While Disney Infinity might be a precisely coordinated marketing strategy, it’s also a imaginative multimedia experience that will appeal to gamers of all ages. Kids will adore everything about it and adults will enjoy collecting their favorite expertly-crafted figures and seeing them in action.

Call it an insistence on reinforcing the strategy side of things or not, the game can fall victim to its own limitations. But for those with an adoration for lore and for that looming sense of desperation more so, while not entirely original in tone or presentation, Phoenix Point does just enough for those restrictions to fall by the wayside.

Melody of Memory succeeds as a fun, well-made rhythm game that successfully adapts Kingdom Hearts’ combat into the genre. The gameplay is fast, fluid and frantic, giving players a new way to experience the franchise’s excellent music. Though there isn’t much in the form of new worlds or music, it’s a one-stop-shop to listen to Yoko’s extraordinary music.

Super Stardust Ultra is an excellent update of a great twin-stick shooter, and worth the time for both long-term fans and those who somehow missed it the first time around.

Even if the gameplay of Super Robot Wars Y merely follows in the footsteps of the franchise's past successes, it still provides a fantastic SRPG experience that any fan of mecha, whether they be hardcore or casual, can find enjoyment in. It's always great to see that the franchise is continuing to experiment with its visuals, roster and how the story is told. One can only hope that the future of the franchise continues down this path.

Nantucket brings to life the golden age of whaling and the story of Moby Dick in a tight package that’s perfect for anyone who is a fan of history, a good management sim or the story of Moby Dick. Unlike other management sims, Nantucket is intuitively easy to understand, helping the player along as much as possible without holding their hand completely. It can be unforgiving, but only if the player wants it to be, as with the use of quick save/load, Nantucket shows that it can be both enjoyed for casual and more serious play. Losing time sailing the seas of the 19th century feels fantastic in this classic epic and the hunt for Moby Dick proves to be as rewarding as it sounds.

Nearly ten years later, Saints Row: The Third remains an anomaly in the open-world genre as so many continue to embrace seriousness and realism. Saints Row: The Third Remastered arrives at just the right time to inject a dose of silliness and zaniness into the genre.

The Guided Fate Paradox is a niche game, but that shouldn’t scare off anyone who has a taste for Japanese RPGs.

If you can get past the instability and lack of aesthetic cohesion, you’ll find a foundation of smart mechanics and clever challenges. With that said, you’ll probably better enjoy those elements on your phone or tablet.

Despite the lopsided breakup between the two campaigns, the conclusion of Revelations 2 will leave players satisfied with the hope of more bite-sized spin-offs in the series’ future.

There is a reason that Aksys website for this game doesn’t stress that this is an otome as the story is engaging for visual novel fans of all types. Collar X Malice is a well-crafted title that leans hard on its mystery and creates a sense of foreboding while keeping it from becoming too much. Idea Factory walked a fine line here and ended up with a cool, stylish experience for anyone that just wants to chill in an easy chair with a cool story.

Atelier Lydie & Suelle: The Alchemists and the Mysterious Paintings is the kind of game that’s best played when one just wants to sit back and relax for a while. Its lack of urgency combined with its liberal use of bright colors, upbeat musical tones and exceedingly optimistic characters make for an experience that can’t help but inspire a faint smile.

Even though the franchise’s future looks concerning, whether you’re a newcomer or a hardcore fan, you owe it to yourself to revisit where the series began and took form.

What Wattam does successfully is reinforce the idea of play, that doing silly things is fun and doing them with friends is even better. Wattam remembers that child-like is very different from childish, and that carefree play should be as important to a grown-up adult as it was back before we all began taking things so seriously.

Neon Abyss is a highly playable action-roguelike with a huge number of perks and weapons to take on the ever-growing horde of monsters that show up in each room. The powerup progression in a run is almost always satisfying, assuming it doesn’t take too long for the random drops to start piling up in a helpful way, and while sometimes the chaos can become unreadable it’s usually due to becoming trigger-happy on entering a new room.

