Despite a few rough edges and minor issues, Moonlighter’s satisfying combat and enjoyable shopkeeping made the 15-hour playtime fly by. I wasn’t ready to leave its charming world, so I immediately began planning my next playthrough with different gear and at a higher difficulty level. I don’t use the phrase delightful romp very often, but it fits Moonlighter to a T.

While I found the subject matter and the characters to be off-putting and offensive, the real killer here is the sloppy, cumbersome gameplay that, even if one thinks the poor attempts at humor come off as amusing, will render the drive to play it obsolete. The five hours I spent playing Milanoir was a miserable, groan inducing slog that I don’t wish upon anybody. It may be an homage to films of the past, but what it is for me was truly, truly awful.

While I can see Atomic Heist appealing to the truly hardcore roguelike fans who wallow in the cruel agony of random number generation until the unlocks finally get good, I can’t see that the effort would be worth it for anyone else. I eventually made it to the third area, and when I found another set of new enemies with new immunities and new weapons I’d be forced to unlock, I finally called it quits. There just isn’t enough good here to warrant the time and effort it takes to see it all.

With difficulty leveling, or at least the ability to save SOME of my progress, Subaeria could have been an enjoyable romp. As it stands, I’m glad to break the cycle of die, restart, rinse, repeat.

West of Loathing is fantastic on every level — the writing is consistently, genuinely funny, the intricacy and breadth of the world is truly impressive, and all of the mechanical systems are perfectly geared towards make sure the player is able to go through the world and experience as much as possible without needless frustration.

While there are a number of small issues holding it back, they aren’t enough to detract from the overall gameplay and fantastic boss fights. it might not live up to the lofty standards set by its 16-bit influences, but Fox n Forests remains an enjoyable platformer with some neat ideas.

Perhaps, someday, the WH40K universe will offer experiences as compelling as its fantasy brethren. Until that time, players looking to scratch the WH40K itch would do better by dusting off a last-generation console or firing up Steam and buying Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine. It’s a pretty charming third-person action game that, while a little long in the tooth now, satisfies the urge to mow down bad guys by the thousands in a much less frustrating format.

Ultimately, Lily’s Epic Quest for Gems feels like it was built without much consideration for its new home on consoles. While there’s enough here to justify the price of entry, the limited usability and general lack of polish is disappointing.

Descenders is a great experience, and the only thing that makes me scratch my head is why it’s in the Game Preview (a.k.a. Early Access) section. The title is both stable and fully-featured enough for a proper release to seem perfectly reasonable, and I’d like to see it in the main store page instead of relegated to the section that suggests a promising but incomplete product.

In the last fifteen years, I’ve purchased this game four times, and happily agreed to acquire it again for a fifth. Find me another game that can still fill me with sheer elation after conquering it for the fifteenth time, and I’ll tell you that it’s not possible because one doesn’t exist. Ikaruga is a flagship title that’s been cherished for nearly two decades, and will continue to be relevant for many, many more. There’s no better way to spend money in the e-Shop.

It’s a shame that such lovely art is paired with monotonous environments, a rudimentary story, and subpar combat and crafting elements. My advice? Smoke something else.

As damning as it sounds, owning a VR headset elevates Downward Spiral from skippable to must-play. It genuinely feels that good to experience, even if the design in its most basic form – removed from presentation and mechanics – is somewhat uninspired. VR opens a world of possibilities to this medium, and it’s thrilling to see new territory mapped out in real-time. I long for the day when a concept like this is matched with the production values it deserves, but for now, Downward Spiral is simply unlike anything I’ve ever played, and that’s enough.

With a competitive Freestyle mode, Urban Trial Playground would likely have earned itself a spot in the roster of local multi games I play with my roommates. I would have loved to compete with them for high scores in UTP’s impeccably designed courses. Unfortunately, UTP’s multiplayer only offers the lesser of its two modes, which means I’ve had all the enjoyment there is to have with it. I’ll think fondly of it, but like those ’90s Capri Sun commercials, its days are past.

At the end of the day, Mega Man Legacy Collection 1 & 2 are fine collections, even if the first one shows significantly more care and love than the second. I feel Capcom missed out on the chance to add some developer commentary or a few interviews here, but ultimately the titles are what matter, and both contain excellent ports. For those planning on revisiting Mega Man or just wanting to glimpse a bit of gaming history, it’s hard to go wrong.

