Gundam Extreme Versus Maxiboost ON is easily the best console release available for these games. Not only does it represent a decade’s worth of serious arcade multiplayer balancing, it also has an extensive singleplayer setup to keep any Gundam fan occupied. Put simply, this is a thoroughbred multiplayer game with an immense amount of depth and variety. The sheer scale of this undertaking may seem daunting at first but stick with it and your path towards becoming a Newtype will be assured.

Metroid Prime 4: Beyond is worth the wait. The new story characters are not in any way overly chatty, and this is still the mysterious and moody alien treasure hunt Metroid fans have come to love, but now with a funky alien bike. I still rate the original Prime trilogy over this, but those games were pretty much faultless, whereas this is just thoroughly excellent.

The NBA 2K franchise is back and moving in the right direction. After years of stagnant gameplay mechanics and subtle improvements to its franchise mode, this year’s game has taken huge, direction-defining steps. NBA 2K23 offers an amazingly customizable experience. With the exception of a few perhaps philosophical issues and some lingering old assets still in use, this year’s version registers as an All-NBA first team selection within the series’ storied history.

Like any good art That Dragon, Cancer redefines the boundaries of its genre. This is creativity unfettered, matched in weight only by the likes of The Last of Us. However, where that game told a similarly heartbreaking story, there is no need here to perpetuate preconceived ideas. Shooting had to continue one way or another in Naughty Dogs tour de force, but here even assumptions about God don’t have to perpetuate indefinitely.

MLB The Show 21 is still loads of fun to play. Franchise is slightly improved, Diamond Dynasty continues to be strong, and Stadium Creator is even better than expected. However, there are areas of the game that don’t feel like an actual next-gen experience, and we’re still missing features that other sports games have had for years.

It’s an experience with considerable polish that will introduce many young players to Star Wars franchise for the first time. Equally it will re-connect many parents who remember the original trilogy to the more recent joys of Rebels, Clone Wars and Episodes I, II and III.

Overall, Andro Dunos 2 is genuinely a brilliant shmup that feels like something that was released during this genre’s 90s heyday. From the gameplay, to the graphics and the music, Andro Dunos 2 is a pixel perfect shmup.

NBA 2K20 delivers the best on-court experience in years, and that carries more weight than any other aspect of the game.

For all its problems and occasional lack of polish, the greatest compliment that can be paid to RIDE 4 is that it feels like a truly premium product–a racing game that deserves its $50 price tag. The fact it’ll get a free upgrade for PS5 and Xbox Series X owners in January 2021 only adds long-term value, especially given how good it looks already.

If you’re a Zelda fan and want something more combat oriented with a strong element of strategy to it, then Hyrule Warriors: Definitive Edition is worth checking out.

A bonafide toys-to-life title in many respects, if more of a hybrid flavor than past efforts, and that will probably scare certain people away. But even if you strip out all the expensive extras, you can still play everything digitally (the deluxe digital edition includes all ships, characters and weapons), and on top of that, the game is simply really, really good.

EA Sports has delivered a strong next-gen experience with FIFA 22. The primary focus was on gameplay and the attention led to a tangible improvement overall. However, the feature set is still in need of more layers.

MLB The Show 22 plays too strong of a game on the field and offers too much with Diamond Dynasty, March to October, franchise mode and a general cohesiveness to be a bad sports game. However, some of the missteps are impossible to ignore because of what other sports games offer, and because of what the Show series has offered in the past.

The Nintendo Labo Variety Kit is a great interactive model/science kit to put together with your kids. If you like building or tinkering with stuff, you'll like this. If that's not your thing, you might find it tedious. Not a ton of replay value, but the construction seems sturdy. Overall, a very unique new 'game' for the Nintendo Switch.

This is still a good game in terms of its offline content and local multiplayer. However, the online community is pretty quiet and incredibly experienced. While it’s nice and convenient to have Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3 available on modern consoles and at a very reasonable price, it does feel like a stopgap until Marvel vs. Capcom: Infinite comes along next year.

