It's a shame that Road 96's great character writing is stuck within such restrictive framing, even if many of its most memorable dialogue sequences only work given that the premise has allowed for this assortment of personalities to intertwine. It doesn't mean that there's no reward for seeing some of them through, but if you're hoping for an introspective look at the complexities of revolting against an oppressive regime, then Road 96 doesn't deliver on that front. It is, however, an enjoyable point-and-click adventure outside of that, with a neat procedural twist that keeps each of your escape attempts entertaining, with dialogue choices that feel purposeful and entertaining minigames to keep things varied.

Postal 4: No Regerts is devoid of humor and anything close to approaching fun or engaging mechanics. The only things it has in spades are constant technical issues that only compound the game's lengthy checklist of egregious shortcomings. Running With Scissors might consider this review a badge of honor, considering that the game being bad is seemingly part of the gag, but don't for a second think that Postal 4 even touches the realm of "So bad, it's good." There's nothing redeemable about this game. It's a genuinely awful experience that should be avoided at all costs.

Cat Cafe Manager is a perplexing game. Its design is deliberately forgiving, but in some cases to a fault. It looks and sounds joyful, but bugs related to actually building the cafe of your dreams can be frustrating. It's still a game where fans of the genre can have fun with it provided they don't mind--or especially if they prefer--something so directionless, but I find it hampers what could've been a lovely blend of cat-sitting and frappe-serving.

Norco's beautiful, evocative, and contemplative storytelling takes you on a fascinating journey that will occupy your thoughts for weeks and months after the credits roll. It earns its place alongside games like Kentucky Route Zero and Disco Elysium, effectively depicting the Southern Gothic genre with a mystifying adventure that's built on sublime writing and a poetic exploration of societal issues, environmental catastrophe, and what it means to be human. It's not always captivating from a gameplay perspective, but this is a negligible flaw in the grand scheme of things. Games like Norco don't appear very often. It's one to treasure.

MLB The Show 22 still plays a fantastic game of baseball, even if tweaks to fielding and hit variety are mere subtle improvements compared to anything more impactful. Additions to March to October and (especially) Diamond Dynasty enhance both modes, while Franchise and Road to the Show continue to stagnate by doing little else than treading water. There's still a ton of content to sink your teeth into, and MLB The Show 22 will keep you busy into the winter months, but it's difficult to ignore how conservative the series has been for the past two years. This is an excellent sports game, just as MLB The Show 21 was. The problem is that the list of reasons to upgrade is getting smaller and smaller.

Much like the way early Lego Star Wars games set a tone for where the franchise would explore next, and how it would do so, The Skywalker Saga feels like the epitome of all the lessons learnt along the way while also setting up for the future. The intimate new camera angle and expanded combat breathe life into a familiar formula, while the linear levels feature a pleasing mix of puzzles and combat that are peppered with sharp humor. It's a pity that all of this can't be leveraged well enough to inject the same excitement into the side content that makes up most of the explorable hubs, which can take the thrill out of hunting down every unlockable character. But when The Skywalker Saga finds its stride, and it often does, it can be one of the most enjoyable ways to rediscover this storied franchise once again.

Chinatown Detective Agency goes down as one of my favorite detective games ever. You may not be actually doing any detective work and solving mysteries--you're not asked to figure out what's a clue, what it means, and how it may connect to other clues. But, even so, Chinatown Detective Agency successfully emulates the deductive reasoning necessary to be an investigator by simply tasking you with figuring out how to interpret a confusing clue. A collection of bugs and superfluous systems drag down the experience a bit, but the Singaporean setting makes for a thrilling setup for some real-world sleuthing, and excellent voice acting and a compelling protagonist sell the dystopian but somewhat tragically beautiful cybernoir future.

The writing, the story, the characters, and the ways in which your actions have an effect on the world are all enthralling. I wanted answers to the mysteries presented, since the heroes and villains of these tales are captivating, and the payoffs, by and large, are worthwhile. There are a lot of excellent old-school isometric adventure games in Weird West's DNA, but not enough new-school polish for it to be something great.

As a spin-off, Tiny Tina's Wonderlands doesn't reinvent the Borderlands wheel with its shift towards fantasy that bears a chaotic-neutral alignment. Instead, it explores familiar territory that repeats the best and worst of the Borderlands formula and it doesn't venture out of its comfort zone. That makes for a game that is packed with solid first-person shooter action and a competent multiclass system for creating an interesting Fatemaker. Tiny Tina's Wonderlands retreads the same mechanical and narrative ground as Borderlands 3, ultimately creating a chapter in the franchise that's fun but forgettable.

Kirby and the Forgotten Land is one of those games that's hard to play without constantly having a silly smile on your face. It's far more than just a cute and charming platformer with colorful visuals, though. This is one of the best platformers on Nintendo Switch thanks to its brilliantly designed stages and a dynamic arsenal of abilities that consistently shake up the moment-to-moment platforming and action. And FrankenKirby, if you're reading this review, please don't eat me. I don't have any cool powers anyway.

Ghostwire: Tokyo doesn't reinvent the wheel when it comes to open-world games, but its unique setting, tremendous attention to detail, and singular combat make it stand out amongst its contemporaries. The story stumbles and not all of the side missions are particularly engaging, yet these aspects are easy to push to the back of your mind when you're using finger guns to tear through corrupted spirits with dazzling aplomb. Shinji Mikami is a legendary director, but taking a backseat and letting new voices come to the fore has paid off.

