One of the most enjoyable Call of Duty experiences in years.

Any gamer who’s a fan of puzzle games, brain teasers or adventure games will enjoy Lorelei and the Laser Eyes, especially if they’re not afraid to pull out a notebook and get writing while playing. It’s a fantastic story wrapped in a solid foundation of gameplay, and what few drawbacks there are don’t take away from the experience in any way that matters. Lorelei and the Laser Eyes is a game that’ll challenge and reward you equally, and it’s one of the best overall experiences I’ve had in 2024 so far.

It is an admirable attempt to portray people with psychosis and treat them with dignity. We can learn so much from games that takes us down this kind of path.

Braid is still one of the best puzzle platformers you can ever play.

I loved Final Fantasy VII Remake, but Rebirth makes it look like a demo.

Tekken 8 is a robust package that features some of the most satisfying digital fisticuffs I’ve ever seen.

Ubisoft Montpellier has created one of the best Metroidvanias ever, one that can stand up to the legacy of the genre founders and the modern masterpieces.

Call it a masterpiece or a work of art. Both apply. I rate the game as five stars out of five.

I give this single-player campaign 3.5 stars out of five, which is the worst score I’ve ever given a Call of Duty Game. I’ll amend the score after I’ve played more multiplayer combat. [Campaign Review]

The story is enjoyable, with every actor bringing their A-game, and everything is so beautifully animated the sight of New York will make you weep...That being said, there are flaws and shortcomings within the game. It doesn’t improve on areas of the original game that were screaming for an upgrade. It also struggles to deliver a story where not only both Spider-Men but their supporting cast feel equally served, though this is saved somewhat by the excellent performances.

Starfield is not a perfect game, and I can see some players becoming frustrated with some of its bigger imperfections. It’s a game that offers a massive world that’s not always particularly full, which could turn off some players. However, past its initial rocky start, Starfield feels special and interesting and deserves to be tried at least. More than anything else, I’m curious to see where the Bethesda audience takes Starfield. Each game from the company has its own dedicated community and I want to see what Starfield’s community will look like in a few months’ or years’ time.

No, it's no Dark Souls with mechs, but Armored Core VI carves out its own identity.

I think any gamers who want a farming sim with less grind and hustle will enjoy Story of Seasons: A Wonderful Life. It trims a lot of the fat that has become common in the genre. You’re not a warrior or a spelunker or a craftsman. You’re simply a farmer trying to live a quiet life and make your way with the resources you have. If you played the original and loved it, you’ll definitely enjoy the remake because it’s almost the same game but prettier. However, if you’re more used to modern farming sims and want one that will give you more to do on a daily basis, AWL might be too simplistic for you. There’s just not a lot happening in Forgotten Valley. Regardless of your preference, the in-game marriage being pushed within the very first chapter felt way too rushed and forced. If you were hoping to have fun, interesting characters to spend your in-game life with, you’ll again likely be disappointed.

This game doesn’t take itself seriously enough at the end to capture the gravitas of something like Casablanca. But it’s reasonably good at being entertaining with all of the constraints it deals with like a small team and being timely. [Early Access Provisional Score = 60]

Street Fighter 6 is further proof that Capcom is on top of the gaming world these days.

I wish I could say that Dead Island 2 came out a big winner after such a long development cycle. But it’s not Game of the Year material. It’s not even what I would call a great zombie game — there are many that do story or even gameplay better. But Dead Island 2 is solid. It is competent, and it is fun. If you want some uncomplicated zombie-slaying antics in a beautiful setting, Dead Island 2 will scratch that itch. But I don’t expect anyone to still be talking about it this time next year.

The Resident Evil 4 remake feels like something made by a big fan of the original, but one who wasn’t afraid to switch things up a bit.

The main issue I have with OT2 is in its similarities to its predecessor. It’s a fun and excellent example of the genre, but doesn’t really stretch beyond it. I suppose there are worse sins a game can commit than just not feeling much different from its great predecessor. Still, if Octopath Traveler wasn’t your thing, Octopath Traveler II likely won’t be, either.

Whether I was fighting against humans or the computer AI, I never got the sense that war was too easy and my opponent was too easy to be. And so there was always a cost to fighting, and that’s the way it should be.

It’s a great example of when you start with a clean slate, improve all of the graphics and game systems, and then wind up with a much better product than the original. This remake of a classic goes to show why video games just get better with the passage of time.

