Minor additions put aside, Wonder Boy Returns Remix is nothing more than straight-up port of the original game, but with upgraded audio-visuals. Does that mean that it isn't good? No. This is just a word of caution for those who wanted something more, or expected a different take in the gameplay. As for the rest, if you don't mind something that doesn't stray far from its very old-school roots, this is the best way to experience one great blast from the past - and without the need to insert any coins.

The numerous goals to aim for in time, and collecting nuts to increase the hero squirrel's wardrobe, provide a great deal of replay value. Depending on the strength of attraction to cuteness, hours spent playing this may reach above a dozen. The lack of tough to beat levels may put off fans of hardcore platformers, but casual ones will welcome this reasonably paced Switch title and its very cute, furry hero.

If Crossroads Inn was an Early Access title, it would be one of the most promising ones in the management sim genre. Unfortunately, the team behind it made the wrong move, and decided to destroy months of work by releasing its product without first completing development. Due to the lack of any competitors in the 'medieval inn simulator' arena, some may find it easier to accept its many issues. Most, however, are advised to wait for some - hopefully inevitable - renovations.

The Witcher 3 Wild Hunt on Switch is guaranteed to keep any commuting gamer occupied, and for those playing at home, it still does justice to the quality of this rip-roaring adventure.

Overall, MXGP 2019 is a fun experience during the thrill of the race. However, unless riders are long-time fans who are dedicated to continue playing this until the 2020 version comes out, anybody else may not find the patience to stick with this for the long-term.

Ring Fit Adventure gently straddles the fine line of trying to be an intense fitness workout routine that wants to get serious about breaking a sweat, while also gamifying movement through its RPG mechanics and on-screen actions. It can't be recommended to drop a whole gym routine for this, but it definitely compliments one - furthermore it could easily help people get into fitness from their own bedroom, or help those who are too busy to head to the gym after a long day at work. The graphical style might detract the target market that Wii Fit aimed for, but Ring Fit Adventure is strong enough to stand on its own two feet as one of the most engaging fitness games of all time.

Not the entry fans of the series would have preferred to see get ported, but Banana Blitz HD is worth checking out for anyone that never played it on Wii, or those that just couldn't deal with the motion controls back then. It isn't the best example of what Super Monkey Ball is all about, as the unnecessary difficulty of the stages, additional random elements and terrible boss battles can really hamper the fun, but as a party game, it still hits the spot. If you really miss playing with monkeys in balls, this is your best option right now, but let's hope SEGA sees fit to bring the superior first two games over in the near future.

Another Sight might not be an adventure platformer that will be remembered like Inside, but it did manage to make playing as a blind girl tolerable. Replay value is low with this one, since there is no post game content and the only collectibles are pages to the character wiki that contains interesting information that should have been an aspect of the actual story being told. The forced walking portions may also kill any desire to replay Another Sight. The moment to moment puzzle-platforming and character switching is the glue that holds this baby together.

Luigi's Mansion 3 delivers up to its expectations, and builds on the first two entries in the series. It has the right level of challenge, varied locales, brilliant animation and comedy. The downfalls are that the base game is relatively short and the free multiplayer can get boring after a while. Nonetheless this looks superb right down to the charming characterisation of Luigi's face, or the stunning environments, and it is well worth a buy.

At times, River City Melee Mach!! struggles under the weight of its own ambition. Attempting to balance a competitive brawler that features over 180 playable characters is a herculean task. It seems that the developer realized this, and focused its attention on making sure this is simply a joy to play. There will be times where nothing goes the way a player likes. Wins and losses aren't decided by chance, but random occurrences are bound to crop up. Nevertheless, Kunio-Kun fans will find a lot to like here. Even when matches devolve into complete disarray, they're still quite enjoyable. For best results, try and find a few friends to fight with.

