No, Tiny Metal is no substitute for Advance Wars. It does a lot of cool things, and it absolutely satisfies the same craving. But as much as I loved it at times, I hated it at others. It allows for pure turn-based strategy bliss, but there's a lot of garbage to sift through in order to get to it.

Rabbids Land isn't awful, but it's wholly unnecessary for a system that's launching with Nintendo Land, a game that trounces Ubisoft's attempts in every conceivable way.

Scribblenauts Unlimited still serves some purpose as a playground of silly ideas, and it still has a measure of charm left over from its original incarnation, but when it comes time to actually play it, this is the most boring and monotonous game in the series. Anything it does well was already done in the portable installments, and the new structure is utterly tedious.

But regardless of what caused the project to get derailed, it still means that Phantom Fury is a disappointing result. It’s a mash of ‘00s FPS cliches without reprieve. I spent most of its runtime wishing it was over. Or, at least, wishing it was what it promised to be. Its overall blandness has done the impossible and made me appreciate Duke Nukem Forever just a little bit more.

Unfortunately, SuperMash is a game where the concept is better than the execution. While the spritework and chiptunes are nice, the gameplay holds the whole thing back; a big problem when the gameplay is supposed to be the main feature. Ironically, the mashed-up games usually end up being less than the sum of their parts.

While Riptide banks on you having loved the first, in actuality you have a lot more to gain if you've never touched it...If you played the first game, however, I'd recommend waiting for a real sequel, because Riptide fails to get away with pulling the same trick twice.

Monopoly for Nintendo Switch isn’t awful; it just feels like a first draft.

As much as I loathe this implementation of loot boxes, I still keep playing Battlefront II and I will probably continue to do so on and off. I mean, I do like the game. I just wish it wasn't being squandered like this. You'd be well-advised to wait until overhauls arrive -- assuming they ever do.

Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games: The Official Video Game doesn’t have a lot going on. Progression boils down to earning points to unlocking costumes, different titles, earning medals, and not much else. That progression can be kind of a slog, though, when a lot of the gameplay mechanics are too shallow to be fun for more than a few minutes (especially when playing alone). It’s at its absolute best when it’s over-the-top and absurd while competing in sports that are more than just button mashing. If you’ve got a friend or two — or the itch to take this thing online — you’re still bound to have fun, but I doubt it’ll keep most folks interested for very long.

The game mirrors its own volcano picnic scene. It's cute, it's weird, it sounds like a fun idea at first, and there are some delicious pies to find here and there, but somebody is going to get burned.

I love RPGs and strategy games, and I really didn't enjoy it. On the other hand, it's decent enough that I can see some people enjoying it. If you like the idea of fine-tuning tactics with a small squad during repetitive combat for 40 hours, then you might find something here. If that's not your thing, you should probably just replay Dragon Age: Origins or Dawn of War II.

I found very little else to like about Button City. I think it’s narratively weak; a few sparks, but never a fire. The games held within are not just overly basic, but often not even fun. Even the quest design is an escort quest and a forced stealth section away from a broken controller. It makes me feel like the bad guy when I say these things to such a cute and innocent game. I absolutely wanted to love Button City, but it gave me no reason to give up another quarter.

What's here is decent, there just isn't much of it.

While the lag doesn’t technically make MLB 2K8 unplayable online, it’s bad enough to be a severe detriment to enjoying the game.

A DLC that as is, is up there with House of Wolves as the worst Destiny add-on to date. It's a stop-gap solution meant to spackle some of the game's cracks, and the real coat of paint hasn't quite come yet. Destiny 2 is still a fantastic shooter at heart, Bungie just hasn't figured out how to actually incorporate all of the Frankensteined MMO parts.

Many of the sex scenes just went too far, too long, or both and more often than not the sex itself was less than consensual. The game tries to dodge the label of rape by drugging characters until they beg for sex, but the sleazy misdirect only makes the scenes feel even worse.

Hob tries to do a lot of things within its beautiful world but never does any of them very well. The platforming feels janky and slow, combat is basic and meaningless, and the puzzles will make you wish you were back in 10th grade listening to your Geometry teacher explain proofs for the millionth time. A great game was not too far away from what eventually was delivered, but outside of the stunning visuals and world design, Hob falls frustratingly short.

