When evaluating a rhythm game, I take into account its complexity, soundtrack/tracklist, and replayability. Invector: Rhythm Galaxy’s gameplay ever-so-slightly improves an already good gameplay loop for a rhythm title thanks to how well it blends rhythm beats with cruising through stellar futuristic landscapes. Its difficulty spikes inconsistently, needing some mild curation in onboarding players. Its tracklist that’s comprised of licensed music is fantastic, on the other hand, and should appeal to fans from multiple audiences. Is it replayable? Yes, but some may feel pressured by its arbitrary completion requirements in its campaign. Taken together, it’s a great entry in the genre, and hopefully Hello There Games continues to refine the series and cement its place as a modern rhythm series of must-play proportions.

Let’s Revolution! from developers Buck and Antfood is a simple game that has a complicated underbelly of strategy and asks gamers to make sophisticated choices. While the gameplay is short in its single follow-through, its replayability shows its longevity. While not all of its elements work, especially when it comes to character choice and sometimes random enemy attacks, it’s still a fun game to come back to when you are itching for a quick gaming experience.

Return to Grace from developer: Creative Bytes Studios is a short and sweet once-through experience. It has nice dialogue but is more for viewing than interactive gameplay. As a game tagged to be known as a “Walking Simulator” I believe this is the pinnacle of the genre. With its beautiful local, interesting in-game history, and clever dialogue Return to Grace is a great pick for a narrative-driven game to play all in one go. While the gameplay isn’t exactly my go-to first choice of gaming, after completing and experiencing everything the game has to offer, I can recommend this to those gamers who enjoy this type of gameplay.

GYLT from Tequila Works is a heavy game to bear. Its story is overwhelmingly sad, relatable, and impactful. The gameplay is built to complement the story and the devs did a great job of pulling those two pieces together. This game isn’t for the faint of heart and it will certainly get you in the feels, but the journey is worth the emotional risk.

Gravity Circuit contains the best parts of the SNES-era of 2D action platforming without the artificial difficulty spikes and frustrations. Its combat is fluid, easy to pick up, and exciting to master. Its pacing ramps up with the player. Its music is a nostalgia bomb of high-energy and synthetic charm. Yes, it’s a short play, but it contains enough content to satisfy most players and get them hooked into using Kai’s hookshot over, over, and over again. If this doesn’t sound like a love letter to retro platforming, I don’t know what will.

Oxenfree II: Lost Signals from Night School Studio is a worthy predecessor to the original. The sequel has a thick branching narrative gameplay mechanic that drives the story and gives you a reason to replay the game. The only big knock is that Riley’s story starts slow, which could put off some folks expecting immediate satisfaction with mystery and horror like the first delivered almost right out of the gate. Regardless of takeoff, the sequel is entertaining and something you should check out, especially if you enjoyed the first game.

The game might have had a rough start with laying out the story and explaining the gameplay mechanics, but SOULVARS quickly smoothed out and got in its JRPG groove thanks to a good mix of deck-building and turn-based action. Additionally, it let its retro vibe personality show and it quickly became a pleasant experience.

Ghost Trick: The Phantom Detective from Capcom is a challenging and creative puzzle game that casts the same logic-driven shadow as its gaming cousins in the Ace Attorney series. It offsets its incredibly large amount of difficulty with a strong story that has sprinkles of humor in it, while still maintaining its murder mystery mission to deliver an overall entertaining experience.

In many ways, Rogue Legacy 2 aligns with the gold standard of the roguelite category by creating a highly engaging, dare I say addicting, gameplay loop that rewards multiple types of players. Newer players will find enjoyment in its accessibility levers and bite-sized progression while roguelite veterans will enjoy its deeper-than-expected class-based variance. Sure, you probably will die a lot, and you’ll wish to have a greater connection with its world and the characters within; at the end of the day, its flaws are outweighed by the amount of fun that is to be had by experimentation and repetition. My nearly twenty hour experience felt like two hours, and I still itch to return for one more run. Regardless if you’re a PS+ subscriber or not, Rogue Legacy 2 is more than deserving of your time.

