Salt and Sanctuary is a good 2D conversion of the Souls formula, but its experimental nature invites more than a few flaws. If you don’t mind difficult-to-see graphics and sometimes cheap combat, then you’ll happily come back for more.

Little Nightmares II is just a worse game than the original. Everything they added to the system feels clunky at best and unfair at worst. It’s a shame because this same story, with its same environments, same levels, same enemies, and same music and sound would have been infinitely better if they kept the mechanics from the original.

Castle Crashers Remastered keeps the game relevant to Xbox again and comfortably keeps a void in the systems library filled.

As a long-time fan of the Xeno series, I found Xenoblade Chronicles 2 to be a disappointment. A little balance testing, some reduced system bloat, and a little more effort in presentation could have made it an RPG to remember. If you played Xenoblade Chronicles 2 with a cheat device or walkthrough it would probably improve the experience, because you could bypass all the boring grinding and rough difficulty spikes. As it is now, the game is kind of a mess. An addicting mess, yes, but still a mess.

While it may be geared more towards hyper-competitive players with extra cash to burn, there’s still a lot to enjoy in EarthCore for even casual CCG fans. You may have to put up with some turbulence as you learn the ropes but the game’s seemingly simple yet addictingly fun premise is well worth the effort.

Octogeddon doesn’t have the same charm or polish as Plants VS Zombies, but it’s a refreshing new take on the bullet hell genre. The concept is zany and feels like a thin veil laid over simplistic game mechanics in the vein of Divekick, but the excellent animated cutscenes bring coherence to it all. Ultimately, Octogeddon is a good time-waster, but not much more.

Pro Evolution Soccer 19 is a fun one to play. Unfortunately, I’m already thinking of ways Konami can improve it for next year’s version (I’ll still be playing PES 19 though!).

You have to commend Severed for using the Vita's touchscreen heavily for its gameplay. And while that use of the system works and is mostly enjoyable, it's not always entertaining.

As a Danganronpa fan, I liked Danganronpa V3: Killing Harmony, but I hesitate to call it a must-play. It’s a great puzzle game to keep you busy while you wait for the next Phoenix Wright or Professor Layton, but you won’t walk away from this one happy. What did you expect from a series obsessed with despair?

This is an instance of a fantastic game’s incredible potential being wasted on a mismanaged port. If you can grab it on a Steam sale and haven’t played it before, it might be worth a look, but as it stands you might as well wait for the inevitable release of the latest version on home consoles.

Borderlands 3 is more Borderlands and not much else. It doesn’t innovate. It doesn’t push the looter shooter genre forward. It doesn’t say anything profound with its plot. It plays it 100% safe by nearly copying its predecessors. That might be enough for some people, but it’s not enough to stand out against other contemporary looter shooters.

Despite a tendency to force the player to work through a number of repetitive activities Dragon's Dogma delivers innovative, action-packed boss fights and the occasional twist in the story to keep things interesting. Graphically Dragon's Dogma isn't doing anything special, but for a game originally developed on the previous generation of consoles it delivers a satisfying gameplay experience on the PC.

The Call of Duty: Modern Warfare reboot is certainly not the first game that has disappointed me at launch, and hopefully it will join the list of games I was initially disappointed with but grew to love thanks to their respective developers’ continued devotion and care. I know it’s not the safest of bets given the Call of Duty franchise’s annualized rollout, but I honestly want to see Modern Warfare continue to flourish as much as I’m sure the folks at Infinity Ward do.

Rime is definitely not a game for everyone, but it does teach a lesson that everyone should be able to appreciate if given the chance. The literal act of playing the game is rife with minor frustrations and short bouts of boredom, but as a sum of its parts it’s a memorable journey I won’t soon forget.

Pokémon Let’s Go has a lot of great innovations that would be welcome in other Pokémon games, but the experience is just too simplified to hold my interest. I’d wager that most long-time Pokémon fans will feel the same.

Skylanders Imaginations is built for the long haul with great replay value, which may be one more reason for the series to take a year off.

Pokémon Let’s Go has a lot of great innovations that would be welcome in other Pokémon games, but the experience is just too simplified to hold my interest. I’d wager that most long-time Pokémon fans will feel the same.

The Book of Unwritten Tales 2 is a decent return to a genre that's starting to emerge from the woodwork of other games on the market, but it's not quite a shining example. There's a question in regards to its pacing and execution in some spots, as well as some puzzles that can take time to resolve. That said, those that do get into the game will be rewarded with a worthy presentation and plenty of chuckles. If you're a fan of the genre, it's worth a look. But don't expect this Book to be absorbed so easily.

Despite a strong connection between the choice-oriented gameplay and the script’s themes of free will and liberation, DBH’s exploration of these themes is ankle deep.

Battle Chasers: Nightwar is a fine example of how to iterate and improve upon a tried-and-true game genre wth its take on a modernized turn-based RPG. It’s far from perfect, but the combat system alone is engaging enough to warrant a recommendation for any fan of old-school JRPG-style adventures.

I had a great deal of fun playing this game, and it saddens me that I can't give it a better score. However, I just cannot imagine justifying the $39.99 price tag of WarioWare Gold for the few hours of gameplay it has to offer. The story mode is about how Wario slaps together a bunch of games in the hopes to make a quick buck off the gaming industry, and I'm sorry to say this might be a case of art imitating life.

Heavy Rain is a game best left to your memory. It makes a good case study for seeing how cinematic adventure games have evolved over time, but it just doesn’t have the quality of newer games in the genre.

Melty Blood: Actress Again Current Code feels like a game that came out five years too late. It’s fun and interesting to play for a while, but French Bread has better games that you can play right now for a similar price.

Although Transference is an interesting narrative horror game, it struggles to carve out a space as a VR game and a traditional title. The story is undeniably something worth experiencing, but the gameplay is lackluster enough that more often than not it serves as a barrier to experiencing what Transference does best.

Duke Nukem 3D: 20th Anniversary World Tour doesn't enhance the titular protagonist's classic FPS ride in any massive ways. That said, it's a whole lot of fun, and it's perfect for people who want to revisit the game and for those who are fans of old school shooters.

The Pathless is a gorgeous, exhilarating and frenetic game which unfortunately often stumbles in its own tracks.

There’s a decent amount of content in Kingdom Hearts HD 2.8: Final Chapter Prologue, but it doesn’t explain much for newcomers playing their first Kingdom Hearts game on the PS4. In addition, Back Cover will feel like a waste of time to some, and Birth by Sleep will feel too short. Dream Drop Distance translates fairly well, but alone it’s not worth the price of admission. As a bundle, the entire package offers a decent value and a great lead-in to Kingdom Hearts III.

Frozen Synapse 2's tactical core remains solid and fascinating, but the lack of a sufficiently detailed tutorial makes learning the new depths of the game a frustrating experience.