It’s a charming adventure that doesn’t overstay its welcome or drag the gameplay down with too much fluff in between fights and allows players who just want to get through everything quickly the opportunity while having a small handful of side activities that let those who want to take it slower the chance to take a breather between encounters. Fire Emblem Engage feels like one of the tightest experiences in the franchise since Awakening and is well worth giving a try for those looking for something with a perfect clash of old and new.

The series’ unrelenting, doubling-down on the simulation approach — and barely giving its players room for error — is still as prominent and bound to put off those looking for an easy ride. If you’re the kind of person who appreciates the finer detail and are looking for a racing experience that rewards smart, split-second decision-making, however, this is the kind of package that can offer so many great and engaging moments. Even if the road there may be paved with a few harsh lessons. In the end, with an expanded and much-improved career mode, some thoughtful, small-and-subtle tweaks and even more unpredictable elements to keep wary of — on top of all the care put into the physics, feedback and very sound — Kylotonn’s latest in WRC 8 stands as the studio’s best interpretation yet.

With well-conceived bosses, an exciting new snow setting, and a shiny new crown to put on your mantel, Crown of the Ivory King helps expand the Dark Souls II fiction into great territories.

Atelier Shallie Plus: Alchemists of the Dusk Sea is the perfect place for series newcomers to start. The various areas of character improvement built into the systems here means that it feels like the player is always making rapid progress, even when completing the most mundane of tasks. Coupling this with an interesting, if not revolutionary, story makes for an engrossing game that would have dug its hooks even if it were not the only digital escape hatch provided for a trip to the in-laws. PS Vita is one of the most important destinations for JRPGs on the market and Atelier Shallie Plus is another major reason why.

Whereas NBA 2K16 found a way to take a step back last year with additions that didn’t feel wholly meaningful, MLB The Show 16 is a shining example of exactly how to make a great game even better.

RiMS Racing is the most immersive motorcycle gaming experience to date, with the DualSense pushing this even further. With a solid and lengthy Career Mode, you’ll have plenty of chances to maximize your bike’s performance and play around with different setups. While there are only eight bikes, with the amount of depth for upgrading and testing, it’ll make you forget about variety. The bike audio is ridiculously immersive and every race feels different just based on wear and tear from the bike and new part installation. The game can also be a tool on what would be needed to replace parts on these actual bikes. What’s lacking is multiplayer due to a lack of a community and anything outside of the Career Mode. This is a pure single player experience, which is perfectly fine, and any gamer who loves motorcycles will enjoy RiMS Racing. It also only retails for $39.99 and is worth the price of admission just to experience how well DualSense is implemented into the game.

I have to admit that I wasn’t easily sold on Not A Hero. It was difficult to figure out how it wanted me to play at first, and even the easiest levels saw a lot of dead BunnyLord minions due to arguing with the combination dash/cover button and forgetting to keeping an eye on my ammo count. Then I learned to play it right and then it all made sense, with each level becoming a test of both action and course execution.

With near infinite party combinations and countless hours of quests and war, Grand Kingdom is indeed quite grand.

Spectra is a fantastic little track-racer with a killer beat and instantly accessible gameplay.

Metroid Prime 4: Beyond is a nostalgic-filled romp with a lot of heart. It features a decently sized campaign filled with well-designed areas, metroidvania mechanics and compelling boss encounters. It helps that the presentation is beautifully done, with the score having rocking tracks and the visuals being some of the best on the Nintendo Switch 2. With that said, Metroid Prime 4: Beyond does have strange design decisions. For starters, having a rather empty and lifeless open world that mainly just facilitates the need for the motorcycle. It wouldn’t have been so bad if there was teleportation, but even then, the open world feels unnecessary. On top of that, scanning objects in the world breaks up the gameplay and the controls can be finicky at times. Even with these faults, Metroid Prime 4: Beyond remains a memorable and highly engaging entry that will leave its mark on new and hardcore fans alike.

