Doom VFR is a remarkable experience in almost every way. There are intense battles, terrifying enemies, and amazing settings to explore, all tied together with a combination of creepiness and wit. All of this is almost upended by one of the worst control schemes ever implemented on the (admittedly difficult) PlayStation Move controllers. Doom VFR is still well worth playing (in fact, it’s a blast), just go into the experience with the understanding that no matter which controller you decide to use, you won’t be 100% satisfied.

Battleborn is a good game, that provides plenty of fun but it's just incredibly frustrating seeing all of these tiny issues that come in and ruin the fun every so often.

If it weren’t for the multiplayer options, The Master Chief Collection would have garnered a much lower score. The multiplayer suite is truly the saving grace of this package and worth the price of admission alone.

Monster Hunter Stories 2: Wings of Ruin is a mixed bag. Hatching and maxing out your Monsties is a lot of fun, but the battle system in which you spend most of your time eventually wears out its welcome.

Mortal Kombat 1 gets the gameplay part right but I can't shake the feeling that this game was released way too early. While you do get a full story mode and Invasions mode there are so many small problems that really take away from what should be the best game NetherRealm has made yet.

Even for those not willing to hop into gaming’s “kiddy pool,” come on in: the water’s fine.

Zombie Night Terror mixes the tired undead genre with the puzzle gameplay of the Lemming series, oddly enough. It works for the most part but the game is too difficult and obtuse for its own good. There is an enjoyable puzzler here, just expect to deal with some trial and error frustration along the way.

Bientôt l'été can technically be considered a video game by utilizing the medium, but relating the experience more to a conceptual piece of art or installation work would be more appropriate. However, those individuals seeking a video game experience outside of the norm shouldn't hesitate to visit the bold and unique world of Bientôt l'été.

EA UFC 4 takes a few steps forward with the changes in the fighting game but takes some back as well with the career mode which was bait and switched once again and barely has any significant upgrades.

Bus Driver is easy to learn, but will be quickly mastered. It may not have a lot of replay appeal for adults, but younger drivers will probably enjoy it.

It is not a bad game, it just is not a very good one.

If you are extremely patient, then Kerbal Space Program Enhanced Edition has a deep and rewarding game to offer you. But that patience isn't just tested in the tutorial or painstakingly crawling your way over the steep learning curve. It will be tested throughout your entire experience with the pacing, bugs, and even control scheme itself. Kerbal Space Program is a fantastic and unique gaming experience, and it's a valiant effort to bring this to consoles that rarely even attempt games this outside the box, but ultimately it always feels like a port, and one that would simply be better enjoyed with a mouse and keyboard. If that's not an option, there is an opportunity here to get a taste of one of the ways the PC gaming community stays weird, but be prepared to spend a long time chewing on it before you'll enjoy that taste.

The world is indeed wide enough for Skull and Bones and the increasingly few pirate games out there. But be careful. It won't let you get comfy. And after a long time in production, there's still work to do before Skull and Bones is feature complete.

Astria Ascending is a gorgeous JRPG with wonderful world-building that overwhelms the player with characters and progression systems. With somewhat standard-feeling combat that is overly punishing at the default difficulty, I felt at a loss as far as what to concentrate on to improve my party. Astria Ascending tells a beautiful story, but too often that story is buried behind too many mechanics and systems.

Chips 'n Clawz vs. The Brainioids has big ideas for the strategy genre, but it doesn't quite pull it off. I still think it's worth playing if you're interested in an easily digestible, save-the-world-from-aliens strategy romp.

Attractive and charming animation makes Wonder Boy: Asha in Monster World appear to be a modern game, but don't be fooled. A lack of modern conveniences—autosave, a map, etc.—places Asha squarely in the old-school department. Blistering boss fights, meandering levels, and a very weird-feeling double jump all combine to make Asha in Monster World a fun game to visit, but only fans of the classic franchise will want to stay.

