As one chapter in something that is almost experimental for video games – a genuine epic, spanning decades of game development, a half dozen consoles, and a dozen titles – Trails From Zero is a very fine entry indeed. The rich complexities of the narrative engage the brain, while the charming writing and characterisation also make for an entertaining experience. The story is everything to this series, so it’s just as well that is spot on, though thankfully the combat is enjoyable in its own right, and it’s all backed by excellent aesthetics. If you are new to The Legend Of Heroes, this isn’t a bad place to start. If you’re a veteran of the series you must surely love how one of the best games in the series has finally got the full localisation it always deserved.

Soulstice is an excellent first effort in what must be an enormously difficult genre. Just imagine the work that must go into crafting such big, challenging action set pieces and leave the player feeling satisfied rather than infuriated. Soulstice isn’t perfect, but I hope the development team does stick at this, because they’re on to something special.

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.

The developer uses the term “cottagecore” a lot to describe Wylde Flowers, but I feel that reduces it to just being a trend. Wylde Flowers is so much more than that: it’s heartfelt, inclusive, clever, and witchy. It’s the kind of game that makes you feel at home, and the kind of game you want to come home to. It’s a must-play game that I’d recommend to anyone, and that’s darned impressive considering it’s Studio Drydock’s first game (but not surprising if you go to its website and read about the resumes of people behind it).

There’s not much more I can say about Amnesia without going heavy on the spoilers, and part of the reason it has been re-released on Switch is so people can experience them for the first time. However, what’s important here is that Amnesia: Memories is a well-written visual novel, and in so many ways epitomises the qualities of what you might expect from a “classical” otome game. For that reason alone, genre fans, and anyone interested in learning about it for the first time, owe it to themselves to check this game out.

Whether it’s called Clap Hanz Golf or Easy Come, Easy Golf, it’s one of the finest efforts from this highly specialised, legendary development team. The Switch lets you enjoy the game without the subscription model attached (which is an inherent plus), and the price is more than reasonable for something that is this big. Grindy, yes, but once you fall in the habit of playing once or twice per week to check in, unlock a few things, and participate in a tournament or two, you’ll realise that you just never stop playing it. Over a year later, you’ll realise that you’ve chalked up dozens of hours and that this is one of the most fundamentally enjoyable sports games you’ve ever played.

Ten-pin bowling works as a little minigame, aimed at a social and party environment. It’s a simple, easy-to-grasp sport, and the consistency with the rules makes it ideal for pick-up-and-play fun. However, PBA Bowling 2023 aims to be more than that. This wants to be a serious simulation of a sport where the skill involved cannot be adequately abstracted into button presses. As a result, while PBA Bowling 2023 is a perfectly well-made game that is free of bugs and glitches (sadly a rarity among niche sports titles), it is also an intensely boring, shallow game. You’re better off sticking to the light and frivolous take in Wii Sports.

It took Nintendo just three releases to turn Splatoon into one of its biggest and most valuable properties, and it’s easy to understand why. It’s not complex: Splatoon is something that almost everyone can enjoy. For those who want to be competitive, the blend of weapons, items, and abilities gives the game plenty of nuance, and there’s a true curve from beginner to excellence. For those that just want to jump in and have a blast, it’s a game that’s welcoming, has an excellent single-player mode to onboard you, and never feels like it’s punishing you if you spend less time playing it than others. At a time when online play is becoming increasingly hostile to anyone who isn’t willing to make the game their entire hobby, it’s nice to have a company like Nintendo remind us what it’s like to have simple, uncomplicated fun in online multiplayer.

Temtem’s disappointing, because it promised to be so much. In a genre that has been so utterly dominated by one particular property, and then lightyears back to the nearest rival, here was a game that seemed like it had the ambition and scope to actually rival Game Freak’s giant on its home turf. Unfortunately the result is more akin to the more egregious MMOs – a waste of time that exists to be a waste of time.

