Yoshi and the Mysterious Book is a charming adventure that’s unfortunately weighed down by its disjointed mechanics. Each level feels unique thanks to the drastically different play styles of each creature encountered, but they're mostly limited to their singular, short stage. Not only that, but some of the better creatures get far less time in the sun to truly appreciate them while others linger for far too long. With that said, there's some fun to be had as there are levels that do a good job of creating unique situations for Yoshi to solve. Even though most of the experience is straightforward, it’s the thoughtful encounters that require puzzle solving. At the end of the day, there’s a certain whimsy to Yoshi and the Mysterious Book, but it fails to truly be anything remarkable.

While a bit short and unpolished, I did enjoy my time with Bubsy 4D, going back to pick up every collectible in the game and even doing half the time trials, which aren't normally my thing. Once you know Bubsy's move-set, it's easy to want to put them through their paces, and after cleaning out the levels it feels nice to tear through them at top speed. It also helps that if you've only got a few yarn balls left, once you pick them up you can just quit the level rather than have to commit to completing the whole thing, making the scavenger hunt feel much more approachable. A few months more polish and a little extra content would have helped Bubsy 4D properly reintroduce the bobcat as a prime platforming mascot, but even so it's a solid adventure for a character that nobody's really quite sure why they're happy to see return.

Birushana: Winds of Fate is an interesting follow-up to the original story, adding a healthy dose of romance, comedy and drama to bring more endearing moments with the characters. As the game only does a quick recap of events, it’s hard to recommend for those who haven’t actually played through the original. Players coming back for more, however, will find it offers legitimate reasons to dive again into this world of samurai conflict.

Whirlight: No Time to Trip is point-and-click that oozes passion and charm in its world, characters, narrative and gameplay. Its main issue is that it falls for the biggest and most common trapping of its genre: the ingenuity of its interactions come at the cost of some solutions being less intuitive than would be ideal. The result is a game that can be just as frustrating as it is whimsical.

Nitro Gen Omega is a game that still feels a little rough in its 1.0 release, not being as approachable in its multitude of systems as it could have been. It’s not a bad game per se, but one that demands effort to understand and pull through. Nonetheless, its battle systems and animations shine through to the point it can be worth giving it a try for fans of unique RPGs and simulators.

Moomintroll: Winter's Warmth is an interesting way to dive into the world of Moomin, offering a simple but fairly competent adventure that doubles down as something akin to a coming of age story. Unfortunately, what could have been a fantastic adventure is dragged down slightly by the way quests are presented as repetitive chores. Nonetheless, it’s still a curious adventure, especially for fans of the original universe or those curious about its rendition of a world reminiscent of a fairy tail.

Tomodachi Life: Living the Dream is an enjoyable simulator of managing society from the advantage of an overlord who can play with the characters as if they were dolls, but never fully control the unhinged nature of human interaction. The dialogue and events are full of silly whims and this funny mood gives form to its comfortable experience. It’s important to keep in mind, however, that much of what it offers depends on how much the player dedicates to it and the repetition may boggle it down.

Marathon is a shooter that gets better the more you play and the training wheels come off. Near the twenty-hour mark, there's a moment when the game opens up and everything starts clicking. The gunplay feels fantastic, the maps start getting good, your squad knows which Runner Shells to pick, the loot is fantastic and the risk-reward loop gets you. Getting to that feeling not only takes way too long, however, but is also offset by poor starting maps, grindy objectives and no narrative to really push you through those opening hours. Marathon is also held back by confusing decisions made by Bungie. Locking Cryo Archive behind arbitrary walls like making it only available on weekends, having poor options for solos and no permanent options for duos and only being able to play one contract per run are all choices that limit Marathon. It's unfortunate, because Marathon can be quite fun to play when everything eventually clicks. Bungie has built a good foundation with Marathon, but it's not quite the clean start it should have been.

MLB The Show 26 retains the series reputation as a fun game of baseball. If you've never played a baseball game before, you won't be disappointed. If you have, it's hard to ignore the shortcomings. The visuals are dated and need an overhaul, which hopefully will come in the next generation of consoles. The hitting with the Big Zone Hitting and adjustable zone speed is some of the best in the history of the series. The Bare Down Pitches don't really serve a purpose other than implementing the Depth of Field addition to the game. This also looks strange when hitting, but can help identify the ball off of the pitcher's hand. RTTS is a slight improvement thanks to its early game updates, while Franchise gets a slight boost with the new Trade Hub and logic updates to help keep players engaged. No longer is there a March for October mode, and Diamond Dynasty only ends up getting World Baseball Classic players and gear. MLB The Show has transitioned more towards a closed sandbox of a baseball game offering players a few of the same options each year to play, but won't expand beyond this.

