I want to stress that Wo Long is not going to be for everyone. It can be extremely punishing, especially if you're butting heads with the parry system. But the setting, the aesthetics, and action sensibilities from a learned team made it all worth it to push through and get over that hump.

God of War has never looked or played better than this. Kratos has never been as deep or interesting as this. They've set the bar so high that I have no idea how they'll be able to follow this one up. Sony Santa Monica should be proud. Series fans should be proud.

Life is Strange now has me in its grips, and if I'm worried, it's only because I care. I finally really, truly care.

My favorite story beats in Ties That Bind are unquestionably classified as spoilers, but they all spring from the same place: drama motivated by logical character action. Javi and the gang are proactive and well-defined, which makes their struggle to survive all the more compelling. If the first two episodes are any indication, A New Frontier will be a worthy follow-up to The Walking Dead, even if there's no chance it will be quite as revolutionary.

It's also a great choice for anyone who is looking for more diversity in their video games, as it does a wonderful job of promoting inclusion without making it the sole focus. Plus, there's an awesome, adorable little robot friend to hang out with, and who doesn't want that?

For the price, it totally delivers.

This levity, this world, and these people are going to be with me forever. If you've ever complained about there being too much violence in gaming, or that games are all the same, and you don't play this... I hope somebody hugs you.

Darkwood does a great job of showing off its weird, unsettling world, but it struggles to tell players what they have to do. The woods are home to secrets and terrible truths alike. Though it falls short of reaching its full potential, mostly due to questionable controls and cumbersome combat, this horror game is worth the experience on the merits of its haunting atmosphere alone.

Normally, I could forgive Pokémon for so poorly handling a fairly legitimate moral issue, but the plot has been so deeply integrated, and spans such a large portion of the game that I really can't let it go.

Pokémon has always literally been give and take since the second generation. Some give more than others, and Sword and Shield has taken away quite a bit.

As far as Nintendo DS role-playing games go, this is my new favorite, hands down. But then again, I'm a huge fan of both dungeon crawling and Atlus' Shin Megami Tensei series games.

Above all, I'm most charmed by how honestly Puppeteer wears its influences on its sleeve. From classic platformers like Mario to more recent excursions such as Rayman Origins, Sony Japan's sidescrolling adventure is littered with nods to the very best in platform gaming -- a genre so criminally underused these days.

French Bread has crafted an intelligent, tactical fighting game that I'll surely be playing for a long time to come.

The Eternal Cylinder clocked in at around ten hours, and I was so absorbed in it — I was so curious about how my funky bunch of critters was going to get out of this seemingly insurmountable jam — that I finished the game in two sittings. It truly clicked with me. I’m equally excited to see how much it resonates with everyone else. Maybe it won’t! But I thoroughly enjoyed it, and this experience will stick with me for a long time.

Part of me feels like Joe Danger Infinity wasn't necessary. Joe Danger Touch was an excellent game and complemented the platform perfectly. Although the vehicles bring a different set of flair to the series, the new additions and maps didn't really blow me away. Having said that, any Joe fan will probably eat up Infinity.

These thrills and chills are irritatingly tempered with menial tasks, poor voice acting, dull stealth and a soulless hero, all of which prevent Metro Exodus from achieving its true potential.

Avowed is one of the best RPGs I've played in 2025, and I'm not even much of a role-playing genre fanatic.

Hello Kitty Island Adventure is a wonderful game that distinguishes itself from the crowd and stands tall as a densely packed, enjoyable experience. Although it can use improvements in some areas, the Switch version of Hello Kitty Island Adventure is absolutely worth picking up if you’ve been looking for an Animal Crossing-like game to try out and either don’t have an iPhone or are on the fence about getting an Apple Arcade subscription and prefer one-time payments. It plays well with no major performance issues — at most, I found a slightly long loading screen. Considering the game’s size, though, I can easily forgive this.

Trine has a fantastic core concept and occasional flashes of true brilliance, but it just doesn't go far enough in exploring its own mechanics. It delivers a perfectly entertaining few hours of gameplay -- much more time than I was expecting from an indie game, honestly -- but I could never shake the feeling that it just plain wasn't as good as it could have been.

I'm torn on Etrian Odyssey V: Beyond the Myth. I sincerely believe it could be the best entry in the series, that it has refined the formula to near perfection. But in perfecting what is already there, it makes no strides to further advance the series. There are new additions but no new ideas, and after the last two games in the series, I leave this entry not wondering what is next, but if the developers have anything left in them.

