Minecraft Legends does a great job at making the real-time strategy genre more approachable, even if its campaign gets repetitive.

Nintendo Switch Sports is exactly what it needs to be. It’s an intuitive package of Wii-era sports minigames with more precise motion controls and full online integration. Addictive activities like bowling and badminton make it one of the Switch’s best multiplayer party games, though overly complicated minigames like soccer miss the simple appeal of the series. With long-term support planned, I’m hopeful that Nintendo can build up the currently thin offering and turn it into the kind of console staple that any Switch owner needs to have installed.

Doom: The Dark Ages delivers another dose of reliable thrills by building on the foundation established by its excellent predecessors. The power fantasy of it all is more potent than ever, but Id Software’s experiment in excess proves that there is such a thing as “too much” when it comes to video game spectacle.

Control feels like the first step in a bigger project for Remedy Entertainment. While it doesn’t reach its full potential in storytelling and there isn’t enough variation in the combat, the powers that are there are great and the creepy atmosphere complement the action well. Traditional single-player games that aren’t bogged down in level-gating or unnecessary role-playing mechanics are a rarity these days, and that alone makes Control worth paying full price for.

Need for Speed Unbound is not trying to be an ultrarealistic simulator or even a super comprehensive open-world online racing game experience. It wants to be a stylish, tough, and rewarding ode to street racing culture. While it’s not the best in its genre due to some weak writing and eventual repetition, Need for Speed Unbound is a surprisingly entertaining racer in a year that hasn’t seen much racing game excitement since Gran Turismo 7.

Cat Quest 3 is a light but charming pirate adventure that'll make you feel like a kid again.

World of Goo 2 is the meta sequel that the eccentric puzzle classic deserves.

Echoes of Wisdom’s best parts are the ones that break away from what’s expected. My favorite moments largely happen in Still World rifts, where I need to carve my own path through twisted snippets of Hyrule’s world using echoes. I’m attuned with Zelda most when I find a large gap I can’t pass, but realize I can get to the other side by grabbing hold of a flying tile with my bind ability and following its path. In clever puzzle platform moments like that, I feel like I'm tapping into her third of the Triforce; I’m using her wisdom to meet any challenge that arises. And I’m doing that by drawing on her connection to all things within her kingdom and communicating her eternal royalty through tangible play.

Infinity Nikki is the stylish open-world game that players have been begging for.

Dragon Age: The Veilguard is a return to form for this once-lauded RPG studio that should satiate Dragon Age fans quite well after a decade-long wait. But returning to form and perfecting form are not the same thing. BioWare has plenty of room to regrow as it gets back on track making the kinds of games RPG fans want them to create.

Super Mario Party Jamboree’s core board game is still as fun as ever, and made even better thanks to some clever new maps. Its signature minigames, though, are a little more inconsistent as some of Nintendo’s best ideas are almost exclusively saved for hit-and-miss side modes. It’s a multiplayer package that spreads itself thin, but there’s enough fun content here to keep the dice rolling for another turn.

Flock will bring out the inner birdwatcher in you, even if only for a few short hours.

Paper Mario: The Origami King is a charming Mario adventure marred by a difficult and tedious battle system.

It’s the right level of strategy and team synergy for a micro-scale game like this.

Revelations 2 is neither a particularly good game nor a particularly bad one. It has all the ingredients of a good Resident Evil game, but lacks substance.

Tales of Kenzera: Zau is more effective as a moving reflection on grief than as a Metroidvania.

While it has its quirks, Weird West is a bit of storytelling spectacle that seems to have been hand-crafted for diehard RPG fans.

Islands of Insight is the modern reinvention the puzzle genre needs.

Empire of Sin delivers a clever, genre-melding experience that perfectly marries the world of 1920s organized crime with strategy gameplay. Bugs and a lack of combat speed or automation options can grind its pace to a halt, but it does a stellar job of putting the player in the mindset of a mob mastermind (or a gun-toting buffoon) with streamlined speakeasy management.

Planet of Lana makes up for some repetitive 2D puzzling with a gorgeous art style and a good-natured tone.

