While I don't think Tides of Tomorrow rises to the same narrative highs as Road 96, its primary incentive is a great draw. It's a little weird to want to stalk other players through a digital world, watching and listening to their every move in order to better your own lot in life, but it's a compelling enough gameplay loop that I overlooked the shortcomings in the game's story and non-player characters. And even if I don't plan on playing the game again, it warms my heart to know that my digital ghost is now out there, potentially guiding other Tidewalkers that may need a little help.

Right now, though, Pokemon Champions provides two different experiences for seasoned players and newcomers respectively--and unfortunately for newcomers, it's an uneven one that will require a lot of their own dedication and time to improve. Perhaps the barrier to entry for competitive Pokemon can never be smashed entirely, but Champions wears it down, and those willing to push through it will find one of the most thrilling competitive games on the other side.

Even if we're not seeing the members of Cadence band blend their sounds together much in the story, we at least can see it happen during combat. And while that combat drags a bit in the last act of the game and messes with your mind by not matching the tempo of the quick-time inputs to the background battle music, the turn-based system that's there rewards creativity and strategic thinking. Plus, this game has awesome music and fun puzzle-filled dungeons. If you're down to immerse yourself in puns galore and tons of pop-culture references, People of Note is a delightful musical treat.

Darwin's Paradox is short but densely packed with variety. Revolving around an octopus is a stroke of brilliance on the part of developer ZDT Studio, since it gives you a wide array of traversal options and abilities that extend naturally from what any child knows about the marine animal. Those options make the whole adventure move briskly as you rotate between different types of puzzle and platforming challenges without ever lingering on one for too long. It's a strong debut for Darwin and for ZDT, and I hope we see more from both of them.

Altogether, Super Mario Bros. Wonder + Meetup at Bellabel Park gets my qualified recommendation. If you're primarily interested in single-player Mario platforming, and especially if you've already played through the Mario Wonder campaign, this upgrade gets you a fun but short series of creative Koopaling boss fight stages, a bunch of challenge stages, an additional power-up, and new build options thanks to the Dual Badges. Those are all nice to have, but they don't offer a lot of playtime in isolation. For those of us who have a household full of Mario fans to play with, or if you want to go online, it's a rollicking good time full of chaotic multiplayer action. This isn't quite what I expected out of a Switch 2 upgrade for Mario Wonder, but like the core game's Wonder effects, it kept finding ways to surprise me.

Crimson Desert is a frequently thrilling game, elevated by an open world well worth exploring and hard-hitting combat that delights with its depth and emphasis on player expression. It might not always be the most cohesive game, mixing high fantasy with steampunk and sci-fi elements, but there's nothing else quite like it, and I can't help but be impressed by how little restraint Pearl Abyss has shown in its commitment to delightful absurdity. In some respects, Crimson Desert might not be too good to be true, but it's a world worth getting lost in.

Regardless of which version you own, Legacy of Kain: Defiance Remastered is an excellent remaster of a flawed but decent game. The story is the main event, concluding the Soul Reaver saga with one of the best-written, acted, and scored games of all time. The addition of a free-flowing camera and enhanced navigation improves upon the original experience and makes it more playable for a modern audience, while the sheer amount of archival, behind-the-scenes content is a boon for fans. Some notable flaws still persist, but if you have any reverence for the original game or have recently played through Soul Reaver 1&2 for the first time, adding Defiance to the collection is a no-brainer.

Scott Pilgrim EX is Millennial comfort food. It's reminiscent of both actual classic games from the 1980s and the 2010 homage, it's bursting with small nods to our favorite games and movies and shows, and it just feels great to play. It's not especially daring, but it goes down smooth, and sometimes that's enough.

There are things to like and even possibly love about God of War: Sons of Sparta. The combat system is smart and layered, the visual style is often beautiful, and the story eventually becomes surprisingly rich. But it's difficult to recommend, because so much of the metroidvania design--the core of the genre that Kratos has found himself in--is like that frozen wasteland: slowly plodding through, just trying to reach the next warm spot where it's fun again.

High On Life 2 may falter in a few key areas, and not everything connects--whether it's a drawn-out gag or a timid shotgun blast--but it stands out in a genre where the self-serious shooter is usually king, by offering an outlandish, comical, and creative alternative. The addition of a skateboard is a literal game-changer, and there's plenty of joy to be had seeing what exactly each mission entails. Its influences are overt, yet it has an identity all its own, and there are definitely worse ways to spend a weekend.

I wanted to like Crisol: Theater of Idols so badly. The atmosphere of the shooter is delightfully spooky, and the Spanish influences make for a narrative backdrop and lore that you want to sink your teeth into. But too often, Crisol is held back by its gameplay. The blood-for-bullets mechanic adds some fun strategic depth, but the overall experience is held back by repetitive enemy design and arena layouts. Better single-player first-person shooters can be found elsewhere.

There's a line of dialogue I encountered a few hours into Romeo Is a Dead Man that summed up the experience for me. "Embrace the chaos, Dead Man," a character told me. "Meaning is nowhere. And there is nothing without meaning." It's a piece of doublespeak that cancels itself out, and similarly the game struggles to imbue its own chaos with anything that would give it a stronger sense of meaning, like deeper combat or an engaging story. Suda51 is an artist with a recognizable aesthetic, and his fingerprints are evident on this game too, but what's missing is a sense of a larger vision for the game. . Sometimes it's charming or funny, but these moments are fleeting, and artistic flair does not cancel out the tedium of the game's combat and exploration. . It's not a tragedy on the scale of the real Romeo and Juliet, but this is one Dead Man I'm not inclined to mourn.

