Silent Hope is an outstanding dungeon crawler and one of the few on the market that are easy to recommend for players either burned by prior games or who are completely new to the genre. Having so many different kinds of characters to play as keeps every run fresh and encourages the player to not only keep trying with another run, but do so with a different character with every failure to see if their outcome changes. It controls wonderfully across the board with responsive button commands and accurate stick movements. It looks good enough too, with a consistent framerate and a complete lack of slowdown and should be a must-buy for anyone looking to get into dungeon crawlers or who wants to experience one that emphasizes player fun over pure loot.

Briefly enticing the mechanics governing Morale might be in and out of combat, Long Gone Days‘ inconsistent tone and unconvincing meshing of visual styles doesn’t pull through for a narrative deserving of a more refined focus. Good moments there may be sprinkled about its exploration, its party management and so too the longer-term deciding on whether to invest or save the Morale you’ve built up, a potentially interesting mechanic is all the game can muster. In an experience that doesn’t necessarily fail outright, more that it rapidly settles into a tepid though not terrible checklist to fulfill. For all its talk of high stakes and higher drama, Long Gone Days‘ questionable meshing of visuals, tone and crucial decision-making doesn’t reach the happy medium it’s aiming for.

NHL 24 does do some things that make changes to gameplay in a positive way. The checking is improved and going with the Total Control scheme allows for some more simplistic gameplay while netting advanced results. The Exhaust Engine is a nice addition that’s really only achievable to its maximum during power plays as it’s difficult to keep the puck in the offensive zone for two minutes straight, especially with this A.I. being so aggressive and overkill, once again. HUT Moments are the shining mode addition this year, but these classic moments to relive are locked behind HUT thus requiring an internet connection. Otherwise, outside of cross-play for that and CHEL, the rest of the game is mostly untouched and once again feels familiar.

Assassin’s Creed Mirage is a triumphant return to the style of the original Assassin’s Creed games. It maintains some RPG elements such as upgrading equipment and learning abilities through skill points, but this is done on a smaller scale than the most recent predecessors. Mirage hits the sweet spot when it comes to game length, long enough to feel worthwhile but short enough where it never drags or feels bogged down by filler content.

Turn 10 Studios and PlayGround Games have improved the simulation racing aspect with Forza Motorsport. The racing is clearly the focus and the results are best experienced with a wheel as the tire model physics have helped to push this more into sim racing territory.

Counter-Strike 2 is a mostly positive update to Counter-Strike: Global Offensive. The enhanced visuals that range from improved textures to lighting and particle effects help bring the graphics up to date while keeping the required specs low enough where the experience isn’t limited to those with super expensive gaming rigs. The removal of Demolition and Arms Race is choice that likely won’t sit well with most fans, but there’s hope these modes will return someday. Even with all the changes that were implemented, Counter-Strike 2 plays like an old friend who is returning after a prolonged absence. It has a new look and made a few changes, but essentially it’s still Counter-Strike: Global Offensive and those who enjoy team-based shooters will still enjoy spending countless hours with the upgraded version.

Pizza Possum delivers a clever twist on classic arcade gameplay with its simple and fun stealth-based gameplay, and it has a ton of charm in its colorful visuals and appealing take on an Italian landscape. But a lack of content and awkward handling of power-ups provide a sour taste, though there’s still enough here that you should at least consider sampling a bite of it. If it’s good enough for our possum buddy, after all…

Infinity Strash: Dragon Quest The Adventures of Dai is an interesting idea in bringing the anime to video game form that falls short in execution. It sounded great on paper, but nothing comes together in any way that makes this title rise above mediocrity. The basic repetitive gameplay that’s sparsely portioned out between story development prevents this from being the great action RPG it should have been. Fans of The Adventures of Dai or Dragon Quest in general might find enjoyment in this title. As critical as this review is there was fun had in playing it, but without the Dragon Quest name no one would give this a second thought. But despite its shortcomings it does still successfully convey the Dragon Quest charm, which might be enough to bring some enjoyment to a small segment of gamers, but most wouldn’t consider it worth the price of admission. As such, it’s difficult to recommend it to anyone but the most hardcore Dragon Questfans and even they should keep expectations low.

While it may not fully capitalize on the draw of its main premise, satisfying puzzle design, boss encounters and that simplest pleasure of seeing your character hop into and out of worlds on a whim lends Cocoon well-warranted and ultimately long-lasting charm.

