As one of the devoted franchise enthusiasts who are presumably the target audience, even I feel like it loses sight of the magic, narrative weirdness, and dark tone that makes the show so captivating. And without tactical sophistication or a meaningful engagement with the lore, I can’t recommend joining this resistance.

Warcraft III: Reforged teaches the harsh lesson that sacred, legendary titles need to be revisited with only the utmost care. Core elements that made the original an absolute Earth-shaker still remain, but as a remaster meant to enhance the original experience, Reforged is greatly flawed.

I can’t stress just how smartly made Children of Morta is. The narrative flows smoothly in and out of dungeons, the characters have a real life to them, and the gameplay is enthralling and has those addictive qualities that make you just want to keep leveling everyone up. In the 15-plus hours I invested in this adventure, I was thoroughly captivated by everything Dead Mage set out to achieve. The way family comes together for the final conflict is truly impressive.

Coffee Talk shows the powerful relationships that can form around a cuppa joe, but it does so in predictable, well-worn ways.

By the end, the characters and story beats are too numerous and diffuse to coalesce into a fully satisfying finale. I won’t spoil it here, but even my relative disappointment at the conclusion reinforces something I love about the rest of the experience: Kentucky Route Zero is about appreciating the journey, not reaching the destination.

Journey to the Savage Planet presents you with a well-constructed world full of fun collectibles to hunt down and interesting wildlife to survey, but the way the world design encourages and rewards exploration is its biggest accomplishment.

If you approach Kakarot for the story and the harrowing battles, it can be amazing. Outside of collecting Soul Emblems, the RPG elements are mostly lacking, even if they do push you to keep leveling to take on harder foes. All told, CyberConnect 2 gives fans a fun way to reexperience this saga.

Overall, Re Mind is disappointing. Between all the reused content and very few additions to the story, I felt like I wasted my time. Yes, a few new threads and pieces of info are there to unravel, but they are the tiniest of crumbs. The biggest revelation is in the new secret movie, which shows the series potentially moving in a strange direction that makes me more uneasy than excited. Ultimately, you really have to dig for the fun in Re Mind, because it’s buried in all this content you’ve already played.

To the Moon may be light on gameplay, but it is a storytelling powerhouse that explores the themes of love and regret.

Lego Builder’s Journey doesn’t give you the total freedom to build what you want, but it taps into strong feelings – problem solving and the satisfaction that comes with it. The game is a good start to what I hope is an evolving franchise.

I love so many of the ideas behind Scarlet Grace and its inventive nature, but it can’t assemble those elements into a consistent experience. Scarlet Grace has its flaws and frustrations, but it also colors outside the lines of the genre. Sometimes that’s good and exciting. Other times, it’s just scribbles.

Its charming visuals and messages of compassion and cooperation make Wattam a great game to play with younger members of the family.

Shovel Knight Showdown is great for short sessions with friends, or a couple playthroughs of the story mode, but simple movesets and repetition limit the enjoyment. You can dig into some good Shovel Knight fun here, but don’t expect to strike gold.

Even with some stumbles, Arise is a game that knows what it wants to communicate, and does so with delicacy and sensitivity. I’ve found individual scenes coming back to mind frequently since I completed the game, most notably the moving sequence that closes the game. Accept the dilemma of a few bad jumping sequences, and push toward the emotional core, as this simple story has a lot of wisdom to share.

Mosaic gives meaning to the meaningless; it’s existential nihilism in digital form. It's lovely.

Over the last year, Life is Strange 2 has been quietly weaving a powerful and sincere narrative experience that admirably carries on the series’ legacy.

Darksiders Genesis fails to take advantage of the series' strengths. Since Darksiders’ inception, fans have imagined what it might be like to team up as the different horsemen. Darksiders Genesis finally offers a co-op experience, but its offbeat design and forgettable story don't deliver on the fantasy.

Despite having many issues with Shenmue III, I’m glad I returned to this world. It scratched an itch I didn’t know I had, and periodically showed me why it was an important game back in the day. But it mostly reminded me of why a third entry didn’t release for almost two decades.

