Hardcore Gamer's Scores

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For 4,329 reviews, this publication has graded:
  • 50% higher than the average critic
  • 9% same as the average critic
  • 41% lower than the average critic
On average, this publication grades 1.4 points lower than other critics. (0-100 point scale)
Average Game review score: 73
Highest review score: 100 Balatro
Lowest review score: 20 Final Fantasy: All the Bravest
Score distribution:
  1. Positive: 2,430 out of 4329
  2. Mixed: 1,657 out of 4329
  3. Negative: 242 out of 4329
4332 game reviews
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    • 65 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Maneater
    Maneater is a ridiculous, fun title that should be applauded for its ambition of making a viable action RPG starring a shark. The snarky narration provided by Chris Parnell helps cement the tongue-in-cheek nature while the gameplay reminds us why a shark is a good choice for a game that focuses on a violent force of nature. The repetitive nature, lack of variety and sometimes wonky camera hold Maneater back from being a true Apex RPG, but even with its limitations Maneater is a fun and unique game that should be experienced by action RPG fans who want something unconventional on Switch.
    • 65 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    Warhammer: Mark of Chaos - Battle March
    The engine may be aging and looking a bit ragged around the edges, but the game’s heavy emphasis on strategy and the persistent units in the campaign make for hours of scaling castle walls and slaying your foes.
    • 65 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Trillion: God of Destruction
    After making a terrible first impression, Trillion: God of Destruction manages to be a unique experience.
    • 65 Metascore
    • 40 Critic Score
    Journey of a Roach
    Journey of a Roach is a bog-standard adventure game built around a single kind of nifty idea.
    • 65 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    Fairy Fencer F
    Fairy Fencer F should serve nicely for those who don’t want anything too complex or something that will force them to think, but those hoping for something with a serious, epic story and meaningful exploration will want to look elsewhere.
    • 65 Metascore
    • 50 Critic Score
    Sword Art Online Re: Hollow Fragment
    Sword Art Online Re: Hollow Fragment is entirely average, which is frustrating because there are elements of greatness sprinkled throughout its somewhat mess of a product.
    • 65 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Poi: Explorer Edition
    Poi‘s greatest weakness lies in its sound design, but the core game is well-crated and a lot of fun. The smaller world size keeps players focused on the task at hand, while keeping mandatory collect-a-thon parts to a minimum puts a stronger focus on the platforming action. Thankfully, this is the game’s strongest point and anyone looking for a solid 3D platformer should check out Poi. It controls nearly-perfectly, with only an iffy camera causing issues from time to time. It looks solid for the most part too, with impressive lighting adding some impressive visual flair to what can sometimes be bland-looking stages.
    • 65 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Super Motherload
    Super Motherload does a great job of satisfying one’s inner miner, letting you dig to the heart of Mars and the bizarre mystery lying in its core.
    • 65 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Dynasty Warriors 9
    It’s fun yet flawed, and while it would be recommended to fans of this style, the recommendation comes with caveats. It doesn’t quite excel at being a traditional Dynasty Warriors game or taking the formula to a new open world format, but does a good enough job at both where it’s enjoyable but not exceptional.
    • 65 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    MachiaVillain
    MachiaVillain is a provides a terribly fun concept for a management simulation game. It’s a bit rough around the edges, but momentary bits of frustration aren’t enough to turn players off from the enjoyable core mechanics. This is the sort of game that can easily be played for hours on end and feel like only minutes have passed.
    • 65 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Birthdays the Beginning
    Birthdays: The Beginning is a cute and clever world-builder where simple actions can have deep, complicated results. While it was never apparent that life evolved by the guiding hand of a super-sentai hero, Birthdays shows how much all of Earth owes to their climate-controlling wisdom. Flying around the planet raising and lowering the land has far more complex results than would be expected thanks to the interlocking systems, and it’s always a treat to see what new life pops up as the result of the latest round of tweaking. The main story is plenty big enough but is also joined by a sandbox and goal-based modes, providing plenty of world-building fun. As cute as it is deep, Birthdays is a purely charming life-sim.
    • 65 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    Aragami 2
    While there’s intrigue to discover amongst the structure and layout of locales in Aragami 2, the sequel’s turn away from the distilled charm of its one-man stealth prior leaves more perplexed questions than convincing answers.
