When all is said and done, it’s a game in which you are given the feel of managing a somewhat volatile drug empire with a bunch of violent people who are more than willing to break the law in the name of their own self-enrichment, and that alone is enough to make the game fun enough to stand on its own. It justifies its existence and goes above and beyond in a lot of places.

If Coffee Talk was standing on its own in a void, I would call this game a must play, no questions asked. The need to grind out recipes to figure out how to unlock the full story is frustrating, a stain on everything else in the package, but by the time I got to this point I had already fallen in love with the characters and aesthetic. The problem is, everything here has been done before, and better. It does feel like Toge Productions wanted to craft a homage to Valhalla, but doing so puts them right up against a cult classic. I truly think that they should have done more to differentiate themselves, to stand out more in this burgeoning genre.

Overall, this remake of Destroy All Humans is essentially the 2005 original with a fresh coat of paint and a few tweaks, and it carries over everything, warts and all. While there are definitely some frustrations in the gameplay mechanics, taken as a whole, the game holds up surprisingly well.

The game’s world is just gorgeous, lovingly put together, and more than that, is built to the scale of a proper MMO worth your time to try for the price of free. I can very much see Throne and Liberty finding its fans for the things it does well even if it isn’t sweepingly innovative for the genre as a whole, and that’s more than you can say for a lot of new MMOs and MMO-adjacent titles.

At the end of the day, Undermine is almost exactly what it looks like – a very solid and well-presented roguelike game in which you dive into a mine and try to pilfer the treasures within. That’s exactly what it’s trying to be, and that’s also what it succeeds at being with aplomb. For some people, that’s not going to be enough, just because… well, as mentioned, this is not an underserved genre at this point. It’s not hard to find a variety of roguelikes out there, and I’m sure there are people who will take a look at what the game has on offer and determine that they hardly need another one in their library. But if you like this genre? Well, you’re in for a solid treat, because it does what it’s trying to do well. What more could you ask for from a game?

Honestly, I really didn’t expect much out of Hot Wheels Unleashed. I was expecting a throw-away licensed racing game. Perhaps, more cynically, a cash-grab targeting nostalgic aging gamers. What I ended up getting, though, was a surprisingly solid arcade racer by a team that obviously cares about the license they’re working with. It’s not without its quirks, unfortunately. The shocking aggressive AI racers created many moments of frustration, and I’m not a fan of the “gacha but not really” system going on here for obtaining new cars. But for fans of arcade racers, whether the Hot Wheels name strikes a chord or not, Hot Wheels Unleashed is a game worth a look.

The Last Faith is a strong title with some clear stumbles, but quality still wins out more often than not, and I’m eager to see Kumi Souls Games’ next effort as a result.

Knockout Home Fitness is a mostly well-built fitness game that, when played as intended at least, I definitely feel offers an effective workout routine and is fun and engaging. It’s not trying to be a game like Ring Fit Adventure, but that’s fine; for what it is, it does a good job of it. However, the game’s weakness lies in its apparent failure to make full use of the available technology of the Nintendo Switch system. Because of this, the game has to simply trust that you’re doing everything when it calculates your calories burned. For most people, I admit this won’t be a problem, since anyone who buys this is probably interested in getting an actual workout rather than cheating it. But the game could have definitely benefited from tech that it didn’t fully utilize. Knockout Home Fitness is both effective and reasonably fun in spite of this, so it is recommendable as long as you approach it as the fitness program it is supposed to be.

I find myself somewhat conflicted about Dice Legacy. For one thing, it’s not the sort of game I personally like all that much; as implied, its design is one that I can understand and appreciate without taking any particular enjoyment out of it. I also find myself somewhat stymied by the fact that the Switch version has some interface woes that make it a bit less pleasant to play through, which is definitely what I would consider a problem. Not an insurmountable one, but there’s way too many times when it felt like the interface penalized me rather than the main game mechanics just being complicated. At the same time, I do think there’s an appealing and fun game there just the same. The core gameplay loop is well-defined and unique, and the game has a unique charm to it.

