Sonic CD is a great game. I paid $300 for an attachment and $50 for the game back in the early '90s to see Sonic at his best. Now all you need is $5 and a few minutes for a file download. Sega could have easily charged twice as much for this much-loved classic.

Dyad is not substantial or well designed enough to occupy this body's time once its effects wear off. The games's visuals that recall MTV's Amp are a treat and its manic gameplay is challenging, but these two elements never quite gel together.

Antichamber looks great, is confusing in all the right ways, and may change the way people approach not only videogame puzzles, but real life obstacles as well.

If you've always been curious about this franchise, now is the time to take the plunge -- if you're a fan of old-school 2D fighters, you won't be disappointed.

While it may not look as dazzling as Naxxramas, Blackrock Mountain expansion is still the best add-on yet, edging out the card-only Goblins vs Gnomes. I'm still chipping away at the Heroic fights, and with how many card options are available at this point, I'll probably be messing around with custom decks for weeks.

It's basically a slightly better version of last year's game, which isn't a terrible thing at all since I loved it, but those of you hoping for anything groundbreaking are probably going to be disappointed.

Any game where you're pondering the optimal setup for a chicken head that shoots egg bombs and a bee homing missile is a-okay with me. I won't be endlessly replaying it, but Octogeddon grabbed me hard for a good while.

I absolutely recommend you check out Pikmin 1 if you haven’t already.

I would need to grow a few more hands to count how many times I had to stop playing Sky out of frustration. Whether it was the game not allowing me to move off a ledge or sending my character spiraling down the side of a mountain when all I did was slightly touch the digital joystick, the touch controls and often excruciating camera gut what should be an awe-inspiring vision of discovery. I absolutely believe Sky: Children of the Light is a game most everyone should experience because it is blissful, imaginative, and a sight to behold. I just think most everyone should wait for a console or PC release to do so.

Etrian Odyssey 2 Untold: The Fafnir Knight is a remake that's perfectly timed and well crafted, despite the fact that the formula isn't quite as fresh as the wholly new Etrian IV (I really miss the more open-ended maps).

Packed full of challenges in an endearing package, Blackhole is an excellent 2D platform adventure which succeeds in nearly every aspect of its design. It's polished, visually attractive, and doesn't skimp on variety or difficulty.

Star Ocean: The Second Story R recaptures all the otherworldly wonder of its PlayStation predecessor.

This latest chapter is a good follow-up to an otherwise disappointing second chapter. The back-to-basics dialogue choices, Insult Sword Fighting style of puzzles, as well as the confined interactions, make for a much more pleasant experience.

Florence is an imaginative, breathtaking, heartbreaking tale of two artists trying a love they’re not quite ready for. It’s as honest a look at the subject matter as you’ll find in a game -- or so I've been told by others who've been writing about it incessantly since its release. But as much as Florence focuses on love, I’m not quite sure it’s a fan of it.

Stellaris: Utopia fills out a game that was already bursting. In the time I've had with it, I've played planet-devouring swarms, robotic foxes, militant birdmen, and slaving psionic jellyfish… things. While combat remains a sticking point, and hive minds feel like they have a ways to go before the idea is fully-formed, there is more potential than ever to do what the title does best – tell a story.

Inti Creates could've done "more of the same" and called it a day, but the new characters lend Curse of the Moon 2 a ton of flexibility, the co-op support is commendable, and the subtle refinements can be found far and wide if you go back to play the original game after spending a weekend with the sequel. Curse of the Moon isn't just some quaint offshoot of Bloodstained. It's leading the charge.

The world of Viva Piñata seems right at home on the DS. Despite carrying over some faults from the original and dealing with minor limitations, Pocket Paradise is a terrific addition to the DS library and in many ways improves upon the Xbox 360 version.

I'm a big fan of roguelite action games and city builders, but even if you're on the mild side, Cult of the Lamb is a winning combo.

Even if there are a lot of shared elements between the two games and the ground-based traversal isn't everything it's cracked up to be, Below Zero's greater focus on character-driven storytelling lands well and this standalone adventure captures the unrivaled magic of underwater exploration all over again.

