To crack an old chestnut, Guardians of Middle Earth has the potential to turn newcomers into fans of the genre, but it certainly isn’t up to their standard.

I honestly believe a video game where you play as the eagle that eats Prometheus’ liver would be more exciting than Theseus. Everything about Forge Reply’s game is superficial. It’s pretty to look at, but the gameplay is terribly hollow and lacks variety. Adding to that, it fails to do anything meaningful with VR, using it only to create tension through a series of fixed camera angles whose transition are jarring and disorienting. It pains me to say that this is one game that should have been sacrificed to Hades.

There will be something here for those looking to scratch the Left 4 Dead itch, but Earthfall revels in simply functioning like it should, rather than standing out on its own. It exists in a limbo between a great and bad game, simply becoming a perfectly adequate but forgettable experience. Earthfall will be very heavily reliant on future updates to decide which side of the fence it falls on.

A pretty mediocre game. Unless you're a huge fan of the TV series, you can probably just either shy away from this one or keep as a back up choice for a rental.

There is potential in Da New Guys but it's not a fully realized world that warrants a buy from anyone but the most eager and devoted adventure fans.

In the end, while the story is regrettably un-memorable and fairly lacking, the game play makes up for it with several clever, strategic spins on time-tested game play mechanics. Back that up with solid graphics and audio and you have yourself an old-school RPG that should scratch that itch you've been having.

In the end, RemiLore is a collection of nice programming routines – smooth scrolling, nifty animation and neatly moving objects from monsters to projectiles – but they alone don’t make a very good game when everything else is mostly lacking. Manga girls don’t always equal great entertainment. Lesson learned!

It’s low rent gun porn. At its best, Lethal VR is a tech demo and barely worth notice, even for hungry PlayStation VR owners looking for something to play. Best acquired during a PSN sale, if at all.

Having Cassie's blindness as the defining game play mechanic results in a visually repetitive experience where again, one can appreciate the developer's sincerity in tackling a significant subject, but not necessarily enjoy the aesthetic results. Perception is not a long game but becomes repetitive early on. In the end, the gameplay implications of a character with a significant handicap are folded into an intriguing premise that is simply not executed very well.

In summary, I believe the game could’ve been more than just a little trip runner with the fanciness of a sci-fi setting; there’s so much hype you can produce from a werewolf stuck in a space station before it all is dispelled at the moment of giving the players control over their game.

It’s unsatisfying and the controls don’t feel good and it just can’t hold up its frame rate.

Regardless of the setting and the fantastic visuals, Adr1ft feels like an also-ran walking simulator with more rules and less explanation along the way. It’s a good distillation of the limits and how the genre both does and doesn’t work. It may have been a cool idea but it’s unable to deliver on the promise inherent in being trapped in space, resulting in something too slow, too tedious, and too unsatisfying when you reach the end of its too-long running time.

It’s a thought provoking game with a lot of heart, and it left me excited to see what Swordtales decides to put out next.

Deadly Premonition succeeded because it was fascinating to watch the story unfold through a series of arcs that would eventually involve everyone in the town by the end of the game. For the sequel, many of its characters are little more than obstacles to overcome and when you do, you barely hear from them ever again unless the story calls for them to make an appearance out of convenience. When you get right down to it, A Blessing In Disguise’s attempt to recapture lightning in a bottle largely fumbles because of its severe banality and ho-hum drama.

As it stands, Supreme League of Patriots it well made of unremarkable adventure game.

The combination of an energetic heroine exploring a vibrant world showed enough promise to make me eager for its debut. It’s both sad and frustrating to see the final product because I know it can be so much better. Travel is tedious, with environments so large as if to inspire awe but are a real slog to cross. Half-baked ideas, poor performance, and low reliability prevent it from reaching any heights and unless there’s some serious patchwork to be done, I can easily see this game being forgotten by the end of the year, if not sooner. Ary and the Secret of Seasons has its heart in the right place and displays flashes of greatness but nothing short of a major overhaul can fix its numerous and significant flaws.

