In the end, The War Within is the expansion that WoW needed. It finally feels like Blizzard is starting to listen to their players. If you used to be a player and enjoyed the first expansions, I recommend giving this latest addition a try. After years of lacklustre content, I’m overjoyed that what was once one of my favorite games has been returned to a state where playing is fun again.

Charming, comedic, and uplifting. The Plucky Squire tells a fantastic hero's journey that works as both an excellent game and a picture book.

Frostpunk 2 is a worthy successor to the original Frostpunk in every single way. It keeps the systems that made the original great while further expanding on the concept by including new governance mechanics that make the game feel fresh and new. It's a must-play for existing Frostpunk fans and a good entry point into the series for newcomers to the franchise.

All in all, if you love games like Goat Simulator, you’ll certainly have fun with Squirrel With a Gun, although the game does not surpass the legendary series.

Space Marine 2 is the ultimate Warhammer 40K experience. It perfectly captures the essence of 40K and transfers it into the action-adventure format. Its three game modes offer countless hours of gameplay and tons of customization options to look forward to. For Warhammer fans, this game is a must-play, and a perfect entry point for those uninitiated into the lore of 40K.

Overall, The Casting Of Frank Stone is thrilling and engaging as a Dead By Daylight player and as a narrative adventure gamer. The gameplay mechanics are simplistic, but that was to be expected with a narrative game such as this. My only gripe is the lack of a ‘skip scene’ feature when replaying certain chapters. If I could skip every scene where Stan is speaking, I would. The Cutting Room feature makes up for a lot of any small annoyances. though. Any missed Trinkets or Relliks can be uncovered later and there are so many more paths to unlock. I look forward to discovering what other horrors await the film crew in The Casting Of Frank Stone.

If you're searching for a new gaming experience emphasizing teamwork and offering innovative game mechanics, highly responsive controls, and outstanding sound design, then Concord is the perfect choice for you. Despite encountering some negative feedback, Concord stands out as an excellent option for replacing other games, including hero shooters, extraction shooters, and battle royales. Additionally, Concord offers a refreshing change by steering clear of overly aggressive microtransactions.

Cat Quest 3 is a simple but exciting action RPG that forgoes the typical epic scale of the genre to focus on short, unique challenges. But while it’s certainly great for short play sessions, its length (about 10 hours), fun recurring characters, and satisfying player progression make it worthwhile beyond those sprouts of action.

SteamWorld Heist 2 is a superb sequel to the first game, building on its merits and offering a thrilling maritime adventure. For aficionados of the genre, the game offers a distinctive and entertaining experience with its intriguing plot, gorgeous art style, and captivating turn-based combat. I was drawn back for more because of the deeper and more varied gameplay offered by the extended crew and highly imaginative environments. For me, SteamWorld Heist 2 isn't an absolute must-play, but if you love pirate stories or tactical strategy games in general, then you'll definitely love this game.

Playing Dungeons of Hinterberg is a fun experience and a nice break from games with darker themes. The artwork, too, adds levity to the feeling of the game. Luisa is a relatable character, too. She went into a career and lived the way she thought was right, but it led to her realizing that she doesn’t actually enjoy how her life turned out, and she decides that slaying monsters is the break she needs to fight off her burnout. All-in-all, I think this is a game worth trying if you enjoy a mix of dungeon diving, action, and social simulation.

It was incredibly difficult to give this game a score. Especially since FFXIV is among my all-time favorite games. The slow first half can’t be ignored as a downside, but the second half does a lot of work towards making up for most of it. The overall result is an expansion that successfully sets up the next 10 years of adventuring. It has some flaws, but it’s still a fun experience and has its own charm. I look forward to seeing where the MSQ goes in patch content leading to the next expansion. If you’re uncertain about this expansion after Endwalker, then I recommend giving it a chance anyway. There’s plenty to enjoy in FFXIV: Dawntrail.

Riven (2024) confidently reimagines the beloved 1997 point-and-click puzzle game, which both long-time Myst franchise fans and newcomers seeking a challenging yet rewarding experience will love.