    • 65 Metascore
    • 45 Critic Score
    Cookie & Cream
    I can see the novel ideas going on here, but this game needs some serious extra time in the oven. Also, an analog stick. [Vol 3, Issue 2, p.63]
    • Hardcore Gamer
    • 65 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    The Awakened Fate: Ultimatum
    It is, however, an experience that leaves a bit desired. Newcomers looking to get into the roguelike genre for the first time though, will probably find this to be the ideal experience.
    • 65 Metascore
    • 40 Critic Score
    Blues and Bullets - Episode 2: Shaking The Hive
    The second episode of Blues and Bullets falls short in enough ways to make it easy to recommend staying away from it at this point until all five episodes are out in the wild.
    • 65 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Metal Wolf Chaos XD
    Metal Wolf Chaos XD is an exercise in pure Americana filtered through the cheesiest anime imaginable.
    • 65 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Akimbot
    Overall, Akimbot is a fun platformer that can be expanded upon with a sequel. The weapons are too simple for a sci-fi game like this, but they all feel fantastic to control nonetheless. Some performance issues plague the levels, but Akimbot does surprise with stellar production value and interesting gameplay elements that keep the game feeling fresh. The game does feel long in the tooth by the end, but Akimbot is a good effort by Pumpkin Jack developer Evil Raptor.
    • 64 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Alpha Protocol
    Despite these flaws, Alpha Protocol is still a fun and entertaining experience with a dynamic storyline and solid RPG mechanics.
    • 64 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Dynasty Warriors: Gundam Reborn
    It’s unfortunate that the Dynasty Warriors formula couldn’t have been better tailored to such rich source material, as there was tantalizing potential for Gundam Reborn to be the definitive interactive Gundam experience. But it succeeds at what it aims to be: an action game full of epic displays of power and an endless supply of enemies to destroy, despite little variation in gameplay.
    • 64 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    F1 2015
    In a perfect world, everything here (minus the updated racing info, of course) would have debuted last year as F1 2014. Alas, we now have two F1 games released within mere months of each other that both feel incomplete.
    • 64 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Gear.Club Unlimited
    Aside from sub-par sound design, Gear.Club Unlimited offers up an outstanding racing experience for Switch. It straddles the line nicely between offering up a sim-infused experience while keeping the on-track action fast and exciting. The amount of racing types available is impressive and the sense of progression makes it easy for a quick play session to turn into a marathon. GCU is a flawed experience but winds up being greater than the sum of its few flaws thanks to it providing a lot of fun on the track in all of its racing styles. Off the track, it’s fun to expand and customize. It’s a great-looking game and a fine showcase of what can be done with the Switch for racing games — even at an early stage in its lifespan.
    • 64 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Defiance
    As far as MMO launches go, though, Defiance has been surprisingly smooth for the most part. In the end, the game is off to a decent start, but it faces some inherent hurdles that could hold it back from being what one can tell it’s meant to be.
    • 64 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Metroid Prime: Federation Force
    If you’re planning on tackling it solo, Federation Force is a much tougher pill to swallow, with its prohibitive level of difficulty. On the other hand, if you have a friend or two who are willing to take the plunge with you, Federation Force can make for a good time, especially if you’re all playing together in the same space.
    • 64 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Shadow of the Beast
    It’s not perfect, but this is a great example of how reboots should be done.
    • 64 Metascore
    • 50 Critic Score
    Extreme Exorcism
    As charming and as neat of an idea as playing past-versions of yourself is, there are simply not enough legs to the core hook here and that dooms the final product to mediocrity right from the start.
    • 64 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Pokemon Quest
    Pokémon Quest is a wonderful experience that is easily played in short bursts and feels properly at home on Nintendo Switch in particular as it makes great use of the tablet-like aspect of the system. Those interested in this cute cube-styled world should give Pokémon Quest a try as it’s truly a delightful treat for every type of Pokémon fan.
    • 64 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    The Crew 2
    There’s an overabundant amount of things to do and it will keep your time consumed. What it lacks, however, is that hook to want to play it. The driving and physics are bland and the narrative is dreadful.
