The Final Station does a remarkable job at leaving a mark with its chosen aesthetic and subtle narrative — peaking one’s interest with this particular post-apocalyptic not-zombie infested World, it’ll be easily remembered above the mediocre allotment of survival titles out there at present. Overall, The Final Station is a welcome breath of fresh (if desolately murky) air and stands out through its interesting mix of platformer and survival mechanics — carving out a game that’s entertaining but cunning too.

A modern mech title that can easily be a gateway drug to hours of fast-paced action, there’s nothing else quite like Daemon X Machina on Switch. While its story falls a bit short, it’s still enjoyable and intriguing enough of a ride to keep up with even when confusing. It shines strongest in its amount of replayability and sheer mountain of additional content that can be unlocked. Daemon X Machina is a title that’s hard to put down and is easy to get sucked in and just want to keep going further and see what other crazy things it has waiting around the corner. It’s obvious that a ton of time and dedication was put into Daemon X Machina, and it’s one that fans of the genre or those with the tiniest bit of interest should check out.

When it comes down to it, Super Monkey Ball Banana Rumble is an exciting and worthwhile entry in the acclaimed series. There's a lot to enjoy for newcomers and fans, from new levels and characters to multiplayer and modes. The Nintendo Switch does the title justice in the gameplay, though it hurts the graphical fidelity some of the stages and sceneries may have had. Still, it's an essential title for those looking for a fun, challenging and vibrant experience, and is definitely worth all the monkey business and your time.

With strong gameplay and lasting appeal plus creative and collective physical figures, Trap Team is a Toys-to-Life recipe for success and one that keeps the series fresh for yet another year.

Overall Chrono Cross is presented in a way where there are minimal alterations to experience, where it’s changed and updated just enough to be enjoyed on modern platforms without making changes to what made it so memorable originally.

As cool as VR Fallout sounds, Fallout 4 is simply more enjoyable on the flat screen. Despite the issues that came with the port to VR, experiencing Fallout 4 in VR is great, not so much because of how amazing it is but because of the potential that’s shown. Fallout 4 was not built from the ground up for VR, and considering its size made porting it to VR no minor task, it’s still a worthwhile title even with its shortcomings and arguably essentially for any Vive owner. Fallout 4 VR shows that a game of this magnitude can exist in VR format and if a Fallout game was built from the ground up for VR and used this as a reference point for what to improve the results could be truly astounding. As it stands, it’s clear that VR games have come a long way in the past couple of years but still have a way to go before their potential is fully realized.

Neo Geo Pocket Color Selection Vol. 1 is a must buy for anyone who has wanted to enjoy what the classic portable had to offer and missed out on the individual releases. It offers up a healthy mix of fighters of hand-to-hand, projectiles and weapon-based combat alongside a touch of sports and a bit more shooting between Dark Arms and two Metal Slug games. They all look fantastic and have a crisp look with pixel art that shines either on a TV or on the Switch’s portable screen, and sound great with addictive soundtracks. Like the console it’s inspired by, the compilation is full of high-quality games and is a fine example of “all killer and no filler” with the possible exception of Big Tournament Golf and even that is quite good.

Fans of the series, as well as newcomers looking for a different style of JRPG owe it to themselves to try Atelier Shallie: Alchemists of the Dusk Sea.

Adventures of Pip is a delightful little platformer full of charm, challenge and impeccable level design. While still a little rough around the edges, its mechanics are unquestionably solid, and it’s clearly been crafted with the love and talent of a team determined to realize their vision.

While this reboot of the classic Master of Orion series isn’t perfect, it packs massive amounts of replayability, with endless tactics and strategies to be explored.

While the story leaves a little to be desired, Layton’s Mystery still makes for an enjoyable entry into the puzzling series. A likable cast of characters persists despite featuring an entirely new crew and the ending manages to hint at a continuation for the series branching off from this title with a plot to draw players in. Those new to the series can easily hop in without needing to have knowledge of the previous stories, but it does make some welcome nods to previous endeavors Layton has gone through. Any puzzle fan should dive right into this title when they get the chance and look forward to what Layton’s Mystery Journey brings next.

