While the third season will be unlikely to re-entice those who fell off after the second season, those who yearn for the emotional scenes and depressing themes of Clementine’s journey will find plenty to appreciate in the first two episodes of A New Frontier thanks to Telltale’s high-quality storytelling skills and presentation.

An absolute dream for fans. This is the exact game we’ve been waiting for since the first disappointing PC release over a decade ago.

The monsters and bosses of Dungeon Souls are dead-set on seeing you escape, but practice, determination and getting to grips with the different characters will eventually pay off with a win. And then it’s back down to the dungeons again, because one victory is rarely ever enough.

The best aspect is absolutely the ability to use and counter spells, but even that strategic element is unnecessary during the majority of battles. From the adequate but eyebrow-raising animation to forced rather than desirable replay value, it’s tough to recommend MAGICAL×SPIRAL.

Wild Guns Reloaded may be a splash of cold water in the face reminding you of just how hard games from the 8-bit and 16-bit eras could be, but it’s also a reminder of how damn fun and enjoyable they can be as well, proving that some titles are indeed timeless.

Arizona Sunshine brings clear blue skies and a breath of fresh air to the zombie genre, and while it’s not a revolution, the game shows there’s still a little life left in blasting an undead horde into a splattery mess.

Considering the efforts passionate fans went through to see this franchise have another entry, it comes off as surprising and unfortunate that Wayforward did not decide to take more risks by adding new characters and mechanics. By taking the product as what it is and not what it should be, however, Shantae: Half-Genie Hero ends up as one of this year’s strongest platformers, packed to the brim with secrets, clever writing and a stellar soundtrack.

SuperHot VR is one of the best games VR has seen yet. It’s a little bit short and on rare occasions the AI goes a bit loopy, but during the 99% of the time when everything is trying to kill you, it’s an incredible rush.

Super Mario Run is absolutely worth playing. Just don’t expect it to replace a 3DS for a good portable experience.

It has an old-school feel to it that brings to mind the days of scrambling for quarters blended with some good old-fashioned ultraviolence, simple yet effective combat, surreal dystopian horror and some surprisingly deep gameplay elements. It’s just that it has a bit of a difficulty spike and a few annoying combat elements holding it back from true greatness.

Perfect doesn’t do a lot — but what it does is executed very well. There’s a grander scope to the idea of a relaxation spot simulator the game presents to you that the technology just can’t provide right now. As something designed to relax users, Perfect works nicely even if the concept isn’t as fleshed out as it could be. The environments stand out, even if the things you can do in each one don’t vary all that much. That sense of sameness hurts the activity portion of things, but each area does stand out with its look and feel — with the strong sound design making each place feel unique.

LoveKami -Divinity Stage- is an incredible about face from MoeNovel. Once poised to strip any hint of sexuality from visual novels, they’ve now completely reversed course with their fanservice-filled release.

Ultimate Marvel vs. Capcom 3 shows its age visually, but is still as fun to play now as it was in 2011. The single player modes are only entertaining for so long, but the real fun is playing against other people. The only real difference with this version versus the original are slightly-improved visuals and DLC, making it a hard sell for those who can still play it on last-gen consoles, but it’s an easy way to revisit a classic for anyone who missed out on it or regrettably traded in their copy.

Drive!Drive!Drive! ticks off all the right boxes on the Awesome Arcade Racer checklist, but somehow never rises up to become the game that it could have been.

The sense of presence is so totally on point that it’s hard for any other video game rendition of pinball to match up. Fans who have already purchased tons of Pinball FX or Zen Pinball tables may initially feel frustrated by a lack of discounts, but should give it a shot regardless. The PSVR headset makes a tremendous difference and as such it is worth supporting these updated tables. Pinball FX2 VR is just the kind of virtual reality experience that gamers of all ages will be able to enjoy.

I Expect You To Die crafts an experience that is enjoyable from beginning to end. Not only that, but it never feels like it’s using virtual reality as a gimmick. The perspective is required to truly get you in the dangerous lifestyle of a secret agent, puzzling away at how to best carry out their mission. If you’re looking for a seriously unique puzzle game to spend a few hours with, I Expect You To Die is a great choice for PSVR owners.

The Little Acre is worth every minute; I only wish I could have stayed a little longer in its wonderfully handcrafted world. The tale is a good one, but cut short, and I was ready for more.

At this point gamers are simply looking for more sophisticated experiences with their expensive headsets. Crystal Rift might keep players exploring for a while, but it feels like a prototype for a better game which doesn’t yet exist.