Fatal Frame 2: Crimson Butterly is a horror classic that’s unfortunately weighed down by questionable design changes. While it’s just as tense and atmospheric as ever, very much helped by the terrific audio and visual design, the focus on combat creates an experience less about the horror and more about ghostly engagements. Some of the changes are welcome, such as the quality-of-life improvements when selecting film on the fly and filters for the Camera Obscura, but the aggravated wraith addition causes more of a headache than it does exciting encounters. In the end, Fatal Frame 2: Crimson Butterfly Remake makes a lot of improvements to the formula and overall exploration of the world, but focuses too heavily on the combat.

Pokémon FireRed and LeafGreen are major classics in the franchise that still hold up well enough to be worth exploring for fans of RPGs and the series itself. On the other hand, as a new release of an old game, it's one of the most barebones releases possible and there's no good reason for it to not have at least something extra to justify it as a commemorative edition.

Pokémon FireRed and LeafGreen are major classics in the franchise that still hold up well enough to be worth exploring for fans of RPGs and the series itself. On the other hand, as a new release of an old game, it's one of the most barebones releases possible and there's no good reason for it to not have at least something extra to justify it as a commemorative edition.

Tales of Berseria was the last mainline game before the franchise was reborn anew with Arise, and you can certainly feel its age. It retains a lot of the bad habits from the games of the 2010s, such as inconsistent visual quality and linear dungeon designs. It doesn’t help that while a handful of quality-of-life improvements have been made, they aren’t enough to justify a full repurchase. Thankfully, what carries the JRPG is the rest of the experience. The combat is fast-paced, fluid and highly engaging. The story is darker and more mature with a likable cast of characters. And of course, the soundtrack from famed composer Motoi Sakuraba helps immerse the player into the world. Tales of Berseria is one of the best Tales games out there, so it’s a shame that Bandai Namco has done little in adapting it for the next generation.

If you’re specifically looking for a non-traditional, colorful tennis game to play with your friends, then Mario Tennis Fever will fill the void. Unfortunately, the latest Switch 2 entry into the subseries does little memorable and enticing outside of this. It has solid gameplay mechanics, with a variety of characters and rackets to choose from, but there’s not much of note outside of this. It doesn’t help that the Adventure mode is a glorified tutorial. In the end, all Mario Tennis Fever amounts to is a short distraction with friends with minimal enjoyment outside of that.

It's not too often that a game comes out at a low price that makes you feel willing to pay more if they had just added certain things. This is the case for iRacing Arcade. Was this a game simply because there was extra room in their budget or was iRacing just testing the waters? If there is a sequel, they know what to add after this. The racing, the aesthetic, and the Career Mode are the draw in iRacing Arcade. At just $25, any racing fan needs to pick it up. Players will need a group of friends to lobby up, though, as there isn't matchmaking for online racing and not much else going on outside the Career Mode. This also does get grindy and repetitive. These cars could be made into toys, as the reflections really showcase the detail in these caricatures of automobiles. The racing is fun at the right difficulty level, and is completely worth the price of admission.

God of War Sons of Sparta is a satisfactory, yet not overly triumphant, return to the Greek era. A 2D Metroidvania God of War title sounds great on paper, but Mega Cat Studios never quite manages to capture the feel or pacing of a God of War game. The story is where the game is at its strongest, delivering a look into Kratos' life and personality before tragedy strikes. Though the pacing makes getting into the story difficult and Sons of Sparta never feels necessary to the overarching narrative, the story ends strongly. The Metroidvania piece itself is a stumble thanks to the poor pacing of key abilities. The locales are neat, the corridor design is fine, but getting through the first couple of hours is a real chore. Combat fares better thanks to a smart implementation of Greek and Norse era mechanics, but Mega Cat Studios never manages to capture the God of War feeling. God of War Sons of Sparta is a satisfactory adventure in the God of War universe, but it's far from the triumphant return of the Greek era fans have been waiting for.

High on Life 2 is a sequel that takes meaningful steps forwards with its storytelling and variety, but also many steps back with its gunplay, level design and lack of refinement. It's an ambitious sequel that's fun in doses, but this comedy bit off way more than it could chew.

Super Bomberman Collection is a pack filled with fun games from the Super Nintendo era that are still just as fun today as they were back in the day. Filled with variety, they can be a strong option to recapture the magic once again. The collection itself ends up a little lackluster, though, with online multiplayer not being part of the pack by default and the basic additions that don’t even allow for complete remapping. In the end, it feels like more effort could have been put into celebrating such a classic IP.