A thoroughly excellent game and one that Capcom intend to support for a good while to come. It is, however, an intensely involved beat-em-up, as well as a work in progress, and only time will tell if the online community will be able to support players unfamiliar with the series.

With a focus on depth and functionality, the EA UFC 3 development team has created the strongest version in their series. A few minor missteps and the reluctance to embrace or include a true-sim component keeps it from GOAT status. However, there's no question it's a titleholder.

Even after hours of play, Onrush remains wonderfully difficult to classify. The stomach-churning drops of Hydro Thunder. The insane crashes of Burnout. The combo system and radical attitude of SSX. The nail-biting cooperative multiplayer mayhem of Overwatch. It’s a recipe that probably shouldn’t work as well as it does, and despite a steep learning curve, it creates what feels like the next evolutionary step in driving games. Or, at the very least, the initial iterative lurch toward a completely new genre.

This is a genuinely new experience, and I’m beyond glad that Remedy took this bizarre risk and made it. This is a game that feels special, new, and worth trying. I doubted this thing, I really did. But damn if it didn’t get me in the end.

ARMS is a unique, fresh take on the fighting genre that's simple to learn but tough to master. It's not going to be for everyone, but it's fun to see Nintendo try something so new. $60 seems a bit steep.

A great start to a new series. Although the child-like visuals will put some Telltale fans off this is to miss the huge investment and achievement so far. If the series continues in this vein it’s set to be warmly welcomed by both Minecraft fans and families.

It’s absolutely worth your time, and gives me a great deal of faith that virtual reality can be used for more than just spectacle and first-person POV. [Tested with Oculus Rift]

Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare is a solid entry in the long-running franchise, but it fails to stand out in a crowded first-person-shooter landscape.

But if the question was if Crimson Desert could really be that big and really play that well and really keep you entertained the whole time, the answer, for me, is unequivocally yes.

Avowed is an excellent game. Yes, it may be a bit of a bite-sized, stripped-down experience in the grand scope of epic RPGs, but in many ways, I found that refreshing, and I think others might as well in this age of too many big games and not enough time to play them. I would make time for Avowed, you won’t regret it.

NHL 18 is another strong entry from an underrated sports gaming franchise. EA has delivered a more rewarding franchise mode, added new ways to play, while at the minimum, sustaining itself in other modes. That's a formula for success, but the lack of progress in customization, single-player modes and presentation keep it from being a monumental step for the franchise.

Overall, this is not your typical “game”, but it is still a lot of fun one to play. Game Builder Garage is also a game that is uniquely important and necessary for people to understand how games work. While all of this may sound like a chore, it really isn’t, as Nintendo is probably the only company that could make visual scripting actually fun. That alone is a huge achievement and one I am excited as well as relieved to champion.

WWE 2K19 maxes out all of the incumbent concepts from recent games in the franchise, and this is a solid and more polished release than we've seen from some recent versions. You'll likely have fun with the game and all of its layers. However, there is potential for true greatness with this series, but the WWE and the development team have to be willing to take some chances.

From a pure gameplay standpoint, PGA Tour 2K21 delivers a strong enough experience to satisfy fans, and the course designer is fantastic. However, the game falls more toward the average because of its bland career mode, modest list of licensed golfers, and out-dated graphics.

This is a re-establishment year for the WWE 2K series. Let’s face it, WWE 2K20 was rough and while it took more than 2 years to develop, 2K has re-emerged with a strong and not only playable wrestling game, but a fun one. The engine is better and the basics are tighter, but we’re looking forward to more layers in the future.

Replaced is a breathtakingly beautiful and narratively riveting game that has engrossing world-building while also delivering solid combat. However, it’s held back by fickle platforming and dull side quests. Still, the memorable music helps elevate the entire experience, making this dystopian adventure worth playing.

There is less to dislike with FIFA 23 than there was with last year’s game, but I also wasn’t blown away with the advancements in several features such as career/franchise mode or the visuals. While it’s technically a better game than FIFA 22, it may not seem like it to those who don’t spend most of their time in FUT or VOLTA. Color me satisfied, but not overwhelmed.