Huntdown is a nihilistic, loud, explosive, even obnoxious arcade shooter. But behind its acid comic style and vulgar tone lies a superb, meticulously crafted action experience, packed with creative and addictive carnage, at a breakneck pace, for an agreeable price. Heed the warning: Do Not Sleep on Huntdown. It's an absolute blast.

Skullgirls has quite a few signs of rushed development, but at its core, it is one of the most well-thought-out and impressive fighting games on the market right now. Future games of the genre are advised to take notes.

There really isn't one negative thing I can say about PixelJunk Shooter 2. The game is even better than I thought it was going to be. And after loving the original, I had high expectations!

Hey, guess what you all? I did it! I made a definitive ruling on Mario Sunshine. I'm sure this won't be debated for another 18 years.

For whatever reason, Tekken Tag Tournament 2 grabbed me, and then it didn't. Every time I boot up the game, I feel my old passion for Tekken growing inside, but then it subsides after about an hour or so. There's nothing glaringly wrong with combat; it just feels a bit bare-bones and too familiar sometimes after every hundred matches or so. While TTT 2 doesn't change the world, so long as you're already a series fan, you should be satisfied.

Shantae and the Pirate's Curse under-delivers on a few aspects of the overall package, but the fact remains -- genie or not, Shantae is still very much relevant in the current market. Just keep in mind that at times it feels like an appetizer for the upcoming Half-Genie Hero, which sees the full return of Shantae's powers as well as a fully playable Risky Boots.

There are also a heap of new items, armor pieces, and crafting options to collect, so those of you who pick up add-ons just to gear up and buff their character will still be pretty satisfied with Dragonborn.

I wish Galak-Z: The Dimensional wasn't so fragmented, because the core experience is a treat for roguelike and space combat fans alike. Even 15 hours through I was still seeing new items and upgrades, which is a testament to its lasting power, warts and all -- I just need to take breaks from the tedium every so often.

It's a very uneven package in the sense that there could have either been a few more games and a few could have been better, but honestly -- $15 isn't a terrible price just for Joust alone.

Henry Hatsworth in the Puzzling Adventure is one of the most unique games on the Nintendo DS, and a blast to play.

If you liked the Trauma Center games, you have to try Trauma Team, as Atlus has evolved the formula so much that its predecessors look pretty primitive. For those that didn't dig older Trauma Center games so much, know Trauma Team is a much improved experience, many times over.

If you have any fondness for the series, or if you're just looking for a solid side-scrolling shooter that's about as hard as can be, R-Type Dimensions faithfully re-creates the original experience and before long you'll be wondering why you did this to yourself.

It's one of those games that pays back the time you invest into it at least double fold. Returning players won't find anything substantially new in this remaster aside from sharper image quality and better performance, but given the budget pricing here, that's a perfectly reasonable offer.

I don't even need the Sean Bean and company timed challenges or the promising now-in-beta Ghost Mode: just keep giving me more maps and I'll keep playing.

If you haven't played this series yet, now is a good time.

Choosing not to reinvent the wheel in regards to its by-the-numbers stealth gameplay, A Plague Tale: Requiem instead goes above and beyond to present greatness in its overall package, delivering an enthralling story, magnetic characters, tense action setpieces, and stunning visuals that rank among the generations’ finest. It won’t bewitch everyone, but for devoted fans of rats and resilience, A Plague Tale: Requiem absolutely delivers.

Death Stranding is not the overly-strange inaccessible walled garden the marketing campaign has made it out to be.

Okamiden exudes charm, perhaps even more so than the original. Unfortunately, charm will only get you so far.

Definitely pick this up if you liked the original. It will likely stay in your DS for quite some time.

It's with a heavy heart that after almost 15 hours of play (including multiplayer and single-player sidequests), we have to report that it simply doesn't deliver the way we had wanted it to. For fans of metal, there are enough inside jokes and nods here to make you smile, and even casual observers of the culture will find enough to hold their attention. But ultimately, the game disappoints, with some "been there, done that" gameplay mixed with some potentially interesting concepts that either fall flat, or sometimes feel like like a chore.