I’ll come back here and rate the game once I’ve finished the last chapter. However, I’m not convinced that it’s going to become any more magical and entertaining than it is now. It’s a shame, because the game starts from a good place: A new fantasy IP with a take-no-prisoners female protagonist. And I can tell that a lot of the people who worked on the game were sincerely trying. But I can also tell that several others very much were not.

If I put my nostalgia-tinted glasses aside when it comes to my affection for the Adventure games, I feel pretty comfortable calling this Sonic's best 3D effort. I hope Sega continues using and refining this open world formula. Who knows, we might even get two good 3D Sonic games in a row if they do.

The story of God of War Ragnarök may not be as straightforward as it was in God of War, but that’s to its credit. It’s messy and complicated, but that makes the emotional payoff all the better. The gameplay remains largely unchanged, which unfortunately does lose it some points with me, but it does feel enjoyable when the player can settle into a rhythm. God of War Ragnarök is an exceptionally good game, and if you loved the last one, you’ll almost certainly love this one too.

I liked how the single-player campaign drew me into the characters like Vargas, Price, Soap and Laswell. The story had something to say and it delivered some incredible action scenes like firefights on both the inside and the outside of a glass skyscraper. It makes us stop and think about modern warfare. But the game doesn’t forget that the reason we’re all here and reporting for duty again is the fun.

In case I hadn’t made it clear already, I really didn’t like Gotham Knights. It lacks the speed, flow and character of previous Batman games, and its action-oriented gameplay is hamstrung by the 30 FPS lock. It became such an exercise in boredom that I couldn’t bring myself to continue playing — and because I didn’t finish, I’m leaving a score off the end of this review.

Nothing’s wrong with paying a high price to gild the lily — but nothing’s wrong with not wanting to do so, either. I think The Last of Us Part 1 will make a great addition to the casual TLOU fan’s library when it inevitably goes on sale and maybe the PC players when it launches on that platform as well.

A great selection of games make this a strong collection, and I also appreciate the accouterments that Digital Eclipse has thrown into the package. If you're a beat-'em-up or a TMNT fan, The Cowabunga Collection is going to offer a lot of fun for you and your friends.

I have enjoyed my time with Soul Hackers 2. I’m a fan of the SMT series dating back to when they first came to America. This game has, as we’ve discussed, all of the features of any SMT game. The overall problem isn’t that it’s a bad game — it just doesn’t do much to stand out. Is that bad? Not necessarily. The story is interesting, the characters are likeable, and the voice acting is good. If you enjoy the core game loop for the SMT games, you are getting exactly that. Just don’t expect a huge new experience with a lot of new gameplay concepts.

It delights in its subject matter, and what the protagonist lacks in dialogue, they make up for in puckish charm. Yes, the story is short, but it doesn’t waste any of its space or time. It’s a wonderful game to play, especially now before the really massive releases start later this year.

As Dusk Falls is a valiant attempt to tell a good crime drama where actions have consequences. The story went on a lot longer than I expected, as the tense moments at the motel spawned a lot of different threads — both flash forwards and flashbacks — that I didn’t expect. But ultimately the tale failed to move me in the way that I had hoped for. The characters were caught in circumstances where they had nothing but bad choices, and it just made me think that the dumbest thing they did was to allow themselves to be caught in those circumstances. In that way, I don’t think the storytellers succeeded in created the empathy for characters on both sides of the events that they wanted. I would like to see more from this talented studio. But so far the story feels more like a TV show than a stellar movie, and more like a soap opera than a memorable drama.

After spending over 60 hours with the new expansion, I can say that it’s one of my favorite game expansions in recent history. If you are a fan of Monster Hunter Rise, then you should consider playing the new content. I have enjoyed my time with Sunbreak and can’t wait to continue my adventures with my friends, taking on new challenges, and reaping the rewards. All right, hunters; we’ll see you in the field.

These games look great and play better than they ever have in HD. But what else do you get? As far as extras, not a ton. You do get a small museum mode, a boss rush, and some bonus missions. But compared to, say, the 3D explorable world with its multiple media museums from Sonic Jam, it’s a bit bare. But, hey, I’m not really here for bonuses. I’m here for those four games. And a few oddities aside, these are fantastic remasters. Even if you’re a Sonic fan who already owns these games in other compilations, Origins is worth it.

Sniper Elite 5 is exactly what I want from the series: new maps, new Nazis, and new ways to kill them. The only real let down is that the graphics have not evolved evolved from the last couple of iterations. The levels look great and are fun to explore, they just don’t have a next generation feel. That said, this game is an absolute blast. The time I’ve spent stalking Nazis in the French countryside has been quite enjoyable. The additions and tweaks between this and the last game add to the experience instead of detracting or distracting. I can’t wait to get back into France and kill some more Nazis with my friends.

