The original BloodRayne is a cult classic and masterpiece, in the same way that the best B-grade exploitation was. It wasn’t a great game, but a strong concept that combined slaying Nazis and sexy vampire sucking was really all it needed. Just like B-cinema doesn’t need great camera angles when it’s got creatively gory death scenes and women that don’t like wearing clothes. In fairness, BloodRayne 2 does clean things up in comparison to the original. It plays better (platforming aside), and is generally a more coherent experience. It gets rid of the Nazis (largely), but ups the sex. And yet it loses a little X-factor in being better. Rather than aiming for cult appeal, BloodRayne 2 aspired to be an actual game and where the first succeeded at being what it wanted to, the second did not. However, as I said at the start of this review, because it is a better base game, and its themes have translated across better into 2021, it is the better of the two to play today.

Any single run through of Princess Maker 2 Regeneration is just a few short hours, making it very moreish, especially given that the sheer number of endings it is clearly designed around replay value. You’ll probably want to use some kind of guide to get all those endings, as the game does nothing to indicate how any of them are unlocked… but then again, perhaps the spirit of experimentation is what you’ll love most about this. As a stat-based simulation sandbox, there’s a lot of joy in this trip through Princess Maker nostalgia. But given how difficult it was to effectively modernise this classic, perhaps it is time for a new title in the series. The last one was released back in 2007, and there’s a lot of creative opportunity that this series is now leaving on the table.

Moero Chronicle is so completely unabashed about its fan service and endless innuendo that it's oddly charming, in its own way. There's absolutely no way that people who don't enjoy fan service for the sake of fan service will get anything out of this game. The dungeon crawling is executed well enough, but it's traditional to a fault.

I can’t imagine the niche for this game will be too big, but even as someone who doesn’t know the anime, I found myself enjoying the unique take on hell that Made in Abyss throws at players. Once you learn to play it within its rhythms, rather than expect it to be something more conventional, it has a charm all of its own.

If you're into the 80's neon-filled culture and new wave music, then Neon Chrome might just very well be the perfect little game to play over the weekend.

I don’t want to spoil anything, but simply saying “Greek Tragedy” covers a lot, if you follow me. Clearly, you’re going to get the most out of Sokobos if you already love Sokoban as a core concept, but I could have wished for a slightly deeper story behind it all.

The overriding focus of any point-and-click adventure game has to be on the excellence of the story, well fleshed-out characters, as well as puzzles that are germane to the story and enhance it. On all these counts, I believe Demetrios delivers, notwithstanding a few minor stumbles. It is particularly welcome on the Vita platform, which lacks a wider range of games in this genre. The game runs smoothly with minimal loading times, and the bubble icon looks very cool indeed, to boot.

Violet Wisteria is very transient, ultimately. It is enjoyable, yet also forgettable. Once you get into the groove with the triangle combat system, the pseudo-puzzle quality to the platforming will keep you on your toes and get you to think about movement and combat in a different way. It’s a clever quirk and the developers have implemented it well. The art in the cut scenes is also gorgeous and I’d like to see the developers expand on this character and her world in a visual novel or similar. However, the platforming itself is clumsy, the effort that went into the visuals in the cut scenes is not reflected in the gameplay, and ultimately Violet Wisteria is only going to appeal to the hardest of hardcore retro platforming fans.

Those irritations aside, I really had a good time with Outshine. It offers a slick typing challenge with a solid wall of difficulty for the hardcore to sink their teeth into. There’s also the simple reality that a game like this doubles as an educational application, as it teaches speed and accuracy with typing, as well as the ability to touch type. These are all increasingly critical skills in modern society, so that’s an important added bonus with Outshine.

Above all else, Defunct sells itself on an exhilarating sense of speed matched with excellent level design and exploration. It’s rare to find a game where simply moving around is as fun as it is here. Of course the game’s short length might deter some, but it’s genuinely interesting to see a developer run with the idea of a momentum-based platformer and nail the core mechanics.