    • 64 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    Stonefly
    Stonefly had all of the right parts to create an impressive and cool-looking machine, but unlike its heroine, it wasn’t able to fully assemble them properly. The end result is an ambitious journey that has a lot of moments worth checking out, but quickly begins to grow tiresome thanks to overly-repetitive combat, backtracking and grinding. Stonefly is a game with a lot of terrific concepts, but unfortunately undermines them by stretching things out in various ways. Come for the journeys across breathtaking bits of nature, leave when it comes to the combat.
    • 64 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Saints Row: Gat Out of Hell
    Gat Out of Hell captures the madness and destruction that made the series so fun, but even as an expansion pack, there’s not much new here. So much of it is cut from the same cloth of Saints Row IV that the nuances end up meaning much less than they should.
    • 64 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Robinson: The Journey
    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.
    • 64 Metascore
    • 40 Critic Score
    Albino Lullaby: Episode 1
    Albino Lullaby: Episode 1 is a most unnerving horror game, but not the all-around freakiest or best from a gameplay perspective. Despite some A+ design work, there is a real lack of compelling gameplay at the core.
    • 64 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Sword Art Online: Fatal Bullet
    Sword Art Online: Fatal Bullet is flawed, but succeeds at providing a thrilling MMO-esque experience offline. Newcomers to the SAO franchise can jump in with this and enjoy themselves — especially if they just want a great third-person shooting experience. Be sure that you have time to devote to it, however, because it will consume a lot of it.
    • 64 Metascore
    • 50 Critic Score
    Tiny Token Empires
    All in all, it’s hard to recommend Tiny Token Empires for the PS3. Even though the puzzle portions are a lot of fun, they’re not so much better than other games on the market that the frustrations caused by the strategy portion are worth putting up with them for.
    • 64 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    The Impossible Game
    Messing up might make one shout obscenities, but it’s still fun to try and conquer each stage. Unfortunately, it’s starting to show its age with rather uninspired visuals and a lack of in-game user created stage sharing.
    • 64 Metascore
    • 55 Critic Score
    Time Hollow
    Time Hollow clings to mediocrity until the last hollow pen hole, and I can guarantee you won’t be compelled to ever pick it up again upon finishing it.
    • 64 Metascore
    • 50 Critic Score
    Tokyo Twilight Ghost Hunters: Daybreak Special Gigs
    An enhanced version of a game that is, objectively speaking, a sub-par experiment at niche game design. The newly-added characters, uniforms, animations, tutorials and so on add to what was present originally in a highly beneficial fashion. In fact, many of these things should have been considered and added before the original released. The problem is that the original formula wasn’t great originally. Adding honey mustard to a wilted lettuce wrap might make it taste better, but it’s still not good.
    • 64 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    The Silver Case
    Were one to be completely honest, the gameplay found in The Silver Case would garner it a middling score. The controls are a bit too clunky, leaving the excellent puzzle design to carry the work, but the game is more of a showcase for the story. On that front, The Silver Case succeeds.
    • 64 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Atlas Fallen
    Atlas Fallen is far from a perfect game, but the important thing is that it’s still a fun game. Even when it can feel like it’s throwing a kitchen sink at you, there’s always something enjoyable to find in Atlas Fallen, mainly its impressive combat that leads to a lot of challenging, enjoyable battles (albeit with a few that could use tweaking), and its visually striking landscapes that allow for a ton of fun sand sliding. Even with a large coat of jank, there’s still a lot to delight here once you’re successfully able to dig it up, so give it a shot if you like to experiment and don’t mind a little roughness.
    • 64 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    Borderlands 2
    Borderlands 2 is serious fun, but has serious problems.
    • 64 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    God of War Sons of Sparta
    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.
    • 64 Metascore
    • 65 Critic Score
    White Knight Chronicles International Edition
    White Knight Chronicles is simply an enthusiastic game that falls short of what it could have been.
    • 64 Metascore
    • 65 Critic Score
    Shining Force EXA
    As a singleplayer experience, Shining Force EXA lacks the druglike addictiveness that makes a good dungeon crawler more than something you kill time with. [Mar 2007, p.54]
    • Hardcore Gamer
    • 64 Metascore
    • 40 Critic Score
    Painkiller: Hell & Damnation
    This isn't a remake or a reimagining of the original Painkiller; this is a high-resolution texture pack for an outdated eight-year old game that's missing significant story beats.