After hitting the credits to both portions of the game, I felt like the Yakuza series is currently at an impasse. Unnecessary story changes, questionable and problematic casting choices, visual homogenization, and uneven content changes plague the latest remake. This means that, in the grand scheme of things, there's a noticeable fatigue in re-experiencing minigames and more shallow renditions of the activities that made the series' resurgence so captivating with Yakuza 0. Getting to the end, in a way, took me back to the beginning, remembering Kiryu's walk in the cemetery. The scene symbolizes the culmination of a specific time and place for the series--one that's currently unable to shake off its phantoms.

Dragon Quest VII: Reimagined slims down and modernizes a notoriously bloated classic RPG, though its anthology structure still feels overlong.

All of these issues hinder a game that only occasionally rises above its weaknesses. The story can be compelling when focusing on its ill-fated characters, and the combat is enjoyable in specific circumstances, particularly when experimenting with the varied tools at your disposal. But Code Vein 2's shortcomings are too frequent to look past. Combat and exploration are hampered by dull enemies and wearisome environments, while technical issues only exacerbate its flaws. The soulslike genre has evolved since the original Code Vein launched in 2019, yet the forward-thinking shift to an open world hasn't prevented its sequel from suffering the same familiar blemishes.

Bluey's Quest for the Gold Pen isn't likely to sustain an adult's interest like the hit animated show has. The movement is just a little too slow, and the puzzles are just a little too simplistic. But that's also what makes it a great introduction for younger players who need a gentle onboarding experience. And for them, they get to have that introduction wrapped in a lovely art style and funny, heartwarming story that captures the spirit of their favorite cartoon dogs.

Those with few qualms about duration will find a game made with evident love and affection for both the source material and the moment in time it was released. Its music is excellent--with perhaps the best rendition of the Terminator 2 theme to date--aiding the game's visuals in its mission to transport you back to a time when blowing into cartridges and inserting coins were the norm. Whether it's the T-1000's haunting fluidity of movement, Sarah Connor's one-armed reloading of a pump action shotgun, or the way the T-800 clambers onto the hood of a semi-truck to unload an entire magazine into its windshield, Terminator 2D: No Fate recreates the movie's most memorable moments with pitch-perfect authenticity. It's a shame it ends far too soon, but this is still the definitive Terminator 2 video game.

Marvel Cosmic Invasion is, fittingly, a loving tribute to the superhero side-scrollers of old. Experimenting with different teams in each stage offers a good amount of replay value, even if the same stages and enemies can grow tiresome after a while. The collectibles and challenges in each stage offer some nice extra incentives, and the depth of the source material will appeal to Marvel fans, new and old. The only thing Marvel Cosmic Invasion is missing, really, is Colossus's "whoooooaaaaa" sound effect from X-Men: The Arcade Game--though I suspect players will be saying "whoa" plenty of times while playing this terrific retro romp.

More than anything, Constance is a beautiful game. Its hand-drawn art style makes for one of the prettiest games I've seen all year, and the platforming gauntlets it puts you through make those sights more rewarding. While its narrative elements fall short and a chase sequence proves more annoying than challenging, the overall experience is a rewarding platformer with entertaining boss battles. Not a bad choice if you're looking for a way to take out your frustrations on several manifestations of burnout.

Overall, the multiplayer package is really strong in Black Ops 7. The movement is fun and fluid, the gunplay is as satisfying as ever, and the map designs greatly improve the experience from last year. Combined with the smaller quality-of-life change and the futuristic themes, and Black Ops 7 feels like a fresh experience that avoids any dreaded fatigue...Ashes of the Damned implements some ambitious ideas for Zombies that largely succeed. The map is massive and refreshingly atmospheric, there are thrilling new enemy encounters, and the traversal elements with Ol' Tessie separate the experience from more traditional maps. Ashes of the Damned excels as a cooperative experience, while Vandorn Farm's survival map offers a fun way to have a solo or more condensed experience. Either way, Black Ops 7 provides enjoyable ways to slay the undead.

Football Manager 26's overhauled UI simply feels like change for the sake of change. Its functionality is worse, several key features are missing, and bugs only exacerbate the issues. After a two-year wait, it's an unfortunate outcome, giving the impression that the delay wasn't long enough. There's definite potential here with the new tactical interface and match engine, and if you could combine these aspects with the previous UI, you'd have one of the best games in the series. Instead, the revamped UI's problems and inherent frustrations are too big to ignore. Such a vast undertaking is commendable, especially for an annual sports game, but its missteps are many and mostly lead to disappointment.

Ball x Pit shines brightest when it's letting you loose on enemies ahead of you, and giving you the tools to concoct your own brand of unstoppable chaos to fill the screen. It's easy to move from one run to the next when you're filling just a handful of minutes with thousands of enemy kills, accentuated by bright explosions and dizzying particle effectsBut your momentum can also be frequently halted by the vital town management moments in between them. Progression through Ball x Pit's campaign can feel uneven as a result, but, that's easy to overlook when the majority of the runs you embark on carry the potential to both surprise and delight in equal measure, with enough variety to keep the action in your final hours with the game as grin-inducing as your first.

A few issues hold it back, but Hyrule Warriors: Age of Imprisonment marks a high point for the spin-off series, iterating on its riotous hack-and-slash combat with depth and variety.

Ultimately, my feelings toward Dragon Quest I & II HD Remake boil down to "Would I recommend it over DQIIIHD or Dragon Quest XI? Well… no." Both of those games are far better experiences for both new and old DQ fans. That's not to say DQI&IIHD lack any value--there's good times to be had, especially with DQII. You're not forced to play either of the games before enjoying the other, so if you just want to play one, you're free to do so. But the games don't quite stack up compared to other recent Dragon Quests, even with all the new bells and whistles, and Dragon Quest I's remake in particular feels like a lot of wasted potential. But if you're looking for another source for that distinct Dragon Quest flavor of turn-based charm and whimsy, there's certainly nothing wrong with revisiting these two adventures.

