NieR Replicant overall is a successful remaster, with a bit of spit and polish improving many facets of the original game, but with some of the negatives unfortunately carrying over as well. The end result is an action RPG that will keep most players entertained for many hours, as the story, combat, and characters outweigh the boredom of Replicant’s sometimes repetitive gameplay.

Big Helmet Heroes wears its inspirations on its sleeve and manages to reach the heights of many great beat 'em up adventures. It focuses on the fun of its combat systems and imaginative levels, providing a consistently satisfying experience without ever taking itself too seriously. Its major drawback comes from its limited co-op experience, which could have been one of its greatest strengths, making it a game more readily recommended for solo players than groups of friends. For gamers who love to unlock secrets and replay levels, there's a lot of content being offered, which could provide hours upon hours of enjoyment.

Detroit: Become Human may not offer much to players who don’t like this style of game, but fans of David Cage’s work should know that Detroit is definitely one of the better stories he’s crafted so far. It’s far better than Beyond: Two Souls, and while it may not be as innovative as Heavy Rain, it’s still a pretty fun ride and its incredible visuals and interesting story definitely make it worth checking out.

Unicorn Overlord is a standout tactics RPG landing just when the genre is coming back to life. It's deep, creative, gorgeous, and incredibly addicting, with plenty to offer for those who want to dig into all its systems. The game may stumble a bit with its simple plot, tedious UI, and quantity over quality side character stories, but those feel like small issues in an overall impressive and well-rounded game. Great for newcomers and genre veterans alike, Unicorn Overlord is a can’t-miss title.

Watch Dogs Legion is an easy game to recommend for fans of the franchise, as it continues to utilize the solid gameplay foundation established by its predecessor. While the lack of a main character may not be a hit with everyone, it works surprisingly well. Over the last three iterations, Watch Dogs has introduced more and more player freedom, but with Legion, Ubisoft takes things to an insane new level.

Steamworld Heist 2 has taken everything good about that first game and delivered something truly special. Although there may be a few weak points, the game is able to make up for it with its thrilling gameplay, unique class system, and its colorful world. It not only serves as a great turn-based strategy game for genre veterans, but it may be a great one for newcomers to try out too. And with its release, there are hopefully plenty more adventures within the Steamworld franchise on the horizon.

The opportunity to revisit Call of Duty 4‘s multiplayer without the annoyance of hackers ruining the fun is one that will be hard to pass up for those that loved the original. Even so, the multiplayer also feels somewhat dated compared to most modern shooters on the market. While there’s something to be said for the impeccable map design and polish of Modern Warfare Remastered‘s multiplayer, it’s still the same experience as before, and may come across as rather simplistic and plain to those that have been playing this year’s new shooters.

The extra coat of paint may not dry properly on all facets of the project, thanks to the amiibo-based paywall that will block some users from the new dungeon, but it’s a nice stop-gap that will easily tide fans over amidst the wait for the brand new The Legend of Zelda game arriving for Wii U later this year.

NHL 17 isn’t leaps and bounds better than last year’s NHL 16, but it’s evident upon even a glance that EA Sports has been listening to its fan base. The end result of this leaves glimmers of unrealized potential, but the realization that this is the best installment that the series has seen thus far. It’s been a rough trek for gamers, but NHL is back and it’s better than ever.

It’s challenging, whimsical, and a great throwback to a time when combat was deceptively simple.

The finished product is an absolute gem that only helps to highlight one of the major benefits of the platform by allowing for stop-and-drop multiplayer at a moment’s notice. Indeed, this downloadable game is well worth the paper.

At only $20, Braid: Anniversary Edition is an easy recommendation for those nostalgic for the original game or anyone that's simply looking for a solid puzzle platformer to play. Braid might not be the industry-shaking revolution that it was when it first released, but it still holds up in 2024, with challenging puzzles and a powerful story. The considerable graphical upgrade would make Braid: Anniversary Edition worth the price of admission alone, but the added content is the cherry on top. If nothing else, it's great to have Braid playable on modern platforms, and hopefully, the game is able to find an even larger audience than it did 16 years ago.

The Quarry is predominantly a successful offering from Supermassive, with a satisfying amount of scares paired with recurring weak points from previous titles that slightly mar the experience. The positives far outweigh the negatives, however, and the game will no doubt please fans of the genre with its fun though not entirely innovative story. The Quarry fully delivers on its promise of a campy horror experience and is one of the best titles from the developer since Until Dawn.