I'm having a lot of fun with Madden 20, and readily admit it is improved from last year's game, which I didn't hate. However, my fun is regularly curtailed by an inexplicable limitation in almost every mode. Madden 20 gets a lot more right than it gets wrong, but it still won't let itself be great.

There’s just no spark of life in Syndicate. Everything is so by the book it feels like it was made in factory by the child laborers I’m trying to free. They have refined the combat, stealth and traversal systems to a point where they’re as close to perfect as they’re ever going to get, but the actual content of the game itself refuses to evolve.

The gameplay and options are on an elite level in TGC 2, but the graphics and presentation are still a step behind.

If you like Far Cry, there’s a pretty good chance you’ll like this as well. But if you’re becoming exhausted by ~20 hours of leveling, skinning, leaf-collecting, trinket-finding and map-clearing after the last few installments, Primal is definitely more of the same. The setting change is effective, but this isn’t going outside of the series’ comfort zone as much as Ubisoft might have you believe.

A brief but eminently enjoyable Mario game stretched out in all sorts of less than successful ways. A perfect port of Mario gameplay to a new platform but a deeply problematic port of mobile structure onto classic Mario.

he campaign is a blast and quite unique for Call Of Duty (though not that weird for Black Ops more specifically) and multiplayer is a lot of fun if you don’t need split-screen which is irredeemably and inexcusably broken. If you’re a fan of Black Ops games I think you’ll enjoy this one a lot. If you prefer Modern Warfare I suspect you’ll like it less. It’s good, not great.

Overall, Super Robot Wars Y is another solid entry into the series. It’s got a great lineup and a more careful eye placed on making the game more enticing for newer players. While I am always happy to see Aura Battler Dunbine featured, I do feel that this game includes a mecha anime for almost everyone.

American Truck Simulator scratches the exact same itch that Elite: Dangerous does. While they’re vastly different games, both evoke a sense of the wide open road, of the perfect road trip. Both give you freedom and put you in control of your own destiny and your own direction. Both are ridiculously compelling and they let you set your own pace.

Minor setbacks aside, this is a very fun Mario Kart game in its own right. Not quite the feature-rich experience that Mario Kart 8 is, but a very fun, very clever game nonetheless. It’s delightful and will certainly be fun for all ages and a great party game for whenever you feel comfortable having parties again. There’s even a driving assist mode for very young (or, uh, very old) players which will help them navigate courses without having to do much more than accelerate and reverse.

Samurai Shodown is very much true to its gaming lineage and works a lot better on the Switch than you would expect. So if you like quick paced fighting games with lots of vicious bladed weaponry and a surprising amount of tactics, then this is definitely worth a look.

Overall, Earth Defense Force: World Brothers is a fun remix of the Earth Defense Force formula. Not only is the art style almost entirely adorable, but the way the gameplay has been split across your team members keeps the game fresh and fun.

GTS lacks overall depth, but it is saved from being a complete failure by its stellar visuals, fun and realistic driving experience. I know how much work goes into producing a major-budget title like GTS, so I would never use the word lazy when describing the effort of the development team...However, this game comes off as an underdeveloped title that is being made to look more legitimate by the history of the series.

Ultimately, I recommend the game purely based on its fun factor. Some people may say it's too linear, but in an age of overly large open-world games, a bit of linearity is a breath of fresh air. I love moving from one mission to the next, using creative ways to kill my enemies but not having to worry about exhausting a bunch of checkpoints across a sprawling map. On the other hand, at $59.99 on console and $49.99 on PC I simply can't recommend you buy it at full price. This should be half that, at most, and should include the Duke Nukem DLC regardless of pre-order. I give the game a Hold on my Buy/Hold/Sell scale. Wait for a sale. One should come along soon enough.

Overall though The Legend of Steel Empire is a solid release and visually updates a classic steampunk shmup that pretty much everyone loves. Even if you never played the original, this is still a lot of fun and perfectly suited to something like the Switch.

The replay value is high if you’re a diehard Transformers fan, or merely a fan of Platinum’s established brand of lighting-fast combat. If you’re neither of these things, the $50 price tag may seem high for the content that’s on offer. That doesn’t change the fact that Transformers: Devastation is the best Transformers game I’ve ever played.