Fate/Samurai Remnant is an enjoyable entry in the Fate universe. Its heavy emphasis on storytelling may be longwinded at times, but it does lead to a more interesting experience. The story is a compelling one which can keep the player interested in learning what the Waxing Moon Ritual is and who are the true identities of the warrior spirit Servants. The enjoyable gameplay complements the narrative, though pacing issues and repetition can sometimes hold the the experience back from reaching true greatness. But even with these criticisms, Fate/Samurai Remnant is still a good time and likely to provide many hours of enjoyment to fans of Fate and Omega Force’s other games.

The ambition of the game design makes it easy to overlook Wildmender‘s technical flaws. There’s just so much to mess around with, whether that be exploring the land looking for shrines, ghosts and graves, turning up new seeds and seeing what they grow, figuring out how to make rare hybrid crops, or just hanging out at home base to spruce the place up after un-collected seeds sprout new plants that clutter up the landscape.

Disgaea 7 is a remarkable SRPG with an unremarkable story that gives you little reason to move past Alliance of Vengeance.

El Paso, Elsewhere is an excellent nod to the days of Max Payne, but thanks to its impressive story, surreal world and unforgettable soundtrack, it still manages to stand on its own as a top-notch shooter. With smooth, slick combat that perfectly feels like a classic action games with a modern feel, this is one terrific blast of adrenaline that anyone should check out. The Void may mess with you quite a bit, but the trip through it is definitely worth taking.

Despite a few flaws that harm the pacing, Mineko’s Night Market is a truly impressive life sim that stands out among a sea of similar wholesome games thanks to its jaw-dropping visuals, unique emphasis on Japanese culture and arts and crafts, and a cute story at the center of it all filled with wonder. It’s a terrific little game that can be enjoyed by those of all ages, plus, again, you get to pet hundreds of cats. Really, that alone should make it worth it.

What EA has done with its relaunched soccer title is define the series going forward. EA SPORTS FC 24 shows off what sports games are capable of on the field by creating unique circumstances boiled down to an individualistic experience while adding even more stadium and broadcast atmosphere for a series that needed a change. The tech has always been there for this series, and this year what has been added has all been put together to create one of the best sports games in recent times. The gameplay is satisfying and it doesn’t get redundant. There are a good bit of modes to dive into, but besides more in-depth improvements to each mode, no major modes have been added. The current state of playing online is frustrating, and hopefully this can get resolved. From a gameplay perspective, the only improvement needs to come from controller vibration feedback being made on contact. I feel like the DualSense is being underutilized here and while I understand it’s not American football, some of these collisions deserve more than just a vague and light rumble.

Enchanted Portals is an absolute mess, plain and simple. Every part of its gameplay is either way too random, broken, or broken in how random it is. It’s an insult to Cuphead and the other run-and-gun platformers it takes inspiration from, with awkward controls and unbelievably cheap difficulty. And it’s not like even a few patches down the line could help things much, since the level design would still be as dull as dishwater. Even the graphics and a couple of neat bosses can’t even begin to help salvage this wreck. Brief as it is, it’s still a travesty that doesn’t even deserve a clever closing line for its review.

Despite its smaller and unfortunately limited pool of content, F-Zero 99 still stands not just as another terrific application of the 99-player Royale format, but one that goes as far as to redefine any and all prior knowledge people may have had of the original SNES debut. That Nintendo’s latest effort does so much with so little — once more in a genre far removed from the comfort of shooters — is a testament to the simple-yet-highly-addictive heart of F-Zero’s gameplay. That such accessibility is elevated more so amidst a new-found sense of chaos, dread and sheer unpredictable madness. Where the series’ debut through Tetris proved that strategy can stem from every moment, F-Zero 99 asserts victory — in all its methods — can come and go in just as lightning-fast a speed.

There are so many ways to enjoy the game that don’t require you to put in a lot of hours with farming and socializing if that isn’t your thing. Instead, the many mechanics are loosely reliant on each other but have the opportunity to be robust. There’s so much about Moonstone Island that could make this review a year long, but we’d rather spend that time becoming the very best alchemist that ever was.

This game feels as if Konami wanted to do a Bomberman RPG, but they didn’t fully commit to that idea. Instead, you’re given a mediocre title that can’t seem to decide its target audience. Super Bomberman R 2 does at least provide a lot of couch cooperative fun in an era that still craves local/offline play. If players can look past the bland and tedious story, Super Bomberman R 2 still provides the great party play that the series has always been known for.