Plants Vs. Zombies is a beloved classic, and Replanted shows that it's for good reason. The classic gameplay is still just as engaging, and the new modes will keep seasoned gardeners on their toes. While a few aspects of this remaster feel a little low-effort, it's just nice to have the classic game back and playable in a modern context. Now that it's easy to do, I expect I'll keep tending to my garden.

PowerWash Sim originally owed a lot of its success to the pandemic. It was an awesome hangout game at a time when everyone was just sort of... hanging out. PowerWash Sim 2 arrives in a different world than its predecessor, though the gameplay at the heart of the series is essentially timeless; it's a lot of fun even without a pandemic forcing us into taking fake jobs for fake money. Before the end of the game, I was looking to change careers, but there will surely be times in the future when I'm itching to get back to it, too. Maybe PowerWash Simulator 2 is best approached as a game where you're your own boss, working on your own schedule. If you can avoid burnout and work as a team with a few friends, it's a good gig.

This more or less reflects Bloodlines 2 as a whole: sometimes charming, other times, not so much. There is a lot here that is great; I loved the narrative, the characters, the drama, and the sheer power fantasy of it all. At the same time, it's one of the more unpolished games I've reviewed, and definitely lacks the same level of ambition, scope, choice, and general tightness of other modern RPGs. Oftentimes, I found myself thinking that Bloodlines 2 is a great game in spite of itself--which really only makes it a pretty good game, ultimately.

Battlefield 6 is a return to form, even if it doesn't reach the same highs as the series at its peak. The campaign is as lackluster as expected, and the multiplayer maps are only ever decent at best, but there's still a chaotic and super-satisfying shooter here that offers multiplayer thrills unlike any other. Even if you're not racking up kills by the dozens, you're still rewarded for contributing in other ways, and you're never too far away from being in the middle of a histrionic Battlefield moment. It might be a familiar experience, but Battlefield 6 clearly understands what makes the series so appealing.

Pokemon Legends: Z-A is a fitting end to the Switch 1-era Pokemon games. Like Legends: Arceus and Scarlet and Violet, it takes some surprising risks, but it looks rough doing so. Game Freak's decision to overhaul the battle mechanics for the first time since Pokemon's inception is admirable, and it ultimately paid off. But after five 3D Pokemon games, it's frustrating how far behind Pokemon is when it comes to its presentation. It feels like the last piece missing to really bring Pokemon into the future.

Little Nightmares 3 is faithful to the series under its new leading studio at Supermassive Games. The team, already a well-respected name in horror, carries Tarsier's torch well, though it sometimes feels too deferential to the past games, failing to raise the bar both in puzzle and monster design. This is a good sequel that I'm glad to have made the time for, but if there's to be another trip into this world of tiny terrors, it'll first need a refill of nightmare fuel.

There are flaws on and off the pitch, yet this is the best the series has been for a short while. It might not walk away with a trophy this year, but it's getting closer to glory.

Blippo+ feels like an art school project that broke containment and went international. What the team has done with a seemingly shoestring budget makes for a laudable DIY effort. Calling this a game could mislead some users, given it's really more like a '90s-colored cable TV package without any on-demand features. It's interactive, yes, but only in the way one's TV was in the mid-'90s. This sort of experience is sure to be unlike anything else you've ever played--and for younger players, anything they've even experienced in the first place--though a significant number of people will surely come out of it more confused than amused. Still, if you can match Blippo's vibe, you may find yourself homesick for another world.

Altogether, Sonic Racing CrossWorlds is a solid package. The single-player modes, meta-goals like collecting gear and vehicle parts, and wealth of customization options to experiment with different play styles, make it easy to recommend for players who like their kart racing with a little more mechanical complexity. Even with slightly underwhelming online offerings, it's easy to see how Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds has plenty of road ahead of it.

Claws of Awaji is a difficult recommendation, but I do recommend it. The DLC wraps up the three lingering narrative threads of the main game's story, while transforming the main gameplay loop into a more enjoyable cat-and-mouse formula where the hunter becomes the hunted. Yasuke continues to drag this experience down, and is now impacting the emotional payoff of Naoe's story, but at least Naoe's shinobi fantasy is still one of the best Assassin's Creed experiences to date.

For what it is, MM is a solid title, but the terseness of the game and the limited graphics and sound make evident that it could have been so much more, transcending the decent game it is now to become a truly excellent one.

All in all, if uncovering loot, crafting builds, and unleashing chaotic mayhem is what you're looking for, Borderlands 4 has you covered. It's the most mechanically sound Borderlands game to date, and the various Vault Hunters each present an entertaining opportunity to tackle the game in a different way. Just maybe find a good podcast or video essay to fill the moments between the shooting and looting. The game's story and characters aren't strong enough to hold your attention on their own, and the game's combat begins to drag once you've seen all the enemy types there are to see.

What it may lack in scope, The Order of Giants makes up for with some of the best and most inventive puzzles in the game. It's disappointing that we didn't get another expansive environment to explore, but this is still an engaging mini-adventure that's rich in lore and quintessentially Indy. Those playing The Great Circle for the first time might appreciate the detour a lot more, but putting on that wide-brimmed fedora again still feels great (if only I could get John Williams' theme music out of my head).

While I was left dissatisfied by the narrative conclusion of Hell is Us, its journey to that point was pleasantly engaging. It was refreshing to not just follow a quest marker through a story, but also a relief that I was never spun around for hours on end wondering where I needed to go next. This balance is what made traversing Hadea and experiencing all the horrors it contained a rewarding one, making each new step feel earned rather than routine. It's backed up by an imperfect but engaging combat system that's only let down by some shallow enemy variety and imprecise control, but never to the point of outright frustration. If Hell is Us is developer Rogue Factor's first stab at a new type of third-person action game and although it's less revolutionary than the initial promise might suggest, it is one that still managed to stay surprising until the end.

