Funny, cruel, and painfully perceptive, The Outer Worlds 2 marks Obsidian’s triumphant return to the top of the RPG genre. Beneath a few minor technical blemishes lies a work of remarkable coherence and freedom, where every choice matters and every laugh stings. A brilliant, deeply humanist, and unmissable RPG that constantly reminds us why we love video games. And once it’s over, there’s only one thing you want to do: start all over again. Isn’t that the mark of a truly great game?

It's hard to find a single real flaw in PowerWash Simulator 2's shining armor. It's the perfect lo-fi game to chill out after a hard day's work. While new mechanics are sparsely used, post-launch content will continue to bring on the good times, to be sure.

Is Ninja Gaiden 4 bad ? No. Yakumo advances the saga's gameplay in a modern fashion, but the new gameplay mechanics introduce a few means to easily cheese through encounters, partially undercutting the fighting game roots brought by the late Tomonobu Itagaki. And the level design is not good either, with recycled environments galore. But PlatinumGames' new, inexperienced team still brings in action game goodness with instant lightning-fast battles, gory executions and a few great bosses to make you try a new run in Master Ninja mode or complete the post-game trials. Ninja Gaiden 4 also probably is a good onboarding experience for series newcomers.

Keeper effortlessly stands out as one of the most visually striking artistic directions of the year. We can only applaud Double Fine’s work for delivering something both captivating and sublime, as well as for its storytelling — subtle yet effective — and its surprising ability to humanize a lighthouse. While we’ll keep the surprises awaiting within the lighthouse to ourselves — as those twists do refresh the experience nicely — it’s hard not to feel a hint of disappointment at how simple the game remains in terms of overall challenge.

It took six years, multiple studios, countless reboots, and a trail of broken promises to finally deliver Bloodlines 2. The result is utterly schizophrenic : a game too ambitious for its budget, yet too timid for its own universe. What was meant to reinvent the vampire RPG ends up merely mimicking its conventions. Bled dry by compromise, Bloodlines 2 has lost what little vitality it had left. Beneath layers of code and the scars of its tortured development, you can still glimpse what it might have been: a gothic tragedy about duality, a nocturnal political fresco, a mirror held up to our own thirst for power. But that dream didn’t survive the daylight.

While the Pokémon Legends series may at first seem eager to break free from the limitations of the mainline episodes, it still falls short of the long-awaited reinvention fans have been hoping for. Z-A shows plenty of good ideas and offers the most engaging battle system the franchise has seen in a long time, but it struggles to make up for its eternal shortcomings: dull and underwhelming visuals for the modern era, a still overly childish narrative, a glaring lack of personality, and gameplay inconsistencies that gradually erode the experience over time. Though die-hard fans of the series will no doubt overlook these flaws, the average player (who only hunts monsters from time to time) will find Pokémon Legends: Z-A to be a pleasant attempt, but far from essential.

Do not play Ball x Pit expecting a solid roguelite experience — because you won’t find one. What you will find, however, is an interesting reinterpretation of Vampire Survivors in a brick-breaker format: dynamic enough, with a generous arsenal and a small town-management mechanic that adds a bit of freshness to the formula. Despite the gameplay variations introduced by certain characters, it doesn’t take long before a sense of repetitiveness settles in, as you start chaining runs without thinking too much about it.

Battlefield 6 is, above all, a game of reconquest — an attempt to win back its historical community and to atone for BF2042. Under those conditions, the mission to deliver a classic “made in Battlefield” experience is fulfilled, and whether it’s in terms of gameplay, feel, or weapon balancing in multiplayer, it’s a solid overall success. In this context, it’s hard to see the franchise revolutionizing or even shaking up its formula, but the multiplayer aspect holds up well — and that’s what matters most right now. The few attempts at innovation, starting with the campaign, feel more like a desire to mimic Call of Duty than anything else, complete with that tiresome brand of Americanism — and we’re still angry about that story conclusion, which recalls the darkest hours of CoD. If you’re going to copy Activision, at least don’t take the bad stuff — though to be fair, we’ve already avoided the overabundance of ugly skins, and that’s already a pretty big victory.

In an already crowded 2025, Absolum still manages to climb onto the podium as an obvious standout. Guard Crush Games, Dotemu, and Supamonks deliver a masterful experience where missteps are few and far between. From the sublime soundtrack to the perfectly handled visuals, from the finely tuned roguelite loop to the premium quality of the combat mechanics, only the narrative feels somewhat left aside — which, in the end, is hardly an issue in a beat ’em up. Suffice to say, we really had to struggle to find flaws worth mentioning. After Streets of Rage 4, Dotemu raises the bar even higher, pulling off with rare brilliance the launch of its very first in-house franchise. Will this spark a new resurgence for the genre? If so, the next five years are going to be absolutely wild — in the best possible way.