Dave the Diver from Mint Rocket is something to behold. The game features exploration, collection, side quests, an RPG backbone, and a restaurant simulator, all of which are beautifully balanced and connected. This is by far one of the better games of 2023 and shouldn’t be overlooked.

Sonic Origins Plus is inching toward being a definitive Sonic the Hedgehog anthology of classic games, some of which are remastered. The inclusion of Amy and the Game Gear titles are arguably two steps forward, but the quality of those emulated titles in comparison to their remastered counterparts and lack of Genesis and Master System titles are two steps back. Either way, for Sonic fans who do not yet own Sonic Origins on their PS5, Sonic Origins Plus should be a very easy recommendation.

Escape Academy – Escape from the Past from Coin Crew Games does a good job of creating a decent prequel narrative while incorporating a healthy dose of escape room drama. While the balance between story and gameplay seems more story-slanted, the DLC still does a commendable job of delivering a fun, yet short escape room experience.

Pixel Ripped 1978 from ARVORE Immersive Experiences and Atari is a good VR experience that is led by a competent narrative and nostalgia. How VR is used within the game is entertaining and engaging, if not outright clever. While not all of the game is gold, it still manages to turn old game schemes and concepts into something new and engaging within a virtual reality environment.

Sherlock Holmes: The Awakened (2023) is a phenomenal mystery game and sequel with an intriguing storyline, awesome features, and beautiful graphics. Even though the game is shorter than the previous one, I think this is currently my favorite Sherlock Holmes game because the side and main quests never felt like a dull moment. There was always something to look forward to and a motive to keep playing, unveiling the reason for the people vanishing. Although I wished the game continued after Chapter VIII, I understand. Now, I hope there will be a third game in the series. Maybe it will answer the ending. I cannot wait to see the future of the younger Sherlock Holmes series. We might even see him grow.

Final Fantasy XVI is a breath of fresh air for the Final Fantasy franchise despite its first steps into its grittiest, darkest, and most mature space yet. Its combat showcases action-forward combat held together by a backbone of RPG-similar ability management. Its highs truly showcase phenomenal displays of power in many forms, while its lows effectively strike emotional chords in the hearts of players. This might not be a Final Fantasy fans expect, but boy, it’s what Final Fantasy games SHOULD be going forward. FFXVI doesn’t have a strongest asset, per se, because its entire presentation is a gripping and fun compilation of the best parts of gaming without the filler and frivolity. PS5 owners, I implore you, don’t miss out on what is currently my favorite game of the PS5 generation thus far.

SkateBIRD just misses the mark in being a charming, technically sound twist on the skating genre. Clever word play and a whimsical premise simply aren’t enough to mask its mechanical and visual flaws. A game with a bit more lust for life and vibrancy would have excused passable controls. Similarly, its ease of use doesn’t make traversing the world less sparse. But under the messy surface, SkateBIRD can still provide warmth.

The Etrian Odyssey Origins Collection from Atlus is so much better than expected, but not without its flaws. The dungeon-crawling and exploration experiences are primo, as is the need to build a map out and put it on the player to keep track of their surroundings. While the beginning of the game may force some players to question if they’re up for the task of traversing the Etrian Odyssey worlds, as well as some of the gameplay design decisions that can be archaic and restrictive, the collection’s payoff seems much greater by the end than the amount of effort it took to get there.

Fall of Porcupine from Critical Rabbit is a serious story wrapped in cute animation that only Richard Scarry could fully appreciate. The story is driven by branching choices and relaxed from time to time by mini-games. The main crux of this game is the story, which may not be for everyone, especially considering the topics of conversation it presents. They can be powerful at times, but also empty on interactivity.

