Like Codi’s review of the game, I found myself surprised by just how much this strange game about delivering goods from one end of the country to the other could be simultaneously thrilling, frustrating, peaceful, and somehow hopeful. It reminds us that we are all connected, but that real monsters also exist. It reminds us that friends and family are the most important things of all. It reminds us that Kojima and his team are the strangest cats on the block, but that they may be some of the best storytellers around.

One thing is for certain, Asgard’s Wrath 2 is a pinnacle for VR and should be praised. Not all games are worth the cost of admission, especially in virtual reality, but Asgard’s Wrath 2 transcends those stereotypes and blazes a fresh trail for the medium.

So the saying goes, you can’t step into the same river twice, but Mass Effect Legendary Edition is certainly going to make one hell of an attempt at it.

After spending some time in the Rust Belt, I can say with certainty that ARC Raiders is a great step for the extraction shooter genre. Beyond the incredible atmosphere of the maps lies in-depth systems to explore. Although simple to pick up, some may find it frustrating along the way. But, if you put in the effort, the mechanics ARC Raiders has available can make for a stellar time topside. That said there's still a whole lot left to explore in the Rust Belt – I've only played a smidgeon of the content for this live-service extraction shooter. If I had to score it today, based on initial impressions, I'd be at an 80/100. I'd also recommend ARC Raiders to all fans of the genre and gamers interested in starting their extraction shooter journey.

Sure, it’s better on PC, but that’s cold comfort when it’s hardly functional on other platforms. What’s clear is that this game is no more ready for release than it is for review. Major patches are already slated for January and February, and we’ll revisit it at that time to score it. Right now, buyer beware. There’s a fun game underneath all this, but only if you are playing on PC or Stadia.

Warhammer 40K: Space Marine 2 manages to do something very few licensed IPs can – it’s not just a great Warhammer game, it’s just a great game, period. It’s easily one of the best games of 2024, and we can’t recommend it enough.

The infuriating do-over nature of 10 Second Ninja X greatly sours the experience and takes away from what otherwise could’ve been a decent game.

Thankfully the main plot of Trails Beyond the Horizon is pretty interesting. While what I've played so far hasn't really affected any of the major characters in a significant way, trying to piece together these seemingly disparate events of the Space Program and what Ouroboros is up to has kept me engaged. I hope the game's story can grow beyond just being engaging, so check back here in the near future for my full thoughts once I've finished the game.

Marathon so far has been a brutal but rewarding extraction shooter that boasts an incredible visual style and is steeped in excellent Bungie gunplay. The learning curve can be steep at first, and losing everything to a bad run can sting, but the game truly opens up after a few hours to be something very addictive. [Review in Progress]

Marathon so far has been a brutal but rewarding extraction shooter that boasts an incredible visual style and is steeped in excellent Bungie gunplay. The learning curve can be steep at first, and losing everything to a bad run can sting, but the game truly opens up after a few hours to be something very addictive. Once the final map, Cryo Archive, releases in the coming days we'll have a final score for the full review. In meantime, we'll be dropping back in Tau Ceti IV chasing that next piece of loot.

There’s a lot to see and experience in Lost Ark, and the asking price to try it is just your time. It’s very clear that this game is a juggernaut, and even friends of mine who aren’t into the genre have had their interest piqued enough to give it a go. Here’s to hoping Smilegate, Amazon, and Tripod Studios can capitalize on an incredibly strong start and fulfill the promise buried under all these screens.

While Black Ops 4 eschewed a single player story in favor of Battle Royale, Modern Warfare puts extra emphasis on its campaign.

There are a variety of weapons, abilities, items, and more at your disposal, as you would expect from a medieval dark fantasy. There are plenty of options to choose from so you can play your way, whether you want to go in stealthily or go in swinging. Playstyles can also be changed on the go, especially as you find new gear along the way. This is just a snippet of the overall picture of Tainted Grail. So far, the package we have been presented with feels familiar but also fresh and exciting, and I can’t wait to give you all a more in-depth breakdown.

There’s a lot to be excited about with Star Wars: Squadrons. It not only meets all of my expectations, it wildly exceeds them. VR support for the entire game instead of just a single mission taste makes this the game we’ve always dreamed of so many years ago. It truly is the sequel to all of those great early PC games so many years ago, but with all of the modern bells and whistles. Put simply, if you are a Star Wars fan, it doesn’t get better than this.