Gran Turismo 7 isn't a departure, but rather a newer, shinier GT game. Its physics model is accurate, and while the racing can be formulaic it's always a giggle. The attempt at humanity is a bit cringe,the lack of up-to-date cars seems like an open goal missed, and game may not have changed drastically, but that's not the worst thing in the world. There are medals to claim, cars to collect, and people on the internet to embarrass around Goodwood, the 'Ring, or, well, anywhere really. PlayStation petrolheads are in for a good time.

WWE 2K22 is a surprising return to form after the Shockmaster-sized disaster that was 2K20. The extra year of development has done a world of good, and the only hope now is that the series doesn't return to an annual schedule. There are still failings when it comes to multi-person matches, and not all of the new modes are particularly engaging, but 2K22 establishes a solid foundation for the future. Ideally, WWE will calm down when it comes to gutting its roster, and the next game in the series won't feel quite as outdated. It will also be interesting to see how Yuke's upcoming AEW game fares. Competition can only be a good thing.

Most Souls-likes tend to adopt a grimdark fantasy aesthetic, but Tunic harkens back to the 8- and 16-bit eras by presenting a vibrant and colorful world that also offers a fiendishly difficult challenge. It's not simply evocative of games from the late '80s and early '90s because it creates facsimiles of their graphics or gameplay, but because it manages to capture a tangible feeling of exploration and difficulty, where an instruction manual is your tool to deciphering everything. It's the kind of game you would've purchased because the box art looked cool, eagerly flipping through the pages of its manual on the car ride home, not quite understanding it all but getting excited at the possibilities all the same. In Tunic's case, this grand adventure lives up to the expectations.

While it might be confusing and memey, disjointed and weird, Stranger of Paradise is also a lot of fun. It's full of cool combat with a wide variety of options, and a job system that lets you customize your playstyle or just try out what feels like 30 different ones. Its challenge makes every fight a battle of skill, while also giving you the tools to feel like a ludicrously powerful Final Fantasy badass. And despite being bizarrely delivered and wildly strange, there is a delight in uncovering what the hell is actually going on in the game's story and the weird ideas it brings to bear on the Final Fantasy series. Stranger of Paradise is mostly a more focused version of Final Fantasy that shows some different directions for the series from its traditional games, even if those directions take it down paths that are sometimes a bit...stranger.

When I began Triangle Strategy, the plodding pace of the story was a low point I had to get through to play the tactical battles. As time went on, that calculation flipped. The strategy segments are streamlined and enjoyable, even if the class system is missing the amount of flexibility and nuance that I'd like. But instead of getting through the story segments to play more combat, I found myself getting through the combat to see more story. It's overindulgent at times, but I became invested in my band of trusted advisors as they carefully navigated a fraught mixture of war and politics. And more than many games, I felt the burden of the decisions I reached, the relationships they shattered, and the lives they impacted, as belonging to me alone.

I don't want to seem entirely negative on Puzzle Quest 3, as what is included in the game is enjoyable. I did have fun matching wits with the game's match-3 system, and there were moments where I snatched a victory from the jaws of defeat that thrilled me. However, when you hold it up to its predecessors, this game doesn't bring anything new to the table. It's the same Puzzle Quest we've seen before, only now there are limits to certain modes, microtransactions, and a story that's barely there.. The stripping away of things like explorable towns and non-linear world maps skew the puzzle/RPG balance hard toward the "puzzle" part, making it feel less like a RPG that uses puzzles as its battle system and more like a typical match-3 game with RPG elements added on as an afterthought. I had hoped for a grand quest, but what I got only left me puzzled.

Dawn of Ragnarök is almost transformative for Assassin's Creed, teasing the possibility of what the series could become without the overt hand-holding that has defined it for almost two decades. However, after an intriguing opening, Dawn of Ragnarök falls back on old habits, and that feeling--coupled with how the expansion's narrative themes feel too similar to the base game--creates an experience that too often resembles something you've already had once before. But Dawn of Ragnarök is built on the bones of a great action-adventure RPG, and that carries much of the expansion, especially with the rewarding considerations introduced with the Hugr Rip. Only time will tell if Eivor and Havi's story continues beyond Dawn of Ragnarök, but if this is the end, it's a fine-enough conclusion to the relationship between the two.

Delving into all its new features, new missions, new locations, and new raid, The Witch Queen has been extremely impressive and a ton of fun. The centerpiece is the laudable story campaign, making a lot of the game's best design more approachable for a variety of characters, but The Witch Queen also invokes the best parts of Destiny's past, as well--like the secret-laden, dense, and fascinating locations found in The Taken King and Forsaken expansions. The Witch Queen is a massive step forward for the game, the culmination of a recent history of great refinements and additions, resulting in a Destiny 2 that's in its best form yet.

Warhammer 3 opens strongly. The narrative hook of the prologue sinks deep and the raft of tweaks to the strategic layer and tactical battles are all welcome. But it can't sustain the early momentum. The endgame objectives feel like a distraction, even though they're the main point, and serve only to diminish the entire campaign. The factions all have different reasons for wanting the endgame MacGuffin, but none of those motivations make a difference to how the campaign plays out. They're all trapped in the same Chaos Realm, going through the same motions, in pursuit of the same unsatisfying win conditions. In the end, Total War: Warhammer 3 is a good game--there just isn't a good reason to see it through to the bitter end.

