EGM's Scores

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For 1,066 reviews, this publication has graded:
  • 50% higher than the average critic
  • 3% same as the average critic
  • 47% lower than the average critic
On average, this publication grades 0.6 points lower than other critics. (0-100 point scale)
Average Game review score: 74
Highest review score: 100 Shovel Knight Dig
Lowest review score: 5 Ride to Hell: Retribution
Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 663 out of 1066
  2. Mixed: 320 out of 1066
  3. Negative: 83 out of 1066
1072 game reviews
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    • 67 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    High on Life
    High on Life continues Squanch Games’ propensity for skewering video game tropes, this time in the form of a first-person shooter. Unfortunately, a lot of the game plays like a first draft, and armor of detached irony doesn’t do enough to protect it from its many, many kinks. Roiland’s personal brand of gross-out parody and “oh, geez” improvisational humor is already starting to feel routine in video game form, but there are a few standout bits. Thankfully, there’s a pretty fun shooter underneath all the alien semen, though stiff animations and some buggy moments can make it look slightly underbaked. If you’re a fan of Rick and Morty (or, more appropriately, “Doc and Mharti”), then High on Life might just be the pickup you need—but it never fully develops any of its really good ideas into a satisfying final draft.
    • 70 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    The Callisto Protocol
    The Callisto Protocol feels like a throwback title, for better and worse. While the Dead Space comparisons are unavoidable, director Glen Schofield’s return to survival horror does bring with it several new concepts, but many, like the melee combat system, suffer from poor execution. Still, if you’re looking for a fun, B-movie disaster story with some famous Hollywood faces and a more straightforward, linear single-player experience, you could do worse—at least until the Dead Space remake launches next year.
    • 64 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    Gotham Knights
    Gotham City might never have looked better, but Gotham Knights’ gameplay repetition and lack of length to the main narrative might deter all but the most hardcore Batman fans. Co-op adds a fun layer to all the crime fighting, and every character feels truly different from one another, even if the combat system takes some getting used to. Overall, there is a solid core here that hopefully can be built on in the future.
    • 73 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    Desta: The Memories Between
    Desta: The Memories Between can’t quite figure out how to make the most of its odd genre mashup. Though the individual elements are solid, a lack of commitment to roguelike randomization in the single mode available at launch means the systems don’t really mesh together how you’d expect, and the replay value suffers as a result.
    • 66 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    Vampire: The Masquerade - Swansong
    Vampire: The Masquerade — Swansong can be a compelling experience, especially for those who are already familiar with the World of Darkness. Its RPG mechanics lend depth to an otherwise standard narrative adventure, as long as you can grasp their meaning. But wonky gameplay balance and even wonkier facial animations, not to mention some of the more overwritten and under-earned emotional beats, can make falling in love with its vampires harder to swallow than a mouthful of blood.
    • 71 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    Trek to Yomi
    Trek to Yomi is one of the most visually striking games to launch in a while, delivering on the promise that a samurai game can truly capture the look and feel of classic Japanese cinema. Unfortunately, good looks can only get you so far, as the gameplay and story don’t quite live up to the standards set by its art direction. But if you are in the mood for a samurai game, you could do worse than Trek to Yomi.
    • 78 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    Tiny Tina's Wonderlands
    The best and worst thing about Tiny Tina’s Wonderlands is that it feels like another Borderlands game. The shooter gameplay is as tight and responsive as ever, the weapons are fun to use, and the writing is a marked improvement over Borderlands 3. The characters are once again at the center of the game’s comedy, and the performances are great (when the actors are actually committing to their roles). But, because this is more Borderlands, a lot of the same annoyances with the series persist, especially when it comes to inventory management and the sheer amount of meaningless loot. Really, Wonderlands’ worst offense is that it can’t get over the series’ legacy of looting and shooting, and misses the opportunity to take real inspiration from the tabletop worlds that it parodies.
    • 65 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    Breakout: Recharged
    Atari’s Recharged series has produced some fantastic remakes of classic arcade hits, but that series’ latest entry, Breakout Recharged, is definitely its weakest so far. That’s less the fault of the dev teams or the work they’ve put into these releases, and more the core game itself, as the original Breakout could only receive so much modernization before becoming a totally different game. The result is that Breakout Recharged will satisfy a specific segment of players who can enjoy its more simplistic gameplay, while leaving most everyone else wishing there’d be more to see and break here.