Chinatown Detective Agency is made in the image of classic adventure games and never aspires beyond that. Meeting it on its own terms, it’s an adequate cybernoir mystery with a compelling lead and colorful scenery. If you’re not into that already, this game probably won’t tickle your fancy very much. But if you are, you’ll find this to be a decently written and designed adventure. It’ll take a bit of research on your part, but I have the feeling that a lot of gamers out there will find that as fun as I do. Just know that, even weeks after its release, the game still has some sound problems that might make diminish your enjoyment.

It’s a game that’s enjoyable in small chunks but not really for a great length of time. And after a while, I felt that I had seen as much of Wonderlands as I needed to. I think at some point even the most die-hard Borderlands fans will simply lift their hands from their keyboard/controller and say, “You know what? That’s enough Tina for the foreseeable future.”

Ghostwire: Tokyo is not a bad game. I was interested enough to stick with it and engage with as much of it as possible. If you have more patience for open-world exploration and tedious collectable-finding than I do, then you might get more out of it. I didn’t go into detail about this, but the story is decent and well-told, and that counts for something. This game is also bursting with visual flavor and interest, the kind of which you won’t find elsewhere. But the majority of the game is spent in that open-world formula. Clear fog, gather items and souls, turn in for XP and money, do sidequests and tasks for that area. It’s all in the service of filling a percentage bar, and it just gets boring after a while. No matter how pretty or interesting the surroundings were, once I got well and truly stuck in the rut, I honestly stopped noticing.

I enjoyed Tunic, and I was pleased during most of my time with the game. It’s challenging, but it’s also tranquil. It’s a little slice of puzzle-y goodness in the middle of multiple massive open-world releases, and for that I’m grateful it exists. I just wish sometimes Tunic would meet me halfway and not leave me frustrated either with the controls or with the exploration.

So, yeah, Stranger of Paradise doesn't look good. Its story is a bunch of nonsense. Maybe you'll find that amusing, maybe you'll find it annoying. But all of that doesn't matter as much as you might imagine. Because you spend the bulk of the experience fighting monsters. Stranger of Paradise makes fighting monsters fun.

More than how it looks or plays, I appreciate Gran Turismo 7's vibe. It's just pleasant.

I'm joyfully exploring every inch of the land and delighting in my discoveries, and I don't see myself stopping any time soon.

Anyone who digs these kinds of dense, map-based open world experiences is going to feel happy with what Guerrilla Games is offering here.

Not only does Endwalker offer a satisfying conclusion to one chapter of Final Fantasy XIV, but it creates an amazing foundation for the MMO’s future. Endwalker will ensure that Final Fantasy XIV’s recent meteoric rise won’t come crashing back down to earth any time soon. Final Fantasy XIV’s prospects are over the moon.

Not only does Endwalker offer a satisfying conclusion to one chapter of Final Fantasy XIV, but it creates an amazing foundation for the MMO’s future.

With a great collection of classic mini-games and a surprising level of challenge, even for experienced players, there’s plenty to love about Mario Party Superstars. While it can be unfair at times, the randomness of the game keeps emotions high, spicing it up for everyone and making each new game fresh.

Consider me a Halo fan now. I was never really looking forward to Infinite. But now that it's here, it's so much more than what I was expecting.

Sherlock Holmes Chapter One is a decent adventure game that lets you play as the great detective. The trouble is, it wants to be more than that. It wants to be an action-adventure game with an open world. It wants Sherlock to be a fun and interesting player character, but the game makes him drag around a buddy who’s even less helpful than Watson. That said, I am curious to see where Frogwares goes from here. Mysteries, not action, make for a good Sherlock Holmes game (as should be obvious), and I want to see if Frogwares sheds the latter or chooses to double-down instead.

This is a good installment, but the stutter in combat makes me wonder if it’s as polished as it should be. The game has crashed on me sometimes during Blitz modes in particular, with a lot of players. But overall it held up tremendously well in multiplayer as I fought my way to the first Prestige level and got through it with a 0.84 kill/death ratio. In fact, the more I played the more I enjoyed multiplayer.

It does have some shortcomings: Namely its dialogue and slightly self-conscious microtransaction system. But when it’s on-form, it’s a lot of fun. If you have any taste for these kinds of extreme sports titles, then you’ll likely enjoy Riders Republic.