From a gameplay perspective, Amnesia Memories and Amnesia Later x Crowd have translated well to the new platform, with this being the first time Later x Crowd is available to fans outside Japan. Unfortunately, as a newcomer to the series, an incredible story about a girl’s journey to recovering her memories and discovering the truth is grossly overshadowed by the love interest side of the story where she is often subjected to very poor and sometimes disturbing treatment.

Just running around blasting things and hunting for keys isn't fun anymore. When you also remove the feeling of having a LAN party from the multiplay, you're not exactly left with a must-play game.

NBA 2K22 is less a video game and more an advertisement for the sport. The controls are obtuse and unresponsive, slowdown is constant, the story is bland, and it’s simply not fun to play.

It’s safe to say that I’m absolutely blown away by what Warhorse has put together. I’m 26 hours into the game, and the skills hit “Mastery” at level 15, so by my guess I’m roughly half way through. Stay tuned for the full review, but take this as my full recommendation in advance.

There are countless fun, modern JRPG experiences to be had on the Vita, making this an entirely expendable game.

I was a fan of the first Swords & Soldiers’ fiery and rambunctious Viking hordes and their quest for grandeur and grilled meats, and I had high hopes for the sequel, but Swords & Soldier II wound up just being a dusty old lamp with no magic to speak of.

There just isn’t a reason to play Carrion. There is little narrative, repetitive combat, limited puzzles, and almost zero horror elements. The atmosphere is okay and it reminds me of Alien but that’s about as far as it goes with horror. Just leave this monster stuck in the vent.

I want to love El Shaddai: Ascension of the Metatron, but the HD Remaster on Switch is not the place to do so. It runs so poorly you can’t even navigate menus properly. Even besides those problems, the action and platforming are incredibly bland and the story is nigh incomprehensible, even as someone who loves artsy titles.The visuals are drop dead gorgeous and the voice acting is good, but that’s not enough to carry a game.

Bugs, glitches, game freezes, and other technical issues mar what would have otherwise been a passable, if unsurprising and uninspired Batman game.

While CounterSpy on consoles is a delight, the iOS version is a near unplayable mess that should be avoided at all costs.

On Your Tail has a lot of heart, but that’s sadly not enough to support a mystery that is constantly falling flat on its face. Its puzzles are infuriating rather than fun, with no real clues to follow and determine the culprit ahead of time. The characters are incredibly charming, Borgo Marina is gorgeous, and the life sim elements are fun, but the core of this taste of Italy is incredibly bitter.

Afterparty unfortunately doesn’t come close to the standard its predecessor set. While it has great ideas and actors, the rest of the game collapses under the weight of its own ambitions.

Suffice it to say I’m excited for this game, and so much of me wants to recommend every bit of it. Right now, the performance issues make that very, very hard. I’m not sure why Colossal and Paradox didn’t delay all of it until 2024 instead of just consoles, but here we are. Much like other games that launched in a rough state, I’m certain that Cities: Skylines II will eventually be something to behold. For now, however, there’s a bit of buyer beware. Check those system requirements folks…

The audio design is impressive, with ambient sounds and a haunting score that perfectly capture the eerie essence of the Zone. Gunfire sounds appropriately weighty, and the growls of mutants are genuinely unsettling. Voice acting is also very well done, with brilliant performances from all the main characters...Stalker 2: Heart of Chornobyl is an undoubtedly remarkable achievement in atmospheric game design. This post-apocalyptic experience offers an unmatched dynamic open world that is bound to satisfy long-time fans of the series. However, the extremely poor technical hiccups and hardcore yet niche nature of the game prevents it from getting a full recommendation. This is not a game for casuals. [Review in Progress]

I've only played the Cyber Tower and Ship at the time of this review, but the contrast offered by those two scenarios alone has me excited to keep exploring the other levels. The extremely space-limited Cyber Tower is almost an entirely different game compared to the ever-moving ship. The game has 8 scenarios out of the gate, including one that is a randomized map, as well as the ability for the community to share maps within the Steam Workshop. Essentially, there is no shortage of content.

