For as long as it lasts, Stranglehold delivers a satisfying, if somewhat derivative action game experience.

The over-the-top anime stylings of the Guilty Gear series deliver a one-two punch in this package containing both a beat-'em-up and a fighting game.

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.

It's a short and generally simple game with only a few difficult sections, but it emulates the show's style of criminal investigation almost perfectly, and you can't really ask for much more than that from a game called Law & Order.

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.

Dawn of War III builds and maintains an organic tension that yields huge pay-offs, and there’s nothing else quite like it.

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.

Much like that final mission enemy, Hard West 2 gets it right where it counts. Despite some thin RPG trappings, it's ultimately a highly-accomplished game of tactical combat with two or three genuinely terrific ideas executed exceptionally well. While it does suffer from a lack of imagination in some of its map design, that doesn't detract too much from how enjoyable it is to stand shoulder-to-shoulder with your posse and find creative ways to put down hordes of Wild West demons.

This somewhat scary sequel is a solid shooter, but it can't keep pace with its lauded predecessor.

A game that, while designed with kids in mind, has such a surplus of charm that even nostalgia-minded adults will be able to join in on the fun.

Playing The Sims Medieval is like looking at your neighbor's vacation slides: You're hearing about someone else's grand adventure rather than having one of your own.

Generic questing aside, Tera is a well-executed game: it's easy on the eyes, smooth under the fingers, and remarkably stable.

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.

Risk of Rain is highly enjoyable, and with constant rewards of new items and character classes, it's hard to put down once you start. Even as I watched the last of the end credits roll by, I wiped the sweat from my brow and jumped back into the fray: I have an item log that still needs to be filled.

This colorful golf game offers so much great single-player content that it'll be weeks before you notice the lack of any online functionality.

Immortals Fenyx Rising is far from perfect--but it is good. It stumbles frequently as it explores Greek myths through a new lens, its best features are borrowed, and for as large and fun as its world is, it always feels like you're on a guided tour instead of really exploring it. But even as it lives in the shadow of better games, its puzzles, combat, and open-world loop come together often enough for me to not only see it through for a few dozen hours, but also want to keep filling out its almighty checklist, even if it lead me by the nose most of the way through.

The experience just doesn't last long enough to be savored. Gun's main story missions are exciting, but the main plot is over so quickly that the whole thing just ends up feeling rushed, and the various side missions aren't compelling enough to hold your interest after the end credits roll.

Unbalanced difficulty and other issues cast a shadow on Tales of Graces f, but deep combat and endearing characters still shine through.

This classic platformer is as fun and good-looking as ever, but it's over before you know it.

A solid, balanced, and very polished game - which is why it's all the more unfortunate that its gameplay closely follows an otherwise unoriginal and limited formula for real-time strategy games: Gather resources, amass troops, and attack your enemy.

The unique play mechanics of Soul Reaver 2, as well as its impressive graphics and excellent story, make it easy to recommend to fans of action or adventure games.

Although the game does feature some annoying faults, it boasts impressive graphics, audio, and gameplay in a tight package that most baseball fans will enjoy.

There are a handful of other first-person shooters on the GBA, and a few of them are certainly more complete when it comes to overall design, but none are as vicarious or as stimulating as Doom II.

This version of Splinter Cell is a good enough game on its own merits to tide over Splinter Cell fans looking for a portable version or GBA owners looking for a briskly paced game to have on the go.

A well-done game, filled with dangerous opponents and plenty of targets to shoot at, but it also doesn't fulfill its potential.

Furi lures you in with a cool lead character and a powerful soundtrack--qualities that are easy to appreciate--but its the journey to become a better fighter that defines the experience.

There aren't many changes to be found in A World of Keflings, another easygoing city-builder game from developer NinjaBee.

For as long as it lasts, Stranglehold delivers a satisfying, if somewhat derivative action game experience.