Children of the Sun stumbles on story, but its unnerving hyper violence hits its mark.

Death Stranding is The Tree of Life of videogames. Some people will hail it as a technical and narrative masterpiece that pushes the medium forward. Others will simply be bored to tears by the slow, repetitive gameplay. Both takes are valid. Death Stranding is a bold project that’s sure to be as divisive as the political anxiety it’s commenting on. It won’t change the minds of Kojima detractors who think he should just make movies, but the game’s thoughtful social components showcase why he still plays such a vital role in the games industry.

A Plague Tale: Requiem is a fantastic sequel on several counts. It improves on its predecessor in just about every way by finely tuning its stealth and navigation systems, adding more gameplay variety, and delivering a visually stunning world that puts games with much larger budgets to shame. Its weak spot comes down to its messy storytelling, which exposes the thematic limits of a medium that’s over reliant on violence as its primary form of interaction.

WWE 2K22 is a robust wrestling simulator that gets the series back on track after its nearly career-ending 2020 installment. It’s filled with modes, impressive combat tweaks, and a truly phenomenal creative suite that turn it into a hoss of a game. There’s still work to do if 2K Sports wants to fully rehabilitate the series. Multi-man matches need a rework, its more promising modes need to be expanded, and there’s still plenty of gunk to clean up. But if this is how much an annualized series can turn itself around by taking one year off, then every franchise like it should consider an offseason.

The Isle of Armor improves on Pokémon Sword and Shield's open world experiments with a light expansion.

Lysfanga: The Time Shift Warrior's time-bending combat hook is so smart, you'll want to show it to everyone you know.

The stripped-down sandbox may be a disappoint longtime fans, but it’s an extra feature that adds to a game that would still feel complete without it.

Taken as a complete package, Sonic X Shadow Generations paints a full picture of the series’ long, hard journey. I started by dragging my way through a fun but shallow game that never quite felt right and arrived at a revelatory thrill that feels like the genuine future of the series. The takeaway from all this shouldn’t be to make a third Generations game, put Shadow in the starring role more often, or to even bow down to anyone with a complaint — lord knows that last one is a recipe for disaster these days. Rather, the most positive possible outcome is that it will inspire a moment of self-reflection. We do not grow by plugging our ears, running away from the past, and ignoring anyone who doesn’t say exactly what we want to hear. Growing up is about recognizing our imperfections, and knowing which are worth embracing and which are actually worth working on.

Like a Dragon: Ishin's timeless story and accessibility options make up for some of its outdated gameplay.

Gundam Evolution is a hero shooter that gives Gundam fans and new players a full product despite being free-to-play, though it's not without high item prices and tech quirks.

What’s included in Mario Tennis Aces makes the game a great choice for Mario and tennis fans alike, and we can see dedicated players competing in high-level player over the next few months, but we wish there was more meat. Unless you plan on becoming really good at online player, or constantly have visitors at your home, you’ll be limited to only a few modes, none of which are likely to keep you entertained for more than an hour or so at a time. For a commute, or something to play before work or bed, it does the job — but don’t expect it to keep your attention throughout the summer.

Escape Academy is an endearing puzzle game that just wants to share the unique pleasure of escape rooms with everyone. Each well-designed level brings a set of clever logic puzzles that are always satisfying to solve, especially with a pal. It has a harder time bringing players a meaningful sense of failure, as the meaningless time limits suck the tension out of the room. Despite its struggles to nail down the energy of real-world escape rooms, it’s one of the most fun ways you can spend a Saturday gaming night this summer.

Sniper Elite 5 is an increasingly rare WWII game that actually does something new with the conflict. While its story has nothing new to say and its commitment to history can be a burden on its creative potential, its open-ended missions make for a devilishly enjoyable stealth action game. Its excessive violence can be a little hard to stomach, even for the most hardened gamers, but you can’t have a guilty pleasure without a heaping helping of self-indulgence.

Ara: History Untold brings city-building to Civilization with strategic success.