Kaichu – A Kaiju Dating Sim could have easily been bland, but it’s not (despite the lack of oomph to the relationships). The game is adorable, funny, and relatable on a personal level. I quite like the way the entire dating experience is framed by the reporters, it was an incredibly creative way to link the dates to each other as well as to deliver a little bit of narrative to go along with the dating experience. The dating pool is quite varied, with someone for everyone… well, hopefully. You never know with love, do you?

Steelrising sits right up there with the original Nioh as my favourite example of a Soulslike made outside of From Software. The spectacular alternative history backdrop is a delightful way of getting people interested in the events and people of the French Revolution, and that’s backed with some of the most enjoyable and distinctive level and environment design that we’ve seen from the genre to date. Of course, it’s not Elden Ring, and was never going to hit that level of polish or scope, however, it also wasn’t trying to. It’s very comparable to the likes of Nioh, and the sheer thought that went into making every building block within it relate to its themes and artistic vision makes it a compelling and thoughtful entry into an increasingly over-crowded genre.

Many of my complaints from the previous two collections apply here. I would have liked to have seen more effort go into the game’s history – give us scanned copies of the manuals or digital art books or something to make it feel more than a launcher for two games picked at random out of the back catalogue. Nonetheless, these are two deeply nostalgic and important artefacts from a genre, and La Pucelle, in particular, is a pioneering title that every genre fan should play.

South Of The Circle is a beautiful game that tells a wonderful little story, and is backed up with a genuine effort by the developers to explore cinematic techniques for dramatic effect. When the alternative in video games is typically the equivalent of bland, rote Hollywood productions, South Of The Circle stands out as something different. Different is and always will be interesting. I’m just glad the developers backed the interesting techniques they used with a fascinating story.

If only the game played well. While my review of the PC version has been lost to the Internet ether, I did give it 4/5 and if it played well on the Switch here I would have scored it higher. I firmly believe that in concept and theme, Idol Manager is one of the best simulations I’ve ever played. If only it was not so infuriating to play with a controller. This game deserved far better.

When I began this review, I wondered if Immortality would live up to the hype I had created in my mind. Luckily, it did. The characters, the narrative, and the completely unique experience that it odders… this game is special. Visual. Intuitive. Genius. Half Mermaid (and Barlow in particular) has upped its own ante, and I legitimately have no idea what the studio could do next. This studio is one of the rare true artists in our little industry.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: The Cowabunga Collection does right by the retro collection format, although at around $60-$70, even for digital, it’s on the pricier side, which won’t sit well with too many gamers, I suspect. That’s a pity, because it’s the kind of historical approach to curation that I wish more companies would take seriously.

The sense of shallowness is impossible to shake, and over the course of a reasonably long brawler/RPG gets tiring. Dusk Diver 2, much like its predecessor, has all the potential in the world, and most of its individual elements are really competently made. It just doesn’t come together in execution, and while I was willing to give the developers the benefit of the doubt the first time, I’m just not certain they have a good grasp of how they want to execute on their ambition with this series. I don’t know if a third would be a good idea at this stage.

When I find that my complaints largely have to do with wishing there was more content in a game that is already perfectly sufficient, I know that I’ve had a good time. It feels strange to call Pac-Man World a “classic,” but the numbers don’t lie. The original game sold 1.5 million units, was well-received by critics and justified a number of sequels. Bandai Namco is most justified in trying this on to see if there’s room to revive the Pac-Man World property with new games, and based on the quality of this, I’d like to see what a new Pac-Man World looks like down the track.

But those are all very minor gripes and given the extremely niche nature of Lair Land Story it’s not something the people that would be drawn to play the game will hold against it. The main thing is that Lair Land Story gets the most important element of the genre right. Chilia is adorable and you will be invested in her story, and builds around it a fun set of characters, some nice aesthetics, and a good sense of humour. This is a simple and modest kind of game, but it is very warm and warming, and sometimes, those are enough in games.