I’m loving the bite-sized gameplay that games like Bore Blasters brings to the table. It’s simultaneously a good way to sample what makes roguelikes so appealing to some, while also delivering fast and frantic rock-shattering action that throws away the pickaxe in a uniquely explosive way. This is a pretty solid game that worth giving a shot, if not for the fact that it’s one of the few games that lends itself nicely to portable play. Sure, other roguelikes might have a leg up in comparison. But that shouldn’t stop you from strapping into your gyrocopter and doing some deep dives of your own. If you’re looking for more dwarven shenanigans in your life, this one is worth a look. I’m sure some miners would raise a pickaxe and a beer in agreement.

You can tell that there was care and love put into this, and I’m rather thankful that something like this exists at all. Epic Mickey: Rebrushed does enough to justify being a worthy remake of a somewhat beloved game, though it’s not everyone’s cup of tea. It’s a solid platformer in its own right, and the new additions are welcome ones.

Disjunction offers a solid, fun take on the stealth action genre. While it stumbles at times with the feel of its stealth mechanics, it is still satisfying and fun to play, aside from the one time my game progress mysteriously got deleted and I had to start over (though it hasn’t happened again). If you enjoy action stealth experiences like those found in the early Metal Gear games and games like Tom Clancy’s Splinter Cell (except being 2-D) and you like new retro-styled games in the modern era, chances are good you can enjoy this game, even if it doesn’t have the most realistic stealth mechanics.

Survival game fans will no doubt appreciate the level of polish in the design of its systems and the fun gameplay loop of shooting, looting, and crafting to make yourself stronger, but it doesn’t do much to iterate on expected genre convention. It’s also marred by intermittent technical hiccups and some less-than-stellar interface choices, but I still couldn’t stop myself from sinking more and more of my time into it. It’s a fun foundation that still needs a bit of TLC, in other words, and I hope to see Funcom eventually deliver the best version of what this take on Dune could become.

Overall, Oddworld: New ‘n’ Tasty is an older title that holds up well…for the most part. I did enjoy the majority of the time I spent with it, slowly working my way through puzzles and taking in the wild environments. However, things really do kind of fall apart whenever the action gets any faster than a brisk walk. The jumping controls in particular are a nuisance, creating sequences that nearly made me quit in frustration. If you’ve been interested in taking this classic franchise for a spin, New ‘n’ Tasty seems to be the best way to do it. Just be prepared for some of that old-school clunkiness.

Ultimately, I didn’t like Siege of Paris all that much… compared to the core game or its first expansion, anyhow. It feels, in many ways, like it was conceived and put into practice as a way to give Eivor something new to do, but it doesn’t really break any new ground compared to that. It’s like eating nothing but bread at dinner; it’ll fill you up, but it doesn’t exactly delight the senses in a new way. None of that is to say that it’s bad, though, because… well, as I mentioned before and bears repeating, Assassin’s Creed: Valhalla is a good game. A bad slice of content for the game is still pretty good. It deserves a high score because compared to an awful lot of games, it’s still delivering what it sets out to be effectively and giving you fun new weapons, areas, and armor to use as you clear through a new set of quests.

When you get down to brass tacks, Fire Tonight won’t be blowing anyone’s doors off. I don’t think that was the goal, either. But just because it’s a compact experience doesn’t mean that it’s an unpleasant one. The entire package is a brisk, cute, and enjoyable time. The solid presentation, the simple but decent gameplay, and the personality throughout help soften the blow of the overall length. There are worse ways to spend an hour, and helping a couple reunite for safety’s sake isn’t a bad way to kill some time at home or on the go.

Unfortunately, I’m sorry to say that Morbid: The Seven Acolytes still wound up hitting that same point of not quite hooking me in. It never made me sit up in delight and just start playing for the sheer fun of it. Not that it’s supposed to be fun, since you’re wandering into a broken hellish locale that’s supposed to be unfriendly with every step. But I consider the fact that my impulses responded that way as a good thing. Whatever quality prevents these games from quite resonating with me was there and present here, and there’s a lot to like here. The game looks eerily and disgustingly beautiful, weaves a compelling environment, and plays sharply and responsively. So I might be a bit more reluctant to go wade back in, but if you like yourself some Souls-like action and fancy something novel, you should definitely give this a shot. And if you like buckets of blood and body horror, you might get a kick out of it too.