The fundamental problem with Drag X Drive: It's not very fun to play, because the controls are alternatively exhausting, imprecise, or both. Even pulling off the trick shots that give the game its personality and nuance requires getting up to top speed, which means navigating finicky tiring controls and avoiding bumping into other players. This is a great game for showing off what the Switch 2 can do conceptually, but it doesn't make a good case for why you'd actually want to do it for very long.

With some caveats, I'd recommend Discounty. The story will make you regularly feel like you're the bad guy in all this, and technically you are even if it's no fault of your own. But it's easy to ignore the riffraff and the trouble you're causing your fellow citizens in your constant pursuit of bringing a factory-level of efficiency to your growing supermarket, and driving up profits for the sole purpose of buying upgrades that will let you drive profits even further. Maybe Stardew Valley's JojaMart had the right idea after all.

Quotation forthcoming.

Mafia: The Old Country is at its best when things slow down, letting you take in all the sights and sounds of Sicily. Like previous Mafia games, it nails the look and feel of its real-world counterpart by investing heavily in the details. Unfortunately, generic gameplay and dated mission design hold Mafia: The Old Country back, making it feel like a relic of the early 2010s.

Despite everything I've just said, I didn't have a terrible time with Shadow Labyrinth. There are way too many frustrating moments, the story is mind-numbingly dull, and a lot of what you're doing is monotonous. Yet, for long periods, it's also merely just fine. It's a by-the-numbers metroidvania woven together with an occasional Pac-Man remix. An odd combination, for sure, and one I wish had a better game built around it, but at least we'll always have that one Secret Level episode.

Overall, The Edge of Fate is far from the worst expansion that has been released during Destiny 2’s tenure, but as the direct successor to 2024’s phenomenal The Final Shape, it falls short. It reuses old assets, fails to impress with its new environments and mechanics, and the main story seems to stop just as it’s about to get interesting. Of course, that’ll be fleshed out through the year’s updates and seasonal content, but with a distinct lack of anything exciting to do now, I fear I’m on the brink of another involuntary Destiny 2 hiatus.

I imagine most players will quit shortly after having completed Dune: Awakening's main story and arriving at the Deep Desert. But that doesn't mean all the hours prior to reaching the endgame aren't worth experiencing or aren't enjoyable. Funcom has turned Herbert's legendary sci-fi planet of Arrakis into a captivating video game setting. Part story-driven RPG, MMO, survival base-builder, sci-fi helicopter simulator, and third-person shooter, Dune: Awakening is a multi-headed hydra of experiences that, somehow, coalesces into a largely satisfying whole. While it suffers from a serious lack of variety when it comes to enemies and activities, and its endgame as of writing is a largely pointless endeavor with no real goal to strive for, Dune: Awakening nonetheless succeeds at bringing the universe of Dune to life in a way never before seen. When the Spice is flowing, it's easy to lose oneself to the rhythms of Dune: Awakening's desert for hours at a time. Just take care not to attract Shai-Hulud.

Underneath all of the micro- and macrotransactions, lewd gazing, cluttered menus, and the overwhelming hawking of cosmetics and other items, Mecha Break is a decent multiplayer game featuring a bunch of cool and distinct mechs that clash in frequently thrilling battles. It's a shame that everything surrounding its hectic action sours the experience, and the lack of meaningful customization is a notable oversight, but Operation Verge is a good time and worth checking out, even if you only have a fleeting interest in giant robots slapping the paint off each other.

With missing features, server issues, and some gameplay quirks that need to be ironed out, in many ways, Rematch feels like an early-access game. Its foundation is strong, though, capturing the chaotic energy of playing football with your school pals. It's disorganised at times, and the people you're playing with might be frustrating, but there are very few moments when you're not having fun. It's a different kind of football game, yet it's intuitive, and the allure of improving your skill level is captivating. If Slocap can sand off its rough edges, Rematch could be something special. But even in its current state, saying "no" to one more match is a challenging proposition.

The first Death Stranding was eerily prescient. Releasing in 2019, it was impossible to divorce it from the COVID-19 pandemic that followed a year later, the parallels between preppers living in bunkers and people struggling to find ways to connect with others reflecting a period of quarantine and uncertainty about the future. By contrast, Death Stranding 2 is less precise and clear about what it wants to say; it seems committed to making you ponder many things at once, inviting different takeaways. Its story touches on topics like the increasing harms of climate change, how our everyday actions are being automated with each passing day, the damaging presence of guns, the clash between governments and privately owned entities, and the importance of helping others in any way we can. If the sequel is prescient of anything, it is that fixation on the past binds us to repeat history, no matter how much we try to pretend otherwise.

When you finish finding all the stamps in Nintendo Switch 2 Welcome Tour, your reward is a greeting from the curator, and that's very much the approach Nintendo has taken here. Welcome Tour is an interactive virtual museum exhibit, all centered around showcasing Nintendo's latest piece of hardware. It carries the calm sensibility of a museum, which makes it feel very approachable and good-natured. And like any good museum, it's a decent way to spend an afternoon to marvel at the exhibits and learn a few things along the way. But I sense Nintendo's self-consciousness coming through in the decision to charge for it--the mindset that imagines if it's free, people will conclude that it's worthless. Nintendo Switch 2 Welcome Tour certainly isn't worthless. It's a well-made, often informative, sometimes-frustrating introduction to the new hardware. It's just too bad Nintendo didn't model it after many great museums: with no fee, so the work inside could speak for itself.

There were so many aspects of Japanese Drift Master that I desperately wanted to love, especially given that so few racing games hone in on drifting as a mechanic anymore like it attempts to. But in focusing so heavily on getting drifts to feel great (as they often do), all its other parts have been left to the wayside. The scale of its ambition is clear, but in trying to cater for a variety of event types, it undermines its most compelling mechanic, and continually reminds you how inadequate it is at supporting racing styles outside of that narrow focus. It's a racer that, more often than not, doesn't bring about the joy of tearing through the streets in a blazing-fast car, wasting its otherwise captivating setting with roads that don't support that fantasy. JDM: Japanese Drift Master can look good in small snippets, but it's sorely lacking as a complete package.

