Hunt: Showdown doesn’t try to do a lot of things beyond its core mission, and the challenging gameplay and limited selection of maps — though they are expansive and interesting — might be a barrier to long-term enjoyment. Assuming the developers keep infusing the game with content, Hunt: Showdown is a fresh take on the genre that has already become a bit stale.

Technical issues aside, Blair Witch makes for a satisfying experience with an oppressive atmosphere, an engaging plot and interesting gameplay mechanics. There’s also plenty of written plot details and collectable items dotted throughout the game, should players enjoy themselves enough to come back and attempt to figure out how to unlock some of alternative endings. Being a horror experience (and one with lots of scripted events) means that the most engaging experience will always be the first run through. At the very least, players can expect the game to be tense, well-paced and imminently memorable.

At the end of it all, Omega Labyrinth Life is a game that was not made to be remembered, but instead made to pander certain kind of players. The overt sexual themes, lackluster story, and misused features all came together to make me uncomfortable at worst, while making me only mildly amused at best. What the game does do well has been done before and better, and everything ends up suffocating under its lovingly rendered and bouncing massive mammaries.

Do I recommend playing these games? Oh yes, absolutely. Grandia 1 and 2 deserve four stars by themselves. The games are dated, yes, but they stand the test of time, flaws and all. They are (mostly) timeless and I would replay them over and over. But maybe wait for this specific collection to go on sale.

Control marks a new and glorious beginning for Remedy and hopefully there are more wonderful things to come. Despite a few pacing issues here and there and some exhausting late-game shoot-outs, I gladly award the game a perfect score. Am I biased doing so as a Finn myself? Maybe, but Control is a game that today's dull, unimaginative and opportunistic gaming climate doesn't deserve, but I’m happy it exists.

Outlaw is irrevocably everything that the first game should have been. It combines arcade and simulation gameplay in a way that is dynamic and fun but it definitely does require commitment. The space combat feels meaty but approachable. The technical graphics are great but the art style is phenomenal. The music is better than in the first game and there’s more of it. In all, I had great fun in the Dodge Sector, so much so I abandoned the main story for about 25 hours. The feeling of being a mercenary and the lure of completing “just one more job” is palpable. Rebel Galaxy Outlaw is a fine, fine game. You could even call it “shiny.”

Though not a game in the traditional sense, Discovery Tour Ancient Greece is a fantastic supplement to Assassin’s Creed Odyssey that, if nothing else, showcases one of the best historical recreations this franchise has ever seen.

As a design doc, a game that combines horror, sci-fi and Norse mythology sounds intriguing but in actually, Apsulov just seems uncertain of its identity. With too much clunky action for a narrative driven walking simulator, and not enough combat to excel as an action game, it’s a lot of bits and pieces that don’t quite connect. The game has some ideas floating around but they’re too often drowned in a sea of over-used cliches, tired gaming tropes and creative cul de sacs that lead nowhere in particular.

By most metrics — polish, graphics, writing, acting and engaging game play mechanics — Gears 5 is an impressive product for both solo players and competitive or cooperative shooter fans. But moving forward, the series desperately needs to venture into new ways of telling its stories and pacing its encounters. The tentative toe-dip into open world design is a great start, but not enough. Gears 5’s campaign is robust and almost always fun and its focus on the female protagonist Kait is a welcome tonal and dramatic shift, though it doesn’t much impact the gameplay. I’m always ready to dive into a new Gears game but I’m hoping next time, The Coalition will take some bold chances, make some tough choices and steer the series in a really new direction.

The randomized nature of the game does allow for new-ish experiences each time you play, though I wish the game took it further, such as making Freedom Town modular so that its camps, playground, open-air theater, and places of worship could be moved around and really shake things up. As it stands, The Church in the Darkness is a decent exploration of cults from the perspective of those participating in it.

Faith is Life Is Strange 2’s most engrossing, heart-wrenching episode and may likely stand as one of the best across of the entire franchise. What it lacks in gameplay, its excellent writing, wonderful performances by the cast, dramatic camera work and cinematic nature more than makes up for the deficit. It is how DONTNOD maturely handles sensitive subject matter like racism, belief, and family that makes this season feel far more grounded to a familiar reality than those before. As far as season finale lead-ins are concerned, Faith will have you counting the minutes until the anticipated conclusion.

There is a disconnect between Rad’s appealing world and character design, art direction and writing, and its frustratingly difficult gameplay. The world is fun to be in, with no lack of clever, imaginative touches but its combat can turn the experience sour. Gamers with grit and patience will discover a lot of layers, secrets and maybe even a little unexpected pathos but many will be turned away by the early game’s barriers.

Final Fantasy VIII Remastered is a prime example of how to do a remaster well. Improved graphics modernize the experience, and modifiers help alleviate the grind issues. That said, I’ve always felt FFVIII needed real gameplay changes. It won’t get that in a remaster, and as such, those who didn’t like the game before won’t like it now. If what you disliked in the original was the grind, put your eyes on this remaster. And if you loved FFVIII in the past or are a curious newcomer, this is the best version of the game by far.