    • 64 Metascore
    • 90 Critic Score
    Earth Defense Force 4.1: The Shadow of New Despair
    The action is huge, the enemies gigantic and the firepower overwhelming. Earth Defense Force 4.1 is finally the game the series has always tried to be.
    • 64 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Kane & Lynch: Dead Men
    Kane & Lynch is more "Freedom Fighters" than "Hitman", so it should appeal to action junkies looking for their next fix. [Dec 2007, p.67]
    • Hardcore Gamer
    • 64 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    NASCAR Heat 3
    NASCAR Heat 3 is a fun and entertaining stock car racing game that needs to take more steps towards offering a simulation for racing fans. Opening up an eSports division should encourage the cream of the crop to represent the real life sport in a virtual world. Champions of other racing games have literally gone on to win great things. The Career Mode is deep and engaging and the Xtreme Dirt Series is an excellent addition to the series. The visual and audio issues are something that need an update, but there’s enough new content that the fans of this series will really enjoy.
    • 64 Metascore
    • 30 Critic Score
    Yonder: The Cloud Catcher Chronicles
    One cannot comprehend who Yonder: The Cloud Catcher Chronicles is meant to serve. Exploration is a chore based on frame rate issues and less-than-stellar graphics. Questing sucks because there is no real sense of progress or accomplishment. Farming and crafting is similarly pointless as there just isn’t a heck of a lot to do. I will confess to giving up after only a couple of hours in hopes that I was the recipient of Alpha code.
    • 64 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    Project Sylpheed: Arc of Deception
    Project Sylpheed costs forty bucks, making this a budget title, but it's hard to play unless you're playing in HD. [Oct 2007, p.56]
    • Hardcore Gamer
    • 64 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Akiba's Trip: Undead & Undressed
    This magical recreation of Japan’s Akihabara District bolsters a magnitude of content and things to do, while the accessible yet rewarding combat makes traipsing through the cityscape pleasurable, feeling like a blend of a traditional beat’em up and something more like what the Yakuza series has to offer. Unfortunately, an unfathomable amount of fan-service and technical hiccups dampen the experience.
    • 64 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Gal*Gun: Double Peace
    It actually made me laugh out loud and manages to retain its charm even after the novelty of the weirdness wore off. Being a game that requires quick reflexes and a tolerance for sexually-charged humor sets it apart from the other titles that vie for gamer dollars.
    • 64 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Warriors Orochi 3 Hyper
    It may be a flawed experience, but it's certainly an addictive one.
    • 64 Metascore
    • 50 Critic Score
    Chronology
    Chronology is a great example of how a few warts can taint an otherwise pretty package.
    • 64 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Tribe: Primitive Builder
    Tribe: Primitive Builder is a relaxing adventure of construction and automation, and while the map could stand to be cut down to at least half its size, it’s surprisingly easy to get lost in the flow of completing goals one after the other as the hours drift away.
    • 64 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    REYNATIS
    While it's a solid and enjoyable game in its own right, Reynatis suffers from being unable to visually stand out. Animations in combat and cutscenes are sometimes stiff and robotic or even overtuned to the point where they look outright silly for what they're trying to accomplish.
    • 64 Metascore
    • 50 Critic Score
    Tiny Brains
    With some more interesting puzzles and cleaned up controls, Tiny Brains would be an easy game to recommend to everyone, but as it stands it’s best avoided.
    • 64 Metascore
    • 50 Critic Score
    Scars Above
    Perhaps if Scars Above had put more work into the areas where our lead heroine has to explore this strange world and analyze it more in order to solve various puzzles, basically letting her be the scientist she is, it could have been vastly better overall, or at least help give it a better identity to help it stand out more. Instead, Scars Above settles for being a generic third-person action game that rarely, if ever, takes any sort of risks. While it may not fall prey to anything that feels egregiously bad and at least has decent combat, you’ll likely walk away from the mystery of the Metahedron feeling more bored than satisfied.
    • 64 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Pac-Man Museum
    In short, Pac-Man Museum is the best representation of what has been a truly illustrious video game career.
    • 64 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    TRON RUN/r
    TRON RUN/r stumbles in a few spots and is a little too expensive for its own good, but it’s beautiful to look at, incredibly fun to play and offers the perfect sense of challenge for players with good reflexes.