With great combat, compelling characters, and a mission structure that ensures the players sees the direct effects of their actions, Vampyr is one of the best action-RPGs I’ve ever played. While it may not offer the sheer size of a Witcher or Fallout, it tells a resonant and consequential story that’s married it to some of the best open-world quest design around. This is one that’s absolutely not to be missed.

I love what it’s going for, how it looks and also enjoy how it plays — for the most part. On the other hand, I burn out on it incredibly quickly during each session. Even so, I’m genuinely glad it exists and wish there were more developers out there like Vanillaware who indulge themselves in creating passion projects like this one.

State of Decay was the high-water mark for open-world zombie survival, and while State of Decay 2 doesn’t top it thanks to the complete lack of storytelling, it’s a suitable upgrade. The hero system and three maps add replayability to the game, and Undead Labs’ history with the franchise suggests that they’ll get around to fixing many of these problems later. That said, it took them two years and a new platform to finally iron out the first State of Decay — let’s hope this one has a quicker turnaround time.

Under Night In-Birth EXE: Late[st], despite having a preposterous title, is simple to pick up, but deep enough to deserve dozens of hours of study. While dated, the art design is top-notch, and a few of the stories which I was primed to scoff at proved surprisingly interesting. I may never have the reflexes to excel at something like Under Night, but I can appreciate developers doing excellent work.

So, how well does Hunting Simulator simulate hunting? I can’t speak to its verisimilitude, but as a game, this is a solid animal-stalking experience which has its best parts undercut by a frustrating menu system and unrealistic tracking mechanic. The shooting, simple though it may be, is satisfying, and there’s definitely a worthwhile amount of challenge to be found in carefully sneaking up on prey. This is a good hunting game, but these technical issues keep it from being a great one.

If an editor had taken a serious red pen and streamlined the narrative, Tokyo Xanadu EX+ would be fantastic. As it is, this is a game with stellar JRPG action and a story that will try the patience of all but the most dedicated players.

The issues I had controlling it weren’t nearly enough to dampen the incredible experience I had playing STAY, though. In fact, because it features multiple endings, it made me do something I’ve done (maybe) twice in my life — I immediately started playing it again after the credits rolled. I didn’t necessarily want another ending, but I desperately wanted to know more about Quinn, more context to his life, and to learn more about how he got to this point. For a videogame, the ability to engender such curiosity is pretty damned rare, and a true achievement worth celebrating.

Though the unfavorable price point can make buying Another Lost Phone a challenging impulse buy, there’s no denying its uniqueness as a game. By using the medium’s inherent interactivity to recast fictional narrative in the format of our most common, everyday interactions with technology, Accidental Queens have come up with a singularly immersive way to harness players’ natural curiosity in service of storytelling.

Out of Ammo can provide thrilling RTS action, both in single and multiplayer modes. It’s never been this easy to keep track of a base and get right into the action, and there’s enough variety in all of the freeplay levels to keep strategy and action fans busy for a while. The lack of objectives or any kind of mission structure does hurt the game, though, and the lack of a clear goal to shoot for makes the whole thing feel a little too basic. Still, Out of Ammo suggests interesting new developments for the RTS genre, and I’d be interested to see a more fully-featured effort.

The saddest part about Vandals is that it’s over too soon — I’d estimate the average running time to be a little over two hours. With how short the levels are, 60 doesn’t feel like enough. That said, given the fact that Vandals is also available on mobile devices, it’d make for a great time-killer during a commute or break at work.

Overall, Regalia is a beautiful adventure where each action the player takes accomplishes something, and it feels like every part of the experience has something to offer. The cast of characters and surprising story (no spoilers here!) show the developers’ dedication to both tactical RPGs and their narrative.

I enjoyed Yonder more than I otherwise might have because I played it at just the right moment — it served as a palate cleanser after one of the year’s bloodier games. That said, I still found Yonder to be a peaceful delight despite its shortcomings.

For a second time, the developers of The Council have proven that there’s life and spirit in Interactive Movie genre, making the most elaborately interactive entry the genre has seen. Of course, since this is only the second entry in a five-part series, players can expect it to end at a point designed to leave them desperate for more, and it does. The third installment can’t get here fast enough!

While the bonus modes didn’t hold my attention for long, Shantae: Half-Genie Hero Ultimate Edition still comes highly recommended based on the strength of the two primary campaigns alone.