One thing is certain about the Sniper Ghost Warriors series: CI Games is slowly bringing this franchise, kicking and screaming as it is, into a niche of its own.

Though I love the concept and presentation of Wing of Darkness, it falls a little short of being an instant indie classic like Sumire was. Wing of Darkness has the right attitude when it comes to depicting the impact of war. It has impeccable presentation and art direction. The gameplay systems are enjoyable and, for the most part, well-executed. Almost everything about Wing of Darkness is spot-on, but it just falls short of making us care enough that the poignant themes and evocative narrative can really hit home. Perhaps this developer will make enough revenue from this to take a second spin at it, and I would play that in a heartbeat, because I am totally certain that the limitations of Wing of Darkness has nothing to do with the developer's talent, ideas, and ambition.

With the variety in levels, the large number of missions, and the historical depth, I really enjoyed what Sudden Strike 4 had to offer. I think it’s going to appeal to only the smallest of communities on PlayStation 4, and the PC version is clearly going to be the superior choice for people that can manage it, but still, it’s a good little game.

The Last Days of Old Earth is one of those lighter weight strategy games that can scratch a quick itch to unwind after a long day (beer and all), but is not the sort of game you will sit down with for an entire afternoon.

If you've got a PC that can handle it, Shadow Warrior 2 is a fantastic bloody game. If you love yourself a good, over-the-top action video game that brings to mind the ridiculous (but enjoyable) action flicks of the 70's and 80's, then the Shadow Warrior franchise is not to be missed.

All in all, this collection coming out on the back of the original Mega Man and Mega Man X Series is a must have for fans or those that never actually got around to playing them. With plenty of features only improving on the original releases back on the Game Boy Advance and the collections on the DS, Mega Man Zero 1-4 and its two sequels are an ideal way to celebrate one of the more niche and forgotten chapters in the Mega Man legend.

OTTTD is a quality example of the tower defence genre by SMG Studio, and it is no wonder that the original release of OTTTD scored favourably enough that a Switch port, years later, would make sense. Is it essential? No, this genre was never about being “essential,” – it’s tailored right down to the core as a simple way of passing time with accessible challenge. But SMG Studio has nailed that brief, and this game does deserve to be considered among the very greats of the genre.

I wouldn't bet money on us getting another take on Go on Nintendo Switch, and even if we do, I wouldn't bet on it being a focused teaching tool for the game. As such, Being Stronger While Playing! SilverStar Go DX is mandatory stuff, despite its warts. You don't need to be a professional Go player, but it is one of those things where having a basic knowledge of the game is a good way of showing that you've got a level of interest and respect for other cultures, and it's a useful stepping stone for a broader understanding of Asian thought and culture.

That aside, Asmodee continues to demonstrate why it is the best digital board game developer going around. Gloomhaven itself is a little insular compared to the likes of Game of Thrones, Arkham Horror, Ticket to Ride, Pathfinder and Lord of the Rings, so I suspect it will appeal to a narrower band of players than some of Asmodee's other adaptations, but the faithful quality of that adaptation and the stellar production values make it an easy sell to existing Gloomhaven fans, and the ideal way to those that were intimidated by the size (and cost) of the box when they've seen it in their local game store to give it a go in the first place.

It’s quite the joy to play, and it is by no means the only "retro" experience that displays limitations that become more apparent with age. For the modest price being asked of players with this Switch release, it’s a great opportunity for a hit of nostalgia. As I said at the top of the review, however, it's not quite the timeless experience that its immediate peer is.

Shooters do not offer the type of storyline depth, character customisation or lengthy gameplay we have become accustomed to in today's video games, but R-Type Dimensions proves that there is still a place for the genre if it is handled the right way. R-Type Dimensions has been handled in just that fashion, providing fun bursts of action with enough modes and variety to make the entire package worthwhile.

