It’s a cozy game that realizes a sickly sweet veneer isn’t enough to draw people in, you also need to provide solid gameplay – and that’s something this game delivers. You’ll have to have a high tolerance for cutesiness, to be sure, but in the end, it’s worth it.

To be sure, Yellow Taxi Goes Vroom isn’t the first game that tries so hard to be wacky, nor would I begrudge developers who want a game that’s popular among streamers. But I can’t say that the end result is all that fun – not when there are all kinds of genuinely good modern 3D platformers out there that don’t rely nearly as much on silly gimmicks.

While no one would confuse it for a GOTY contender or anything, it’s still a solid riding simulator with a decent amount of content. Given how bad it could’ve been, that seems like a win.

It’s a perfectly serviceable retro-tinged 3D platformer, but we live at a time when there are lots and lots of those, and enough of them do it better that you’re probably better off playing them instead.

As Metroidvanias go, it’s fine, but if you want anything more than just average, you’re not going to find it here.

Even if it was outshined by its successor, Luigi’s Mansion 2 HD is still worth your time. It may not be the GOTY contender that Luigi’s Mansion 3 was, but if you give it a chance, you’ll still find it worth your while.

Crow Country is clearly influenced by some of the scariest games of the ‘90s, but it’s good enough that it can be enjoyed today even if you never played those games the first time around (or even if you’re generally too much of a scaredy cat to play them).

Overall, I enjoyed Puppet Combo’s latest horror installment. It started slowly, then escalated to full nonstop combat. The characters were intriguing, as was the backstory that drove the narrative forward. I enjoyed learning about the downfall of Dr. Edward Sullivan through all the pages obtained in the house, as it gave it a very Alan Wake vibe. My only issue with the game was the aiming mechanism. In ’90s games, when they often utilized fixed camera angles, the auto-aim would automatically lock on. Unlike in this instance, it aimed straight ahead and then had to be manually maneuvered to where I wanted to shoot. If ’90s aesthetics are the goal, then I believe that only one aspect of retro gaming gameplay should be implemented to not overwhelm the player with all the non-intuitive controls that annoyed us when we played these games when we were younger.

I cannot overstate how much I dug the visuals in this game, it’s a refreshing change of pace from other indie dungeon crawlers that often rely on 8-bit or 16-bit aesthetics, and I hope we see a sequel to #BLUD sometime in the future.

Dread Delusion has a very clear idea of what kind of game it wants to be, and who it appeals to – and if you’re in that target market, then this is a must-play game for you.

All-in-all, Super Monkey Ball Banana Rumble is a great time, albeit held back by the same lackluster camera the series has always had and the framerate causing some issues, but otherwise it’s a very solid title.

Bang Average Football is a game that deserves having people play game after game after game. Not only does it perfectly nail the feeling of playing sports games back in their infancy, it also adds a cozy, Stardew Valley-style frame around the whole thing that you’ll want to do even if you don’t usually like those kinds of sims. It’s an excellent game all-around that does a whole lot of things right.

Shadow of the Erdtree is another perfect culmination of everything that has come before it, which at this point seems to just be the norm for From Software. Some of the greatest moments in all of Souls are found within Shadow of the Erdtree, but it will make you work harder for them than ever before. Exploration and curiosity are the key, and you will be rewarded in ways that you cannot imagine as you delve into the Shadow Realm introduced here. I adored Shadow of the Erdtree, and cannot wait for more people to experience what has so thoroughly blown me away in my time with it.

Overall I would highly recommend checking out both games in this collection, whether you’re picking it up as a bundle or as separate releases. Both games are great, and even if Monster Hunter Stories is a little dated compared to the sequel, it’s still a lot of fun. Even if you’ve never played a traditional Monster Hunter title before, Monster Hunter Stories Collection offers up such a different take on the series that you’ll have no trouble starting here. It is very much its own thing, and something that I hope we continue to see more of in the years to come.