Earth Must Die presents an intriguing take on the point-and-click genre following a buffoon leader trying to get things his way. Though the jokes may sometimes be crude or hardly interesting, the wacky world and unique characters are enough to keep it an enjoyable journey. The best part, however, is how much of its personality oozes into the gameplay choices, truly representing how VValak acts, thinks and feels in all of its colorful details.

Temirana: The Lucky Princess and the Tragic Knights is a solid otome game with flaws that keep it from shining as bright as it should. The visual novel features a compelling plot, a curious fantasy setting and solid audiovisual aspects. It may not be among the best Otomate titles, but fans of the genre are likely to enjoy Cecilia’s story.

Tomba! 2: The Evil Swine Return Special Edition is a decent way to experience a unique but flawed platformer from the original PlayStation era. As a simple port with basic features, it doesn’t do much to uplift the experience. Nonetheless, its heart is intact and for anyone curious to play the game, this is a good way to do it.

What hurts Destiny 2: Renegades the most is that it is just an Episode masquerading as an Expansion. There are no new Strikes, Crucible maps, Gambit maps, and for the first time ever in any $40 expansion, no new Patrol Zone and no new Raid. On top of that, some of the most desirable loot, including the White and Purple lightsaber crystals, are held ransom in the Eververse Store. As Kylo Ren once said, "it's time to let old things die," and it's hard not to think that about Destiny 2 after The Edge of Fate and Renegades. After 2025, it's time for Bungie to take a break, regroup and finally release Destiny 3.

Bubble Bobble Sugar Dungeons tries to update the formula of the series with new ideas that are very popular in the indie sphere. While the concept is interesting, the end result is actually much more frustrating than anything else. Repetitive and artificially padded, the ideas end up not shining as bright as they should, though fun can still be found by understanding its limitations from the start.

Kirby Air Riders is a fast, fun addition to the Nintendo Switch 2's growing library, but, it might have been a better experience had it stuck some more traditional racing mechanics.

There's a lot of good and a lot of bad with Project Motor Racing. The handling is unique and challenging, while the Career Mode and online ranked license system are different and unique. The range of cars is great for fans of racing over the years. More will come with DLC in the future, but the various physics elements for the different cars provide something most console racers haven't experienced. The development team really wants to make this as close to the real experience as possible, but unfortunately, the LMDh class is broken and undriveable. The ultimate immersion breaker is just how frustrating and atrocious the AI is, and they can't even be bumped out of the way, all while pushing players around. The online races are fine before release, and having a custom lobby system will be a plus. It's also cross-platform, so the lobbies and races can have the maximum possible players. Project Motor Racing has big issues that hinder the experience, but the GT Cars are worth experiencing.

Where Winds Meet is a game that has incredible highs and extreme lows. It has wonderful boss fights that make the combat shine, showcasing that with the right mechanical skill, you can make an intense fight an amazing spectacle. The combat and exploration are the highlights as a whole, but when you’re not in a boss fight, you’ll be exploring, doing puzzles and experiencing the main story. All of which are serviceable, especially as a free-to-play game, but they could have most certainly been handled in a way that makes them more enjoyable. The co-op modes are limited, requiring you to get through a decent chunk of the game before they are something that you and friends can play through and enjoy. Even with all the issues, it isn’t a bad game by any means, and it's fun when you get to the in-depth and interesting portions. It does end up being somewhat limited by the format chosen by the developer, making it difficult to enjoy every minute that you do end up playing.

The base-building is nicely flexible, whether you want to make it a bare-bones production facility or something more organized with walls and doorways plus a cozy living area, and while the automation tools are fairly basic, they get the job done with minimal fuss. The platforming tools for world exploration are strong enough that, with a combination of launching from a full-speed hoverboard into a glide combined with air-dashing, Kent can frequently get to areas that should have been out of reach, especially when combined with a low-gravity environmental event. That map itself is nicely designed, albeit maybe a bit generous in advertising where the secrets are, and each biome has its own set of resources to chase after. All those raw materials then get fed back into climbing up the tech tree, which frequently involves expanding the base a bit more to fit in new machinery to process the resources in different ways and then combining it all into food, potions, tools, upgrades, and eventually the restoration of humanity. That last bit is a long way off from Kent's arrival planetside, but he's been napping for ten thousand years, so what's a few more spent in pursuit of not being the last person on Earth?

Overall, Amanda the Adventurer 3 is a thrilling conclusion to this small-scale trilogy and one that's sure to please fans of the first two titles. While the game does have visual flaws, which may make it tempting to ignore for new players, those who are fans of puzzles, horror and the escape room genre should give the Amanda trilogy a chance the next time they’re in the mood for mascot horror frights. It may not be the best horror title of 2025, but it's deserving of gamers' time nonetheless.