All of this left me lukewarm on To A T, and wanting to like it more than I did. It's a cute and charming visual metaphor, with some insightful and funny writing, and it's a lovely parable about the struggles of growing up and feeling different. It's a very gentle, likable story about a topic that games don't often explore. But the story doesn't have quite enough heft to last through even the relatively short playtime, and the act of playing it often feels tedious. There are individual things to like about To A T, but like its protagonist, it has some room to grow.

Deliver At All Costs is a solid game for an hour. But then the formulaic nature of delivering goods from point A to point B becomes tiresome. Enacting wanton destruction and experiencing the unique setup of each delivery for the first time creates brief thrills, but breaking stuff just to break it doesn't remain enjoyable for long and the meandering and unfulfilling story that connects each delivery drags the whole experience down. Parts of Deliver At All Costs work really well, but it too often ruins its own fun.

Imagine sitting on the floor in front of your TV watching the pilot episode for Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles in the 1990s, and that's how it feels to play TMNT: Tactical Takedown. All the elements are there, you had a great time while it lasted, but you can sense it's really the rock-solid foundation for something much grander. The game itself is a great distillation of some radical concepts, but it also feels like it's straining against its own limitations. Nonetheless, this is a great start to what I can only hope becomes another way to spend time with the turtles.

Wanderstop, at its core, is the type of game that I suspect a player will need to play at precisely the right time in life to truly connect with. As its story (and Alta) unraveled around me, I was reminded of my own struggles and kept thinking about how comforting it might have been back then. Regardless, I adore the fact that it exists and will surely serve that purpose for so many others. It's an audiovisual delight, its narrative and characters are memorable, and I applaud the way it tackles burnout and how self-destructive productivity can be--especially in a time when just about every other influencer is preaching hustle culture and life optimization. That said, Wanderstop is not for everyone, and its gameplay and rough edges create a formidable barrier to truly enjoying what it does well.

Atomfall isn't Fallout. Sometimes, that's because Fallout is understandably a much bigger, better game. But Atomfall also structures its story and world so unlike typical open-world games, Fallout or otherwise, that the distinction isn't merely meant as a slight on Rebellion's latest effort. Its fresh, mystery-laden open-world design overcomes a bundle of world-building cliches and a few gameplay hindrances to feel novel and worthwhile the entire time. Often, a new video game IP takes until its sequel to truly establish its identity. The theoretical Atomfall 2 feels like it could be a much greater game someday, so long as it's built on this game's intriguing quest framework. Here and now, Atomfall is a good game that sometimes gets in its own way, but it's the process of finding your unique path through its story that will stick with you after the dust settles.

As it stands, this is a package of two great games that is serviceable. Outside of some interface issues that are mostly artifacts of the games' age, there's nothing wrong with Suikoden I and II--in fact, they remain as excellent as ever. But it's hard to get rid of the nagging feeling that this remaster feels uneven between the weirdly contrasting visuals and the general lack of quality-of-life improvements beyond the bare minimum. Suikoden is a phenomenal series that deserves all the love it can get, and with how expensive the original titles have become, any way to let people enjoy them is welcome--but these two games really deserve to be reintroduced with the red carpet, not the tacky doormat.

Alien: Rogue Incursion is perhaps a decent Alien game on some VR platforms, but if you're playing it on Quest 3, that should be because it's your only option and you really want to play it for yourself, much like playing an otherwise gorgeous game on the Switch because you prefer some of its unique features over visual fidelity. Even with better visuals on other headsets, Rogue Incursion would still suffer, given its lackluster monster encounters. The VR tools at your disposal are fun, albeit not novel, but more than anything, the game is best enjoyed on the merits of its story. If you're not willing or able to mod Alien: Isolation to play it in VR, then this is the de facto best Alien VR game available, but that doesn't exactly make it a good one.

Like a Dragon: Pirate Yakuza in Hawaii is a solid spin-off, putting fan-favorite Goro Majima front and center with a suitably eccentric diversion into buccaneering piracy. The story doesn't pick up until an excellent final chapter, and it's disappointing that the narrative doesn't delve into Majima's complex personality, but this is still a thoroughly entertaining adventure on the high seas. It's quite unlike anything else in the long-running series, and even if it falters more often than usual, it's still essential for anyone who's previously called Kamurocho home.

On multiple fronts, Avowed holds so much promise that it struggles to follow through on. While its combat feels impactful and gives you options to experiment with, it's hamstrung by an overall reliance on gear upgrades and scarce resources that prevent you from fully enjoying the creative freedom it initially advertises. Its world is fun to explore and navigate, but its story fails to wrap this in a captivating tale with a satisfying conclusion. It's an experience that routinely swaps between exhilarating moments and frustrating slogs, and often leans towards the latter the closer you get to the game's climax. Avowed might present itself as the new age of the fantasy role-playing games that it borrows so much from, but it's unlikely to have the same lasting impact.

Eternal Strands is a straightforward action-adventure game. The physics-based magic system adds a lot of fun and satisfyingly strategic energy to Brynn's regular run-ins with colossal enemies, but smaller threats rarely rise above being a tedious hindrance. And although the history of the world is interesting to uncover and conversations with Brynn's party members a regularly lively delight, the actual moment-to-moment story beats don't feel all that compelling. It's a shame that Eternal Strands' lows drag parts of its experience down, because the narrative and gameplay have clear highs that would excel in a game that wasn't holding them back.

While the campaign is fun but often too familiar, Resistance shines most of all in some of the game's secondary modes, particularly Invasion and No Cross PvP. Of course, bringing a buddy along to play the story in co-op smooths over some of its roughness, too. I do want to play more of this series, but I'm hopeful the next one takes a bigger leap forward and cleans up some of the long-present jank. Like the difference between the second and third games in the series, it's only going to be the next big step for Sniper Elite if the team finally innovates on what existed before. Otherwise, it's just sparkling familiarity.