If Cave Story was Amaya's answer to Super Metroid, Kero Blaster is his Mega Man X. It's dense and perfectly paced, just begging to be replayed over and over. If I were to have to introduce someone to the genre of 2D action/platformers, it is probably the game that I'd give them, as it starts off easy-yet-engaging, and ends with giant bosses, swarms of enemies on screen, and everything else you could want in the genre. It's a game you may beat in a day, but will be playing off and on for a lifetime.

It all shapes up to the definitive, and maybe final version of one of the most beautiful, detailed, and passionately developed fighting games in recent memory.

Castle Crashers remains one of the best beat-'em-ups ever created and certainly one of the top games on XBLA to date.

It mimics the Odyssey formula but takes a step backward in almost every way.

The game is still a steal at $2. Fans of 2D action platformers need to check it out.

It might not be the future of eSports, but it is the future of several fun, sweary, elbows-in-each-others-ribs nights with your friends.

It's still impressively open, but once you actually reach your objective marker, it morphs into a shallow experience with shaky writing. Mod support will naturally help grease the wheels a bit, but make sure you stick to Xbox One if you're going the console route and stay on the beaten side path.

Take a few jumping puzzles from a 2D platformer, a pinch of progression from a Metroidvania, the story of a gorgeous indie title, lashings of pixel art, a dollop of relaxing tunes, mix well, and bake until you can see the personality rising out of it. If that sounds tempting, that’s Magical Delicacy for you.

The Wolf Among Us: A Crooked Mile isn't as interesting as episode two, but the undeniable charm of the world and the characters is still ever present.

If you disliked Butcher Bay, then nothing about The Chronicles of Riddick: Assault on Dark Athena will win you over. However, if you enjoyed the original title and are thirsty for more of the same action with several tweaks, feel free to get this game. Just try to forget the last few hours of Athena and don’t mess around with the multiplayer too much.

With improved visuals, overhauled mechanics and exciting strategic potential, MK 11 offers a brilliant fighting experience. Unfortunately, the overall fun is bogged down with miserable modern-day business practices that frequently pump the brakes on your enjoyment. The Fight is the thing, however, and as long as the fists are flying, then Mortal Kombat 11 packs a helluva punch.

Spyro Reignited Trilogy is a fan's dream. This heartfelt remake is bursting with colour, character and adventure, even if it has been developed with an cautious approach to reinvention. Though some might find its retro-fused action a little simplistic in this convoluted era of gaming, Spyro has the ability to entertain even the most cynical player with its wonderful worlds, slick design, and ability to spark the flames of nostalgia.

The level design, enemy placement, and especially the puzzles are all, by and large, wonderfully crafted. There are a few instances where the "traps" seem more unfair than clever, but that hardly tarnishes what is otherwise a terrific experience. You'll be hard-pressed to find a modern game like Legend of Grimrock any time soon, but with a game of this quality, you won't need one.

Burn it All is a true gem of a game that shows just how you can mix creativity across many levels of mobile game design. Given how hard it can be to complete every level as fast as the game wants you to, prepare yourself to keep playing this on and off for quite some hours.

I’m shocked with how well Knockout City turned out. It’s easily the biggest surprise of 2021, something everyone should give a go while it’s still free to try.

It's a fun way to relive the films as an adult and show them to kids at the same time.

This is a must-own game for fans of Marvel, Capcom, or fighting games in general. I bought it on XBLA, and I plan to buy it again when it drops on PSN in a few weeks, and I'd buy the damn thing again if it ever came to the Wii. It's just that good.

Overall, H.A.W.X. is the type of game you'd hope iPhone developers are looking up to. It's a big game in a little package. Recommended.

If you do have a reliable group – preferably one who you already play Mario Party games with – then Mario Party Jamboree is probably going to be your new go-to. In many of the recent entries, I feel a lot was phoned in. Not enough would be changed, but some aspects would feel weaker or even unwelcome. However, while Jamboree mainly just builds off the original framework, it’s a lot tighter and more rounded than we’ve seen since the N64 days. I’ll admit it can be hard to get excited about yet another Mario Party, but this one is absolutely worth attending.

