The mediocre AI and animations return, as does the need to repeat the same old spy tricks, but they take a backseat this time around as Sapienza and its colorful denizens take center stage. Episode two doesn't fill your plate, but it's a satisfying experience nonetheless.

Swords and Soldiers is an engaging, goofy romp that takes out the complexity of other real-time strategy games but leaves in all the fun.

Addictive puzzle battles and a ton of content make Might & Magic: Clash of Heroes hard to put down.

I'm disappointed by Cry Wolf, not because it suggests that Fabletown is destined to remain troubled, or that it doesn't overtly answer a vital nagging question, but because a few too many events are overtly manufactured to fit the plot's needs, rather than making each event feel like it progressed from those that came before.

Child of Eden may be over quickly, but it offers emotional highs you'll want to experience again and again.

Ape Out is a game that draws you in with its strong aesthetic style and flair, but it feels short on ideas. When you're barrelling through a room, knocking multiple enemies into walls and watching them explode into puddles of blood, it can be quite exciting. But the game never really rises above being a mild thrill, and a lack the variety means that it’s too repetitive to truly make a strong impact. Ape Out isn't as creative with its level designs and challenges as it is with its soundtrack and art, but as it stands it’s a pleasant, jazzy way to spend a few hours.

Warlords adds six new civilizations and other enhancements to Civilization IV, but the cool new scenarios are the real treat in this expansion.

Crow Country pays homage to a golden era of survivor horror without relying on simple mimicry. It's simultaneously familiar and yet unfamiliar, touching on tropes and genre trappings while utilizing modern techniques to enhance the experience and make it more approachable for newcomers. It's not a particularly challenging game, and combat is dull and unwieldy, but this aspect of the game is easy enough to ignore, especially when there's an enticing theme park full of secrets and rewarding puzzles to delve into. The story is also surprisingly rich, telling a captivating tale with smart writing and a memorable ending. Crow Country is clearly lovingly crafted, resulting in a nostalgic throwback that manages to avoid feeling derivative. It does justice to the games that inspired it, but it's also a fantastic game in its own right.

Delayed gratification from the episodic release schedule or not, this 2016 take on Hitman is a brilliant game. Expansive level design and nearly unlimited replay value courtesy of so many routes to your assassinations (and so many methods with which to carry them out) make the experience almost completely different each and every time you play. Yes, Agent 47 took his time getting here, but it was time well spent.

It's one of the more unusual games available to date for the PS2, and its warm, tropical environments and great cast of characters will make you feel right at home right away.

Players who love strategy games will go nuts for Master of Orion II. Its detailed play options, random encounters, multiplayer options, and customizing capabilities are everything that the hard-core veteran dreams of.

As enjoyable as Zeus and suggests that Impressions' city-building series will just keep getting better.

Adds even more great gameplay in the form of more-balanced maps and more-balanced vehicles to an already enjoyable game.

It would have been nice if the game had updated graphics and better squad AI, but as it is, this is a great game nonetheless.

The core gameplay remains solid and is perhaps a bit more focused.

Still has a few rough spots on both the offensive and defensive sides of the ball that would make any fan of the sport throw his or her controller in frustration.

The game often ends up feeling like a string of puzzles whose solutions are pretty obvious. Nevertheless, Full Spectrum Warrior is very good overall, and deserves credit for being something other than just another military-themed shooter or strategy game. It's just too bad that it isn't more involving.

Even with the graphical faults and the general lack of innovation over its predecessor, Battle for Naboo is still a fun mission-based shooter, as well as one of the best Episode I titles to hit the market yet.

Blacklist makes it fun to fly solo, but it's when you join others that the stealth action really heats up.

It's not often that a game invades my thoughts the way Control has. I'm at the point where I want to consume every last thing it has to offer. And if I'm honest, it also makes me want to go back and replay Remedy's past games, too. Sure, it's a faulty metroidvania in some respects, but there are so many exceptional qualities afoot that Control handily deflects any momentary ire. I can't wait to take part in discussions about the game, to see what others have figured out, and to better understand where it all fits into Jesse's story.

FIFA 16 is full of scrappy back and forth, the ability to play patient possession football, and a greater range of passing than ever.

Like a comet streaking across the sky, Gris is full of wonder and beauty and leaves you with a warm glow in your heart.

If this is meant to be a farewell to Shovel Knight's first adventure, it goes off with all the spectacle and confetti it deserves.

It's off the pitch that EA excels. From the variety of game modes on offer and how everything's presented, to the constant updates in FUT's Team of the Week, Daily Objectives, and discussion of real-world happenings in commentary, FIFA 18 captures the world of football and confidently translates it into a video game. On the pitch, however, EA's soccer series is still lagging far behind PES 2018's more fluid, satisfying football.

This gleeful third-person shooter is outrageously fun.

While Assassin's Creed Origins reaches great heights in this new setting, it routinely runs into issues that bog down the overall experience. Technical issues make for an inconsistent experience and its new gameplay pillars wobble under the weight of its systems.

Shatter is brick breaking at its best--simple, innovative, and beautiful.

Vanquish is all game and no filler, and that's exactly what makes it one of the most gleeful and memorable experiences of the year.