To say Loot River is a game mechanically and visually enticing would be to downplay just what makes a game of this stature such a treat to repeatedly explore. Unusual a pitch it might’ve sounded, the eccentric implication that “Dark Souls meets Tetris” isn’t entirely unwarranted. In a game whose novel implementation of movement alone is one with a plentiful amount of offensive, defensive and tactical potential, let alone a mere tool for traversal that can be as equally costly as it is a helpful aid. Just like its technical niceties that add so much to the pixelated aesthetic, it’s what the game doesn’t reveal at the outset — and thus, that desire to figure out the true path to success — that is by far the most impressive thing about Loot River. One that not only justifies its quirky alternative to run-based progression, but through it transforms the game from that of a humble roguelite into one that, strangely enough, is just as much puzzle-platformer as it is grueling dungeon-crawler.

Pac-Man World: Re-Pac takes an already-great game on PS1 and makes it even better. This is low-key one of the most diverse and enjoyable 3D platformers on the market and should be enjoyed by everyone who missed out on it in its time. It plays better now than it did before thanks to smart improvements in play control and has some of the most fun classic Pac-Man-style mazes on the market. There’s a lot to enjoy here and if you enjoy 3D platforming or Pac-Man games, you need to give Pac-Man World Re-Pac a shot.

Pokémon FireRed and LeafGreen are major classics in the franchise that still hold up well enough to be worth exploring for fans of RPGs and the series itself. On the other hand, as a new release of an old game, it's one of the most barebones releases possible and there's no good reason for it to not have at least something extra to justify it as a commemorative edition.

Toukiden: Kiwami is a great entry in the PlayStation 4’s catalog, specifically due to the lack of its genre’s presence on the machine.

The only real problem with the length is the pacing, with no indication given that you're on the last area and solving the final puzzle until, surprise!, end credits. It's analagous to reading a review that, while technically it's said everything it needs to, simply comes to a stop.

Looking back there is fun to be had sprinkled throughout, but the finale is so sour that it’s hard to see those moments.

Arguably and oddly enough, Fuser is at its best when it focuses more on creating music and less on being a traditional rhythm game. The campaign mode is fine, but suffers from pacing issues and too much hand-holding, while online battles are underwhelming. But the joy in crafting that perfect dance mix, even if it’s a short one, is satisfying.

Awakening’s new multiplayer maps are well designed, encouraging players to experiment with different playstyles. Skyjacked will be appreciated by those who loved Hijacked, but others may find its constant spawn-flipping annoying. Der Eisendrache is an excellent Zombies experience that longtime Zombies fans will have a great time sinking their teeth into. The only downside to Awakening is Splash thanks to its numerous glitches.

Earth Must Die presents an intriguing take on the point-and-click genre following a buffoon leader trying to get things his way. Though the jokes may sometimes be crude or hardly interesting, the wacky world and unique characters are enough to keep it an enjoyable journey. The best part, however, is how much of its personality oozes into the gameplay choices, truly representing how VValak acts, thinks and feels in all of its colorful details.

Even though its story will leave most players unsatisfied and its open-world design is questionable at best, its phenomenal side stories and often entertaining gameplay will prevent distaste. This isn’t the next The Last of Us, and its narrative comes nowhere close to Telltale’s The Walking Dead, but the framework is in place for a generally good time.

It is obvious that the same engine from the last Samurai Warriors game is being used, but it really does feel like a fresh, focused take on the Musou series.

Given our memories of the first game, it would have been a miracle if Submerged: Hidden Depths had just been a merely fine distraction. So it’s a shocker to see a perfect example of what a sequel should be, making terrific use of the strengths its premise provides, allowing you to truly chill out and explore the drowned city, coming across something that feels fresh at every turn, backed up by breezy visuals and a nice soundtrack. While still linear at times, Submerged: Hidden Depths is a vastly-improved adventure that should easily stand a shot at being the year’s best sequel, and Uppercut should be proud of what they’ve done.

It needs a little more technical polish and a much smoother learning curve to be considered for real mass-market appeal, but Mordheim: City of the Damned is a rewarding game for the right player.