    • 76 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    Dying Light 2 Stay Human
    Dying Light 2 Stay Human’s enhanced parkour and intricate level design make for some of the most fun you can have moving through a video game world, and the hand-to-hand combat is simple but effective. Most impressive is the sense of scale and gravity that makes leaping between rooftops feel so death-defying. Unfortunately, its story wallows in post-apocalyptic clichés and misanthropy, and its choice-based narrative often drops its most interesting plot threads.
    • 69 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six Extraction
    Rainbow Six Extraction takes Siege’s best parts—its characters and its gunplay—and successfully adapts them to a cooperative experience, but repetitive level design and an uneven progression system make the game feel more boring than it has any right to be. Extraction had all the elements it needed to be a great co-op “zombie” game, including an exact blueprint in Outbreak, but Ubisoft’s obsession with keeping players grinding forever won out, making Extraction feel like more of an obligation than an escape.
    • 56 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    Date Night Bowling
    At its basics, Date Night Bowling provides some decent bowling gameplay mixed in with the twist of trying to win over a date before the end of the 10th frame. As a concept, however, the game totally fails to capitalize on the thrill of trying to get strikes on the lane while not striking out romantically. There’s so much more that could and should have been done with the game at every level, leaving an experience that’ll keep you entertained in short bursts but wanting more in the long run.
    • 74 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    Call of Duty: Vanguard
    Call of Duty: Vanguard sometimes strains under the pressure of fulfilling its obligations to the all-consuming Warzone platform that the series has become. Vanguard’s Gunsmith and Operators might dictate the game’s World War II fiction in weird and hilarious ways, but it can still offer the same thrills you’d expect. Still, there’s no denying that Vanguard feels like a watered down entry for the franchise, which is now more motivated by microtransactions than by telling a compelling World War II narrative.
    • 81 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    Life is Strange: True Colors
    Life is Strange: True Colors has a lot of the ingredients that make the series so beloved, most notably in its compelling protagonist. Technical advancements for the series bring its story to life with fantastic performances and a keen eye for detail. Unfortunately, the story it brings to life is full of stutters and stops, and takes far too long to develop. Where Life is Strange games are full of movement, True Colors feels painfully stagnant for too long.
    • 70 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    Mario Golf: Super Rush
    For the first home console game in the series in nearly two decades, Mario Golf: Super Rush is a bit underwhelming, at least in terms of what it has to offer. Speed Golf and Battle Golf are both great ideas, but they aren’t fleshed out enough to feel like main modes. Golf Adventure is a great way to add depth to what basically amounts to an extended tutorial, but it too suffers from pacing problems. Thankfully, the bulk of the game—the actual golfing—feels better than ever by being both technically challenging and more accessible.
    • 81 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    Chivalry 2
    Chivalry II is great fun when it works. Its combat is simple to learn and less simple to master, but incredibly rewarding no matter your skill level. The new 64-player matches and objective-based modes ensure intense, prolonged battles, and the variety in the classes will keep you motivated to grind for that next weapon. But the lack of variety in the maps and subclass abilities, and the overwhelming connection issues, make the game more frustrating than it should be.
    • 73 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    Outriders
    People Can Fly’s special brand of explosive gunplay is better than ever in Outriders, but the game loses its way by shoehorning in too many of the RPG mechanics that have become bog standard for the “looter shooter” genre. What should have been a rollercoaster all the way through ends up feeling more like a car in stop-and-go traffic.
    • 70 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    Maquette
    Maquette's core concept of puzzle solving in recursive environments is undeniably neat. But despite the handful of wow moments it enables, developer Graceful Decay ends up squandering much of the idea's potential due to pacing issues and rough edges.
    • 67 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    Disjunction
    Disjunction deconstructs the stealth genre and boils it down to its simplest and most readable mechanics. Mix in a cool cyberpunk aesthetic and interesting if optional gadgets, and it’s a winning formula. Unfortunately, the game stops well short of fully mining either its trope-heavy story or stealth formula, leading to an experience that ultimately feels repetitive.
    • 81 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    Immortals Fenyx Rising
    If it came out a few months ago or a few months later, Immortals Fenyx Rising might have stood out more. But the problem is that it’s coming after a gauntlet of better Ubisoft products without doing much to improve upon the formula. Sometimes, it actively works against itself in what it’s decided to steal from Breath of the Wild, too. However, its surprisingly engaging story and a late-game trek up a mountain save it from being entirely lost to history.
