The Knight Witch is excellent in a lot of ways despite its forbidding difficulty, the kind of game you’ll be glad to have beaten even if the journey to completion is sometimes a bit much. Rayne’s journey from coulda-been to savior goes through a number of twists and turns, the metroidvania levels are filled with a great amount of variety, and other than the occasional trap room that locks you in, the choice to shoot everything or zip on past is rarely taken away. The sky is broken and the underground is getting more dangerous than the anyone is comfortable with, but the survivors have a new knight witch to pin all their hopes on. It just may take a few dozen more respawns than expected to reach The Knight Witch‘s conclusion.

Battle Princess Madelyn is a must play for fans of classic action titles from the ’80s and ’90s, but may be a tough sell for those who started their gaming career later.

It may be a flawed experience, but it's certainly an addictive one.

Knack’s not perfect, and shouldn’t be your first priority when picking up a PS4, but if you miss the old days, or want to share a bit of them with your kids, it may very well be worth your while.

Minecraft: Story Mode – Episode 5: Order Up! shapes up to be an incredible introduction to the Order of the Stone’s newest adventures, but still manages to fall a little short.

Like Broken Sword 5, Broken Age will be a lot better for anyone who picks it up from now on, but that can’t save this episode from being heavily marked down.

Despite a slow start, Witch on the Holy Night does earn its reading time. It takes well-established character paradigms and works them in fun ways. The limited animations punctuate and accent the words, creating vivid action scenes with color choices that pop. This is a title for kicking back and relaxing, as there isn’t anything happening on the gameplay front. As long as it’s understood that the first couple of hours need to be processed before it gets good, this is one of the better visual novels to come out in recent years. A patch fixing up the text is almost required, but a forgiving reader will find a lot to enjoy here. Witch on the Holy Night is mostly a tale of action, but it mixes in creepy shots and relatable humor, making for a fun, but flawed, romp.

Fairytale Fights is not a game that’s going to revolutionize the genre. It is, however, a very fun, unique, and beefy (15-20 hours of gameplay) game that’s fun to tear through.

FIFA Soccer 13 for Wii U isn't the worst version of this year's popular soccer game, but it's certainly below standards for most modern console owners.

Secret of Mana is a strange title. On one hand it has so many missteps in its redesign that it’s easy to quickly dismiss it, but it remains a rewarding gaming experience upon playing. A lot of changes take away from the original’s charm while several aspects that could have benefited from an update were left alone. Honestly what would have been ideal is if it was left in the original state and given a 2D sprite makeover in the style of Final Fantasy IV for the PSP and maybe added some minor updates like shops containing item descriptions, but even with the complaints that can be made about this remake, it’s still Secret of Mana. Almost every JRPG fan will enjoy this remake, though a better Secret of Mana experience can be found on Super Nintendo.

Simplistic and often jarring its intended design may seem, Soul Axiom is a game that requires, as much cunningly desires, the player’s warranted need to look beyond the surface that’s initially presented. Whether that be in its puzzle design or the ample conflict of environments, Wales Interactive do just enough with the overarching themes of simulation and replication to make its superficial locales feel that extra bit suspicious.

There are those who would call a game such as this "shallow", and with good reason: most games like this are. However, most games that subscribe to this concept don't allow you the freedom of movement or tactics that Stranglehold does. [Nov 2007, p.56]

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.

Anyone seeking some fun motorcycle racing action should give it a shot because while it is limited in content, everything here is mostly well-executed outside of rider animations.

Crystar pairs an original and compelling story with fairly average gameplay. The repetitive nature can become tedious, especially during the later parts, but the narrative concept is interesting enough to push the player to guiding Rei to the end of Purgatory. This is one of those games where the recommendation would have more to do with the level of personal interest in the story than anything else as that’s the most noteworthy feature in an otherwise good but unremarkable action RPG. The game taking place in Purgatory seems fitting since the enjoyment is a lot more pleasurable than Hell, but doesn’t quite reach the levels of joy that Heaven advertises.

While not the most robust of the PlayLink games, Knowledge is Power is still a fun, playable game show that family and friends will easily be able to pick up and play. Games are short, which means that it’s not something you have to dedicate a night to, but also sets you up for rematches galore. The questions are interesting and niche, which makes them harder while at the same time making you feel like you know the answer. The way they’ve implemented the Power Plays is a nice touch, allowing you to slow your opponents down in a game that’s all about speed. So if you’ve been liking the games that Sony has been offering with their new PlayLink initiative, Knowledge is Power is another one to pick up.