With all of the hype and anticipation surrounding Driv3r, it's a shame the game had to fail so miserably like it did.

It succeeds at being scary, but that is about the only part of the game that lives up to expectations. It’s poorly designed and poorly refined stealth mechanics make for a very frustrating experience, and the game gives you no reason to endure that frustration. There is little to reward you for your troubles.

Ultimately, if you’re bored for a couple of hours on a weekend then Skydive will give you something to do. But once you’ve done a few races and some of the challenges, there is very little to keep all but the most dedicated completionists from coming back for more.

While there are elements in Icy that feel interesting and well done, there are too many faults in execution to warrant a play through unless you’re hungering for a wasteland-trekking narrative.

Predator: Hunting Grounds is an asymmetric game with an interesting premise, yet it ultimately fails to deliver its full potential. There are thrilling moments but they are too few and far between. With enough time spent on polishing the game, it could become a top-tier title in its genre. As it is now, it is a tough game to recommend even to the most diehard Predator fans.

The always fun monkey balls rolls onto the PSP, but this time disappoints us with uneven gameplay, dull environments and lack of challenge.

Don’t Knock Twice is a short, play-it-once-and-forget kind of game whose purpose is to promote a film that might have flown below a radar or two. I enjoyed the genuinely unnerving moments of psychological terror that I thought brought the game within arms reach of Silent Hill. As a media tie-in, it’s not an especially bad game but the schtick doesn’t last as long as it should. The game does have two different endings but to ask the player to go through the whole game again just to see them is almost too much. If given a more polish and additional content, Don’t Knock Twice could have been a fantastic VR horror experience.

It's too bad that a game that allows you to play both as a stealth experience or a action game doesn't manage to do either of them very well.

Bound by Flame is an exceedingly interesting game. It attempts to join the ranks of games like The Witcher and Mass Effect with its combat and social elements but ultimately falls short.

Absent server crashes and disconnects, playing through the campaign in co-op mode is still fun and certainly more efficient than slogging through it solo, though it doesn’t improve the quality of writing or convoluted narrative. Ghost Recon: Breakpoint blurs the line between a singular, well-defined approach to the tactical shooter and a whole mess of other games, and the result is a loss of identity with little gained in the process.

There is really not much else that can be said about Shrek the Third, other than it is disappointing to constantly see games that could be enjoyable but fall into the stereotype of bad games based-on movies.

Released in 2013, LSL:R feels just as out of date as Gearbox’s Duke Nukem Forever, and critically speaking, I can only offer a review based on what it is now, not by what it was then. To the fans though, the score I give really doesn’t matter, nor should it. They paid for the game they love, and in this case, they got exactly what they wanted, dick shaped nose and all.

Not even the flashy visuals can help THQ's latest from its sluggish action, dull story mode and lagging online play.

It probably isn’t fair to classify Beat Blasters III as a “music game”, but rather a quality action game that thrives on music. If this sounds like something that you would like to experience, then you owe it to yourself to give it a try.

If you are looking for a game that will keep you entertained for hours, you’ll be best off looking elsewhere. The enjoyment I did find, I found when playing it in quick 10-20 minute sessions but anything longer than that the repetitiveness of the game would wear on me causing boredom.

It's unfortunately easy to focus on what's lacking about Empyre, but the game's premise and setting are sufficiently original, and its combat is engaging enough to warrant a look. Perhaps given a larger team and a longer development process, some of the empty spaces could have been filled in. Some voice work, more attention to craft compelling characters, and a more nuanced and branching story in which the player could feel more important, would all help elevate the game to another level. If Empyre: Lords of the Sea was a novel, I'd say it was a promising first draft.

Avoid this game at all costs, young Padawan…and may the force be with you, always.

A hack and slash game should have been a decent choice for a newly launched console, but this one is made nearly unplayable by its frustrating camera system and shallow gameplay.