    • 80 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    Paper Mario: The Origami King
    Paper Mario: The Origami King once again takes the series in a completely different direction. Mushroom Kingdom is bigger and more alive than it’s ever been, but it comes packaged with a combat system that quickly becomes stagnant.
    • 87 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    Final Fantasy VII Remake
    Final Fantasy VII Remake manages to balance the introduction of new concepts with faithfully recreations of the original game’s most memorable aspects, but it also unnecessarily pads out this first installment in a larger story with too much downtime between its most striking moments.
    • 81 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order
    Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order has its heart in the right place, delivering that Star Wars fantasy that is sure to please fans of the franchise. But putting aside the lightsabers and Wookiees, Fallen Order is too often unsuccessful in implementing ideas from better games, and ends up seeming like a pale imitation in comparison.
    • 80 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    Call of Duty: Modern Warfare
    For all the technology and exceptional design this new Modern Warfare musters, the only message it can offer is woefully jejune: If governments might be mistaken in their judgments or actions, if the act of war itself might be inescapably evil, at least we can still rely on badass warriors who will do whatever it takes to hold back the evil forces that would come to hurt us in the night, to destroy us because they hate our freedom.
    • 82 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    Borderlands 3
    Much about Borderlands 3 is different, but nothing feels like it’s actually changed.
    • 69 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    The Dark Pictures Anthology: Man of Medan
    While it feels like a not insignificant step down from the breakout hit Until Dawn, Supermassive Games’ latest attempt at interactive horror still serves up some compelling thrills and chills. The Dark Pictures Anthology: Man of Medan definitely gets better the deeper you get into its story, but traveling that path is fraught with technical issues and questionable narrative direction more often than it should be.
    • 73 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    World War Z
    While it’s an unabashed Left 4 Dead clone that never extends beyond the conservative concepts and budgets that obviously constrained its development, World War Z offers up an enjoyable adventure that at times does a lot with the little it attempts. No matter whether playing the co-op campaign or competitive multiplayer, there’s enough good to the game to make the bad not feel as bad.
    • 71 Metascore
    • 55 Critic Score
    Days Gone
    Derivative and beset by astounding technical problems, Days Gone is a rare misfire among Sony’s first-party efforts. While the core fantasy of surviving in a world overrun with infected occasionally shines through, Bend Studio doesn’t deliver nearly enough compelling moments to justify the long slog it takes to see this mediocre story through to its end.
    • 72 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Dead or Alive 6
    Dead or Alive 6 is a solid new chapter in Team Ninja’s long-running fighting game series that has rarely been satisfied with just being “solid.” All of the groundwork that needed to be built here was built, but upon it was placed a mostly by-the-numbers experience that is too often just as frustrating as it is fun. While a reworking of the game could leave it in a much better place in the future (and on newer consoles), for now it’s a good release for people wanting more Dead or Alive as long as they don’t mind its value is limited.
    • 56 Metascore
    • 65 Critic Score
    Jump Force
    Jump Force is the kind of game that would usually just come and go due to how unimpressive and flawed of an effort it is, and it’s more than likely that that’s exactly what it is going to do. And yet, buried beneath all of the bad is some honest amount of good. It’s almost a shame that Jump Force wasn’t more of a mess in everything other than its 3-vs-3 fights, because the game would be a whole lot more enjoyable if we were able to laugh at its terribleness more often.
    • 60 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Crackdown 3
    Crackdown 3 is just more Crackdown. For some players, that will be enough. But compared to what Crackdown 3 initially promised, what we ended up with seems lacking in depth and destruction. When it’s good, like with its boss fights, there’s nothing like it. Unfortunately, there’s just too much filler, and with its most exciting feature demoted to a fairly minor multiplayer mode, Crackdown 3 just isn’t the step forward that it could have been.
    • 71 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    Far Cry New Dawn
    Fire may have rained from the skies and wiped out entire nations, but the action in Far Cry New Dawn is pretty much the same as it ever was, only less so. A few interesting new tweaks to the series' formula are overshadowed by a cut-rate campaign, a story that gets colossally dumb in the third act, and a resource system that feels both unbalanced and pointless.
    • 80 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Metro Exodus
    The journey of Metro Exodus is more rollercoaster than train ride, with peaks and troughs rather than a steady level of quality throughout. Its technical issues make the product feel rushed, but these are worth suffering for a series that’s ultimately heading down the right track.