Need for Speed Unbound is an arduous experience, and not one I’d recommend if you’re looking for an arcade racer. The only good aspects are the refined handling system and the aesthetic customization of your cars, which is really brought to light via community creations. However, this experience is quickly overshadowed by the boring open-world, a meaningless collect-a-thon, unbalanced AI, and some of the cringiest story and dialogue I’ve experienced. It’s The Room of racing games.

SNK Gals’ Fighters is a reminder of why fighting games didn’t really work on portable consoles back in the day. While the additions to this port are nice and the game looks good, the game itself feels unresponsive and the controls are too complex for its own good.

Dragon Quest Treasures is a bland adventure that sucks out everything that makes the franchise charming. There’s quite a lot to do in the game, but none of it is fun or feels good. Playing this game feels more like checking things off your to-do list: the act of crossing things off may offer a hint of satisfaction, but you don’t actually like doing the tasks on it.

No amount of visual updates can mask the fact that Type-0 was clearly never designed to be on consoles. What great ideas it has are buried under a story that’s rendered meaningless and a camera that prevents you from seeing most of them in the first place.

Tales of Berseria is a great game, but Tales of Berseria Remastered feels pointless on top of making the game unplayable on Switch. The significant input lag makes both combat and exploration unwieldy, textures look muddy or pixelated, the low resolution causes constant shimmering, and the game is stuck at 30 fps. All previous DLC being included is basically the only thing this release has going for it.

Rogue Lords is a fine game with some novel systems for lovers of roguelites to play around with, but it will not grab your attention long enough to keep you coming back. Given its premise and stellar art design, that’s a shame.

At the end of the day, Watch Dogs: Legion feels like it executed on most of its ideas, with some standouts rising above the rest. While the loss of a primary protagonist may have felt like an odd step, it worked in the “we are all Spartacus” sort of way. Fresh takes on drones and the addition of a few new toys liven up the world's interactivity. I’m just hoping that the Ubisoft team can squash some of the real-world bugs soon.

From a gameplay perspective, Amnesia Memories and Amnesia Later x Crowd have translated well to the new platform, with this being the first time Later x Crowd is available to fans outside Japan. Unfortunately, as a newcomer to the series, an incredible story about a girl’s journey to recovering her memories and discovering the truth is grossly overshadowed by the love interest side of the story where she is often subjected to very poor and sometimes disturbing treatment.

SaGa Frontier Remastered is a game for die hard fans of the original only. Veterans will appreciate the quality of life features along with the addition of Fuse, but everyone else will be put off by the sheer amount of grinding, barebones plot and characters, and tedious leveling system.

Death end re;Quest is not a terrible game, but it certainly doesn’t do much to stand out from a crowded and trope friendly glut of JRPG titles. The battle mode plays like a game of pool and has a lot of interesting features, but the writing is tired, the characters are overly sexualized and mentally deficient as always, and the game is set in a bland world with little detail or points of interest. Death end re;Quest is another game for fans of long dialogues leading nowhere.

God Eater 3 bears a superficial resemblance to Monster Hunter, boasting many of its features, but none of its depth. It offers nothing but diluted versions of what it has tried to poach from better games.

Fairy Fencer F: Advent Dark Force is a remake with very few improvements.

Don't Stop, GirlyPop! has a fun premise and charm with great feeling movement and guns that are fun to shoot, but it's ultimately inept and even its best parts are clumsy.

The Hyperdimension Neptunia Re;Birth series has always been a potential-filled experience that ultimately disappoints, but the 3rd installment in the series passes right over the endearing and interesting elements of the game’s cut and paste formula for the most boring.

Dynasty Warriors 8: Empires fails to make the leap to portability, as it’s marred at every step by technical limitations and boring metagames. Lacking any of the endearing qualities of other Warriors titles, it’s hard to recommend it even to the most diehard musou enthusiast.

New World’s ideas come across as very solid, but the more I’ve engaged with it, the more I see problems. Those problems have nothing to do with the foundation of New World, however. There is nothing fundamentally wrong with New World besides the economy and lack of main missions, and only the former can destroy the game. The rest of the issues can be fixed with time and enough attention to the details. We’ll see how Amazon Games decides to proceed with what’s working and what doesn’t as I work towards the end game.