Anyone who grew up loving action-platformers will find a lot to enjoy here. Genre newcomers may be in over their heads, but the game does teach you its core mechanics reasonably well, so it shouldn’t feel too overwhelming.

It doesn’t top the best snowboarding game ever made (Amped 3), but it does provide plenty of reasons to continue traveling the Alps. Should the trick system and technical issues be resolved in a sure to occur patch, Steep will become a must play. In its current state, however, it’s best to approach with caution.

If this game sounds interesting but you haven’t played RIFT or MMOs in general, check out the base game and see if you enjoy it enough to explore the expanded content. For those who already play and anxiously want more RIFT this expansion will not disappoint.

OneShot pulls players in with poise and wit in a way most games can only dream of, offering up the best an adventure game can offer. With a character that can easily be understood and cared for, OneShot creates an unforgettable adventure while hiding secrets that could very well be missed. What awaits in OneShot is well worth anyone’s time.

While Capcom Vancouver enhanced the melee combat with the new exo-suits, sadly the shooting mechanics aren’t improved. Dead Rising 4 is a Dead Rising game, warts and all. A zombie slaying experience unlike anything else on the market. It’s a riot, it’s a hoot and it’s on Santa’s nice list.

The Last Guardian is Team ICO’s magnum opus. Everything they learned from the prior games in this semi-series has been put to use here and allowed them to craft their greatest adventure yet. Trico’s tale is one of sadness and joy, and something that everyone who enjoyed the team’s prior work should partake in as soon as possible. Newcomers will want to come in with an open mind for exploration and puzzle-solving, but if they do, they will be rewarded with the finest gaming experience yet on the PlayStation 4. Its sense of scale is unmatched and it features the best graphics yet on the console. Minor flaws do exist, but they don’t detract from the overall experience enough to make it anything less than a masterpiece.

Stern Pinball Arcade contains a good amount of excellent pinball action in its opening tables and it’s going to be a lot of fun watching it grow into its own unique collection in the coming years.

How We Soar is greater than the sum of its parts and is an incredible experience that should be played by all PlayStation VR owners. Its core formula can get old, but what’s here is executed quite well. More variety would have been nice, though, while some kind of sense of peril would have heightened the stakes. Fortunately, How We Soar excels as a game that allows you to both have fun and relax at the same time.

While the game concept and interaction methods are simple, Bounce has some heft to it. Fifty discrete levels that can be solved in ridiculous ways gives it quite a bit of staying power. The only limit is how over the top the player wants to be with the tools on hand. Anyone looking for a solid puzzler in VR will have a great time with Bounce.

There are moments of brilliance spread across the campaign, but with it comes a frustratingly disheartening story.

Pokémon has been a classic series for twenty years and with 2016 being its 20th, Pokémon Sun and Moon is a perfect way to celebrate such a milestone. It still holds all the charm and fun from the original titles yet creates an entire new world to explore. It’s a must-have for fans and a worthy place to begin for newcomers. The future of the Pokémon series shines bright like Pokémon Sun and beautiful like Pokémon Moon.

Pokémon has been a classic series for twenty years and with 2016 being its 20th, Pokémon Sun and Moon is a perfect way to celebrate such a milestone. It still holds all the charm and fun from the original titles yet creates an entire new world to explore. It’s a must-have for fans and a worthy place to begin for newcomers. The future of the Pokémon series shines bright like Pokémon Sun and beautiful like Pokémon Moon.

Dishonored 2, with its refined mechanics and expanded gameplay following suit, personifies what a sequel should be.

Developers Teku Studios clearly poured a lot of love and effort into Candle and it shows. From the breathtaking scenery and artwork to the terrific puzzle designs and unique worlds to discover and characters to interact with, Teku’s journey is easily one that deserves to have a light shone on it as well, as a showcase of a terrific platformer and adventure game.

Sure, there are issues to be had with the limited resolution or generally simplistic puzzles, but none of these things impede the overall experience to a point where a playthrough becomes annoying. If you’ve enjoyed other creepy indies such as Corpse Party or Mad Father, then Alicemare should be next on your lineup.

Things actually could be even slightly deeper, but for now, Planet Coaster truly is one of the best virtual thrill rides you can check out and one you won’t get off of anytime soon.

This title attempts to meld an educational focus with endearing characters. Unfortunately, it doesn’t manage to create compelling characters or plot. The information gained about Japan while playing is valid and factual, but that alone isn’t enough to make the entire experience enjoyable.

While Xanadu Next is buggy and its menus just plain busted for controller use, the rest of the game is a wonderful trip through a classic JRPG world.