The trauma inflicted by Baby Steps makes me want to give it a 1/10 to get revenge for what it did to me. Luckily for him, I'm a very pragmatic person and behind this continuous torture, this hostility and hatred towards its player, it remains an extremely funny proposition in many ways, with gameplay that is nevertheless mastered. There you go, take your 8/10 and leave me alone, I never want to hear from you again.

While its effective art direction and rich gameplay are undeniable, Henry Halfhead is an experience that hesitates too much to exploit its ideas, preferring to multiply influences without going there frankly. The result is a nice game, but one that lacks this strong structure both in its rhythm and the use of its mechanics and in terms of story, because of a dispersion that is too noticeable and which prevents it from being truly memorable.

As for the gameplay breakdown, even if I were able to give you an analysis as in-depth as those once delivered by King Puyo, what would be the point given that patches will inevitably transform the game during the season? What's the point of thinking about what the "right rating" is for a product over which the press has no influence whatsoever? So many questions and so few answers. Only one certainty remains: football sucks, but we can't live without it. And as for the rating, wait and see, I'll roll the dice... it's 7!

Based on Swery65's resume, we expected Hotel Barcelona to have a lot of kinks to work through, but we still weren't prepared for the god-awful controls, the poorly-implemented invasion mechanic or the wacky, zany plot. A waste of great artworks.

CloverPit is a roguelite that is conceptually solid, with an instantly addictive loop, but it runs up against modest ambitions that limit the richness of its possibilities. While having a narrative thread helps to structure the adventure, it also gives the impression that the whole thing has been too heavily built around it. What we have here is a small but efficient roguelite that will keep us busy for a while, but whose limits in depth become clear once its short story has been wrapped up.

With Hades 2, the studio didn’t just meet expectations, they absolutely obliterated them. Bigger in scope, sharper in writing, and deeper in its mechanics, the game surpasses its predecessor on every level. Where many sequels merely pile on content, this one completely reshuffles the roguelite formula with fearless ambition, while remaining incredibly accessible. It’s a rare tour de force, a masterclass in game design that proves excellence can be pushed even further, run after run. Hades 2 isn’t just a successful sequel. It’s a lesson in design, a celebration of the roguelite genre, and a living hymn to mythology. By managing to elevate a formula already considered perfect, Supergiant has delivered one of the most brilliant sequels in video game history. It’s also a powerful reminder that a game can be demanding, generous, and profoundly human all at once. You don’t come out of it unscathed, and more importantly, you never want to leave.

After having explored every corner of the galaxy and played the card of excess, the Borderlands saga re-centers its story on a single planet, meant to be the franchise’s first true open world. By returning to less grandiose foundations, but also to less fiery writing, Gearbox clearly intends to offer an experience that doesn’t scatter itself, in order to better master its fundamentals: excellent gameplay with real depth, paired with humor that is better handled and less overblown. That said, it’s also regrettable that the density of its universe relies on exploration and environments that are, all in all, very conventional, along with a certain lack of boldness. Borderlands 4 is efficient, but it won’t send shivers through the industry—showing off muscles we already know all too well.

Ghost of Yotei has clearly refined its formula on quite a few points, exploration and the construction of its open world being foremost, delivering a far greater sense of discovery than the previous installment. Stealth has been sharpened and combat gets a few small tweaks, but the game also neglects other aspects that should have been addressed. It is still a visually stunning game to wander through, but the story struggles to stand out and to offer us something as strong, narratively speaking, as Ghost of Tsushima.

What can I say? Final Fantasy Tactics: The Ivalice Chronicles remains, in essence, Final Fantasy Tactics. In that sense, the game is, by its mere existence, still one of the most striking adventures of the medium. There are indeed some substantial additions here in the interface, in quality of life, and even in the gameplay, but can these really justify a purchase at this price? We’ll let you answer that question, but know that, while in some respects this re-release proves particularly respectful of the source material, it also shows some baffling shortcomings. Where is the re-orchestration of the soundtrack? Where are the content additions from the War of the Lions version? Where are the adjustments for better camera angles? Certainly, The Ivalice Chronicles is without a doubt the most pleasant version of the game to play in 2025, but it also could (and should) have been much more.

