Although it seems like I’ve got more complaints than praise for Invisible, Inc., I ended up enjoying my time with it a great deal. The character designs and futuristic premise are great, and pulling off a win after agonizing over every single action in every single turn feels amazing. It’s a stiff challenge with much patience required on the player’s part, but Invisible, Inc. delivers a deliciously strategic dish—although one that’s probably not to everyone’s taste.

P.O.L.L.E.N. fails to live up to its lofty narrative aspirations, but deserves credit for its considered, lovingly-crafted aesthetic and intriguing premise.

Nights of Azure’s a disappointing game for sure, but it’s not exactly awful—the mindless combat is balanced by the tremendous art and sound design, and despite the negative tone of this review it’s not offensively bad at anything it does. It’s just aggressively bland and tough to recommend when the action’s too toothless to keep players engaged.

Its puzzles and story aren’t really bad, they’re just bland. There are occasional mentions of philosophical and moral debates regarding the game’s artificial afterlife, and a deeper, more thought-provoking analysis would have made for a more engaging experience. Instead, these headier subjects were kept on the back burner in favor of a less-thrilling, more pedestrian adventure, and the game suffered for it.

By sticking to its core identity and cranking the intensity up, id has raised the bar on how I want action-oriented first-person shooters to feel, and it’s going to be hard to go back to something with less adrenaline after my time with this heavy metal beast.

I know that the company gets a lot of flak for rehashing its material, but if Star Fox Zero is Nintendo’s idea of innovating an established franchise, I hope that this is their final attempt to prove that motion control wasn’t just a fad.

The Witch and the Hundred Knight isn’t a good game by any means. It has an impenetrable equipment system, lackluster combat with no other gameplay mechanics, and a story that only gets good if players consult an FAQ.

While I was thrilled to be able to spend more time with Graham and company, Once Upon A Climb is somewhat unsubstantial and unsatisfying. It’s not a bad episode by any means, but with only two more installments left to go, I’m hoping that the Gentlemen can get back up to speed and finish the series as strong as it started.

Ultimately, though, the drudgery of actually playing this game outweighs whatever interest its narrative has to offer. I have to admire the ambition of the concept here, but Stories: The Path of Destinies falls short of having systems equal to that aspiration. Like its swashbuckling hero, this game’s reach exceeds its grasp.

Although the campaign only lasts about two hours, I found it to be the perfect length to establish what it does, to get me invested, and then have me on my way before ever wearing out its welcome.

While I’d say that the Aliens vs. Pinball pack delivers great value for money overall, the Aliens table all by itself is an absolute knockout. For fans of Aliens or of Zen Pinball 2, picking this one is the definition of a no-brainer.

This episode is stronger than the previous two, but it can’t support the trilogy by itself.

Cyber Sleuth doesn't reinvent the JRPG that comprises its core, but for a Digimon title, this is a solid step in the right direction.

Much like the previous episode, Tomorrow feels like a mashup of everything that made older Hitman games great.

The two halves of Return to Popolocrois aren't equal. By the twenty-hour mark, I was enraptured with being a bigwig farmer, but the JRPG side had lost its appeal. I was essentially grinding out the dungeons not to advance the narrative, but to find items that could be utilised or exploited on the farm. I have to wonder what the experience would have been like had the developer done away with the JRPG side altogether.

Although it was originally released for PC in the fall of 2015, The Park feels like a quick tech demo for virtual reality headsets more than a full release, and even if the content were presented in VR, everything about it is so bland that it wouldn't be effective anyway.

The quality of the port and of the game itself make Valkyria Chronicles Remastered a must-play title for strategy fans who haven't cracked it yet. The proposition of a purchase might be a bit more fraught for vets who don't feel the need to revisit since there's no genuinely new content here, but there's no question that it's good to see this classic made available to new fans on a new console.

It pains me greatly to say it, but this one is a whiff for a studio with a previously-perfect record. For those who need something to play on the Vita, I would strongly encourage them to pick up either of the Mutant Blob titles, and Guacamelee is an absolute must-have. Those are genuinely great works, and despite my disappointment here, I still call myself a Drinkbox fan... I'll just forget that Severed exists while I look forward to what they do next.

Despite the questionable combat, Blues and Bullets remains a must-play episodic adventure with an incredibly intriguing story told with utter confidence by consummate professionals. Sure, the shooting isn't fantastic (and again there's a single joke that pulls me right out of the narrative!) but overall, this is as good as interactive movies get, and I only hope the wait for chapter three is considerably shorter than the gap between parts one and two.

Sure, there's no new content, but Disgaea PC is still the definitive version of this game.

Samorost 3 is an excellent point-and-click adventure game for those looking for a slow, surreal experience.

I like the idea of taking a fish on an unconventional journey, but Koi isn't atmospheric or relaxing enough to be a chill game, and the gameplay isn't substantial or clever enough to make it a puzzler.

Its castle isn't worth exploring, nor are its mysteries worth examining.

This new entry banks its entire identity on being the sum of parts we've seen before, and the sense of familiarity can be too much at times for series vets.

There's a great experience to be had here... Just make sure to take the proper steps needed to avoid the mid-game difficulty spike.

Anyone interested in horror, Lovecraft, or top-notch point-and-click adventures has no excuse for missing this one.

It's colourful, simple to pick up and play, and only the longest dungeons at the end of the game take more than a few minutes to conquer or be defeated by. Dungelot may not be the perfect roguelite, but it's certainly close.

There's a lot to love in Street Fighter V, especially Rainbow Mika, but the fact is that the game still isn't where it needs to be yet. The March update helped, but it was just a band aid on some pretty deep lacerations. Serious fighting game fans can hop in now without too many problems, but more casual players might want to wait—more fixes and a real story mode are still coming.