Donkey Kong Country Returns is a throwback through and through. It's a little less novel than it was when it first appeared on Wii and was the first DKC game in more than a decade, and at this point a lot of its refinements and clever level ideas have been surpassed by the later Tropical Freeze. It's the best way to play DKC Returns and to revisit some truly top-class level design, though. The visual overhaul looks nice on modern displays and it encompasses the improvements made to the 3DS port. Just be warned: Given the sharp and sometimes frustrating difficulty spikes, only the most dedicated ape enthusiasts need apply.

Dynasty Warriors: Origins is an ambitious game that forcefully pushes the reset button after the failings of Dynasty Warriors 9. It's a marked improvement on that game in almost every area, utilizing modern technology to expand upon its hack-and-slash core while implementing a more considered and action-oriented approach that enhances its exorbitant combat. Longtime fans are likely downtrodden by its minuscule roster and lack of co-op, and the story has a habit of clogging the game's pacing with too many redundant conversations, but these shortcomings mostly fade into the background once you're entrenched in the heat of battle. At that moment, there are few sights better than a dozen peons hurtling helplessly through the air.

Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: Rita's Rewind feels light and disposable. It's a largely enjoyable brawler throwback that plays well and accurately captures the spirit of the original old-school Power Rangers. The vehicle segments can be frustrating, but the larger issue with MMPR is that it's ephemeral. Like watching an episode of Power Rangers on a lazy afternoon, you'll have a little campy fun and then immediately forget about it.

I have fond memories of playing The Thing back in 2002 because there wasn't anything else quite like it. It was inventive and exciting, and even today, no one else is trying to do what Computer Artworks attempted in the single-player space. I commend the studio for what it achieved, but the limitations of the technology--and its design constraints--are much more apparent now, even with nostalgia-tinted glasses on. Nightdive has done a fantastic job of restoring this flawed but intriguing game, continuing its crucial work with game preservation. All of the changes it's made are positive, resulting in a better game, both visually and mechanically. Nonetheless, this is a case where a complete remake would've been much more appealing, allowing for the trust and fear system to be fleshed out with less rigidity and more dynamism. As it is, Computer Artworks' vision might never be fully realized, and that's a shame.

Criticizing Stalker 2's technical issues is tough, simply because it's astounding that GSC managed to launch the game in the first place. Admittedly, this made it easier for me to overlook some of its irritating quirks, particularly when they weren't egregiously crashing the game. Yet even this might not have been the case if it also weren't an engrossing game. Stalker 2 is notably flawed in a few areas, yet these shortcomings tend to dissipate when a compelling, non-linear quest goes awry thanks to an unforeseen element forcing you into a frantic shootout. This unpredictability and the way its various systems interact to create anomalous stories sets Stalker 2 apart. Throw in a beguiling world and the fascinating mysteries hidden within, and it's difficult not to fall under its enticing spell.

Its story reshapes an adult plot for a younger audience seamlessly, with a strong sense of humor that kids will adore. Like a lot of content aimed at families, my strongest sense of joy is found not in how I experience Lego Horizon but in watching my kids become immersed in it. Levels often feel repetitive, but combat is exciting and tactical enough to teach depth and ask players to consider their approach, even as Aloy may be dressed up like a corn cob, a firefighter, or a pug. It's that blend of child-like style and mechanical substance that makes Lego Horizon Adventures a lovely game to play for parent and child pairings, though it's also just neat to see these usually self-serious characters put through a washing machine loaded with crayons.

Metal Slug Tactics does an excellent job of capturing the look and feel of Metal Slug and reimagining it as a turn-based strategy roguelite. The way its strategic elements combine adrenaline-fueled abilities and sync attacks makes for exciting combat that feels smart. It's too bad that a successful run is so reliant on luck, whether it's a favorable mix of missions or the right rewards and upgrades dropping. That, and the uncomfortably outdated enemy designs, are unforced errors that limit the advance of this otherwise capable army.

That length may have been born from a desire to create a big, meaty RPG, but in the end, it mostly serves to accentuate the simplicity in all aspects. Stretched over so many hours, exploration becomes dull, combat feels repetitive, and the story can't sustain itself. Mario & Luigi: Brothership is well made and has some great ideas, but in breaking free of its handheld limitations, it becomes too ambitious for its own good.

Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, and it's hardly uncommon in the video game industry. Nonetheless, it's difficult to recommend Redacted when both Hades and its sequel exist and do almost everything it's attempting to do with much more aplomb. The Rivals system is a compelling breath of fresh air for the genre, and its combat is engaging--even if parts of it are severely lacking. There's a good game here, somewhere in the middle, once you're past the lackluster opening and monotonous ending. Redacted doesn't really expand on The Callisto Protocol universe, but I'm glad it exists. For as flawed as both games are, I still haven't lost interest in seeing more stories from this world, and I hope Striking Distance has a chance to tell them. Redacted just falls short a few too many times.

Fear The Spotlight is far from the scariest game you could play this Halloween season, but what may be read as a detriment for some is instead its best quality for others. With classically designed but more contained puzzles and combat-free monster encounters, it's a game that utilizes genre touchstones in manners meant to onboard new and/or younger players. Mechanically, it's simple, and the story doesn't come together until you've unlocked and finished the second campaign, but its combination of old and new horror-game design elements makes it a creepy and clever introduction to what is my favorite genre, and what may prove to be yours, too.

A Quiet Place: The Road Ahead is a certainly flawed but also intriguing attempt to make a video game out of a premise that seems not to be conducive to this medium. Crouch-walking around a monster for several hours should've probably been a worse experience, but it proves to be a sound idea that may have been a cult classic if it only had more attention to detail.

