Void Crew is a game that thrives on chaos and camaraderie, delivering an intense co-op experience that rewards communication, quick thinking, and teamwork. When played with a full, committed crew, it’s one of the most thrilling multiplayer games I’ve played. But for those who lack a dedicated team—or the patience to wrangle strangers in online lobbies—the game’s steep difficulty may prove more frustrating than fun.

Wall Town Wonders is a visual delight, an charming burst of creativity that will awaken the inner child in any player. But the amazing experience of having a community of tiny humans taking up residence in the walls of your home is marred by the fact that interacting with the titular town can be a struggle. Technical issues mute the magic somewhat, but cannot stifle the fact that this game is indeed a wonder.

Tetris Forever is a pretty slick package. You learn a lot that you didn't know, and it's cool to know that Tetris will definitely be around if all other games were to go by the wayside. With so many ways to play it, and so many systems, I would've loved to see more of a variation, or versions of Tetris. "Play Tetris, My Friends" is the quote in the opening by Mr. Pajitnov himself. I would, but there's so much Bombtriss blocking the way.

Camouflaj has put an extraordinary amount of work into the Quest 2 port of Marvel's Iron Man VR, solving many of the issues that held back this extraordinary game upon its initial PSVR release. What is left is the best superhero sim on the market, with amazing flight and combat and a pretty great Marvel story. VR fans should not hesitate to grab this game; it’s quite simply one of the best VR titles ever released.

Somehow, the developers of Lego Horizon Adventures found the perfect recipe to simplify everything about Horizon while keeping the charm and the nuances that make the franchise so endearing to its fans. The development team knocked it out of the park in translating such a robust experience to a family friendly version that can be enjoyed by gamers of all ages. This is an enjoyable ride for everyone but especially for fans of the franchise.

Overall, the evolution is positive, but the single year development cycle is really hard to ignore with all the little issues and frustrations that the game shipped with. The menus are bad and there are far too many bugs in this year's iteration of EA Sports FC 25. The slower gameplay and move to deeper tactics are features I actually really enjoy, but I can totally understand how many fans might be disappointed at this move away arcade style play to a more methodical approach. There's no reason not to pick it up, but wait on the frequent sales and discounts the game will see.

Making my VR wishes come true, Square Enix has delivered a stellar port of Triangle Strategy to Meta Quest. With the interface fully reimagined to take advantage of VR's 3D capabilities, the battle sequences play out like a gorgeous living board game. Yes, there is a lot of story here, but it is rich and engaging, and the 3D mixed reality implementation soars. I would encourage every VR fan to support this game, as I will not be satisfied until we have many more like it.

Far more than just an Unreal Engine 5 tech demo, Empire of the Ants is a brilliant RTS game. Smart, confident gameplay design keeps things simple while challenging your tactical abilities at a near-perfect pace. It’s one of the best surprises of 2024.

I had high hopes for Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 and it did not disappoint. The multiplayer suite is the best part of the package by a decent margin, and one of the best in the franchise thanks to the new Omnimovement feature and finely tuned gameplay. Zombies is a fun distraction when you’re needing a break from PvP, but it’s outshined by multiplayer and the campaign. Thankfully, Treyarch and Raven were able to get Call of Duty back on track in terms of campaigns with Black Ops 6, and even took a couple of big swings that paid off. Black Ops 6 feels like one of those evergreen releases in the franchise that people will be playing for years to come – some might even call it a classic Call of Duty.

A worthy upgrade that brings it closer to the fidelity of its sequel, Horizon Zero Dawn Remastered is the best version of a great sci-fi RPG. Guerrilla Games and Nixxes Software have turned this remaster skeptic into a true believer.

As warm, deep, and emotionally engaging as it ever was, Life is Strange: Double Exposure delivers another great adventure for beloved hero Max Caulfield. With a great new cast of interesting characters, a banger of a mystery, and enough ethical dilemmas to fry your brain, Double Exposure continues putting players through the wringer in the best possible way. A few minor technical issues cannot distract from the great story and beautiful visuals.

It has been some time since I’ve come into contact with a game that seems loved by the masses that I don’t understand, but that’s Phasmophobia. I don’t understand why it’s ok that you have to have a team of four people in order to find mild success. I don’t understand why I need to spend time looking up a cheat sheet to help understand why a haunt is fun. I hate that I need to do so much outside the game, or to play round after round, just to have a better understanding of what is going on. I’m not opposed to playing Phasmophobia again, but it would take some convincing from at least three friends who are in need of a fourth played to have a full party. I also think each session is very dependent on having a good group of people around you in order to enjoy Phasmophobia, or at least a funny group of people to laugh at the misery of playing.

Wildermyth is one of the best turn-based RPGs I’ve ever played. Immersive storytelling, brilliant pacing, and simple yet complex gameplay makes this one addictive game. It’s so good that not even a save file bug could turn me away from it. Don’t miss this one.