Is Outriders a sophisticated action game with a compelling sci-fi story? No. Does it feel fun to freeze a spider with an ice turret and shatter it with a well-placed sniper shot? You bet. Sometimes, that’s all one really wants from a shooter like this. It could use an offline mode for single-player sessions and a fair bit of maintenance, but it’s a solid foundation for an action game that respects its players’ time.

Ghostwire: Tokyo is at its best when it's reimagining Japanese folklore in visually astonishing ways and delivering moving visualizations of what it’s like to pass on. It’s less compelling as a checkbox-driven open-world game, with limited content stretched too thin across its apocalyptic version of Shibuya.

Live A Live is a high-effort remake from the presentation side, though the base game remains an uneven RPG experience.

Disney Illusion Island is a charming all-ages platformer that acts as a breezy introduction to the Metroidvania genre.

When all is said and done, and Nazi Germany’s ego has been bruised by a couple of rad teenage girls, one fact remains — Wolfenstein: Youngblood is fun as hell. The goofy Blazkowicz sisters make it compelling enough to endure its sometimes annoying quirks. Bring a partner for best results. The game shines when you’re playing co-op alongside a friend.

Biomutant is a clear labor of love that’s loaded with imaginative world building. The in-depth character customization options create a more personalized kind of action RPG. It’s eyes are often bigger than its stomach, which can often result in a repetitive, at times unstable experience. Even with those flaws, it’s hard not to be charmed by a kind-hearted project with some environmentally conscious storytelling.

Payback is one of the better entries is the long and storied Need for Speed franchise. It hews to its Fast and Furious inspiration well, blending camp, action, tight racing, and an entertaining world to drive way too fast in. If you can get over the obnoxious introduction, you’ll have no trouble getting comfortable at the wheel.

Zenless Zone Zero is at its best when it's delivering stylish action over puzzles.

While it commits its fair share of game design sins, Blasphemous 2 delivers a rewarding, unsettling Metroidvania that's worthy of some devotion.

Shovel Knight Dig punches above its spin-off weight class, even if its roguelike elements are a little modest.

Shadowkeep is an expansion that’s brimming with potential that it’s actually poised to capitalize on. Its campaign may be a lukewarm retread through the franchise’s history, but the endgame loop is feeling more robust than ever. If the game’s first post-launch update is any indication, Shadowkeep promises a compelling reason to return to Destiny 2, putting more emphasis on world discovery than an endless loot grind.

Bayonetta Origins tells a cute coming-of-age story about an initially powerless girl discovering herself. The game itself almost mirrors that, beginning with some simplistic, repetitive play but slowly evolving into something complex with its own distinct identity. It’s not just an origin story for Cereza, but for a new spinoff series with promising potential. The little witch we see in the game’s final moments isn’t the fully formed angel of death we meet in Bayonetta; there’s still some growing she needs to do to fully get there. Bayonetta Origins ends in the same place, leaving me excited to see where the adventure goes from here.

WWE 2K23 is another successful chapter in the wrestling series' comeback story, but the red flags of annualization are starting to appear already.

Another Crab's Treasure utilizes its charming setting and assist mode options to become one of the most approachable Soulslikes ever.

The Journey is sorely missed in FIFA 20, as the story we get instead simply isn’t up to the high standard of its predecessors. The visuals also lag behind other AAA sports titles. Despite this, FIFA 20 remains the best way to experience soccer in a game. It makes a few minor adjustments to the formula without breaking what’s worked for the series over the years.

Rise of the Ronin has an excellent parrying system that makes its Soulslike gameplay feel challenging, yet fair compared to its contemporaries.

Despite some cumbersome combat systems and performance issues, The Callisto Protocol successfully builds on Dead Space's legacy.

Pokémon Scarlet and Violet is a real step forward for a series that’s been locked in a holding pattern for well over a decade. The open-world pivot successfully reinvigorates a stale premise by giving trainers more control over the pace and difficulty of their journey. Like every recent Pokémon game, however, deteriorating tech and half-hearted experimentation still makes it feel like we’re five years away from the franchise’s true return to glory.

Rune Factory 5 should satisfy fans and cozy game enthusiasts, but its not quite as friendly for newcomers.

