Guerilla Games has a great handle on the open world genre at this point, and knows how to cater to people who do like certain broader comfort food elements without going overboard.

Barring some unfortunate bugs and one design decision that hampered my experience, Aegis Defenders is a smooth, well-thought-out ride. The original art, charm, and in-game universe only add to it, and I'd love to see more.

If shoving Toonami and the Titanfall 2 Pilot’s Gauntlet into a blender and turning it to the highest speed sounds like a good time, then Neon White might be what you’re looking for. It’s a blood-pumping, speed-infused anime shooter with style and a decent bit of heart. While it’s short and sweet, Neon White gives just enough to get the player keen on shaving off seconds and fractions of seconds until they are, indeed, a speedrunning freak. For anyone who likes to go fast, that’s at least worth the price of admission.

The world of Trine is breathtaking and a joy to explore, and the developers have a solid, enjoyable game in the second story of the Trine heroes. For $14.99, you are more than getting your money's worth.

While every map so far has been a derivative of the "drill" mechanic found in the first stage (dragging a tool to each location to proceed), this one is set up a little more like Treyarch's zombies.

For both new and old series fans, it's really fun to see how one of the most popular role-playing game series started out.

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.

While I think that the roguelite format is a hindrance on Draft of Darkness overall and will probably be the breaking point for a lot of people, I can’t get past my fascination for the game. While writing this review, I made the mistake of starting the game to make sure I had a few facts straight and started a new run. One hour later, I realized I was supposed to be writing, and had to quite painfully tear myself away. Even right now, Draft of Darkness is just minimized onto my taskbar, lurking and waiting for me to finish my job so it can capture my attention again.

The Snipperclips DLC makes an already sweet game even sweeter. Most of the new levels slot perfectly into the existing package, bringing fresh ideas that feel right at home without covering too much of the same ground as before. If you're picking up the all-in Snipperclips Plus bundle, it can be hard to tell where the original game ends and the DLC begins -- it's that seamlessly integrated.

Great God Grove is an immensely polished and precisely executed game, and that’s the most impressive part about it. Its pacing and aesthetic are finely honed and there’s nary a loose thread to be found. A bit more punch and the narrative would be perfect, but it presents a good amount of depth to sink into. It also features puppets gnawing on a gigantic hoagie, and really, what more can you ask for?

It might not have the flair of a few other games on the market, but it has strong bones that can grow over time.

As close to a full console title as we've seen on Xbox Live Arcade to date. Its story mode is fun foray into the twisted universe of Alan Wake, even if some of what's going on won't always make complete sense to any but the most dedicated of fans. Remedy has admirably tackled the repetitive nature of the campaign in order to get the most out of the the content they had, although it does start to wear thin at the midway point. Thankfully, a strong final act and a ridiculously addictive Arcade mode more than make up for it.

At 10 hours for the main story, Hearts of Stone is rather brief given the sprawling scale of Wild Hunt, but with that brevity, it never overstays its welcome. It melds well with the overall themes of the core adventure even if it feels wholly detached from it, but sometimes all you need is more Witcher-based antics.

The selfless girl of A Hat in Time is not only a great role model, but she forges her own identity as a true mascot, with subtle notes of likable heroes like Dr. Who (complete with her own time-manipulating Tarvis). Any game that makes me smile while I'm glued to it is a great one.

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.

As someone who plays nearly every shooter on the market, I was inescapably drawn in by how tightly wound The Division 2 really is. Nearly every weapon feels satisfying to wield and the skills (which range from drones to self-firing turrets to revive grenades) are just wacky enough to make for some appreciable moment-to-moment gameplay.

Tropico 4: Modern Times gives the core game a much needed content injection, and turns Tropico 4 into a better game. Some additions have a larger impact on Tropican economic planning than others, but Modern Times is well worth checking out for any fan of Tropico.

Like the original, I'm going to be returning to it every time I get the itch to climb something.

The stages walk that thin line between difficult and frustrating, which sometimes forced me to shut off the PSP and take a little break from the game because I only had one more goal to reach, but no visible way to get there. Then again, this could just be the fault of my weakness at the game. Thankfully, after each stage, I’ve had a feeling of satisfaction, so I haven’t had a point in time where I’ve not looked forward to a free moment to lay my hands on Echochrome.

Despite having a small number of grievances, none of them were significant enough to detract too severely from the overall experience. Simply put, Steins;Gate 0 is both a fantastic visual novel and more than a worthy follow-up to the first game.

So even if you are left a little cold or annoyed by Afterbirth+ and its seemingly small pool of additions, the package does have something for everyone. New fans may need to look to mods to even make progress in the “story,” but older fans should be more than pleased with this final chapter of Isaac’s tale.

It comes across as a diabolical labor of love.

With the 3DS set to take over the handheld world in a few months, Golden Sun: Dark Dawn may just be the last great RPG for the legendary Nintendo DS.

Doom Eternal keeps the strong foundation built back in 2016 intact, while adding some of its own panache in the process.

With online play, cooperative career, and a flesh-melting soundtrack, this is the best installment of the series yet.

It is a joy and a treat to spend time with a world so different, so unique and intriguing. Even if it is a dying and depressing one.

Despite my qualms with certain challenges and the last boss, I cannot get enough of Risk of Rain 2. I love the characters and discovering secrets while setting new goals for myself. As someone who mostly bounced off the first game, the sequel sucked me in like a Primordial Cube (an in-joke, hah!). There is so much to love here, whether you are a fan of the first game or roguelikes as a whole.

Alas, main characters sometimes receiving a single line of dialogue to describe their end, if anything at all, is what makes The Banner Saga so unique.