Solo: Islands of the Heart seems like it’s trying to be your counselor. Go to an actual counselor. The gameplay is calming, the scenery is cute, the colors are vibrant, the design is unique, and the puzzles require a good amount of thinking without being too easy, but its attempt to analyze a real human person with pre-determined questions starts it off teetering on the wrong foot. It never quite regains its balance.

Steelrising is a beginner friendly entry into the Soulsborne genre with its fairly easy learning curve and enticing alternate history French Revolution premise. The art and visual direction are unparalleled with Spiders’ amazing depiction and design of steampunk automata, but the game is ultimately bottled down by unpolished combat, inconsistent performance, and too many quality of life issues.

Abyss Odyssey: Extended Dream Edition does a bit of polishing to the core game, but it still has a few flaws that make it hard to rave about this title. But for those that are interested and dedicated, the experience is ultimately rewarding and satisfying.

The atmosphere is what makes this game. The emotion of the plot succeeds in some places and stumbles in others. The puzzles can be frustrating at times, but not because they’re impossible to complete, more so because they seem like filler to extend gameplay time. Overall, the experiences are memorable for the feeling they create in the player, but not much else.

24: The Game manages to duplicate the shows frantic pace and distinct look while providing an interesting story fans will want to experience. Unfortunately it also features some bad control and terrible driving missions. But who said Jack's day was going to be perfect?

It's good in spurts and looks incredible. I just wish there was more to do and it's rather expensive for the amount of interaction you have in it. The NVIDIA effects are neat though and the use of multi-res is a great way to get more performance with better graphics.

Unchained Blades is ultimately marred by a narrative structure that works against the best elements of the role-playing game genre. Just when things are about to get good, the game throws you for a loop and hits the reset button. The simple gameplay and paper-thin characters aren't enough to make up for this unfathomable design decision.

A good time passer, imprint-X is worth its reasonable price but isn’t a bastion of breathtaking gameplay. It has its flaws, many notable but none game ruining. Despite that, it definitely requires some brainpower. Don’t expect to be enraptured by days of scintillating gameplay, but also don’t expect to breeze through it on your first try.

Three decades later, Karateka is back to kick Akuma's ass! The good news is that this is a good looking action game with a few genuinely clever ideas. Unfortunately, it's also a repetitive remake that never quite hits its potential. The rhythm-based gameplay is unique, but it would have been nice to see a few more enemy types and deeper gameplay!

The Legend of Kay Anniversary isn’t a horrible game, but it leaves a bit to be desired.

Mazes of Fate isn't the most technically impressive GBA game, and its shortcomings are more glaring this late in the handheld's life, but the gameplay is as solid old-school RPG as you can get.

A few changes made by the development team keep Corpse Party: Book of Shadows from being truly great. It's just as creepy and disturbing as the last game, but it feels like it's held back by being a much more rigid visual novel.

Sniper Elite VR offers a hefty experience for a VR game, with up to seven or eight hours of well-designed levels to creep through. The mechanics of the game take some time to get used to, and even after becoming accustomed to the controls, still feel a little awkward — though a nice selection of settings helps alleviate those issues. Some forced repetition pads the game towards the end, but overall Sniper Elite VR is a solid and fun experience.

Dragon Quest Monsters: Joker provides a good spin on the monster collecting style of gameplay, and it is definitely more challenging than what the other companies out there provide.

Fans may enjoy the fast-paced action and emphasis on character building, but everybody else will be left scratching their heads at the outdated graphics and repetitive gameplay.

The end result is an average overall package by today's standards, but three games plucked from a decade or more ago should be proud to land safely average in the middle of today's pack and standards.

One Piece: Pirate Warriors is a fan's dream, until they encounter the boring combat and one-dimensional gameplay. It's one of the better 'Musou' titles out there, but this style of beat-em-up needs some renovation.

Fort Triumph might not be the biggest victory for the genre, but there is plenty of fun combat to be had. While not genre defining, it's easy to get wrapped up in combat, and suddenly have a couple of hours fly by. The UI is hard to read at times, in both docked and handheld mode, but that was about my only complaint. I enjoyed Fort Triumph, but didn't fall in love.

