Despite its shortcomings, Marathon delivers solid fun and can really pull you in. Its distinctive art style and Bungie’s signature shooter feel are without a doubt something the competition doesn’t offer. That alone could keep players engaged for the long run, especially once the game gets more content and irons out some of its early issues. For now, I’m giving it a 7/10, but I believe even a 9/10 is within Marathon’s reach.

Crimson Desert is undoubtedly an original and ambitious game, but at the same time it feels a bit like a soup with too many ingredients thrown in. On one hand, it offers an intriguing world where almost every hour of play can bring something new; on the other, it overwhelms with an excess of mechanics you constantly have to learn, often without much guidance. When you take a closer look at its gameplay systems, you’ll notice plenty of missteps, yet despite them it’s hard to remain indifferent to this game. If you can accept its flaws and invest a good amount of time and attention, you’ll likely get hooked just like I did - discovering an adventure on a scale beyond anything we’ve seen in video games so far.

Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 is a real mishmash. After several fairly successful entries in the series, we’re getting a mix of styles and ideas that don’t mesh well and fail to work as a whole. This year’s story campaign is one of the weakest in the series, and even the callbacks to older installments can’t save it. The Zombies mode also comes off as rather mediocre, and only die-hard multiplayer fans will find anything truly good and engaging here.

Pokémon Legends: Z-A is a game that will please fans of collecting battle creatures, yet deeply disappoint with how much potential this massive franchise leaves untapped. A series of this stature deserves far more than what it gets here.

The Outer Worlds 2 lags far behind other games in the genre. I don’t doubt that some players will enjoy it - much like you can enjoy a decent action movie you forget about the next day. Still, from a big-budget game set in such an interesting universe and made by such a respected studio, I expected more. Here’s hoping Microsoft gives Obsidian another - and hopefully not the last - chance to truly surprise us in the future.

Mafia: The Old Country isn't a AAA title, so it should be judged by slightly different standards - but still, more was expected from Hangar 13. Sure, the first and second Mafia games didn’t have outstanding gameplay either, but they made up for it with atmosphere, charismatic characters, sharp dialogue, and the chemistry between the protagonists - especially Vito and Joe. That’s what helped players overlook the gameplay flaws. The Old Country, unfortunately, lacks that spark. That said, it’s still worth playing - if only for the stunning vistas, impressive world design, and well-directed cutscenes.

Elden Ring: Nightreign is undoubtedly an interesting experiment that could bring a much-needed breath of fresh air to the soulslike genre. Its gameplay loop, built around relatively short matches, offers an intriguing alternative to the traditional, hours-long campaigns FromSoftware is known for. However, as the studio’s first foray into multiplayer-focused gameplay, it suffers from some early growing pains - issues unlikely to be fully resolved through patches alone. The lack of built-in voice chat is a major drawback, and I wouldn't recommend the game to players who don’t have at least one reliable teammate and access to an external communication tool. Playing with randoms can be a frustrating experience.

Tainted Grail: The Fall of Avalon makes a pretty rough first impression. It feels low-budget, is undeniably janky, and frankly not very pleasant to look at. The choppy framerate alone might turn off a lot of players within the first few minutes. But if you're a fan of The Elder Scrolls or Souls-like games, and you've been craving a deep, immersive RPG that blends the best elements of both, you'd be making a mistake to ignore this one.

South of Midnight can certainly be called an artistically accomplished project. The beautiful stop-motion stylized animation, combined with the legendarium and music of the southern United States strongly distinguish this title from other action adventure games. Unfortunately, the same cannot be said of the gameplay itself.

The good news is that the developers of Sniper Elite have finally tried something new - Atomfall is intriguing with its setting and its form of narrative direction. The bad news is that in many other aspects the game is average at best. Perhaps the full potential of these ideas will be realized in a possible sequel.

Assassin's Creed has been based on the same gameplay formula for years, and now was the moment for Ubisoft to surprise us with a new approach, but the developers only half-heartedly accomplished this task. Such an interesting setting was all too asking for more creative use of successful gameplay innovations. Nonetheless, Shadows is pretty much the good old Assassin, providing dozens of hours of content and plenty of targets to eliminate.

Avowed can be fun, but if you've finished even a few popular RPG titles, Obsidian Entertainment's new game won't surprise you with anything new or brilliant. It's a decent game with impressive visuals, but ultimately a bit shallow, without that magical spark that fires the imagination and makes us return with our thoughts to the game world and plan our next steps while we're at work or in class. Experienced gamers will tend to think about what other titles this game reminds them of.

