Each second spent in its world teaches you something about the characters you're shepherding and the Borderlands universe at large. Episode Three is definitely the best we've seen of this series so far.

Europa Universalis IV easily provides hundreds of hours of gameplay for those who develop a taste for it. There are very few games remotely like this out there, making it a must-get game for people who want to "fix" history.

Strikingly original, Bad Mojo (meaning "black magic") is a gritty, action-based exploration that sucks you in with great visuals, and keeps you playing with a poignant story and clever obstacles that bar your progress from room to room.

Robust and challenging single-player modes, strong online multiplayer, and gorgeous visuals make this a must-have for any fighter fan.

Half-Life: Alyx proves that almost everything the franchise did best is elevated by VR: the environmental puzzles that require a keen eye, the threat of a headcrab jumping for your face, the cryptic storytelling. The series' staples are as great as ever here, and in its most powerful moments, Half-Life: Alyx confidently shows you why it couldn't have been done any other way.

Technically remarkable and features some novel twists that make it unique among real-time strategy games. Yet while it's easy to get into, it's not just difficult to master but also rather difficult to manage, partly because the game does such a good job of evoking the sheer chaos of frontline WWII battles.

Blizzard has proven it can still craft an MMO experience as well as--if not better--than anyone else.

It's a testament to convincing writing and ingenious design that after playing Celeste I felt like I'd been on the same journey as Madeline. Her struggle is one made easy to empathize with, her low points painful to watch, and her high notes exhilarating to experience. Her tale is delicately told and beautifully illustrated, confidently coalescing with the satisfying, empowering game it lies within. Not bad for a game about climbing a mountain.

It's impossible to expect the Dead Space remake to be as transformative as something like the Resident Evil 2 remake was. The generational leap isn't as grand and so much about it feels inherently familiar to the 2008 original, such is the way EA Motive has weaved its changes into the Dead Space mold. The new side quests might leave a lot to be desired, but every other addition contributes to a remake that stays true to its progenitor while also improving upon it in a number of ways. Newcomers and hardcore Dead Space fans will get the most out of the experience, but this is now the quintessential way to play one of the survival horror genre's best.

I can't get enough of Street Fighter 6. It's been my last thought when I go to bed and my first thought when I wake up. It has a beautifully constructed fighting system, but also offers modes that take the game very seriously and, in other cases, not seriously at all. There are some small issues with performance in World Tour, but none of those are enough to derail the overall package. With the releases of new Tekken and Mortal Kombat games, it very much feels like we're in a new golden era for the fighting game genre. Thankfully, Street Fighter 6 steps into the arena looking good and fighting fit.

If you're a Ninja Gaiden enthusiast, you'll want to see the new chapters, reworked levels, and slicker graphics. And if for some reason you missed it before, this is a must-play game. The action is intense, focused, and certainly not for the faint of heart. It's also among the most satisfying in all of gaming and remains as awe-inspiring as ever, three years after its original release.

Everything about this game--the impressive visuals, stirring soundtrack, superb voice acting, fiendish puzzles, hard-hitting combat--feels like it has been lovingly crafted by a development team that's both knowledgeable and passionate about the source material. Miss out on this one and the joke's on you.

Act IV proves the journey is everything, and what people take from and give to each other--even in the most desolate, purgatorial version of America imaginable--still matters. It's heartening thinking about what other players might take away from the stories shared during our motley crew's time sailing Lake Lethe--and what it might spur them to do in the real world.

Iconoclasts is a sincere and compelling adventure that anyone with respect for fantastic storytelling and 2D-action can enjoy.

Going toe-to-toe with these intimidating beasts is the unmistakable core of the Monster Hunter experience, and Rise still feels like a distinctly Monster Hunter game, even if it's more of a fully-fledged action title than any other entry in the series. This renewed focus doesn't diminish its layered RPG mechanics, nor does it dumb down on any single aspect of the hunt. Certain changes make Rise a more approachable game for newcomers, but you also have the freedom to tailor the experience to your liking. The moment-to-moment combat is as impeccable as it's ever been and puts Rise on a pedestal as one of the feathers in the Nintendo Switch's cap.

Telltale's masterful storytelling keeps us hoping for the best even as that optimism is continually shattered by what is proving to be one of the most memorable tragedies ever told in gaming.

The Old Hunters is Bloodborne from another time and place, and with more difficult bosses and confounding stories to unravel, it's a fitting complement to the original, gruesome adventure.

The single-player campaign is over in a flash, but the high quality of that campaign and its terrific multiplayer options make Call of Duty 4 a fantastic package.

In many ways God of War is what the series has always been. It's a spectacular action game with epic set pieces, big-budget production values, and hard-hitting combat that grows more feverish and impressive as you progress. What may surprise you is how mature its storytelling has become. Like Kratos, God of War recalls the past while acknowledging the need to improve. Everything new it does is for the better, and everything it holds onto benefits as a result. Kratos is no longer a predictable brute. God of War is no longer an old-fashioned action series. With this reboot, it confidently walks a new path that will hopefully lead to more exciting adventures to come.

Ring Fit Adventure builds on the legacy of Wii Fit in important ways, not only pushing the limits of what a workout game can be but also repositioning its message around fitness in a much healthier and constructive way. Fitness isn't a steady, consistent journey for most people; it's full of tiny improvements and setbacks and obstacles that get in your way, much like one's progress in an RPG. Because of this, Ring Fit Adventure works perfectly both as a concept and in practice. The sheer volume of content along with new abilities, items, and difficulty levels keeps progression interesting through the entire campaign and beyond. With consistently engaging gameplay, gorgeous landscapes, and a relentlessly positive attitude, Ring Fit Adventure has set a new standard for fitness games, and I look forward to another year of growing stronger with it--and eventually beating that absurdly buff dragon.

Perhaps this isn't surprising, considering that nearly every part of Silent Hill f is crafted with the same level of care and skill. And yet, that doesn't make anything about this game and what NeoBards has achieved any less impressive. Silent Hill f is not just a return to form, it's a remarkable evolution; it's a visual spectacle, a mastercraft in psychological horror, a work of narrative brilliance, and a new benchmark for the Silent Hill series.

The campaign is varied and lengthy enough to keep players thrilled from beginning to end. There's even good incentive to play through again at higher difficulties.

Horizon Zero Dawn remains a visually enticing game with rich natural environments and snow-capped mountains to trek through, all of which can look better than they did on PS4 and PS4 Pro if you have the right PC specs. Given the density of certain towns or villages, or chaos of some combat scenarios, frame rate can take a considerable dip, making it a fairly demanding game, but it may also noticeably stutter occasionally, making for some inconsistent performance. (I've used a Core i7-7700K, RTX 2080, and 16GB of RAM at ultrawide 2560x1080 resolution using maximum settings and TAA, and had dips to around 35-40 FPS in those intense moments.)

Civilization V: Gods and Kings is an eminently worthwhile collection of big and small changes that enhance an already amazing game.

What the game lacks in innovation, however, is more than made up for in sheer playability.

Legend of Grimrock II is another glorious glimpse of the past, a window to a genre dead and buried and brought back to life with care and respect, and I urge you to peek through it.

Simply makes fantastic use of the PSP technology, providing a profoundly impressive audiovisual experience and fast, frantic racing, both of which easily rank with the best the platform has to offer.

The initial hours of The Lost Legacy give an "Uncharted Greatest Hits" vibe, but it grows into a more nuanced, clever experience, ranking among the best in the series while also making its own mark as a standalone Uncharted that isn't anchored to Nathan Drake's harrowing exploits.