The Surge is a satisfying sci-fi RPG that pleasantly surprises in more ways than it disappoints. Fans of Dark Souls-style titles will find a lot to like here and the unique combat system keeps it from feeling like a rip-off. It’s just a shame that the narrative and world building isn’t stronger.

Job Simulator is a little on the expensive side for a game that doesn't offer a great deal of long-term challenge, but it's a great purchase for those new to VR or who want a fun and funny game to use to introduce VR to their friends or family.

Turmoil plays like a casual game, but as you go along you quickly see that a lot of thought was put into it by people who really like to make games. I found it exciting and fun and just hard enough to keep me interested. If you like games that force you to put some effort in to them, I highly recommend getting it off Steam.

If you’re on the hunt for a new competitive game to play with friends, Inversus is a solid choice given its price and its unique concept. However, unless you’re confident you’ll be able to recruit some friends to play with, you might want to look elsewhere for your next indie fix.

Atelier Sophie: The Alchemist of the Mysterious Book isn't going to win any awards for best RPG of the year, but it's still a good time and gives you a couple dozen hours of enjoyable playtime.

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.

Okhlos is based on a simple concept with an even simpler gameplay mechanic that may very well be better suited for mobile devices, but that doesn’t stop it from being hilarious, dumb fun when it’s clicking.

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.

While Need for Speed may look and sound great from afar, it's sadly little more than a mostly empty box wrapped in shiny wrapping paper (and one which you can only open when connected to the internet to boot). If you're desperate for a new racing game experience, you could do worse, just bear in mind that your mileage will definitely vary.

ECHO tries new and interesting things, but doesn't always succeed. The gameplay and visuals wear thin over time, but some players will appreciate the game for its originality.

There’s no denying that Batman: Arkham Underworld was created in order to capitalize on the popularity of Rocksteady’s Arkham franchise, but whether the familiarity of the Arkhamverse is enough to give the game any real sense of staying power is something only time will tell. In the meantime, whether or not you enjoy Arkham Underworld depends entirely on your opinion of mobile microtransaction-driven games in general.

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.

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.

SpellForce 3 is an amazing effort that falls short of its goal due to crippling bugs and some questionable game design choices. However, the development team appears to be committed to their game and is resolving bugs and balancing issues almost every day. By the time you finish reading this review, SpellForce 3 may be the game I was expecting when I bought it. Despite that, I spent over 60 hours playing the campaign, and I can’t say that I didn’t have a good time.

Ultratron won't gain a following like some of the better twin-stick shooters out there, mainly due to its lack of diversity and modes. Still, Puppy Games and Curve Studios did do something great with the concept, and if you don't mind a game that's a bit old-school, Ultratron will do you good.

Star Wars Battlefront II has solid core gameplay and offers a wide variety of content to enjoy, but at the moment it's hard to look past the loot crate issues in order to appreciate what the game does well.

Trials of the Blood Dragon offers a fantastic challenge and features an outrageously funny storyline. However, the lousy platforming shooting elements and frustratingly difficult levels can seriously drag the gameplay experience down.

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.

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.

Secret of Mana’s remake is fun because Secret of Mana was fun. However, Square could have done a lot better, especially with a beloved classic such as this.

Citizens of Space never really tries to shake up RPG genre conventions, but the game is clearly not out to do that. This is a game that, by all intents and purposes, is meant to provide a fun and laidback experience, and it does that very well.

State of Decay 2 feels like it’s trying too hard to force the player to do too much. There’s no way for the player to really control the way they absorb the experience and more than a few of the mechanics break the careful relationship the rest of the game tries to foster. Overall, it’s the kind of game that you want to love, but that needs a lot of work.

Dark Souls 3 was clearly tailored to draw dedicated fans back in for one final adventure, though it’s nice to see From Software also put some effort into making the signature combat more accessible to casual players. Still, if you’re thinking of picking the game up on launch day, I’d advise you to wait and see if the infamously bad framerate issues have been addressed.

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.

While Battleborn didn’t gel as well with my gaming sensibilities as much as I’d hoped it would, even I can’t deny that the game has a lot to offer to the right sort of gamer. If you’re itching for a new Borderlands-esque experience which is all but guaranteed to keep you occupied over the long term, Battleborn will certainly scratch that itch. If, however, you never cared for the Borderlands style of humor, and you’re more of a solo-minded gamer, you might want to look elsewhere for your next shooter fix.

While Kung Fu Panda: Showdown of Legendary Legends won't replace Smash Bros. in terms of addiction and fun, it's a solid alternative for those that don't have a Nintendo console on hand. It has its issues, but it also packs a punch with its four-player match-ups, and makes for a good time for family and friends alike. Dibs on Po!