    • 71 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Everything
    Everything is a philosophy lecture turned into a game, and if you’re looking for some new insight on life and a sandbox to play in while you listen, it’ll provide. While the game offers up hundreds of choices of objects to become, it comes at the sacrifice of everything feeling the same.
    • 65 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Just Cause 4
    Just Cause 4 has so many good systems in place, but it seems to have lost sight of what to do with them. While it’s a relatively decent game in its own right, it continues the series’ decline.
    • 69 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    Darksiders III
    Darksiders III is a frustrating, awkward sequel to a series that’s charmingly stupid, but there’s a lot of fun to be had if you give up on getting good. Do yourself a favor and tone down the difficulty level so that you can enjoy the crazy character designs and ridiculous fantasy world that Gunfire Games has built. Fans will be glad that this underdog of a series at least got a third chapter, but if you’re new to Darksiders, you might want to start at the beginning.
    • 53 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    Fallout 76
    Many of the issues Fallout 76 currently faces could eventually be fixed, which is why this mess is such a pity. The potential is clear, but a reluctance to commit to one direction or another leaves the game in an awkward and broken void.
    • 74 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Castlevania Requiem: Symphony of the Night & Rondo of Blood
    Castlevania Requiem: Symphony of the Night & Rondo of Blood offers two of the best experiences from the long-running Castlevania series in one convenient package. While both games still hold up extremely well, the collection as a whole doesn’t introduce anything new to fans, making it feel like nothing more than a slapped together port. Still, both titles are worth the time of fans and newcomers.
    • 71 Metascore
    • 65 Critic Score
    Zone of the Enders: The 2nd Runner MARS
    Too often the action becomes a total slog as you fight the same enemies over and over—while also fighting the camera and lock-on systems.
    • 67 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Yo-kai Watch Blasters: White Dog Squad
    Yo-Kai Watch Blasters never manages to shake off that minigame feel, but its core gameplay, though shallow, is fun. Don’t go in expecting anything too deep (or expecting to go anywhere beyond the town of Yo-Kai Watch 2), and Blasters is an enjoyable enough way to pass the time.
    • 83 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    NBA 2K19
    NBA 2K19 had a real opportunity to learn from last year’s mistakes, and in some ways it did. The Neighborhood is more convenient, the Prelude is way more interesting, and the gameplay has seen some subtle but important improvements. Unfortunately, all this is marred yet again by the game’s predatory microtransaction system, which turns the MyCareer stuff into a grind-heavy, pay-to-skip farce.
    • 75 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    Donut County
    Donut County isn’t really bad at what it sets out to do, but its ambitions are so meager that you can’t help but feel the concept hasn’t been explored to the fullest extent. This is indie game design at its most disposable. I’d be shocked if anyone is still talking about—or even remembers—Donut County a year or two from now.
    • 79 Metascore
    • 65 Critic Score
    Firewall Zero Hour
    Firewall Zero Hour is one of the most precise and tactical VR shooters out there. Too bad the systems surrounding it are so wanting.
    • 62 Metascore
    • 65 Critic Score
    We Happy Few
    Compulsion Games transformed its randomly-generated, survival game into the dystopian narrative everyone asked for, but those randomized elements are still holding We Happy Few back from reaching its full potential. The twisted tale of a society addicted to its own Joy is lost underneath an endless hunt for bobby pins and scraps of cloth.
    • 80 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Madden NFL 19
    Madden NFL 19 is, in pretty much every way, less exciting than its predecessor, at least on a conceptual level. Last year’s game had a new engine and a completely new mode to boast. This year’s biggest selling point—Real Player Motion—definitely makes running a more viable offensive option. Otherwise, all you’re getting is part two of what’s becoming an unnecessary trend in EA’s sports-related telenovelas and a whole lot of advertising for Madden Ultimate Team.
    • 64 Metascore
    • 65 Critic Score
    The Crew 2
    The Crew 2‘s digital recreation of American remains as inviting as it was in the first game, and the diverse event types and new air and water vehicles mix things up in a good way. Eventually, however, the aggressively grindy loop of replaying races to upgrade your vehicles will leave you feeling like a theme park custodian: You’re surrounded by attractions that should be such fun, yet you’re stuck doing mindless chores instead.