It may not take any giant leaps for the platform but it does give a solid performance and really shows that Beenox takes their hand held games seriously. It gives us hope that they can really pull off something great in the future.

Crazy Machines Elements is a solid puzzle game that lets you relive the glory days of playing Mouse Trap or perhaps discover for it the first time.

If you can get past the graphical limitations and enjoy the game for its interesting puzzles and story, then Close To The Sun is well worth your time and money. If not then perhaps try it on another platform. After all, the Switch version is a compromise that allows you to play it on the go, and because of that it probably doesn’t do the game justice. I for one, intend to pick up the game and give it a go on a console, or maybe when it releases on Steam next year. But regardless of the platform, you choose to play it on, you can expect to enjoy Close To The Sun not only for its gameplay but also for its story of horror, mystery, and intrigue.

This is just a game that was set to have high expectations and unfortunately was unable to capitalize on these high hopes and came out with a pretty down the middle experience.

Taking a break from the platform genre, Sonic goes racing ala Wipeout, with plenty of speed and more speed. Decent racer, albeit marred by a momentum-killing annoyance.

Amazing Spider-Man on Vita, while impressive in scope, is more disappointing than broken.

The Bradwell Conspiracy runs terribly, the visuals are nothing special and the narrative is silly at best but that doesn’t stop Amber and the dialogue from standing out. I’d love to see what the developers, A Brave Plan, could do with more focus on the characters rather than plot, and a bigger budget for art and QA. There are the seeds of a great studio visible within the game but the fruit is not currently evident. I look forward to what A Brave Plan makes next but I can’t recommend The Bradwell Conspiracy.

Of course, every console launch has a few hits and a few misses and ports that feel like cash-grabs. If Bright Memory was a free game, it would be easier to recommend. As even a low-price game, it is hard to sell as representing the power of the new console. If anything, it might be responsible for a little buyer remorse, so my suggestion would be to skip this port and wait for Bright Memory: Infinite in 2021.

The Witch certainly has bags of style, but is let down by brain-dead AI and short gametime.

Tons of potentials here, but spoiled by overly simplistic controls and horribly sluggish frame rates.

A game this broken doesn’t warrant a playthrough of any kind and is the sort of purchase that fills one with regret instantly afterward.

Sword & Fairy 6 felt like I had binge-watched 64 half an hour-long episodes of a Chinese fantasy drama TV series. Productions values may have been low and effects cheesy but the actors and actresses were beautiful and the story so gripping that I couldn’t stop myself.

Demolish and Build has its heart in the right place but could also use another passthrough so that its expectations and instructions are clear and concise. A game that gives you reign to blow a bulldozer into the side of a building should be fun but the tedium, wishy-washy controls, and poor guidance turn the game into a test of patience.

Trials of the Blood Dragon is a great idea on paper but when it messes with the design that makes Trials so fun to play, the whole experience nearly collapses under the weight of its ambition.

A mediocre wrestling title that has a great list of wrestlers, and game modes, but doesn't have the goods to back it all up.

A trip back to the drawing board would probably be the best bet for the developers as this is a game that has some good intentions but not great execution.

It would be a gamble to recommend it to most people, but for some who might find the concept intriguing and might find the elements I found frustrating simply a challenge, it might still be worth a look.

Fade to Silence is a true survival game that I want to like a lot more than I do. A passionate team has cooked up some tasty scraps in this frozen hell, but I’m forced to share the meal with irritating company. The ideas are great in theory, but too many elements end up in the realm of mediocrity. Nothing ruins the game, though, yet it is also prevented from being something more. The end result is a survival experience that’s simply enjoyable, but I can’t commend it beyond that.

Even with the talent of Patrick Stewart the game is just not playable in a way that would make for a fun and enticing experience.

This new release -- cosmetically better but lacking the overhaul that would really help the game stand up to current titles -- doesn't go far enough. I wouldn't go so far as to call it a cynical cash-grab, but I am disappointed that it not only fails to make the original Titan Quest experience much better, it adds some additional flaws and strips away some of the potential for enjoyment.