At the end of the day, Super Box Land Demake would still be a passable first title for an inexperienced gamer. As a first puzzle game, and at its price point, it has plenty of content, and it's fine for what it is. Unfortunately, anyone with any puzzle solving experience at all will find this tedious and frustrating. Ultimately, it can only be recommended to a certain group of people, and once they complete it, it's hard seeing a reason for them to go back.

Overall, it's not a bad remaster, it's mediocre. The game itself, however, is great. Pick it up.

Simple to play, difficult to master, and oozing with late '90s charm, Constructor Plus offers a fairly strategic take on the management sim genre. The title's at times dystopian levels of capitalism not only help lend the overall experience a humorous edge, but that also ties into the cutthroat gameplay loop nicely. Money begets money, a philosophy the gameplay rewards wholeheartedly, whether building property on Earth, or in the reaches of outer space. The main game even features active opposition, keeping scenarios tense, exciting, and engaging all throughout. Constructor Plus is quite the well-constructed sim.

Although undeniably on the short side, it's hard to ignore just how much solid content FRACTER packs into its short length. With only lines of poetry to guide the way, the title's dark aesthetic, and ethereal soundtrack, offers audiences a puzzle experience that's genuinely unique. The difficulty curve gradually increases, offering minor challenges before throwing some pretty intimidating puzzles in the last few levels. With some well-incorporated stealth elements, it all makes for a well paced experience that never outstays its welcome. That FRACTER pulls everything off with so much style and substance is just a bonus.

Considering that this is entirely the work of one person, Disc Creatures is really impressive. The sheer variety of creatures and moves allows for innumerable party combinations. Thankfully, you don't need the rarest finds in order to stand a chance. Defeating the opposition is mostly a matter of having the right tactics and abilities. Still, you can't ignore the importance of experience. The constant grind for stats is not something that all players will be nostalgic for. There are ways to minimize it, but it's still work that has to be done. If you're willing to persevere in spite of this issue, then you'll surely appreciate the rich world, and the developer's attention to detail. For anyone who enjoys vintage gaming of this kind, this is a fine getaway.

Driven Out is by no means bad. Many enemies require good timing and telegraph their attacks clearly enough. Others feel less balanced; their telegraphing is slightly too hard to interpret and their attack patterns seem random. The combat system is more consistent in the sense that it's uniformly monotonous; it's about waiting and blocking over and over. Combat never evolves or introduces variety. Each enemy is unique and has different attack patterns, which is nice, but it also means that Driven Out can lose its appeal quite quickly for many gamers. Why? Consider this: games are about learning the ropes, getting over a hurdle better and better until mastery. There is nothing to master here; there are no stages in which to learn how to beat certain enemy types or to become better. Your skill level stays the same. Overall, though: not a bad second game to develop.

The best parts of Corpse Party: Blood Drive is when the scenario demands only one playable character, isolated in a Twilight Zone Japanese meat-high-school. When these insufferable adolescents banter with each other, it clashes with any semblance of dread or horror. Their dialogue is obnoxious and petty, often commenting on the most superficial. Internal monologue fares much better, but some of the weird fetishised thoughts feel out of place at times. It is shocking that this was localised at all since this is such a weird franchise with some deranged sequences. There are far better Japanese horror games where a young school girl is the protagonist like the Yomawari games or Yumme Nikki; Blood Drive is only for those desperate for some cheap thrills.

Shadowkeep impressed me much less than Forsaken. I hoped that after parting ways with Activision Blizzard Bungie will be more ambitious than to mostly recycle the content we already know. [12/2019, p.76]

Truberbrook's handcrafted backdrops are strikingly beautiful, and its delightful to see such craftmanship woven into a video game. When it comes to the rest of the experience, though, there's very little to sing praise about. As a point-and-click adventure, this fails woefully. As a story-driven mystery, it tediously chugs along without offering anything of substance. Die-hard point-and-click gamers might be able to find some signs of life, but for everyone else there's little here to admire beyond the handcrafted environments.