It’s nothing revolutionary, and the writing hasn’t improved from the base game much, but it’s a solid entry and it’s fun to have Moxxi leading supported by the returning character.

The only question with Berserk or Die is whether or not it’ll be able to establish the longevity Vampire Survivors has with regular updates and fresh ideas. But for four dollars, even if it doesn’t manage that, it’s money well spent.

Overall, Actraiser Renaissance stays true to the original game, while building it out even further and keeping the essence of what made it so special intact. If you never played the original Actraiser, then you are definitely in for a treat as it’s not every day you don the mantle of the Lord of Light and defy the will of Tanzra.

Overall, this is the same game from 2011 that felt very dated and awkward but is now available on the Switch. The narrative premise is also delivered in a way that makes very little sense and is visually pretentious, to the point of being overly jarring. If you really want to play a stylish action game with a fixed camera and Biblical narrative influences, then just pick up the original Devil May Cry, it plays a lot better.

Overall, the Famicom Detective Club games are interesting gaming curiosities from an older era of gaming. If you are more of a Nintendo historian, then you will find these games fascinating. For everyone else though, they are an acquired taste.

Castlevania Requiem is an excellent collection of two very important as well as very different Castlevania games. If you have enjoyed the recent Netflix series and don’t know much about the games it is based off, then this is probably the perfect collection to get to grips with the saga.

Overall, this is yet another great Irem Collection, and much like the first and second releases, this third instalment is excellent. However, its star attraction is the adorable Mr. Heli, which is still just as fun to play as when I played it in the arcades as a kid.

Overall, I really enjoyed playing Attack on Titan. Being able to traverse the environment and fluidly take out giants felt great. While there are some glitches and it could get repetitive for some, I can still happily recommend this to any curiously minded gamer and doubly so if you are an Attack on Titan fan.

Overall, Sonic Origins is an excellent collection of games to introduce newer players to what made Sonic the Hedgehog so interesting and unique. However, after Sonic Mania it does feel a bit of a step down with the reduced difficulty.

There’s plenty of mystery and betrayal and a good, fun, and fairly brisk story that will leave you wanting more—even if the end isn’t really a massive cliff-hanger or anything (like some Telltale episodes are.)

NH4 is still fun to play, but there just isn't enough newness here to make upgrading to this version a necessity. If you own, love and still play NH3, I'm not sure you'll find NH4 a must-have for your collection.

Overall, the Famicom Detective Club games are interesting gaming curiosities from an older era of gaming. If you are more of a Nintendo historian, then you will find these games fascinating. For everyone else though, they are an acquired taste.

Outriders has surpassed my expectations in almost every way. Months ago, I figured this would be another looter flop, but now, it’s one of the best current entries in the genre, and even with no “live service roadmap” at hand, it’s clear you could potentially extract hundreds of hours from it regardless. I plan to do just that.

While NBA Live 19 is a definite improvement over NBA Live 18, it still has a lot of the same issues that have bogged down the series in the past. On the bright side, Live has risen to a respectable level, and it can be a fun game, with flaws that hurt the realism. On a whole, it is too inconsistent to be considered elite. This was a year where the franchise expected to make a huge leap from doormat to contender, but it still falls short of the postseason.

Overall, R-Type Final 2 is a significant improvement over R-Type Final and has decently solid level design throughout. As R-Type games go though, R-Type Final 2 does not live up to the masterful R-Type Delta. That said, it is still a proper R-Type game and a well-crafted shmup. So blast off and have fun destroying the Bydo Empire all over again.

Overall, SD Gundam Battle Alliance is a solid mecha game and one that shows how far Artdink has come since their PlayStation Portable days. It’s also a very accessible game in terms of its controls and combat, which the cute approach only helps to accentuate.

Let’s try a metaphor and imagine games as drinks. Fallout 4 is a fine wine, aged, complex, and evolving, likely better with a bit of wait. Bloodborne is a single malt Scotch — dense, overwhelming and rarified. Destiny might be a well made cocktail — a bit trendy, probably too expensive, but eminently satisfying and possessed of a certain technical skill. Just Cause 3 is a Miller High Life. It might not tick those other boxes of quality that those other drinks manage, but damn if I’d have it any other way.

