While woefully short and unchanged from its PC incarnation, Noitu Love: Devolution is a great little action title with satisfying bosses and slick controls.

An acceptable title dotting the grievous past of Compile Heart. A dungeon crawler with maze style gameplay, and a fairly unique and customizable battle system, MeiQ does a good job of providing some fun and interesting moments. Falling short overall in the battles, and leaving very much to desire with story, characters, dialogue, and respect for human dignity, MeiQ is a title only for the most dedicated RPG player.

An accessible game to those unfamiliar with tactical RPGs, Guards has enough to satisfy newcomers, but its reliance on grinding as well as its limited gameplay system might persuade veterans to look for something deeper.

Oceanhorn is unashamedly a Legend of Zelda clone, but feels more like an homage than a copycat. There are few original ideas, but old-school adventure game fans should love Oceanhorn’s bite-sized interpretation of Zelda’s classic formula.

A direct sequel in a time where that is exceedingly rare, and a very welcome one at that. The original Trails of Cold Steel was a great game that was under appreciated, and this sequel brings all of the same charm and quality from the first and does more preserving than improving. With some slight improvements and great source material, Trails of Cold Steel II is a no-brainer to add to any JRPG collection.

ReCore is the framework of an incredible game with some truly unforgivable technical issues, which greatly deter from the overall experience. You’ll enjoy the challenging platforming, and awesome robotic action…in between aggravatingly long loading screens, and deaths via falling through solid surfaces.

While it sports an incredibly deep combat system, fun and complex hunting gameplay, and a lot of personality, it suffers from a lot of technical issues, repetitive grinding, and a cliched story that follows a two dimensional cast.

There’s a lack of girth around the main game, with Draft Champions and Franchise Mode feeling like copies from previous EA Sports games. But at the same time, the on-ice play has never been better, the on-ice trainer is improved further and adding in net battles was a smart move. While it disappoints slightly, NHL 17 is still a must-play for hockey fans.

A beautiful, but sometimes shallow, crash course in Norse mythology that shines in its boss fights’ designs and overall presentation. And while Valhalla Mode isn’t much of an incentive to jump back in for returning players, it adds tremendous challenge to the already difficult core experience.

Spirit of Justice is yet another fantastic game in the Ace Attorney series. The gameplay is better than ever, and the stakes have never been higher, all of which only helps to make one of the best stories in gaming even better. Play this game — you won’t regret it.

For the curious and the creative, brimming with replay value, and fairly priced, Project Highrise is the game that SimTower should’ve been.

Despite superficial similarities to classic Nintendo games like Super Metroid, Axiom Verge isn’t afraid to bring a lot of new ideas to the table, and is all the better for it.

While it may look simple and even a bit silly on the surface, The Final Station is quite the captivating game. The story and survival aspects have been blended wonderfully, and it leaves you with plenty to mull over long after the credits roll.

While you don’t have to have watched the movies to enjoy this game, it definitely helps solidify the universe in which you’re playing. It draws on elements such as Queen Freya’s castle or the enchanted forest known as Sanctuary, or understanding that Goblins are extremely weak to fire. It’s little things, but it makes the experience a little more meshed together. I can say this much, it was a better story than Winter’s War.

Sally’s Law is held back by a lack of challenging puzzle gameplay and replay value. However, if you can get past its flaws, you’ll find an undeniably cute and positive story that will warm your heart.

The gameplay is a bit stale at this point, and this second mission pack is less adventurous than the first, but the cut scenes and soundtrack are still phenomenal and almost alone worth the price of entry.

Hue is a unique platforming experience that marries a charming art style with an original gameplay mechanic that differentiates it from most other platformers. Focus is required to make it through the interesting puzzles, and without this you are bound to be punished which can be frustrating.

One Way Trip is the story of a definite and unjust death sentence, told amongst an eerily realistic dissociative drug trip backdrop that freaked my delicate mind more than once. Basic, disjointed, and tragic, this game strips away almost all functions of a game and makes you a decision maker. Plagued with crashes that can cause fatal errors, One Way Trip does have some improvements to make. With those improvements, and time, One Way Trip is sure to become a cult favorite of the PlayStation 4 age.