NHL 20 is a sharp, polished game that has become more fluid and fun to play in recent years, but most of what is new this season will depend heavily on the modes you prefer to play. Fans of the multiplayer experience will have more to chew on, while those who tend to grind away at the single player modes might come away feeling somewhat neglected. The presentation has received a welcome facelift both in the audio and visual departments, and those are welcome changes for everyone. This year's iteration of the long-running NHL series is a solid if unspectacular offering that hockey fans will enjoy.

I’m critical of Siralim Ultimate, but only because after four games I would have liked to see some effort by the developer to do something with the series, and all that seems to happen is that the team keeps adding more stuff to it, in the areas that it was already perfectly well-serviced. Siralim didn’t simply need more stuff. What it needed was refinement; to take a great idea and polish it into something absolutely incredible. Siralim Ultimate is a hugely entertaining time sink, but it is still, yet again, just a good idea in the need of polishing.

For fans of the old Heroes of Might & Magic titles or Total War, Immortal Realms: Vampire Wars does a lot that is highly laudable; it offers a great concept, nails the aesthetics, and offers quality tactical and strategic action. In this way, it checks all the requirements of a good strategy game. The problem is that it's hard to see it as anything more than a foundation or a statement of intent. If this one is successful enough you'll see an Immortal Realms 2 that fully delivers on the concept, I suspect. For now, however, as much as you'll enjoy what this gothic nightmare strategy promises, it's going to be a real struggle to see it as more than a promise of what might come in the future.

I had a lot of fun playing (or, more accurately, replaying) Mario Vs. Donkey Kong. It’s a brightly-coloured, wholesome good time, and the rare all-ages puzzle game that strikes the right balance between making sure that everyone that plays it feels smart, without being condescending about it. As much fun as it is, however, this is one of the most transient games that Nintendo has published in quite some time. You’ll play it, enjoy it, and very quickly forget about it because it is, ultimately, a remake of once of Nintendo’s most niche titles – a title that was niche for a very good reason.

Multiplayer is, of course, the main reason that you buy into a Battlefield game, and it's generally enjoyable, even if it doesn't do anything to revolutionise the genre. However, both Activision and EA, and every other FPS developer that aspires to become the top dog franchise, needs to learn that if they are going to persist in putting single player narratives into their games, then they need to do a far better job.

Conarium tackles the difficult task of capturing Lovecraft’s ephemeral psychological horrors and, for the most part, pulls it off. Sometimes clumsy, sometimes streamlined, sometimes elegant, Conarium is an effective piece of Lovecraftian fiction that does its best to respect the source material while adapting it to an effective interactive experience.

So, you need to be patient and committed to get much out of ELEX, but give it a chance, and there’s a soul in there that should grow on anyone who enjoys their RPGs. The distinctive setting, wonderful world and quest design, and scope of the narrative are all genuinely admirable, and play to Piranha Byte’s strengths as, along with Cyanide, the most prominent and creative B-grade RPG developer out there.

The game may not do too much more than tick the boxes of what one expects of a platformer, and stumbles a few times on level design and coherence, but the wrapping of the game is a masterfully neat bow that will really help to draw in an audience.

The God of War Collection on the Vita isn’t a very good port, which is a shame as the both God of War and its sequel are great instalments to the Vita’s library.

Whether going about your adventure solo, with friends or with two random strangers, Remnant: From the Ashes is a fairly well built experience. Taking the well known formula of a Soulborne and turning it into a third person shooter works as it provides a different experience from the norm. Assume (or just hope) that the bugs go away, but otherwise, this one is genuinely enjoyable.

Strike Force Foxx offers cheap and amusing shooting fun that is executed wonderfully. Additional polish would have propelled it further, but its flight plan is both safe and enjoyable as is. This is also one of the better Choplifter clones you’re going to find on a portable, so there’s that.

It's an improvement, but only a slight one in most ways. For people who haven't played it, however, Abyss Odyssey is one of the more underrated games in recent memory, and for people who believe in the concept of world games, it's essential.

It’s not that it needed to be longer, as it would outstay its welcome and short games are 100% fine by me, but perhaps some adjustable upwards difficulty, or breaking out the mini-games into their own unlocked sections – while they’re quite derivative, they’re well realised for the most part — or a way to encourage just a few more puzzle variant solves wouldn’t have gone astray here too.