A sincere and genuine attempt to tell a story about the impact of depression, Anamorphine as a delivery vehicle for addressing mental illness is constantly undermined by its engine troubles.

It falls into the same traps that have plagued the genre for years. The game’s internal logic is hard to follow, the puzzles incorporate too much trial-and-error, and the plot is contrived and inconsistent. This is all combined with cheap-looking Flash visuals. The game isn’t a lost cause and its nostalgic playstyle may still appeal to the most hardcore graphic adventure fans. Otherwise, the crew of the Helmholtz Resonators are on to something: there are probably better things to do than solving the mystery of Woolley Mountain.

If you're ready to relive those golden days of spending your allowances at the arcades, be prepared to pay quite a premium for this average collection.

Even if the game’s challenge or the appeal of having a shiny new toy tempt you to acquire this game though, you are better off leaving it alone.

When you first take a peek at 2Dark, the name, the descriptions and whatnot, you get a sense that this game is just gonna be another generic survival horror game that takes itself way too seriously -- maybe with crafting elements sprinkled in there to further piss me off; No charm, no redeeming value, either a Silent Hill knockoff or a Slenderman knockoff. However you will soon realize that 2Dark is, and thank god for that, its own original thing with a different approach to horror. The story is deliberately cheesy. The game itself knows that the story's bland, is quickly brushed off and rarely mentioned ever again. You're a private detective with a murdered family who rescues children from evil clowns, serial killers and rest of the kitchen sink. It's okay, not too aggregating, a bit too edgy but mostly harmless.

Bitlogic: A Cyberpunk Arcade Adventure captures the feel of games from a bygone time, but it does so in a fashion that is almost entirely detrimental. The restrictions on aiming and movement makes combat unpleasant, and traversal is usually a matter of trial and error. Although the MSX version of the game, included in the package, has a fairly striking look, the updated graphics don't look nearly as inspired, and smaller details, like the lack of death animations for enemies or the protagonist, make the visual overhaul rather unconvincing. The more interesting enemy setups in the last few areas tease at undercurrents of potential that is never fully reached. There are many titles out there that utilize the archetypes of classic gaming to create challenging and rewarding gameplay loops, but Bitlogic is not one of them.

As good as the game could have been, you cannot manage to overlook the fact that the experience just isn't up to par with other basketball games that are out there right now.

It's a lot of work to get into politics, but it's also a lot to try and turn it into a simulation for us to play at home. I would never say this game is a perfect simulation of anything, but it does a great job of being a simple, accessible simulation game even for people who aren't really into that type of game.

Pirate Pop Plus is really just a victim of changing expectations in the market – if it had come out on the original Game Boy, say, it would be an easy rec. Fun, high score challenge, and look at how much to unlock, just incredible! But now it just feels very shallow, and the $5 asking price starts to feel weirdly steep for a game that would feel so much more at home on a phone, the last bastion for these kinds of "boot em up quick at the doctors office!" types of games. If it comes out there and has an awesome high score tracking feature or something, it's easy to recommend, but now if you just want to grab something fun and don't mind spending the $5, you could do worse.

The classic Frogger series seeks to shine again, but instead cannot seem to get with the times, due to frustrating controls and stale gameplay ideas.

I would say if you are looking for a LEGO game on the go then you should probably just keep waiting until they decide to put forth a real effort. If you still want to check this game out then I can only warn you by saying it's only slightly better than their last attempt and can only hold up because of the source material.

The game heartily emphasizes family values, where the unifying factor is ultimately to love over good food. Those who enter the family from outside are as much uncles, aunts, and cousins as those who were born into it. Of course, the story is mushy, but these days when gritty games try their hardest to tear you into pieces, there’s a vacant lot for feel-good entertainment. In this context, it’s heartless to moan about some gameplay and design issues, like mostly uneventful driving parts or linear nature of family meetings where a failure is hardly an option. All these gripes are fully acceptable if you put your heart into the game. Road to Guangdong might not be the next must-buy hit but it has more humanity to share than most games out there put together.