    • 76 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Sushi Striker: The Way of Sushido
    Sushi Striker: The Way of the Sushido has all of the trademarks of an inventive Nintendo title, including its odd but bold story, memorable characters, and easy to pick up gameplay. Unfortunately, once you bite into it, the experience isn’t as developed as it could have been. There’s an attempt to expand on the action-puzzler format, and while some of the choices work, there are some ingredients that make the entire meal less than satisfying.
    • 52 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    Extinction
    Extinction shows a lot of promise, and it sometimes delivers, like when it comes to the engaging, acrobatic combat or the sheer scale of the Ravenii. Unfortunately, the repetitive mission types and gameplay and a clichéd fantasy tale make it feel like a shell of a game. Far from feeling like a full retail release, Extinction feels like one good idea run into the ground until you’re checking your watch, waiting for it to end.
    • tbd Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Penny-Punching Princess
    Penny-Punching Princess offers up a world where the heroine can solve (nearly) all of her problems through cold, hard cash, providing for some legitimately fun (and funny) scenarios to play out across the dungeon brawler’s various chapters. Unfortunately, a necessity for grinding and some wild spikes in difficulty cause the princess’ stockpile of coins to lose some of its shine.
    • 64 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    Atelier Lydie & Suelle: The Alchemists and the Mysterious Paintings
    Atelier Lydie & Suelle: The Alchemists and the Mysterious Paintings is another solid chapter in the current era of Gust’s franchise about heroines drawn to alchemy—and that’s said in both a good and a bad way. If you’ve enjoyed previous Atelier games for what they’ve been, then twins Lydie and Suelle are ready to take you on another adventure of crafting items, fighting monsters, and uncovering the secrets that hang over their homeland. However, if you’ve been hoping for some real progress or change in the Atelier formula, that recipe, sadly, remains undiscovered.
    • 71 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    Detective Pikachu
    Detective Pikachu takes several steps away from the traditional Pokémon experience, with only a handful paying off. The beautiful imagery and distinct world-building will please any Pokémon fan, but the gameplay might leave them wanting more. While the point-and-click-style experience is a novel idea for the gameplay, it never manages to fully grab the player’s attention.
    • 69 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    Sea of Thieves
    Sea of Thieves’ world isn’t completely lacking in achievement, thanks to its luscious visuals and excellent sailing mechanics, but it feels completely undercooked in terms of actual gameplay. Perhaps ironically, Sea of Thieves feels like the skeleton of a game rather than a fully realized experience. Rare promises that more content is coming, but judging on what the game offers now, it’s a journey not worth taking—at least not yet.
    • 60 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Metal Gear Survive
    With a confusing and frustrating jumping-off point, it may be hard to break into Metal Gear Survive. Those that manage to stick around, however, should expect to find something worth surviving for.
    • 63 Metascore
    • 50 Critic Score
    Secret of Mana
    While there’s plenty to love about the original Secret of Mana, this remake manages to kill off most the game’s charm while failing to modernize the parts of the game that actually need updating. Awkward animations, impenetrable menus, slow combat, and repeated random crashes add up to a game that, with 25 years of technological improvements under its belt, may actually be worse than the original.
    • 64 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Mulaka
    Lienzo’s Mulaka is an equally engaging and frustrating experience. The action-adventure game excels in its efforts to teach players unfamiliar with the Tarahumara people about the community’s culture through a beautiful narrative and exploration mechanics. However, the action aspect needs to be completely overhauled, as it offers enough issues to turn off prospective players.
    • 70 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Fe
    While Fe is a pretty game with some touching encounters and spectacular views, it falls prey to its own over-complicated story and a world that, for all of its beauty, doesn’t provide much incentive to explore. Adding in a system to guide the player by the hand helps players navigate the confusing paths from zone to zone, but removes any desire to wander around or see what else the forests of Fe have to offer.
    • 67 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Dissidia: Final Fantasy NT
    Dissidia Final Fantasy NT finally brings Square Enix’s handheld “what if” franchise to the big screen, and the results are pretty fantastic for those who love chaotic, high-energy combat scenarios. Unfortunately, the game can be challenging to get the hang of due to a range of factors including class differences and controls, and there’s not much to do for those who prefer their gaming sessions solo. Still, for players who do click with this third Dissidia chapter, it’s a heck of an experience.