Dynacat does its best to be a throwback to Sonic 3D Blast and while the ideas are there, it feels like it could use a bit more polish. There were times where I had to intentionally lose a life to restart at a checkpoint because I ended up landing in an area where I could not get enough speed to proceed, plus there were a couple of times I ended up out of bounds and had to restart an entire stage or boss fight. Dynacat can be an enjoyable game once you learn the physicals and controls, but it feels like a little more polish could go a long way.

While obviously being influenced by games like Limbo, Monochroma has a flavor and story all its own. Monochroma is a good game at heart, but it's hidden under technical errors and gameplay flaws that gave me no end of frustration.

No Straight Roads has fantastic visuals, a phenomenal soundtrack, and lovable characters. It's a shame that the rest of the game doesn't hold up as well but I didn't regret my time with the game and will be replaying the boss fights many more times thanks to the fantastic music.

Barbaria is fun in the moment, and very visually pleasing. Assembling dungeons and raiding the dungeons of other players are both very entertaining activities, and the high-end VR implementation makes things that much better, but the overly open-ended progression system ultimately left me feeling stalled and frustrated. There is massive potential here, and with a few more guardrails in place, Barbaria would be an all-time great VR game.

Cricket Through The Ages isn't much about Cricket, and that's ok. It starts slow, but with a pretty cool payoff in unlocking the other modes. It's way more entertaining to watch others play it, but you playing at home, alone, trying to convince other people to play it, is useless. Fire it up, hand your friends the controllers, and watch chaos ensue.

Much like previous ProSIM games, I am not part of the target audience. However, I can see that those who enjoy the thrill of complex, detailed military strategies will find a worthy title to add to their libraries.

WWE 2K18 is another decent entry in the long running games franchise. But as I said last year, it's sad that these games are just decent because they can be and should be great.

The fighting is pretty straightforward, and once you get a few power-ups, even that becomes simply routine.

A beautifully rendered but ultimately familiar adventure game, Karma: The Dark World is neither scary nor thrilling. Meticulously built and gorgeous to look at, the gameplay is nonetheless a slow roll through a pre-rendered Kafka-inspired story, with little in the way of interaction beyond some environmental puzzle solving. I can appreciate the artistry at work here, if not the final product.

While it may not have a lengthy playtime or genre-defining mechanics, Choo-Choo Charles is nonetheless an impressive project created by a single person. If you’re craving some dumb spooky fun centered around upgrading your own train whilst trying to derail a demon spider locomotive (a very specific craving, indeed), then look no further.

Just Dance 2024 brings another fantastic group of songs to the mix, but in riding the coattails of 2023's offering, feels a bit like an oversized DLC offering. I understand the reasons for approaching the title this way, but it does leave this new edition of the game feeling like a half step.

Warlocks 2: Godslayers is enjoyable for the most part, but the difficult and tedious combat can take the fun out of the game for some people. The game is definitely geared for multiplayer as the combat can be overwhelming during solo play. Beyond that there are a few minor performance hiccups though it doesn’t normally affect any major gameplay. If you can get past that and the difficult-at-times combat, you’ll find an enjoyable and humorous game with some interesting gameplay mechanics and even more interesting writing.

If you are unsure where to begin with this series Atelier Marie Remake: The Alchemist Of Salburg is a great starting place. It’s the first in the series, and the facelift it has been given is very welcoming to newcomers, like me. I’m glad I gave this one a shot before trying something else in the series; trying this one out after might have felt like a downgrade. Combat and gathering, two of Atelier Marie’s main elements, can be done automatically, making them feel unimportant when I know that is not true. Focusing on learning about the world’s characters is where you’ll find most of the enjoyment. Atelier Marie Remake has sold me on the idea of playing another game in the series, I hope they feel more modern, and require more work on my part.

A Game of Dwarves could have been a better revival of the genre that Dungeon Keeper started, but it's still a solid title and at $10, anyone in this particular niche will get what they payed for.

The tutorial will open up the rulebook, but composing winning strategies is a trial-and-error procedure that offers no apologies for its tough-as-nails enemy AI, game-ending scenarios, and multi-tasking mechanics.