Soul Hackers 2’s only saving grace is its visual design. The characters look cool, the town is interesting, and the UI is somewhat stylish, but that’s it. It’s not broken or anything, just incredibly uninteresting. There’s absolutely no substance to the story, characters, battle system, or level design. It’s such a shame, because that style is very appealing, but there’s absolutely no reason to play the game otherwise.

The game fully understands what makes it fun, and it does everything it can to empower the player to see that with as few restrictions as possible. This is what helps Red Faction: Guerrilla justify its remastering. It might not look as pretty as even its contemporaries, let alone games coming out today, but the sheer fun that comes with obliterating a building or tearing it apart piece by piece has not waned a bit.

The Last Remnant is an interesting experiment in expanding the traditional turn-based battle system, but there are enough annoyances in that system and weaknesses in its setting and characters to keep this from reaching the heights it’s clearly reaching for.

If you’re looking for jRPGs on your Vita, you’ve got great options–but Rainbow Moon isn’t one of them.

Blair Witch fails to impress at every turn. The story is interesting but unfulfilling, the environment is dull, and the creatures are boring. Worst of all, everything you do is very repetitive. I love horror games but the only thing scary about Blair Witch is how boring it is.

A great game held back by numerous technical problems. The Dark Pictures Anthology: Man of Medan promises another great experience in the vein of Until Dawn, but at least on the standard console is too stuttery to play. Much of the content will be inaccessible due to these performance issues. If you have an enhanced console definitely check it out, but unless it receives a patch it can scarcely be considered playable.

Raji; An Ancient Epic has a lot of potential and a unique style and story, but seems to be actively working against the player’s enjoyment in many ways. While the first level is enjoyable, the rest of the game is plagued with performance issues and incomprehensible design decisions.

New Tales from the Borderlands is confusing, messy, and accomplishes nothing over the course of 10 hours. The game meanders from incident to incident hoping you’ll laugh at a constant barrage of bad jokes, and lacks any heart.

Utawarerumono: Mask of Deception is a text based adventure that masquerades as a tactical RPG. There are hours upon hours of low-grade, simple cutscenes with countless lines of text that you’ll be reading instead of playing a video game. There are elements of this title that shine through the darkness of boredom, but there are few who can stomach the ride finding them.

If you are yearning for a multiplayer beat-em-up, this might satisfy you for a bit. Be warned though: since there is no story, I found the limited appeal is for all but hardcore fighting fans.

When you get right down to it, A Valley Without Wind 2 is just a bad game. I can’t think of anybody who I’d recommend play this title. The heavy use of randomization means that all the character is sucked out of the game, while the awful controls leave this a title devoid of any fun. Pass on this title, and go play AI War instead; you’ll be glad you did.

The Sims 4 Horse Ranch is unfortunately a wonderful concept rendered almost unplayable due to bugs, and both my Sim and animals getting stuck. The CAS clothing items and Build Mode pieces are fantastic and add a lot to the game, especially if building a ranch or country theme is your jam. Bonding with your horse and the interactions between both your Sim and the animals is heartwarming, and riding is loads of fun. I’d have liked to see more with the Equestrian Center and competitions, not being able to go inside is kind of a bummer and a waste of space. As much as I’d have loved to explore all that Horse Ranch has to offer, I just can’t play it in its current state. I’d love to adjust my review at a later date if things improve.

Trine 3 is an incomplete mess that feels like the game’s creators just ran out of time (despite four months in Steam Early Access). The graphics, art style, and landscapes are stunning, but aren’t enough to make Trine 3 a game worth your time.

I appreciate that Double Fine tries something unique with Kiln. We need more of that. But one cannot simply reward originality. It must also execute. Kiln is a scarcely functional and excruciatingly amateurish multiplayer game. This is an anomaly for Double Fine and, as such, it should be left in a furnace until it's burned out of existence.

The gameplay is exciting and works excellently, but it’s unfortunately lost on a backdrop of boring maps and ugly design.

A portable version of this game seems unnecessary, and overall the game is not worth even a moment’s time even from the most dedicated a hack-and-slash player.

While there are plenty of game modes, not a one of them is a challenge.

Shockingly boring.