Sonic X Shadow Generations is a weird package. On one hand, Sonic Generations is a remaster of a great game from 2011 that now feels like it's a little outdated. And on the other, Shadow Generations is the conclusion to a storyline that the franchise hasn't really cared about since 2006. As someone who specifically got into Sonic games during that early 2000 period, this collection feels like it speaks directly to me. But it also feels much like its protagonists--lost in a place out of time and desperate to return to fonder times. It's a nice enough trip down memory lane, but the trip features all the speed bumps you'd expect from games from that era.

Unfortunately, the excitement of that original Mortal Kombat 1 ending is gone, and in its place rests a trepidation and unease over where the story might go next. Fittingly, it seems this once-promising story has been thrown into, well, chaos.

Many new elements are attempted in Super Mario Party Jamboree, and unfortunately I feel like a lot of them are unwelcome. The new modes are largely duds, the tantalizing promise of 20-player online falls a bit flat, and several of the new minigames are a slog. That said, the new maps are the best original ones in many years and Jamboree promises to still be a blast when you've got some friends over. I've reviewed many Mario Party games over the years and it's always a weird series to assign a number to. During the review period you get to play the occasional online session with Nintendo reps and fellow games media members, but a lot of time is spent exploring the maps and minigames solo. In this form, the faults of the game are laid bare and you see it with clear eyes. But once you grab a few close friends and you're laughing with it over a few beers, the deeply flawed game turns into a raucous night of camaraderie and laughter. Jamboree is no more or less nonsense than any Mario Party, and it's one I'll still be playing a ton of despite its flaws.

There's fun to be had in Dragon Ball: Sparking Zero, but ultimately this return to form does not spark as much joy as we'd hoped.

There's a lot to like about EA FC 25, from the overhauled tactics to the chaotic addition of Rush and a few welcome improvements to Career mode. It's not a resounding victory, however. The on-field action has stagnated, maintaining its quality but also plenty of its flaws, while changes to Ultimate Team feel antagonistic in their design. In the near future, issues like input lag and its propensity to crash will hopefully be fixed, but the same is unlikely to be true for its long-standing problems. At the end of the day--to borrow common football player lingo--there's fun to be had with EA FC 25, especially if you enjoyed last year's game, but rather than taking a significant leap forward, it's content to settle for midtable form.

Dead Rising Deluxe Remaster is a better version of a classic, flawed game. Those blemishes are sometimes more glaring today, but some great fixes to the overall package also erase some other issues entirely. Its timeless qualities, like an absurd story and a fun setting, keep it from feeling like an unwelcome retread. Still, I'd hope the next Dead Rising fixes a lot of what this one does poorly--and even some of its sequels did that, so it seems likely. In 2024, Dead Rising is no longer the sort of game that would make me run out and buy a new console, but it is a game that I'm happy to revisit in this improved form.

Hollowbody is scary, dreary, and sad; it's all the things I love about horror games. Sometimes, it embodies these feelings because it nearly repurposes the same monsters, places, and predicaments from the games that inspired it. But it's not all familiar, and the things it does differently are its best attributes, like telling a story conscious of and concerned about sociopolitics and offering a minimalistic but unsettling soundtrack of its own. Maybe the last great Silent Hill game is behind us. I don't know. But I do know its memory remains alive in successes like Hollowbody.

By now, those who have played Supermassive's interactive horror "movies" since 2015 know what they're getting with The Casting of Frank Stone. If you only want to play the next great version of that formula, this isn't it. But for Dead By Daylight fans looking to fill out their lore bibles, prospective fans looking for an introduction to the multiplayer game, or horror obsessives who are ready to carve pumpkins and dive into a pile of crispy orange leaves, The Casting of Frank Stone is a flawed but fun horror romp just in time for spooky season, the likes of which Supermassive and I may be destined to experience together forever.

There are so many little moments in Outlaws that I love. However, the unexciting space combat and unrewarding syndicate-relationship tracker don't add anything meaningful to the experience. And neither does Kay, who feels like a protagonist without a meaty narrative arc. The game has some successes when it comes to gunslinging or sneaking--both of which are aided by a superb soundtrack and incredible sound design--but Outlaws does too much of what it does poorly, and too little of what it does well.

There is a game here for someone willing to lower their standards enough, but trust me when I say there are hundreds of better RPGs for you to spend your time on. You do not need to waste it searching for a few nuggets buried here.

It's almost mysterious to me how I'm moved to invest hundreds of hours into this series every year despite it reliably offering the same problems--even if the specifics change, the philosophy remains. Off the field, Madden 25 is mostly checking boxes, and it stings to see my favorite sport not receive a video game companion similar in its grandeur. But the on-field gameplay is paramount and, here, very strong. I don't lose sight of that. This makes Madden 25 enjoyable despite its plethora of locker-room issues. I've played over 30 hours of Madden 25 so far, and I will play hundreds more before next August, at which point I will get the newest Madden and undoubtedly do it all over again. In the end, maybe that's the real Madden Curse.

But over the course of the game, and particularly in its final few chapters, a story already soaked in metaphors--some better than others--positively drowns in them. It eventually goes so far off the rails that its thoughtful early chapters feel written by entirely different human beings. I'd be more forgiving of this narratively chaotic final act if I were attached to the characters--I like Lost Season 6, after all. In Lost's case, the events could be silly, but at least I'd have my people. In Dustborn, however, I never really had them to begin with, so I was left with nothing to latch onto. Dustborn's moral compass points to true north, but before long, both its story and gameplay go south.

Farewell North is a grounded, slice-of-life game given some fantastical elements through Ches' unique perspective. As it reaches its emotional climax, it becomes a stirring meditation on the role pets play in their humans' lives as comfort and support, and likewise, the role that humans play in the lives of their pets as providers and protectors. While its waypointing can be occasionally frustrating, it's a sweet, emotionally resonant experience that will stick with you, and maybe prompt a little extra cuddle time with your own pets.