I want to stress that Super Beat Sports isn't a bad game. It's well crafted, and it's nice to take a few minutes to play a song before going off and doing something entirely different. Rhythm game diehards can sink a lot of time into going for perfect (or near perfect, which is all the platinum medals require) on all of the different songs. But this isn't the mainstream must-play like Harmonix has had in its history. Heck, it isn't even a must-play for people who like quirky little rhythm games, because others have done it better in the past.

It’s a stunning lack of imagination that hobbles Recipe for Disaster. It offers absolutely nothing that I haven’t seen before in a management game. It doesn’t really succeed at reaching its own vision, and doesn’t offer anything unique in exchange for that. It’s a functional restaurant management game, and that’s it. Did it give me a reason why I shouldn’t just reinstall Pizza Connection 2? No. So I guess I’m doing that now.

Call of Juarez: Bound in Blood isn’t a terrible game. On the contrary, it’s a game with a ton of unrealized potential that executes with the grain.

Sacred 3 feels distinctly average. The game works well enough at what it presents and is largely annoyance-free (though the checkpointing system could be better and I had a save-game issue where my progress wasn't saved from one session to another) but there's better and more rewarding games out there right now that you should seek out first.

Under all of this is the framework of a great runner. There are times when it's pleasing in almost every conceivable way. But, the unnecessary is too much to ignore; it bogs it down into the waters of mediocrity. The cliché fits perfectly here: More isn't always better.

It isn't what I would call a bad game but it's far from being a good one and the possibilities for it being great went unrealized.

Bejeweled is a good way to kill a little bit of time, and PopCap has done a good job with adding variety to the game types, but it is still a shallow title that doesn't require a lot of time, energy or commitment, and something that could get tired very quickly.

Vanquish is a tepid and tedious game that simply doesn't deserve your cash during a period chock full of far superior releases. And I never thought I'd have to say that about a Platinum game.

For someone who actually enjoyed playing CSI: Deadly Intent, the minor gameplay improvements here only led to an inadvertent feeling of repetitiveness, minus the joy of those amusing cases from the last game.

I really can't stress how much fun NPPL Championship Paintball 2009 can be, provided you take it upon yourself to make it fun. Unfortunately, there's not much to keep the player engaged for the long run -- a fact exacerbated by the awkward animation, minor technical snafus, and the mid-nineties, Gen-X rut the soundtrack fell into.

I really tried to enjoy Wuppo, but the technical issues and frustrating game design made it feel like such a chore. It’s a shame too because this could have been a great game otherwise. As it stands right now, however, the problems vastly outweigh the things that Wuppo does right.

If you’re a huge fan of the iconic anime looking for even more fighting action -- and you have friends who are willing to fork out the cash to join you online -- there is some enjoyment to be had. For everyone else, aside from the increased multiplayer, you've already played this before.

It is not an awful piece of content, it just could have been greater with a bit more care put into it.

Werewolf: The Apocalypse - Earthblood proudly wears the reverence for White Wolf's lore on its furry sleeve, with a dark-but-interesting universe and a fierce pro-environment/anti-capitalist message. But behind its wild, bloody carnage and well-meant intentions lies a dated and sorely repetitive stealth adventure that, among its contemporaries, fails to stand out from the pack.

Players desperate for traditional action gaming may glean some passing repletion from what is ultimately an inoffensive waste of time. However, the monotonous action long outstays its welcome and a series of this pedigree should be bringing so much more to the table. Instead, it does just enough to be a videogame available for purchase, and not a lot more than that.

While I appreciate the perspective Game Dev Tycoon has given me on game development, from indie studios in debt to huge studios juggling multiple projects, it was never the game's sim elements that had me returning. It offers a pleasant walk down memory lane of past consoles and technology, but that's about it.

It's simply a second-rate title that might have been good a decade ago, but doesn't need to exist in this day and age.

There are far better shooters on iTunes than this, at the end of the day. They may be more expensive, and they may have dodgy business models, but they're simply better.

It's a mediocre game and a disappointing follow-up to the quite impressive "Legend." It does very little to further the series and offers much frustration in exchange.

Variety could have really done wonders here. Even with a small budget, tiny nuances like sword animations, items in the shop, and mini-boss depth could have gone a long way. Witch and Hero takes a simple, charming concept and somehow manages to make it repetitive, dry, and unfun.

Nothing special. It looks fairly pretty and the game is decently put together, but it's barely even a videogame when you truly consider what it offers. With a combat system that's hollow even by brawler standards and a structure so blatantly circular that even gullible children would soon detect the pattern, Rumble Blast is a game that not even ardent fans should bother with.