When Superliminal’s mechanics work, I felt like I was participating in a magic trick, but when they didn’t I felt like the developers were playing a trick on me. I was both amused and frustrated while playing Superliminal, but didn’t think much about the game after its credit’s rolled. Like a fading dream, Superliminal is also a bit ephemeral.

Respawn Entertainment's maiden voyage with Star Wars is largely a success, but it's a little rough around the edges.

Need for Speed has meant different things over the years, but Heat is a good all-around representation of the franchise. The police could be a little more prominent, and the world – while well stocked – isn’t as interesting as Forza Horizon’s, for instance, but NFS Heat is the best iteration since Ghost Games’ reboot in 2015.

Pokémon Sword & Shield are strong first attempts for the series’ full transition to consoles. While some frustrations hold it back from true legendary status, this new generation proves the Pokémon franchise is still great more than two decades after its debut.

Pokémon Sword & Shield are strong first attempts for the series’ full transition to consoles. While some frustrations hold it back from true legendary status, this new generation proves the Pokémon franchise is still great more than two decades after its debut.

Pokémon Sword & Shield are strong first attempts for the series’ full transition to consoles. While some frustrations hold it back from true legendary status, this new generation proves the Pokémon franchise is still great more than two decades after its debut.

This investigative RPG surprises and delights with its complex world, fantastic dialogue, and ability to convey a constant struggle with the warring facets of one’s own mind.

Planet Zoo put up a lot of obstacles to my enjoyment, but once I broke through the majority of them, I found that engaging loop of mastery and success that makes simulation games fun. I enjoyed trying to one-up my last creation and surpass my previous revenue and years in business. Unfortunately, Planet Zoo requires an unreasonable level of patience that creates a barrier around its best qualities.

Battle for Neighborville delivers exciting competitive and cooperative multiplayer, but an overly complicated economy and inconsistent PvE elements take away from the experience.

This mountain biking game blends an idyllic nature aesthetic with tight arcade action to create a surprisingly thrilling adventure.

The real issue is that Death Stranding’s gameplay really is as simple as it appears to be, and the elements around it – the story, combat, and lackluster mission objectives – aren’t satisfying enough to anchor the title and get players invested.

Luigi's Mansion 3 is a fun ghost-hunting adventure regardless of your experience with the franchise.

Afterparty poses questions you don’t expect it to ask, and that’s what ultimately made me satisfied with it – just don’t expect a non-stop rager. As with most parties, there are high points combined with lulls. At the very least, the conversations, locale, and attendees make it a good party to attend, even if sometimes you get a little bored.

MediEvil still deserves to be heralded as a classic for its time and place in gaming, and I love how it looks in revitalized form on PlayStation 4. However, its gameplay is a relic of yesteryear, and an example that shows us just how far games have come over the years. Rest in peace, Sir Dan.

Modern Warfare should have received a new Call of Duty subhead given just how different its avenues of play are. Not every one of Infinity Ward’s ideas works, but a few are successful enough that I could see them as series staples. Modern Warfare’s accomplishments may not be as pronounced as Black Ops 4’s (Blackout being one of them), but it still delivers a hell of a multiplayer experience. Gunfight alone is worth the price of admission.

Even if the larger beats don’t always land, The Outer Worlds shines with a constant stream of small, bright moments. An amusing interaction with a clueless guard. A sugary corporate jingle. A brutal sneak attack. A solution to a problem you are sure won’t work, but it does. The team at Obsidian excels at encouraging creative experimentation within its responsive and absurd setting, ensuring that every visit to Halcyon is full of delightful surprises.

This great 2D platformer delivers a crowd-pleasing adventure regardless of when you started enjoying the genre.

Trails of Cold Steel III’s strengths outweigh its weaknesses. While the story takes its sweet time to unfold, it offers a lot of shocking outcomes.

Bungie's latest release is a good expansion on its own, but the way it sets the stage for the future of the Destiny franchise is its most impressive feat.

This final moment with Breakpoint sums up the game perfectly. There was a sense of victory, and then it all fell apart and became a maddening mess. I had some fun playing with friends, but constantly found myself wondering how this follow-up could go so wrong.