There’s something special about the Battlefront games, and how they capture the excitement of the beloved films. Star Wars: Battlefront II excels on that front, like its predecessor did, and does it in a smarter, more interesting way. It also offers much more of that experience, with a single-player campaign and plenty of multiplayer modes rounding what feels like a fairly complete package...Still, Battlefront II is much less of a sequel than the Battlefront done correctly. It feels the same, and carries all the same problems, as its predecessor. With a fun but ultimately unremarkable single-player story, returning to Battlefront probably won’t blow many fans’ minds.

Buy it if you want a competitive racer that’s willing to hold your hand while you take your time honing your skills. Don’t buy it if you’re more into building massive collections of your favorite cars, or if you only ever playing by yourself. If that’s your preferred style, grab Forza 7 instead.

The Crush House turns reality TV into the funniest puzzle game you'll ever play.

Without the scads of small talk, Persona Q feels lost in the shadow of its parent series.

Darksiders III is a good action-adventure game that has the potential to become a great one if Gunfire Games can get it to run more smoothly. Fury is a delight to play and easily stands alongside War and Death. Some clever twists point to a very interesting fourth game, but that’s if Gunfire is given the chance. For fans of Zelda, Dark Souls, or Castlevania, there is plenty to enjoy here, and longtime Darksiders fans can be at ease knowing the series is in very capable hands.

Alone in the Dark’s clumsy action and boilerplate occult story may be off-putting to new players hoping for a Resident Evil-like glow-up. Meet the remake on its own terms, though, and you’ll find a charming '90s horror homage that doesn’t turn its nose up at gaming’s roots. It revels in its old-school design like a dedicated cultist, even inviting Hollywood actors to dance around the fire with it.

Assassin's Creed Shadows finds peace and quiet amid a flurry of repetitive violence.

Pokémon Legends: Arceus is a step in the right direction for the aging series, even if its technical limits can't always support its ambitions.

Pokémon Scarlet and Violet is a real step forward for a series that’s been locked in a holding pattern for well over a decade. The open-world pivot successfully reinvigorates a stale premise by giving trainers more control over the pace and difficulty of their journey. Like every recent Pokémon game, however, deteriorating tech and half-hearted experimentation still makes it feel like we’re five years away from the franchise’s true return to glory.

By locking away the other two monster classes at the beginning, Evolve needlessly gates off completely different styles of play that new players will want to experiment with immediately, if only to get a feel for competition. Even in the case of the hunters, the slow leveling and unlocking of new skills, perks, and characters feels needlessly complex in what could have been a simpler and more approachable game.

I would recommend Forspoken to action and RPG fans, but I wish I could give them one of my save files with total open-world freedom and most of the traversal and combat spells unlocked from the jump. The adventure is at its weakest when it's forcing players to wade through lots of poor narrative content that takes too long to pay off. Its best beats aren’t paced or delivered well and serve as a weighty vambrace holding back this game’s true magic: a dazzling open-world game that truly does feel next-gen.

A solid, but safe expansion of the base game.

Hot Wheels Unleashed 2: Turbocharged enhances the original's formula in every possible way.

With As Dusk Falls, Interior Night and Xbox Game Studios are testing the limits of what an interactive narrative adventure game can be. It's certainly odd for this to be one of the biggest Xbox exclusives of 2022, but it keenly demonstrates that there's still a lot that developers can do to innovate within a genre that seems limited at first glance.

Despite its rough edges, Hellblade is often stunning, and approaches mental illness with a unique blend of traditional storytelling and interactive mechanics. If you’re more interested in a stylish action game, there are certainly better options out there, but one thing is clear: No game will leave you feeling like Hellblade does.

Payday 3 doesn't shake up its predecessor's formula much, but a strong batch of initial heists sets the live service shooter up for success.

WarioWare: Move It! is a joyously fun return to the series motion-control era, though it doesn't evolve the formula too much.”

The First Berserker: Khazan will frustrate you to no end, but it's still worth its weight in broken controllers.

Dragon's Dogma 2 is an exhilarating, if occasionally frustrating, RPG full of dynamic player-driven moments.

