Crisol: Theater of Idols can be succinctly described as a budget BioShock. That may sound harsh, but few modern FPS games evoke this kind of nostalgic design, and despite its shortcomings, the developers earn the comparison. While limitations in enemy variety and loot are evident, Tormentosa remains an intriguing place to visit and explore.

While barebones in modes and lacking tutorials, Aces of Thunder still delivers a great VR experience. Its highly detailed warplanes, excellent audio design, and realistic physics will convince you to push through the steep learning curve and take part in its intense dogfights.

The original Animal Crossing: New Horizons remains an excellent game, but the Switch 2 update is a clear disappointment. The promised technical improvements are almost negligible, and the game remains “stuck” at 30 FPS. Moreover, the new mouse controls are a mixed bag. Helpful for interior decoration, yet strangely omitted during exploration. All in all, this paid update is not worth the price.

A beautiful and full of nostalgia remake of the original classic from the '80s, albeit with poor controls that can damage the overall experience.

This new Speedball entry successfully captures the essence of the classic sports titles by the Bitmap Brothers, certainly no small feat. Its controls could stand to be simpler, as the game overcomplicates its handling in ways that feel unnecessary. Likewise, its visuals lean a bit too heavily into trends set by other popular online games. In the end, however, it remains a faithful modernization of the core Speedball experience.

Our Adventure Guild doesn’t attempt to reinvent the tactical RPG genre and struggles with repetition in both its quest design and recruitable characters. That said, it could still serve as a welcoming entry point for newcomers to the genre.

Once more, Tarsier proves it knows how to craft a horror setting that feels torn from the darkest corners of a child’s imagination. Compared to the Little Nightmares games, Reanimal features a far more dynamic camera that heightens tension and amplifies its intense chases and moments of awe. However, these striking set pieces are the exception in an experience that remains largely reminiscent of the studio’s previous work. As a result, Reanimal stands as a satisfying new entry, but one that ultimately plays things a little too safe.

Citadelum is an easy to learn historical city builder that feels right at home in the portable mode offered by Switch 2. While it may not break new ground for the genre, its streamlined design can provide many fun hours of building your own Roman Empire.

Ebola Village feels like an amateurish imitation of Resident Evil Village, offering nothing to set it apart.

A highly uneven experience, Code Vein 2 is ultimately saved by its likable characters, clever use of time travel in the story and some tense but fair boss battles. The open-world design hampers the pacing, with drab environments that discourage exploration and uninspired regular enemies. Yet those who stick with it may find themselves genuinely invested in the fate of its central cast.

Romeo is a Dead Man is unmistakably a Suda51 game, bursting with creativity, absurdity, satire, and unapologetic eccentricity. The classic Shakespearean tragedy is reimagined as a surreal sci-fi adventure that may stumble at times with uneven pacing and repetitive enemies, but ultimately overcomes its flaws through bombastic, over-the-top action and sheer, unfiltered craziness.

Mario Tennis Fever fixes many of the issues of previous titles, delivering a significantly improved sequel packed with content. Fans of the Mario universe will especially enjoy jumping into matches with their favourite characters, thanks to the expanded roster and gameplay that’s easy to learn but hard to master.

Fear the Timeloop has solid fundamentals that closely follow the survival-horror template established by Resident Evil, while also serving as a welcome ode to the genre’s golden era. It delivers effective scares, a good variety of enemies, and strong level design. However, in its current state, the experience is marred by numerous technical issues and aggravating, game-breaking bugs that frequently undermine what could otherwise be a solid, if slightly derivative, experience.

An excellent prequel to a great JRPG franchise, Octopath Traveller 0 sees the return of its distinctive pixelated visuals and deep combat system, this time elevated by the inclusion of truly memorable villains.

I Hate This Place feels like a project that began with a far more ambitious vision for its world. The lackluster survival and crafting systems make little sense given the game’s short length, which leaves no room for these mechanics to properly breathe. While its dungeons are engaging, featuring effective horror elements and enough loot to encourage exploration, the open world, flat characters, and mediocre combat significantly hinder the overall experience.

A-RED Walking Robot is charming and quite unique, putting players in the role of a small mechanical toy robot. Its well thought out level design, using everyday environmental objects and rooms, gives the game a much needed personality. However, its frequent reliance on trial and error leads to unfair situations that more often than not become frustrating.

After many delays, the new chapter of Inazuma Eleven is finally here, and it’s certainly worth the wait. Despite some pacing issues, it offers a broad cast of characters, diverse movesets, and a huge amount of content that will keep you hooked for hours.

Old School Rally fully justifies its name, taking players back to the era of the legendary first Colin McRae Rally and staying extremely faithful to that inspiration. While it successfully hits the nostalgia it aims for, that same devotion becomes a hindrance once the feeling wears off, leaving behind a derivative technical experience with little effort to establish its own identity.

This new DLC for Pokémon Legends Z-A is something of a double-edged sword. While it adds a wealth of new main and side missions, legendary Pokémons, and a strong cast of new characters that can keep players busy for hours, the bland new Hyperspace area and the excessive grinding required to unlock its missions ultimately drag down the experience.

If nothing else, Dreams of Another is a unique third-person game. Its dreamlike visuals and intriguing “no creation without destruction” gameplay concept immediately draw attention and pique curiosity. However, its experimental nature doesn’t fully pay off, as the tiring gameplay, sluggish pace, and a story that fails to make sense quickly wear down that initial interest.

Ultimate Zombie Defense is at least honest about its B-movie philosophy, offering simple gameplay that can hook you for several mindless gaming hours. Decimating hordes of zombies is certainly fun, but the limited content, highly derivative visuals, and lack of depth prevent it from rising above a guilty pleasure.

Dollmare is effective in its horror atmosphere, with its short duration working in its favour by keeping the simplistic, repetitive arcade gameplay fun. The factory setting also benefits from the brief length, retaining its effectiveness as the game ends before it becomes tiring.

After an enormously long development cycle, the end result was worth the wait. The developers persevered through development hell to deliver a striking retro-futuristic setting enhanced by well-crafted horror elements. Across its 4–5 hour, mostly narrative-driven experience, the story and its deadly presences will keep you on edge.

Romancing SaGa: Minstrel Song Remastered is a well-made port of a classic JRPG, though it offers little beyond the bare minimum expected of a remaster. It remains an interesting piece of the genre’s history, but its quirks may deter newcomers, while longtime fans and JRPG veterans will find reasons to revisit it.

Switch owners can now see firsthand what can only be described as the ultimate ode to Dragon Ball. While the 30 FPS performance is noticeable, it doesn’t hinder the game’s easy-to-learn, hard-to-master fighting system or the richness of its content.

Gameplay is virtually non-existent in Goodnight Universe, with overly simplistic puzzles that drag down the experience. Nevertheless, its story is touching and supported by solid voice acting. It’s commendable how effectively the developers convey the world through the perspective of an infant child.

Death Howl does the unthinkable by delivering a deckbuilder that isn’t a roguelike, and mostly succeeds. Its atmospheric, fantasy-infused Neolithic setting and beautiful retro visuals are paired with a well-crafted, card-based combat system. Unfortunately, excessive grinding and uneven difficulty in tougher battles can make victory feel overly dependent on RNG.

Once Upon a Jester starts off on a positive note, thanks to its humour and its, initially, charming visuals. However, those simplistic visuals soon become tiring and uninspired, and the lack of any meaningful gameplay turns the experience into a slog. The story could have been its redeeming factor, but unfortunately the game falls short even in that regard.