Xenon Racer is a good game that so desperately wants to be great, but it falls short in too many areas to reach that status. Cars feel a bit too weighty while tracks lack life due to low-quality trackside details. The game’s tough learning curve won’t be for everyone, but does offer a greater sense of reward than most games when it comes to making a victory feel like a true accomplishment. Unfortunately, visual problems and a mundane soundtrack hurt the overall presentation. The end result is a game that comes as a mild recommendation for racing fans until some of its issues are hopefully fixed with patches down the line.

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.

Yars Rising is in the dreaded "pretty decent" zone, not actually bad, but not good enough to be memorable. Controls are fluid and smooth, but there aren't many areas that give them a proper workout and there was only one boss fight in the entire game that presented any kind of real challenge. The hacking games are more consistently creative, but they're also the kind of thing you'll play once and not feel any need to go back to again, despite being available as a collection from the main menu. Yars Rising is playable, Emi is a fun character that usually doesn't fall on the wrong side of the "I guess this is my life now" line, and the jump between metroidvania and classic single-screen arcade gaming is a nice hook. Altogether, though, none of the elements ever fully take off to make Emi the hero she should be.

Even though Extreme Justice keeps throwing out issues such as bland foot missions and the uninteresting Challenges mode, it’s still got 30 levels of decent gaming wrapped in an entertainingly cheesy story.

Papo & Yo is about growing into a person who can escape an abusive family situation, and that’s a theme powerful enough to overwhelm any number of small problems, if pulled off properly. The best parts of the game are when this theme is integrated directly into the action, whether that’s running from an enraged Monster or engaging in escapist fantasy with the platforming and landscape manipulation.

Granted, it’s easy to see this unique take on the first-person experience fall by the wayside, especially when you consider its initial technical follies and weak player onboarding, but flaws aside, Valley has the potential to serve as an introduction to the first-person adventure genre for players who are used to more combat-heavy experiences.

Though it’s engrossing in its own right, and it provides a hearty serving of gameplay, Professor Layton vs Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney feels full of wasted potential.

Simulacra might not be perfect, but it highlights that the found phone horror concept is one that has a significant amount of potential. For anyone looking to venture into uncharted territory with horror, Simulacra is a choice that brings a fresh, exciting new experience compared with many other titles on the market. It has a well-constructed story and demonstrates that branching narratives are built for horror titles. Kaigan Games has only scraped the surface of found phone horror, though. Should they choose to return with another installment and be able to improve on some of the notable flaws, it could end up making the real impact that it’s looking for with found phone horror on the mobile market. For now, however, Simulacra is a must-own title for any horror enthusiast. Even if it’s only for a single playthrough, it’s enough to make any player want to talk to their friend about this found phone horror title they’ve discovered.

Digimon Story: Cyber Sleuth – Hacker’s Memory may not be a true sequel to the 2016 original, but it’s a better version of a familiar experience. The visuals don’t shine as brightly on PS4 and players will have to wander through a lot of recycled content before encountering much new. While it would have been nice to have new areas, Hacker’s Memory is carried by its profoundly personal story, engrossing combat and progression mechanics, and various quality of life improvements. While newcomers may find the experience a little confusing, returning players will appreciate meeting up with returning characters and experiencing the enhancements implemented to improve the experience. Digimon Story: Cyber Sleuth – Hacker’s Memory may not be a true sequel, but the quality put into the story, combat and progression make it a worthy successor.

Cat lovers in particular are likely to get more enjoyment from stepping into the paws in this cat simulator and hunting down the various cat pictures than those who do not enjoy feline companionship.

Gravitronix is a novel game with a distinctive control scheme that matches the gameplay perfectly.

It’s exciting to see a game like SeaBed receive an official English translation. After a regular onslaught of yuri nukige, it starts to feel like that’s all companies care for. Of course, we’ve seen that not to be the case in the past with releases such as Kindred Spirits on the Roof, Highway Blossoms and now SeaBed. It may not be the most fast-paced or engaging tale on the market, but it provides a distinct experience. Those looking to dive into a new yuri game can expect to swim with SeaBed for ten to twenty hours as they uncover its secrets.