    • 64 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    SwapQuest
    Most of the game is well put together and engaging and when it finally reaches its pinnacle, with the bosses and the Sky Tower, it becomes a compulsory addictive game.
    • 64 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Ancestors: The Humankind Odyssey
    Panache Digital Games has created a truly immersive, lush environment that’s thrilling to explore and traverse. Utilizing our natural instincts for discovery is truly the most ingenious aspect of the game, as it rewards us for problem solving in ways that already come naturally to us. It’s such a gratifying experience to see our hominids start out with no understanding of the world, to then become fairly self-sustaining creatures thanks to education and discovery. More than anything, Ancestors: The Humankind Odyssey shows us what amazing creatures we truly are and how far we’ve come as a species. Understanding our past is the gateway to our future.
    • 64 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    VARLET
    Varlet is filled with love of the genre while simultaneously getting a few notable things wrong. The portions of the game that take place between the main plot points and dungeons are dull, making it hard to want to go through the effort of completing all the side objectives. The combat is where the game shines, however, allowing for interesting combinations of your characters and what you can do with them. The issue is that the combat ends up becoming too easy when taking on the majority of the smaller enemies you end up fighting on the way to the bosses. There are no real threats if you keep on top of your characters' levels and switch them out of your party regularly to make sure each one is ready for encounters. This is a solid JRPG that's still great fun, regardless of the issues with the lack of a threat from enemies; you're still rewarded for being creative in boss fights and exploring all avenues that the game has to offer with the skill tree.
    • 64 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    Naruto: Ultimate Ninja Heroes 2: The Phantom Fortress
    Overall, The Phantom Fortress is a surprisingly captivating portable game, that does well to live up to its popular name.
    • 64 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Psycho-Pass: Mandatory Happiness
    The storyline and characters are utterly compelling, regardless of your awareness of the source material. In fact, the story was effective enough to convince me to give the show a watch. The game does, however, end up missing a few of the convenience features expected from many other modern entrants in the genre.
    • 64 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    Assassin's Creed Liberation HD
    The fact that this was designed as a portable game ultimately is this version’s weakness and why the handheld version remains superior.
    • 64 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Chasing Aurora
    Chasing Aurora is a perfect example of what an eShop game should be - simple, but beautiful, while offering up an experience that can't be had anywhere else. A treat for the eyes and ears, its presentation sticks out amongst Wii U titles with ten times the budget and resources. Its $15 price tag is a steep considering the complete lack of online functionality, but anyone who loves score-based games will get their money's worth out of it.
    • 64 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    JoJo's Bizarre Adventure HD Ver.
    It's hurt by having a bare-bones online setup, not including the PS1 version's story mode, and not improving upon the blah soundtrack of the original game. There are a lot of downloadable fighters on the market now available for less money that are better than this. JJBA HD is a top-shelf bizarre game, but not exactly a top-shelf game in its own right.
    • 64 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    SimCity
    When it’s working, SimCity is an ecstatic god game that can be addicting to play; when it’s not, it’s one of the most frustrating experiences you’ll have.
    • 64 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Vampire: The Masquerade - Swansong
    Vampire: The Masquerade – Swansong has players step in the shoes of three different vampires to solve a mystery, building upon the wealth of Vampire lore, but doesn’t have much bite. The approach of making the game be entirely driven by conversation and investigation is an interesting alternative to countless vampire games that are essentially bloodbaths but doesn’t come without concessions. The emphasis on role playing and character choice helps recreate the feel of the tabletop/LARP games, but the poor puzzles and mediocre script hurt the pacing and overall experience. Fans of White Wolf’s World of Darkness will likely appreciate the work that went into bringing the role playing feel to a video game while they work to solve the mystery, but those who want something with a little more action would be best served waiting for Bloodlines 2.
    • 64 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    The Council - Episode 5: Checkmate
    The daemonic theme took over far too much of the story’s focus. When coupled with technical issues, it has reinforced that The Council has lost potential written all over it. Despite the many negatives, there are positives to take away from the experience. Gameplay is engaging from start to finish, with its RPG mechanics reinventing an episodic experience. Big Bad’s multiple endings offer plenty of reason to revisit not only Checkmate, but also the first four episodes and see the different outcome from making a major choice. Once the finale is all done and dusted, either the player or Big Bad will utter one simple word depending on the final outcome of the story. That word is none other than checkmate.