I can't tell a lug nut from a spark plug. But Forza Horizon 5's world is so beautiful that I'm more willing to play and learn just so I can continue existing in its dazzling vistas.

I think this game is accessible and easy to learn, but it’s also got a lot of depth for real-time strategy veterans. I hope it does well because I want to see more RTS games hit the market. But this one could keep fans busy for a long time, as far as I can tell right now.

And while the graphics are better than the games made for prior generations, I believe that Supermassive has to do some major upgrades that eliminate latency, improve the movement, and still reach an even better level of graphics realism. I’m looking forward to more entries in this series. If I think of The Dark Pictures Anthology by itself, I believe this series is getting better with time.

While Alex’s story didn’t have the most action in it, it was full of emotion and it was a story worth telling. I give this one five stars out of five when it comes to its narrative, but I drop it down a notch to four stars out of five because of the clunky movement and too-familiar gameplay. I’m looking forward to what Dontnod and Deck Nine can do with next-generation platforms and the future Unreal Engine. But for now, they fell just a little short of what I was hoping for.

Its playability matched with MercurySteam doing right by Samus Aran has turned me into even more of a fan of Metroid. Even beyond the context of my own affinity toward the character and world, Metroid Dread is some of the most fun I’ve had with a game in 2021. It’s a contender for game of the year.

I guess the best accolade I can give this game so far is that it’s another Far Cry game, and it’s a good one at that. It’s nice to see the return of the player character’s actual character. The villain is monstrous yet complex. Things explode. But it’s probably going to feel like a drag for far longer than it should, both in gameplay and in the story.

Yes, Banana Mania is essentially just the kind of Super Monkey Ball game that you'd expect. I just didn't realize how much I've missed this series. The single player levels present a challenging and creative experience, while the minigame offerings make this collection essential to anyone who likes to play local multiplayer.

Deathloop is one of the best games of the year — at least from what I’ve played so far. And I say that as someone who has previously recognized the quality of Arkane games while struggling to enjoy them. But with this game, French team Arkane Lyon used some smart tricks to amplify its strengths. And the result is a special experience that has broader appeal than some other Arkane projects.

This is a game I expect to go back to regularly throughout the life of the Switch. But when I do, it probably won’t be for the multiplayer. Those modes are fine, but cooperative play adds a bit too much stress. But as a classic WarioWare, Get It Together shines.

You can tell you're going to like Kena's visuals just by watching a trailer, but its combat also stands out. [Review in Progress]

I’m now preparing to storm Drezen, a fortress-city full of demons. Along the way, I have plenty of quests to take care off to both defeat the Abyssal incursion and dive into the stories of my companions. This is what I want from an RPG, and Owlcat does an stellar job delivering this. The few bugs I encountered were either pathfinding errors (sometimes, one of my characters would just spin around as they tried to get to where they’re going) and one instance of freezing when I was casting a buff spell on my cavalier.

Humankind is my favorite type of game: a glorious mish-mash of mechanics from other standouts from its genre, all informed by a studio’s design and visual philosophy. This 4X game (explore, expand, exploit, exterminate) takes the main ideas from Civilization, and Amplitude Studios blends them with the city-building and clean, pretty UIs of its Endless series.

If you ever enjoyed the original, or just like the idea of a psychic-themed 3D platformer, I'm sure that you'll like Psychonauts 2 and find plenty of laughs along the way.

One of the great things about the game is that you can keep on playing it until you get through the storylines of all of the main characters. The game is replayable to the point where you can experiment with different kinds of pro-revolutionary or pro-moderate behaviors. But it doesn’t judge you on the choices you make. It only makes clear that your choices matter, and your road to hell can be paved with good intentions.

Thankfully, the story is entertaining. It features a large cast of likable characters, including the eccentric-but-brilliant Herlock Sholmes. You play as Ryunosuke Naruhodo, a Japanese student who travels to Britain to become a lawyer, and it is fun watching him go from a meek, uncertain character to a determined, competent lawyer. I just wish it would get on with it sometimes. Dialogue drives these games, I know, but sometimes characters seem to chat forever before I’m allowed to do anything meaningful myself.

Ideally, the game would have some sort of asynchronous multiplayer system that I could compete in so I could compare my performance to my friends whenever they get around to playing. The 3DS game had tournaments that worked that way, but this does not. I want to call that omission baffling, but it’s not. Nintendo did not make this game for me. And that is leaving me wondering if I’m ever going to pick it up again. I suspect that I will not even though I still liked it while I was playing it. Or, at least, I won’t pick it up again until my young kids are old enough to care about a golf video game so I have someone to play with.