Despite those frustrations, I continually returned to John Wick Hex because the core mechanics are incredibly tight. Thanks to Hex’s clever time management systems I always felt one step ahead of my enemies and capable of constructing the kinds of sophisticated close-quarters gunfights that make the films so exciting. John Wick Hex might hit the same note over and over again, but it’s one incredible note.

The Grid series offers a fun, gorgeous racing experience, and I can see value in bringing it back. But this incarnation of the game performs the bare minimum of the reboot mandate when it should be doing so much more. We race to be in first place, but unfortunately, Grid seems content to be in the middle of the pack.

Indivisible is full of ambitious ideas and uneven execution. When it succeeds, you see glimpses of the fantastic game it could have been – but those flashes never last long enough for the dream to take shape. What you’re left with is an experience full of noteworthy successes and confusing failures, and like the game’s title suggests, they are all too intertwined to separate.

If you’re looking to play Magic, there’s probably no better way than Magic: The Gathering Arena, and that says a lot. Wizards of the Coast seemed hesitant to move all-in on a digital product in the last decade, perhaps out of fear that it could cannibalize the gigantic paper audience, but Magic is finally where it needs to be in the digital space.

Neo Cab poses a lot of questions, crossing something familiar with a plausible futuristic backdrop. Chance Agency crafts an intriguing world where people all have their own ideas about technology and how much it should be a part of our everyday lives. Neo Cab has the fun of being a driver, meeting new people, and trying to hustle for cash and get that coveted star-rating. But it also offers a much deeper experience – one that makes you look inward. That’s especially why it’s worth the trip.

Deck13 included a number of new weapon and armor types, all of which can be upgraded extensively, again putting heavy weight on the act of grinding, which is a bit excessive, but thankfully it ends up being fun. If you like the idea of cobbling together armor sets earned by felling difficult foes, give The Surge 2 a try. You may get a bit lost in the world at times, but every encounter is fun and well thought out. The bosses in particular are nicely designed, exotic in look, and push you to play with brutal precision.

Code Vein has some cool things to enjoy along the way and some nice ideas that shake up the core formula, but they are all incidental details. The heart of Code Vein remains overburdened by stale scenery, boring bosses, and tiresome trudging, and all of that is beyond what some nice touches can redeem.

FIFA may be more popular than ever, but FIFA 20 is a standard bearer with no clear focus. The gameplay comes up just short of carrying the title, and while Ultimate Team is engaging in its own way, it’s the same grind it’s always been. The next-generation of home consoles is approaching, and I can’t tell if EA has run out of ideas or is running out the clock.

The Sojourn accomplishes some cool moments, but the space between them is dull, leaving you stranded in a sterile world with a predictable rhythm.

Untitled Goose Game is a great concept, and ends in the same charming way it started. Pranking people is fun, and doing it as a goose just adds to the thrill. Most people will play it for the silly premise, complete it in a few hours, and go on their merry way without touching it again. If you just want to mess with people as a goose, here’s your chance – but the shallowness and repetition hold it back from being a truly engaging game.

I quite enjoyed looking at Sayonara Wild Hearts, even though interacting with it left me cold. In fact, I probably would have liked it just as much if it were just a short film. As it stands, it’s an impressively stylish title with a disappointing amount of substance.

I kept waiting for Daemon X Machina to pull the curtain back and reveal some sophistication in its gameplay, or some narrative twist that might make the uninspired combat worth slogging through. Those things never arrive. While the game ostensibly scratches the itch for players who have longed for something like Armored Core on the Switch, it’s a model that feels out of step with recent innovations in the sphere of action games. There are better worlds to save than this benighted future.

Link’s Awakening has always held a special place in my heart, but asking someone to go back to the original release is tough. With this remake, people don’t have any excuses for not playing through one of the best (and strangest) entries. I envy those of you who will be experiencing this for the first time, though revisiting it all these years later is still an absolute pleasure.

NHL 20 is an uneven experience. One minute I’d feel the high of setting up an awesome play and seeing the puck land in the back of the net, but then I’d slam my stick into the ice frustrated by disappointing aspects across its modes. Seeing similar issues continually bleed over year after year is getting harder to forgive the longer they go on, but it’s still the only way you can really experience the thrill of being on the ice, and at the very least, it captures that well.