It’s what The Chinese Room does best. Still Wakes the Deep is exactly the kind of game that made the studio well-known in the first place, and it shows that even after a few years away from the genre, they’re still the masters of it.

It’s a decent enough game now, and provided its developers see it through to a full release, it seems reasonable to believe that it’ll continue to improve. [Early Access Provisional Score = 70]

I can’t in good faith recommend KINGDOM HEARTS -HD 1.5+2.5 ReMIX- for a full price purchase given how they perform, even if you’re a fan. I played the Kingdom Hearts franchise on PS4, so I was ecstatic to be able to play them on my preferred platform, but other than the third entry and Fragmentary Passage, it just doesn’t seem to be easily done. I’d highly recommend a sale and having some patience if you want to dive into them, because they’re not for the faint of heart. It’s a damn shame, but I guess not every port’s gonna be a good one.

All in all, Shin Megami Tensei V: Vengeance is a massive improvement over the original, boasting two full-length story modes with multiple endings for you to go through and explore. Combined with a new bunch of demons, new music, new mechanics, and much more, this is absolutely the definitive way to play this game. Other than some minor level scaling problems that still remain from the base game, it is a phenomenal RPG that encourages multiple playthroughs with plenty of unique build variety as vast as the player is willing to look. I genuinely cannot possibly recommend Vengeance enough to fans of turn-based RPGs, or even fans of Persona that may still not be versed in what SMT has to offer differently. Shin Megami Tensei V: Vengeance releases for all major platforms on June 13th, and is well worth your money. Give it a shot, and I promise you won’t be disappointed.

The more you play, the more it feels like Raccoo Venture misses the mark just enough to make it feel like a bit of a letdown. It’s a solid game, but with a few tweaks it could’ve been a lot more.

If you go into Heading Out expecting a driving game, you’re probably going to be sorely disappointed. It’s something entirely different from that – and, improbably (given the different genres being thrown together), it works incredibly well.

It’s got a great idea but it doesn’t come close to living up to its promise, and you’re better off playing any number of other superhero games or XCOM-alikes.

I have no doubt that if you loved Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door the first time around there’s nothing here that will detract from your memories – and if you’re looking to check the game out for the first time, it’s probably aged better than most of its contemporaries, the occasionally slow pacing aside. But throughout my time with Paper Mario: The Thousand-Year Door, I found my attention wandering and my interest waning far too much to be able to say I have the same amount of love for it as others do.

Games like Braid are best experienced when playing with little knowledge of gameplay and/or story. While the levels are challenging, this was one of the first games I remember feeling a true sense of accomplishment once each level was completed. It’s an inexpensive title that is worth the price of admission, and if you have played it before and may not be interested in revisiting it, I would encourage you to recommend it to newcomers so it can grow a new fanbase.

Even as a single-player adventure, Song of Nunu delivers. It may or may not be a faithful representation of the League of Legends characters, but it says a lot about the quality of this game that none of that really matters.

Every run in Dicefolk brings new adventures, and it’s a sign of how well it’s put together that you’ll definitely want to go on run after run after run.

All in all, Ghost of Tsushima is an incredible package for $60 and well worth your time if you have even a moderate-strength PC. I have zero doubt about you finding some sort of combination of settings to make the game run as smoothly as you’d like. Incredible ups to Nixxes and Sony for this port.

Ninja Theory really knows how to end a game, and Senua’s Saga: Hellblade II is no different. If you’re looking for a God Of War clone, this is not that game. With its unique presentation, cinematic narrative with amazing storytelling, game-changing visuals, beautiful sound design, and digestible length, Xbox Games Studios and Ninja Theory have a successful franchise on their hands. I want to continue to come back to Senua and go on these adventures. If you have Xbox Game Pass, go download this and Senua’s Sacrifice.

Is Metro Simulator 2 the worst game on the Switch? It’s quite possible. There’s a lot of shovelware to be found in the eShop, and I’ve only played a fraction of it, but there’s a strong argument to be made that Metro Simulator 2 might be the worst of the bunch.