    • 74 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Sky Force Reloaded
    There’s a legitimately interesting and enjoyable top-down shooter experience present in Sky Force Reloaded, but it’s tainted by an overall package that still has far too many connections to its free-to-play origins. Those longing for a game that’ll last for a while will find the most enjoyment here, but most others may find progression to be a total slog.
    • 75 Metascore
    • 50 Critic Score
    EA Sports UFC 3
    EA Sports UFC 3 feels like one step forward and two steps back. Striking is more realistic than ever, but submissions and the ground game remain convoluted. The new G.O.A.T. Career mode has flashes of brilliance, but bogs you down in menus while losing the human side of fights. As well, Ultimate Team just feels like yet another cash grab. There is a decent core in UFC 3, but it needs a lot more time in the gym to become champion material.
    • 83 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Xenoblade Chronicles 2
    A wide-sweeping game with an ambitious story, Xenoblade Chronicles 2 offers up an intriguing world to explore. Unfortunately, confusing map markers and a padded-out combat system make actually exploring more of a chore than is necessary.
    • 67 Metascore
    • 65 Critic Score
    Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy: The Telltale Series
    There are points where Guardians of the Galaxy is barely playable because of how terrible the engine is. Yes, the story at least has some heart to it, and at key points your decisions feel like they matter. But it mostly feels like Telltale was creatively backed into a corner with this property full of oddball characters, and the end result is far from the studio’s best work.
    • 68 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Star Wars Battlefront II
    Star Wars Battlefront II still tips more toward the causal side of multiplayer competition, but that doesn’t mean there isn’t a fair amount fun to be had. That said, the game’s potentially pay-to-win progression model doesn’t do it any favors.
    • 57 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Sonic Forces
    Sonic Forces mashes together everything from Sonic’s history, from 2D/3D mechanics to over-the-top action spectacle pieces. The new customizable hero feature breathes fresh life into the franchise, but the 3D gameplay it uses overpowers the game’s attempt to combine what has made the different eras of Sonic work.
    • 74 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    Fire Emblem Warriors
    While the Dynasty Warriors style of gameplay appropriately sits front and center in Fire Emblem Warriors, the lack of genre melding with an RPG is disappointing. Players will enter into each battle with plenty of chances to smash buttons and oggle at Fire Emblem characters destroying one another, but the heart of the tactical RPG franchise doesn’t make a proper appearance. Too bad, too, because this might have been a wasted opportunity to really experiment with the musou genre.
    • 75 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    Gran Turismo Sport
    Gran Turismo Sport purposely limits itself as it revolves solely around getting players racing online in various competitions. The VR gimmick and customization options are nice, but otherwise there simply is not enough here for anyone but the gamer that wants to turn video game racing into a potential career. GT Sport is a shell of what we expect from this series, and will disappoint anyone looking for any significant content in its offline modes.
    • 66 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Blue Reflection
    Blue Reflection is a game that displays a heartwarming amount of beauty and grace even in the face of some tragically ugly flaws and mistakes. On a gameplay level, it never reaches the heights it wanted (or deserved) to, but as an overall experience, it feels like something special in a way few other games do.
    • 82 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    Project CARS 2
    Project Cars 2 may do a great many things exceptionally well, but it’s hard to look past the mountain of gaffes that quickly pile up on and off the track. Racing, after all, is about results, not potential.
    • 85 Metascore
    • 65 Critic Score
    NBA 2K18
    Maybe NBA 2K18 has been the king of the court for too long and now it’s getting bored. Instead of improving gameplay, it’s figuring out more ways to make money through MyCareer and MyTeam. It’s new Neighborhood functions as a metaphor for the entire game itself, in that it seems like a big addition to the game but you quickly realize it’s pretty much just an empty shopping mall and a distraction from the actual game.
    • 69 Metascore
    • 65 Critic Score
    Absolver
    Absolver can be rewarding for those that dedicate the appropriate amount of time and attention it requires, but its complexities can be hard to break into. Even when Absolver is mastered, the resulting expertise seems to have little impact on the competitive side of the experience.
    • 76 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    WindJammers
    Windjammers is really fun while it lasts. But how long it lasts depends on how long you’re willing to play the same mode. Its tight, responsive, strategic gameplay doesn’t quite hide the fact that it’s lacking in areas that contemporary multiplayer games almost instinctively include at this point, such as character and match customization.
    • 75 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Last Day of June
    The Last Day of June tells an emotional story of loss and acceptance, though it can’t claim to have an entirely original story. An art style that’s half cute storybook Claymation and half soulless, eyeless faces may be pretty divisive, but the game’s time looping puzzles tie well into the feelings of repetition and despair.