Its popularity does, however, speak to its quality as a new MMO. There's a sense of scale and spectacle that isn't often seen in the genre, and its fantastic combat is only dampened by some archaic and rudimentary quest design during the main story. Once you reach the endgame, it really comes into its own with some thrilling and challenging encounters, so it's a shame this also devolves into a tedious grind due to an unpleasant emphasis on microtransactions. The excellence of Lost Ark's combat is reason enough to give it a try. It might not match up to the titans of the genre just yet, but it's a solid start, and I'm eager to see how it evolves over time.

Ultimately, it is these interactions that could have elevated the game and provided more emotional depth if they were leaned into a bit harder. Rather than spend so much time forcing background characters off their phones, it would have been compelling to explore more of Holland's internal narrative and relationships with her family, slightly estranged friends, and her potential new love interest. So much time was spent walking around, showing others the light rather than basking in that warm glow ourselves, a choice that would have made the game more impactful. Land of Screens ultimately feels like a predictable-yet-endearing Netflix romcom--though think more Love Hard rather than Someone Great.

In a genre that has become wrought with bloated and over-designed games, Elden Ring is defiantly contrarian in almost every way. Its commitment to design by subtraction and to placing the responsibility of charting a path through its world entirely on the player makes it stand head and shoulders above other open-world titles. Elden Ring takes the shards of what came before and forges them into something that will go down in history as one of the all-time greats: a triumph in design and creativity, and an open-world game that distinguishes itself for what it doesn't do as much as what it does.

I'm enjoying The First Soldier and I'll keep it in my BR rotation, but it already seems like a game I'll struggle to get better at. This is a battle royale title that's good enough, smart enough, and different enough to attract and keep a healthy player base--it's bursting at the smartphone's seams. On PC or console, The First Soldier would take a well-deserved place against other BR powerhouses, but on mobile, it's just too cramped.

Most King of Fighters veterans and newbies looking for a new title to dive into probably won't care that KoF XV isn't shaking up the fighting game paradigm. It delivers fisticuffs that overflow with a unique style and personality unlike that of other fighting game series, and that's more than enough to satisfy a lot of players. The King is back, and personally, I'm glad to see SNK swinging strong yet again.

Grapple Dog isn't doing anything new or revolutionary, but it is nicely delivering on a simple premise. It felt like uncovering a forgotten gem in a Game Boy Advance bargain bin, then taking it home and discovering some parts that are a little uneven or awkward. It's the kind of game that's just imminently likable and endearing, even if I don't expect it to hook me long-term.

Overall, though, Horizon Forbidden West does a lot more right than it does wrong. It might be jam-packed with stuff to see, do, know, and remember, but when its many systems come together, it can be a beautiful, exciting, and delightful open-world experience. The story that drives you through the frontier is often well-told and does well to center actual characters rather than audio logs, and while the map is littered with icons, it's much more often that they're fun, skillfully crafted diversions than random busywork to fill a checklist. There's a huge amount to do and see in Horizon Forbidden West, and the great majority of it is worth doing and seeing thanks to strong writing, great visuals, and some marked improvements to the series' underlying ideas.

Dying Light 2 is a perplexing game. Its story and characters are headache-inducing, and it appears to lack polish in many areas. But even a dozen hours after I rolled credits, I've found myself going back to the game to do another parkour challenge, rummage through another abandoned science lab, or just see if I can get from Point A to Point B without ever hitting the ground. It's rough around the edges and it asks players to invest a lot in its weakest element, but once you realize the story, like gravity, is only going to pull you down, you can begin to defy it and enjoy the things Dying Light 2 actually does well.

Sifu will likely ignite the difficulty debate once again, and it's certainly a shame that more people won't get to experience the game because of the barrier for entry. There's design and mechanical justification for having such a steep learning curve, though, and it's part of what makes Sifu so compelling. Your journey from student to master is thrilling, mainly because it's governed by your own improving skill level rather than traditional character progression. There are memorable moments that stand out throughout, such as the boss fights and an enjoyable recreation of the iconic hallway scene from Oldboy, but it's Sifu's combat that shines through most brightly. For as unique and interesting as its aging mechanic is, it wouldn't work without the combat carrying the load and ensuring that each replay is just as engaging as the last. Is one life enough to know kung fu? Maybe not. But I would happily spend mine playing Sifu to find out.

There's so much to OlliOlli World that you can always leave a course to try something else for a while before coming back. That freedom to just leave a problem and tackle it again later, or to shut off the point-scoring part of your brain and get into the flow, is what makes OlliOlli World so endearing. Its controls feel great, its art style is gorgeous, and its characters are light and fun. It's a game that will push you to be the most ridiculously skilled skater you can be, or just let you spend some time in its world for a bit. Either way, it's easy for hours to evaporate as you rattle off tricks and snag sick grinds. That seems like a perfect conception of skateboarding to me.

There's no question then that you are getting a vastly superior way to play both of the PlayStation 4's Uncharted entries, afforded by the more powerful hardware of the new generation of consoles. The upgrades are in line with what many other games from other publishers are putting out for free for players, but the upgrade structure here does allow you to grab both games for a small fee even if you only own one. That softens the blow somewhat, but it's a factor to consider if you've already experienced both games, with Uncharted 4 faring worse with its extremely slow opening when played through again. These are still both exceptional games, made better by more powerful hardware, making it an easy recommendation if you've missed them over the years.