Despite all of the complaints, there is some inherit value to Dragon Ball Fusions. The battle system, while not great, is creative and captures the feel of an anime. The plethora of heroes means that fans can create a team with nothing but their favorites and journey through the tale. The length and breadth of things to do will give anyone who enjoys this an incredible amount of value. Taken only on its merits as a game, though, and there are some noisome elements.

Overkill VR is nowhere near the worst experience a gamer can have in VR. In fact, it’s great using its cover system to trick the player into performing facsimiles of squats and burpees. It’s just that there is so much fine tuning that needs to be done to make it a great game. The enemies’ hit points needs to be dropped, reloading is screaming for reworking to allow for better player immersion and levels need to be more than figuring out the enemy spawn points and dominating them.

Loaded with humor, skill-based action and interesting brainteasers, the original Darksiders is one of the best games to come out of the last generation. It takes numerous recipes from other games and creates an adventure that’s worth taking.

Fans will be satisfied with how the tale running through Steins;Gate 0 is told with a narrative that rarely stands still in the present without coming off confusing. That said, the original’s degree of tension and regret over gameplay decisions are lost a little here and because of it, 0 — despite its successful transitioning, coming off more like a second half to a much grander tale as opposed to a totally sectioned-off story — often finds comfort in retreating to old techniques and former narrative inclusions to fill in the rare instances of figurative gaps.

ENIGMA: is a surprising visual novel in how well it brings together humor, mystery and drama. It takes skillful writing to make this work as well as it does here.

With so many Assassin’s Creed games being released, the franchise has lost some its luster in recent years, but this collection is a great way to remember how this series became as popular as it did in the first place. This is also highly recommended as a good starting point for people who have been interested in Assassin’s Creed but haven’t got around to actually playing any of the games, as well as anyone who wants to revisit Ezio’s saga.

Killing Floor 2 is dangerously habit forming. There is always something new to level up, some new difficulty to master, a new way to mess up the piles of biomechanical flesh. Whether with a pick up game or a group of friends, Killing Floor 2 mainlines cathartic bliss.

Mekazoo proves to be a joyous platformer built on the ideas of just about any platformer one can think of, specifically sticking to ones that came out of the 80s and 90s.

One Night Stand feels more like a think piece than a proper game. It’s strongest on the first playthrough and slowly loses its allure with each subsequent one. Perhaps the most poignant experiences to be had with this game would be playing once or twice and then having conversations with friends about how you felt and what different choices led to what ending.

In order to get the most out of Silence, one must approach it as a narrative with light brain teasers that require patience. If that is in mind, then the time spent with this title is completely enjoyable.

What the game lacks in depth, it almost completely makes up for in sheer fun — but it is a flawed experience to be sure. Those seeking something Zelda-esque will be left satisfied, but not blown away by the experience.

This is simply a must play for Sword Art Online fans. For those interested in the world and action, the narrative does a decent enough job introducing returning characters, with the option to skip the reintroduction for returning players, allowing Hollow Realization to serve as a perfectly fine entry point into the series. Overall, this is easily the best Sword Art Online game yet. Hopefully, the trend will continue into the future.

Root Letter is a strange visual novel, but one that keeps players interested throughout. If you feel you’ve received a rather lackluster ending then that’s cause to play through four more times to uncover the final truth. Unfortunately, the game doesn’t make expedite subsequent playthroughs. Still, there is a lot to like about a visual novel focused on the lives of thirty somethings rather than samey love-struck teenagers.

Although not long by typical game standards, taking most explorers between four and eight hours, this is a serious amount of time for virtual reality releases. Adventuring around Tyson III is beautiful, and sometimes even breathtaking, and as such, it would have made more sense to focus on these high points instead of forcing players to drudge through puzzles or deal with sometimes finicky climbing mechanics. Even so, it’s incredibly appealing to visit the world of Robinson: The Journey within a VR headset. Barring that key aspect, it would be just another exploratory title with dinosaurs and adequate gameplay.

Ubisoft has successfully recreated what made Grand Theft Auto great, but incorporates enough original ideas to set Marcus’ journey apart and make it feel fresh.

This is not a game that can properly be played casually as it is simply too complex and too vast to get the full experience from fifteen minutes a day. Mastering the nuances of everything that is offered and learning how to best interact with each faction and party member will take time. For those who have the time and desire, however, this is one of the more rewarding time sink titles available. With the winter months on the horizon, Tyranny is a highly-recommended game to lock yourself away with while waiting for the weather to warm up.

With some great stories that don’t overstay their welcome and an endearing cast of characters, the King’s Quest reboot series manages to overcome some rough spots to become greater than its parts.