With a bit of touching up, Zwei:The Ilvard Insurrection looks good for a game that came out almost a decade ago. With a great combat system that is supported by a good deal of lighthearted storytelling, this is an action RPG that people who have enjoyed games brought on by Nihon Falcom’s recent rise in prominence in the west shouldn’t miss out.

Driveclub is a fun racing game that takes a little getting used to but lacks some of the options I would have expected from a modern racing game.

I don't want to sound too harsh with this game, because it does have that beautiful ability to make the hours fly by. I just can't see this being more than a flash in the pan kind of game that's going to lose its appeal far more quickly than it deserves.

Sniper Elite 4 focuses on a handful of things that it does very well, and the overall experience is one that I enjoyed. This is a more thoughtful, slower burning pace than the typical shooter, though it is punctuated by moments of intense action that stand out more because they are highlights and not a constant drone of gunfire and running. That being said, the series on the whole has room to grow and is probably overdue to put some more effort into its story and perhaps add a few more wrinkles to the overall gameplay as well.

Building on Mimimi Games' success with Shadow Tactics, Desperados III is mature, confident gameplay design, and while it might not look like an AAA-blockbuster, it certainly has the level of refinement and quality that is a rare thing indeed. It could have been a little more in places, but it's a solid, intelligent depiction of a beloved part of America's narrative heritage and aesthetic, with some excellent and creative tactical puzzles to sort through along the way.

Paperbound is an incredibly fun game that gives a gravitational spin on the same kind of competitive insanity that inspires Smash Bros. or Towerfall. Its amazingly simple aesthetics work well, and the simple nature of the game means anybody can pick it up and have a crack at it.

Souvenir Circ.'s Croixleur Sigma offers a blazing fast hack-and-slash game play style that offers just enough complexity to suck you into its colourful world. While its appeal might be limited, it's still good fun in short sessions - just make sure you've got a good controller handy!

Numantia has really impressed me in the way that it has inspired me to learn more about the conflict it depicts, and it has done a really good job of accurately recreating the surprisingly varied range of battles, locations, and twists and turns that occurred through the war.

Not only it is intuitive but extremely fun to get into and navigate your way around it.

Curse of the Dead God's biggest problem is simply that it exists in a ridiculously over-saturated space, and doesn't do anything meaningful to help it stand out. In a world post-Hades, it's hard to see where this one fits into the library of any but the most over-committed roguelike fan. That's not a fault of the game in itself. Once you understand how to play it and have learned its rhythms and studied its enemies, it's perfectly competent at what it's doing. It's just lacking a bit of verve and panache, so it will never have the same appeal as its already-storied peer.

Littlewood is charming and bright, and wears its “indie spirit” on its sleeve. The developer has created something highly playable that also acts as a lovely homage to the Harvest Moon tradition. By all accounts, Littlewood has been a commercial success, too, on its prior release on PC. That success is deservedly so, but hopefully the developer can invest some of that into some refinements for whatever their next project is, but there’s more ambition in Littlewood than the scope of the budget allowed.

Bleach Rebirth of Souls is authentic to the anime, does a good job with the narrative retelling, and is meticulous at giving you all your favourite characters to brawl around with. I can’t see a Bleach fan picking this up and not having some immediate good fun with it. I just can’t see them still having fun with it a year from now, and while the Bleach star may have faded a little from a decade or whatever ago, I do think that there was more that could have been done with it than this.

It does not cover everything, such as the DX+ version of the Championship edition, but what is here is enjoyable. Most of the games have aged well and that is a pretty good testament to how great these titles were in the first place.

I enjoyed SteamWorld Build a lot, but it’s not essential. Perhaps that’s why, 13 years later, This overall property is still searching for that breakout hit that will elevate it from indie charmer to a major property. The elements are all there: the theme, the quality aesthetics, and the maverick ability to move between genres while interpreting them in an accessible and engaging manner. But the developer really needs to figure out how to tell a compelling, deep and purposeful narrative with all these components. It’s the glue that’s missing from making SteamWorld memorable.