Starfield isn’t the generation-defining video game that overeager fans might be expecting; it’s a fairly typical, though impressively constructed Bethesda RPG where depth and stability often come at the expense of scope. The surprisingly limited base adventure isn’t so much the draw here, though. The enormous intergalactic playground feels custom-made for modders who want to explore the infinite possibilities of space just as much as Constellation and Bethesda itself.

Revenge of the Savage Planet plays its open-world formula safe, but it shows its teeth where it matters.

Pokémon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl play it safe, faithfully remaking two classic DS games -- at times to a fault.

The fun, snappy Sonic Dream Team might just hold the blueprints for the hedgehog's future.

Pokémon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl play it safe, faithfully remaking two classic DS games -- at times to a fault.

Beyond Light's weak story leaves a lot to be desired, but new stasis abilities help make the game feel fresh again.

Citizen Sleeper 2: Starward Vector balances survival stress and transhumanist optimism, even if those ideas are sometimes at odds with one another.

Cult of the Lamb excels as a darkly comedic management game, though its roguelite component commits some cardinal sins.

NieR Replicant ver.1.22474487139… confirms that the original NieR was both way ahead of its time and far behind it. The story is tremendously captivating and it’s only gotten better with newly added content. On the other side of the coin, the repetitive gameplay feels outdated even by 2010 standards. Those who press through the 30-hour adventure will be rewarded with a bold narrative odyssey. It may even outdo NieR Automata in retrospect, but it’s hard to blame anyone who’d rather watch it all on YouTube instead of playing it for themselves.

Drag X Drive feels like an excellent prototype more than a full package. The control scheme proves to be more than just a gimmick and makes the act of moving engaging. Combined with the twist that playing basketball in wheelchairs has on a familiar sport, the result is a very solid and enjoyable time. But with only that one mode to hang its hat on, I don’t see Drag X Drive rising above a novelty.

Immortals of Aveum is a colorful magic FPS that's sometimes too snarky for its own good.

Dragon Ball FighterZ’ is the first Dragon Ball game everyone should play.

Deathloop is a tremendously stylish stealth-action game that builds on Arkane's strengths, even if some of its creative gambles fall flat.

Steamworld Heist 2 is a strong sequel, even if it may test both your skills and patience.

Kirby and the Rainbow Curse is a weird and beautiful game, but it's an odd fit for the Wii U.

Soulstice's terrible camera holds back an otherwise ambitious and inspired action game.

Pascal's Wager doesn't quite match the impressive standards of its inspiration, but Dark Souls fans should check it out.

Lies of P makes it clear that developer Neowiz has a deep appreciation and understanding for FromSoftware;s games that goes beyond a surface-level copy.

Assassin’s Creed Shadows almost feels like what it would be like if Ken Burns was tasked with making a video game. It’s exhaustive in how it depicts Japan’s feudal era even in fiction, crafting its world with the eye of a historical documentarian. It’s not quite the in-depth slice of life that Red Dead Redemption 2 goes for, but it approaches that same idea with fewer systems. Some of my favorite moments came when I just got bored of stabbing people and got on my horse instead. I didn't stop every few feet to complete a puzzle. I didn’t stop to open another chest. I just rode, breathing in nature and listening to my own exhale intertwine with the wind.

MultiVersus isn’t the next Super Smash Bros. Ultimate; it’s a beast of its own. If Player First Games and WB Games can maintain this game’s community with frequent, compelling updates and make the user experience a little more engaging, MultiVersus should have a bright future ahead of it.

Saltsea Chronicles is a poignant nautical adventure about the distances between us and what we gain from crossing them.

Visions of Mana isn't the most sophisticated RPG, but it's good comfort food for genre fans.

While it has its quirks, Weird West is a bit of storytelling spectacle that seems to have been hand-crafted for diehard RPG fans.

High on Life takes the right design cues from Metroid Prime, though uneven comedy makes for a hit-and-miss adventure.

Neva may not be the most complex 2D platformer, but it still might make you cry.

Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves is a slick fighting game with an uncomfortable catch.