Bright, bold, and loud is the Metronomicon, and though it has a namesake broiled in evil, the game is pure, unfiltered goodness. A dance step game that is also a RPG battler, the game keeps you active, keeps you thinking, and loosens some of the stagnation for both genres by throwing them into a blender together. A grand concoction, The Metronomicon is a must have for any gamer.

Grow up was a uniquely calming experience, from the soft colors and bioluminescence, to the ethereal music that played along with the visuals. I highly recommend it as a refreshing break from more conventional high-paced, thrilling, adrenaline pumping titles that fill the gaming industry.

Attack on Titan is an enjoyable experience that is worth a playthrough, but it could’ve been so much more. It surprises with solid combat mechanics and features some exciting and action-packed gameplay moments, but its presentation, story, characters and content outside of the campaign are severely lacking.

Polished and pretty, the dazzling visuals and crisp sound aren’t enough to overlook Meridian: Squad 22’s many issues. This RTS is every bit as unremarkable as its story.

Lasting only 3-4 hours, $20 is a steep price for an experience that leaves you bored and frustrated as often as it proves to be an enjoyable experience.

While Master of Orion probably isn’t going to satisfy fans who crave the most complex civilization building games, it’s easy to pick up and fun to play for anyone new to the genre. The level of personality and attention to detail really set it apart from the competition as well.

Slain is a fun retro platformer with a slick combat system, great visuals, and a killer soundtrack. While its difficulty feels unfair at times and the Castlevania-inspired levels and enemies may be a little too close to the source material for it to feel totally original, it’s still a blast to play.

Strike Vector EX is a whole lot of fun to play with friends, but is held back by a few multiplayer issues and an entirely fruitless campaign. If you’re interested in immediately diving into multiplayer and murdering a bunch of people in cold blood using a giant robot, then this game is for you…just be prepared for the occasional headache when your buddies accidentally blow you into tiny pieces for the fourteenth time.

For an indie game it’s a good overall buy.

Madden NFL 17 feels like more Madden NFL 16, which isn’t always a bad thing.

While offering a set of promises that would make any trigger-happy PVP addict excited, Shattered Skies fails to deliver a reason to keep coming back. While the concept sounds fun, the execution thus far has yielded a relatively lifeless world with a by-now stagnating population. Time will tell if the developers can shape their game into something more engaging post-launch.

The new augments combined with better level design makes exploration more satisfying, and the little upgrades to hacking make that whole system more tense. While it’s over a little too soon, if you enjoyed Human Revolution, there is a lot to like here.

Metroid Prime: Federation Force succeeds at carving out its own identity, but loses a few elements in translation. It’s still Metroid at its core but lacks the masterful execution that the series is known for.

Very approachable and just the right level of challenging, Deus Ex GO extends the main product perfectly. It captures the look and feel of Mankind Divided, while boiling down the stealth and combat gameplay into approachable turn-based action. The only thing missing here is the soft gravelly tones of Alex Toufexis as Adam Jensen.

No Man’s Sky is an unforgettable adventure, one plagued by lack of direction and lack of meat. It brings about one of the most incredible worlds ever seen in a video game, but it doesn’t always take advantage of that. Despite the issues, No Man’s Sky is a milestone in video game development.

While there isn’t much to do after your first playthrough, Reigns is a short and sweet micromanagement adventure game filled with quirky characters and amusing conversations.

Kelvin and the Infamous Machine is a fresh take on time travel, with a diverse cast of characters thrust into hilarious scenarios. The puzzles aren’t so difficult that they’re maddening, but just enough to feel rewarding when it all clicks into place. You’ll be laughing out loud or scratching your head, but you won’t ever be bored.

What it lacked in story, it made up for in visual appeal. The romantic choices were different enough that it felt like a unique story for each choice, but the interaction between lovers seemed a little artificial at times. The art is pretty enough to make me want to continue on just so I can see the gallery pictures.

A deceptively difficult shooter, Lovely Planet Arcade mixes adorable graphics with addictive action and a great soundtrack.