In the grand scheme of things, Atelier Ryza: Ever Darkness & the Secret Hideout is just another entry in the series, which doesn't have what it takes to be declared the absolute best amongst its many siblings. That said, and although a little more emphasis in alchemy and storytelling, as well as a more open-ended structure would be more than welcome, this is definitely one of the best Atelier titles ever. It's an immersive, beautiful, and relaxing journey, which smells like summer and childhood adventure.

Club Soccer Director PRO 2020 had the chance to occupy a solid niche. A streamlined and less complicated version of Football Manager in terms of football matches, catering to different aspects of club management such as stadium development and sponsorship. Instead, what the developers have done is port a cheap looking mobile title over to PC with no refinements to the engine or UI; labelling it as the premier version, while charging a premier price, while also including all of the in-game purchases. It is simply not good enough. With Sports Interactive offering Football Manager Touch - the streamlined version of their game, for the same price, and without any explicit micro-transactions - any incentive to recommend Club Soccer Director PRO 2020 is severely curtailed.

Ghostbusters: The Video Game Remastered is elevated thanks to its cast and writers. This could have gone so wrong in so many ways but it ended up being one of the better movie tie-in games made in the seventh console generation. Some of the situations can get very hectic since there is so much destructible geometry, but don't expect too much variation when busting ghosts. It would have been interesting if the rookie and the guys were stuck in a centralized setting and had to explore and investigate like a Resident Evil style house but instead set-pieces are connected by moving forward and never looking back. Most importantly, this remaster preserves Ghostbusters: The Video Game from vanishing into obscurity like many movie tie-in games tend to do.

Playing Dusk Diver isn't a bad experience. Just an unfulfilling one. There are some things to like here. Walking around the colourful Ximending district of Taipei, interacting with the small cast of main characters, and then watching them battle monsters is kind of cool. Kind of cool. At its core, Dusk Diver is a simplistic, repetitive, and uninspiring, musou-style brawler.

The Outer Worlds soars on the strength of its characterisation not only of the main crew but its supporting cast. Every character met is a fleshed out personality with their own hopes and dreams that will keep the quest log full, just to hear the peaks and troughs of life on the fringes of space from another point of view. With such a lot going for it narrative wise, it's a relief to see the combat, skill tree, and controls not let the side down; the only downside being the emptiness of some of the major settlements, especially after speaking to so many about a hub of life on every corner. With the time and care given to making everything so unique, not only the buildings but also the inhabitants, it's a small gripe that doesn't detract from an otherwise great title.

Despite a few minor control issues encountered playing the switch version, nothing detracts from the eye-popping pixel art visuals and although brief, the attempt to inject some story throughout is greatly appreciated.

Dead by Daylight has the groundwork for a great game but stumbles in its execution. It could be so much more with just a little more polish. Hopefully, it will inspire better products of this variety, because the concept contains a bundle of promise. Horror fans will find a lot to love - as long as they keep their expectations low. Nevertheless, for all its sins it is still quite addictive and undeniably fun, at least in the right conditions. It's easy to see how it has amassed a fanbase and warranted a port to the Switch.

Code Vein is going to be divisive. Out of the box, it's not a very good game. The balance in difficulty is a mess, with certain classes and abilities feeling hugely overpowered; the partners making even the most challenging encounter easy, until the difficulty spikes massively towards the conclusion. It's in that conclusion that Code Vein shines at its best. For the players willing to invest the time to get there, and good enough to learn how to master the considerably complex system, there is a superb experience waiting. It's just a shame it takes so long to get there.

That A Knight's Quest is being sold on the eShop at all is ludicrous. Combat, enemy design, the camera, the save system, and the script were all in desperate need of more time. Sky9 releasing the title as is, is simply downright embarrassing. Beyond the lack of polish and the frequent bugs, this is a title that ignores 20 years of conventional game design philosophy, and massacres itself in the process. Few have managed to mangle the basics of 3D combat so badly. Play anything else. A Knight's Quest is one of the worst games of 2019.