Some of the new ideas in Arceus have rough edges, and it's slow to start before you get access to many environments and mounts. This is an awkward first step, and it was a big adjustment for me, a longtime fan of the series, to make. Once Pokemon Legends: Arceus finds its stride, though, it's the most daring and inventive the series has been in years, breaking apart the staid core and creating something new and exciting from its pieces.

Pupperazzi is a cute game conceptually, but it falters in its execution, making for an experience that I couldn't get behind despite desperately wanting to extend it all the same affection I have for our four-legged friends. Quite simply, the game fails to capture the liveliness and joy that dogs, art, and games can provide us with. While the premise is unique and wholesome, Pupperazzi is ultimately a lot more bark than bite.

Windjammers 2 is a fine evolution of a formula that's only become more beloved over time. The action's intense, the online's excellent, and the new characters, skills, and levels build well upon the foundation of the original. It's a wonderful competitive experience, but a lack of guidance for new players and a serious dearth of single-player content will turn some folks off of what should be a triumphant comeback. If you're planning on being a flying disc jockey, you'd better make sure you're prepared to fight online.

Though the story is weak and the design of the game favors certain characters, Extraction is a good Rainbow Six game that rewards you and your team's ability to adapt to deliver a compelling gameplay loop.

After finishing Nobody Saves the World, I went right back to it. There were still dungeons to explore, powers to unlock, secrets to uncover, and a New Game Plus mode to conquer. When a game is this much frictionless fun, it's hard to resist.

God of War isn't drastically different on PC when compared to the PS4 version that launched back in 2018, but its little improvements are definitely nice ones, making this a solid PC port overall. There isn't reason enough here to buy a second copy of the game if you've already played, necessarily, but the PC version is a great reason to check out God of War for the first time for anybody who hasn't had a chance to experience it. God of War remains an excellent, gorgeous, affecting action game, and with the port to PC, it gets a handful of nice, if somewhat minor, improvements.

Improves on what was already a fantastic game in almost every way.

It's a downsized version of Rocket League that streamlines and shrinks the experience, without sacrificing its fundamental nature. It also brilliantly takes advantage of the mobile medium with super-quick games, easy-to-understand mechanics, and excellent controls. Sideswipe is a smaller, quicker, lighter-weight version of Rocket League that still captures why the original is so endearing, and it's absolutely a game you should make space for on your phone.

The Gunk's placid approach would make it an ideal game for kids, yet the presence of a few ill-suited swear words nixes that notion. Regardless, cleaning up the Gunk and restoring the planet to life still provides a satisfying loop, and there's something to be said for a game that doesn't demand too much of the player. It's fairly laid back and relaxing at times, but even at three hours in length, The Gunk's unambitious and routine design struggles to sustain an entire game. The endearing relationship between its two leads makes up for this somewhat, but you're left feeling like they deserve something more than what is an inoffensive and rather forgettable game.

For all that Endwalker suffers from pacing issues and the sheer amount of plot lines it lobs at us, an earnestness carries the entire story. Endwalker is jubilant in its sincerity, and tender in the way it treats life and death, mankinds' inevitable failing and flaws. It doesn't shy away from grand proclamations that would come across as cheesy if it was any other game, with any other cast of characters. But because it's FFXIV and because the Scions are people who accompanied us through Ala Mhigo's revolution, averting the apocalypse on the First, and much more, Endwalker's loud and bold demands for hope, light, and love fall more on the endearing side rather than hamfisted sentimentality. Endwalker is a fitting, emotional conclusion to a years-long journey for us adventurers, and I can't wait to see what's next.

Years ago, Yacht Club introduced Shovel Knight to the world with a retro game that just feels right, thanks to pixel-perfect platforming that recalls the best of the NES days. With Shovel Knight: Pocket Dungeon, it applies that same level of polish to an entirely new genre and mechanics, and then uses the twist of rogue-lite elements to give it a completely new spin. It's inviting enough to feel immediately familiar, while mechanically complex enough to keep you coming back for one more run, and then another, and maybe just one more.

Ruined King: A League Of Legends Story has set the bar for future forays into League of Legends lore. The story Airship Syndicate tells here delivers in a big way, turning these six champions into the new faces of the franchise. The JRPG Airship crafted around its story is also wonderful, creating a feeling of playing League of Legends while actually playing a turn-based RPG battle. A few technical issues pop up here and there, but outside of the rare crash, none of them break the experience for every game. If this is the level of detail that future Riot Forge projects reach, we will all hail the Ruined King for ushering in this new era.

Halo Infinite strives to transform what it means to be a Halo game, making Chief into a reluctant father figure for a young and naive AI and putting him into an open-world setting. It turns out that was a risk worth taking for the franchise, as Infinite is an incredible game. Certain story elements are on the weaker side and the amazing Grappleshot makes the rest of Chief's equipment feel a bit lacking in comparison, but these are small shortcomings in what otherwise feels like the best Halo campaign in years and an excellent evolution of what Halo can be.

There's a reason this space is so dreamily built--Solar Ash takes place inside a massive black hole, after all--but the game is at its best when it isn't treating those reasons as if they matter all that much. The late game leans a little too heavily into the story, including swapping out the strong boss battles in favor of a binary choice in the game's climactic moments. But, most of the time, that story is where it belongs: in the background. And, thankfully, Solar Ash has some gorgeous backgrounds.