Dark Alliance feels like many D&D adventures: Sometimes, you gotta slog through some combat in order to learn more about the world and enjoy a good story.

I love Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart because it is a fun and beautiful adventure. It's not about setting you loose to stumble across objectives and side activities across an open-world map. And I love those kinds of games.

I also dig just how much control Tactical Adventures gives you over Solasta’s rules. You have several ways to deal with encumbrance, levels of attack and damage roll modifiers, and skill check rolls. If you want to play and experience the systems and story but not worry about missing skill checks in conversations, you can do that. You can ditch spell concentration rules. Or you can make the AI more merciless, giving them better tactics in combat.

Resident Evil: Village is going to make fans of the franchise happy, especially ones who aren't cowards like me. But even if you also find yourself shying away from the horror genre, I'd encourage you to screw your courage to the sticking place and consider a look at Capcom's latest survival horror stunner.

This lack of variety in the style of play makes every run feel samey, and they begin to blur together. That leads to a roteness that made me want to put down the game when I was struggling with the difficulty. I like challenging games, but roguelites need to walk a fine line between familiarity and routine. Familiarity is the warm embrace of something that feels like home. Routine is boredom, and it is poison for a game like this.

Balan Wonderworld is a $60 game, but I wouldn’t recommend it for even $10. It oscillates between boring and infuriating. The most fun I had with it was when I got costumes that made it feel almost on par with a mediocre Sega Dreamcast platformer in terms of capabilities. The kindest thing I can say about the game is that it does make for an entertaining livestream. I broadcasted my play on Twitch, and my audience seemed to really enjoy watching me suffer. So I guess this is a great one for all those fans of masochism out there. Let’s call it The Room of video games.

It’s not always a perfect combination. A few of the latter puzzles feel needlessly complicated, requiring you to place the objects at pixel-perfect angles to trigger the next area. But that doesn’t take away from how remarkable the game is. Like Portal before it, Maquette redefines what puzzle games are capable of, and I don’t think I’ll be forgetting about these characters any time soon.

I struggle to think of another co-op puzzle game that's better. Maybe Portal 2? Even if that's true, It Takes Two belongs on that same tier.

Much to my surprise, I like Monster Hunter Rise for Switch even more than World.

You can play a lot of 3D Mario games on your Switch. Super Mario 3D World + Bowser’s Fury is just as good as any of them. It contains makes the Wii U game feel better than you remember, and the bonus campaign makes the package one of the best ports Nintendo has brought to the Switch. It’s reshaped my thoughts on 3D World. This is one of the best Mario games ever made.

I'm not sure if you should call Persona 5 Strikers a spinoff or a sequel. Honestly, it feels more like the latter. But if you want to call it a spinoff, it's the best one that the Persona series has offered yet.

When I think of games from Spiders, Cyanide, Piranha Bytes, or Reality Pump, I appreciate how often ambition overcomes limited resources. Their games (such as Gothic, Two Worlds, Greedfall, Of Orcs & Men) may have glitches and fall short of triple-A standards, but they tend to be fun, have good stories, and mechanics and systems that I enjoy interacting with. Werewolf: The Apocalypse has most of these. I enjoyed taking on an evil corporation, learning more about how the Garou fit into The World of Darkness, and tearing my foes about. I won’t hide from that. But just don’t ask me to hide from Endron’s guards again.

Hitman is a world made up entirely of Chekhov's guns, and it's a blast finding out how to get Agent 47 into position to pull the trigger.

I was concerned about Shadowlands and Blizzard development in the COVID era. All those complex systems made a real mess on beta servers near the original game launch date in October. But other than some balance issues — and that core problem with covenant choices — the extra month of development time after the release date delay really gave Blizzard a chance to paint on some polish. The end result stands as one of the very best expansions the game’s ever had.

Not everything about the game is great. There are boring parts, where you’ll wonder why you’re searching for that final clue. While the West Virginia setting is beautiful, the human animations aren’t perfect, and the action is pretty slow. Critics of “walking simulator” games should stay away, especially if all you want from a game is action. If you’re a fan of Dontnod games, however, this one is worth picking up.

I think that Cyberpunk 2077 delivers the big-budget gaming thrills that many people are looking for. But it falls short in a few key areas for me, and a lot of that comes as a byproduct of its ambition.