It has been some time since I’ve come into contact with a game that seems loved by the masses that I don’t understand, but that’s Phasmophobia. I don’t understand why it’s ok that you have to have a team of four people in order to find mild success. I don’t understand why I need to spend time looking up a cheat sheet to help understand why a haunt is fun. I hate that I need to do so much outside the game, or to play round after round, just to have a better understanding of what is going on. I’m not opposed to playing Phasmophobia again, but it would take some convincing from at least three friends who are in need of a fourth played to have a full party. I also think each session is very dependent on having a good group of people around you in order to enjoy Phasmophobia, or at least a funny group of people to laugh at the misery of playing.

As warm, deep, and emotionally engaging as it ever was, Life is Strange: Double Exposure delivers another great adventure for beloved hero Max Caulfield. With a great new cast of interesting characters, a banger of a mystery, and enough ethical dilemmas to fry your brain, Double Exposure continues putting players through the wringer in the best possible way. A few minor technical issues cannot distract from the great story and beautiful visuals.

Fear the Spotlight is a short but fantastic classic Survival Horror experience. Filled with an intriguing story, great characters, fun puzzles, this game delivers lots of tension and a lot of love, care, and passion for the games that we grew up with as kids. I cannot recommend this enough if you are a fan of the genre.

At times, Arkham Shadow is the coolest VR game ever made. But a bevy of game-stopping bugs and some of the sharpest difficulty spikes I've ever encountered keep this bat from immediately soaring. An incredible - and incredibly gorgeous - VR translation of core Arkham mechanics, but still too rough around the edges for such a prestige franchise. Give it a couple of weeks and it will be a nigh-perfect experience, but it's a shame it's releasing in this condition.

Zero the Kamikaze Squirrel is a bit of a rough outing for those who didn’t play it back on the Super NES and Genesis, but the port makes it a lot more accessible. The extra features menu looks a bit plain and could have been done better (especially the instruction manual), and if you plan to play without utilizing save states or the rewind feature you’ll be in for a rough time. If you’re looking for a good challenge and don’t want to shell out a bunch of money for a physical copy of the originals, six dollars makes it more than worth it to pick this one up.

Starship Troopers: Extermination on console puts the rough in Roughnecks. Technical issues, poor crossplay implementation, and frustratingly chaotic gameplay design leave much to be desired.

Not a remake, not an action RPG, but definitely a very refined MMO experienced tailored to be inclusive to solo and console players, New World has received a major shot of accessibility with the release of Aeternum. With a welcoming community, a refined story, and some very fun crafting mechanics, there is a lot of material here to dig into and enjoy. If you are looking for a new title to sink 1000 hours into, you could do far worse than this one.

Maestro puts the hand tracking of the Meta Quest 3 to the test, and nails it. With song familiarity, unlocks galore, and a simple, yet fun and challenging interface, this is a game you don't want to pass up. Even if you're not a musician, you'll be pleased with the hand tracking by itself, and that's going to get Maestro a lot of roses. Bravo.

If you haven't played Until Dawn before, then sure, go ahead and pick this up. But for those who have played this before I see no reason to pay full price when it's pretty much the same game. While some of the updates to graphics are nice, there really isn't any thing new here that is worth the price of this remake.

MMOs are difficult to grade on their own, but Throne and Liberty is a pretty great entry into the genre. NC Soft makes getting to max level easy enough, but the endgame grind for gear may turn some players off. Overall, there's a lot to enjoy here with a beautiful world to explore, plenty of PvE and PvP events to partake, and so many players to interact with. For a free to play MMO, it clears the bar quite easily for games worth giving a shot.

While a ton of infrastructure, a cool social hub, and a fun leveling system really help sell this package, Just Dance VR phones it in on the dances themselves, culling material from much older games and rendering it in 3D. A neat experience, but it could have been earth-moving.

Now that I'm accustomed to Just Dance being a platform instead of a net-new game, I can refocus on both the stellar new dances and the improvements to the UI and technical functionality. All of the content here is stellar (as usual), and the ability to download tracks to play locally is literally a game-saver. As fun as it ever was, this year's swath of new material impresses in scope and creativity. Just give into the fun.

Neva is another feather in the cap for Nomada Studio, who once again have proven themselves to be artists in the truest sense of the word. Beautiful, haunting, and emotionally moving, Neva is a wonderful experience.

Gimmick 2 is a sequel players have been waiting thirty-two years for and it was worth the wait. While the original game was one of the more difficult games on the Famicom, Gimmick 2 is a lot more accessible with checkpoints, fast travel around levels, and no lives to worry about losing. While you do have to master using the Star to finish the game, the learning curve is fair and you have plenty of time in the first couple of levels to learn and understand the mechanics. Whether you’re a Gimmick veteran or a newcomer, Gimmick 2 is as enjoyable as it is deceptively adorable.

Wrath of Cobra is a game that shows the love the developers have for the source content through and through. Unfortunately, that love doesn’t equal a polished and fine-tuned gaming experience. It is can enjoyable romp for fans to see and experience, but its shortcomings and technical issues keep it from being something they will truly enjoy.