There's a reason this space is so dreamily built--Solar Ash takes place inside a massive black hole, after all--but the game is at its best when it isn't treating those reasons as if they matter all that much. The late game leans a little too heavily into the story, including swapping out the strong boss battles in favor of a binary choice in the game's climactic moments. But, most of the time, that story is where it belongs: in the background. And, thankfully, Solar Ash has some gorgeous backgrounds.

Big Brain Academy, and the entire brain-training sub-genre of puzzle games, were never as medically precise as they purported to be. But they were always about the fulfillment of self-improvement, not bragging rights. Big Brain Academy: Brain vs. Brain, thanks to its new competition hooks, feels just a little bit coarser. It's still plenty of fun in small doses, and the exercises are well-made and for the most part ramp up nicely. Just don't take it too seriously, and whatever the leaderboards say, remember to run your own race.

What's really impressive in Battlefield 2042 is the variety that's on offer. It lets you play a bunch of different kinds of FPS experiences--in different game modes, in different Portal rule sets, and even in the same match as you switch between characters. Portal lets you relive the Battlefield games of the past, but on the 2042 side, DICE has cherry-picked from popular trends like hero shooters and battle royales. The best part is that, mostly, it has done a really effective job of curating those additions so that they bring more to what players already like about Battlefield, rather than change what already works.

Pokemon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl keep enough classic elements to feel like a comfy nostalgia trip, while smoothing over enough of the rough edges that they feel relatively contemporary with other recent Pokemon games. It can't be easy for a storied franchise to pay homage to its legacy while also modernizing in this way, but Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl strike the right balance. It's the classic Pokemon you remember, without most of the little annoyances you've forgotten.

Pokemon Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl keep enough classic elements to feel like a comfy nostalgia trip, while smoothing over enough of the rough edges that they feel relatively contemporary with other recent Pokemon games. It can't be easy for a storied franchise to pay homage to its legacy while also modernizing in this way, but Brilliant Diamond and Shining Pearl strike the right balance. It's the classic Pokemon you remember, without most of the little annoyances you've forgotten.

Despite these issues, it's difficult not to get sucked into Chapter One's web of intrigue. The central mystery is uneventful until its final moments, but the cases surrounding it are consistently excellent, and the role you play in solving them is incredibly gratifying. The open world is more of a backdrop than anything else, but it expands the game with dozens of side cases that are just as alluring as those found in the main story. Sherlock Holmes: Chapter One may stumble at times, but it scratches that investigative itch like few games even attempt to.

Despite these issues, it's difficult not to get sucked into Chapter One's web of intrigue. The central mystery is uneventful until its final moments, but the cases surrounding it are consistently excellent, and the role you play in solving them is incredibly gratifying. The open world is more of a backdrop than anything else, but it expands the game with dozens of side cases that are just as alluring as those found in the main story. Sherlock Holmes: Chapter One may stumble at times, but it scratches that investigative itch like few games even attempt to.

The more important question is whether these Definitive Editions are the ideal way to experience the trilogy, and that is a resounding "Hell no." No matter how the vaunted feature list looks, there are scant few creative decisions implemented for these ports that make themselves at all superior to the other versions released over the years. It's hard not to think about the games that this trilogy would inspire--stuff like Mafia, Saints Row, Yakuza, Sleeping Dogs--and how well each of those series have been preserved and updated. The fact that the Godfather of open-world crime sagas has been outclassed so thoroughly in that regard is infuriating enough to push fans into a rampage. Thankfully, it's raining outside.

The first act is just brilliant. Not only is the core card game at its best, but it's also where those mechanics are best served by the richly atmospheric trappings surrounding them. The following two acts admirably offer new twists on the mechanics and a different perspective on the narrative, but neither prove as satisfying as the original. Alone, Act 1 is one of the best games of the year, but everything that comes after drags it back into the pack.

As it stands a little over a month after launch, New World offers a solid PvP-focused, player-driven MMORPG experience that has long been missing from the genre, albeit one seriously held back by outdated quest design and a lack of interesting endgame content. Whether that changes in the months ahead remains to be seen, but for now, New World will likely only appeal to those who crave PvP and wish to paint the map of Aeternum the color of their chosen faction, repetitive questing and lack of content be damned.

Unskippable cutscenes made replaying the first few levels more of a chore than it should've been, and the same remains true if you opt to replay the whole game on a higher difficulty level after completing it. There's nothing else to do if you want to eke out some additional replayability, and Bright Memory: Infinite's short length is certain to put some people off. It's a fun shooter for as long as it lasts, though, offering a satisfying mix of fast-paced gunplay and dynamic action. It's also hard not to be impressed that this came from the talents of a lone developer. Unfortunately, a dismal stealth section, unintelligible story, and some major technical issues hold it back, while its terseness does make it difficult to recommend, even at a low price point.

Age of Empires IV is a satisfying game, but its more innovative ideas are overshadowed by a gameplay formula that rarely deviates from the revered legacy of Age of Empires II. Dated graphics, annoying AI, and a thin selection of content holds Age of Empires IV back from establishing an RTS kingdom that can stand the test of time, but thrilling campaigns, a passion for history, and factions that feel truly distinct from one another makes for satisfying RTS comfort feud.