Again is a mediocre game that provides nothing. Its story is nowhere near good enough to justify the interactive novel approach, the "spot the difference" psychic gimmick is miserable and sleep-inducing, and the characters themselves look like they've all escaped from a mental hospital and are playing around in the costume department of a community theater. Hotel Dusk this isn't.

I can appreciate the classic arcade spirit of Vampire Crystals, but it does little to mask the shortcomings of old-school design while adding its own set of issues. Playing it single-player is chore, but convincing a group to play with you might be even more laborious. There just isn't enough meat on these dusty old bones.

I can understand the appeal of wanting to put any title on Nintendo’s massively popular console, but I’m surprised publisher Paradox Interactive didn’t attempt to make an original version of Cities for the Switch. That would have been far more preferable than whatever we’ve ended up with.

Equal parts tremendous and terrible, with a fine line clearly separating the two distinct territories. Unfortunately, since each stage ends on a sour note, the overall emotion one gains is that of bitter disappointment. It's a game that repeatedly starts strong and ends despicably, and as much as I want to adore it, I ended every session cursing its name.

Cladun Returns: This is Sengoku! can be played for hundreds of hours, but these are hours I want to spend with something I actually like.

Angry Birds 2 proves that the Angry formula is still fun, but Rovio isn't doing itself any favors by gating that fun left and right. Angry Birds is supposed to be a series you can just pick up and play, and I have no idea what they were thinking here -- other than "more money."

Sakura Santa fails to stand out from the growing crowd of visual novels on Steam and elsewhere, except in the single respect of being a Christmas-themed story, coming out just in time for the holiday. Unfortunately, one would probably have to be as lonely as the game's protagonist to find a compelling reason to play.

After two episodes of Minecraft: Story Mode, I find myself struggling to care.

For those of you who don't have a motion option on PC, Blue Estate is one shooter you can absolutely pass on. One day it may catch your eye on a dirt cheap Steam sale, and a light gun may come across your desk -- at that point, you may as well give it a shot.

No matter how much things have changed, bad gameplay is the same now as it was then, and the questionable design decisions and performance of this game have a bargain-bin feel about them. If you're hankering for some good wrestling times, look elsewhere. This one's down for the count, even if you can play as Sheamus.

Fightback is a waste of time and money. As a full premium game for a buck or two, it could have been a decent brawler to pass the time with. But as it stands, you're going to be waiting to play it more than actually playing it. At the end of the day, this is just another depressing chapter in the book of Ninja Theory.

If you're a hardcore fan of Japanese role-playing games, then Resonance of Fate might be for you. The storytelling is far from remarkable, and the battle system requires a whole lot of patience and commitment. It wasn't groundbreaking in 2010 and isn't groundbreaking now, but there are a handful of neat ideas.

The plot is banal, the writing is tone deaf, and the acting is wooden. Those who can ignore the dressing and focus on the puzzles alone can find some good head-scratching moments and interesting logical interactions.

Fear Effect Sedna shows that the developer truly knows its source material inside out, but unfortunately the gameplay aspect remains lost. With poor voice-acting, a broken, almost unnecessary tactical system, unreliable A.I., and flat action, Sedna just isn't fun or compelling.

This one just fell flat. It uses an outdated weapon changing system that's more annoying than useful, doesn't do enough to engage the player in combat, and feels unfinished.

By choosing the fastidious "micro-management" path, We Happy Few distracts far too much from its true potential as a dystopian gaming classic. And that's the biggest downer of all.

If this were on mobile I'd have deleted it after my first trip to Avocado Roller. As it's a PS4 game, I was holding to hope there'd be something, anything, I could grasp on to here that would signify it as a quality kart racer for the platform. There isn't.

Was that the goal of the developers? Probably not. It could, after all, be a problem with my brain worms and not with The Banished Vault at all. On the other hand, it’s such a deeply unfriendly title that marries simple concepts with a demand for particular skills. Putting myself aside, I don’t really see it connecting with a wide audience. I absolutely respect The Banished Vault for its unique approach and its wonderful choice of aesthetic. I just wish it wasn’t so aloof.

If Harmonix Music VR sounds like your jam, it probably is. Plopping on the helmet after eating your favorite comfort food can make for a really relaxing afternoon, but the other modes aren't even worth the time of day.

Much like being a fan of the real thing, WWE 2K18 is often more of a chore than it is fun. Hilariously, yet tragically, I still find myself hoping it'll be better next time.