Bad North feels a lot like a mobile title in terms of its limited scope, tight focus, and simple controls, and that makes it a fantastic fit for the Switch in portable mode.

You’ll likely have a really good time with Gods Will Fall. Straight up, it’s a good game. A lack of polish keeps it from being a great game, but there’s still plenty of fun to be had here.

While Dragon Ball Z: Extreme Butoden has its fair share of disappointment with its heavy unlocking system and lack of online competition, it's also a not-so-bad take with its fighting, mainly because of the 2D setting. If Bandai Namco could somehow produce a version for consoles with a bigger roster, a less strenuous adventure system, and online play, it'd have a winner on its hands. For now, it's a decent pick for fans of the series, and maybe even for those that don't mind earning their keep in the fighting arena.

Everything about Robocraft: Infinity is simple to learn, admire, and use giving gamers the ability to jump right into the fun. There’s enough in here to keep folks hooked for a while, especially for fans of UGC games. Unfortunately, there are only two battle modes. It’s a robot game that emphasizes the robot and robot creation at the expense of the rest of the game.

If you enjoy the story of King’s Quest then you’ll love Snow Place Like Home. If, however, you prefer traditional adventure game puzzles, you won’t find those here.

It's too flawed to fully recommend, although if you know a few friends that don't mind casting spells at mindless monsters, it'll cast its spell on you.

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

Dissidia Final Fantasy NT will appeal to longtime fans of the Final Fantasy series, but anyone looking for something more will be disappointed. Its bad user interface makes its good gameplay too hard to enjoy. Though it could have been more, Dissidia Final Fantasy NT ended up being nothing more than a fan-service franchise fighter, like all the rest.

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.

A fun, short-lived game that’s one of the better Walking Dead experiences roaming the market.

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.

Nova-111 is a humorous and quirky quest that rivals the sheer charm presented in the PixelJunk games. It's not the most varied adventure, but it's fun nonetheless, and it makes a great portable companion if you go with the Vita version.

World's Dawn doesn't reinvent the wheel for farming simulators, but it really doesn't have to. It's a fun, relaxing game for people seeking exactly that.

Let me get something out of the way right now: The Sinking City is a noir detective game, not a psychological horror game or a survival horror game. The trailers give you serious Silent Hill / Eternal Darkness vibes, with a side of Resident Evil 4, and while this game visually refers to the horror game history of the last twenty years, it’s doing its own thing.

Vampyr would’ve been far better as Jonathan Reid’s Point and Click Tale of Moral Adversity than what we got, which was essentially Jonathan Reid’s Mashy Exercise in Combat Frustration Sparsely Sprinkled With Plot. Games do not need combat sequences if those sequences do not serve the game’s themes and story.

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.

Pokken Tournament is a solid game for Poké-fanatics and a decent enough game for casual fighting game fans. I’d recommend it if you need a Poké-fix before Pokémon Sun and Moon come out, but if you are looking for a new fighting game, stick to Street Fighter V.

Dangerous Golf is a fun game best played in short bursts and with friends.

Although the game boils down to a walking sim with a puzzle component, the unique setting and mechanics make it worth a playthrough.

Super Chibi Knight is a fun, bite-sized adventure that has a little bit of challenge but always remains welcoming enough that anyone can enjoy it.

Brawlhalla is a fun game that everyone should try at least once. It’s just not necessarily a game that everyone will want invest a lot of time or money on.

Madden NFL 21 is the clearest example yet of how unwieldy the series has become, so your en-joyment will vary depending on which modes best suit your play style. For me, that comes from seeing my virtual 49ers hoist the Vince Lombardi Trophy at the end of the season, so anything else on top of that is just a bonus.

Is NBA Live 19 worth the money? Yes, indeed. There is a lot to do and no matter the skill level, there’s fun to be had. The upgrade to the WNBA and character creation is a giant step forward in widening EA’s audience and The One is strong enough to warrant its own title. With enough practice, anyone can be the baller they want.

Portal Knights feels like a natural evolution of the procedural block building and exploration genre. It packs in lots of RPG elements, exciting adventure, and addictive multiplayer that layers on top of the existing world creation mechanics popularized by Minecraft.

One of the harder-to-obtain Resident Evil titles is finally widely available. If you like Resident Evil it's worth playing, but don't expect something on par with the series' other older titles.

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.

While Color Guardians could've used more zest in its character personality – and a few more easygoing levels to keep rookie players in check – it's still a better game than expected, thanks to its interesting gameplay and crazy challenges. If you're a fan of running or rhythm, be sure to try on this Color.