The thing about Call of Duty games is that, with each yearly iteration, you pretty much know what you're getting--and that's largely the case here. It's both a blessing and a curse for Vanguard, however. Elements of Vanguard feel like good additions to the franchise, but its ideas also don't always mix well with the series' framework. That framework is still strong, and the solid gunplay, exciting multiplayer, and inventive moments of the campaign are worth seeking out. But forcing those two parts together exposes the seams in Call of Duty: Vanguard at times, weakening both parts of the game rather than pushing either one to the forefront.

Shin Megami Tensei V is a game that demands a lot of the player--its slow pace and punishing difficulty will more than likely turn some folks off. But those who stick with it will find an incredibly rewarding experience that only gets better the further in you get. SMTV truly makes you feel like the weight of this crumbling, conflict-torn world of mythological nightmares rests firmly on your shoulders--but it's a burden you'll be glad you chose to bear.

Forza Horizon 5 is another meaningful evolution of the series as opposed to a reinvention, but that doesn't necessarily mean it's a case of more of the same. Even when it is familiar, Forza Horizon 5 makes small, but thoughtful changes to its established blueprint that hones in on the people behind the cars in a way that the franchise has previously just glossed over. It's not going to convince you to give it a go if Forza Horizon's brand of racing hasn't done it for you in the past, but Forza Horizon 5 still stands head and shoulders above anything else in the genre.

Riders Republic is a thrilling, approachable, and incredibly varied extreme sports game, featuring an awe-inspiring open world that impresses with both its scale and diversity. There's nothing else quite like it, and while it's too talkative for its own good, there's a sprightly energy to the whole thing that makes it easy to recommend for anyone seeking an exciting adventure.

Voice of Cards: The Isle Dragon Roars is almost exactly what I was expecting from a Yoko Taro-led card-based RPG. That is primarily a compliment, as it still managed to take some odd turns and retained the somber, melancholy aesthetic of his past projects without sacrificing humor. Somehow, the games' all-card structure actually works within the confines of a traditional role-playing game, and it does it with so little fat that it never overstays its welcome. It also sacrifices some of the more jaw-dropping moments I want in a Taro game--what I expect most from him is the unexpected, and it's why Nier: Automata 2 is such a bad idea. But failing to make my eyes fill with tears as I contemplated the nature of my existence and the necessity of hope a second time isn't exactly striking out on three pitches.

That's what makes Unpacking such a treat. I peered into the life of someone else and saw myself. It compelled me to look back on my own experiences, the good and the bad, through the simple act of unpacking the contents of their life. Unpacking may be a zen puzzle game that's just relaxing for some, but for me it was a more profound experience that I'll never forget. Sometimes we put our past into proverbial boxes; ripping off the tape and rediscovering what we hid away can be cathartic and illuminating.

Mario Party Superstars certainly provides the highs that the series is capable of, but unless you're restricted to playing on the Switch Lite or itching to play with a Pro Controller, there's a better version of this game available for you and your loved ones to play in Super Mario Party.

It's an engrossing twist on a set of systems that, while familiar, are sharply honed to create an engaging combat system and rewarding puzzles, making Unsighted one of this year's best-kept secrets.

The Good Life is a curious and uneven experience. As a sort of hybrid RPG meets life-sim, it's certainly competent, despite the grind it demands. Surprisingly, the novel premise takes a back seat for the most part, but it's never anything less than adorably easy-going, carried along by a carefree attitude and endless charm.

The Good Life is a curious and uneven experience. As a sort of hybrid RPG meets life-sim, it's certainly competent, despite the grind it demands. Surprisingly, the novel premise takes a back seat for the most part, but it's never anything less than adorably easy-going, carried along by a carefree attitude and endless charm.

Marvel's Guardians of the Galaxy doesn't feature an engaging combat system, save for the moments where the team huddles provide a loose connection to the much more engaging narrative theme of the strength of communication. The game instead shines via its storytelling, which is enhanced by a talented collection of voice actors and a wonderful soundtrack. If this game is your introduction to the titular heroes, it's not the best first impression, but sometimes when the galaxy needs to be saved, you can settle for good enough.

Rainbow Billy: The Curse of the Leviathan is the role-playing game equivalent of a warm hug from a good friend, and sometimes all you need is love.

Its setting and characters offer a fresh perspective for the series, while Supermassive's penchant for creating tension through something as simple as a QTE is as masterful as ever. It might not be particularly fear-inducing, but its action set-pieces are fraught with peril for the fate of its characters, and the final act sticks the landing with a satisfying payoff. The series might still be stuck in the smothering shadow of Until Dawn, but House of Ashes is a step in the right direction.

That's what makes Echoes of the Eye unmissable if you couldn't get enough of Outer Wilds. It manages to push you in new, challenging directions with puzzles that scratch the same part of your brain that the original did while not relying on the same tricks. It's a feat that shows the depth of design prowess Mobius Digital first flexed in its debut title, but stumbles slightly when it tries to redefine its means of progression in the final third. These are the weakest moments in all Outer Wilds, but they aren't enough to sully what this fantastic expansion adds to an adventure that still stands as captivating and engrossing.

The campaign is Back 4 Blood's main draw, but you really need a group of friends to enjoy it to its fullest. As a spiritual successor to Left 4 Dead, it ticks almost all of the right boxes. The modern additions add to the game's variety and ensure that each run is unique, while the moment-to-moment gunplay is intense and incredibly gratifying. The overwhelming frequency of the special infected, and their disappointing blandness, is a downer, and the lack of some quality-of-life features makes playing with strangers more frustrating than it should be, especially when you're penalized for playing alone. The landscape of cooperative shooters has changed a lot in the past 12 years and Back 4 Blood might not live up to the heights of Left 4 Dead at its peak. Nevertheless, Turtle Rock's return to the genre it created is still excellent fun, provided you have others to share in the zombie-bashing.