Borealys saw a winning formula, gave it a little glitter, and came up with something that plays well to both young and old audiences without relying on any gimmicks. My only regret is that in playing so much to its narrative strength, it left a lot of environmental world-building and magic-mastering hidden in the background when those well-designed elements deserved so much more than that.

I feel that more could have been done to explore the colonial theme, as GreedFall tends to rely too heavily on the personal responses of De Sardet to make grander statements, but nonetheless, Spiders has one again crafted a universe that is fresh enough, and offers a compelling narrative. It is only held back a little by the fine tuning that was needed around the combat mechanics, but then that's par for the course with this developer, and the grander ideas have always make the minor technical issues worthwhile.

You’re going to have fun with this game. For the criticisms I list above, I do think that Tango Gameworks has, with guidance from Bethesda (no doubt), created a refined and highly playable open-world game. It’s one that ticks all the boxes and does so in such a way that’s hard to actively fault. Yet, it's also so frustrating. The hints of what the developers wanted it to be are there. They wanted to make a Noh-inspired, yurei-and-yokai drenched blend of Shinto, Buddhism and neon-modern Japan. That would have been incredible. Sadly that didn't happen. Instead, I was left with the impression that I’d just played a Ubisoft Goes To Tokyo farce, and that left me feeling very deflated indeed.

It may seem like I’m being extremely harsh on The Frozen Wilds, but it needed to offer something new. Guerrilla Games has made an excellent world with some very interesting lore behind it, and I am definitely keen for a sequel, but at the end of the day, unless you are a huge fan, and really want to know more about the Banuk tribe, there’s no real point to this DLC.

The writing in Through the Darkest of Times is evocative, powerful and poignant. Too often it's undermined by the game also having systems that contain the same kind of resource juggling and time management that we see in anime dating sims.

I've never played a game more thoroughly unpleasant than Black Ops Cold War...

This has been a blast from the past I’ve been truly happy to leap back into. Shadowgate and its brethren remain as confoundingly beautiful as ever, and there’s such a charm to how these games delight in confusing the hell out of you that most modern games, in their desperation to have people roll through them, just aren’t brave enough to do. This release is perhaps an anthology that could never hope to appeal to any but the nostalgic, but I have to hope that one or two people out there might be twisted just enough to enjoy the way that these games seem to enjoy messing with their heads.

Newcomers will like Persona 4 Arena Ultimax for being the most complete edition of the game.

Like all of qureate's games, the fan service of Duel Princess crosses far beyond the light and bubbly stuff that sits within a lot of people's comfort zones and lands squarely into outright titillation. Those who tolerate fan service if they otherwise enjoy a game will find this a bit much, and as a consequence qureate has certainly limited the audience more than the team needed to, given how little relevance the erotic elements have to anything else in the game. However, for people like me that do enjoy the aesthetics of anime eroticism, there's the added benefit with Duel Princess that it's qureate's best game to date. By moving the focus far away from storytelling (which they're terrible at), to casual and entertaining gameplay structures (which, as it turns out, they're quite good at), qureate is getting dangerously close to giving the likes of Idea Factory a run for their money.

Although short in duration (my meticulous approach lasted two hours plus), and it really needed more to the game for the kind of story that it was telling, Attentat 1942’s poignancy managed to stir me on several occasions, and its ending in particular was touching.

Sadly the limitations that it has leaves Tactical Mind as a game that only holds long term value as a local multiplayer experience.

A short and fun game that I felt was paced well and can be picked up even when you only have a few minutes to spare before heading out to do something else. This in turn is a good thing because the difficulty spikes in the game In some ways this was a great idea because sometimes having to spend 30-50 minutes on a level to only fail in the last few minutes and then need to restart the level would not be fun.

