What downsides it does have are either due to its age or just the fact that the designers prioritized a fun dungeon crawl over character building. That’s fine. The game you have here is a fine, crisp, energetic dungeon crawl that’s good to pick up and play and rewards you with bosses that are tough enough to matter but not so hard that you’ll want to throw the game in the garbage. So let’s hear it for Ys Origin. And if you’re in the mood for any of that? Give it a shot, why don’t you?

Serious Sam 4 is not a bad game. I’d go so far as to say that it wasn’t trying to be anything amazing, either. Croteam just wanted to put out a game full of catharsis, and it feels reasonable to say that they succeeded in that endeavor. It doesn’t bother itself with being anything other than a bullet-spewing good time, and I’m frankly fine with that. The fans wanted more Sam-laced insanity, and they definitely got it here. While the jank is present for all to see, it’s not something that completely ruins the experience. Regardless of that, it’s a cheesy good time that’s worth at least a playthrough. In this day and age, sometimes we just need to hold down the trigger and scream at the top of our lungs. Serious Sam 4 succeeds on that front, and delivers it with a dual rocket launcher-wielding grin on its face.

Beyond the reset confusion, it’s hard to find any flaws in this game. The puzzle concept is a lot of fun, the visuals are just about perfect for a retro styled game, the 8-bit synth audio experience is on point, and it manages to stump you without overtly frustrating you – a crowning achievement among puzzle games. Give Deleveled a go, I highly doubt you’ll regret it.

Some repetitive storytelling moments drag down the pacing here and there. Also, for a studio so lauded for its visuals, the horrifying slowdown during the strategy battle segments is borderline offensive. Even with these issues, though, 13 Sentinels is an absolute must play, especially for those seeking a good narrative in gaming. This is the kind of story that’s going to stick in my mind for weeks to come, and easily stands up with some of the best stories I’ve experienced in any medium.

The parts of the game that work are a solid start to what is supposed to be a live service game with years of free updates ahead of it. Frankly though, I’m surprised at just how many issues the game currently has. At the end of the day, I’m ultimately enjoying my time with the game, it can be a lot of fun. However, when asked to present a final score, I simply cannot ignore the many issues that are holding the game back at launch. Hopefully the developers can get things sorted out and these issues that are currently hindering the game will soon be a thing of the past.

Ultimately, what I keep thinking of is Katamari Re-Roll, which was similarly a very fun game because it was an unambitious remake of an already very fun game. If you already have the original, it’s a harder sell, because the remake doesn’t change all that much from the original… but it’s also an improvement and a chance for those who missed out on the original (or the DLC) to try the whole package, with the promise of more still to come. There are, in other words, some reasons that not everyone will be delighted by Kingdoms of Amalur: Re-Reckoning. But even if there’s not much new to it… well, there’s also nothing wrong with it at all, and the original was great.

Ultimately, reading Aokana often feels like eating a variety pack of candy. Sure, there may be some flavors that don’t hit in ways that some do. But the ratio of good outweighs the bad here, and opening the box in the first place is a safe bet for a good read.

Iron Harvest seemed like a promising game, even to someone not really into RTS titles like myself. In some aspects, it does deliver. The story is surprisingly good, the design and usage of the mech units is top notch, and I personally appreciate the streamlining of base and resource management (the bane of my existence in most RTS games) to focus on combat. The act of performing combat and moving troops around, though – the core of the game – is weirdly uneven. Moving units is awkward, and the pathing issues the units have make what should be simple skirmishes often risky and sometimes infuriating. KING Art did state that they plan to watch for community feedback and continue updating the game. Perhaps all of the above issues will be fixed. However, as the game is right now at launch, Iron Harvest is rough. Promising, but rough.

While the main levels of the game are not the most exciting, with gameplay that is often just good but not great, the boss battles are tons of fun, and the entire game just oozes style and substance. I had enough fun with those, and also just rocking out to the wonderful music, that I can mostly overlook the game’s minor gameplay stumbles. No Straight Roads is an excellent experience that I encourage any lover of both music and gaming to have a look at. It’s not flawless, but it’s a darned good time.

This isn’t a terrible game. If you’re a fan of the series and really eager to have more of it, it’ll probably serve decently for those purposes, but that’ll still mean overlooking things like weak translation, poor mechanics, and a slipshod feel across the board. But if you aren’t already a fan, there’s little to nothing to recommend it to you, much less to inspire you to learn more. And, last but not least… yes. It’s very wrong to try to pick up girls in a dungeon. Those girls are trying to do something other than pick up dates. Respect their time and interests. Come on.

The game that we ended up with is one that will sate the appetite of fans of the original, while also likely irritating the many that are interested in the multiplayer component. The online multiplayer feels very much tacked on and could have used more time to make the experience more friendly. Hopefully they’re able to make adjustments post-launch. Ultimately, Final Fantasy Crystal Chronicles Remastered Edition is a game that, mechanically, shows its age, and even its newest features don’t feel quite as modernized as they probably should. By that rationale though, maybe the game will end up being exactly what you remember it as.