This all may come across as overly harsh and a tad vindictive, but I really wanted to love this game. There's so many juicy elements in Valkyria Revolution that could have been molded into a truly wonderful experience, but all those pieces just never seemed to properly assemble. I appreciate that the designers tried something new with the combat, but trying to blend strategy RPG elements with a hack 'n' slash just didn't work in this case. If you're curious about the Valkyria franchise, my advice would be to pick up the HD remaster of the original Valkyria Chronicles. I can't speak for the two follow-up games released on the Vita, but I can say, with certainty, that Valkyria Revolution is not worth your time or money.

I think Jurassic Park is a game that can be skipped. A couple of great moments with the T-Rex cannot help this 6-8 hour long treacherous journey through Isla Nublar.

It's bound to happen sooner or later. Critical Hour serves up an uninspired gameplay and dull visuals, which had all the signs of a rushed title.

It’s a shame some of the weird recognition stuff gets in the way, but if you just want to solve some puzzles, it’s more than adequate, and if you can solve them fast enough, even the time trial modes are easily overcome.

Sadly, about halfway through the lessons, the difficulty of completing the challenges spike, making the training far more aggravating then helpful. With this being the only other mode, the entire package feels feature light, even for a moderately priced downloadable offer.

Insomnia: The Ark has an exceptionally cool premise and a very complex story to tell but the game that Mono Studio built to house its vision doesn’t always do a great job. It simply moves too slowly and lacks a central narrative drive. It’s burdened by combat that is both hardcore and limited, and by lots of smaller issues that add up to a bigger overall impression of messiness and missed opportunities.

Don’t bother with Nippon Marathon if you don’t a have company to play the game with or if saying “keep it real, keep it Nippon” makes you irritated. Everyone else, though, forget cheap production values and throw yourself broad-mindedly into the craziness of Nippon Marathon!

When it is all said and done LOTR: Conquest is a good game that fans of the series will enjoy.

Warfighter is uninspired, underdeveloped, and completely profligate with the solemn potential of its core concept.

All in all RocketBowl has a great idea of what a bowling game can do to appeal to someone who isn’t a big fan of the sport, but fails to use it at any level.

The only problem is it has to be fun, and Lost: Via Domus is just not.

It’s delightful that marginal games like Overpass are coming out that serve the need of a very niche market. What is not pleasing, though, is that the quality of the game doesn’t match its full-price tag. For all intent and purposes, Overpass should be a budget title that would excuse some of its issues. As it stands now, I can’t help but think that Overpass feels like playing a PS2 game on an emulator in HD resolution. Maybe some 15 years ago it could have been a cutting edge, but now ... not.

After playing through Legend of Kay, I really have mixed feelings. I got used to its outdated features that were popping up from time to time, and really enjoyed the overall story and especially its delivery in a comic book fashion. But bringing back Legend of Kay, which was arguably a good game back on the PS2, the developers should have needed to make it stand out today. Visuals are good, but there are still outdated features present.

Is Knee Deep worth it? Is Knee Deep, with so many alternatives available whether you are looking for an adventure game or a deep, thought provoking indie game, really worth it. If you're looking for a good adventure game with choice driven dialogue that impacts the overall story, I would suggest you check out a Telltale game that has been relesed in the last 3-4 years, or maybe Grim Fandango, I know that it's a bit old school but come on it's good.

Pixel Heroes: Byte & Magic uses its happy-go-lucky attitude to its advantage. It’s a great game for players who are looking for a very light RPG experience, or players who don’t have the time to pour into a more absorbing game. Sadly, there is not much to fall back on under the surface mechanics, but Pixel Heroes: Byte and Magic can stand up on its own as a quick, fun, and lighthearted game.