    • 82 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Madden NFL 18
    Although the new Longshot mode shines, Madden misses the mark with a few of its gameplay additions this year—so if you don’t immediately take a liking to them and choose to ignore them, the experience will feel a lot like last year’s. Meanwhile, the additions to MUT feel unnecessary, and like a desperate attempt to get more people playing—and potentially investing in microtransactions.
    • 73 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Agents of Mayhem
    Agents of Mayhem is one of those games with so much potential that just doesn’t quite reach the heights it probably could. That being said, it’s exhilarating combat and unique character system have me looking forward to a more polished, more fully conceived sequel.
    • 76 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    LawBreakers
    LawBreakers is a tight, comprehensive shooter experience that stakes its claim in the crowded class-based shooter genre with fun anti-gravity gameplay, but occasionally frustrating gameplay and poor controls hold it back at times.
    • 69 Metascore
    • 65 Critic Score
    Hey! Pikmin
    Pikmin fans hoping for the next evolution in the franchise will have to wait for another attempt, as Hey! Pikmin is an enjoyable, but vastly simple experience that doesn’t live up to its namesake.
    • 73 Metascore
    • 65 Critic Score
    Layton's Mystery Journey: Katrielle and The Millionaire's Conspiracy
    Katrielle Layton takes the stage as a brand-new puzzle-solving star. With twelve short cases to solve, Katrielle’s adventures are ideal for those who want to solve a quick puzzle, though somewhat lacking for fans that enjoy the build-up and twists of past Layton games.
    • 64 Metascore
    • 65 Critic Score
    RPG Maker Fes
    It’s easy to list all of the ways in which RPG Maker Fes is limited in terms of scope, tools, available assets, and possibilities—but it’s also hard to deny how fun it can be when you’re crafting something within the parameters of those limitations. Those looking for a deep RPG creation program will be sorely disappointing, but for players looking for a first step in that idea, or those preferring to craft something a little less grandiose, this is still an exceptionally cool—and unexpected—release on our shores.
    • 66 Metascore
    • 65 Critic Score
    Ultra Street Fighter II: The Final Challengers
    I walked away from Ultra Street Fighter II: The Final Challengers surprised at how much fun I could still find in the game, even when playing on the less-than-adequate controls the Switch offers by default. Still, that enjoyment doesn’t change the fact that Capcom was off the mark on this release—we either should have received the game as a cheaper digital download, or as a more expansive collection.
    • 64 Metascore
    • 65 Critic Score
    Danger Zone
    That Danger Zone‘s core design works is unsurprising, given that it’s been borrowed wholesale from a different series, but Three Fields has done little to build out the concept into anything worthy of a full game. You’ll enjoy what’s here well enough, but don’t expect it to last very long—or to dazzle much beyond the explosions and sparks.
    • 73 Metascore
    • 65 Critic Score
    The Surge
    The Surge’s engaging risk/reward combat system and obsession with gear will compel you to want to fight your way through a cataclysmic sci-fi hell. But the repetitive enemy types, uninspired visual design, and unfortunate lack of polish leaves the game feeling soulless.
    • 71 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    Farpoint
    Farpoint is another perfect example of a VR game with solid ideas and spotty execution. There is a core of good gunplay and decent story, but the game quickly becomes one-dimensional in its approach, and finds a way to feel like a grind despite its short campaign.
    • 88 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    What Remains of Edith Finch
    What Remains of Edith Finch masterfully shows that narrative-driven games can tell stories in creative ways without sacrificing gameplay. Ultimately, though, the experience is let down by the story itself, which doesn’t do much of anything interesting with its characters or subject matter.
    • 73 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Yooka-Laylee
    Some long-forgotten issues from way back in the day crop up again in this throwback action-plaformer, but even if you aren’t playing it through the nostaliga of someone who grew up with Banjo-Kazooie or other adventures like it, you’ll still find a solid game to play in Yooka-Laylee.
    • 69 Metascore
    • 65 Critic Score
    Snake Pass
    Snake Pass is a competent and boldly innovative take on the classic 3D platformer, but the game suffers from an overly fiddly control scheme that doesn’t match the inviting, pick-up-and-play fun of the genre.