Bear With Me is an entertaining, witty point-and-click investigation game with a Noir twist. Its strong characters, unique style, and snappy dialogue will resonate with fans of the genre. The game is held back by slow load times and a surprisingly short story, but provides a great little adventure and a solid overall experience.

Little King’s Story is a delightful RPG with around 30 hours of gameplay.

Road to Ballhalla is an insanely difficult rhythmic puzzler. It’s enjoyable and agonizing in equal measure, tossing a variety of trials at you then teasing you when you don’t overcome them on the first try. For those who can fight their way through and remain cool-headed, dozens of neat features and hours of playtime await.

Telltale’s take on Batman is fresh, and shows a side of Bruce Wayne most games shy away from, and that’s enough to make it interesting as we head into the rest of the season.

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

This Is The Police is a challenging portrayal of law enforcement that falters when it comes to meaningful commentary. While it constructs a good form and addresses topical concerns, it fails to say anything definitive. Starting a conversation is worthwhile, but that only carries the game so far before its menial nature drags it down.

Shiren the Wanderer: The Tower of Fortune and the Dice of Fate is an old school roguelike JRPG with a ton of replayability and a great visual style. With its randomized levels, densely related mechanics, and deceptively simple combat, it’s a game that still manages to be fun even twenty hours in.

Hunter’s Legacy is another platformer in a sea of platformers. Some of the puzzles are clever, going beyond jumping around to involve intriguing elements, but otherwise not much about it stands out from the crowd.

Trials of the Blood Dragon continues the storyline from where Far Cry 3: Blood Dragon ended. If you’re driven to find out what happens next to Rex Power Colt and his two kids, Roxanne and Slayter, it looks like you’re buying this game. You won’t hate it, and the charm of the presentation is enough to keep you moving forward, just don’t expect it to be the thrill that other Trials games have been able to deliver.

There is very little fun to be had in MilitAnt. After spending most of my time breezing through half of the game’s bosses, all but submitting to the other half (with a pair of very green exceptions), and rushing past nearly every basic enemy, I get the impression that this ubiquitous imbalance in difficulty is more likely a vast oversight than a design choice.

DreamBreak is a short, relatively easy trip down memory lane for anyone who grew up playing point-and-click adventure games. While it has plenty of rough edges and won’t hold your attention for much longer than the end credits, it’s a good game to play through in an afternoon, with well-designed puzzles and surprisingly engaging combat. Just be warned that there are a lot of bugs near the end.

There are a lot of small things to nitpick about Neverwinter, but the overall experience is something more than worthy of its exceedingly fair price point.

Human: Fall Flat has its endearing, satisfying moments and its aggravating moments. The physics are fun to play around with and present a challenge, but the wonky camera movement is a weakness that’s hard to overlook.

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.

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.

The 15-20 hour average completion time might be shorter than what many JRPG fans would expect, but it is also a good entry point for newcomers without being a daunting 100+ hour experience. It is safe to say that I am Setsuna is a worthwhile journey.

As challenging as it is fun, Anarcute requires tactical thinking and quick reflexes. Anarchy has never been this adorable.

Glossed up slightly, but with very little to no changes since the last re-release, Phantom Brave PC is the least impressive of all. That said, the game itself is still wonderfully great, and new players will be rewarded with the cool breeze of phantoms coming in the air tonight.

This was a very good creation. The art was breathtaking, and the music was just as good. A simple story and a simple platformer were made so much deeper and complex, just by the little choices the producers made.

At best, Mobile Suit Gundam: Extreme VS Force is a competent but dull beat-em-up with a few neat mechanics, and at worst a cluster of battles mostly controlled by the game’s AI, with only a small amount of help from the player.

Ghostbusters as a couch co-op game is a dream on paper. Unfortunately, the execution from FireForge Games is so lackluster and devoid of quality that publisher Activision should be ashamed in having released it.

Enchanting and charming, Song of the Deep is a children’s-fairy-tale-turned-video-game that’s full of wonder and vibrant beauty. The gameplay is both solid and enjoyable, but not without hiccups and hindrances.