Catherine: Full Body is a curious remaster. After completing the original release eight years ago, I never really felt like this was something that would benefit from an enhanced re-release and yet, it kind of does. Both the character of Rin and new cinematics enrich the story in ways that give it more depth (even if it does venture into some really wild supernatural territory by the end). And at no point does Rin feel shoehorned into the story. I can’t imagine how tricky it must be to write in a whole new character to a pre-existing work but Full Body makes it look easy by fitting her in with nary an exposed seam. Catherine: Full Body might not be for everyone, it’s the very definition of a niche title, yet in the end, I find it hard not to appreciate it on an aesthetic level.

Man of Medan kicks off The Dark Pictures Anthology so elegantly and chillingly that you just can't get enough of that lovie-dovie stuff.

Knights and Bikes is an unique and genuine experience that was engaging from beginning to end. It’s a great example of a high quality co-op game. Thematically and mechanically, the game succeeds in highlighting cooperation. Foam Sword successfully delivers a great title that manages to be both fun and artistically inventive. Knights and Bikes is highly recommended for those looking for a captivating cooperative game to play with a friend.

Anyone who did not pick up The Bard’s Tale IV: Barrows Deep when it was released in 2018 missed an amusing and well-crafted RPG, a definite high point in a storied and popular franchise. With some minor interface and gameplay tweaks and the addition of some new quests and significant additional areas to explore, the Director’s Cut makes a good case for itself and the game includes some nostalgic bonus content and some behind-the-scenes features as well.

After so many years since its debut, Hotline Miami is still a really tight and focused game. Wrong Number carries over much of its predecessor’s greatness, though I don’t like the larger levels that much only because it makes getting ganked by unseen enemies a little too easy. To hand-wave away these games because of their misanthropic tone and senseless violence is to ignore a product that’s addictive, well-designed, and even fun. As for their status as console ports, both titles are a great fit and have arrived on the Switch with nary a blemish. There is no better time to experience the acid trip that is Hotline Miami if you haven’t done so before. For everyone else, this is one double dip that won’t do you wrong.

Ancestors: The Humankind Odyssey is difficult and opaque in many important ways, but its premise is refreshing and its vision compelling enough to keep the player moving forward. Expect lots of false starts and failure at the beginning, but eventually the mechanics become familiar and the achievement of inching the species forward becomes uniquely rewarding.

Whether Erica is a successful fluke or the start of a FMV renaissance is impossible to predict, but the game is a solid and beautifully crafted example of how the technique has evolved and just how effective great interactive storytelling can be.

If you love the thrill and tension of stealth-based gameplay and going up against ever-increasing threats the longer you stay engaged, I think you’re really going to like what The Blackout Club has to offer. It took me a bit of time to warm up to the game and when it all eventually clicked, I started thinking that this might be the sleeper hit of the year.

It is an addictive game, but some people may not enjoy doing the same things over and over, and for that reason I can see it becoming too tedious for a lot of players. But as a fun, casual, couch co-op game, I think Monster Couch did a great job.

Misadventures of Laura Silver: Chapter I is a fun and stylistic – and unexpected – bullseye that really makes you want to see what’s next in store for Laura and Cooper and their new acquaintance Uri.

It is not unreasonable to assume that the software suggested in Eliza already exists, though it has not yet been exploited and marketed. Our culture certainly believes that technology is the solution to what ails us, even when what ails us is technology, and Eliza the visual novel is an interesting and engaging exploration of that thesis.

Oninaki is a flawed but overall an enjoyable experience. Instead of joylessly emulating turn-based RPGs of the old days, Tokyo RPG Factory took a step in the right direction and created a fantastic and refreshing action combat system. Apart from that, the game offers nothing special when compared to many similar RPGs. Still, Oninaki is the best game by Tokyo RPG Factory so far.

In addition to a swarm of pre-release bugs that will hopefully be patched at launch, Remnant: From the Ashes’ biggest misstep is that it sometimes mistakes unrelenting quantity of challenge for a persistent quality of fun.

On paper, there’s a lot to like in Redeemer: melee combos, counter attacks, various weapons, environmental interaction, stealth kills, fun gore, and co-op. In practice, however, there’s little to get excited about. Redeemer – enhanced or not – feels painfully uninspired. All of its mechanics work, yet they do very little to enthuse. It’s the epitome of a game with few glaring issues but similarly no high points to prop it up. If, for whatever reason, you’re starved for top-down action games, it’s worth looking into. For the rest of us, it’s very much a “been there, done that” affair.

I was captivated by the game’s charm and challenge to a degree I didn’t expect. I like how levels steadily introduce new challenges and problems to deal with that make getting the best scores a real endurance test but the difficulty does spike towards the end of the story to an almost unfair degree. If you really want to get the maximum number of stars in the game (and get a trophy for it) you’re going to need other people to tackle the complex and devious cabin designs in the late game and bonus levels. Also, having more people around to play with means more screaming and yelling while the captain cackles away in between bouts of shouting out for more plungers. How is that never not fun? This movie-based game, to my surprise, has a lot more going for it than initially expected.