If ever there was a game that could be boosted by an instant replay feature, it's NBA Playgrounds 2. There are times when you pull off a completely over-the-top slam, and having the option to watch it over from different angles would be fun.

Overall, while there are faults with the game’s multiplayer, this is still a good Sonic the Hedgehog game. If you stick with the singleplayer on your own, you will definitely have fun with it. However, I do hope the next 2D Sonic game is one that uses pixel art in the same manner as Sonic Mania.

The control issues are dwarfed by all the good in Yooka-Laylee, this modern day throwback that seems tailormade to yank at nostalgia strings.

If you’re looking to capture that feeling of playing in a beautifully-realized Star Wars sandbox, albeit one lacking variety and depth, EA DICE nails it. If you’re looking for a shooter stacked with substance, engrossing character progression, and endlessly addictive gameplay to sink your teeth into for the months ahead, Star Wars Battlefront misses the mark.

There just isn’t a whole lot here compared to past entries. No new enemies, minimal loot drops across two completions, repurposed geometry to make new areas, five skill points instead of the rumored full fourth skill tree that should be coming later. I thought this would end up being one of the most substantial DLCs to date, but instead, I definitely think it’s the least. The writing is good, but everything else is somewhat lacking here.

NHL 21 is another strong entry into the series’ history. It delivers a new strand of flavor with Be a Pro, maintains quality on the ice, and makes franchise mode more enjoyable. However, the limitations in customization and the subtractions to HUT keep NHL 21 from being the series’ ultimate edition.

Senko no Ronde 2 is as good as the game it is based [on] and comes highly recommended to anyone that enjoys a different kind of arena battler.

In any case, this Namco Museum release on the Switch is as good as its precursors and brilliantly accentuated with the local multiplayer focused Pac-Man Vs. but it is currently overpriced and I hope this is not a new trend when it comes to future retro gaming releases on the Switch.

NBA Live 18 has a lower price point than most major sports video games, and that's a good thing because it simply doesn't offer all of the features that other sports titles do. There are some promising base features in place from a gameplay, conceptual and presentation standpoint, but it's still not where it needs to be.

I do wish there was a better deck-building mechanism and it could certainly use more character-progression—anything to lessen the random-numbers game (RNG) and increase player agency. Anything, also, to give it more longevity. Even a multiplayer mode would help give this game more substance. But as a simple pick-up game? It works.

FIFA 21 delivers most of what I’m looking for in a world football title, which tends to be the story every year. It features solid-to-strong gameplay, attractive visuals, and a good variety of options. However, flawed execution in VOLTA, a lack of customization and no traditional franchise mode for EPL or La Liga keeps it from being a classic.

Overall, Taito Milestones 2 follows nicely on from the first release. It includes even more excellent games and does a nice job of encapsulating Taito’s long and influential gaming history into one neat little package.

Overally, Megaton Musashi W: Wired is a belated release of a game that didn’t really work that well back in 2021. The role-playing game framework is done well, but breaks the mecha combat by rendering it redundant through levelling. The mecha combat is also very repetitive and the camera and controls still need finetuning. The game also failed to land its sole remit; to prop up what could have been a cogent super robot series and that is the saddest part of all.

Easily the best in the series thus far and is something I can happily recommend for anyone that enjoys large explosions and destroying giant aliens en masse.

All told, Call Of Duty: Vanguard has exceeded my expectations, especially after a less-than-promising pre-launch Alpha and press event. Then again, the Beta was drastically improved overall so I was already feeling more optimistic by launch. I’m also very excited for post-launch content like Shipment, League and Gunfight, as well as more MP and Zombies maps. Now that maps are always free—replaced by a Battle Pass and cosmetic Item Shop—these games stay fresh and populated much longer than before, and I foresee a great deal of Vanguard in my future, though I’m sure I’ll dip back into Cold War frequently as well.