The Sims 4 Spa Day has some of the best and most fulfilling content that has been released thus far. The number and quality of items and things to do make this the best bang for your buck so far, and any Simhead should enjoy this great game pack.

God Eater Resurrection is a fun 40-hour experience that keeps you going with its gameplay mechanics and customization. The dark story falls flat at points, with the gameplay saving this game from a lackluster story.

Duelyst felt more like a board game than a computer game with plenty of options and strategy.

Grand Kingdom is a grand triumph of innovation and amalgamation, standing alone as a semi-new type of JRPG altogether. Mixing elements from other JPRGs, classic fighting games, and board game elements into an all new experience, Grand Kingdom will have some dedicated players still moving troops through enemies lands for years to come.

Pleasantly simple and with a sense of humor that fades in tandem with its tactical formula, Crush Your Enemies delivers fast-paced strategy with an old school look and an anti-fantasy flair. A bargain at $10, it provides a few hours of fun, but nothing more.

The tried-and-true formula still works, but it’s time to shake things up.

Sherlock Holmes: The Devil’s Daughter is another solid entry into this long-running franchise.

BOXBOXBOY! ultimately feels like more of the same, but when a game is as charming and approachable as this is, that’s perfectly fine. Having a second set of boxes shakes up the formula just enough to squeeze even more life out of this simple and excellent concept.

Furi kicked my ass, and I loved it. There was laughter, there were tears, but most of all, there was a goddamned great game. The combat is extremely taxing, but fair, and the narrative is surprisingly rewarding. If you’re a masochist, Furi is the game you’ve been waiting for.

The Banner Saga 2 is a worthy sequel to a great franchise. Combat is vastly improved, and the narrative is deep and rewarding, even as the game punishes the player every step of the way. The game suffers from a unwieldy UI, and some poorly placed setpieces that obscure the player’s vision in combat, but these drawbacks are minor.

Prison Architect: PlayStation 4 Edition brings an instant classic to console with a lot of retained charm, fun, and control.

Inside is an incredible sophomore swing from Playdead, as the atmosphere, aesthetic and gameplay meld into one glorious experience that demands attention. Don’t read about it, don’t seek more, don’t ask questions — just clear your afternoon schedule and experience it.

The Sims 4 Outdoor Retreat has fun new items, a unique aspirations, and new activities. It is nice to bring your virtual people to the outdoors but fails to give longevity outside of a brief vacation.

The Dark Brotherhood is now arrived, and the clean and “safe” Tamriel we all knew in Elder Scrolls Online is changed for the better. With the addition of the guild proper, assassinations, and the familiar Gold Coast, Dark Brotherhood is the most exciting update yet for ESO, and a great sign of things forthcoming.

The definitive edition of Dead Island Riptide is hardly an improvement. The gorgeous visuals may distract you from the tedious gameplay and odd bugs for a while, but it doesn’t last forever.

An enormous open-world RPG with 40+ hours of content that has an expertly-crafted world at its center. Unfortunately, it’s held back by technical issues that are hard to overlook, poor narrative, and unoriginal design.

Tokyo Mirage Sessions #FE is a mash-up made in JRPG heaven. While combat and gameplay will feel by-the-numbers for Persona fans, the style, soundtrack, characters and overall levity of this game is endearing, and makes for one of the most engaging, fun RPGs in recent memory.

Zero Time Dilemma takes some bold strides to tell the series’ final chapters, but even when it falters, it’s never slow to catch back up and deliver. Through well-designed escape rooms, brilliant writing and narrative decisions, and a more relatable cast than ever, Zero Time Dilemma puts the most deserving and exceptional final touches on this excellent trilogy.

Uneven in tone and execution, Mighty No 9 is equal parts fun and frustration. Inafune won’t reignite the fire of his famed franchise with this initial effort. We can only hope that subsequent attempts to reboot the blue bomber turn out better.

Guilty Gear Xrd: -Revelator- is a nostalgic look back on the golden age of fighting games that also manages to wrangle a ton of modern digital beauty and function into the mix. The result is a top notch fighting title that begs to be mastered.