At times it can be an extremely challenging experience, even on the easiest difficulty. But that's also what makes it so rewarding when you finally kill that boss and obtain its loot.

When it's firing on all cylinders, Ace Combat 7 absolutely soars as a return to form for a series thought dormant. It'll be interesting to see how Bandai Namco might take things forward from here on, but for now, the series is flying high and steady once again.

MLB 15 The Show is still good by virtue of the systems laid down over the last decade, but it has no ambition. Produced on third base thinking it hit a triple, it wouldn't even bother running in a sac fly.

After finishing Dishonored I wanted more, and The Knife of Dunwall gives me exactly that. Hell, at moments I even completely forgot that I was no longer playing Corvo, as both he and Daud do play in generally the same way.

[A] shining example of what an RTS game should be: a mix of classic mechanics with new features and technology.

Even during its most underwhelming moments Rime got a response out of me, and I'll remember it for years to come.

It's an easy recommendation for platform fans, but it's also just a plain fun time. It's not revolutionary or trailblazing, but it does what it needs to prove that Frozenbyte hasn't lost its touch. I wouldn't necessarily expect a Trine 5 or anything, but clearly, this series has some life left in it.

Gratifying and empowering, Red Steel 2 is simple, unpretentious fun.

The Crash Bandicoot N. Sane Trilogy serves as a time capsule of sorts before the series was ran into the ground.

A great game, providing solid, fun gameplay that left me feeling challenged enough (and addicted enough) to keep playing. With each battle lasting about ten minutes, this is a perfect title to play in short bursts and makes for an ideal portable title.

Oh yeah, I did lose weight by playing these games for two weeks -- about 1.5 lbs, with no other exercise, no change in diet, and not much noticeable discomfort. Not a big deal, really, but people seem to care about this stuff, so there you go.

The designers had a clear vision for this game, and they made sure it came into fruition.

Captain Scarlett's end-game shenanigans notwithstanding, this remains a thorough and thoughtful addendum to Borderlands 2. It's funny and confident in its storytelling and presentation with enough variation in enemy design and mission structure to stand out against the enormous backdrop of the core game.

Regardless of a few minor gripes, Odallus: The Dark Call is a worthy addition to any metroidvania fan's library and is worth the asking price.

Brilliant level design and a great aesthetic keep the game fresh from start to finish.

Samorost 3 is a relatively short journey, taking about five to six hours to beat and a little more to fully complete. That time is jam-packed with delightful characters, stunning scenery, and clever puzzles, so while it may be brief, it's certainly time well spent. For anyone who appreciates Amanita's previous titles or the point-and-click adventure genre in general, Samorost 3 comes highly recommended.

It has nearly everything I love about the franchise mixed with a heaping helping of Freeform-level drama, making for a genuinely optimistic experience that exudes charisma with every outfit I put together.

The Jackbox Party Pack 6 continues Jackbox's streak of funny, low-key party games without deviating much from their established formula. If you're looking for something fun to do with a group for a couple of hours, you can't go wrong with one of the Jackbox Party Packs. There aren't really any experimental games like Zeeple Dome from last year's collection, but there's plenty worth playing in this year's Pack.

It was a joy to revisit the world of Mr. Driller again, and the Switch is one of the best places to do it given the pint-sized level-by-level format.

As a game, Slayers X isn’t that great. It’s not bad enough to be repulsive, but you constantly bump up against problems that, while probably being deliberate, are still problems. Its flow isn’t great, it’s incredibly short, and there aren’t a lot of enemies or weapons. But it still manages to be innocuously enjoyable. However, as a piece of fiction, Slayers X is something both indispensable and unique. It gives me goosebumps that someone could convey such a detailed narrative by indirectly telling it through a character’s unrelated creation. It’s an elaborate lie that feels completely honest. But with lots of poop jokes.

Despite it not being what I expected and having a few quirks like unusually long load times (30 seconds at most at odd times), Sucker for Love: Date to Die For is an easy recommendation for anyone. It’s a genuinely heartwarming tale steeped in horror. The way it utilizes concepts familiar to Lovecraft fans and makes them its own is inspiring. It’s flirty, charming, funny, and frightful in equal parts. If Akabaka was able to make this kind of leap between the first and second entries, I can’t wait to see what they do for the third.