Shiness: The Lightning Kingdom is the product of a small team trying to do too much and, ultimately, falling flat. It pains me to say it, because I saw the potential in Shiness way back when it was a fledgling Kickstarter upstart, but this is one of the worst gaming experiences I’ve had in a long time and I cannot recommend it to anyone that likes fun.

Corpse Party: Book of Shadows is definitely not for everyone. People who enjoy a heavy dose of Japanese in their horror stories and who don’t mind that they are playing a video game that doesn’t have much game in it will be able to enjoy Corpse Party: Book of Shadows. As for me I found the storyline to be entirely too juvenile and non-sensible.

Windscape may look like a decent lo-fi adventure at first, but it doesn’t have much to offer beyond its initial cartoony charm. With sleep-inducing combat and an absolutely skeletal crafting system, it just does nothing to keep your attention.

NASCAR Heat 2 is a huge disappointment and massive collapse of the promise given by the decent predecessor, NASCAR Heat Evolution. The game’s controls are loose and worse than ever, and the problems of the first, including some patently stupid glitches and exploits, are still fully present. The game looks fine, but it does not play well at all, and represents what may be a sign that NASCAR just won’t ever translate well to the video game world.

Warhammer 40000: Speed Freeks is a solid entry in the Warhammer line of video games. It’s fun, fast, and runs well on the Steam Deck. Warhammer 40000 is in early access and is a must try for fans of the Warhammer franchise. [Early Access Provisional Score = 80]

Battlezone VR is a missed opportunity. With so many other PSVR launch titles ending up being little more than glorified tech demos, the balance and design gaffes that cripple the game make the experience that much more disappointing as Battlezone VR’s handling of the technology works really well. I’m convinced a good game could be salvaged from this with a few tweaks and some rebalancing, but for now it’s a brutally frustrating mess doesn’t live up to it’s promise.

I felt like I was getting more of the movie's story, but playing through this was an aggravating chore. It's a rental, please don't buy it.

Slender: The Arrival wants to be seen as a serious entry into the horror genre, but it fails to put the effort into the gameplay mechanics and artificial intelligence that would merit the honor.

While Twin Mirror is Dontnod’s worst game so far, it’s still a somewhat enjoyable experience, especially for fans of their work. It’s a game that feels like it needs a redo, because while it presents interesting concepts, it doesn’t flesh out any of them.

911 Operator really misses the mark. It’s a good attempt at showing what a 911 operator may do, but you’re effectively playing a mobile game on the Switch for the cost of a PC game. That $22 price point is a bit excessive, especially since various bugs and quality-of-life issues you’ll get are really frustrating to deal with on the Switch.

BONELAB is an incredibly interesting piece of tech with a terrible shooter holding it back. The physics barely work, the mechanics are cumbersome, and the puzzles are unintuitive and frustrating. There are a few moments where the combat can shine, but that’s not enough to make the game worth it.

Zen Pinball 2’s Age of Ultron table doesn’t offer enough fan service to appease any level of Avengers fan, and there aren’t enough interesting mechanics to excite a virtual pinball fan.

While the new graphics are gorgeous and being able to switch between old and modern visuals is great, Alex Kidd in Miracle World DX feels like three different games haphazardly slapped together. The level design and controls are fundamentally at odds with one another, and with how frequently you’ll die combined with how long it takes to respawn makes this simply a frustrating experience.

The Outbound Ghost looks and sounds wonderful, but that’s about all there is to enjoy here. Exploration and combat are both incredibly tedious, and the story meanders for about six hours until it ends with nothing resolved. I want to like this game, but it feels like it lacks any sort of central vision.

Aragami 2 is so ridiculously easy that you can breathe in its general direction and you’ve exploited some gameplay mechanic. It’s great for those who like speedrunning, or those who might not have a lot of time in their day, but if you’re hoping for the slow and methodical stealth gameplay of Aragami 1 then you won’t find it in the sequel. Just like most developers (eyeing you Ubisoft over Splinter Cell) it seems working gameplay formulas mean bugger all.

Cloudpunk started off unique and interesting; you’re new to its world and are exploring it alongside the main character, Rania. Eventually, you’ll realize it’s only a cyberpunk delivery simulator with cringey voice acting and an even worse script. By that point, the game loses any redeemable qualities and becomes a burden to play. Just like the main character, and the mechanics, the game has little to no substance to offer.