DOA 6 is a capable fighting game that will probably entertain hardcore fans of the series. However, it's hard to imagine it adding to its fanbase as it offers nothing that broadens horizons, and fails to provide the sort of depth expected. DOA 6 can be fun in spurts but doesn't have the staying power of some of the elite fighting titles.

The standard game is an excellent high-definition remaster and is the best version of the game to date. The VR mode ruins that impressive achievement and is wholly unnecessary. In short, play this for the high definition remaster and give the VR mode a very wide berth.

It's . . . fine, I guess? Not something I'd urge you to go pick up on day one, but a pretty good time-suck regardless. I like it, I just don't love it. I don't hate it, either. It's just perfectly okay. [Impressions]

If you could combine the story and memorable quests of the originals with the combat, visuals and scope of Andromeda, you would have the perfect video game, though I think what's offered here will satisfy most. Despite its issues, Andromeda is welcome return to one of my favorite fictional universes, and I am still not ready to let Mass Effect go. I'm not sure I ever will be.

With The Climb, Crytek has taken a throwaway traversal mechanic from games like Uncharted and masterfully turned that into its own compelling and complete experience. [Tested with Oculus Rift]

It’s not a terrible game, it’s simply not a very engaging one. In the end, it’s just boring—a monotonous and dreary affair with pretty visuals and the promise of something more just over the horizon.

Overall, Sonic Frontiers takes the lovable blue hedgehog into new open world territory, while staying true to how Sonic should feel in a functional sense. There’s also a lot to unpack here, so don’t take on too much at once and just go with the high-speed flow.

Madden 25 is the most complete version of the series in more than a decade. Failing to recognize the improvements essentially gives in to reflex hate more than evaluating each version's merits. The gameplay is tighter, customization has seen a significant boost, and each mode has depth. If you buy a version of Madden every five years, it should be this one.

While the gameplay is in as good of a spot as it’s been for a while, Madden 21 is dragged down but neglected features, stagnant and/or underdeveloped concepts. Hopefully, this inconsistent effort is a product of the development team packing tons into the next-gen version. If not, all things considered, from a reception standpoint, this could be one of the worst years in franchise history.

Overall, this is a great collection of both important and genuinely great Irem shmups. The inclusion of Image Fight II is also great, as that was previously only available on the WiiU. However, both the original Image Fight and X-Multiply make this collection worth picking up for anyone that is a serious fan of shmups.

I can definitively say the game has more positives than negatives and feels less raw than its predecessor, but it still isn’t as complete as other sports titles.

When you get down to brass tacks and scattered relics, Knack 2 is a nostalgic, if somewhat sterile, throwback to the happy-go-lucky titles we were getting in droves during the late ‘90s and early 2000s.

The problem is that Sea of Thieves is not a complete game. It just isn’t. It’s maybe 5 or 10% of one, but given what other open world/co-op games can offer you for $60, it’s just astonishing how little Sea of Thieves offers.

While CPL16 does some things right, there’s just not enough here to satisfy any sports gamer who isn’t simply thirsty for a lacrosse game. Because of the solid gameplay, the foundation has been established for a complete product in the future. Unfortunately, we just aren’t there yet.

It sadly lacks some of the ostentatious aspects of the mainline games and a few odd backend changes but overall, this is easily the best Earth Defense Force spin-off to date.

I believe the problem is that the gameplay, at its core, just isn’t addictive. Can I have fun with Madden? Yes, and I probably will have some solid moments with the game this year, but not enough to make it elite.

The implementation of realistic snake physics is commendable, and may even be what snagged Snake Pass a green light in the first place, but it’s also what drags down what could have otherwise been a phenomenal platforming experience.

Overall, Daemon X Machina: Titanic Scion is a massive, fast-paced open-world mecha action game that plays extremely well. The story is actually intelligible this time around, but while the mecha designs look wonderful, the characters definitely needed more work. There’s also a mountain of complexity and content here without much thought on how it should have been introduced, so you will have to persevere and figure the game out to get the most out of it. There’s genuine ambition here, though, but more focus, better writing, and stronger direction would have made this almost perfect.