If you love narrative adventures, coming-of-age stories, or you simply have a special place in your heart for the complexities of adolescence, Until Then is a game absolutely worth playing. While it might not be the most innovative game of 2024, it’s still one of the most narratively compelling, visually striking, and heart-achingly true to life. Even as the world of Until Then twists and breaks down, it never loses sight of the real, human core of its story or the characters that make its world so worth visiting.

Tavern Talk makes you a side character in a fantasy adventure, and that's surprisingly fun!

All that is to say that if you like Elden Ring even a little bit, even after hundreds of hours or a single playthrough, you should get Shadow of the Erdtree. It takes everything that worked about the main game, improves it, and addresses some of the main complaints players had. It’s still very much more Elden Ring, but also the best version of Elden Ring, free of much of the bloat massive open worlds require, reimagined as a focused experience with a distinct narrative throughline and plenty of smaller but no less important side stories worth enjoying. Shadow of the Erdtree is the complete package, bigger and better built than most full games, and the only way to end the story of Elden Ring is on the highest note imaginable.

Nine Sols is a masterfully crafted 2D Sekiro-like Metroidvania that explores a lore-rich Taoism fantasy setting through science fiction elements.

Survival: Fountain of Youth offers a blend of history and survival that makes for an impactful and challenging experience.

Fabledom provides hours of entertainment, but it suffers from the usual drawbacks of a city builder, such as the slow pace and drop in difficulty when you reach a stable point. Adding romance was an interesting choice, but I feel that aspect is held back by the design of city builders in general. That being said, I had fun running my city in the background and coming back to see how much progress was made. Given its design and visuals, Fabledom would be an amazing mobile game.

Little Kitty, Big City is a casual adventure and exploration game done right. Double Dagger’s love for its four-legged protagonist is evident throughout, blending classic platforming elements with an engrossing open world filled to the brim with colorful characters, quests to solve, and items to collect. To that end, the studio’s multi-platform project is bound to keep players charmed and entertained, if only for an afternoon gaming session.

Stunlock Studios has created a smash hit in V Rising. Not only is it a solid survival game, but it introduces creative mechanics to the genre that often depends on tried and true practices. The narrative is primed with areas the dev team can expand into, which I’m really looking forward to.

A refreshing, light-hearted underwater Soulslike adventure with unique combat mechanics centered around different hermit crab shell abilities.

Tales of Kenzera: Zau is an impressively built Metroidvania game that weaves enjoyable gameplay and deep emotional storytelling.

Eiyuden Chronicle: Hundred Heroes has the nostalgic feel of a '90s JRPG but revitalizes the genre with lovable characters and epic strategy sequences.

Rusty’s Retirement was promised as a relaxing, idle farming sim that allows you to do other things simultaneously, and it proves to be all that. Despite being a straightforward game of steady progression and expansion, it’s an addicting process with satisfying results. As a gamer who multitasks quite often, I enjoyed every aspect of this little game and recommend it to anyone who likes to stay extra busy while completing other tasks.

All in all, I love all that Spirit City: Lofi Sessions represents. It gives you a quiet, aesthetic space to stay focused on your work and track your goals and feelings. I appreciated the interactive twist on productivity tools by giving you options for personalization and a challenge to collect all the Spirits. My only downside is — I want more. More background options, more soundscapes to choose from, and more activities to do with the Spirits. If the developers add more content like this, I think Spirit City: Lofi Sessions could be a 10/10 experience that I would use on a daily basis. Either way, I would recommend it to anyone who’s looking for a cozy productivity tool, Lofi music hub, and collection game all in one.

Overall, I found South Park: Snow Day to be an entertaining story with a fun twist on the usual D&D meets dungeon crawler experience. Not to mention, it’s a great option to play with friends. The gameplay was smooth and challenging all the way through, allowing me to change my style by trying different weapons and powers. With all its great features, it becomes instantly replayable. If you’re a South Park fan, it’s a must to try!

I loved Midnight Ghost Hunt, which isn’t surprising because I also liked Prop Hunt a lot in the past. As it is, MGH is a game that’s worth trying out, especially if you’re playing with friends. Since it’s a one-time purchase, I don’t have any issues with playing it, then taking a break and coming back when new content is added. A fair bit of content and patches were added during Early Access, so I expect Midnight Ghost Hunt to continue evolving and improving moving forward.