With charm, style, and large worlds to explore, Lovers in a Dangerous Spacetime offers both a great local co-op and single player shoot em up experience.

Time has been kind to Apollo Justice, but Capcom has been especially kind to the re-release efforts of the Apollo Justice: Ace Attorney Trilogy. Much like The Great Ace Attorney Chronicles and the Phoenix Wright Trilogy before it, the Apollo Justice Trilogy is another fantastic effort by Capcom in updating and re-releasing its legacy courtroom battle games for modern audiences and with a few fixes and tweaks to make it more fitting for this day in age. Returning fans will be able to jump right into their most nostalgic moments with the series whenever they like and with plenty to come back to, while new fans can experience Apollo’s story in its best form yet.

Gone are half-baked water physics and worm classes, replaced by more creative and complimentary features like vehicles, crafting, and building interiors.

Co-op support like in other Soulslike games would have put Lies of P over the top, but even without it, the game will still greatly appeal to Soulslike fans. It has a lot going for it, and from a technical standpoint, it's basically perfect. It runs smooth as butter, looks fantastic, and has no glitches that we discovered. And while the writing can be clunky at times, the ending is legitimately wild and worth suffering through the worst bosses to reach. It's true that Lies of P gives in to some of the worst Soulslike instincts at times, but it can be extremely fun when the combat clicks. Just expect a significant time investment and a lot of frustration before that happens.

When a company remasters a beloved title in its back catalog, it's always faced with the dilemma of needing to strike a balance between two very different audiences. That balancing act becomes especially precarious the more beloved a title is, and honoring the legacy of a game's original vision to appease longtime fans can sometimes have the unintended effect of pushing away a contemporary audience. As a remaster, Onimusha 2 is a success because it lands at a comfortable middle ground between staying true to the original while also serving as perhaps the best jumping-on point for the franchise ahead of its revival.

Truthfully, Rock Band 4’s biggest selling point is that it’s Rock Band on the new consoles with new instruments. And if that sounds appealing, then you’re bound to be very happy with Harmonix’s sequel.

Make no mistake, this is more of an interactive movie than a “game,” but that doesn’t mean it’s not worth experiencing.

Maybe the game runs too long, but the characters and narrative are likeable. The truth is that Dragon Quest 7: Fragments of the Forgotten Past is an all around good game that does too much in terms of length and too little to mix things up. Simply put, it’s a revamped classic from the PlayStation era made mobile, and that’s quite something special for Dragon Quest and JRPG aficionados alike.

There are certain aspects of the game that drag the experience down a bit, but it's a mostly successful adventure game that succeeds in delivering an emotional story in a gorgeous world. PixelOpus has done a great job with its sophomore effort and it will be exciting to see what's next from the studio.

Altogether, Cult of the Lamb is an impressive title that leans heavier on the Roguelite genre than anything else, while still pulling everything it needs from the other genres that separate the games from the Indie crowd. Not every feature or mechanic is perfect, and the story is more interesting as lore than it is as a narrative, but that doesn't seem to be the developer's main focus. With that in mind, Cult of the Lamb succeeds where it matters, from the Roguelite dungeons to the dark cartoon aesthetic.

Though likely to chase away those easily frustrated by complex systems, Circus Electrique offers more than enough surprises to entertain players for the couple dozen hours they’ll likely spend clearing its entire campaign. Unforgiving combat and the constant need to monitor resources demand the player’s attention, while the unique blend of genres rewards them with inventive new experiences. Juggling everything at once might be a bit more than some people are ready for, but that’s what a circus is for.

Lingering issues aside, The Jackbox Party Pack 5 provides some great Party Pack games, with Split the Room, Mad Verse City, and Patently Stupid standing out as especially entertaining.

Without a doubt, Assassin’s Creed: The Rebel Collection offers the strongest selection of AC games on the Switch so far. The titles are more engaging, the Switch port works wonderfully, and the overall package has dozens of hours of content, all for just $39.99.

Super Roboy is a fine and simple Metroidvania for its target audience of genre fanatics, even though it might be hard to recommend for newcomers to the platformer sub-genre. Those who have already made their way through Hallownest or even made their way through a Mega Man game will easily find themselves at home during the game's short yet challenging run time. Super Roboy delivers on its promises in a way that's unique to itself, and that makes it worth exploring.

The game delivers fast and fluid open-world gameplay from start to finish, offering plenty of replayability with tiered outpost raids and expeditions. While New Dawn won’t be known for its memorable characters or plot, it’s fun enough that gamers are likely to forgive the narrative stumble.