The very best examples of nostalgic homages are those that add something in the process. Goichi Suda's grindhouse-toned games, for example, add all kinds of stylistic features that help to build on the thematic basis. Milanoir isn't that game. It's slavishly devoted to something very obscure and doesn't do enough to appeal to people who don't know the base material. But that's not to say it's a poor game. Its energy and ballsy attitude is engrossing all in itself.

It might not be the most ambitious spinoff that you’ll ever see, but Piczle Cross is a generous and heart-warming good time. The world needs more Story of Seasons, not less, so the existence of this game is an objective good in the world.

It has its charm and some good ideas running in the background, but these are offset by the game's more overt issues, and a taste for the surreal that will never be popular for the mainstream. That being said, while this game was not for me but it is just odd enough that it might work for you.

Overall, it's a decent trilogy for the price, but length of play time is rather short once you've memorised the patterns and can overcome each game's arcade-style tricks and traps.

The beautiful design of the game and the interesting way that it handles characterisation and narrative has me looking forward to seeing Book Two with baited breath.

You do have to reward creativity, and Legal Dungeon is genuinely creative. This is not a job or process that you would have ever imagined could be gamified, but there you have it. It tells a fascinating story, especially as an outsider to the Korean legal system, and while it's not a particularly comfortable experience on the Nintendo Switch, and perhaps a little imprecise for a puzzle game, it is very difficult to put down.

Truly, once you get over the initial hump with Tangledeep, you’re looking at a game that you can play over the long term. If nothing else, it’s lovely to know that there are some developers out there that understand what Rogue when creating their “roguelikes.”

So this isn't the finest work from Tin Man Games, but if you're a gamebook addict, then the sense of humour might tide you over until the next one can hit the App store... hopefully with dice rolls put back in.

For newcomers to the RTS genre, Cannon Brawl is a great introduction which really shows off the strengths of the genre. It really doesn’t take a lot of learning for a novice player to start making strategic decisions, and to understand basic concepts crucial to the genre such as efficiency, macromanagement and aggressive/defensive styles of play. While the strategic depth isn’t as much as other titles, the simplification results in Cannon Brawl being wickedly accessible and a blast to play for all ages.

Prinny 1 & 2 will endure on and be remembered, if only because they have that infamous challenge level and the highly amusing approach the developers took to address that. Who doesn't want to throw a thousand-strong horde of Prinnies at a problem? Scratch beneath that surface are two platformers that are more bluster than refinement, relying more on humour than adventurous design to keep players interested, and while there's nothing wrong with that, it does need to be noted that as far as the platformer genre is concerned, these efforts are neither stand-out nor inspiring. You might not have favourite levels or scenes by the time you've ground out victory across these two titles, but as raw entertainment, they really are hard to put down. As a double feature, NISA is providing real value and entertainment, and hopefully plenty of people are willing to tackle the challenge.

Moon Chronicles: Episode 1 lifts the veil off of Renegade Kid’s revamped throwback FPS title. It's a healthy blend of retro aesthetics and modern controls, while the B-movie narrative set the stage for a solid shooter that’s a good fit for the 3DS eShop. It might be short, but it succeeded in leaving me with a desire for more. Hopefully the wait won’t be too long.

The Golden Realms Expansion does not reinvent the Age of Wonders III wheel, but it does an excellent job of adding content to an already fun title that already had lots of replay value. With that being said, it would have been nice to see the expansion address one of the real issues I had with the first game - the limited combat variety for a feature that is meant to be the game's real point of differentiation.

Saros is a good game, and I need to be clear about that. The sheer speed and kinetic energy of the combat, the visual design, and the moreish nature of the roguelike loop come together to make something that is, by any objective measure, well-made and something that consumers clearly like to play. But on the other side of the coin, I really can’t stand Saros because I look at it and all I see is the cynical Sony studio formula slapped over the top of what was, a half-decade ago, a pretty fine game. In fact, I think I’ll dust Returnal off for a replay.

