Songs of Conquest would have profited from losing some of the inherent ticks of this particular sub-genre, but it is still one of the most beautiful and relaxing "just one more round" games of the year.

The last Paper Mario with an RPG twist, charmingly reworked and brought into shape for a new generation, unfortunately only marginally streamlined.

A clever glimpse into a dystopian future, but one that suffers from an extremely weak VR implementation in terms of technology and content.

Playful and atmospherically captivating adventure without combat, but with imaginative challenges and lovingly executed ideas. Discovering a mysterious world has rarely been so much fun.

Some of the short stories are nice to listen to and the driving itself feels good - but that's about it. The decisions made have no consequences worth mentioning, neither on a large nor small scale, the many repetitive races against depressingly lame opponents are potently sleep-inducing and even the protagonist's story is frighteningly irrelevant. Neither the damn good soundtrack nor the strong presentation can really do anything about this.

Relic did everything right back then and after many, many years Blackbird Interactive has managed to build on this in a worthy way. In terms of gameplay and feel, Homeworld 3 is very close to the originals and I would definitely say that all fans will have fun with it. The war games mode isn't necessarily for me, but I'm sure it will be a worthwhile challenge for some. All in all, I'm happy with this game and glad that it exists.

You can certainly read a lot more from Indika, and even see some things substantially differently than I did. In particular, if you have a closer cultural connection to the region, you might pick up on details that slipped right by my western eyes. But I was completely captivated by this cool, blunt reckoning with the weaponization of religion. At the end, you can't help but feel great regret for and sympathy with Ilia and Indika (...) Odd Meter has no answer to what's next for them. It's bitter, but it rings true.

The physics and presentation are so well done that you can have a pleasant game. In terms of gameplay and audiovisuals, however, Zen's tables are still no match for the classics.

Sand Land offers a unique adventure, a beautiful self-contained story and an exemplary adaptation of Akira Toriyama's manga. Minor inconsistencies and some lengthy stretches only slightly spoil the captivating overall atmosphere.

An equally accessible and challenging simulation with minor weaknesses in terms of AI, difficulty and penalties, but a motivating career and promising online championship.

Entertaining sneaking with an inventive mechanic whose true potential is never fully explored.

Although Eiyuden Chronicle manages to capture a certain charm of the 90s, it is inconsistent in many areas. Above all, there is a lack of meaningful comfort functions. As a result, the game struggles to keep up with best of today's JRPGs despite a great deal of passion on display.

Much seems familiar and sometimes a tad uniform, but a strong combat system, excellent boss fights, an exciting scenario, the motivating environmental exploration and many well thought out ideas make Stellar Blade an excellent solo adventure.

Some rallies can become a bit sluggish, but all in all, Top Spin 2K25 is a versatile and accessible simulation with a successful career for solo players and numerous opportunities to play online and offline.

Broken Roads lives up to its name, as it is teeming with breaks in both gameplay and content. And of all things, the interesting morality system disrupts the role-playing instead of deepening it.

Audiovisually enchanting adventure on a submerged spaceship with likeable characters, which is not entirely convincing in terms of narrative and has little depth in terms of gameplay.

Withering Rooms is a horror adventure that is as atmospheric as it is playfully motivating. The ever-changing estate is morbidly fascinating and the constant progression encourages you to search it carefully. Even the story is interesting, even if it is only told via written text. Only the numerous battles are not one of its strengths, nor is the repetitive running through many same-y rooms.

The platformer offers varied levels with funny ideas, an ingenious mechanic for locomotion that lets you explore the genre with a fresh pinch of cleverness and a really pretty pixel art design that convinces even pixel-skeptical folks like me.

Entertaining arcade racer about past Formula 1 decades with exciting races, even though some content and gameplay issues irritate.

Technically, Peach's Performance leaves a lot to be desired, then. Nevertheless, the lovingly designed levels in small fun-sized bites are a lot of fun. The staging of the plays, the many small design options for Stella and Peach's costumes make this one a charmer.

A solid real-time strategy entry to the Terminator universe, then, with engaging gameplay and tense missions, but the story leaves a lot to be desired ... There's definitely a lot of micromanagement here, but if you get used to it, you'll be able to keep everything under control and shouldn't face insurmountable problems. Terminator Dark Fate: Defiance does a lot right and is definitely worth a look if you like real-time strategy and the Terminator franchise.

Lots of content and a great Star Wars feeling clash with bugs and a host of other problems. This could have been so much more.

A lively platformer with inventive, albeit sometimes somewhat cumbersome game mechanics, but with plenty of challenges and lots to discover.

The compact world invites you to explore without it feeling like endless work. The complex story branches and the variety of missions between stealth and attack invite you to experiment. Rise of the Ronin might be technically outdated, but it's very entertaining in terms of gameplay.

It is the rare case of a game that gets better and better the deeper you get into it. Not only because there are new things to see and do and the hero becomes more and more powerful, but also because you grow as a player.

Reveil is an atmospheric horror tale with memorable moments, whose strengths are successful puzzles and a visually and playfully vivid setting. Unfortunately, the ending fails to bring the emotional story to a convincing conclusion.

Brings to mind the great football managing sims of old, but doesn't rely only on that nostalgia. It plays well and is beautifully approachable.

There's a lot to like about Unicorn Overlord: Beautiful aesthetic in sound and art and an open strategy world with an addictive gameplay loop are this game's strengths.