Soul Hackers 2 is a smart, evocative, and classically dark game from the Shin Megami Tensei tradition. It’s not going to turn heads like Persona 5 and SMT V did, but the developers seem to have realised this and taken the opportunity to deliver a harder-hitting and more thought-provoking narrative. To me, that’s Atlus getting back to its core vision for the broad and extended SMT property. That’s what I want from this series.

If you can handle the corners that were cut due to the budget, then Thymasia’s combat system is worth it all on its own. The game’s intriguingly dark setting and the exquisitely dark theme are more than good enough to pay attention to as well. There are certainly things that the development team could do with a sequel if this generates enough revenue to build on the foundations that they’ve created, but the earnestness that went into making this one distinctive from the other “Souls clones” is worthwhile either way.

Super Bullet Break is an easy-going, easy-playing thing, great for short bursts of play in-between the many bigger games we’re getting dropped on us at the moment. There’s a lot of value in that kind of experience, and when it’s backed up with some excellent fan service and highly replayable mechanics, it’s a game that you’re going to keep coming back to as a time filler over the long term.

Play length is not, and should never be seen as a value indicator in games, but for whatever it’s worth, I made my way to the game’s conclusion in around 16 hours of real-world gameplay time. However, it’s a title I absolutely will return to, because it’s entirely feasible to create a very different cult with different choices, and that’s one I do want to try out for myself. Massive Monster has also made noises – but no concrete promises as yet – around post-game DLC and possibly even multi-player modes, which could lead to some fascinating post-game scenarios, depending on whether they went for competing or cooperative cult activity.

However you slice it, you’re ultimately getting a slavish homage to the early-era Pokémon games, but one that can’t get anywhere near their quality. Coromon is let down by having even fewer monsters to collect than the very first Pokémon, and some amateurish production values and gameplay design that Game Freak, for all its faults with the presentation of its own games, would never let happen. It’s still fun, because it’s so akin to Pokémon that of course it’s fun, but Coromon’s immediate rival, Nexomon (also available on Switch), actually tries to subvert some of the expectations of the genre, and comes off as the most interesting work as a consequence.

This is a profoundly effective game. Digimon has always pushed a little harder than Pokémon to actually spin a meaningful story around the property, and Digimon Survive is not the first time the series has flirted with darker material. Thanks to excellently-flawed characters, clean tactical combat, and an eclectic but interesting blend of genres, Digimon Survive stands out as one of the most different and creative JRPGs you’ll play this year.

There are things that you need to be critical of in Sword and Fairy: Together Forever. The game hasn’t been made to the same precision as the upper echelons of RPGs out of Japan and the West, and that is undeniable. But then Together Forever has the singular advantage of being one of the few Chinese RPGs that we get to play, and that makes it distinctive, different, and worthy on its own merits. Add in incredible art direction (oh how I love Yue), and a gorgeous combat system, and we’ve got perhaps the most interesting RPG of 2022 here. I really hope people don’t overlook it.

Recipe for Disaster, thankfully, was anything but. Yes, it was in-depth to the point of seeming complicated for me; but it’s hard to judge if that’s because the tutorials don’t explain things well enough or if it’s just my brain not linking the obvious together. Like I said, I need things shoved down my throat and even then I might not remember what to do. It also lacks a bit of charm, especially compared to games like Cat Café Manager. Regardless, all in all, it’s a solid game and I’d expect fans of management sims to gobble it up (see what I did there?)… but I’m left wondering if it might not be a hair too complex to really be enjoyed.

Dark Alliance II is an excellent way to spend some time and a game that, in its vinyl vintage years, continues to be entertaining for reasons beyond nostalgia. If you’re looking for a “Diablo-like” with some interesting level design, a streamlined and efficient approach to questing, and some great water effects (seriously), then you’ll get a good run out of this one.