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.

Destiny Connect: Tick-Tock Travelers is a child-friendly, happy-go-lucky, time-travelling adventure that's enjoyable... for about an hour or so. Simply put, there are far better JRPGs out there - many of them equally carefree and friendly towards young gamers and newbies, and even more so.

With Mary Skelter 2, Compile Heart has shown that they can deliver a phenomenal DRPG. Every aspect of this entry has been refined to a near-flawless level. The labyrinths are fun to explore, and their gimmicks, while plentiful, never reach the point of overbearing. Instead, they lend the adventure a unique identity, one that's rarely seen in dungeon crawlers. As far as battle-systems go, the developer has done a lot to keep this from being one-dimensional. You can attempt a full-on attack, but the mental state of your allies might suffer, leaving you at risk for the devastating Blood Skelter. Plus it's impossible to say no to an enhanced edition of the first game. All in all, this is a must-have for any fan of the genre.

Ichidant-R was, in many ways, a precursor to the party and mini-game collection titles of today, but tailored for the arcades. To finally be able to play it in English is a treat for any SEGA fan, especially in multiplayer. The amount of mini-games on offer however is pretty low, even if this was a step up from the even lower number of mini-games in its predecessor, Tant-R, which means it does feel a bit repetitive when played in solo. Then, really, M2 has gotten gamers used to better scaling options for titles using the resolution of the Mega Drive, namely in the Castlevania and Contra collections that Konami has up on the eShop right now, so there's really no excuse for not offering the same options here.

At best, this is just a very gimmicky adventure game. Each level having its own thing is a bit refreshing from always having to pixel-hunt for objects, tying simplistic stats into the mix adds some planning, and the way this title forces players to commit to their actions is nice. Sadly, as the journey reaches its half-way point, the story unravels in a very unsatisfying manner. Characters are built up and don't get the proper pay-off, while some disappear entirely. Given the hallucinatory nature of the story, it can be difficult to discern what is real and unreal. This was by design since you can't have a Lovecraft story without people losing their minds, but Call of Cthulhu needed to "wow" people in the endings, not betray them.

Might & Magic: Elemental Guardians is a fair mobile title that offers an enjoyable experience for those who are into collecting monsters to partake in turn-based battles with. In short bursts, this is an entertaining experience that doesn't overstay its welcome. However, once the true grind begins at the conclusion of the story modes, then it can become a frustrating past-time to stay engaged with longer-term. It isn't the best "gache" on the market, but it is a free title for iOS and Android devices, so there's nothing to lose by trying this out. Note that it does require an active internet connection to play, unfortunately - so it's best to play this at home on the WiFi, where there is a steady connection, as Elemental Guardians isn't afraid to crash play-throughs.

A Hat in Time is a delightful 3D platformer, with tight controls, some of the best humour seen in the genre to date and compelling scenarios driving the collectathon aspect of the game. It doesn't revolutionise anything in the presentation department, with rather low polygon models and scenery, but that doesn't take anything away from the enjoyment to be had on any platform it has been released on so far. On Switch, it is held back by some low-res textures and a resolution of only 720p in docked mode, but it does fare better overall in portable mode. Then, still specific to this Switch version is occasional stutter and long load times giving it a rough looking varnish that could perhaps still get ironed out through a patch.

Despite its cartoony graphics, this game is a surprisingly solid city builder. There is enough here that fans of the various genres this takes from will find it enjoyable as they craft their ever-growing city and automation empire. Programming the robots is oddly satisfying as is watching them roll around and taking care of the smaller tasks. A couple of small bugs and some pacing issues prevent it from being truly great, but those remotely interested in the genre will definitely have a lot of fun with this one.

It takes a special kind of talent to make a really boring action platformer. AeternoBlade II can almost be the cure for insomnia if it weren't for its embarrassing voice acted cutscenes. Outside of a few striking vistas, there is so little of value to enjoy here. There are so many better similar kinds of titles out there like Blasphemous or Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night and that is not even counting 2D action games from before 2019. With so little going for AeternoBlade II, there is no reason to ever play it.

Vambrace: Cold Soul is not bad, but it quickly becomes a mindless, repetitive, grinding slog of the same battles that require very little strategy, not to mention the lack of any sort of enemy variety. Enemies come in different forms, but basically consist of similar attacks, with varying curses, and Lyric and her party members are hardly any better. The gameplay loop of exploring, fighting and healing only suffers due to the tedious battle system and the similar-looking dungeons. Beyond that, the story and lore of Icenair is a rich world that deserved better treatment, as the various codex entries enrich the world. Vambrace: Cold Soul had a lot of potential, and while it pulls off some things well, the mechanics hold back an experience of what could've been.

Baffling leaderboard support, lack of remapping, and wonky "Timeless" mode aside, the Vasara Collection is sure to find a home with any fan of arcade classics. The Vasara series, though short-lived, offers a unique blend of STG action and close-quarters mayhem. They certainly aren't a walk in the park. It'll take weeks of constant practice to clear them without continuing. The scoring systems are compelling, and there's a plenty of enjoyment in slashing everything in sight. Give this collection a shot sometime.

For lack of a better term, Golazo! is a pretty run-of-the-mill arcade football sim. It does well to channel a '90s aesthetic and it is sure to create some memorable moments despite the hiccups in its design. The controls are simple enough to pick up and play and the gameplay solid enough to warrant whipping it out for a night of arcade fun with friends, but it certainly isn't going to hold most players' interest when it comes to playing solo against the CPU.

Trails of Cold Steel III is an important title for both Falcom and NIS. For Falcom, it's the penultimate entry in a story arc half a decade in the making - and an incredibly engrossing one, at that. For NIS, it's a step in the right direction after Ys VIII, and proof that The Legend of Heroes' localization is still in good hands moving forward. This is a continuity-heavy RPG with 13 years of video game history, and seven titles building up to it, but the combat and world are strong enough where even newcomers can enjoy the ride. Trails of Cold Steel III is the Erebonia arc at its best.

Although far simpler on a conceptual level than it lets on, For The King is a charming, addictive blend of rogue-like and tabletop RPG elements, culminating in an experience that is far more than the sum of its parts. With multiple campaigns to choose from, a fully customizable party, surprisingly engaging cooperative play, and a currency system that encourages replayability, it's hard not to lose track of playtime. Of course, the rogue-like isn't without its flaws, relying a bit too much on an arguably underdeveloped combat system, but For The King offers an adventure more than worth embarking on in spite of its few flaws.