Though I am so far impressed with these Gold Master Series, this one is ranked 3rd out of 3, if I include the amazing Atari 50. I respect the hell out of Jeff Minter for being THE indie game creator. There are some games missing that may come at a later date, and some that I'll never play again. But I think that's what Jeff wants. Stay weird, Mr. Minter. Stay weird.

Taxi Life: A City Driving Simulator proves that not every occupation can become a worthwhile video game simulation. It’s infested with bugs and soulless gameplay, making it more of a mundane taxi than a crazy one.

If action role-playing games are something you are into, then Dragon’s Dogma 2 is your next big game. It’s that simple. You may have been thrown off by talk of the lack of fast travel. But the game’s director Hideaki Itsuno, is right: a good game doesn’t need it. Dragon’s Dogma 2’s world is covered with experiences to have. It could be a hidden cave, a simple treasure chest, or even a giant griffin that just wants to create chaos for you and your party of pawns. Combat is easy to understand, and different enough from vocation to vocation that when I get bored with one class, I can easily switch to try something different. It’s not about the destination, but rather the journey. As silly as it sounds, Dragon’s Dogma 2 is all about the friends we made along the way.

Dead Hook is fun in small doses as it can get pretty repetitive, but I would say that this is also one of the best first person, Doom inspired shooters you can buy for the PSVR 2 right now.

While this modern take on the beloved classic is certainly beautiful to look at in places, it stumbles a bit with ill-advised combat and an uneven presentation. Still, the lore drops are incredible, the performances solid, and the Lovecraftian storyline is intriguing - and when it goes hard at the end, it is a sight to behold. Survival horror fans won't find huge scares here, but there is a fun feeling of creeping dread and anticipation that moves things along.

Helldivers 2 is truly a game of the year contender. The gunplay and gameplay is excellent. The variety invites you to keep hoping into one mission or another. The difficulty ramps from fun barrel shoots to harried and hair-raising struggles on the edge of a knife. However, the overall experience greatly suffers when playing as a solo player. If you have a group, dive in to hell. If not, be careful out there, soldier, and watch your back. The bugs aren't your only enemies.

Despite its AA veneer, Outcast – A New Beginning is a solid open-world RPG. The combat doesn’t carry its weight, but the quirky characters, fun traversal, and open quest system are the real heavy lifters. It feels like a game from a bygone era and in this instance it works.

A game that certainly isn't shy about what it is, Berserk Boy is a love letter to the Sonic the Hedgehog and Mega Man franchises. While there are arguably some slight concerns along the way on the design front, those shortcomings are overshadowed by fun and addicting gameplay. The game manages to pay great respect to the games that influenced it and still stand on its own at the end. Fans of both classic franchises will certainly enjoy going Berserk!

Swarm 2 improves almost everything from the stellar first entry, while adding a roguelike structure that makes the game that much more addictive. At this point, if you haven’t played a Swarm game, you are failing at VR. There just aren't that many games that can grant this freedom of motion without a side helping of nausea. You owe it to yourself to experience the pure joy of movement that Swarm 2 offers.

Hex Gambit: Respawned tries to view chess and checkers through the lens of a modern video game. It succeeds in some ways, but falls well short of taking down the kings.

WWE2K24 is more of the same. The added matches are a nice addition, but there are some caveats made here. The visuals seem off-putting, and some of the single player modes are overkill. If you're looking to slam someone to the mat with a near current roster, grab this. But be wary - it may need a little bit more time in the ring.

Akka Arrh is a resurrected version of a game that never existed. And if you don't know the lore, it's ok. It's colorful chaotic nature will keep you at bay for a few hours. You can get those high scores, and win, but it won't be easy. If you want that Atari pain, this is a little less hurtful than usual, but mastering it will still take a while.

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.

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.

Pacific Drive is an intriguing blend of science fiction storytelling and simulator gameplay mechanics. If you typically shy away from roguelikes, this might be the one that finally nestles its way into your psyche as you tell yourself “Just one more run”.

A Void Hope is one of those games that you want your friends to play through, so you can all talk about it later on. Platforming that has a great old-school SNES feel, with a story that is better shown than told. I found each level to be unique enough, especially when accompanied by the soundtrack, that I didn’t feel like I was replaying the same level again and again. My only complaint is the need to replay some levels in order to fully clear such a short game harshes the vibe, but only a little. Play it when its dark or cloudy out, when you’re in the mood to experience something with feeling; A Void Hope was clearly made with love.