    • 64 Metascore
    • 50 Critic Score
    Kholat
    With such an interesting story and a great narrator, Kholat truly dropped the ball in what could have been a great narrative, instead delivering nonsense dialogue and an incomprehensible plot.
    • 64 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    Accel World vs. Sword Art Online: Millennium Twilight
    While what should be the biggest draw — the crossover and the story — falls flat on its face, Accel World vs Sword Art Online isn’t a complete loss. The actual game part of the game works well enough that players might find themselves more interested in taking on side quests and missions than working through the story campaign. Of course, Yui isn’t that great of a prize, but still. There is plenty of content with which to engage, but those looking for this type of gameplay would be better off playing Lost Song or Hollow Realization first. Those have more interesting stories and some better translation work in addition to the well-done game systems. If those have already been completed, then this isn’t the worst game for fans.
    • 64 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Call of Duty: Roads to Victory
    Throughout the game, you'll find all sorts of signs that the developers knew what would ruin the experience, and so worked overtime to avoid those pitfalls. As a result, Call of Duty: Roads to Victory is a serious contender for the handheld FPS crown. [Apr 2007, p.51]
    • Hardcore Gamer
    • 64 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Redeemer
    Redeemer is at its best when being a brawler, which it does most of the time. Guns are nice to take out the small fry and leave room to concentrate on the bigger threats, and the occasional trapped room is best bulled through and forgotten, but when you’ve got a room full of enemies of different abilities and are darting about, looking for environment kills or things to throw while performing counters and working on chaining attacks together the combat flows incredibly well. Heading into a room, assessing threats, coming up with a plan, and adjusting it on the fly to pound cyborgs and mutants into the floor feels great, especially when you fall into the fight’s rhythm and come out with barely a scratch. At the end the difficulty increases by enemies that take a few too many hits to go down, frequently joined by armored sniper that require you to keep moving rather work on offense, but by then you’re almost done and can push on through to the final encounter. Ignore the story and show up for the fighting and Redeemer provides a nice, long quest with plenty of unique areas to wreak bloody violence through.
    • 64 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    STRAFE
    Strafe falls short of greatness, but is definitely great fun. Each of the three main guns feels good to wield, and if some of the mods aren’t as useful as others, there are still ways to use them effectively. The secondary limited-use guns provide a welcome opportunity to change tactics when necessary and grabbing an exploding bug off the wall to use as a makeshift grenade somehow never gets old. The bloody violence is particularly well done, because not only is it fun to get your carnage on, but the bloody trail you leave in your wake is surprisingly helpful in keeping your bearings. Plus you can always shoot an enemy on a toxic orange spill and use their blood to make the floor safe again, which is awfully helpful in a gory kind of way. There are plenty of secrets, occasional hidden levels and many other goodies and bits of weirdness to find amidst the carnage and mayhem, making Strafe a fun and highly replayable action roguelike FPS that wears its love for the 90s on its blood-soaked sleeve.
    • 64 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    Disgaea Infinite
    Disgaea Infinite is the funniest visual novel I've played - even funnier than the Ace Attorney series, and is carried by the strength of its characters, dialogue, and voice acting.
    • 64 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    RiME
    While it’s an indie game with issues that stem from a lower-than-average budget for its size and the bugs that come with it, RiME still captures emotion and beauty as it tells a heartwarming story. The bugs can be frustrating at times, but aren’t reason enough not to play it. Rime will run you $39.99 and takes about six to 10 hours to complete. In the same vein as Journey, RiME is a capable entry into the ranks of these emotional and heartfelt types of games.
    • 64 Metascore
    • 55 Critic Score
    Chaos Wars
    The grid-less combat can be annoying to get used to—especially when learning how to properly position characters—but there’s enough small changes to put a good spin on otherwise stale tactical combat.
    • 64 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Super Lucky's Tale
    The biggest flaw is that it fails to leave a major impression despite getting most things right on a point-by-point basis. It controls well outside of some camera issues and looks gorgeous. The sound design is impressive, while the soundtrack leaves a bit to be desired. The overall game isn’t a classic, but everything is done well and there isn’t much outright wrong with it.
