You still have a cutesy, hard-drawn style that recalls the likes of Scribblenauts. You still have scenes that are a little too overcrowded and filled with too many tiny objects, forcing you to zoom into every scene so that you spend forever searching for one or two dumb little details. And you still have no real way to ask for help, save for clues that are so obscure that they’re essentially useful. Of course, if you’re a diehard hidden object gamer (do those exist?), that may sound appealing. If it weren’t for Crime O’Clock, that might even have described me. But seeing as that other, better, more interesting game is also available, the only reason to get Hidden Through Time 2 is if you’ve already exhausted that and you’re after something that isn’t as fun.

There isn’t much to come back to once you’ve beaten the game, so replay value is basically non existent here. Overall, Pixel Ripped 1995 is a fun and very unique experience that everyone should try. Definitely a good addition to the ever growing PlayStation VR2 Library!

Is Paperman: Adventure Delivered the worst game I’ve ever played? Honestly, it’s quite possible. It has no redeeming qualities, and I got more and more annoyed every moment I spent playing it. You can’t just write it off as one of those dumb meme games that clog up digital storefronts that are intentionally bad, nor can you say that it’s so bad it’s good. It’s just flat-out terrible.

Playing BIT.TRIP RERUNNER has made it clear to me just how much my gaming tastes have changed in the past decade. But that’s very much a case of “It’s not you, it’s me.” RERUNNER shows the series has got as much life in it as it ever did, and if you’re in the mood to be challenged, it’s worth your time and money.

There are many hours of play in Sonic Superstars and whether you play mostly single-player like me, or co-op, there is fun for every Sonic fan and I feel the fans will be happy with this one. Even with Super Mario Bros. Wonder around the corner it’s going to be a great gaming holiday season for platformer fans. Sonic Superstars comes highly recommended.

Still, the occasional bug aside, I absolutely loved Spider-Man 2, and I’m happy to see that Insomniac continues to knock it out of the park with this series. Miles has been a great addition to the Spider-Man universe overall, and if you loved Miles Morales: Spider-Man, I think you’ll be really happy with all the focus he gets in this one as well. While the limelight is sort of shared evenly throughout the game between Peter and Miles, it’s hard not to continuously root for Miles as a character, and he becomes even more central to the overall storyline here in a way that feels pretty impactful overall. So if you’ve been looking forward to the upcoming release of Spider-Man 2, then you can rest assured that you’ve got an excellent Spidey game to look forward to in the near future.

For me Detective Pikachu Returns was very easy, but I could see the appeal to a younger audience, looking for more different Pokémon content. I would like to play in this world of Pokémon again, and if they improve on what they have now, I can see this franchise could have some longevity.

I’d highly recommend checking out Cocoon when you get a chance. I loved my time with it, and the ambient synth soundtrack is absolutely fantastic, and helps really sell the look and feel of the world. Absolutely give it a shot, you won’t be disappointed.

Angry Birds VR: Isle of Pigs is simple, fun and addicting, and you’ll be hard pressed to stop playing and rejoin the real world. Highly recommended.

NHL 24 remains a pretty solid game if all you’re after is an in-depth hockey game that can be enjoyed no matter your skill level. It may not be worth upgrading if you have last year’s game, but if you’ve taken a couple of years off from the franchise, now might be a good time to jump back in.

As far as I’m concerned, even with the so-so performance, Boti: Byteland Overclocked is still worth playing if you’re a fan of 3D platformers. It’s got fun characters, a vibrant aesthetic, and gameplay that’ll feel comfortable to anyone who’s ever played one of these games in the past few decades. There may be some flaws, but the overall package is solid enough that it’s worth overlooking them.

Assassin’s Creed Mirage continues that run of solid games, without question. It doesn’t break new ground – by design, I would argue – but it shows that around twenty games in (counting spin-offs), there’s still plenty of story for the series to delve into. Assassin’s Creed Mirage is an Assassin’s Creed game, for all the good and bad (mostly good) that entails.

Car handling feels great, it’s a definite step up visually, the tracks are all immaculately designed, the amount of car options are fantastic, and it feels like a true next gen racer all around. But the forced timers/practice restrictions in both Career and online multiplayer really pumps the brakes on my enjoyment of this entry so far, making it a little tougher to recommend to everyone.

The weird thing is, I can see why some people might enjoy this game. It’s strange and it’s random, which might be exactly what certain gamers are after. Personally, though, I just found Freak Crossing to be a vaguely unsettling waste of time – which may be its point, but that doesn’t mean I want to play it.

Obviously, if you’re someone for whom story matters a great deal, I probably haven’t done anything to sell you on Solar Ash. But I’d still say the game is well worth it. Any game that makes movement feel this cool and effortless is a must-play, as far as I’m concerned.