Initially I was worried that Layton sans the titular professor would be a problem. In the end that wasn't where the issues lay with Layton's Mystery Journey. I'm certainly on board with Katrielle taking over and having the kind of long career that her father did, but Level-5 does need to get some fresh new puzzle-designers in, because with this game they dropped the ball too frequently for a series of this calibre.

Weird. Colourful. Quirky. Entertaining. Funny.

It's a deliberately limited game, but it works well within its self-imposed restrictions to keep the focus on the party atmosphere from start through to finish, and while it won't be remembered as a classic game by any stretch of the imagination, this is a good one to have sitting on the PlayStation 4 hard drive for when friends are over.

I was absolutely wowed by this game the first time I played it through because I was paying so much attention to the cut scenes and redesigned Lara Croft was a joy to behold...But having had a year to sit and consider the game's broader meaning, the second time around the game's flaws are all the more apparent.

RollerCoaster Tycoon 3 is a delight on Nintendo Switch. It's the ideal pick-up-and-play game for those commutes, it's also the kind of game that you can play while also doing something else, like watching a movie or TV show. And it's the kind of game that, if you want it to, can occupy hour upon hour of your time. The Nintendo Switch is steadily building up a library of excellent simulators, but even among them, RollerCoaster Tycoon 3 might be the most playable, blissfully entertaining of them all.

As a (mostly) classical roguelike, Monster Menu is a good time. It’s well-balanced in its efforts to be excruciatingly difficult. It also has an entertaining loot and character development system. Most importantly of all, the core cooking mechanic is engaging. It will force you to approach everything from exploration to battle in a different way than most roguelikes. But I really can’t help but wish the developers made better use of the strong concept. Monster Menu really could have had a compelling, if nightmarish take on humanity’s sheer will for survival.

Tyranny is an excellent RPG experience that has many of the hallmarks of great classic role-playing games while still making plenty of smart choices to modernise the experience for today's audience. Refined systems and a story where choices can often have some real consequence made my time with Tyranny rewarding, despite a disappointingly abrupt ending that left me wanting for more.

The Mega Man Legacy Collection 2 is a great re-release of the seventh through tenth entries, but it could have been much more, and it feels a little cynical that it's not. While there are the four games, the boss rushes and other challenges to be completed, this entry just leaves the impression that there should have been ‘more’ of everything.

The end product is a game that's a load of fun, but only for people with fond memories of running around in circles fighting wave after wave of random encounters. As equal parts homage and parody, Dragon Fantasy works.

The best parts of Cattails are when you’re just getting to take in the scenery, hunting some field mice, and then chatting with other cats. There’s so much charm in the sprite work and dialogue, so it’s all the more disappointing when you’re cast into dull combat exchanges simply because a RPG needs fighting.

Tales from the Borderlands: Episode One - Zero Sum is ridiculous, but a lot of fun. I have not laughed this much at a video game in a long time, but the over-the-top situations and incredibly likable voice cast help to sell what seemed like an odd couple into what could very well turn out to be the perfect marriage.

If Xuan-Yuan Sword III: Mists Beyond The Mountains had a working localisation, it would be essential. After all, it’s not often that you get to play a RPG from the 90’s for the first time these days. The classic turn-based combat is well executed, the Pokemon-like monster-capturing system adds nicely to the base formula, and the real-world and real-history backdrop is something that I wish more RPGs did. But it’s so hard to follow the plot, worldbuilding and characterisation when the localisation is this undercooked, and these elements are all so important for the RPG genre in particular. I do hope that one day, someone has the opportunity to give these games a high-quality localisation, because it is obvious that they deserve it. Until then, unfortunately, this classic is only for the patient.

I do say my criticisms with a grain of salt; I have definitely under-appreciated many roguelikes in the past, only for them to "click" much further down the track on a repeat play. At this point, I feel like I get the gist of where Nowhere Prophet is going, and I think for genre fans who grow weary of the old mainstays of Into the Breach, Slay the Spire and FTL, there is a familiar compulsion to the way Nowhere Prophet’s systems are constructed, even if they often pale in comparison to games which came before. If there’s anything to be learned from Nowhere Prophet, it’s that a successful rogue-lite is like intricately designed lightning in a bottle, and no amount of mechanics which look good on paper can recreate a truly well-planned experience.