WoW Classic is far more than a historical novelty, and the incredible design shines through even today. It may seem odd to play an MMO, a genre that hinges on the constant promise of an evolving future, with an ostensibly finite lifespan as updates take us to where WoW ended before the Burning Crusade, but WoW Classic proves that there’s so much to be experienced in that journey. With WoW Classic available to anyone with a WoW subscription, it’s an adventure worth taking – whether again or for the first time.

GreedFall’s stories, world, and wealth of choices are fun to explore and can legitimately be great at times, but the problematic combat, reliance on conversation for quests, and lack of polish over everything hold it back, but Spiders is on to something and isn’t far off from having its first truly notable RPG. Much like Bethesda’s early Elder Scrolls titles and CD Projekt Red’s first Witcher game, GreedFall feels like it’s the beginning of something great, but it just isn’t quite there.

PES 2020’s small details create moments that bring into focus the fine margins that determine the results of many soccer games. When compared to the game’s similarities to last year it seems like minutia, but these are the things that elevate it from previous efforts and make PES 2020 look and feel correct. It’s a better game, even if it’s not evolved in every way.

NBA 2K20 also comes through in the gameplay department, allowing individual expression within a team dynamic.

NASCAR Heat 4’s A.I. is a work in progress, the career mode is adequate, and the online suite is behind the times. Nevertheless, it’s the best offering to date even if it’s not totally dialed in, forcing you to get up on that steering wheel and dig deep for your spot on the track.

Borderlands 3 is a love letter to its fans and a celebration of the style of play it first popularized. Filled with characters from previous installments, and unapologetic in its silly humor and bombastic action, it’s an amusing ride that seems hesitant to innovate. If more of what you loved before is your chief desire, Gearbox has granted that wish through a game of impressive scope that charts some very safe territory.

I love pounding bad guys with an array of cool attacks and inventive weapons, even if I feel robbed by cheap tricks. River City Girls’ chaotic battles are entertaining, but they’re surrounded by an array of decisions that add more inconvenience than challenge.

Stepping back into Monster Hunter World for Iceborne reminded me how much I adore this game, but it also exposes its flaws. Capcom didn’t improve much for the expansion, like once again having a boring tower defense story mission and making you separately watch scenes solo before you can join up in co-op. Even so, surviving together to get that jackpot of materials for better gear hasn’t lost its allure, and Iceborne challenges you to be a better player and teammate with its arduous fights. The return trip is worth it, just don’t expect many upgrades to the experience.

Gears 5 is exactly what it needs to be. This old war vet still packs a punch. The open-world exploration has issues, but that isn’t enough to steal away the thunder The Coalition expertly deploys on the battlefield. The campaign is a fun ride that concludes with a shocker moment and a hell of a setup for a sequel. I’m already looking forward to that follow-up.

Knights and Bikes successfully captures child-like wonder and fun in an unabashedly wholesome adventure – with just the right amount of danger.

Navigating this world is more tiresome than frightening, especially once you realize that you’re not in peril most of the time. Instead, it’s more about how creepy you find wooden stick figures and walking around in the dark.

The video game market is filled with racing simulations, and it’s nice to see oddities like Wreckfest that deliver the exact opposite. Why race a clean path when you can race dirty? If that proposition sounds fun to you, you can’t go wrong with this aggressive racing experience.

Strong systems and a satisfying gameplay loop give Remnant: From The Ashes a powerful foundation, even if the experience is mired by repetitive and uninteresting bosses and environments. The first 10 hours are challenging and intriguing, leaving you voracious for more loot, more bosses, and more traits. After that, some of the wonder vanishes as you relive past glories rather than continuing to forge new ones.

Man of Medan isn’t the success that Until Dawn was, and it represents a big step back in terms of player interaction and storytelling, but it’s still a thrilling horror experience that made me scream, laugh, and want to jump right back in for a second or third playthrough to see if I could keep everyone alive.

I was deeply frustrated by Ancestors, so it may seem strange for me to say that I found a lot of promise, complexity, and nuance here as well. The novel concept and grand scope are far more appealing than dozens of other action or survival games on the market. This is a deeply flawed but richly imagined effort, but like many ambitious gaming projects at launch in recent years, it can now either die off like the Neanderthals, or evolve into something better from here.