I fell in love with Dredge all over again while playing The Iron Rig. It completes the game in a way I never thought I needed and makes it feel brand new. Every point that the base game made about humanity’s impact on the world and the unknown implications from…well, the unknown, is heightened by the DLC. It’s the perfect reason to replay, a fantastic excuse to stay in bed all weekend and play a cozy horror game, and a new way to make yourself wonder about what’s lurking out of sight the next time you look out at the vastness of the ocean.

It's a game that combines both real-time strategy and first-person shooter in a unique blend of both, the likes of which you aren't likely to see anywhere else. Sure, it could benefit from an interactive tutorial, fixed Explore Mode, and perhaps some optimization for load times, but what is here is still an incredible team experience.

Very disappointing. Lacking the sense of adventure of the previous games and making the most simple of elements more awkward and overdrawn, Fable III feels like a step back for the franchise. It's a shame because its narrative goals are truly outstanding and there's still a lot of simplistic roleplaying fun to be had. These positives are outweighed, however, by a downsized sense of scale, cumbersome attempts at innovation, and a total neglect when it comes to fixing some important problems.

As a hardcore shooter fan since the '90s, Valorant feels very well designed, and provides me with a rush I haven't gotten out of so many other big genre games in the past five years. But Valorant feels like it was meticulously designed in a laboratory to fault. It's fitting given that Riot has over a decade of data and esports experience, but the sterile feel of it does impact my decision to play it more regularly.

Easily one of the most intriguing games I've played in quite some time. It’s as if Persona and Phoenix Wright got together and had a little demon spawn that I didn't want to put down -- no matter how disturbing it can be at times.

A simple but incredibly enjoyable game, packed with content should you decide to explore every nook and cranny. Despite the fact that a lot of the characters are pay-walled behind what is essentially physical DLC, it's still perfectly serviceable even with just the characters in the standard package.

If you prefer playing First Person Shooters with pointer controls and you don't have a hang up about playing games that look like they could run on the PS2, then this Wii port is the way to go.

After booting the game up I was inspired to beat all six games again and work on the challenges, so the Mega Man Legacy Collection did its job.

If none of our hopes and dreams pan out (I'm sure at least some of them will considering the game's early success), Fall Guys is still one of the feel-good excursions of 2020. How much longevity players can get out of it will vary from person to person, but as someone who had essentially called it quits on the all-too-samey battle royale genre, I'm having a ridiculously fun time right here and now.

There are very few games that can make me smile the entire way through and that counts for a lot.

Oh, and it's still gorgeous, more so given that this was built from the ground up for the PS4. There's some pop-in but I've always been bigger on draw distances, especially with a game that puts such an emphasis on traversal like Gravity Rush 2 -- I love being able to see where I'm headed while boosting into the sky.

The only problems lie in some load issues and poor hit detection -- while serious, they don't hinder gameplay completely. It just gives you something to blame all your suckiness on.

Despite some gripes, the legacy of this trilogy is fully secure.

On one hand, the online is absolutely broken and embarrassing. On the other, anytime I'm not dealing with that nonsense, I'm having fun with the game. Maybe in a couple of months, when I've min-maxed every Pokémon in the Dex and am just focusing on raids, I'll feel more antagonistic toward the game and its woeful online, but right now, when I'm doing literally anything else in it, I'm having a good time.

Even with the balance issues and design missteps, Need for Speed: Rivals is a blast. Literally. Plowing into cops to watch them explode off the side of the road as you zip by is never not fun. So is blasting them with EMP to watch them flip in the air.

It's hard not to recommend Retribution. You're getting a standalone experience with an exceptionally large amount of replayability, depending on how into Warhammer 40,000 you are. And even if you ultimately only touch one of the campaigns, try out the multiplayer for a bit, and dabble in The Last Stand, it's worth picking up.

Capcom Arcade Stadium is a nostalgic look at a time when stained space carpets and deafening cacophonies were all the rage, performing admirably in its role at offering classic thrills in portable form. The lack of online multiplayer is disappointing, and the package will never feel truly complete until certain titles break free from licensing limbo, but as a way to while away lazy afternoons or dull commutes, CAS is worth its weight in credits.

NHL 16 isn't perfect, but it's a substantial improvement over what released last year.