A sequel done right in the truest sense, improving on everything from epic monster hunting to slaying mechanics while delivering a vast fantasy world.

Last Epoch is an impressive aRPG that features a web of interconnected systems and activities. The game's time in Steam Early Access served its purpose and, rough launch and some rougher edges notwithstanding, it delivers a smooth and enjoyable experience. Not as simple as Diablo 4, and not as complex as Path of Exile, Last Epoch has something for everyone, from the casual dungeon divers to the minmax lovers ready to chase that elusive stat.

At it’s core, New Star GP is an arcade racer. If you revelled in the audacity of Hotshot Racing, then this doesn’t stray too far from that track. There aren’t any big boss bombs, but it does park up with an audacious swagger that invites players to simply jump in and go. The brash colors, silly moustaches, and easy action steering make this an entertaining option, especially when handheld. The magnitude of the Career Mode and the strategic decisions, such as pit stops are meaningful but not obtrusive. New Star GP is just fun! It’s a great mix of ideas, tuned to perfection.

I love Outlast and horror games in general. So, I enjoy The Outlast Trials well enough to recommend it as a solid experience. There’s a lot of room for it to grow yet, but Red Barrels delivers a terrifying game that you can complete the main section of in about four hours if you don’t fail any trials. It’s the kind of game that doesn’t force you to play it constantly, but you can always come back to it and have a good time with friends.

The Thaumaturge successfully delivers a weird and surprising RPG that is filled to the brim with narrative. Whether you’re chasing down demons, or manipulating the minds of the socially elite, you’ll feel the power of the Thaumaturge. With its complex turn-based combat and choice consequence system, there are plenty of opportunities for replayability.

Final Fantasy VII: Rebirth is a masterclass in modernizing one of the most important games ever made, even if its reach sometimes exceeds its grasp.

This is an outstanding return for the King of Iron Fist Tournament. While I have my critiques, they come from someone whose fondest early gaming memories are button-mashing through Tekken 3. I want character customization to be at its best because that’s been one of my favorite features since it was added. I want the stories to hit harder because, as crazy as they are, the characters deserve it. At the end of the day though, none of those negatives are related to the core gameplay. Proper working rollback netcode, crossplay across all platforms, and aggressive Heat Mechanics are what will keep me playing whenever I can. Tekken 8 is pure fun — and that’s what’s most important to me.

Overall, Prince of Persia: The Lost Crown is a refreshing take not just for the long-dormant franchise, but for the modern Metroidvania genre. After completing the campaign in roughly 16 hours (with a bit of side exploration thrown in for good measure), I found it’s approachable for newcomers and presents interesting and engaging challenges for hardcore fans. I can only hope that this leads to bigger sequels down the line.

Do I think The Last of Us 2 Remastered is worth it? Absolutely. At $10, it’s a no-brainer if you want to revisit TLoU2 on PlayStation 5. No Return is the most fun I've had with the game's stealth-action mechanics yet, and the DualSense haptics add depth to gameplay and cutscenes, putting tension on bow strings and adding physical context to dialogue through vibrations. If you’ve never played TLoU2 but have been waiting for the best version of it, this is it, despite the frame drop issues and the limited Making Of content. No Return is worth the price of admission alone.

I was ready to enjoy House Flipper 2, and I really love it. I don’t think it’s perfect. I’d love to see some fine-tuning done through patches, especially with highlighting spots you miss when those spots are small or hidden under objects. I also felt that the Grid and Precision options for placing items were finicky at times, so I’d love to see improvements to that as well so I stop putting items in the wrong places. In the end, if you like simulation games like the first House Flipper or Powerwashing Simulator, then you’ll love House Flipper 2. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have some more renovations to do.

At every turn, Avatar Frontiers is a game that boldly blooms. Each time I stepped away from the world, I found myself wishing to return. Whether I was soaring the skies on my Ikran or running through the forest floor, I was entranced by the world of Pandora. There wasn’t a moment of the game where I didn’t feel I was getting a first-hand experience of a living, breathing alien planet. However, much like James Cameron’s films, the planet’s allure outweighs the substance of the plot. So, while I certainly found myself empathizing with the Na’vi mission and my protagonist’s quest, it felt a bit run of the mill. With that in mind, newcomers to the franchise will experience an elevated hands-on version of Avatar’s initial arrival.

