And yet, with Dead Island 2, Dambuster Studios has delivered a sequel that hugely improves upon the maligned original.

I can't recommend anyone play NightCry unless you have a steel resolve, unlimited time on your hands, and a penchant for terrible physics and animations straight out of the PS2 era.

Your enjoyment of Minecraft Legends will come down to three questions. 1: Are you in love with Minecraft and its extended universe? 2: Are you hankering for an RTS-style game playable on a console? 3: Do you have a minimum of three friends who are eager to play this game too? If you answered yes to at least two of those questions, you’ll have a good time with Minecraft Legends. For everyone else, Minecraft Legends offers a fairly unique experience and not much more. Just don’t expect to get any mileage out of the campaign.

There isn’t anything offensively bad about it. It’s not extremely rough-edged like Christmas Massacre or as raunchy as Night at the Gates of Hell. However, both those games presented uniquely memorable moments, whereas Rewind or Die has a video rental shop. Video rental shops are terrific, but they’re just not horrific enough to carry an entire game.

For being a rather unique premise, Flooded offers a very tight and polished experience. It’s the sort of thing where I’m afraid that if you either add something or take it away, it will stop working. Just a terrific execution of its thesis. I’m not certain it will necessarily soak your socks like some more expansive builders might, but your time spent stranded will be worthwhile.

Its focus is rather admirable. There’s no voice acting, the graphics are rather basic, but everything comes together wonderfully to get the job done. Fans of visual novels have been eating great recently, and Tron: Identity is another great morsel to dig your teeth into. Even if it’s not the most transcendental experience, it’s hard not to be charmed by the amount of love that’s been put into it.

When all’s said and done, you leave, and nature remains. It’s a fitting end to Terra Nil. It’s a small-scale, unique city-builder that is short and sweet. It does just what it needs to, and moves on. Maybe that’s not as in-depth or infinitely playable as some strategy heads might want from a city-builder. But I personally loved that even Terra Nil itself is about entering, making a positive impact, and leaving. It’s easy to be pessimistic about our future, but Terra Nil is at least a small slice of hope amidst it all.

Hot Wheels: Rift Rally uses everything the team learned from their prior project to keep you playing a bit longer; which is something you want from a game that costs $100+ and requires a toy to function.

The original GrimGrimoire was envisioned as the first in a franchise before poor sales put the kibosh on that idea. I don’t know if Vanillaware and NIS America will be more successful this time around with GrimGrimoire OnceMore, but I hope they are because this game is a top to bottom delight and I would love to see what lies beyond the halls of Silver Star Tower.

Despite a few issues with the controls, The Last Worker is a riveting 6-to-8-hour narrative experience. Sorting each box as a pseudo-employee is surprisingly entertaining, and the characters are endearing. There are also twists and turns in the storyline that will keep you gripped throughout this journey, at least until the endings start to play out. With the gorgeous visuals by Mick McMahon, fun gameplay, and meaningful script, I’d happily recommend The Last Worker. You just need to struggle through the awkward controls and some confusing game design.

Assault Suit Valken Declassified is an undeniably loving return to the Super Famicom title. It’s plain to see that Rainmaker wanted to do the game justice and give North American fans the ability to enjoy it in the same way as it has in Japan. If you’re a fan of the game, it’s at least worth a look. If you haven’t tried it before, you’re long overdue for this mission. I just wish the price of entry was lower.

I just don’t think Dredge is all that it could be. While the sea-harvesting foundation is solid and well thought out, nothing else around it has much depth. There’s a dearth of imagination surrounding it, which I found disappointing. The plot is lifeless, the gameplay is one-note, and it never really picks up speed. However, if you want a more relaxing take on horror, Dredge might be worth hauling up from the depths.

Octopath Traveler 2 isn’t just a great end destination, but a fulfilling journey too. It has a lively world, intricate and engaging combat, fluid progression and builds that reward tinkering, an incredible score, and excellent arcs for all of its protagonists. It somehow has everything I’d want out of an RPG inspired by the old days, but moving forward into new ones too. It took me a long time to get here, but Octopath Traveler 2 is a road worth traveling.

Fortunately, Rakuen on its own justifies the Deluxe Edition. Though a bit uneven, its best moments are spectacular enough to warrant a recommendation for anyone in need of a good cry or two. I do wish Mr. Saitou reached the same emotional heights, but it’s serviceable if viewed strictly as a bonus. That said, if you wanted to save money and get vanilla Rakuen on PC, I wouldn’t stop you.

Building on the reasonably solid gameplay foundation of WWE 2K22, WWE 2K23 manages to finally find a comfortable spot. It is, at its core, the same general game that we get year after year. It kind of sucks that we have to keep paying for small improvements. However, small improvements got us here, and here is a pretty decent place to be.