I've played a few of the RPGs available on Apple Arcade and I don't think a single one has come close to matching Fantasian's vision and execution. This is a wonderful game with an outstanding battle system that is brought to life with what could be the best art direction of 2021.

Certainly worth a play, but only a true Pinball fan will want to slap down the cash.

Between the solid story, entertaining gameplay and huge replay value, Dead Rising 2 offers more bang for your buck than just about any single-player game on the market right now.

Seeing the way that your decisions ripple outward and affect other parts of the game adds a sense of weight to every scene.

Penarium is incredibly fun, but could have been even better if the multiplayer and arcade modes had taken some inspiration from the campaign. But even then, what's left is overall a fantastic experience.

Fuser does what it says on the side of the box, but there could have been a more compelling foundation to keep you going past the point where it feels like you've done it all.

All in all, the game is must-play for anyone studying game design and/or fans of high-pressure gameplay. Bit.Trip Beat feels like a an intentional deconstruction of videogames as a whole, with all forms of complexity stripped away in favor of delivering a simple, concentrated experience. This lack of pretense isn't totally new; WarioWare and Shadow of the Colossus both went for it in their own ways, but never to this extreme.

As far as Pokemon spin-off games go, this is definitely one of the best offerings on the market, and is worth picking up by any fan of the series.

It's one of the most fun online games I've ever played, but the rampant issues including the mass deletion of character data is something that really should have been worked out before the game launched. One day GTA Online will reach its true potential with a massive map creation tool and more playable content than pretty much every genre outside of MMOs -- of this I have no doubt, given how deep Rockstar's coffers are. But for now, it's best to tread lightly until all of the kinks are worked out.

Really, you can’t go wrong with Kiwami. I would have liked it if every aspect of the game had been fully redone, but we don’t see remakes like this come along often. I can deal with a few stumbling blocks when the core quality of what makes Yakuza so unique and engaging remains untouched. At least now more people can have a chance to experience this classic, which is the best thing about Kiwami’s existence.

None of the activities are particularly inventive, but I also wouldn't go so far to say they're boring, either. Enough of them are interesting that you probably won't regret buying Happy Action Theater for yourself. On the other hand, it should prove to be sufficiently engaging for kids (and kid-like adults, particularly when alcohol is in the room).

I can easily recommend Tooth and Tail for anyone who enjoys the genre, even if you don't care for multiplayer. The story mode is robust and greatly enjoyable, but the multiplayer still has all the bells and whistles that veterans expect by now like replays and post-match graphs. I hope that a strong community forms around Tooth and Tail because it has rekindled my love of RTS games.

DoDonPachi's futuristic sci-fi setting isn't inspired in itself, but everything from the portraits of the cyber-dolls (uh?) that control your ship to the the elaborate bosses look fantastic.

WWE 2K25 is one of the biggest leaps in the series so far. While the Island is disappointing, the sheer amount of content in this game is unmatched. You have over 300 wrestlers with more DLC on the way, plenty of fun modes like the highly improved MyGM and the story-focused MyRise, and gameplay that still feels satisfying to pull off, even if the animations can be weird at points. It’s just the microtransactions that really pull this game down.

Blossom Tales might be a bit heavy-handed in its homage to the Zelda games of the past, but it brings a certain charm and fun to the Switch library. It also makes for a pretty good substitute as long as I still can't play A Link to the Past on my Switch.

It's exciting, and damn is it important, but it's still the weakest of the bunch.

When you go trick-or-treating, you don't come back 100 percent with candy you love. There's some bleh stuff mixed in, stuff that you put up with to get to the candy you can't wait to eat. That's a perfect analog for Pumpkin Jack. You'll push past parts of it because this mascot platformer has some really great qualities. And, when viewed as a whole, a bucket full of candy ain't so bad.

I’m sort of in the same position as I was last time around: I enjoyed the experience, but I’m not exactly in a hurry to go out and pick up the rest of the series.

If you're a fighting game enthusiast who enjoyed the console version Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3 and have dreamed about being able to take it anywhere, this game is a dream come true.

While Konami naturally doesn't enter the arena as gracefully as Arika did with Tetris 99, Super Bomberman R Online is a weird, crazy game that I'm going to enjoy diving into occasionally.

Aside from a couple of noticeable dips with less fleshed-out areas in the final act, Zoink held my attention for my entire 11-hour playthrough. That counts for a lot. If given the chance, I’d love to return to the world of Random in a possible sequel to Lost in Random that smooths over some of these first-game-in-a-new-series pitfalls.