Aside from the hit-and-miss movie, the video game version didn't fair to well, with horribly simplistic combat and grainy visuals leaving you asking - what's the point?

The Trials component of this crossover came out swinging, with inventive level design and a host of enjoyable new mechanics, but Blood Dragon deserved better than this.

There’s already a really good foundation in place for something that could be really fun to play. Tightening up the gaps in between battles, opening up new environments faster, and redoing the level design would go a long way in making Time Carnage VR really cook.

Smashbox Arena proves that not all game genres can weather the transition from a console game to immersive virtual reality. This is something you could easily play without the headset, though it wouldn't do the game any significant favors. With or without VR, it doesn’t change the central concern that this game just isn’t fun to play. The shooting part is pretty okay and almost fun for the first few rounds. What kills the game is the lack of meaningful challenges by way of playing against other humans. There is a single player campaign but it's not enough to justify the time you'd put into it. I could never find people to play with and the resulting skirmishes with AI bots made the whole thing regretfully unenjoyable.

Addicted gamer as I am, I had another turn-based tactical combat game to play and review at the same time, namely Mutant Year Zero: Road to Eden. Oh boy, if its audiovisual excellence could be merged with loose and imaginative gameplay of Jagged Alliance: Rage!, we would have a real killer in the genre! Then again, it wouldn’t be the same game anymore. Like its mercenary cast whose prime time is behind them, Rage! really needs its rugged charisma to live another day.

Its a shame to say that FaceBreaker really was a disappointment.

Although the gameplay is sometimes too light for its own good, the relaxing nature of the experience, and the likable cast of idols makes the experience worth trying to some degree. Producing Perfection is such a unique title however, that most gamers will probably want to pass over this experience to something with a little more substance.

Namco's foray into the PSP platform hits a huge snag, as Reckoning's overly simple and repetitive gameplay takes the skill (and fun) away.

From gameplay that boils down to memory quizzes to poor production values to bland stories, there is no reason you should play this game, no matter how big a fan of adventure games or Law & Order you are.

A game based on the American Civil War could get fans excited, and you'd expect more when it carries the History Channel name. A thoroughly disappointing outing.

Fans of the genre and science fiction in general should check out Elea. After all, there are never too many mind-tickling sci-fi games out there.

All things considered, an interesting premise and good storytelling can’t make up for bad game design.

The visuals and the platform challenges create a strong framework for what could be a great game. Despite these sturdy foundations, the skirmishes are problematic. Castle of Heart is blemished by some bad gameplay decisions when it comes to the action. If you can look past these flaws, though, there's an enjoyable game making me warily recommend it.

Mario Party 7 has a minigame, Tile and Error, in which players must ground pound tiles to claim territory. The fact that Flip Wars can so easily be compared to a 30-second minigame from over a decade ago should say a lot about what you’re getting yourself into if you purchase this. Some of the hip dropping, tile-flipping mechanics are genuinely interesting, but Flip Wars is essentially a $10 minigame and a rather average one at that.

The sequel to the Empires branch of the famed tactical actioner actually adds some strategic elements to the mix, but sadly let down by severely dumbed down combat and enemy AI.

In the end, the game fails to be anything more than a Senran Kagura also ran. While I’m not opposed to over the top games of this type (not to mention that the combat is pretty fun), it annoys me when the developers don’t do enough with the material they have. The best thing I can say about the game is how well it adapts to being ported to the PC from the PlayStation Vita (which I played quite a bit). The graphics are sharp and the frame rate is slick with minimal slowdown even when numerous enemies fill the screen. That’s where the good mostly ends. Valkyrie Drive Bhikkhuni has short sidedness to its design that Senran Kagura addressed in its own sequel. So who knows? Perhaps Valkyrie Drive Bhikkhuni 2 might be better.

Regrettably, it amounts to a barely-competent shooter with an off-putting aesthetic, ludicrous plot, gimmicky hook, and a frustrating tendency to repeat its boss-battles more than a JRPG.