I finished the game in just under four hours. After that, it was another four hours to collect all the Easter eggs and unlock the bonus level. Eight hours of cosmetically solid, wholly original gameplay is worth the ten bucks in my opinion.

There is a genuine allure to SteamWorld Dig, you just have to clear out the rubble to find it.

Strong Badia the Free is mostly made up of all new environments, so it in no way felt like a simple recycling of Homestar Ruiner, and while the game's structure of "convert a country, to move to the next country" makes it inherently more predictable than Homestar Ruiner was, it's still full of surprises.

Newcomers will find a fast-paced, easy-to-play title that relishes in its own ability to capitalize on the wacky approachability and fun of Nintendo’s mascot characters.

Remnant 2: The Awakened King doesn’t do anything too wild or reinvent the wheel, but that’s probably for the best, as the core game is already fantastic. It adds more content to an already outstanding action RPG and continues building on the scale and depth of its world. Content-wise, there’s plenty there with a handful of new bosses, dungeons, and an all-new Archetype. If Remnant 2 already had its hooks in you with the base game, you’ll like what Gunfire Games has to offer here. If you haven’t, now is as good a time as any.

QCF Design had a fantastic core game built years ago, and it holds up today, especially with the added bells and whistles. Despite its generic title, there really is nothing else like the dungeon-puzzling found here.

Dragon's Crown is quite literally a crowning achievement in the beat 'em up genre. Utilizing some of the best design concepts of the past 20 years, Vanillaware succeeds in creating a captivating world that you just can't help but experience over and over.

It's an incredibly dynamic game that seems to perfectly simulate the state of flux that Europe and the Middle East were in during the Middle Ages.

Ultimately, Sam & Max is a finely crafted, hilarious adventure game with classic gameplay whose moments of frustation are overshadowed by the moments of unadulterated joy that they eventually lead to.

At the end of the day, I think Halo: Anniversary is primarily designed for hardcore Halo fans. If you don't already own Halo: Combat Evolved or are still addicted to Halo: Reach, then I highly recommend getting Anniversary.

N+ on the Nintendo DS is a fun, polished game for what it is ... a collection of obstacle courses. But it’s a polished and tight experience, to be sure, although I do feel that the game could benefit from having a tighter overall goal structure versus an open series of mini-challenges.

These animations are fantastic, with some crossing the line into total (joyful) absurdity, and most end with the opportunity to completely obliterate your target by cutting them into a hundred pieces. How many games are there where the player could, at a moment's notice, find themselves running across the tops of missiles to destroy a military helicopter with a sword?

For fans who have followed the twisting story that happens outside the Disney worlds, it will provide the answers they've been waiting for, sometimes for questions they never knew they had, while leaving enough open for Kingdom Hearts III.

For now, I'm confident in saying that although it isn't their best work, there really aren't too many directors out there like Fumito Ueda, and I hope for our sake, he continues to keep making games.

Sprint Vector definitely does more right than it does wrong and its unique form of movement in VR is something I think we'll see used by other developers going forward. It had me wanting a Mirror's Edge VR, but I don't see that happening anytime soon.

Transformed is the perfect arcade racer for those that feel left out by Forza and Need for Speed's latest open-world, multiplayer focused outings. Sega has cherry-picked the best elements of kart racers and applied it to the best arcade racing games to create a sleeper hit that's great fan service and great fun.

As was the case with Legion taking us out of the dour mood of Warlords of Draenor, WoW has risen from the ashes once again.

NEO: The World Ends with You is a sequel worth waiting for.

It's still a good time to play Splatoon, especially if you're up for a solo intermission and keep your expectations in check.

The classic games aren't quite the selections I'd have made, but they're all worth checking out, and when combined with the extra content, they become one of the better anniversary packages out there.

Ether One nails its puzzles, atmosphere, and sound (ambient and voice acting). It also nails its story -- whether or not you decide to fully unravel its world and its mysteries -- culminating in a, well, refreshing, smart finale that will stay on my mind for years to come.

