successful in that regard, but while the ideas underpinning the game are solid, their execution leaves something to be desired. Ultimately, Trek to Yomi could have benefitted from more time studying the blade.

If Kabam can figure out how to tone down their constant asks for money and also provide players with more variation in actual gameplay, they may have a hit on their hands with Disney Mirrorverse. The characters are certainly cool and I'd love to see the world expand to include more stories over time. However, because of the constant barrage of in-game ads, I certainly wouldn't recommend this game to kids, despite its use of beloved characters.

The game does offer fans plenty of quotes, profile pictures, and other knick-knacks to collect throughout its playtime, along with a number of play modes such as Versus and Training Modes to help sharpen your skills, but it feels as if something is missing from the experience that could elevate the first video game outing for Demon Slayer from good to great. If you're a fan of the series, or just want to see some eye-popping visuals with some fast and frantic gameplay, definitely check this one out, especially if you can overlook some of the game's faults along the way.

The Devil in Me served as a pretty poor ending for the first "season" of The Dark Pictures Anthology. Mobility mechanics and inventory management were fine additions, but they did little to elevate the game and mostly made it apparent that somewhat basic things like that were absent from previous installments. The next Dark Pictures game awaits regardless of the pitfalls of this one, however, so hopefully, Season 2 will be off to a better start than the end of Season 1.

Star Ocean: The Divine Force isn't a bad game. However, it is a game that feels stuck in the past, out of step with the current JRPG renaissance. It fails to adopt the quality of life improvements pioneered in the past generation games, relying too heavily on past precedents, whether or not those precedents ever worked well. Those looking for classic JRPG comfort food will appreciate what The Divine Force has to offer: fast combat, a familiar story, and characters they'll want to get to know. That'll go doubly for those who cut their teeth on PlayStation 2-era JRPG titles, for whom the tedium baked into the game might seem less glaring. Star Ocean: The Divine Force isn't the fully-realized rebirth of the series that it perhaps could have been, but it is at least proof that there is something here worth saving and that tri-Ace deserves to be around long enough for another shot at it.

It’s a decent slice of a game with potential glimmering just beneath its surface that deserves to be fleshed out into something more ambitious. Thief was built on innovation, as the original was one of the games that helped popularize the stealth genre. And this VR entry, with its primitive mechanics and level design, doesn’t live up to that storied legacy.

Sonic Frontiers has a lot of little flaws, but its strengths are great enough that it's hard to harp on them too much. The game's Open Zones are fun to explore, the Cyber Space levels are well-crafted, and the audio is excellent. Sonic Team has clearly put a lot of thought and care into crafting this new direction for the series, and the results are impressive. I truly hope Sega takes the elements that work in Sonic Frontiers and fine-tunes them for the next entry in the series. The somewhat repetitive gameplay loop is Frontiers' biggest issue, but most Sonic fans will probably be able to overlook it thanks to everything the game does right. Sonic the Hedgehog was in desperate need of a game like this, and it feels great to say that Sonic Team (mostly) pulled it off. The franchise's future is looking brighter than it has in a long time.

Regardless of whether or not you're familiar with Captain Tsubasa: Rise of New Champions, if you're looking for a breezy arcade-style soccer game that relies heavily on its anime influence and has some strong mechanics, this game is worth a look.

For Pokemon fans who miss the steeper difficulty and the lack of XP share, EvoCreo is one to check out, if you can look past some of the issues with its PC port.

Aside from being a faithful take on the Aliens experience, Aliens: Fireteam Elite is simply a good game. Is it a shot-for-shot adaptation of its source material? Certainly not, but I definitely felt like I was in at least some version of an Aliens world through and through. Its loot and combat only improve with time without asking players to mindlessly grind just to keep progressing. The obvious push towards co-op, as opposed to single-player, may be a bummer to some, but even those who venture into Xenomorph swarms on their own will have plenty to look forward to in Aliens: Fireteam Elite.

There's nothing revolutionary about Madden NFL 23, but it's a lot more enjoyable than Madden entries of the last few years. A pivot toward simplicity in all facets of the game represents something of a return to form for the franchise, introducing building blocks that can hopefully help foster continued improvement for years to come.

If you've burned out on Pokemon Sword and Shield and are looking for a not-too-challenging experience to help get through self-isolation and social distancing, Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Rescue Team GX might be the sort of game you need.

With aesthetically pleasing visuals, Tape Two hits its mark when it comes to tackling the harsh realities of life. But with an unsteady pace and lack of depth, Bloom & Rage puts a bow on a present that hasn’t arrived yet. In the attempt to continue the story afterwards, it’s hard to accept the experience of loss and regret that Don’t Nod presents within its short playtime. Scratching the surface to make way for a deeper story later on feels off-putting, even after a story that gives the impression of facing the past has fulfilled its role. Velvet Cove isn’t the same anymore, so it’s best to move on with life rather than wallow in the past.

At about 10 hours, New Tales from the Borderlands is a solid successor to the first title under Telltale, and its story has all the right emotional beats. I cannot count the number of laughs the episodes drew from me, but towards the end, the game's uneven pacing was hard to ignore. Paired with its stale quick-time events, there is more New Tales from the Borderlands to improve on, but this sequel is a step in the right direction.

Don't get us wrong, watching your shark grow from a "toddler" to a "megalodon with bone fins and electric teeth" is a sight to behold, but it ultimately doesn't feel worth the repetitive hours that one has to put in, to say nothing of the game-crashing glitches you may encounter along the way as we did. The idea of playing as a giant shark is a good one, but Maneater just isn't able to capitalize on it.

It's fun, the old-school graphics look great, and developer Interabang Entertainment filled the game with winks and nods that fans will definitely appreciate. The difficulty level might turn off less-experienced gamers, and it's on the shorter side, but these are minor quibbles. This is well worth a purchase for Askewniverse fans. Snoogans.

I really like the on-court action and think most of the modes have cool ideas, but everything is being brought down by an abundance of microtransactions. Sure, they've been there for years, but this year something feels different. I'm not saying you should skip NBA 2K24, just go in with your eyes fully open. If you're someone who can't control their purchasing decisions, 2K will use every trick in the book to tempt you. For me, that's not really an issue, and I'm a fan of 2K24 because of it, but it's absolutely something everyone needs to ask themselves before diving in.

2K21 is still a very playable game that fans of the franchise will be happy to purchase. Without that shooting patch, however, it would have been a much different story.