Ultimately, Nickelodeon All-Star Brawl is a solid competitive platform fighter, but it's lacking in several key elements. If you've got a group of buddies that enjoy competitive Smash and have a lot of love for Nickelodeon's catalog of cartoon characters, you'll find All-Star Brawl quite satisfying. But if you're looking for substantial single-player experiences or a fun mess-around party fighter you can play casually with friends and family, you're going to run back to the warm embrace of Nintendo's juggernaut very quickly.

The rough edges mean Switch isn't the ideal platform to play Disco Elysium on, but it's still a perfectly fine choice, and the ability to play such a phenomenal game on the go is a welcome option. You still get the full Final Cut treatment here--including full voice acting, which is impressive given the game's storage requirements have been shrunk even further on Switch--and despite the shortcomings, Disco Elysium instantly joins the ranks of the best games on Switch.

It may lack some of the visual flair seen on more powerful platforms, and in handheld mode, headphones are all but necessary to appreciate the intense rhythm of levels like Ritual Passion that rely so heavily on the blend of hypnotic visuals and incredible audio to deliver Effect's uniquely euphoric experience. But even with those minor caveats, Effect remains the best version of Tetris out there, and Switch is a great place to play it.

Far Cry 6 is often a fun game that feels like it's throwing everything at you, and if you want a heap of content, Far Cry 6 absolutely has you covered. In isolation, a lot of its elements are interesting ideas. Taken together, though, it feels like a lot of disparate things that keep taking your attention back to menus and map icons. It's a lot of exhausting extra stuff, when really, what Far Cry 6 is good at is giving me opportunities to blow stuff up.

More than anything else, Metroid Dread feels like going back to a place of comfort after a long time away. Though the gameplay is refined and new features have been added to the mix, Dread sticks closely to the formula of its predecessors. In the end, for longtime fans like myself, that's probably for the best. There's nothing to dread here. We're home again.

Visual irritations aside, Alan Wake Remastered is really just a game I'm glad exists. This is the nicest-looking, best-realized version of Remedy's 2010 title, and it holds up today just as well as it did when it originally appeared on the Xbox 360. If you're sitting on a copy of Alan Wake on PC, this is an upgrade you can probably skip--though the enhanced visuals are nice, they likely don't represent a big-enough change to warrant snagging a whole second copy of the game.

Jett: The Far Shore is at its best when you're speeding through the air and provided with the agency to figure out how to reach your destination, not slowly hovering around a space and having someone hold your hand through every step of a puzzle. Regular occurrences of the latter drag down the whole experience, and the overall narrative--though intriguingly set-up--ultimately ends in an unfulfilling way, with protagonist Mei feeling too detached from the story and the themes it's trying to explore.

Hot Wheels Unleashed captures the magic of plastic cars with fast and smooth racing, but the toy box is a little shallow. There are numerous maps and cars, but the limited amount of environments, music, and set-pieces make for an experience that starts to get old quickly. As a result, Hot Wheels Unleashed rides the high of its racing, which feels like butter when drifting around corners and speeding through loop-the-loops, using whichever food truck or licensed car you pull out of the blind box, but doesn't bring enough of the license's personality over.

It's why, unlike Diablo III, I don't foresee myself spending a lot more time with Diablo II: Resurrected. That's not to say the adventure was without merit, and it's certainly great to have a way to play one of Blizzard's classics with a coat of paint that does its visual aesthetic justice so many years later. But outside of players already well-versed with the game's aged design choices and imbalance, there's not a lot here outside of a history lesson for new players to enjoy. A lot of the time spent playing Diablo II: Resurrected, I just longed to return to Diablo III.

Banana Mania doesn't reinvent the wheel (ball?), but it doesn't need to. Having the ability to play classic Super Monkey Ball levels and minigames without having to drag your old consoles and CRT TV out of storage would be enough of a selling point on its own, but the additional gameplay tweaks and charming extras sweeten the deal quite a bit. If you're a longtime roller who's missed AiAi and his jungle buddies--or if you're a newcomer looking for an easy-to-learn action/puzzle game that will keep you busy for a good while--you'll want to take Banana Mania for a spin.

Aragami 2 is a bold and aggressive take on the stealth genre, when it finds the confidence to step out of the shadows. Occasionally, however, it's a little too timid and reverts to playing it safe, cowering in the corner rather than seizing the initiative.

It is undeniable that returning to the world of Death Stranding after the year we've all had was affecting in ways I never anticipated going in. It didn't strike me the first time just how much positive feedback the game gives for every little thing Sam does. It didn't strike me the first time just how accurate the game would be in how isolation makes every interaction with a live human being into an event. The hope, the despair, the determination of it all just plain hits differently now, and in ways that make the game one to experience even if you don't end up liking it enough to stick with it for dozens of hours. The Director's Cut still does an admirable job goosing up that experience for maximum immersion. Even while trying to nudge itself towards something more approachable, there is still nothing quite like this game.