I'll be showing off London Heist and Scavenger's Odyssey to just about everyone that asks me about PlayStation VR, but those are worth about $10 each. Wait for a price cut before grabbing PlayStation VR Worlds, or better yet, just enjoy them with your PSVR bundle and skip the rest.

Ace of Spades attempts to be many things, while achieving none of them. It isn't as creative and wondrous as Minecraft and it isn't as strategic or entertaining as Team Fortress 2. Hell, it isn't even as good as the beta version!

Kandagawa Jet Girls delights with its boisterous, glowing presentation, cast of vibrant characters, and array of fun side-attractions. But the jet-ski action itself is mostly dull, struggling to offer a decent challenge or a genuine sense of speed. Jet Girls rides waves of goodwill thanks to its infectious personality, but this eventually gives way to tepid, monotonous gameplay, hampering what could have been one of Marvelous' best releases yet.

If you wanted a terrifying experience, you won’t find it here. However, if you’re not desensitized by horror as I am, then A.I.L.A should offer entertainment, tension, and intrigue with its narrative. Those who are fans of P.T. and Resident Evil should enjoy this title, so long as you’re not looking for the next influential psychological or survival horror.

What I'd really like to see is a tabletop game in this setting, because it honestly feels like it might be better suited in that realm.

Valkyria Revolution is constantly at odds with itself. It tries to be an action game, but at the behest of fans, more strategic elements were shoved in. You'll go into an action-packed warzone full of enemies to slice up, then you'll be rewarded with a seemingly endless amount of cutscenes lacking sound and fury and signifying nothing.

With lackluster plot, awful comedy, and shallow gameplay, I just don't see where the following comes from. Voodoo Vince should be commended for trying to add variety and humor, but ultimately the execution is not there.

If you’re bored of strategy RPGs and really want an opportunity to sit down with a traditional game, then I suggest this title. If not, stay away, especially at retail price.

Peaky Blinders: Mastermind is built upon a highly inventive central concept and smartly dressed in an authentic audio/visual package that accurately captures the dangerous world of The Shelby Family. The inventiveness of this core element is not captilised upon, however, resulting in uninspired action and repetitive gameplay. Peaky Blinders fans might find a few hours of entertainment but, overall, Mastermind is a missed opportunity.

Rain World is sloppy, clunky platformer. It's a game of fumbling controls, arbitrary deaths, and tedious repetition. Why should I bother figuring out what all those twee little glyphs mean? Why should I devote dozens of hours to figuring out what spitting up one kind of plant might do in a specific situation when the controls can't even be bothered to feel consistent?

Shantae is an amazing series which I dearly, truly love. It makes me very happy. But I have to go with my head, not my heart, and recommend that you wait for Shantae: Half-Genie Hero - Ultimate Edition. You'll not only get the game's great main adventure, but these mini-expansions are much better suited to the role of inclusive extras. There just isn't enough novelty, length or content on offer to satisfy as standalone purchases... Just don't tell Shantae I said that...

Astro Duel Deluxe is easily the least impressive game visually on the console, does little to nothing to show off your fancy new tech, and it isn't all that fun for more than half an hour at a time. I will say it has a decent soundtrack -- not "$15 for short bursts of gameplay" decent -- but pretty good.

To take a game with so much promise, so much potential, and do absolutely nothing with it is a crime. Naughty Bear is a flat, dreary, completely boring game that relies on its core premise without doing anything to expand upon it. It desperately wants to be seen as irreverent, edgy and funny, but it is none of these things.

Had the board game been an extra feature or weekly activity in the next mainline Animal Crossing game (hint, hint Nintendo), it would easily serve as yet another feature that enhances an already rewarding experience. As its own thing, it fall short. Animal Crossing: amiibo Festival isn't a bad game, save for most of the mini-games, it's just not interesting enough to warrant the long term investment needed to see everything it has to offer.

As it stands, this is absolutely not worth getting if you played the original, and even newcomers will be disappointed by its substandard presentation. The heart of a really good game beats within its chest, but Warriors Orochi 3 Hyper is marred by too many blemishes to do it justice.

Perhaps if it was balanced better, had more meaningful upgrades, or strove to play as well as it looks, it might be worth it. As it stands, I’d say wait for a sale and don’t bother paying more than $15. It’s a fun way to kill an afternoon and gives you a taste of the genre, but that’s about it. Here’s hoping that developer KeelWorks can learn from its debut effort and bring its gameplay design to the same level as its visuals.