On the whole, though, Eternights feels like a fairly original game. It’s always nice to see a game try out some new genre combinations – and, as this shows, it’s especially fun when the game in question mostly pulls off the combo.

Overall I’ve found The Expanse: A Telltale Series to be a solid attempt to re-establish Telltale as the king of adventure games once again. They were able to consistently hit their release deadlines for each episode, and with all now available, it’s the perfect time to check this one out. If you’ve ever had any affinity for the show, or Telltale’s prior efforts, you’ll likely find something to enjoy here.

The Witch of Fern Island is still in Early Access, so it’s totally possible that the developers will build on what’s here and turn the game into something worth playing. But that’s certainly not how I’d describe the game at this point in time, so until and unless it gets there, it’s really not worth your money.

Overall, I’d say The Crew Motorfest is a big step up from the prior games in the series, and gives some hope for additional variety in open world racers in the future. Granted, it sticks pretty close to the same formula that Forza Horizon has, but there’s enough differences between the two to make this still feel like a worthwhile use of your time. It’s a gorgeous game in motion as well, which doesn’t hurt. As far as complaints go, mine are pretty minor, in that I don’t care for the limited fast travel system that’s only tied to the intro areas for each Playlist, and I wish the server didn’t time out as quickly as it does when you go idle. Outside of that, I’ve really dug Ubisoft’s latest attempt at an open-world racer, and I think you will too.

Strangely enough, the last game I played from Lightwood Games was also a logic-based puzzle game – though in that case, my complaint was that the game was too easy, and I finished all the puzzles the game had to offer in less than a hour. I certainly didn’t finish Word Web by POWGI in less than a hour – but finishing the puzzles dragged on so much, it made me want to quit the game and give it up after just a few of its 120 puzzles. Hopefully next time out, Lightwood can try a word game that’s not also a logic game, because the results so far aren’t great.

Not that being more emotional and being fun are mutually exclusive – as Ratchet & Clank: Rift Apart proves time and again. As the series enters into its third (!!!) decade, this PC port is a fine way to show that the Ratchet and Clank are still compelling characters, and even if there are a few points where it feels like the game could use a little more polish in terms of performance, they can’t take away the fact that Rift Apart is an outstanding game.

The umbrella that’s also a gun concept does a great job of carrying the game along, making it a joy to play and navigate across the 6ish hours or so it’ll take most to complete the game. The story is weird and interesting enough to also keep you entertained, which certainly helps make Gunbrella feel fresh despite there being a number of retro-themed action-platformers on the market today. I’d highly recommend checking out Gunbrella when you get a chance, you won’t be disappointed.

It’s an enjoyably challenging platformer that’s sure to scratch any Mega Man or roguelike itches you have. Factor in Maker Mode, and you’ve got a recipe for a platformer that’s a huge – and hugely fun – time sink.

Despite the inevitable comparisons, Round8’s title stands on its own and can fill the void for those always beseeching a new entry of Bloodborne or at least a port to different platforms. Krat in this current form is indeed horrifying and built off of the suffering of many, but man what I would pay to see the city in its prime. While I think I’m done with my playthrough, I believe a second playthrough will unlock many more insights to the world of the title and once I’ve recovered my nerves that might be something I will indeed do. Like many fairy tales and fables, I can expect Lies of P to be experienced for a long time to come.

I totally get the appeal of Super Dungeon Maker if you’re the kind of person who loves building their own game worlds. It never claims to be anything more than that, and there seems to be a solid community in place to help the game continue to grow. To me it feels like there’s still some work to be done on fleshing it out, but as it stands, there’s definitely some potential here.

I will be transparent and say that I have only spent about 5 hours with Firewall Ultra at the time of this writing, and have not had the ability to link up with friends or colleagues yet, so all of my time has been spent with random party members online. That 5 hours has been something of a chore though, and I was ready to step away within the very first hour of time with Firewall Ultra. As I said earlier, there is definitely something here, and an adjustment to environmental interaction, reloading, and the combat engagements itself could turn this around. Unfortunately, as it stands here now, I cannot truly recommend this as a VR game worth spending your time and money on, at least not yet.

Overall, Mortal Kombat 1 is a polished, beautiful work of art that is a remarkably innovative entry into the long running franchise. You can feel the love and care that went into recrafting existing characters in a way I never knew I would love.

Does all this add up to make Baldur’s Gate 3 the best game of the year? That’s hard to say at this stage, given the insane number of genuine GOTY contenders we’ve had so far this year – to say nothing of those that are still scheduled to arrive over the next few months. But notwithstanding all that, it’s clear that it’s certainly on the short-list as one of the top contenders.