SteamWorld Build has the right balance of complexity and relaxing simplicity.

WarioWare Move It is short but filled with tons of quirky fun to be shared with friends. The Joycons are used in creative ways that'll have you in silly poses as you play through over 200 microgames.

The best compliment I can give Rogue Trader is that it is a faithful love letter to the Warhammer 40K universe. Many of the aspects that fans of 40K want in a CRPG game are here, from various iconic factions to superbly-designed gritty tactical combat. Most story choices feel incredibly meaningful and character-building decisions are usually fun despite a slew of useless Talents. I’d say Owlcat’s Warhammer 40K Rogue Trader can even offer a competent fight against Baldur’s Gate 3, which is saying a lot. That narrative consequences & agency system combined with a highly customizable ground & ship combat is just that good.

Super Mario RPG has officially taken Super Mario Wonder’s spot for being the most lighthearted and delightfully quirky game I’ve played this year. The lovely characters, goofy villains, and vibrant world offer so much fun to be had. It’s also frequently funny, a testament to how enjoyable and unserious the writing is. As someone playing the game for the first time, I felt nostalgic for a time when games felt as light as laughter and as warm as a good hug. Overall, it holds up today, which I think would be true even without the updated visuals, since at its core, Super Mario RPG is simply timeless.

Hopoo’s overall passionate reputation, the improved codebase, and eventual seamless updates give me hope. The biggest compliment I can give Returns is that it made the original on par with Risk of Rain 2. It’s just a matter of preference between 2D and 3D combat. While it’s an improved blast from the past for solo play, Returns truly shines for those who want to experience a better 2013 version with up to four friends. It’s a superbly redesigned original with excellent online multiplayer content akin to RoR2.

Overall, puzzler fans will find a lot to love with The Talos Principle 2. It’s thoughtful, hopeful, and adventurous with both its puzzles and its narrative. With new companions and mechanics, it expands upon the experience of the original. Additionally, it pushes its design with the same imagination that it encourages you to use all throughout. Perhaps the best thing of all is you don’t need to be a puzzling genius to enjoy this game. All you need is a little curiosity.

Overall, Return to Moria is a solid entry in the survival genre. It has some unique gameplay mechanics that are fun to explore, while the Middle-Earth setting lets a dedicated fanbase venture into the world in a new way. Aside from bugs that will hopefully be resolved in soon-to-come updates, I can see it being a staple among players. I know it holds a solid spot in my survival rotation.

It plays well, it’s got a lot to say and it’s toying with its own narrative in unique, fascinating ways. We’ll be talking about Alan Wake 2 for years to come.

Ghostrunner 2 is a solid step up from its predecessor with the same excellent yet refined gameplay.

Although Basim isn't the most interesting protagonist, he's likable and has an eager charm. The stealth mechanics are solid; however, the parkour can sometimes feel sluggish and almost choppy. The missions are fun, letting you tackle them in multiple ways depending on your play style, too. This doesn't quite have the agency of Valhalla, for example, but there's enough freedom to give that illusion. Assassin's Creed Mirage is a step in the right direction for the series and a solid entry. Old and new fans don't want to miss out on this tale of Baghdad.

Overall, despite some criticisms, Forza Motorsport is more than worth your time. Developer Turn 10 Studios has crafted what is an exemplary racing experience. It feels faithful to the games that have come before it while also improving on an already working formula. Even if the career mode isn't as meaty as I'd like (and really, who cares?), there's something to be said about a game that's so fundamentally sound it brings you back to simpler times. Indeed, it makes you feel wildly free.

If you liked the Resident Evil 4 remake, Separate Ways is deliberately more of the same. It trades some of the main game’s raw action for a greater emphasis on stealth, puzzles, and clever movement, which mostly works in its favor. The grapple gun alone is arguably worth the surprisingly low price of admission.

Phantom Liberty is Cyberpunk 2077 at its best. All in all, I was very impressed by both Phantom Liberty and the 2.0 update to Cyberpunk 2077. Do they revolutionize the game or make it the second coming of heaven we all expected back in 2020? No, not even close. Are they going to change people’s minds about the game? Absolutely not. But if you enjoyed the base game even a little bit, I can wholeheartedly recommend Phantom Liberty‘s price tag.