If you can handle the game's intensity enough to stick with it for prolonged play sessions -- or if, conversely, you're perfectly fine with sporadically playing it for a few minutes at a time before switching it off -- then maybe Galcon Fusion is for you. If not, maybe you're better off picking it up for the iPhone.

Anybody who has played any other motion-based carnival adventure, however, will find nothing remarkable at play with this one -- not unless they really want to see animated raccoons screaming incomprehensible drivel at them.

The worst part is that MindJack's implementation of the shooter is so imbalanced and guileless that it actually harms the game.

Shadow Puppeteer tries to do interesting things, but ultimately comes off as unpolished, bland, repetitive, and mediocre. I really tried to enjoy it, but I just couldn't bring myself to care about it.

Check back a few weeks from now to see if Hoard has been patched. Add [twenty] points to my score if the crashing, text pop-up weirdness, and graphical issues some users are experiencing have been addressed. For now, buy at your own risk.

The plot’s weak, the characters blab on too much, and the whole deal’s very last-gen, but for the truly dedicated, it’s playable, I guess. Rent it if you're a tactical geek -- everyone else should forget it.

Unspectacular and, to be honest, fairly boring. Coupled with one of the most despicable soundtracks I have ever had forced into my ears, Sonic the Hedgehog 4: Episode 2 is very difficult to recommend. It's not terrible, not by a long shot, but it barely seems worth the time -- and auditory agony -- to play.

All that matters is that there's a lot of heart in Inversion, but absolutely nothing going on the brain department. There is desire, with absolutely no thought.

I can only recommend Resident Evil: Revelations to die-hard fans who missed the game on its initial release, or those who just want to experience every chapter of Resident Evil lore. Whilst the game commits no specific new crime, it is a lazily-handeld port of a title that doesn't hold up well to big-screen modern scrutiny, with the ultimate revelation being, how right Capcom were to steer the course of the series in an entirely new direction.

A re-release of a 10-plus-year-old game that doesn't have enough new content to appeal to those who already own it and will be hard to adjust to for those who have no nostalgia for the original.

The foundation is there, and I have no doubt that this would have been a stronger game that would have spread via word of mouth to action enthusiasts far and wide if it didn't have the freemium elements.

Longest Day is a vibrant, scatterbrained thing that seems far more intent on creating a spectacle than a compelling story or gameplay experience.

I think less time in the clubhouse and more time on the course would do HB Studios some good.

It has its moments of truly feeling like a badass, but they do not make up for the frustration of everything in between.

Lacking the intuitiveness that the game demands, Lucidity is a product that feels incomplete, despite the polish on the visuals. Perhaps with a patch the system can be salvaged, but until then, it’s best to steer away.

Eufloria is a frustrating experience because of how good it could have been and it's even more frustrating because criticism of the first version hasn't been properly addressed. It has some great, fresh mechanics and they mostly work, but it just isn't satisfying or engaging in the end.

The one thing that it so desperately needs -- entertainment value -- is sorely lacking in areas where it shouldn't, ultimately dragging the title down to the pit of forgotten titles.

Ultimately, this game is a very sub-par offering that has no real reason to exist. Everything that is good about Crackdown 2 is already in the original Crackdown, and many of the problems in Crackdown 2 are unique entirely to this installment. In essence, all Crackdown 2 does is take the original game and make it worse.

It's a shame there isn't more of an adventure -- or even just more of a game -- to back up the Minotaur encounters. Theseus feels like a small-team effort, and a middle-of-the-road one at that. The myth-turned-game concept is smart, but the execution and scope aren't where they need to be.

As tepid as gaming gets, put forth with the bare minimum of effort in a quick and cynical attempt to grab some free cash. It's not good in the slightest, and it's not even remarkable enough to be considered bad. It's just there, doing the one thing it's supposed to do -- make a load of money for two weeks, then disappear into obscurity where it firmly belongs.

The linchpin of these games is to develop a connection with the player. Along with that connection comes emotion. Dear Esther is simply too disconnected from itself to ever connect with me.

As much as I enjoy Valhalla Knights 3’s combat I wish the rest of the game was more engaging.

If it wasn't clear, I don't think Has-Been Heroes is fun. If anything, it is tedious. The difficulty spikes pretty quickly and only seemingly gets harder as you go on, the unlocks are anything but rewarding, and the gameplay, while functional, often leads to unfair deaths.

The cloying characters and banal story are just so incredibly vapid, and the respectable strategic gameplay just isn't enough to compensate for the myriad of drawbacks and stumbling blocks.