Destiny 2: Shadowkeep isn’t bad, but it also feels wholly unnecessary when most of its selling points (Strikes, the Moon, Armor 2.0) can be played without owning it. This is one nightmare we didn’t need to have.

If one can get past these early hours, especially newcomers to the genre, then Surviving Mars will prove to be a joy. It's a truly-rewarding game and feels even better building a city with such unforgiving odds, backed by the strangeness of classic sci-fi. Surviving Mars is a gem and is sure to only go further through the stars from here.

LEGO Marvel Super Heroes 2 delivers on a fun time in a world made of LEGOs and remains over the top in all the right ways.

There’s an audience for Strike Vector, but that audience needs a lot of patience and a high tolerance for failure.

While not for everyone due to its twin-stick controls, Screamer still delivers a memorable racing experience. It takes some getting used to and hurts the pick up and play nature of what would normally be an arcade-style racer, but the end result is a fantastic racing game that hits on all cylinders more often than not. Once getting in the groove with it, it's tough to put down outside of issues with rubberband AI hurting the more-important campaign races, and the inability to have single-stick controls does hurt the potential playerbase a bit. Still, Screamer has a killer soundtrack with a lot of effort put into its anime-infused storyline and voice work. There's a lot to enjoy for racing fans starving for some arcade-inspired action.

Unbalanced, chaotic and a mess, Disgaea 6: Defiance of Destiny pushes the franchise in the wrong direction. There are glimmers of excellence, but it all comes together in such a disheartening package.

Rocket Arena is a fantastic game with well-crafted shooting mechanics and a diverse mode lineup that manages to be both fun in short bursts and long play sessions. There’s more tweaking that can be done to make it a more robust experience as the roster is lean at launch, but what’s here is great and every character manages to feel different from one another. The mix of shooting and platforming skills helps make it a great gateway shooter for those who may not otherwise enjoy the genre and its quick pace ensures that no match is ever boring. The graphical design is sharp, but the soundtrack could use some work even with strong sound design that helps amplify the effects of your rocket-filled arsenal.

Dead Island 2 is a gory adventure that offers up plenty of mindless mayhem for zombie slayers. The remnants of California make for a great playground to dismember and destroy the walking dead in every conceivable way the game presents. The beautiful, sunny environments provide a stark contrast to the reanimated rotting carcasses. But as fun as the combat can be towards the end of the story, the missions began to feel as fresh as the enemies’ flesh as the repetitive nature of the quests turn them into chores in the final hours. Unremarkable story and repetitive gameplay aside, what Dead Island 2 does well it does very well, and despite these shortcomings, killing thousands of zombies with everything the game puts at the player’s disposal can still be a great time.

Regardless, the first episode of Resident Evil Revelations 2 is off to a solid start, but Capcom has a ways to go before convincing players that this is a good direction for the series.

Telltale’s Game of Thrones series, now over halfway through its first season, has been a huge disappointment so far, but it’s been improving steadily, and Episode Four – Sons of Winter proves there’s real potential in the concept, even if Telltale might not have been the right candidate for the job.

While not the most substantial of releases, even in the context of this sub-genre of theme-injected side-scrolling platformers, one can’t help but hope to have discovered more in an experience like this. The origin of some parts and the reasons for others; strong and as impactful its opening remains, the game’s eventual unraveling sadly falls short of delivering on that early, promising, cleverly-distorted appearance. Pleasant that visual style and detail with its imagery remains throughout — a couple of instances where that combining of color and complexity does strike one or two favorable moments — Minute of Islands‘ unaltered, more-of-the-same approach to everything other than its imagery feels fated to be easily forgotten the moment the credits roll.

With a price point of only $15, A Story About My Uncle is a must-own for anyone who loves games that make them think and can appreciate a good platforming challenge as well.

WWE 2K16 isn’t without its flaws, but it’s the most feature-rich wrestling game to come along in a while, with a right massive roster, a good deal of likable modes and well-fleshed out main attractions in the domains of 2K Showcase and MyCareer.

There’s still a plethora of content here to enjoy if you somehow are able to look past this crippling technical issue, but unfortunately it seems the transition to the open platform has failed to live up to certain expectations.