Evil Dead: The Game is undoubtedly the best Evil Dead game yet. There’s a lot here that fans of the franchise will appreciate with Easter Eggs and the overall atmosphere. The game is a lot of fun to play thanks to the strategy, upgrades and combat, but playing as the Kandarian Demon offers a deeper experience and removes the need to worry about communicating with teammates. While there’s DLC coming if you go with the Deluxe Edition, there really is only this mode and while upgrading the different units adds longevity, it’s a bit of a cop out going this direction with adding length to the game. It also only costs $39.99 on all platforms for the standard version, and the price is well worth the fun. If the player base stays with combining platforms, this should help out with the experience down the road.

Nioh solidifies the status of roguelikes and their relevance in today’s gaming landscape. Never in my countless hours with the game did Nioh feel like the knock off Bloodborne it might look like at first glance. Instead it enhances and develops the genre in new and interesting ways, building and adding a fresh layer of varnish on a previously-established framework. Although it doesn’t carry its charm completely in its later stages, developer Team Ninja deserve a mess of credit for making a game that goes about enhancing a beloved genre without tarnishing the work it’s emulating.

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.

It’s very hard to get a rhythm game right on a handheld, but Activision has really accomplished that.

Catan is strategic, fun, and lets you screw over your friends, making it a perfect online party game. [July 2007, p.68]

Overall, Aliens: Dark Descent is an original game worthy of any strategy fan’s time that also lovingly expands upon one of Sci-Fi’s most important franchises.

Samurai Warriors 5 had an ambitious goal: give the franchise a reboot so it feels revitalized and fresh but also maintains the essence of what fans enjoy about the franchise. Aside from a few tweaks and updates, the gameplay of Samurai Warriors 5 adheres to the format that musou games are expected to follow.

The Elder Scrolls Online: Morrowind is an impressive new addition to an already solid MMO. The Elder Scrolls Online has been constantly evolving since its initial launch, and the new content introduced in this chapter builds upon these improvements. There’s plenty to do in Vvardenfell, a land with consonants to spare, but one of the greatest strengths of this title is the level of accessibility. Any type of character build can work in this game, and players of all levels can play together and things will balance themselves out so everyone can have a good time. Plus, for the times when you may want to play alone, this MMO does actually provide a good solo experience. Whether someone is a long time player, new to the game, or has played before and taken a lengthy break, anyone can jump in and experience new adventures in Vvardenfell.

Grid Autosport is far from a pick-up and play racing game, but franchise veterans and those willing to spend the time mastering its intricacies will find it all the more rewarding for it.

Fans of the original and newcomers alike will have fun playing this remake.

While it may have, once again, fallen short of being a classic, it is a large improvement over the first game despite its numerous weak points.

The Metronomicon is bright and upbeat fusion of two genres that shouldn’t fit together as well as they do. There’s a great sense of humor running through the entire game from the character and monster designs, background details, and even item descriptions, and the audio holds up its end with an energetic soundtrack holding a large number of tunes that are fun to tap out attacks to.

FIFA 19 falls short of crowning EA the title of undisputed champion of the soccer world, though it’s the right stepping stone for the next installment to be bold enough to push the franchise in a new direction.

It’s a brand new world that could use a couple hundred buildings to take advantage of all it’s got to offer, and with a little automation backed up by halfway decent logistics, a single settler can make it their home.

Even though Shadow Warrior has minor technical imperfections and runs about two hours too long, it’s nothing short of a blast.

Super Daryl Deluxe is a must-play title for fans of ridiculous and random humor as this is a definite contender for most ridiculous RPGvania ever made.

If you’re looking to laugh a lot, and maybe even think about stuff just a little bit, give it a play.

While To the Top may be a bit short on polish its sense of movement is fantastic. Once you’ve got the hang of managing your momentum you can practically fly through the levels, springing from point to point like a hypercaffeinated frog. Every level offers something different, whether that be new scenery, air-vortex jump pads, special surfaces that let you skate over them and even one memorable level that gives you jetpack hands. (That particular level made me glad to play at night when nobody was watching so they couldn’t see me with arms pointed back, leaning forward to get just the right angle to skim ahead at top speed.) The multiple routes and hidden challenges make each area highly replayable, and while some levels aren’t quite as good as others, at least they’re different enough so if you don’t like one there’s a complete change of pace coming right up. To the Top is a fantastically creative first-person VR platformer, filled with great challenges and giving the player the tools to handle them if only they can master the techniques.