It’s hard to recommend The Delusions of Von Sottendorff and his Square Mind. On one hand, it has a pretty nice room switching mechanic, and if it used a pure puzzle gameplay system, it would be a great title. However, the inclusion of action elements makes the game frustratingly difficult, and mixed with poor presentation, becomes a disappointing mess.

Ghostbusters: Rise of the Ghost Lord is a great idea. Playing as a Ghostbuster recruit in VR is exactly what you’d have hoped for when you heard of this game, from the proton pack to the Ecto-1. Until a fix is discovered for the audio, however, the ghosts will continue to inhabit the streets of San Francisco, completely unrestricted.

SwapQuest is a mix of puzzle and RPG gaming that fails to provide a fun experience with either.

Despite being so seemingly narrative focused, Aphelion really feels like it boils down to "nothing happens, the end".The cast gives some great performances and the score is great to listen to, but even they can't save the dull, meticulous gameplay from feeling any less tedious.

I’m extremely glad I played through to the end, as the narrative of RiME is fantastic, with a gut punch of an end reveal that belies the whimsical look and feel that reeled me in to begin with. This makes the poor technical execution all the more frustrating – had it been better, or had I played it on the PS4, I might have considered this one of the high points in an already stellar year of gaming. Instead, I am left grieving what could have –should have– been.

Spirit of the North may look beautiful, sound beautiful, but is a confusing and boring mess. It tries too hard to be artsy while disregarding the importance of fun gameplay and an interesting story. During their short playtime, players are required to interpret the weak narrative and their overall purpose in the game. The only replayability comes from completing the collect-a-thon. However, that provides zero satisfaction to the player and has a hard time trying to stay relevant to the gameplay and story at large.

At its heart, Megaton Rainfall is a solid superhero score-chaser that understands the freedom of flight, and empowers the player with a myriad of interesting abilities. Random difficulty spikes and a painfully generic design do hold this game back from being the best that the genre has to offer, though. On top of that, Megaton Rainfall, specifically on Switch, falls victim to a series of unacceptable technical issues which both mitigate Megaton Rainfall’s strengths, and aggravate its weaknesses. In its current state, it is impossible for me to recommend this game.

Croixleur isn't broken, but it is aggressively mediocre.

Weapon Shop de Omasse is an interesting idea that doesn’t go anywhere — a humorless, flat, and repetitive package that squanders its unique concept in almost every respect.

A game that does well on visual and audio presentation and utterly fails in execution. With the worst set of controls I have ever encountered in a video game and some of the weakest A.I. I have ever seen in a squad shooter.

Overall, Assassin’s Creed Liberation looks and feels like a cheap knock-off of the series, and almost every aspect feels like a dumbed-down version of what players have come to expect from the series.

Senran Kagura Burst offers players a maelstrom of mammaries and more innuendos that you can shake your stick at. However, the poor presentation and repetitive gameplay make the experience as boring as it is creepy.

Bon Appétit is one part rhythm game, one part cooking, and endless amounts of grimy sexuality. The more time you spend with it, the more likely it is you’ll come away feeling dirty and depressed. If you want to both enjoy a game and look at boobs, there are plenty of better titles out there.

Overall, Firewall Ultra has great gameplay elements working in its favor, but a lack of content and shameful grind and monetization systems make this a hard one to recommend at this point in time. Maybe after a few updates it’ll be ready to go, but for now it’s time for First Contact to grab another mag and get to work.

It’s a shame that Bientôt l’été is a game that is almost certain to be forgotten as the broken mess that it is. I really thought this game had some great concepts, but the unworkable controls and awful matchmaking destroy any chance it had. If you can find it on sale cheap—we’re talking under 5 bucks—and you really like the French New Wave, you might be interested. Otherwise, I’d definitely pass.

The WWE 2K series has experienced a very rough transition to the “next generation” of consoles. After two straight years of solid releases in WWE 13 and 2K14, Yukes has hit a wall.

The Crew is a game filled with missed opportunities and unfulfilled potential.

Gameplay is horrible.

Legends of Ethernal sports a lovely art style and surprisingly grim story, but unfortunately the main mechanics, clunky combat, and frustrating gameplay design make this a tale of mediocre myths rather than one that soars.