If you happen to miss this return to Kanto that's perfectly fine, but I was mostly delighted to go back.

Lock's Quest is everything a portable strategy game should be. Its battles are exciting little bursts of bite-sized panic attacks, lasting only minutes at a time, but feeling much longer. Despite a few niggles, the stylus controls work pretty damn well, helped by the clean and simple methods of control used. It's just a really, really, really good portable game.

If The Last Story is the Wii's swan song, it is a miserable dirge, full of regret and remorse.

It's easy to suggest Nidhogg 2 on its own merits. It has expanded on the wonderful mechanics of the original and has one of the best soundtracks in recent memory. There isn't much content here for the solo player, but if you've got friends coming over for some friendly competition, the night would not be complete without Nidhogg 2.

For all its faults, charming is absolutely the word best describing LEGO City Undercover. While more could have been done to exploit the sandbox scenario, and while it sticks a bit too nervously to formula than it could have, Undercover is nonetheless a frequently pleasurable, occasionally hilarious little romp in a new LEGO world full of potential.

Some might consider it repetitive, vulgar and may even be left wondering what all the fuss was about. But, for those of you who ever fell in love with arcade brawlers, fantasy storytelling, and tabletop RPGs, then Dragon's Crown Pro will shine oh-so-brightly as the unique and sublime treasure it is.

Fast fun and devilishly hard, Luftrausers shows once again that Vlambeer understands how to make classic arcade mechanics feel fresh and exciting. It's great in short bursts, the speed of each round often terribly brief, but lends itself to hour-long sessions of hammering on the controller to start a new game.

The game evolves from simple, bare bones to a full on shmup with bullets flying every which way, and I think you'll find plenty to both challenge you and keep you coming back.

It's an honest, undiluted acknowledgement of what Western RPGs are all about, and I can respect that. Rather than try to be too deep or too meaningful, Reckoning simply presents players with a direct feed into the vein of empowerment and expects you to gorge until you're bursting. While the combat can often undermine that feeling of acquired strength, there's still enough rousing success to be had that keeps one returning for more.

Arise: A Simple Story is true to its name and offers both function and form, which is why I'm so anxious to see what Piccolo Studio has next in the pipeline.

Kirby:Triple Deluxe is yet another winning entry in the franchise. It delivers the core Kirby experience alongside of a few very well done extras, which is pretty much everything a fan could ask for.

While Mario Party Superstars doesn’t necessarily break massively new ground, it’s so good at replaying the classics that it will probably be my new go-to for Mario Party fun moving forward. It isn’t just the Nintendo 64 nostalgia talking here; this is a good collection of minigames, a smart board selection, a nice-looking game, and it’s got tons of settings, dials, and options to fiddle with for repeat play sessions. It might not be filled with new ideas, but Mario Party Superstars plays the hits, and plays them as well as it did the first time around.

Overall, new features like the stat boards, the Lord of the Rings-esque music, and the ability to tap mana have won me over, making this third edition a charm.

It's as simple as this: if you want to have fun with friends in a rhythm game, buy Rock Band 3, but if you want to learn guitar, buy Rocksmith. It works, it's fun, and no strange man with a handlebar mustache will force you to play Soul Asylum here.

Second Son is by far the best inFamous yet. If you're a fan of the series, then checking this one out is a no-brainer, and if you're not, consider jumping in with Delsin. You don't need any prior knowledge of the franchise to do so, and if you have any appreciation of open-world superhero games, you'll enjoy it.

It's a squad-based game that just happens to take place in an open world, and that's basically it. I don't see Division lasting as long as other, similar games either months down the line, as it simply doesn't allow for anything on a raid-like level to truly hook in the dedicated crowd.

A childlike sense of amusement came over me while I explored the island in Proteus. Every time I saw something new in the distance, I got excited and had to see it up close. Proteus is a game that needs to be seen, experienced, and most of all, needs to be heard. Trust me, you'll want to wear headphones for this one.

It's a good chunk of content for an absolute steal of a price. The wackiness of grabbing your friends, flinging yourself around, making faces and noises, and just causing shenanigans all around doesn't really get old. Heave Ho is a much harder sell to anyone expecting to play it solo, but it's an absolute must-have for any local multiplayer get-together with friends.