Telltale's sophomore episode frontloads all of its secrets at the start of its 120-minute adventure. While this means it starts off strongly, things peter out toward into an uninteresting holding pattern. No big reveals, no surprise ending, and no power moves were made to advance the plot.

Although Hammerin' Hero doesn't run as smooth or as long as I would've liked it to, it remains one of the most enjoyable PSP titles I've come across in quite some time.

Without marrying any substantial content or meaningful context to the visuals, this is the type of depth-free cheap titillation that we need to move past if we're ever to break away from the stereotypical gutter that society at large perceives current videogames to be in.

In attempting to juggle so many balls at once, it simply loses control and bats them all over the place in a crazed, lurching frenzy as it tries to stop the whole thing from falling apart.

The sense of humor that informs the UI too rarely penetrates to the actual level design. Because of this, and the comparative ease of its puzzles, Life Goes On feels like a trifle, nicely made and modestly amusing but forgotten more quickly than it's finished.

The fights, though violent, are unfortunately completely bloodless—not a drop of claret is spilled—and the bodies of his enemies, once beaten, magically vanish. This makes the game feel as tidy and antiseptic as a Disney ride.

Its unique theme and dark humor make it well-suited to gamers (such as yours truly) who enjoy the mechanics of the genre but are aching for a more refreshing and mature thematic backdrop.

Killsquad is an enjoyable run, specially when played with friends, but it’s facing stiff competition against big-budget triple-A multiplayer experiences like Warframe or Destiny 2. The in-depth ability loops and RPG elements in Killsquad are done well, but the greatest enemy this title faces is… a lack of players.

All in all, Luminous Arc 2 is a game that feels like it should've been a manga or anime instead.

Wet Dreams Dry Twice is an okay sequel to the reboot of a genre-classic series and its faithfulness to old-school sensibilities is both a strength and a weakness. While the humor is a bit too juvenile for my taste, it does manage to elicit some laughs every now and then. On the other hand, players wanting a fresher take on design and writing might want to look elsewhere.

As an admirer of all things unusual and unusually entertaining, Rico's bizarre parachute tricks justify the four to six hours it takes to complete the campaign, but once the novelty wears off, there's not much here to merit a second glance that hasn't been done better by other games - mission accomplished, but just barely.

With a script that’s so off, it really says something that not only was I invested enough to play Caravan SandWitch to completion, but that it ended up being one of my favorite experiences of the year in spite of the poor dialogue. Exploring this extremely chill, open world while digging around amongst the ruins of corporate greed held my attention from start to finish, and even by the time I had solved all the mysteries and had done all the things, I was still quite ready to spend more time in this world. It’s not without its flaws, but Caravan SandWitch remains one of my favorite experiences of 2024, and I would strongly encourage the developers to continue their work — I look forward to being delighted with something new.

What The Saboteur lacks in innovation it makes up for with solid design and implementation.

As a straight cis man, I acknowledge that I’m not the authoritative voice on any of this. However, while I’m mixed on how well A Normal Lost Phone conveys its intended message, the game’s design is too interesting to dismiss, and it’s so short and cheap that anyone who’s curious can (and should) come to their own conclusions.

AngerForce: Reloaded is a decent shooter that controls well and offers some fantastic boss battles, but the problematic health/continue system will probably limit its appeal to only the most hardcore shmup fans.

Indigo 7 might not win any awards for writing, but I’ll be damned if there’s another arcade puzzler with this much charm and an equally addicting gameplay hook. Similar to the great Puyo Puyo Tetris 2, it’s an experience that’s preventing me from putting my Switch down.

Aside from these concerns, Mechwarrior 5 is admirable in its effort to revive a spirit left dormant for the better part of twenty years. With some time and patience, players will find a substantial and potentially endless mecha game to sink their teeth into.

In many ways, Battlefield V feels like a big step backwards for the franchise. The campaign is boring and frustrating, multiplayer is unbalanced, and bugs keep popping up in every mode to ruin the experience. The fortification system is a good shakeup, but the good it brings is tempered by the cumbersome and murky Grand Operations. With some patches, balance changes and bug squashing, BFV could be a fantastic game, but at the moment, this soldier needs to go back to basic training.

Tesla vs Lovecraft is a delight thanks to its fast, tight action and its smart use of setting to push it over the top. As far as twin-stick shooters go, they don’t get much better than this.

Anyone looking for high-quality turn-based strategy that eschews the aliens, giant robots, and dragons that generally populate the genre will find Phantom Doctrine to be just the thing they’ve been looking for.

The most impressive and unique highlight of Pride FC is its international cast of playable fighters. Unlike UFC, which only has a handful for foreign-bred entrants, Pride's line-up consists of a wide-range of fighters with different fighting styles from around the world.

Those looking for existential ponderings, heavy characterization, or even minimal variety in gameplay should leave it alone, but people who want lighter fare might appreciate kill.switch as a small, zesty snack. After all, we all need a bit of comfort food once in a while.

The Battle of Steeltown is a well-written piece of additional content for Wasteland 3 that doesn’t quite live up to expectations due to its experimental approach to combat and short running time. It’s a pleasant enough playthrough for a few hours despite the difficulty spikes, but it’s ultimately a compelling enough reason to come back to Colorado.

I came into Strong Bad's expecting quality adventuring, the unique comedic stylings that make me feel like I'm a kid watching Rocko's Modern Life again, and some good old fashioned The Cheat kickin'. That's exactly what I got, and there was virtually nothing throughout the experience that annoyed or dissatisfied me.

Overall, the Crysis Remastered Trilogy is a weird product. While it’s great there’s a (mostly) high-quality version of the original Crysis available to console players, it’s also the only real highlight. Crysis 2 remains a dreary scaling-back of its predecessor, and while I like Crysis 3 more than the second, it’s not particularly noteworthy. The most compelling argument to be made here is to players who’ve been curious about Crysis after hearing about it for years — now, here’s a great way to play it. Getting the other two is just a bonus.

If you can put up with the ever-present grind and can see through the frustrating moments then you’ll have a good time playing through Punch Club’s celebration of 90s action, if not then you may find yourself looking for a new keyboard, or worse, a monitor as a result of working through game related anger issues.

Personally, I can honestly attest to being drawn in by the charm of the simple narrative while watching two characters struggle to find their way around gender fluidity. At the heart of it, these two are trying to find direction in their lives and I felt that I could relate. If one likes narrative titles with a clear purpose and interesting look, No Longer Home recieves my personal recommendation.

It's really a testament to the game's quality that even though I found its politics and implications deeply troubling I was still won over by the amazing gameplay.