Despite a few drawn-out battles near the end, Control is a complete rush. With the power at Jesse’s fingertips, I walked into every room ready for an amazing fight. When I walked out, it often looked like a tornado and torn through the building. The Federal Bureau of Control is a fascinating place to explore, and I loved every bizarre encounter inside its creaking hallways.

I had a blast playing Astral Chain and didn’t want it to end. Platinum has created a wonderful new universe for players to dive into that I could see extending into anime, movies, and hopefully sequels. The dual-character gameplay is also brilliantly devised, and although not as difficult as PlatinumGames’ other titles, creates a duet that makes you feel like a powerful, unstoppable force. The story may be the weakest part of the experience, given just how much it changes trajectory, but it has some legitimately great moments, and a big twist I didn't see coming. All told, this is one hell of a game.

Telling Lies is especially interesting in how its themes connect to real-world politics and ethics surrounding privacy when in the hands of a government bureau.

This is an action/RPG full of highs and lows, with erratic swings between the two extremes that had me loving it one minute and hating it the next.

I certainly had my attempts where I felt like the game was working against me, but when I had a good run with mutations that worked well with my playstyle, I enjoyed myself and was thoroughly proud of my accomplishments.

Shadowbringers is the best expansion yet for Square Enix’s MMORPG, a world that comes alive in the player’s hands, with weight and gravitas moving you through every whimsical corner. Old-fashioned quest design and color-dodging combat add a dull tinge to a truly magical landscape, but those imperfections can’t keep down the scale and scope of excellent environments, grandiose bosses, and majestic music.

The pitch-perfect movement, the enemy variety, creative weaponry, and fantastic level design all add up to a superb shooter campaign. In a sea of retro shooters looking to channel the glory of the genre’s early days, Ion Fury emerges as the title that pushes those thrills into the present in an engaging way, deftly capturing their timelessness.

Age of Wonders: Planetfall takes several turns to get moving, and newcomers might feel overwhelmed until they gain their bearings, but Triumph Studios’ newest strategy offering is full of fun, creative ideas and each faction is worth taking for a spin at least once. Building a sustainable empire and managing a happy populous takes some grunt work, but they are really just stepping stones to Age of Wonders: Planetfall’s epic firefights.

Combining picross with a relatively obscure anime (and not even using the anime’s name in the title) is a weird choice, but if you’re looking for more picross, you can’t go wrong here. The quality-of-life improvements are good, the Color Picross mode is fun, and having a little bit of story is a nice change of pace, even if the plot doesn’t have much to it.

I like aspects of Madden 20 like the addictiveness and slightly easier progression of Ultimate Team, the way players feel, and the new abilities. But too much remains stagnant and unchanged. It’s like expecting a few free agents to change the course of an entire organization when there are key areas the franchise needs to have addressed yesterday. Instead, its roster has gotten old fast and the problems are mounting.

I like aspects of Madden 20 like the addictiveness and slightly easier progression of Ultimate Team, the way players feel, and the new abilities. But too much remains stagnant and unchanged. It’s like expecting a few free agents to change the course of an entire organization when there are key areas the franchise needs to have addressed yesterday. Instead, its roster has gotten old fast and the problems are mounting.

I like aspects of Madden 20 like the addictiveness and slightly easier progression of Ultimate Team, the way players feel, and the new abilities. But too much remains stagnant and unchanged. It’s like expecting a few free agents to change the course of an entire organization when there are key areas the franchise needs to have addressed yesterday. Instead, its roster has gotten old fast and the problems are mounting.

Despite offering myriad endings and some extra content that unlocks the longer you play, The Church in the Darkness does little to justify sticking around to see it. A half-dozen runs will give you a good sense of the narrative scope and gameplay, without offering anything particularly novel to keep you invested. I went into The Church in the Darkness hoping for a thought-provoking look at how cults operate and entice their followers, but ended up leaving Freedom Town disillusioned.

Fire Emblem: Three Houses is ambitious, and takes more chances than previous entries in the series. The way it lets your role as professor play into both the narrative and gameplay is nothing short of fantastic. This is the most I’ve ever cared about my Fire Emblem characters, and that’s incredibly high praise.