The game is constrained by budget and underproduced so there are technical and visionary flaws in the game, and it's disappointing that Spiders decided to stay on the safe side of narrative boundary pushing for the first time in its existence. But an enjoyable theme and combat system is just enough to make Bound by Flame addictive enough that it succeeded in holding my attention from start to finish.

The game can be fun to play for a few hours here and there but repetitiveness filters through to the presentation, too, with reused music and visuals that become draining after a while.

That Conan Chop Chop is supposedly a Conan title is a reminder that Conan is the only rival to Dungeons & Dragons as the most poorly used license in video games. It's time to give someone else a go, Funcom. It also fails completely as a single-player adventure, so if you were considering it for yourself, look to any of the other roguelikes out there instead. However, I still think there is a role here that the developers have delivered on. There aren't many multiplayer-orientated roguelikes, and you can certainly have a lot of fun with this over a weekend of beers and button-mashing. It's not going to last long beyond the hangover and will be rotated out of the library quickly enough, but it's still a moreish good time while it lasts.

The biggest issue is I did not find very many actual players online. That is no fault of Tumblestone's - they just need more people to play it. Kudos to the development team for creating bots however, to help simulate the multiplayer experience if you can’t find a living human.

Charade Manicas is two individually brilliant games that, combined, are the lesser sum of their parts. I can see why the developers would be intrigued by the combination of the otome and death game mystery genres. I can see the commercial appeal too, given what a runaway success the death game genre continues to be. However, despite excellent production values, a great cast, and a well-written mystery, this particular combination chills rather than delights.

If you appreciate arcade or racing simulations that aren’t just about speed or horsepower but rather the balance, control, and rhythm it takes to manipulate them, MXGP would make for a most reliable partner at the starting line.

Conan Exiles is enjoyable enough, but it does reveal some fundamental weaknesses in the survival genre; it’s not one that can be tuned effectively to storytelling, and that means that if you’re using a storytelling property, such as Conan, you’re going to need to exhibit a great deal over control to bring the necessary focus into the experience, and unfortunately the developers weren’t able to quite get there with Conan Exiles.

There are little issues that mean that Undead Darlings wears its "indie" spirit on its sleeve. Voice acting is uneven, with different actors sounding like they recorded the lines at different volumes and using different equipment, with no effort to equalise the sound. The characters are attractive and charming but some of the key art lacks for energy, detail, or really in highlighting any particular scene of note. However, all of that is more than forgivable. Undead Darlings comes across as a work of passion and creative energy, and I rarely see a game as inherently enthusiastic as that one. However flawed and rough it is, this is one very admirable little experience.

All solid improvements over an already very good game that fans of the series will no doubt enjoy, but aside from the very generous (and not before time) inclusion of women, this one doesn't offer anything to be blown away by.

Shiness: The Lightning Kingdom is both an amazing nostalgic trip to an older generation of gaming as well as a breath of fresh air with its fast paced and solid combat mechanics. It's rare for a developer to take martial arts and really try and do the philosophy and flow of them justice in a game, and for that Shiness is a most welcome addition to the RPG library.

Aside from the shoddy visual style that is actively counterproductive, Bloody Trapland does a decent job of offering challenging level design in a manner that is less cynical than most.

Ultimately if Ubisoft can work out the kinks that were to be expected from a first excursion, Immortals has real potential to become another marquee property for the company. Expected DLC will take players to Asia as a brand-new character, which could potentially be an inkling that Ubisoft plans on exploring many other mythologies yet. The biggest challenge that the company will face is finding a way to bring out a distinctive personality on the mechanical side of Immortals, because as it currently stands it most certainly feels like a case of “throwing everything at the dartboard to see what sticks," and Ubisoft is cribbing a lot from games that are already excellent.