Stalker 2 is a great example of a game that some would describe as “eurojank”. Ambitious, unfussy, charming, eluding industry trends and incredibly addictive, but at the same time quite "stiff" and with numerous technical flaws. If you are able to put up with it, you will have a great time. I, as a long-time fan of the series, certainly had.

LEGO Horizon Adventures is a clever combination of brick aesthetics with a world full of dangerous animal machines. It works great in a parent + child configuration or for playing with your partner. It runs and looks great and, most importantly, delivers fun. Adults, however, may get bored before they reach the end credits.

The Veilguard is not the sequel I dreamed of ten years ago, when the Inquisition's credits rolled on my screen. Nonetheless, the game reassured me that there are still people at BioWare who sincerely respect and love the Dragon Age world. However, if the series is to return to its golden age, the developers cannot allow themselves to take shortcuts and water down the key elements that made it special in the first place.

While many AA games manage to cleverly hide a small budget, the developers of Unknown 9: Awakening have failed in this art. Every element of this game reminds us that we are dealing with an underdeveloped product that proved too challenging for Reflector Entertainment. I don't understand why the studio didn't pick one style of gameplay and focus its limited resources on it. Add to this the poor performance of the PS5 version and serious technical problems, and you get a below-average title.

The release of Diablo 4: Vessel of Hatred is quite an interesting case, as the best changes are brought by the free 2.0 update, not the expansion itself. In the expansion, however, we get a powerful and well-designed Spiritborn class, companions, as well as a new map section loaded with quests and side activities for single- and multiplayer. Unfortunately, the new features are a bit lacking, and the storyline isn't particularly captivating.

The two main innovations in FC 25, namely Rush mode and the FC IQ system, really hit the mark. However, the other significant changes can be counted on the fingers of one hand. If you liked FC 24, you will certainly like FC 25, but if you were not a fan of the previous installment, you will probably not have a good time here.

Capcom has delivered on its promises. Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster polishes up the original game, but leaves some annoying elements intact. There was potential for more, perhaps a full-fledged remake - it's a shame the developers didn't have more courage.

Quidditch Champions isn't a game I'll sink a few hundred hours into like Rocket League, but I won't ditch it after publishing a review either. Harry Potter fans don't have to think twice about it - after all, we got a game successfully tackling Quidditch, so in their case it's worth it. Muggles can have fun here if they like unusual sports games, have a tolerance for shortcomings and are willing to play online. Content is scarce for now, but if this is just the beginning, something truly magical could be born from this game.

The Casting of Frank Stone is a flawed game in many ways - full of plot nonsense, boring gameplay mechanics and in some ways cruelly ugly. But if you're a fan of silly B-grade horror movies that entertain more than scare, you can have fun here. Just don't expect much, and you may not be disappointed.

If space travel was removed from Star Wars Outlaws, the game would be stripped down to elements that were already considered obsolete seven years ago. The well-crafted Star Wars atmosphere does not make up for the painfully simple gameplay, and the main character lacks the adventurous charisma that would engage players in the story. Such a combination resulted in a mediocre title, distinguished by only a few original ideas for open-world fun.

There is a lot of fun in Concord. Firewalk has polished up the basics and given us a variety of characters with different combat styles. The gunplay is very well done too. However, the game straddles the line between team-based gameplay and slightly more dynamic solo play, and can't decide which side to stand on. The developers also missed the mark in terms of character and map design, which completes the picture of a game that lacks a certain spark.

Nobody Wants to Die is a cold water splash reminding us that the concept of a “cinematic experience” doesn't have to be just an empty marketing gimmick or an excuse for gameplay shortcomings. The beautifully designed and neatly presented world, combining the atmosphere of cyberpunk and 20th century detective stories, is an actual protagonist of the game. It's just a shame that sometimes it overshadows the rest of the cast and the story itself.

Quotation forthcoming.

MultiVersus is a decent game that can certainly appeal to some. At the same time, it doesn't offer enough to hold the average gamer's attention for more than a few evenings. It's a game for “big” consoles and PCs, but it uses mechanisms associated with mobile games and requires a lot of grind - or real money.

Unfortunately, F1 24 feels more like an update - and not a very big one at that. As was with the 2022 release, we are dealing with a ‘transitional’ instalment: more of a testing ground for new ideas and mechanics, while the developers focus more on the next year's bigger game.

Not a pretty game, but with very good gameplay - that's TopSpin 2K25 in a nutshell. The king of tennis is back, but not much changed - considering the huge break the series has served us (pun intended). But maybe that's exactly what the fans needed.