Sable is a little rough around the edges, then, yet these shortcomings are far outweighed by its numerous strengths. This is a relaxing adventure that's both familiar and quite unlike anything else. It gives you the freedom to approach things at your own pace--in your own way--while managing to dispel any notions of aimlessness. Even if you don't have a particular objective in mind, you're guaranteed to discover new sights and sounds by hopping on your hoverbike and simply exploring. It's the antithesis to most open-world design, where the onus is on getting you to the next point of interest as soon as possible, and so it stands out even if you remove its beautiful art style from the equation. Sable is methodical, introspective, comforting, and fully deserving of your time.

The act of meeting and understanding all those other characters is powerful, though. Kena: Bridge of Spirits is ultimately a game about making those connections, just like it's about making a connection with the game world around you through the Rot. It centers on characters who tried valiantly but failed to help one another, and what dealing with that pain did to them. It's about exploring a world and seeing what it once was, and helping to restore it again. And while Kena: Bridge of Spirits is full of familiar-feeling combat and exploration, its ability to find different ways to look at those ideas makes for a beautiful, emotional, and exciting journey.

Lost Judgment improves on its predecessor by cutting down on some of the more tedious elements of its design rather than outright changing the mechanics to make the investigative side of the equation more engaging. In this sense, it's disappointing that it doesn't lean into what makes Judgment unique compared to the Yakuza series and instead remains at its best when sticking close to those origins. The story is compelling with an endearing cast of characters, the sheer amount of stuff to do is astounding, and there's still an inherent joy that comes from pummelling the city's delinquents into the ground. But it's hard not to feel disappointed that you still feel like a passenger when it breaks away from the Yakuza mould. If this is indeed our last time with Yagami and co., then it's one to cherish. There will just always be a nagging feeling that this was a missed opportunity to do something truly special.

When you reach Toem, the event itself, it really does feel spectacular in the context of the game. More important, though, is what it represents. Toem is a simple, cute fable about growing up and engaging with the world. And like the phenomenon, it's really best if you see it for yourself.

Challenging as that may be, The Artful Escape is nevertheless a thrilling adventure that commits fully to showcasing its gorgeous art in soaring set pieces. Though some of the dialogue doesn’t work, the game is largely successful at stripping out anything that would distract from its masterful presentation. Unlike Francis Vendetti at the beginning of his journey, The Artful Escape knows exactly what it is.

Deathloop is a game where observation and dynamic thinking go hand-in-hand with shotgunning goons in the face and snapping their necks ... it delivers bombastic thrills and wince-inducing kills with intelligence and elegance in equal measure.

There is light that developer Deck Nine just never allows darkness to touch, and there is joy to be had in being able to play some small part in making sure they all do better. But the disconnect between that vibe and the turmoil that brought Alex here to begin with is tangible, and the game would achieve brilliance if those two concerns could connect. Dropping by Haven Springs is still time well-spent--but it's simply a pleasant visit, rather than a powerful, emotionally resonant one.

There is light that developer Deck Nine just never allows darkness to touch, and there is joy to be had in being able to play some small part in making sure they all do better. But the disconnect between that vibe and the turmoil that brought Alex here to begin with is tangible, and the game would achieve brilliance if those two concerns could connect. Dropping by Haven Springs is still time well-spent--but it's simply a pleasant visit, rather than a powerful, emotionally resonant one.

Taken as a whole, Tales of Arise is a very good RPG, boasting beautiful visuals, a wonderful cast of characters, and engaging combat mechanics--but its flaws (and that odious DLC) are also difficult to ignore. If you're looking for a lengthy, charming, and engaging JRPG to play on your shiny new console or PC gaming rig, Tales of Arise is certainly a fine choice. Just don't go into it expecting an all-time classic.

For the most part, the new character-based approach is a welcome addition to the WarioWare blueprint. The characters themselves are differentiated and expressive, and mechanically they make the traditional microgame challenges that much more engaging. The WarioWare series has been fertile ground for Nintendo to experiment with concepts like touchscreen capabilities in Touched or accelerometer-based motion in Twisted, which makes Get It Together's platforming riffs a little more traditional than usual. But that also makes it less reliant on a gimmick, and that's a change for the better.

The Big Con is ultimately about its story, though, and it's a story that mostly works despite an inescapable sense of familiarity. There aren't many beats here that you haven't seen before, and while that lends the closing hours the feeling that expected pieces are simply falling into place, the game has enough verve and style that it manages to hold it together. The writing isn't especially funny or clever, but there's enough personality in the art style and story conceit that I was still entertained for the bulk of the six hours that I spent with it.

The Big Con is a pleasant nostalgic road trip, where cassette tapes still need to be rewound, MTV still plays music videos, and America's capitalist excess is exemplified by the relative quaintness of the bustling shopping mall.

If you had a mandate for all of the things a No More Heroes game shouldn't be, "boring" would be near the top of the list, but this sequel frequently is just that. No More Heroes 3 lacks the irreverent charm and personality of its predecessors. Combat picks up the slack, and there's a degree of vivid style to be found there, but the game falters in so many other areas. After an 11-year wait, maybe No More Heroes 3 was always destined to fall short of our expectations. But to end without so much as a touchdown is a mighty disappointment.

From the faint outlines of religion to the background hum of influence, from the awkward city-building to the cumbersome tactical combat, all wrapped up in a cultural system that struggles to imprint a strong identity on your empire, Humankind strains under the weight of too many complex systems that too often find themselves colliding rather than coalescing. By turns disjointed and confounding, Humankind is nonetheless fascinating, at least to this experienced 4X strategy player, even if I couldn't say I truly enjoyed it.