Kandagawa Jet Girls completely misses the marks that this niche expects from its games. Even if the toned down fanservice is a ploy to bring in more general gamers, the weak racing mechanics aren’t going to keep them around for long. Give this one a pass.

This tale demands more detail. It requires more time spent in filling out the world and its characters. If the game had spent more time on these points, we’d be looking at one hell of a harrowing and affecting story. As it stands right now though, Milky Way Prince feels like a massively missed opportunity.

I always feel a little bad being hard on a game. I know some people put a lot of work into this and they may even be proud of it, but the simple truth of the matter is I did not have fun. I didn’t even feel the satisfaction of overcoming a challenge. Whenever I thought I’d find something I enjoyed, the NPCs would snipe insults at each other and make me feel awkward about being around them.

Bottom line: Fight Crab offers an entertaining, and refreshingly unique experience and is certainly worth a look for that. But the game feels very rough around the edges and I think it needs some more time to have its flaws ironed out. If you don’t expect too much from it, you’ll definitely get your money’s worth of entertainment. But the game is at times sloppy and unprofessional, even for an indie title, which does harm the experience to a noticeable degree.

This is a solid game no matter what. And I’m willing to bet that if you are a fan of Fairy Tail, you’re getting rewarded with a fun and solid RPG that keeps the spirit of the original and adds on more besides.

Radical Rabbit Stew isn’t a long game, it isn’t a super complex game, but it IS a fun game, and I thoroughly enjoyed my time with it. The levels are perfect little bite-sized chunks I can pick up whenever, and it hits that mix of challenging enough to be engaging without being frustratingly so. My only real criticisms can basically be summed up as them not being quite punishing enough. Some real incentive to find the solutions to puzzles would have been appreciated, but I always had my standby of smacking everything with a spoon until everything sorted itself out.

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.

Rock of Ages 3 appears to be more of the same. It’s crafted well…but it’s just not something that fits in my personal taste. For a tower defense fan whose never tried out the franchise, this is likely a good starting point. Otherwise, only hardcore fans need apply.

If you really can’t stand puzzle games like this, then Röki is not going to be what changes your mind… but I definitely encourage you to take a look at it. This one will use your time in a rewarding way. And I had a blast with it.

Carrion is an entertaining and visceral experience, with a lot more going for it than simply running around and killing things, like many of the game’s trailers led me to believe...A few questionable design decisions make me hesitate on calling this an excellent title, though. Tying parts of the creature’s moveset to its current health level is frustrating. The lack of any kind of world map, while not game breaking in the slightest, got annoying while navigating the hub area. The repetitive art design in the levels isn’t doing the game any favors either...However, frustrations aside, Carrion was still an entertaining playthrough.

The idea of running back and forth across a large area may not be appealing to everyone. However, after setting aside the weirdly, and wonderfully confusing story and a few tense BT encounters, I found my time with Death Stranding to often be a more relaxing, chill, experience that I would recommend you check out.

Ultimately, it’s not hard to understand Krystopia: Nova’s Journey. It has some nice moments here and there, but they’re just that. They’re moments. Drips and drabs within a sea of mediocrity and “good enough” and elements that are both familiar and tedious. I’ve really tried my best to temper my natural disinclination toward adventure games here, but the fact of the matter is that for most non-adventure game fans, this is going to be a hard pass anyhow. The characters and dialogue don’t overcome the fundamental nature of point-and-click games, and the puzzles don’t feel satisfyingly complex but instead frustrating and unclear.

Necrobarista is just a plain wonderful experience. The story is entertaining with powerful moments, the characters feel fleshed out and realistic (or as realistic as the plot allows for), and the presentation is stunning (although the character design may not be attractive to some).

The gameplay feels well-polished and each character will have you wanting to learn more about them. The very few hiccups I encountered as far as gameplay goes were nothing to keep me from enjoying the game immensely. It would be great to have just a few more quality of life changes, sure, but as far as what’s already in Story of Seasons: Friends of Mineral Town, you can expect on the most enjoyable RPGs I’ve ever encountered. If ever there were a time to get away to a farm and lost in the mines, it’s now, and with a game like Story of Seasons: Friends of Mineral Town you might just find exactly the escape you need.

Part II is an unavoidable achievement in so many ways. The few things it doesn’t get right don’t bog it down as many seem to think. Collectively speaking, this game subverts expectations in ways that make it stand out head and shoulders above the rest. For that reason alone, you should feel confident that the money you drop on this game will be money well spent. The PlayStation 4 couldn’t have received a better swan song.

Keen is a puzzler that tries to reach up and achieve more beyond its base ideas, and while it doesn’t always succeed, the end product still remains something worth taking a look at.

Brigandine: The Legend of Runersia isn’t a truly dire or bad title, but it’s the sort of thing that you’re either going to love or hate, and that feels like a pretty big ask for the game. It was a title I found very exciting in concept, but found myself increasingly disappointed by the more I played it. Be fairly warned before you try it – but also don’t be surprised if it becomes something that some people just will not stop talking about, even with its flaws.