Youngblood excels as an entertaining shooter with the right kind of RPG elements and choices. However, when compared to the stellar and shocking storytelling of previous Wolfensteins, this entry comes up short. It has a few interesting breadcrumbs about what happened in the aftermath of Wolfenstein II, including the fates of a couple characters, but this outing is mainly focused on the exploits of its dynamic duo. As far as protagonists go, Jess and Soph are likeable goofballs – a detour from their sad-sack papa – but they don’t have any real character development

They Are Billions is an interesting mashup of classic RTS, tower defense, and survival that successfully conjures up that “one more game” feel, assuming you can persevere through countless defeats.

They Are Billions is an interesting mashup of classic RTS, tower defense, and survival that successfully conjures up that “one more game” feel, assuming you can persevere through countless defeats.

They Are Billions is an interesting mashup of classic RTS, tower defense, and survival that successfully conjures up that “one more game” feel, assuming you can persevere through countless defeats.

Sky expands on the successful gameplay ideas of the developer’s previous games, but with a greater sense of progression, replayability, and a far more involved social component. Conceptually, this new project is a deeply felt meditation on empathy and the connections between people, couched in the same unpretentious and thoughtful presentation we’ve come to expect from the studio. Sky is a refreshingly moving and robust game on the iOS platform, and one best shared with others – especially folks who might not normally pick up a video game.

Despite the monetization method, Dr. Mario World is a fun puzzle game, and the World moniker signifies that this is more than just another Dr. Mario remix. This is the most dramatic reinvention of Dr. Mario since the series’ inception, and I often had trouble putting my phone down before the battery ran dry. Nintendo plans to update this game with new levels down the road, so this is one flu season I look forward to revisiting.

My time with Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3 was filled with peaks and valleys. It has great moments where everything is clicking, followed by lulls where it all falls apart. The story never really gets going, however, but is a fun exploration of all things Marvel. For that, it delivers a little bit of fun, but this experience is all about the character reveals and getting to test them out, even if the worlds they explore and challenges within them often lack excitement.

As someone who enjoys Stranger Things, walking around a pixelated version of Hawkins’ familiar locations with characters from the show is enjoyable. Outside of the sightseeing, however, the game does little else to garner excitement. The combat doesn’t ask much of the player and the mission structure underwhelms. If you want to experience the events of Stranger Things’ third season, you’re better off sticking to the source material.

This is one of those rare sequels that delivers on just about every front, so long as you’re able to put in the time it asks of you. This definitely isn’t a weekend project, but it’s one that’s absolutely worth the effort.

Living up to a legend is practically impossible, but instead of providing an entertaining experience on its own terms, SolSeraph adheres to an ancient blueprint. It seems content to imitate rather than innovate, but its tedious gameplay can’t even accomplish that. I love ActRaiser, and I can’t blame SolSeraph for failing to recapture the magic of a 16-bit classic. At the same time, SolSeraph doesn’t have much value apart from how it reminds you of a better game you may have played about 30 years ago.

Just when I had a solid grasp on the controls and could pull off stellar moments of action, the final stretch morphed into a series of annoying insta-death puzzles and dull boss battles. I had a fair amount of fun blasting fools in My Friend Pedro, but I wish my experience was more about losing myself in the frenzy of its action and less about navigating a tiresome control scheme.

Sea of Solitude provides an insightful look at how mental health devastates the lives of not just those it affects, but also loved ones on the outside. Kay learns a lot about herself by understanding the value of listening, coming to term with her flaws, and not just empathizing with family but also accepting that a simple fix isn’t always possible.

You should play F1 2019 not just because you’re an F1 fan or the hottest thing that’s ever gotten in a cockpit. Do it because you want to experience the thrill, the heartbreak, and the satisfaction of competing at ridiculously high speeds. Trust me, you do.

When Wizards Unite is trying to do something new, it can be good fun. Most of the content sadly ends up feeling like a strange version of Pokémon Go, giving players flimsy reasons to catch or zap ‘em all.

Mordhau is not for those who want a multiplayer experience that’s easy to drop into and utterly destroy foes. However, the joy of mastering its challenging system as well as memorable moments of violent ballet make these engrossing battles unique.