Tchia might very well be the most ambitious indie game we see in 2023. This open-air and open-sea adventure takes some of the best gameplay elements from The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild and Super Mario Odyssey and combines them into an adventure that’s filled with heart, humor, and compassion across a breathtaking archipelago. If you enjoy games with exceptionally designed worlds that are meant to be explored with a fine-tooth comb, I can’t see any reason why you wouldn’t love what’s on offer in Tchia.

Back in 2005, I liked Resident Evil 4, but I didn’t love it. The remake hasn’t changed that. Unlike the Resident Evil 2 remake, which was revolutionary, Resident Evil 4’s glow-up is more of a faithful recreation rather than an overhaul. It changes just enough that, if you loved the original, I can’t guarantee this will leave you unperturbed. Meanwhile, if you didn’t like its first iteration, it’s not impossible that this will change your mind. The best I can say is that it is an earnest effort at recapturing the magic, and it’s worth checking out. It remains, as it always was, maddeningly inconsistent.

I expect Switchback VR to be similarly polarizing because it caters to a very specific niche, but if you enjoyed Rush of Blood, you'll likely have a good time here as well.

I feel it’s more memorable and interesting than what was done in Space Academy. The flow of the whole experience is altered much more appreciably without requiring you to pick up an entirely new set of skills. It’s definitely not a dramatic shake-up, but it was worth returning to Two Point Campus to experience it. However, if the core experience didn’t click with you, then it’s doubtful that School Spirits will help it rise from the grave.

Before Trails from Zero, I didn’t know anything about the Legend of Heroes series outside of the fact that people really like to complain about how text-heavy its titles are. And while the Crossbell arc could certainly use an editor in my mind, I would be fooling myself if I didn’t admit that, when taken together as one complete experience, Trails from Zero and Trails to Azure are easily one of the best turn-based RPGs I’ve ever played. Here’s to hoping someday I’ll be able to find the time to see the rest of what this series has to offer.

Bayonetta Origins is a really breezy game to play if you're enamored by the storybook look and feel, which does some of the heavy lifting.

And because she’s finally making her debut in Deluxe, this review will be all about Birdo.

Paranormasight makes me feel like the visual novel genre has been held back by largely adhering to a formula first created 40 years ago. It makes its evolutionary steps seem effortless, simple, and long overdue. But more importantly, it tells an excellent story that defies expectations. So, as long as you’re up for some reading and a bit of thinking, Paranormasight is one you shouldn’t miss.

I’m legitimately surprised by how 24 Killers manages to be so closely related to its influences yet still provide a unique experience. A studio’s philosophy is an intangible thing to try and mimic, but Happy Shabby Games seems to have taken 24 Killers protracted development period and nailed it. It feels like a spiritual successor, directly related to Moon. It features the same askew artstyle, a strange but relaxed soundtrack, and an atypical narrative with off-kilter dialogue. Meanwhile, it’s more player-friendly without being overly modernized or sterile. It’s great to see other developers pick up the torch, as the world could use a bit more love in it.

Looking at Figment 2 from any angle other than a strictly aesthetic one makes it seem lacking. But because it executes its sights and sounds so expertly, it’s really hard to identify where it’s lacking. It’s so well-polished and tangible passion has gone into crafting it that, so long as you have a good vector on what to expect, it’s still possibly a good time. I think I just might be too cynical and jaded to connect with its kindness and optimism.

Going into Fatal Frame: Mask of the Lunar Eclipse, you have to be prepared for an uncomfortable experience. The combat is a mire of frustration, and the controls really could have used some tender loving care. However, if you’re looking for some classic Japanese horror with a stack of cryptic narrative lore to dig through and you’re aware of what you might be in for, it’s definitely worth diving into.

Romancelvania feels a lot like an idea too grand, a team too small, and a deadline too short. There is a lot of vision, a great deal of creativity, and no shortage of love, but all of that got crushed under the reality of the workload. The whole combination of two established subgenres is a substantial experiment, and that requires a lot of prototyping, testing, failing, and starting over. Romancelvania feels like it charged ahead without looking back on a lot of things. As such, the end product is a bit of a mess...Like your own favorite hand, it gets the job done. You can accurately say that Romancelvania is both dating sim and Metroidvania. However, also like your hand, it’s ultimately an unsatisfying experience.

Prior to Lightfall, I felt Destiny was at its strongest point ever. The narrative was exceptional, the character development was unrivaled by any other FPS, and the future seemed both terrifying and wildly exciting. After Lightfall, I am still intrigued to see what happens next, but I think that lies solely with my thousands of logged hours and personal emotional investment that may not exist for new players. There is so much potential in Destiny for newcomers, but it isn’t easy to find, and Bungie often doesn’t help them along the way.