With the sport growing rapidly, and no intentions of slowing down, ‘F1 23’ continues the yearly release, but gives the player a good experience. Whether you’re a total rookie on the controller or a pro on your Fanatec wheel. ‘F1 23’ is a fun time overall. There is a little bit of ‘clutter’ at times. You feel like you’re having to sort through a lot to even just mess around at Montreal in a quick race, but the overall racing experience is gonna give you your fix. I will say that if you’re a hardcore sim racing driver, then this might be a pass for you. However, ‘F1 23’ is still worth your time on track.

Harmony: The Fall of Reverie from DON’T NOD plays like a proper branching narrative visual novel should play. The acting, writing, and general presentation are the icing on the cake to make this type of gameplay work very well. While it won’t be for everyone, it certainly is top tier for those who are looking for a good branching narrative journey.

Diablo 4 is a vast, daunting experience. One that I gladly dive into. One that I think about while I’m at work. My brain tingles and itches of new skill implementations and ways to maximize gear efficiency. Diablo 4 is also a constantly changing experience. Even as I finalize my thoughts, Blizzard is toiling away at patches and changes to characters, players are coming up with new optimizations. This is a game that can consume your attention with captivating grinds and immersive world-building. Players will hit highs and lows in their search for absolute power, just like in so many other games. Diablo 4 is a culmination of effort, one that isn’t entirely new, but one that is the best at what it does.

Crash Team Rumble from Toys For Bob is quite fun. It features a balanced system of gameplay, some fun characters with unique gameplay styles, and a nice set of maps that complement strategy and quick gameplay. The leveling system may work its way to max quickly, but it doesn’t detour how much entertainment you’re going to get from this title. The biggest concern with this game is longevity and variety. It’s nice that Toys For Bob laid out a roadmap to tame some of this worry, something most companies don’t do well nowadays, but only the future seasons will tell the dedication to the title.

Yes, The Last of Us Part I for the PC has somewhat improved a little under two months in. Graphical stutters, framedrops, and other visual artifacts currently exist. If you’re able to look past those graphical shortcomings, The Last of Us Part I is a truly exceptional game. Consider waiting just a bit more before jumping into one of the best series from Sony and Naughty Dog to date.

Bleak Sword DX is a gorgeous, nostalgic, and clever game for something built in a simplified structural way. More8Bit did a superb job of creating a fast gameplay environment while also maintaining creativity with its enemies and maps. While it may not seem like much, it has some moxie to it. Be forewarned, though, it also contains a heavy amount of frustration.

Super Mega Baseball 4 from Metalhead Studio is a riot to play, but it is a smaller experience when compared to its bigger MLB The Show brethren. What it lacks in the longevity of a forever MLB season, it makes up with in moxie, personality, and a bevy of ways to play. The customization and chance to play legends and vloggers will be enough reason to give this a go.

Decarnation is not about the gameplay, but about the journey. And that journey is wrought with existentialism, Lovecraftian horror, and psychological quandaries that may be trigger inducing. It will grip you, refuse to let go, and entrap you until the end of its story. Should you play Decarnation, you will be opting into experiencing horror through the eyes of a protagonist you may, or may not, empathize with. Should you play Decarnation, you should also avoid sharing its execution of horrors that should remain unspeakable. In other words, avoid spoiling whenever possible.

Switch owners should definitely consider Nightmare Reaper if you’re wishing for a retro shooter that successfully marries roguelite gameplay, fountains of 2D gore, and elements of the original DOOM games. The difficulty curve may be steep at times, but it’s worth sticking with given its high replayability and fresh takes on chaotic first-person combat. I highly recommend Nightmare Reaper for those wanting a bloodbath or an adrenaline rush, as you’ll definitely get it alongside some fun bonus content.

Kingdom Rush Origins from Ironhide Game Studio is a step up with creativity, enemy, and hero design/execution, and with how clever the series’ maps can get. Unfortunately, the difficulty has also stepped up and can create a frustrating time that may hurt the positive parts of this latest Kingdom Rush game.