Unfortunately, the new single-player mode has quite a few annoying elements, and online play needs some fixing. The good news is that both of these can be tuned and fixed in the future. Even as they are now, I still think this is a fantastic time to jump into the new timeline and crush some literal skulls.

Lies of P has a horror aesthetic that makes this iteration of Pinocchio unique. The subtle world-building is great for those who look for it, but those who try to just rush through the story can miss out. The truly scary part of Lies of P is the combat. Boss battles can be cruel and frustrating sometimes, even feeling unfair due to the controls that are hard to master. But if you stick through it, it’s an incredibly rewarding experience. Souls fans shouldn’t sleep on Lies of P.

If you’re looking for a fast-paced, highly customizable, punishing but fun mech action game, there’s no other game on the market I can recommend more than Armored Core 6. Its few foibles are easy enough for me to forgive, and if you can break through some of its early walls, I guarantee you will find a magical experience unlike anything else on the market right now.

Overall, Sea of Stars is a phenomenal entry into the turn-based RPG genre. The story vastly expands on the world first introduced in The Messenger. It’s gripping through all aspects of gameplay, from the characters to the areas you explore. It does have its detriments, but those are far outshined by the overall experience presented. It’s a solid game with hours of content to entertain you with.

Overall, Starfield leans heavily on Bethesda’s expertise with past titles, magnified tenfold due to the sheer size, scale, and scope, yet equally hampered by the same facets. While there are a lot of things you can do as you venture forth and boldly go into the unknown, exploration can feel unrewarding as most planets feel empty. Nevertheless, once you’re done with various faction quests and the main story, there’s New Game+ to look forward to, as well as community-made mods in the future.

The Texas Chain Saw Massacre is a triumphant asymmetrical horror experience. It delivers ample amounts of tension and emergent gameplay moments while feeling reasonably balanced for either victims or the family. The developers’ passion oozes through every crevice, resulting in an unforgettable multiplayer game that’s as exciting to play as it must have been to work on for such hardcore fans of the genre and the original 1974 film. As long as Sumo Nottingham can address its content scarcity and technical makeup within a reasonable amount of time, The Texas Chain Saw Massacre has plenty of staying power.

A perfect entry point for newcomers, and a delightful return for experienced players.

Remnant 2 is a proper sequel, both fun and frustrating.

If what you’re looking for is a quick burst of arcade action, or just a decent action game you can jump into and play for 10 to 20 minutes, Gaiden’s got you covered. It doesn’t have quite as much depth as something like Streets of Rage 4, but its crowd-control mechanics are an entertaining addition to the basic beat-’em-up formula.

When I play Story of Seasons: A Wonderful Life, I feel the enchantment of nostalgia, but it’s mixed with the fresh features and looks of being remade. If you like farming sims, particularly the old Harvest Moon games before the name change, then I highly recommend Story of Seasons: A Wonderful Life. Marvelous Inc. took an iconic farming simulator and managed to make it even better.

My tastes have changed over the years, and I neglected certain franchise titles in that time. However, despite its missteps, I can wholeheartedly say Final Fantasy 16 managed to bring together in one title the things I loved about the earlier series’ entries, all while making most of the experience fresh and entertaining. The grim-dark tone, spectacular “kaiju battles,” and grandiose transformations with over-the-top action kept me entertained.

Nothing in Amnesia: The Bunker feels like a waste of time except a strangely out-of-place final boss encounter. And though it’s a shame Frictional Games couldn’t muster up a spookier atmosphere to elevate the experience to its zenith, this is still an A-plus horror experience that all fans should play.

For every great thing Street Fighter 6 does — and there’s a lot of them — there’s some flaw, some annoyance, or a ridiculous microtransaction system. If you’re looking for a 2D fighting game to play online or with your friends, Street Fighter 6 is one of the best around. But almost everything around the fighting itself is flawed in a way it probably shouldn’t be. The fight is all, but we shouldn’t have to deal with all of this other stuff to enjoy it.

Diablo 4 feels like a statement game from Blizzard, a “we’re back” for anyone who was concerned after Diablo 3’s rough launch and the middling reception to Diablo Immortal. It’s the sequel to Diablo 2 people have been waiting for, and it doesn’t disappoint. Diablo 4 is a game about legacies, so it’s fitting that in developing it, Blizzard has re-solidified the franchise’s — and its own.