The main story in Phantom Liberty is engrossing to the point I was hesitant about what choices to make because I had become invested in the characters. The missions themselves were cinematic in the best possible way, whether it was fighting for our lives in a burning warzone or trying to gather intel at a swanky party. Those who have already enjoyed Cyberpunk 2077 will find just as much enjoyment here, and those who were interested but hesitant due to the tech issues will find a great opportunity to give this game a second chance.

The Legend of Nayuta: Boundless Trails might show its age, but can still be a good time. The simplistic story might not be what Trails fans were hoping for, but works well enough for this title. The fast-paced gameplay is the main selling point as it’s reminiscent of other good action RPGs from this publisher, but the game mechanics are not without their own issues. Mostly due to the nature of its handheld origins, the stationary camera is not the player’s friend at all times and some of the controls could have used tightening up, particularly in platforming areas. Even with its flaws, The Legend of Nayuta: Boundless Trails holds up well and is still a very good action RPG taking its origins into consideration.

Mortal Kombat 1 is a victory with most of its story, gameplay and presentation; it’s just nowhere near a flawless victory.

The Crew Motorfest is easily the best entry in the series to date and serves as a new launching point for the franchise. It has needed an identity of its own for a long time and while it may seem odd, going back to what made the first couple of Forza Horizon games work well while keeping some of The Crew 2’s vehicle variety intact winds up being a winning combination. Every race type is executed well, with the street racing and open-wheel being true standouts, while the visual design shines and accents the audio with a slick soundtrack and impressive sound design.

The shooting and gameplay have added more frustration this year, but the paint play is the best the series has seen. There are some positives and some negatives to the new ProPLAY implementation, but a variety of presentation changes truly help to make the NBA games feel fresh. The biggest knocks remain with both the shooting frustration and the even bigger focus on microtransactions. After the strides made last year, NBA 2K24 is the first regression the series has seen on this generation of consoles. Plus, the PC version is still running on the previous generation version of the game, and even Madden had rectified that this year.

Less a case of reinvention for reinventions’ sake, it’s the mix of familiar genre staples with a widened focus on smaller details that ends up with Gunbrella proving to be a brief, yet highly-satisfying entrant for action-platformer fans. In looking towards those minute moments — from NPC dialogue to pixel art and even the music that accompanies your travels — Doinksoft successfully broaden not just the studio’s palette of aesthetics and gameplay mechanics alike, but so too an understanding on how to build out a world to engage with. A pitch that may not be striving to be the most complex or densest of takes, but whose free-flowing approach to combat and presentation alike is well appreciated. A fitting step forward from the black-and-white, feline stylings of previous, Gunbrella‘s ballistic-fueled ballet of fluid movement and subtle details alike marks this down as one more success for the Doinksoft team.

Lies of P is a worthy entry into the soulslike genre of gaming, particularly when the game allows its own unique elements to truly shine, such as its unique spread of weaponry and combat mechanics or its impressive story twists that can have you rediscovering what it means to be human. Top those parts off with large, well-designed levels with a ton of stuff to discover and terrific visuals in both beautiful scenery and terrifying monsters, and you have a great game in general that, despite occasional frustrations, is worth checking out, and that’s no lie.

Goodbye Volcano High is a terrifically-crafted slice of high school drama that succeeds thanks to the strength of its lovable cast of characters, amazing music and a sweet story about perseverance in the face of uncertainty, be it the possibility of your best friends moving on or the possible end of the world. It’s one to recommend, and while it may not be this year’s greatest visual novel (if only because the genre has a lot of heavy hitters this year), it is one that does indeed cap off the summer gaming season with a bang.

A constantly-rewarding, brilliantly-structured and simply mind-blowing series of rug-pulls, Void Stranger isn’t just special, it’s a phenomenal showcase of what might be some of the best design in a puzzle game for some time. That on its own, the Sokoban-themed formula delivers truly clever, sneaky and genuinely-challenging ordeals that evolve, alter and ask more of the player. It’s what the game provides around and in-between such moments that in many ways, speaks to younger days of note-taking, theory-crafting and generally getting lost amid the spectacle put before you. Indeed, so long it’s been that a game has demanded all but the entirety of one’s time and so easily, but justifiably, received it. An enigmatic premise with just-as-sprawling a delivery, Void Stranger is a triumph and easily the year’s most engrossing gaming experience.