Achtung! Cthulhu Tactics is an accessible turn-based strategy title on the PS4, but it lacks the polish, depth and variety needed to have real staying power.

I'm probably being more harsh on this game than it deserves, but for the price point there is an enjoyable title here. You just need to give it time to grow on you. Hopefully gamers out there can look past the flaws that I seem to be hooked on.

A game that's bloated beyond necessity, thanks to a terrible design decision, Tales of Xillia 2 does a few things to address the flaws of the first title—and then completely runs that progress into a brick wall. Multiple times.

Warhammer 40,000: Regicide is best recommended to only the truly dedicated fans of the Games Workshop created universe.

Overall, the ridiculously gory fights and simple level system feel fun and rewarding. Even still, progress is sometimes unnecessarily halted by the random nature of finding key items. In spite of missing a beat or two when adding tedium to the experience, Runic Rampage succeeds at providing an old school arcade experience in the present day.

Farming Simulator 2013 follows last year's version with a wide assortment of new content from hundreds of licensed vehicles and equipment to a massive map with support for raising animals. Players other than farming or simulation enthusiasts will be frustrated by the lack of in-game guidance beyond a few brief tutorials that ultimately results in a game that can only be recommended to series fans.

MACROSS-Shooting Insight may feel run of the mill with the way it covers four types of shooters, but is still enjoyable and a bit challenging. If you’re really good at shooters or bullet-hell games, you’ll find a decent challenge here while those not as experienced can tone down the difficulty a bit to their liking. While the game looks nice graphically and is fun to play, for genre veterans the gameplay is a bit average.

Cloudbuilt is in no way a bad game, but it does have its flaws; the worst of which are the controls and difficulty curve. If you can get past those, though, you'll find a fairly decent and fun game in a genre that doesn't see a lot of entries. If speed running is your thing, definitely give this one a shot.

Battle Cry of Freedom is fun but problematic. With no tutorial you’re left to figure everything out on your own. An even bigger issue is the not so subtle racism found in the community in a game that pits confederacy vs the union - and you pick whichever side you want. While players' behavior is not the fault of developer Flying Squirrel Entertainment, making a game whose topic is the civil war brings out some less than savory people. Combat is fun, but understanding the flow of battles takes patience. You don’t need a PHD to play Battle Cry of Freedom, but a Bachelors probably goes a long way to understanding pivotal gameplay mechanics.

With is short missions and cumbersome customizing options, Armored Core 4 isn't nearly as entertaining as it should be.

Evil West in fun in the moment, but largely forgettable due to the poor writing and level design. While the combat is stellar and intuitive when in the heat of battle, the glue holding those battles together could use some love. With a boring protagonist and stilted dialogue, Evil West feels more low budget than it likely really is. Luckily, there is a solid core here to build upon for the inevitable sequel, and punching dudes with electricity never gets old.

Contraband Police is both too much yet not enough. Sometimes less is more—I wanted more simulator and less first-person shooter RPG, but there are still certain types of simulator comrades that will dig it, I think.

When your only motivation to continue is to see just how far down a tiled dungeon you can get, I became exhausted. I love the combat system. The amount of weapons and armor you can equip your party members is great. But with the game not providing any story or character motivation, I became weary. While I enjoyed the mechanics and searching, the somber feel of Dungeon Encounters made me realize why they don't quite make them like they used to.

Resistance: Burning Skies is an admirable effort but ends of leaving a lot to be desired. The game may carry the popular Resistance name, but the experience certainly doesn't mimic the standard(s) set by that previous entries in the series. Still, this is solid proof that the FPS-genre can succeed on a handheld system.

A pared down meat-and-potatoes shooter, heavy on visceral mayo and lite on the rest of the fixings. High fidelity to its PC forebears, putting you in a vegetative killing state with interspersed spikes of adrenaline.

Destiny 2: Beyond Light is worth the investment for existing fans of the genre and franchise. Otherwise, the best way to experience this expansion is through Game Pass on Xbox or PC.