    • 64 Metascore
    • 40 Critic Score
    Forspoken
    Where Forspoken should’ve been a striking and appealing fresh start for Luminous Productions, the end result sadly is a game not only bland and unpolished, but deprived of a reason to care for its unfolding mystery. A bevvy of technical inconsistencies, lackluster open world design and most disappointing of all, a handful of systems with genuine enjoyment at times that don’t see their potential fully realized.
    • 64 Metascore
    • 90 Critic Score
    Shadow Labyrinth
    Shadow Labyrinth is a simple and solid game that feels more like a thank you than anything else. Fans of the genre it now calls home, as well as fans of Pac-Man, get to enjoy a whole new take on the series and the world they belong to. The visuals add to the nostalgic feeling while still adding a new world and experience for players to fight their way through. There's satisfying Metroidvania combat and exploration, a new story to experience and a ton of references to games that we all know and love within this universe.
    • 64 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    The Outer Worlds: Murder on Eridanos
    Murder on Eridanos is a fine send off to The Outer Worlds, giving players an opportunity to flex all their detective muscles in solving one final murder mystery. The writing and humor are able to maintain the high standard that was set by the core game, and even though the combat has been reduced to simply going through the motions at this point, the storytelling is able to make this a memorable experience. Eriadnos itself is a vibrant world to explore filled with its own culture and interesting inhabitants. Murder on Eridanos is a darkly humorous nod to film noir while staying true to the feel of The Outer Worlds, making it a worthwhile final addition to the game.
    • 64 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Killer Is Dead
    Those who enjoyed Grasshopper’s previous work or are tired of repeatedly being spoon-fed the same game should check out Killer is Dead before it’s rightfully put on “most underrated game” lists in several years by the same people who criticize it now.
    • 64 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Arc Rise Fantasia
    There is no doubt about it, Arc Rise Fantasia wants to be a hardcore JRPG. In many aspects it achieves this, but before fans go rushing to buy it they have to ask themselves: just how much grind is too much grind? If killing the same weak enemies over and over for innumerable hours before any story progression is made doesn't deter you, then by all means buy Arc Rise Fantasia.
    • 63 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Wolfenstein: Youngblood
    Gunplay has never felt better, but the bullet-sponge nature of the enemies and lack of necessary ammo dilute what is otherwise an enjoyable game to play. Wolfenstein: Youngblood is a different beast from its predecessors. While some of it works, other aspects fall flat. Youngblood is a fun distraction with a friend, but if you want the full Wolfenstein experience, you’ll need to wait for Wolfenstein III.
    • 63 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    The Witch and the Hundred Knight: Revival Edition
    The Witch and the Hundred Knight: Revival Edition adds the necessary adjustments to a game that simply wasn’t what it should have been the first time around, and while the result is hardly an action RPG classic, it’s somehow become not only enjoyable, but bizarrely likeable in the process.
    • 63 Metascore
    • 50 Critic Score
    Destiny 2: The Edge of Fate
    Probably the most disappointing thing about The Edge of Fate is how skimpy it is on new content. With just a campaign, location and raid, The Edge of Fate is the worst value proposition of any piece of Destiny content since Destiny: The Dark Below. Ushering in a new era, the next Destiny release needed to be bold, hook players and continue to show that Bungie can release quality products each go-around. A Destiny 3 might have been able to do all that. As an expansion, Destiny 2: The Edge of Fate doesn’t accomplish any of that outside of introducing an intriguing concept. This is one fate the Destiny franchise might not be able to escape from.
    • 63 Metascore
    • 50 Critic Score
    Neon Chrome
    In the end, this Chrome needs more polish.
    • 63 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Tales of Symphonia Remastered
    Tales of Symphonia is still one of the biggest highlights in the series with a fantastic assortment of characters, some simple but enjoyable combat and great story to keep players invested throughout. What hurts is that this remastered version has glaring issues that need to be fixed. It’s far from making it impossible to recommend, in fact we still absolutely would for those who haven’t ever played it before, but without autosave and with multiple recorded crashes experienced, it’s hard to tell people to run out and pick it up immediately without proper patches to work out the bigger issues here. With fixes to address the problems, Tales of Symphonia Remastered could easily be considered another fantastic port on modern systems that we hope to continue to see more of from Bandai Namco.
    • 63 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Alpha Protocol
    Despite these flaws, Alpha Protocol is still a fun and entertaining experience with a dynamic storyline and solid RPG mechanics.