There’s a certain charm Marvel Ultimate Alliance 3 has that will no doubt resonate with fans; it’s just too bad it’s put together in a less-than-optimal package.

Always Sometimes Monsters is a unique and distinctly powerful experience, but it is also deeply and undeniably flawed.

Layton’s Mystery Journey: Katrielle and the Millionaires’ Conspiracy is a solid first step in crafting a new generation of adventures for the franchise, but future installments had best concentrate more on crafting a better bunch of puzzles to be strung together, as well as a deeper narrative, in order to match the glory of the earlier games. And future installments we should indeed hope for, because the charming art, characters, and dialogue all help to create an interesting world that deserves more love (that, and the fact that the game ends on a rather mind-blowing sequel hook). It isn’t the greatest journey a Layton has taken, but it’s still an entertaining one nonetheless.

In the end, Pocket Mortys ends up being the video game equivalent of Pirates of the Pancreas: something that had the potential for an amazing ride, but is held back and never gets a chance to shine, doomed to wind up being talked about in unenthusiastic tones.

For owners of the original release, a fifteen to twenty dollar DLC expansion option would have gone a long way to selling this, but it’s a worthy purchase for everybody else.

Clan Wars is a worthy entry in the series, but even then, it’s good to hear that Team 17 is leaving the series alone for a while to work on something new.

Hatsune Miku: Project DIVA F isn’t a game for most people. It’s earnestly dedicated towards its existing fanbase and doesn’t try to expand past that, making it even more astonishing that it made its way across the ocean

SpellForce 3 adds another entry on an already impressive list as the year comes to a close.

The world is fun to explore, filled with a batch of great side activities, and never once compromises the story’s pacing. The gameplay is smooth and responsive, though the AI needs fine-tuning to be more consistent. It’s all wrapped up in a beautiful presentation that truly transports players to paradise, at least when nothing terrible is happening. That’s not to say the game doesn’t have its quirks and questionable decisions, and many of its core gameplay loops contradict themselves when a setpiece moment shows up, but there’s still a lot of good to be found here. Yara may be an awful place to live, but playing Far Cry 6 is well worth the trip to the rotten paradise.

NASCAR 25 will curb the appetite of those looking for a console experience. The game does the driving and racing perfectly, albeit with some slips outside of the excellent physics engine. This game needs to be experienced with a force feedback or direct drive wheel to truly appreciate the physics engine. Using a controller works well enough and will suit casual players just fine; it's just hard to come back to it from using a wheel. Outside of the racing, there isn't much going on. The Career Mode has interesting design decisions, but there's no point in racing long races if you have to start over due to the Sponsorship Goal. There are four series' here with a ton of drivers to choose from, but the customization aspect is limited. The game looks and runs well, but the sound experience is lacking. The point is you play racing games to drive the cars, which is where NASCAR 25 shines.

Etrange Overlord is a funny and unique title that has a simple base but manages to offer variety in its stage construction. At the core of the experience, there’s a villainess main character whose single-minded nature is endearing and cleverly explored to give her depth and unpredictability in a quirky world. There are elements here and there that could have been better planned to offer more fluid and enjoyable combat, but it’s a good first step for SuperNiche.

Gecko Gods is a bold puzzle experience that knows what it’s striving for: a pilgrimage that truly encourages players to explore. In this awe-inspiring world, attention to detail is key to progressing and puzzles are a rewarding challenge. It’s one of those journeys worth immersing yourself into for a long time and just seeing where your curiosity leads you.

While the more randomized elements of The Crush House can make it frustrating at times, this "thirst-person shooter" still delivers quite the unique and fun experience. After all, how many games can claim that they provide a challenge in seeing if players can find a way to capture three butts on camera at once while also getting a glimpse of the Success Slide in order to please both the Conspiracy Theorists and Mega Fans? Throw in a good spoof of reality shows with a memorable cast and some bright '90s Malibu visuals, and you have something worth toasting over with a nice glass of Crush Juice...

It plays smoother, looks better than anything out there, and has a kick-ass soundtrack with a goofball announcer to boot. If you absolutely must recreate your childhood, then pick up the $40 pack, but most will be satisfied spending half that.