Super Meat Boy Forever is a fun little distraction. Though it fails to live up to the legacy of its predecessor, it’s entertaining for a few playthroughs. If you loved Super Meat Boy, you might just get a kick out of Forever… or you may not.

Aeon is a VR shooter that will appeal to gamers who enjoy a serious challenge. It's much less casual-friendly than similar VR titles and will cause frustration for some, but for the right kind of player they'll find hours of enjoyment to be had.

Mario Tennis Aces doesn’t quite excel in all of the ways that it could have, but the core mechanics and multiplayer action are so good, it’s still worth diving in for some quality Mario Tennis action.

Despite my frustrations with its shortcomings, I want to see where The Council leads me, and if it manages to deliver a narrative payoff in spite of itself.

So, even though the gameplay loop can be a lot of fun, I worry about the longevity of this game's lifespan. With only three maps (that are all kind of similar) and the possibility of not getting much new content due to licensing issues between all of the other films in the franchise, the game might not be around for a long time. Let’s hope that isn’t the case.

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.

At the end of the day, Rune Factory 3 Special is a fine game, and its only crime is how closely it sits to games that use it as a stepping stone. If you love the “cozy” genre and are looking for some farming action, but only have the budget for one game, it’s hard to recommend this. But if you’re more of a fan of Story of Seasons and/or Rune Factory as a series, there’s absolutely room for Rune Factory 3 Special on the shelf.

A lot of Silent Hope’s problems stem from under the hood tuning, and I can see another swing at this idea landing a much cleaner hit.

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.

Earthfall is a valiant effort at trying to capture the lightning in a bottle once again that was Left 4 Dead. On paper it does a lot of things right, but in practice it lacks the soul and fire of what made Valve’s iconic zombie games so effective almost a decade ago.

Sea of Thieves has glimmers of promise and is gorgeous to look at, but single player play is virtually worthless, and the repetitive nature of the quests and empty world leave the game feeling incomplete and overpriced as of now.

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.

Mercenaries 5 needed six more months of testing and refinement before seeing the light of day. The game’s mech combat is great for enthusiasts of the genre, but the lack of polish may leave newcomers cold. I recommend it for hardcore fans, but casual players may want to wait for the bugs to be ironed out.

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.

In the end, Call of Duty: Infinite Warfare is just OK, and that’s about the saddest thing you can say about a franchise that used to be the king of first-person shooters.

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.

This just isn’t the grand revival of the Sakura Wars franchise I was hoping for, and I’m sure that most other longtime fans will feel the same. As for newbies, there’s some enjoyment here, but it just doesn’t measure up to other major releases on the market right now.

If the number one thing you want from a game is a good scare, Outlast 2 is a big success. If you're looking for deep gameplay or replay value though, you'll have to look elsewhere.

Ether One presents a spellbinding take on memory loss and what really goes on inside a person's head, but tedious voice acting, the pacing of certain puzzles, and the lack of guidance when some players need it the most may leave some folks just as confused as the poor woman who's going through all its torment.

Warface: Breakout is a nice attempt at a tactical FPS. It works really well, and it’s fun to play. There’s just not a lot there at this time. For $20, the game’s not expensive, but it’s still hard to recommend over established games in the genre like Rainbow Six Siege or CS:GO. Still, if the developers make good and release more content, it could be a worthwhile investment and ultimately catch up to the greats in the genre.

More work could've been done to make Payday 2: Crimewave Edition the ultimate value for fans of the series – especially when it came to making the AI perform up to snuff. Still, the abundant amount of content, combined with strong multiplayer options, make it a heist worth trying with the right squad of goons.

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.

Had Project Root thrown in a better checkpoint system and a far more rockin' soundtrack, it could be considered one of the better retro-inspired shooters on the market. As it stands, only a certain few will be able to appreciate it with its high difficulty settings.

NBA Playgrounds aims to bring the best elements of NBA Jam into the modern era of basketball, but falls short in some areas. The core of the high-octane gameplay is there, but it’s not enough to push past all of the game’s shortcomings.

Godfall could scratch that action game itch if you don’t mind how lackluster it is in other areas. A paid expansion is coming out in 2021, so I’m curious to see if that’ll address any of my concerns about the campaign.

With a few tweaks and maybe a more casual-friendly difficulty level, Tharsis could be a fun strategy alternative for those who don’t enjoy building large kingdoms or waging wars that take hours to complete. In its current state however, Tharsis is little more than a sadistically cruel game of digital roulette.

Unfortunately lacks the originality it so desperately needs to really stand out from the pack. Even though the art style is striking and bold, combined with an inventive cultural focus, the gameplay and overall design weigh it down to be little more than a passable action adventure title.