There’s a lot about System Shock that still feels like it’s almost 30 years old, and most of the updates that Nightdive has made are in the service of making it feel like it’s “only” almost 25. It’s outdated mechanically, narratively, and visually, all of which was clearly in the service of making SS23 feel like a lost retro classic. It’s still one of the most tense experiences in any game this year, and most of its decisions only work in its favor. Citadel Station doesn’t make sense, and that’s part of what makes it dangerous. If you can deal with that, and if you enjoy this sort of nail-biting, razor’s-edge gameplay, System Shock 2023 is well worth your time.

It transcends its hardware, the genre in which it operates, and the series that spawned it. It’s a masterpiece. It’s Zelda. And I can’t wait to see how Nintendo tries to top it.

There’s plenty of content to fight through in Darkest Dungeon 2. The team at Red Hook Studios kicked up their creativity to give us a fresh take on an already beloved game. The new mechanics make this seem like a completely new experience instead of the second title in a series. While the original was a hit, Darkest Dungeon 2 is a slam dunk of a sequel.

For a game made in three years (most of that time as a completely remote team), the scale and ambition of Star Wars Jedi: Survivor is most impressive. The feeling that Respawn is pushing the boundaries of the Unreal Engine past its breaking point is prevalent and demonstrable in the numerous performance issues and bugs, so you might want to wait to pick this up until many of the fixable issues have been addressed.

Age of Wonders 4 brings the franchise back to its fantasy roots, offering a robust system that lets you go all-out with customization. Whether you’re out to role-play based on your selections or min-max to come up with game-breaking setups, you’re bound to spend numerous hours just trying out new strategies.

Advance Wars’ tone doesn’t always work, but I’m a different person now than I was 20 years ago, and the world is a much different, much stranger, and often much scarier place. I don’t know that you could make the original game today, at least not as it is. But I appreciate how its sequel grapples with the complicated subject matter, even if there are no easy answers to the questions I’m sure Nintendo would rather we didn’t ask.

For those looking for more of Aloy’s story, this is the DLC for you. Not only is there tons of character development for Aloy, we also find out more about the Zeniths, as well as Nemesis, both important plot points for the potential next game in the series. For fans of the series, Burning Shores is an investment in the story of the game, as well as the world Aloy is fighting to save.

Atelier Ryza 3 improves upon its predecessors in a warm sendoff to Ryza and friends.

The Resident Evil 4 remake is a tighter, more engaging version of the 2005 original. On the surface, the game still resembles its original form much more than something like Final Fantasy 7 Remake or even 2019’s re-imagination of Resident Evil 2. But what we’ve got with Resident Evil 4 is a kind of remake we haven’t seen from Capcom in quite some time.

Horizon Call of the Mountain is a really good VR experience. It looks great, controls well, and the free-climbing concept is well executed. It’s a nice adaptation of the Horizon world into VR. It’s a shame the experience isn’t a bit meatier; it would have done well with a more fleshed-out combat system in particular. Still, the fact that I didn’t want to stop playing, even as my arms began to ache, is a sure sign that this is a fun experience. It’s maybe not a must-have system seller, but anyone who invests in a PSVR 2 would should give Horizon Call of the Mountain a playthrough.

The Legend of Heroes: Trails to Azure still plays incredibly well in 2023. The story and gameplay still hold up over a decade later even if its presentation doesn’t look the best at first glance. The political nuances and events in the game allow you to immerse yourself in the world—it makes you feel like you’re a part of something bigger. Any JRPG fan would be remiss not to pick up Azure.

Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty is a game that lives up to its legacy. Team Ninja's latest features a healthy dose of demanding and oftentimes punishing action that will certainly cause many players to bounce off in frustration. That's more than understandable. In fact, if I wasn't reviewing the game, that very well could have been me. To Team Ninja's credit, though, I'm glad I've seen it through. Wo Long: Fallen Dynasty has provided hours of excellently crafted levels that will test your wits and dexterity. Just know what you are getting yourself into.