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.

There is plenty to see and do in Piczle Cross: Story of Seasons, as long as the thing you want to do is nonogram puzzles with a Story of Seasons theme. If you were expecting to play the first nonogram farm sim then you may hbe disappointed. The puzzles are pretty good, some of them are just silly, I’m still upset about what the developer considers to be an egg. The collage puzzles require more patience and thinking than the normal nonogram puzzles presented here, but that’s good too. Other features like the almanac are welcome additions-even if they don’t add much overall. If you are into both genres then picking up Piczle Cross: Story of Seasons make sense.

Under Cover is a love letter to light gun games. There is no question here what niche group it's reaching for. For the price, and the nostalgia, I thoroughly enjoyed every second of it, even though time wasn't against me in any way shape or form. The mechanics feel good and familiar, and the challenge is just right. More please, and thank you.

With the core team assembled, Final Fantasy VII: Rebirth feels like embarking on a fantastic adventure with a gang of your best friends. More open, action-packed, and surprisingly funny, Rebirth gives players days of content and the freedom to pursue it, while still telling a wonderful and cohesive story. Every aspect of Remake has been examined, refined, and improved. This is the franchise's Empire Strikes Back, in all the best ways.

It’s indifference that takes me out of Bandle Tale. I couldn’t get into the world building, I couldn’t get behind the constant back and forth running that quests have me doing. I never felt like I found my stride. The mini games - especially the cooking - was fun, something that would be excellent to play with a friend. But this single player crafting sim is too cute for its own good. Unlocking new abilities was fun, but the new abilities never felt game-changing, just another new chore to add to the rotation. If you are into League of Legends and want something that feels like a celebration of the cute characters of that game, Bandle Tale might satisfy you in the short term. But as the game spans upwards of 40 hours, I struggled to maintain interest.

D-Day Enhanced offers fun gunplay that only sporadically functions 100% correctly, in addition to myriad bugs and a paltry player base. The bugs can be squashed in the weeks ahead, but the lack of players and subsequently poor AI make this one a tough sell.

Banishers: Ghosts of New Eden is a deeply emotional collection of human stories, of both the protagonists, but also the settlers of New Eden. The combat is nothing great, but the stories within certainly are. You’ll be surprised at how easily you can empathize with late 17th century colonials, which is the magic of developer Don’t Nod.

Tekken 8 is not just a return to form, it's a Tekken masterpiece. Without question, this is the most fun I've had playing a Tekken game in a very long time. It's only a matter of time for people to call this one scrubby too, and I am here for it. Harada, hat tip to you. Beautiful and very fun game.

While the strangely gun-focused combat isn’t anything to write home about, the filmic story elements in Suicide Squad are enough to carry the day, at least for the duration of the campaign. While I wish there was more to do in Metropolis, it is a beautiful setting for a game, and watching the cast of weirdos and losers skewer some of DC’s finest is a guilty pleasure. While the end game doesn’t currently feel compelling, there is more to come, so we’ll reserve judgement until we see how that plays out. As it stands, this is a mild recommendation for a mostly painless, often funny game.

Casper Croes and his crew understood the assignment. Alisa is pure Playstation One-style 90s survival horror in the best way possible. There is so much love and passion put into this game, and a true understanding of tone and aesthetics and gameplay that made those games so much fun. If you grew up with these games like I did, I cannot recommend Alisa enough.

Momodora: Moonlit Farewell doesn’t do anything groundbreaking for Metroidvanias, but it really doesn’t need to. The art style and music suit the game well given the story and the various sigils, relics, and companions to collect, along with health and magic upgrades, give you plenty of ways to customize your playstyle, though they can make things a bit easier than it seem like they should. If you enjoyed Momodora: Reverie Under the Moonlight or just have a bit of a Metroidvania itch, Momodora: Moonlit Farewell can definitely scratch it for a while.

Ultimately Hitman: Blood Money Reprisal is an 18 year old game that feels optimized for mobile, but yeah, also lands on the Switch. There are some decent quality of life upgrades but the visuals show their age. The story and missions stay true to form in what was always one of the best Hitman narratives. I expect a little more on the Switch and while this might seem a more premium experience on something like an iPad it doesn't quite hit that same height on Nintendo's console. It is still a good game, and is a cool throwback to a really accomplished peak in gaming's past.