Chronos: Before the Ashes is a more casual take on the Souls-like formula. It has the weighty action and focus on learning enemy patterns to punish, but at eight hours to beat it’s relatively short and is lacking depth in many of its systems. At $30 and with an easier learning curve this is a good starter for anyone who hasn’t played this style of game, but veteran players may find the experience underwhelming. That said, I still had fun, and if you’re a fan of Remnant: From the Ashes you’ll likely appreciate this look into how everything began.

It just doesn’t seem they put as much love and detail into the gameplay as they did the character writing and world building. In the end, while not a must play, Haven is still worth a glance if you’re looking for a feel-good experience.

I really think of all the ways to adapt Animal Farm, this is definitely one of the best ways. Actually making the decisions and watching corrupt leadership undermine them, or being the one to justify sacrificing the “lesser” people for the “greater good,” really emphasizes how easily selfishness ruins a perfectly good dream. It’s not terribly long, but there is plenty of replay value in trying for various routes and endings and it’s relatively cheap.

If you’re looking for a centralized platform to play these games, the bulk of the titles offered here are fun enough to keep you engaged for quick bouts of alien-blasting action. Would I go out and grab this at full price? No, probably not. But having two solid offerings out of three at a sale price? It’s work a look. Just don’t get your hopes up for multiplayer.

The good news here is between its two re-releases, Stronghold: Crusader has only expanded, and while I can’t say with absolute certainty since I never got around to playing the original (even though it was on my radar at the time), it certainly seems worthy of the “Definitive Edition” designation. While I think the developers could have done more with the graphics, it offers all the same challenges plus new ones. Having said that, the challenge may actually be too much for some modern gamers thanks to the steep learning curve and somewhat hidden tutorial. If you are serious about the real-time strategy genre, the copious amount of content, the extreme depth, and have mastered other games, Stronghold Crusader – Definitive Edition may be just what you needed.

Messy as it is, Sonic Origins is still a collection of the best 2D entries the franchise has to offer. It may not be as dense in content in comparison to prior compilations like Sonic Mega Collection or Sonic Gems Collection, but it does just enough to not get in the way of what made these games system sellers in their heyday. While I was hoping for an easy touchdown, this ended up being a fumble recovery instead. Hefty price tag be damned, new players deserve to see why people like me keep going back to what many consider the reason people loved Sonic in the first place.

Steelrising has the clearly defined bones of a great Soulslike. It features development team Spiders’ most well executed and fluid combat to date, offers players a plethora of build options that feel meaningful in customizing their approach to combat, and delivers on its unique historical aesthetic well. Unfortunately, these obvious positives are dragged down by level design sorely lacking in verticality, enemy encounters sorely lacking in variety, and a narrative sorely lacking in investment. It’s one of the more admirable attempts at the Souls formula in recent memory, but it doesn’t have every piece of the puzzle.

I enjoyed my time with Shotgun Cop Man but, where I couldn’t stop replaying My Friend Pedro, I don’t see myself returning to this one. Shotgun Cop Man is frantic, fun, and funny. It is also repetitive, irritating, and doesn’t separate itself from the pack. What it does have is enough charm and sharp gameplay to make itself a worthy pickup. It also has a great title. Shotgun. Cop. Man.

If you’re a fan of the AI series, picking this one up is a no-brainer. Even with a few issues, it’s still more AI, and that’s enough for me. This entry is not friendly for newcomers, though, so if what you’ve seen here intrigues you, go pick up the original game and play through that first.

Samurai Warriors 5 is a lot of a good thing, but you have to be confident you’ll enjoy that good thing for it to be worth the price of admission. If you’re already a fan of the singular “1 vs 1000” gameplay that can only really be found in Warriors games, your time will be well spent with this title. Similarly, if you haven’t played a game like this before and are intrigued by the way it plays or the visuals, but not turned off by the idea of a passable story and a gameplay experience that doesn’t feel the need to surprise you, Samurai Warriors 5 is more than a fine place to jump in.

Taken as a whole game, Carmen Sandiego is a perfectly cromulent romp despite its relative simplicity. Slipping into familiar trappings isn’t always a bad thing, especially when you’re aiming to make a return like this. While not quite a triumphant return to the gaming space, it’s definitely a welcome one. I like to think that there’s still a place in the gaming world for The World’s Greatest Thief. So seeing her land on her feet like this is a welcome surprise. Carmen isn’t one to rest on her laurels, so I hope this isn’t the last we see of her.