It may have taken WaterMelon a while to finally give us this gem, but it was worth the wait. If you’re looking for a memorable, old-school RPG, buy Pier Solar HD.

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.

River City: Rival Showdown is a safe bet for those who enjoyed previous River City games. The three day time period translates to a roughly four or five hour game, but the brevity works in its favor since it can be replayed on New Game Plus for different endings. For those unfamiliar with River City, it’s a simple beat ’em up with an RPG equipment and stat progression system. It’s as old school as they come, but with quick pacing and a sense of humor, it’s a title any retro gamer should check out. Mainline River City games haven’t drastically changed their basic formula since their inception, but if they keep making them as fun as this title, they really don’t need to.

Still, Homeworld: Desert of Kharak is an accessible and well-made strategy game with outstanding production values and a legitimate claim to being part of the legendary franchise.

Wild Hearts offers a fresh take on the monster hunting formula. The nature infused Kemono are an original approach to monster designs and some of them look so majestic you almost feel bad about killing them. Azuma is a gorgeous location, and using the different forms of the Karakuri to travel gives exploration a unique quality. The Karakuri in general really what sets Wild Hearts apart from other monster hunting, as its myriad functions add a new dimension to both exploration and battling Kemono. There is a bit of a learning curve and steep difficulty but learning the intricacies of Karakuri make overcoming the challenge a very rewarding and fun experience.

Valfaris is pure badassery in every level, from its brutal environments, the monstrous abominations of its bosses and of course the driving guitar soundtrack pushing the action forwards. It’s hardcore run & gun action from the very start and exactly what we dreamed 16-bit gaming would grow into back in the day.

Norn9: Var Commons might not be the very best the otome genre has to offer, but it’s certainly up there.

Resogun is an incredibly fun game, but not much more than that.

Cities: Skylines just keeps getting better. Thanks to lots of dedicated fans and modders, and the official After Dark and Snowfall expansions, the game offers endless fun and creativity.

When Slime-san works as intended, it’s an incredibly clever platformer, filled with endless challenges that constantly come up with new riffs on its themes. Its controls are tight and the levels take advantage of this, relying on the precision that comes from a simple move-set to make levels that are incredibly tricky but not unfair to get through.

Anyone looking for a new excuse to smack down thousands of enemy soldiers per battle should check this one out.

Pyre represents another solid effort from Supergiant, as the awe-inspiring world, both in terms of design and depth, coupled with a lovable cast of heroes and villains, continue the studio’s renowned streak for titles with big heart and unique gameplay. The repetitive and overly-lengthy nature of the campaign, as well as a lackluster versus mode, holds the title back from reaching the same heights as its predecessors, but those looking for an original universe and an uplifting tale will be hard-pressed to find a deeper and better-looking game this year.

Once the feel of the grind of the Career Mode begins, the initial appeal starts to wear off even though the varying race experiences try to hide it. The multiplayer experience is seemingly just an afterthought with something that could have had so much potential. But with beautiful visuals and impressive gameplay, fans of the original GRID will find that this modern version will suit them on the track.

Arknights: Endfield is a huge sprawling mass of a game that goes in a million directions all at once, and which direction is the right one always feels like it's at the player's discretion.

Inventive lore, gorgeous art direction and clever use of RPG mechanics make Endless Legend an absolute treat.

Building on everything that was great about the original — from enemy variety to boss design to the means by which one can customize their play-style — Remnant II just about scrapes by with a follow-up that befits the mantle of “bigger, better, bolder” in numerous ways. The dangling and unfortunately noted caveat is the current performance at launch. The almighty saving grace however — and one that ultimately comes to frame Remnant II in more flattering colors — is just how significantly more rewarding the sequel feels compared to the 2019 original. Superb execution on art-style, level design and simply how one approaches the onslaught before them, though flawed in its more technical aspects, Remnant II‘s wealth of content, fulfilling challenge and broad expanding on the template it established more than makes up for its shortcomings.

Despite having a lot of flaws, Far Cry 4 is a lot of fun.