Wealth of Nations adds some additional options to the economic subgame, but is by no means an overhaul. It is an OK expansion, given its limited scope and price.

A solid tower defense experience on the console, The Castle Game plays things safe from start to finish. There is a solid foundation here, which offers an enjoyable experience, but it really doesn’t do anything to make itself stand out or try anything new.

If I hadn’t played Baldur's Gate: Dark Alliance II when I was in high school, would I have enjoyed it now? I don’t think so. The simplistic look did not age well. The city of Baldur’s Gate feels empty and lifeless. The couch co-op is good; being able to play online would have been great, but only the PC version has that. The only real update was the rapid loading times and smooth frame rate. But I did play this back in high school. The memories carried over from 18 years ago. I’m lucky that the nostalgia was strong enough for me to look past the obvious flaws of Dark Alliance II. Because I was able to distance myself from the flaws, I was able to have a blast playing. Exploring, fighting, and the characters all had a familiar feel that made my time enjoyable. It might not be as sharp and crisp as a modern hack and slash game, but it didn’t matter.

Aside from one major bug that should be patched soon, Star Wars Pinball is a good stop-gap for when you absolutely have to get some pinball gaming in while on the go. But it's not going to come close to matching a real table.

Despite having a strong legacy to build upon, this game somehow manages to somewhat disappoint. In fact, it may be time to let the entire WW II, FPS genre die with dignity.

The game straddles the line between fun and annoying at times. Playing for extended periods will surely end in burn out, but for the short spurts played it offers some fun and exciting gameplay among some rather boring backdrops and generic story.

Garfield and his Nine Lives offers a simple and entertaining platforming experience that is sure to make the kids happy. There are a couple combat quirks and the graphics have a few hitches, but it doesn't spoil the product. Game Factory has done its job and fashioned a fun little game, no more, no less.

Rugrats: Adventures in Gameland is a fun little game based on the classic Nicktoon, but unfortunately it’s a little too short and too easy for the price. The ability to swap between the four main babies and each having their own strengths and weaknesses is nice, plus the graphics and audio are pretty spot on from what Klasky Csupó gave us over three decades ago. However, the high price point for a rather easy game that can be completed in under ninety minutes will likely be a bit of a turnoff for a lot of people. If you’re able to wait for it to go on sale, it’s definitely worth checking out.

The 360 version limits interactions with other players and turns it into a glorified standard multiplayer title. If that's what you prefer, the 360 title is for you. However, MMOs should stay on the PC, and that is exactly the case with Defiance.

If you can get past the occasional buggy-ness of it as well as the repetition, Capsized does have some appeal to it with its great visuals, sweet electronic music and gameplay that gives enough variety to carry you through its short campaign.

If you're the kind of person who plans on teaming up with friends to take on this lengthy adventure, then I can recommend Silent Hill: Book of Memories. The action isn't especially fresh and the graphics leave a lot to be desired, but there are some good ideas wrapped around a truly twisted narrative. However, if you're the kind of person who plans on going it alone, then look elsewhere. There is nothing in Silent Hill for solo players.

Hellgate: London does have potential though but it's just not there yet. There's a lot of fixing the needs to be done and a lot of bugs to hammer out.

Code Lyoko does a lot of different things and offers a decently long quest, and fans of the show will appreciate how faithfully the source material was recreated. That said, some fine tuning is definitely needed to make the two play styles feel more balanced, especially in regards to difficulty.

It does offer you a new twist on the genre, but it’s not necessarily one everybody will like.

Throw Anything is a fun and well-made VR diversion that delivers some real thrills. While the tracking becomes an issue due to PSVR’s single camera, the cleverness of the level design compels players to work through the clunkiness. This game is not terribly long, but a few difficulty levels extend the play time. Dropping stuff on zombies is pretty entertaining at its core.

Assassin's Creed III Remastered is a mixed bag. It's repetitive combat and lackluster visuals, strung through with a few bright spots of naval combat and exploration, and unique displays of combat. Narratively, the game is as weak as they come. There's no mystery. Just an obligatory plot to finish the fight between the Assassins and Templars. Not to mention the mumbo jumbo with the First Civilization. The game is frustrating and not worth another look.