Towa and the Guardians of the Sacred Tree really does have some strong arguments at the end of its staff. Its duo system allows it to offer both engaging gameplay and enjoyable stories. On top of that, the woodblock print style gives it undeniable charm. And we have to add the developers’ great generosity. On paper, then, there’s no reason to be bored with the new game from Brownies and Bandai Namco. But between theory and practice, there is sometimes a gulf. The beauty of Towa and the Guardians of the Sacred Tree unfortunately fades as the hours go by. It scatters, sometimes loses itself, and leaves us with the impression of gorging on content without managing to fully appreciate it. By trying too hard to be on all fronts, Towa and the Guardians of the Sacred Tree gradually drifts away from the innovative and delightful experience it could have been. The game certainly has potential, but it lacks the guardians to raise it among the sacred games.

Incredible but true, Konami managed to come back with an actual new Silent Hill game - and it's good ! Ryukishi07 weaves a toxic web of intrigue between mysoginistic social practices, religious hallucinations and disturbing allegories. Kera honors Masahiro Ito's legacy as the resident monster master. While gameplay still falters here and there with boring puzzles and so-so level design in the first half, the atmosphere really comes together and keeps increasing the pressure until a suffocating finale.

Dying Light : The Beast is all bark and no bite. Techland had the right ideas and tools to deliver a tight action-adventure package, but stumbles on bad level design, a flimsy plot and repetitive slugfests against roided-out zombies.

Hollow Knight: Silksong is quite the thorny case, because you can easily be disappointed in the face of its numerous hardships. By shipping a much more difficult experience, Team Cherry may lose some players. A daring choice we could praise if it was more slickly executed. Team Cherry had a real treasure but lost pearls along the way. But Silksong is no bad game. It remains a singular poetic experience, different from 8 years ago. Sceptics will need to accept the game has real qualities, from its univers to its improved combat mechanics. So then, we remember Silksong was born as a DLC. And it could have been an excellent DLC.

Between early access and this definitive release, it's night and day for The Rogue Prince of Persia. We have here an enjoyable game, which relies heavily on the studio's strengths acquired on Dead Cells, but with an artistic direction and gameplay specificities that do honor to the Prince of Persia. If the overall result is perhaps a little too easy and fast, it's not unpleasant to have a roguelite capable of offering a contained experience, notably thanks to an effective story system.

This is a high-quality artistic and visual offering that has been made possible by flawless technical execution. It's hard not to be fascinated by our first transformation of the desert into a lush oasis teeming with fish, and when you add to that easy-to-learn and instantly rewarding surfing mechanics, you get a little gem that you'll forgive for its minor flaws.

While it's hard to ignore some of its flaws, Cronos: The New Dawn is a game that was made with love, and that love is contagious. The plot and time travel elements fit together coherently to offer us an enjoyable story and universe in a setting that is relatively atypical for Western Europeans like us. While the level design is a little too predictable to serve as a solid horror springboard, the same goes for the good idea of merging monsters, which remains too far in the background to be decisive. In reality, it is mainly the balancing act of resource management that will be the real source of anxiety and fear, where every missed shot can cost us dearly.

The idea of guiding a herd of supernatural creatures to their place of life was fascinating on paper. If the studio does a good job of building its universe and making these critters endearing, the conventional gameplay offered in the name of a calm and contemplative atmosphere makes the game in the end a little boring, and it would have gained much more by making us experience more situations of danger for our beasts, which we will stroll on autopilot for a large part of the time.

Hell is Us still stands as a genuine piece of boldness, a gamble that Rogue Factor has mastered from start to finish. A cry of love for those who no longer wish to let their instincts be numbed on the altar of autopilot offered by most action-adventure games, Hell is Us empowers the player without mistreating them. It rekindles the taste for exploration, observation, and deduction, without ever tipping into elitism. Between those games that hold our hand without ever letting go and those that abandon us at the bottom of the pit, Rogue Factor has found a remarkable middle ground—both rewarding and accessible. Supported by a production quality well above the AA average and, above all, by writing that shines just as much when depicting human tragedies in times of war as when exploring the historical subtleties of a fictional country, Hell is Us has far too much merit for its combat limitations to be held against it.

Time Flies is the kind of game with an absolutely absurd pitch that you start for fun, and which turns out to be much deeper than it appears. The game accurately deals with the passing of time, with our desire to accomplish a certain number of things before our death. It's not enough to go to bed at night with insomnia wondering what we're doing with our lives, but this little fly has the merit of making us laugh about the fleeting nature of life and, as its first trailer so aptly put it: "Make the most of the time you have because we're all going to die."