From the story and the karakuri to the kemono monsters themselves, Wild Hearts has some world-class mechanics and writing behind it. It falters in a few important places as well, especially regarding performance, but that doesn’t mean it’s not worth your time and money. If you love taking down fantastical beasts of every shape and size, this time in a world inspired by feudal Japan, there’s no substitute.

Theatrhythm Final Bar Line is one of the finest rhythm games of all time. Even if you don’t have a special attachment to the Final Fantasy series, you’re still bound to connect with this game on some level. It’s impossible not to with some of the most iconic, exciting, and evocative songs in all of gaming. It helps that such memorable tracks are backed up by the franchise's most engaging and complex gameplay to date.

With enhanced graphics and modern controls, Metroid Prime is well worth playing (or replaying) on the Switch.

After Three Houses' gripping tale of political intrigue, it's certainly a little disappointing to see the series take a step backward narratively, but Fire Emblem Engage does enough well that it's not a huge drawback. Moving forward, if the franchise can combine the ideas of Three Houses and Engage, it could result in something truly special.

I can't imagine any of Hi-Fi RUSH getting old. It's so vibrant, so full of life, and so unique. It stands out in a world where many AAA releases seem determined to be anything but. Add in the replay value of chasing high scores and Rhythm Tower, which functions a lot like Devil May Cry's Bloody Palace mode, and this is a game that you can play for a long time.

The Dead Space remake fixes a lot of the 2008 original's problems, but leaves a couple of big ones right where they were.

So far as remasters go, this is up there with the best of them. Faithful to a fault, gorgeous, and updated just enough to bring a great, if dated, game back into relevance. Conflict resolved.

Darktide is a fantastic live service co-op FPS that is almost worth every penny. Almost. I love it to death, and it's ramping up to be one of my most played games of 2022, but it's not perfect. It will surely become one of the titans of the genre just like Vermintide and its sequel, but it's got a long way to go.

Midnight Suns is a salad with nice dressing and some juicy steak over cheap iceberg lettuce: I'm not here for the lettuce, but I'll certainly eat it as long as it means I get the steak. It's one of the best tactics games of the last five years.

Evil West has done something fairly remarkable by dragging the sort of shlocky, B-tier, 360-era action games into 2022 with basically all of the quality-of-life upgrades you’d expect from a modern title. This is how you remember games of 10-odd years ago, as opposed to how they actually play now.

It’s a satisfying conclusion to the modern God of War saga, but it’s hard to walk away and not feel like this could have been something greater.

Always fast and sometimes furious, Sonic Frontiers gives me a sense of wonder I haven't had with the 3D portion of the franchise in a decade, and it does so with the sort of flair I want from Sonic Team. It's not perfect, but it is a huge spin dash in the right direction for the Blue Blur. The next game needs to build on what Sonic Team has put together here because this is a formula with long legs.

Tactics Ogre remains one of the most imaginative and engrossing tactical RPGs ever made, and this is easily the best version of the game to date. If you happened to miss any of the past iterations of Tactics Ogre, there's never been a better time to jump in, and hopefully, this means the franchise still has a future.

Simple is an overall theme for Among Us VR. At launch, the game lacks most of the advanced modes and options of the core game and only comes with one map. That said, when the original launched, it was just as limited in scope, and we expect regular updates in VR to make this version just as robust. Even with just the single map, this is a superb Among Us experience.

Developer rose-engine’s debut is a near masterwork in a much-missed mode of horror gaming.

Sparks of Hope is a strong sequel that isn't afraid to reinvent the tactical foundation laid by the first Mario + Rabbids game.

Terrifying and unique, Saturnalia delivers almost everything you could want from an indie horror game in a single stylish and accessible package.

Gotham Knights is a surprising game. On the surface, it looks like a lesser knockoff of the Batman games that came before, but underneath that rough exterior is a well-crafted action RPG with outstanding co-op, engaging characters, and a story worth taking time to enjoy.

A Plague Tale: Requiem is a superb sequel that fixes or improves nearly everything from the original while telling one of the most emotionally harrowing stories of the year.

The DioField Chronicle is a unique strategy RPG that tries something truly new in the genre, even if it stumbles a bit along the way.

Temtem may look like Pokemon on the surface, but a deep battle system and engaging PvP elements make up for the similarities.