Destroy All Humans! shows its age under the coat of HD makeup, but still holds up well. Some of the missions suffer from lack of direction or being too repetitive, but I would be lying if I said blowing up tanks and burning down buildings wasn’t enjoyable.

Memory’s Dogma CODE:01 provides an intriguing start to an episodic visual novel. Unlike others, it also provides a rather meaty look at the world rather than just an hour long glimpse. The only problem is that the story it’s telling depends completely on players caring about the characters and their plight. With the lack of focus on developing the protagonists as actual people, there’s a disconnect between the game’s highly-charged scenes and failure to endear the cast to players.

While Call Of Duty: Infinite Warfare Jackal Assault VR Experience is lean on content, everything presented in the package is outstanding. The core gameplay is well-crafted and easy to grasp even for those new to dogfighting games.

Small Radios Big Televisions isn’t the type of two-hour indie experience that’s going to blow your mind, but there’s something oddly relaxing and engrossing about navigating through its creepy factories. Despite its story falling short as a whole, there’s enough context given here to create the foundation for a special experience, but it doesn’t quite cross the finish line. It’s a pretty, atmospheric title that doesn’t shy away from how truly weird it is.

While it’s not without its problems, the first season of Hitman is jam-packed with delectable content that leaves us champing at the bit for more.

The greatest pleasure of Ladykiller in a Bind is interacting with an incredible cast of characters.

Fans of understatement would describe Nobunaga’s Ambition: Sphere of Influence – Ascension as sprawling. This is a massive lump of a game that demands attention, forethought and the ability to plan for myriad different scenarios, all while balancing city and land improvements against available workers and officers. Everything on offer here creates a daunting inaccessibility that requires stubborn dedication for a neophyte to overcome.

Call of Duty: Modern Warfare Remastered is a solid remaster that enhances the original game with beautiful new visuals and a little bit of extra multiplayer content, but Raven Software may have stuck to the original a little too much. A few tweaks would have gone a long way to fixing some balancing issues, but for those looking for a blast from the past, this works just fine.

With the help of Naughty Dog alumni, the story is one of the most comprehensible and well-rounded in recent series history, even it can falter due to a lack of backstory. The multiplayer is a strong effort and introduces the neat Combat Rigs, although it can sometimes feel a bit like the little brother of Black Ops III.

It’s not perfect, but this game fills a niche in the VR market with its entrancing environments and fun take on a compulsive literary tale. Alice VR is best experienced with a set of goggles, but it’s a great experience for anyone.

For a season finale, Hokkaido is exceptionally crafted.

Aside from just being one of the best indie platformers or retro throwbacks in recent memory, it’s easily just one of this year’s best games, period. Aside from playing like a dream and having flight-based gameplay that’s an absolute delight, it evokes the old quote of “You’ll laugh, you’ll cry” through an absolutely astounding and moving story with several lovable characters and a fascinating world to discover.

Though not quite matching the Everest-high peak of its contemporaries, Creepy Castle delivers enough charm and quirkiness to leave a satisfying impression. Satisfying enough to look past the aspect ratio, put it that way.

World of Final Fantasy is comfort food for any traditional JRPG fans. What it lacks in some key aspects, it makes up for by leaps and bounds in the design and charm put into its nostalgia-tinged landmarks and characters.

For those who give into the temptation to buy this release, it’s thankfully a marked improvement over its predecessor. The songs are well-curated and of good quality, there’s a new (albeit throwaway) mode and the visuals and dance moves are more refined. It’s just a shame that Ubisoft is forcing consumers to buy both a physical release and subscribe to Just Dance Unlimited when they need to focus entirely on the latter.

Anyone who especially loves Rika (or Ooishi) will also get to see those characters more in depth then they’ve been presented previously. With this chapter complete, it’s now time to get ready for the Answer Arc to begin.

Weeping Doll is the kind of game that looks like it’ll be a scary, enjoyable romp. The visuals make this home come to life in virtual reality, but that’s about the only positive note about the whole experience. Instead of providing a frightening journey, players are greeted with mind-numbing puzzles which only serve to block progression when a player forgets to check certain items.

Tethered seems like the kind of game players could get obsessed with playing for hours on end, but virtual reality headset-wearing often makes marathon gaming sessions tougher to manage. Keep an eye out in case Secret Sorcery ever decides to bring Tethered to PC or non-VR platforms, as it would probably be even more enjoyable for those platforms.

A visual improvement over the original, but beyond that, it’s still the same old game.

For hardcore fans of games like Out of This World, this is a must play title, as well as for those who love adventure games from that era. For everything Exile’s End gets right about why adventure games from 25 years ago were great, however, it includes all the blemishes exactly as they were.