FacebookPost TwitterTweet EmailEmail CommentComment Frogwares has made a name for itself with wannabe detectives through a run of imperfect-but-entertaining Sherlock Holmes adventure games built around deductive reasoning. However, the developer’s interest in this unique brand of puzzle-solving extends beyond the world-famous consulting detective. The Sinking City is Frogwares’ latest and most ambitious adventure game to date, setting players loose in a Lovecraftian open world with a journal full of twisted cases. The expanded scope and greater emphasis on action introduce issues, but as a whole, The Sinking City still presents a mystery worth unraveling. Players take on the role of Charles Reed, a private detective whose horrific visions have brought him to Oakmont, the titular sinking city ravaged by a mysterious flood and the supernatural terrors it has unleashed on the beleaguered population. As you undertake cases for various influential families and factions, Reed is quickly ensnared in Oakmont’s politics and power struggles. Like everything in Oakmont, no case is ordinary or straightforward, such as helping the rich and strangely simian Robert Throgmorten track down his missing son, or investigating a faction of fish-like Innsmouthers whose generous food donations to starving citizens may hide an ulterior motive. Once again, Frogwares exhibits a deep understanding and appreciation for the source material, touching on many of the tenets of Lovecraftian horror while weaving its own unique tale. You gather clues from various locations and crime scenes, and then piece them together through deductive reasoning to solve each mystery, much like the Sherlock Holmes games. You may find yourself with only a name or a scrap of a letter to go on, and it’s up to you to figure out how to proceed. Perhaps searching through patient records at the hospital will give you another lead, or cross-referencing dates and locations in the local paper might turn up another witness. These player-driven puzzles and deductions are the heart of The Sinking City, and are just as entertaining and rewarding without the deerstalker and calabash pipe. This time around, some of the deductions are also subjective, requiring you to make a call and live with the consequences. Is that character a cold-blooded murderer, or was he possessed by some cosmic horror (a real possibility in Oakmont) and not responsible for his actions? Should you turn him over to the authorities, or let him go free? The consequences of your decisions aren’t particularly far-reaching from a narrative perspective, but they are often memorable, and your inability to get through every case without getting your hands dirty fits with the grim world and themes. While Reed himself remains a bland and forgettable cypher, the evolving mystery behind Oakmont’s curse and its eventual fate kept me engrossed for the long run. While that world-building and atmosphere is where The Sinking City really shines, traveling around said world isn’t as fun. Getting from one area of the city to the next is a time-consuming process, often requiring hopping between roads and boats to get where you’re going. And you always have a lot of places to go; in addition to the aforementioned hospital and newspaper headquarters, you’ll be visiting the police station, city hall, and library to drum up more leads, and it’s not always clear which location you need to visit. Fast travel helps with this process, but it isn’t particularly fast, requiring you to first find and run to a phone booth, then wait through a lengthy load time. As you’re traveling to various locations, eldritch monsters occasionally spring up, leading to survival-horror combat. Simply put, the stiff and sluggish gunplay is not fun, and frustrates more than it excites. However, the grotesque enemy creatures introduce an ever-present threat and tension that heighten the Lovecraftian world you’re exploring. Ultimately, The Sinking City’s combat is a necessary evil that I’m glad Frogwares included, even if its implementation leaves a lot to be desired. The Sinking City also suffers numerous technical problems. In addition to the long load times, screen-tearing is a persistent distraction from exploring Oakmont’s creepy locales on console (Frogwares says it’s working on a patch to correct this), and uneven voice performances and cutscenes also take their tolls on the immersion. The main quest is a little too long for its own good, but those who can overlook the game’s shortcomings will find a wealth of solid side quests to keep them hanging around. The Sinking City shares all of the same problems of Frogwares’ previous games, but it also capitalizes on the same strengths. Reed’s cases offer up surprising twists and memorable moments, and flesh out a twisted world and cast of characters that I enjoyed learning about. The combat and repetition may elicit the wrong kind of madness, but fans of Lovecraftian horror should still consider visiting The Sinking City.

198X reminds players that even simple arcade experiences (or their recreations) can provide an interesting escape.