A fun but ultimately shallow experience, Victor Vran offers a dungeon crawler experience that is solid, but not particularly interesting.

Broken Sword 5: The Serpent’s Curse - Part 1 is thoughtfully constructed with low-pressure environments and the promise of a global thriller with a supernatural curse reaching back to Biblical times. It’s strung me along this far, so I’m ready for part 2, but part 1 is doing very little to hint at any major payoff for this sleepy but good-natured point-and-click adventure.

No Man's Sky is an ironically small game, but it has a big, beating heart at its center, even when the procedural generation and the sometimes narrow-scoped world building tries to hide it.

The gameplay loop to UFO: Unidentified Falling Objects is simple enough, but addicting, at least for a while. You can watch a trailer for this game, and you can even play for a little bit and think you know what you are doing, but you would be wrong. The further I dig into UFO the further it gets away from just being a casual puzzler. The online multiplayer would probably help drive that thought if I could find a match. This is a smaller title; its price reflects that, but in a good way. The gameplay is sharp, pixels even sharper, and just a fun time overall, just don’t rely on playing online.

Accent Core Plus R is the best version of the series available. The only problem is that it is also the deepest gameplay wise while neglecting to include any of the training or tutoring options that the earlier versions have featured.

With its weak game world, Hunter's Legacy doesn't deliver on its MetroidVania promise, but it does provide for a solid platformer with some really fun puzzles.

The story takes a while to actually become relevant, the tournaments can be a bit difficult in the early going, the digging can get repetitive, and the difficulty can spike from “easy as pie” to “I got one-shotted” rather quickly. However, my experience with it wasn’t all that bad and I did overall enjoy it, but having never played another FF game this might not be the best introduction to the series from what I’ve read.

Old school role-playing fans who have only owned Xbox products recently will no doubt get a kick out of Blue Dragon. This is a worthwhile game if only because it's the only game of its kind currently available for the Xbox 360.

As of now this King of Fighters game just can't compete against the likes of "Soul Calibur," "Dead or Alive," and "Mortal Kombat." It's not a bad 3D fighting game, just one without any bells and whistles.

The platforming is tedious at times, with you controlling both the boy and his shadow, though figuring out how to get through each area isn't all that difficult. Sadly, the game is somewhat short, only taking a few hours to get through. But if you're playing with someone, it can make for a fun afternoon.

Man of Medan starts out well enough but just falls apart towards the end leading up to a pretty anti-climatic ending thanks to a twist that was given away at the very beginning of the story. It's not terrible but it's not nearly as good as Until Dawn. Still, as a fan of Until Dawn, I still enjoyed the story for what it was but I didn't really have a desire to go back and play through it again after finishing it the first time.

Koi is cute, it’s simple, but worth a swim if you’re in the mood for a low-rent Journey.

Warsaw is World War 2's Darkest Dungeon. Excellent narrative beats hide under the gameplay rubble, telling the story of Poland's guerrilla fighters being turned into bullet sponges for Nazis.

If you're into strategy games, you might want to check out the demo for Carrier Command: Gaea Mission. Even then though, the game has some flaws and is rather slow paced to make me want to give this game another shot any time soon.

While Justice League Heroes is a fun game with a lot of levels and cool superheroes, it’s unfortunately marred by outdated graphics, repetitive game play and terrible AI. If you can get over its shortcomings then you will find yourself having a lot of fun playing with some of DC’s greatest comic book characters.

While Last Year: The Nightmare shows a lot of promise, the game simply feels shallow at the moment. The game can be really fun at times but no progression, bugs and glitches and horrific balance issues can ruin all the fun.

This HD collection gives players the Dragon Ball Z game they've been asking for ... and also brings the original Budokai along for the ride. Dragon Ball Z: Budokai HD Collection delivers the action you expect, and not much more. A few questionable design decisions, shallow fighting mechanics and a complete lack of online play makes this yet another disappointing HD compilation!