It doesn’t quite strike a perfect balance between simulation and arcade-like accessibility.

Not only is PlayStation VR Worlds playing it safe, it is not selling virtual reality in a strong enough way. It’s easy to show off the technology with a space-piloting game and first-person shooter, but what these tidbits of games fail to do is entertain players in the long run. They make it seem as though virtual reality is a novelty with absolutely no depth to it, which isn’t the case at all.

For those who have been waiting until all the entries have been released before deciding if it’s worth picking up, please know that the King’s Quest reboot is absolutely worth the time.

The game is a fun, brief romp and might in fact be dampened by PSVR’s shortcomings with regards to control and visual fidelity.

Windlands is easily the best platforming experience available on the PlayStation VR, and a must for anyone who wants to see what a Mirror’s Edge-style blend of platforming and parkour is like in that format.

One of those titles that takes awhile to get going, something that many folks will not be able to tolerate.

Slayaway Camp is a brilliant and funny block-sliding puzzle game that’s drenched in good-humored gore.

It’s a strange, retro-styled beauty that needs to be played to be experienced.

The difficulty in the later levels may be a turnoff for some, but that aside, Lichtspeer is highly enjoyable, action packed and a perfect blend of old-school action and new-school design. It hits the sweet spots of those that enjoy both fast-paced arcade gameplay and a cute sense of humor and is the type of game that can easily suck you in for lengthy periods of time.

Yomawari: Night Alone is a game that will be remembered more for its tone and story than gameplay, but that’s enough to recommend it. The PC port is clearly unoptimized from the Vita build, with issues like having to shoo the cursor off the screen every time you fire up the game, but the adventure of a little girl wearing a big red bow and a bunny backpack going out again and again into a haunted town is instantly engaging, hooking the player completely within the first couple of minutes.

Earth’s Dawn has many good ideas going for it, but unfortunately doesn’t execute them in a way that brings excellence to the action RPG genre. It’s a good game but doesn’t reach any level of greatness; it is entertaining but not enthralling.

Civilization VI takes all of the elements from the Civilization franchise, improves on them and produces one of the most unique games in the series. It innovates heavily without removing any elements that players have come to expect.

The ideas behind Loading Human: Chapter 1 are exciting, but they don’t get to shine like they should due to a weird control scheme and ineffective acting.

Even with its safe confinement to a generally unchanged art-style and environmental aesthetic, HoPiKo remains enjoyably engaging and challenging from beginning to tantalizing end.

Not only does it look perfectly like a modern iteration of the classics, it also provides fast, frantic tank gameplay. The single player mode gives a great space for players to practice before taking a shot at helping others out online. Unfortunately, an already middling amount of server activity makes this mode’s future worrisome.

Dragon Ball Xenoverse 2 is, at best, a minimal improvement over its predecessor while sharing a lot of the same issues, but there’s just something so endearing about how it all came together.

DoDonPachi Resurrection is a monster of an arcade shooter.

Titanfall 2 breathes new life into the concept and has solidified it as a franchise.

It’s finicky, but worth your time if the concept intrigues you.

Job Simulator is not best played on PSVR, but Owlchemy Labs still did an incredible job translating the game to PS4. They managed to retain the core of the experience which means folks are still set to have fun playing. It’s just a shame that the technology currently paired with PSVR (Move controller and single camera) do not allow for the complete fidelity of play required to truly make Job Simulator an amazing virtual reality experience.

Everything is just far too repetitive (not to mention tiring) to get folks through the campaign. A co-op mode didn’t even make it out in time for launch, which could have at least added some reason to keep playing. Ace Banana may be technically sound, but it’s plainly uninteresting when compared to the rest of PSVR’s launch lineup.

Sure, you might not find a bevy of modes or other activities to do within SUPERHYPERCUBE, but that’s not the point. The core gameplay mechanic of fitting increasingly complex cube-based shapes into wall cutouts is plainly enjoyable. It’s also incredibly challenging as you move through to later levels. It might not be a game you play for hours on end, but rather one you come back to week after week.

Atlas Reactor is a fun game for people who love blasting the hell out of their friends. The large variety of Freelancers, both in appearance and play style, present the opportunity to try out several different strategies and help keep things interesting.

Pixel Gear is another bright spot in the PlayStation VR’s lineup. This digital-only release gives players some of the best shooting action on the device so far and is great to break up RIGS play sessions for when you still want to do some shooting, but want something a bit more relaxing.

Despite its issues, Ashes of Ariandel is still worthy of any Dark Souls III player as it’s more of what we’ve come to love with a couple of nods for long time fans.