What really starts to impact the whole experience is how Microsoft and Turn 10 have needlessly and thoughtlessly introduced loot boxes.

It might not blaze the trail on anything new like a few other recent Inti Creates projects have, but it does exactly what it needs to do, and helps bolster the new legacy of Bloodstained proper before it's even out.

The melancholy tale is matched with some wonderful visions to make a game that really sticks in the mind.

Despite introducing so many characters in a short space of time, Telltale has managed to plant the seeds of emotional connection; which I can only hope leads to more intense drama and difficult decisions. Its limited opportunities for interaction is probably its biggest failing beyond the bugs, but there's a lot of potential here.

If you like tilt controls, it's a fantastic little game that you can't go wrong with. If you don't, then stay the hell away from it.

At the end of the day, there's no justification for a game that forces two loading screens on you before it even begins.

Crown of the Iron King didn't blow me away, but it's a very nice zone that feels like a natural extension of Dark Souls II, and it's meaty enough to feel like a real DLC and not just a bonus area.

Even if the most essential features in Rivals won't be meaningful to a lot of people, this expansion represents Rock Band 4 at its best to this point.

Even if not every minute of HoPiKo is classic, I definitely think the game is worth playing. You can grab this new PC release or opt for one of the many other platforms it is available on, but don’t miss out. If nothing else, that soundtrack is worth the price of admission.

One of the very best experiences released on a console in a long, long time. The game's eight- to ten-hour quest truly does feel like a journey, one that is compelling, exciting, and incredibly memorable.

We travel back to the continent of Orsterra in Octopath Traveler 0, but the franchise doesn’t just return to its old ways and slap a new number on it. 0 is full of new features, companions, and collectibles to find, making for a gameplay experience that truly pushes the series in a new and exciting direction—and it's all done against a gorgeous backdrop that will have you hooked for hours to come.

Vermintide 2 is an improvement over its predecessor with more beautifully designed sprawling levels, more varied enemy types, an addictive loot system, and a whole lot of character skills to try out. The sequel is at its best when it's creating tense moments, even if it can quickly get a little bit overwhelming. I also apologize to all of those I left to die in matchmaking.

Strong Bad Ep.5 is also the least linear of all the games in the series.

Turnip Boy Robs a Bank is a fast-paced steal ’em up that wears its purposefully repetitive hook on its sleeve. There’s a genuine sense of discovery in these steel-reinforced walls, and it’s nice to see Snoozy Kazoo improving upon the art of the first game to create a more unified pixel aesthetic that extends from the gameplay to the character art during dialogue exchanges. It’s also dumb as hell, which appeals to me in the most primitive way possible.

Clubhouse Games: 51 Worldwide Classics might sound generic at first blush, but it's secretly one of the best Nintendo Switch games of 2020. It's the right game at the right time with the right temperament.

One other major issue with the game is the horrible navigational map that just shows everything as a circle of cluttered brown mess. With so much going on during a standard mission, it's understandably difficult to create a map that reads clearly and informs the player of what's happening. However, this impossible creation doesn't even come close.

Ultimately, Gnosia is worth playing through to the end thanks to its strong narrative. The story goes in unexpected directions, and the revelations I learned along the way were compelling enough to push me past my frustrations. Make no mistake, I wanted to give up on this game multiple times. But every time I considered quitting, I'd start one last loop that would pull me right back in because all of the elements were in place for another bit of tasty narrative to reveal itself.

Where it succeeds best, however, is in being a terrific introductory horror game. Whether or not you’re a youth whose parents disapprove of gore or if you’re just one to hide beneath a blanket when a zombie appears on screen, My Friendly Neighborhood provides the depth of the Resident Evil experience without any of the violence. Not only does it fill an important niche, it proves that this sort of horror game can stand on its own without any of the blood.

I ran into a few issues -- namely the occasionally frustrating level design, which is inconsistent at best -- but there's so much to love that the problematic aspects don't sully an otherwise terrific game. Between character leveling, equipment, hundreds of drops, and rivalries with friends, SSX is going to provide months of entertainment for most of us.