However, the vast majority of my time was not spent wading through inscrutable dialogue. It was spent exploring a diverse steampunk world, mastering the surprisingly rich combat, and filling out the smartly-designed skill tree. Gestalt: Steam and Cinder is a joyful journey into nostalgic metroidvania action, and a great start for a potential franchise.

Bō: Path of the Teal Lotus is a gorgeous game, featuring an incredible art style and sound design that strengthen an already colorful world that I want to explore. But getting around in the game is regularly a chore, and Bō's floaty, dance-like movements too often lead to frustrating deaths during platforming gauntlets. The game at least shines through its combat, and the story is exciting once it does actually get going--but there's just too much in the way to fully enjoy what the game does well.

Nintendo World Championship: NES Edition feels more like a platform than a game in itself. It's a set of tools to gently introduce players to speedrunning, and to encourage some light competitive hooks. Even the "NES Edition" part of the name suggests this is envisioned as an ongoing project with room for further exploration in the future. I hope it does, because this could serve as a great introduction to invite newcomers into the speedrunning community.

Flintlock is not the kind of game where you're going to see a ton of build variety. It's a stripped-back action RPG, sprinkling in a few souls-like elements to a broth whose dominant flavor is hyper-mobile combat and traversal that's never too punishing. It has its faults, from failing to expand on a setting that's only interesting on paper to featuring a prohibitive weapon upgrade system and some imprecision in its combat. It might not sit at the forefront of your mind for long after the credits have rolled, but in the moment, Flintlock: The Siege of Dawn is a rip-roaring good time that's likely to appeal to both newcomers and hardened Souls' fans alike. Hopefully more games take some cues from its uncommon approach.

It’s easy to reduce Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Splintered Fate down to just a Hades clone with a TMNT skin, as I did previously. And while that description is pretty accurate, the sentiment doesn't convey that a well-done take on a fantastic game can be a lot of fun. While the art and story don’t come near the lofty heights of Hades, it is nevertheless a blast to bash heads as one of the titular turtles, especially when you have friends fighting at your side. Technical issues aside, Splintered Fate is a fun time, and with a good variety to shake things up from run to run.

Despite that gripe, Zenless Zone Zero is yet another solid entry in the HoYoverse portfolio as of Version 1.0, and it's easy to see the potential as new Agents get added alongside Story commissions. It's a shame that the bright spots are dimmed by a complete lack of meaningful challenges when it comes to nearly all commissions--for both puzzles and combat--in the early chapters of the game. But the current experience still shines thanks to how fun and vibrant the direction is in all facets of the game.

Luigi's Mansion: Dark Moon on 3DS was a surprising revival for an unconventional game. Now that we've had Luigi's Mansion 3, the series has come more into its own, and the second game is neither the trailblazer nor the refined third entry. That makes Luigi's Mansion 2 HD an oddball--less essential than some other Switch remakes, but an interesting middle step in the development of Luigi's puzzle series, with its own charms and place in the series history.

Though some tension is lost in the binary and sometimes simplistic encounters with the creature, its physical makeup, and behavior are the game's best aspects and rise to be deeply unsettling, if not terrifying. All of this makes Still Wakes The Deep a story that memorably tugs on your heart, starring a monster eager to tear it out.

There are still a few more kinks to iron out, then, but regardless of these issues, F1 24's on-track action remains robust and engaging. The overhauled Driver Career mode is also a net positive, even if some of its ideas don't quite come off, yet an enduring sense of deja vu is present elsewhere. This makes F1 24 difficult to recommend if you've played any of the most recent games in the series. There aren't enough new ideas here, and modes like F1 World continue to disappoint by focusing on cosmetics in a game where your avatar is rarely seen. F1 24 is a terrific game in isolation, and the new Driver Career mode will be enough for some players, but it feels like another game hampered by the demands of its annual release schedule.

Killer Klowns feels like it should have a steeper hill to climb than some of its counterparts. While other asymmetrical horror games benefit from iconic killers at their centers, this cult-classic '80s movie-turned-game doesn't have the same brand recognition--did anyone think we'd get a game based on Killer Klowns before A Nightmare on Elm Street? But what it lacks in starring sadists, it makes up for with a tense but silly core of intricate maps, diverse weapons, and a more lax PvP atmosphere than the genre is known for. Issues with the metagame exist, and, like some of the team's past horror games, it's all a bit rough around the edges. But it's the game's fluorescent, squeaky heart that makes this a circus worth joining.

Based on the strength of its maps and its great shooting mechanics, XDefiant enters the free-to-play shooter space in competent shape. Some of its balancing issues will hopefully be rectified soon, but even then, overpowered snipers are a relatively minor issue compared to its clumsy mishmash of styles. The pace of the action is at odds with its class-based approach, almost completely undermining its focus on unique character abilities. Combat is enjoyable enough that it's still eminently playable, and XDefiant's foundations are ripe for improvement. Competition is stiff, though, and there are better options out there that aren't as conflicted.

RKGK / Rakugaki is a fun debut for Wabisabi Games, incorporating an incredible anime-inspired art style into an approachable 3D platformer. Same-y looking environments, disappointing boss battles, and a bland story all make it hard to connect to the narrative elements of the game, but the gameplay is sound and the level design is rewardingly challenging. Even though the story is forgettable, my desire to further master my timing and precision in my quest to get better and better completion times is, for now, continuing to bring me back.

In Harvest Hunt, the stakes are real, but the scares aren't. There is tension in the game, but it doesn't rise to the heights it wants to due to a central villain who can't pull their weight. That places a figurative ceiling over its best moments, but it does have bright spots. I appreciate its rustic, askew art style and interlocking roguelite systems, which give me an objective worth hunting down in a folk-horror world that at least looks, and in some ways, plays, the part.