    • 76 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    Mass Effect: Andromeda
    There is a strong core of characters and story bedrock laid down in Mass Effect: Andromeda, but between questionable design choices, boring missions, and glitches galore, it’s hard not to view BioWare’s journey to a brand new galaxy as anything less than mission failure.
    • 70 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Tom Clancy's Ghost Recon: Wildlands
    Bugs and clunky controls can often stop an experience in its tracks. Fortunately, the beautiful world and strategic stealth of Ghost Recon Wildlands manages to overcome its hiccups usually and still deliver an adventure that is both fresh and familiar.
    • 79 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    For Honor
    An inventive premise and surprisingly deep combat system sits at the core of what could’ve been a great game—if so many technical issues didn’t surround it and detract so much from the whole of the experience.
    • 49 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    Double Dragon IV
    Double Dragon IV is a sequel that came about three decades too late. While it’s a great follow-up to the games from the 8-bit era, it also unintentionally shines a light on the shortcomings of the time—which only the most diehard of fans will be able to overlook.
    • 79 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Tales of Berseria
    Tales of Berseria flips the traditional heroic story on its head, taking up instead with the vengeance-driven journey of daemon-eater Velvet Crowe and the unapologetically villainous crew of misfits she picks up along the way. A fun premise and some great skits make for a good story, though middle-of-the-road combat and fairly boring dungeons and fields bog the gameplay down.
    • 66 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Rise & Shine
    Rise & Shine isn’t the deepest action-platformer you’ll ever play, but the tongue-in-cheek nods to the gaming industry at large, along with its stunning art style, will push you to the finish line even when the gameplay starts to let you down.
    • 85 Metascore
    • 50 Critic Score
    Yakuza 0
    Yakuza 0 takes it back to where it all began, but a mildly interesting setting and story don’t quite make up for the game’s more tedious elements.
    • 68 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    Batman: The Telltale Series
    The bigger a Batman fan you are, the less you’re likely to enjoy Telltale’s take on The Dark Knight. Combined with the obvious age Telltale’s engine is showing, this simply isn’t their best effort.
    • 76 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    Super Mario Run
    Super Mario Run does a nice job of capturing the feel of a classic Mario game. The fact that it needs to always be online in order to play deters me from grinding through its collectible driven-gameplay, however, since it limits when and where I can actually play the game—defeating one of the primary purposes of playing a mobile game in the first place.
    • 71 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    Steep
    The multiplayer and replay ideas that Ubisoft implemented in Steep were great, and the game looks terrific. It’s held back as a whole, though, by listless controls, a directionless world, and an always-online requirement that brings everything crashing down like an avalanche when the servers decide to act up.
    • 88 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Dishonored 2
    A competent and fun stealth experience brought down by some technical issues and the inexplicable lack of new game plus.
    • 77 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare
    nfinite Warfare is one step forward; two steps back for Call of Duty. The multiplayer is still fun, but suspect microtransactions have left me wary. The campaign also gets more wrong than right with shoddy storytelling overshadowing the usually tight FPS gameplay. At the very least, we got a Zombies experience comparable to what we’ve seen in the past—and Modern Warfare Remastered was a fun stroll down memory lane.
    • 77 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    World of Final Fantasy
    I don’t know exactly how the idea to create World of Final Fantasy came about in the halls of Square Enix, but it’s a game that could have been so much better had it been given different focus. As it is, it’s a relatively enjoyable RPG that offers up some legitimately enjoyable moments while simultaneously causing you to sit in bewilderment at what you’re experiencing.
    • 68 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    WWE 2K17
    Playing WWE 2K17 is as frustrating as being a fan of Dolph Ziggler: There’s a lot of potential there, but those in charge of the game just won’t let it shine.
    • 68 Metascore
    • 65 Critic Score
    Mafia III
    Mafia III’s main plot is one of the better-written stories I’ve played in recent game history. The problem is the gameplay is bloated with a lot of busy work and weak side content that detracts from this great tale.
    • 72 Metascore
    • 65 Critic Score
    Destiny: Rise of Iron
    While new armor and weapons are sprinkled throughout Destiny: Rise of Iron, we can’t escape the feeling that we’ve seen this all before.
    • 63 Metascore
    • 50 Critic Score
    ReCore
    ReCore has an enjoyable first few hours, but quickly hits an impassible wall of unending item collection, laboriously slow loading screens, and puzzles that are more focused on wasting the player’s time than providing a challenge.
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