Bursting with sophomoric charm and absurd sexiness, Senran Kagura Shinovi Versus will provoke either cringing or laughter depending on who’s playing it. What it lacks in maturity it makes up for with a refreshing lack of seriousness, and it presents it all in a content-laden game filled with easy, straightforward 3D ass-kicking.

Though the visuals sparkle and small improvements have been made, overall Dead Island Definitive Edition isn’t different enough from the original to be worth a purchase. In fact, it seems worse in some ways. Only give it a buy if the arena mode sounds appealing, or if you want to show off how powerful your new graphics card is.

The Sims 4 Dine Out is a great game pack that doesn’t offer a lot outside of running restaurants, but it does that extremely well and can be a great deal of fun. Don’t expect much outside of that, but the way it incorporates content from the original game and other expansions, it truly adds dimensions to business ownership, and a great new element to the game overall.

Kirby: Planet Robobot isn’t too deep, but it doesn’t need to be. It captures the fun, jovial nature of its titular character, and breathes some life into an otherwise tepid formula. It’s brief and hardly earth-shatteringly unique, but it’s fun in the way a Kirby game ought to be.

The Witcher 3: Blood and Wine is a nearly flawless sendoff for Geralt of Rivia, and the world of The Witcher.

Odin Sphere: Leifthrasir is the remake this story justly deserves, marred only by slight signs of age, and a time capsule that perfectly preserves the magic of Odin Sphere, for the many years it’s lost and the many years to come.

Surprising, fun, and challenging, Atelier Sophie is a must own in the PlayStation 4 collection.

Marrakesh is a much different beast, and while it lacks the nuanced complexity of Sapienza or the gaudy flash of Paris, it has a flavor all its own that highlights aspects of Hitman in challenging ways. Another solid entry in this series.

TurnOn is an enjoyable and heartwarming little game. With electrical wires instead of platforms, it offers gameplay that feels fresh, piquing your interest at every turn with whatever new adventure or obstacle you’ll face next.

Mirror’s Edge Catalyst is a gorgeous game that nails the free-running experience that fans want, but lacks an interesting narrative, compelling combat, and a fast travel system that will likely leave many fans disappointed.

Kingdom Wars 2 is a solid real-time-strategy game that hits the bar squarely in the middle.

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutants in Manhattan’s charming visual style doesn’t make up for repetitive level design and combat that would leave even Master Splinter frustrated.

This new Blizzard title feels effortless, and already feels like another addition to their list of seminal, necessary releases. It doesn’t necessarily reinvent the wheel, but the way it polishes, presents, and executes is well above and beyond standards. Easily one of the most necessary multiplayer experiences of the last few years, and a shot across the bow at shooters complacent in their defined expectations: whatever you do, Overwatch does it better.

Homefront: The Revolution is a reboot of a mostly acceptable game. A reboot that brings about nauseating visuals, lackluster combat, and a dull narrative. An impressive customization feature is far from enough to save this sad installment.

Total War: Warhammer mixes computer and tabletop effortlessly into a fantasy bloodbath. With four diverse races, plenty of character and a promise of much to come, it’s hard to not recommend this to anyone who’s ever dreamed of playing armchair general in the High Fantasy realm.

Tropico 5 Penultimate Edition is a masterclass city builder with a unique twist that drew me in unlike any other game of the genre. Some of the UI shortcomings are confusing or frustrating, but are not nearly enough of an issue to pass the game up.

Doom has resurrected not only a series, but an entire flavor of shooters.

The Town of Light is a thoughtfully written, painstakingly designed walking simulator set in an early 20th century asylum. Though load times and sections that are less than intuitive cause frustration, they do not dissuade my recommendation. You’ll quickly become caught up in the story of Renee, a young girl whose circumstances were depressingly real for many women during that time.

Hover Junkers is a good game markedly improved by its VR components, utilizing room-scale tracking and motion sensors to craft physical, engaging shootouts. If there was any killer app for the Vive, it’s Hover Junkers. [Vive Tested]