If I could give Beyond Eyes more stars, I would. Rarely does a character emotion become so pronounced in my own being. When Rae was delighted, I’d laugh with excitement. When Rae was scared, I cowered alongside her. When Rae was upset I was quite literally found sobbing in the fetal position until the wave of emotion passed.

Danganronpa Another Episode ends up being an experiment that works, in taking the original games and doing something so completely different to them. It lacks the jump scares, monsters, and a significant difficulty level of the horror franchises that it aspires to be a part of, but is so unsettling is its narrative and vision that it is one of the most genuine, affecting horror games I have ever played.

It scratches my nostalgia for classic dungeon crawlers, while offering a stiff challenge, and stunning art work that, while I'll never play the game in public because of those pictures, I find to be both amusing and oddly charming.

The visuals and music deliver as always and it is great to see some more times spent on actually developing the story and fleshing out our three protagonists. However, in giving the heroes a better story, they somehow have even less to do in the game. Perhaps more frustratingly, the story is short and incomplete, making the game feel rushed or like the development team has unannounced DLC planned for down the road.

Steins;Gate has a deep and interesting story to tell and does so through characters worth investing in. The writing is excellent, the presentation folds seamlessly into the rest of the package and the game itself will stick with you long after you have reached its conclusion. It remains, years after its original release, one of the best visual novels available on any platform.

Until Dawn is a very, very fine game, with a quality, intriguing, and intelligent narrative rolled around the concept of player choice. It's also another example of why Sony is the best blockbuster publisher out there because it's happy to do stuff that breaks away from the safe conventions of expensive games.

BRAWL is a good, but not especially innovative, action game with a nice layer of strategy built into it.

Konami would do well in scouting out a new development team to handle the next Yu-Gi-Oh! game. With the last couple being workmanlike but unremarkable efforts, it's difficult to shake the feeling that without an overhaul the star of this particular CCG is only going to fade further. And that would be a pity, because the core card game remains one of the most strategic that we've ever seen.

Lost Dimension is an incredible title, with a constant sense of escalation and drama.

I doubt any digital poker game will be able to completely replace the real, physical game, but Pure Hold'em is nevertheless a truly special experience, and as premium poker games go, we won't see a better one than this for some time to come.

With time and patches, this could be a must play, but as it is I can only cautiously recommend RymdResa as a game with fascinating ideas and inconsistent execution.

There's a healthy number of items to unlock, characters to level and modes to play will keep you coming back for more. It's a pity then that it's burdened by some painful attempts to demand players throw in some extra cash for the DLC.

I think there's a seed of inspiration within the game that, given experience and a larger budget, gives it real potential. Unfortunately, as it stands, AeternoBlade is simply not competitive either on a technical or artistic level, and that is a real shame.

Hacknet is a beautiful example of compelling non-linear storytelling. While it is still a game about hacking, it is far more about solving the mystery around Bit's death using the tools he (she?) has given you. Combining an enthralling story with a truly impressive learning curve and a stellar soundtrack, Hacknet is definitely something special.

Namco Bandai was very smart to entrust their classic character and brand to this tiny team of Aussie mobile developers.

It doesn’t provide anything out of the ordinary or unexpected. And in the end, the platform it is available on did it more harm than good.

The Chinese Room has managed to create one of the most insightful, meaningful, and emotional games that we’ve seen in some time, perhaps forever, and bravo to Sony for taking a real punt with something so completely arthouse.

Duet's narrative may also be hinting at something touching or maybe perhaps a profound truth, but I'm afraid I may be missing the point or overlooking into things. But, as often is such the case with art games, maybe that's precisely the point here.

The game itself isn't an especially memorable one, but for fans of the anime, this version at least does them justice.

A great re-introduction to a new King’s Quest series. The beautiful scenery, the interesting characters, the unique and fascinating narrative all come together to create a heart-warming title anyone can enjoy.

One of the most beautiful games ever developed, and backs its aesthetics up with some of the finest Lovecraftian narratives that we've seen in interactive form. It's a compelling argument for games as art, in other words, and not just because it makes for some awesome digital postcards.

Fairy Fencer F probably will not gain the same kind of following that the more satirical Hyperdimension games have garnered over the years, but it is by all rights a solid effort that manages to surprise in pleasant ways while still providing some familiar mechanics that make the title approachable.

A decent game that's fun to play, but is even more fun if you have a friend or two that can play with you. The online play is smooth and there are some hidden things that can be unlocked like more difficulty levels and more characters.

Rare Replay's technical challenges on a handful of games stand as the only aspect that detracts from an otherwise outstanding collection of titles. With titles reaching back as far as 1983 and as recent as 2008, this is one diverse collection that promises a lot of fun around a variety of genres. Thirty games. Thirty bucks. It's pretty tough to top a collection like this.

What impressed me most about Submerged is that it never tries to be more than its concept. It set out to be a simple narrative-driven and emotional experience with a strong environmental message, and it achieves just that. With no unnecessary actions to distract those with limited attention spans it might be perceieved as "dull" by some, but in practice it's a reflective, mature, and artful work, and this here is where games should be going.

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.

And no matter how much I enjoyed this game, which I did, it was hard to play, because the visuals are so jarring. As such Velocibox is not for the faint hearted, or epileptic.

A resounding success as both an example of the genre and a homage to everything that makes it fun.