Empire of Sin has its bugs and some rough cinematic moments. But Romero Games pulled this project off with a team of just 30 people. For a game of its ambition, that seems like a small team. It’s pretty much an indie project, or perhaps “double-A,” compared to other games that are more polished but have hundreds of developers — or even more — working on them. What I also liked was that the game feels smart. I felt like I was playing against other crime bosses who were figuring out how to outthink me or double-cross me. And that’s what you want in a gangster game.

Its attempts at humor may flop, but Immortals succeeds at being a fun and engaging Breath of the Wild clone.

If you’re a seasoned Souls-like fan, then it’s worth picking up a PS5 just for Demon’s Souls. If not, I still recommend having your passport stamped in Boletaria, but know what you’re getting into beforehand and proceed with caution … and plenty of Moon Grass.

I don’t think it’s as good as last year’s Call of Duty: Modern Warfare, which was so disturbing and thoughtful and had an excellent and long single-player campaign.

As cute and clever as its creatures are, the puzzles just aren't deep or interesting enough. Still, I don't dislike Bugsnax.

I'm not sure if a Sony home console has ever had a better PlayStation launch game than Spider-Man: Miles Morales. This certainly beats Knack and Killzone: Whatever the Subtitle Was on PlayStation 4.

Aside from wishing it was longer, Astro's Playroom is an easy recommendation. I mean, if you have a PS5, you have this game anyway. Just play It.

I’m thrilled that I had another great excuse to play through it. And I’m really hoping this is paving the way for a Pikmin 4. Even if you bounced off of Pikmin, I think Nintendo has ironed out a lot of the wrinkles that acted as a barrier for this franchise. The controls are solid and friendly. Even the camera never really causes frustrations. Give this game a shot. It’s worth it. I’m giving Pikmin 3 Deluxe 4 stars.

The original Crash games are classics. For years, it seemed like we'd never get a new game that's as good as they are. But now, I feel safe saying that Crash Bandicoot 4 is the new best game in the series.

Even as a collection of well-done ports, 3D All-Stars feels lacking.

It doesn’t rely on stereotypes or tropes to find easy answers, and it could be a source of comfort to those who can empathize with these problems. That’s why I liked the tale. It treats all of its characters with a kindness and empathy that unsheathes their complexities.

We spent more than an hour playing the game, working up a sweat and having a lot of laughs. If that’s what you like in your VR games, I highly recommend this title.

The end result is a video game that looks, sounds, and feels incredible. And it’s one that should appeal to long-time fans and people who are new to skateboarding entirely.

It doesn’t have that freight train momentum you sometimes feel from other RPGs, where the story gains so much steam you feel like you need to blitz through it, missing out the sidequests and other tidbits that gives games character. Wasteland 3 isn’t asking me to hurry up; it wants me to stay awhile, crack open a beer, and take it on at my pace. And that might be its greatest strength so far. And nothing can shrink that.

If I were to score it now, I’d give it a 5/5. But I’m not quite ready to do that. I need to try out a few more realms — especially one that sets my ruler up for an uphill challenge among fierce rivals. At this point, I do feel confident in saying this is the best Crusader Kings release yet. And I hope it just gets better over time.

I loved my time in the Aegean. The game has its flaws, and I gamed those flaws to find an easier way to victory. But I hope the team can patch the economic systems — or at least explain them — so that it makes more sense. I don’t think they can do anything about the sea battles except to say that this game didn’t have that big a budget. I would also have liked to have some staged battles that laid out the events of The Iliad or the sacking of Troy in a narrative path. But the game can provide fans of the series with many hours of fun. And that’s no small achievement.

This game has every reason to grow into something even more special over time. And it’s starting from a position of strength. The game’s appeal is undeniable to a certain kind of person. I’m somewhere between neophyte and sim veteran, and Microsoft Flight Simulator has won me over. It happened when I picked a flight path from a small, grass airfield in Brazil to an airport in Sao Paulo. It feels so good to learn the characteristics of your plane while watching the sunset give away to a purple sheet of stars. And I’m confident that most people will end up feeling the same way if they’re willing to give the game a chance.

But what I actually want you to take away is that this game works despite itself. You shouldn’t miss out on the characters, writing, and world because a small fraction of the experience doesn’t work. By the end, I had largely forgotten about standard combat. I think this is the rare game that improves as you continue playing. And that culminates in a thrilling finale that comes as a huge payoff for the story. So don’t sit this one out. Pick it up, play through it, complain about it with me, but then stick around for all of its joys.