    • 63 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    Spectrobes
    Anyone looking for a unique RPG experience that takes full advantage of the DS hardware should give it a shot. [May 2007, p.62]
    • Hardcore Gamer
    • 63 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Gex Trilogy
    There's no denying the Gex games have more than a few rough edges by today's standards, but that's also a major part of the charm. Gex Trilogy is a great collection of '90s gaming, reviving a set of minor classics that had a real impact in gaming history.
    • 63 Metascore
    • 90 Critic Score
    Windlands
    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.
    • 63 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    The World Next Door
    The World Next Door is not a title that’s going to rock anyone’s world, but it’s a good title that would be worth checking out for someone wanting something a little different. The puzzle combat system is enjoyable but could have benefited from further development to flesh it out a bit more. The story isn’t extraordinary but is still an enjoyable journey despite its anticlimatic ending. The game takes about four hours or so to complete, so it isn’t a huge time commitment. The world of Emrys is an interestingly designed world that can be fun to visit but is also not a bucket list destination.
    • 63 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    Dynasty Warriors 8 Empires
    Some may be content with more of the same, but there’s just simply not a lot here to carry the series forward.
    • 63 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Penny-Punching Princess
    It’s gorgeous with a killer soundtrack and impressive sound design as a whole. If you want something that blends overhead action RPG gaming with a faster-paced dungeon crawler motif, give Penny-Punching Princess a go.
    • 63 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    While the Iron's Hot
    What makes While the Iron’s Hot work is a combination of a pleasant series of tasks and quirky, entertaining characters in every new town and point of interest. Nothing is particularly difficult, from crafting to puzzles, but it’s nice to visit Ellian and wander around, picking up jobs or helping people while beating metal into shape. Even after the main plot is through there’s post-game content to play, completing the upgrade of buildings in the home town and taking on new quests while wrapping up any unfinished ones, all of which are documented in the journal. There can be a lot to keep track of, but features like being able to pin a recipe or view the character list help when you need a reminder, and the whole game feels designed to make becoming a master blacksmith as accessible as possible. While not particularly deep, While the Iron is Hot succeeds on charm and pure likeability, and it’s almost impossible to resist enjoying the blacksmithing journey through its world.
    • 63 Metascore
    • 80 Critic Score
    Disney Epic Mickey: The Power of Illusion
    Epic Mickey: Power of Illusion must not be overlooked; it may be marketed towards today's youth, but it's adult gamers who grew up in the '90s that will truly appreciate it.
    • 63 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Namco Museum: Virtual Arcade
    Namco Museum Virtual Arcade is an impressive release from Namco Bandai that could have been even better.
    • 63 Metascore
    • 60 Critic Score
    Dust & Neon
    Dust & Neon has all of the tools and gunslinging gameplay needed to offer up a good time, but it’s hindered by a lack of story or characters to be invested in, bad AI on occasions and a structure that just ends up dragging things out for too long. There’s still fun to be had here in successfully beating enemies to the punch with it comes to being the quicker draw, and maybe those who are more patient will find something to truly enjoy, but for those looking for a good twin-stick shooter, roguelike, or both, there are many better options out there.
    • 63 Metascore
    • 70 Critic Score
    Voodoo Vince: Remastered
    While Voodoo Vince Remastered isn’t a classic of the platforming genre, it’s still very good. The levels are well designed, the Louisiana setting is unique, and if the humor tends to wander to fart jokes a bit too often, it still manages to be entertaining. It takes a while to warm up to Vince as a character but he grows on you as the adventure continues, and Kosmo is an entertainingly ridiculous villain. The kid-friendly tone doesn’t prevent Voodoo Vince from pulling out the challenge near the end, making for a satisfying conclusion to the 8-10 hour journey. The excellent music in particular deserves recognition for its lively, jazzy tunes, giving Vince a unique and memorable soundtrack. Voodoo Vince Remastered would be a great little platformer even if it was brand new today, and honestly it’s hard to be nostalgic for something I played once fourteen years ago and only remembered small bits and pieces of. People who played Voodoo Vince the first time around will have a good time rediscovering it, and platforming fans who never got a chance all those years ago get a chance at a lost console adventure that’s managed to hop its way out of obscurity.
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