Longtime players won’t find much to enjoy in this barely changed version of last year’s entry.

Whether you really wanted it this way or not, Age of Empires: Definitive Edition is about as pure of a remaster as you’re ever going to find. The visuals and sound are all upgraded for a modern era without changing the heart of the game. However, with the vastly superior Age of Empires II HD already in existence with five years of community built up around it, there is little reason to recommend this game unless you’re just dying to play extremely early era civilizations.

Oninaki feels hollow. It’s dark but has no message. It’s complex but has no need for that complexity. It builds an interesting world and never does much with it. It’s a game filled with great ideas that just go nowhere. Unfortunately, that is par for the course for Tokyo RPG Factory games.

It wouldn’t be totally fair to call Need for Speed Heat a bad game, but given the exciting high-speed material it’s defined by, it is a disappointingly boring one. Small blessings like the lack of over-aggressive microtransactions and an incredibly in-depth car customization suite can’t make up for gameplay and progression loops which, at best, feel routine and archaic, and at worst frustrating and obtuse. It’s understandable that publisher Electronic Arts would want to recapture the glory of Need for Speed’s heyday, but all Need for Speed Heat proves is that maybe the series just needs to rest for a while.

If Loot Interactive and the developers at Night Light took away the hand-holding with puzzle solving and given us a speedier way to get around, Whispering Willows would've fared a lot better. As it stands, however, it's still a decent title for fans of the genre, mainly due to its effective presentation and unique abilities. It's not recommended to everyone, but if you're up for a ghost story, dig in.

Had Vector Unit included better characterization and adjusted the difficulty to the point it wasn't trying to pummel you each race (there's competitive and then there's "don't mind me, I'm cheating"), Beach Buggy Racers would've been a solid debut for kart-racing action on newer systems. As it stands, it's not bad, as its multiplayer has something to offer, and the track design clicks. Just be prepared to fight for your first place victory – this ain't no leisure cruise around the island.

The experience is heavily bogged down by a clunky overworld and purely disruptive gamification of an otherwise pleasant collection of stories.

Predator: Hunting Grounds has fun, stupid moments, and if this game was only $20, I would recommend it. At $40, it’s a harder sell unless you are a hardcore Predator fan. If you’re looking for a better 4v1 experience and you’re willing to tolerate slow matchmaking, Resident Evil Resistance offers a great multiplayer experience and a decent single player campaign, making it a much better buy, despite being $20 more.

While Kromaia Omega can't quite live up to the classic space shooters of old, nor the crazy visual splendor of offerings like Child of Eden and Rez, it's certainly not a bad experience. There's just a lot you have to get used to here, like the navigation system and the somewhat lacking audio. Once you do, though, you'll find yourself happily taking flight for a few hours, alone or with a friend. I just wish it had a little more content to complete the room, man (and, yes, Big Lebowski reference, felt like it).

While Snoopy's Grand Adventure doesn't go the extra mile in its design, it still comes across as an enjoyable diversion for younger players looking to get some Peanuts-oriented fun out of their console. The inclusion of co-op is pretty nice as well, if parents should want to get involved in their children's adventure. But it seems like more could've been done for older gamers, and some of the technical setbacks should have gone through some clean-up. Overall, though, not bad for a little diversion.

Days Gone seems like a classic case of a game that grew too big for its own good. The production values are excellent and it packs some tense gameplay and emotional stories, but the poor pacing, tedious open world, and padded length significantly drag it down overall.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutants in Manhattan is, at the very least, a serviceable co-op brawler infused with plenty of fun nods for longtime TMNT fans. However, its high price-point, lack of couch co-op, and repetitive gameplay are hard to ignore, making it a game which is best bought at a drastically reduced price.

The Tomorrow Children is a city manager, mining sim, and tower defense mashup - a brilliant idea supported by unimpressive tech despite an inspired visual design approach.

An FPS roguelike wearing the suit of a 1996 shooter, STRAFE is a unique game that seems destined for a small but passionate following.

It seems like Ripstone could've done more with Extreme Exorcism's gameplay, as it seems kind of one-note, in spite of the "ghosts doing what you do" idea. Regardless, it's definitely fun at times, and makes for a good multiplayer romp, provided you have players that have no trouble concentrating.

Project Cars 3 would’ve been more successful if it was called something else. It leaves far too many important features on the table for hardcore racers, with an AI that’s too buggy and weird for new players. It feels rushed and could use some serious patches.

There’s so much missed potential here that it’s a bit frustrating. Game updates are coming so maybe one day...but not today.

Water Bears VR is a charming puzzler that's perfect for younger VR gamers or those looking for a solid $10 experience on their new HTC Vive.