Psychonauts 2 is one of the year’s most enjoyable games and one of the best modern platformers of the past few years. The creativity in the visuals and level design is still on display at full blast, the story is superb and shows no fear when it comes to tackling mature subjects and the action is nice and intense, creating a perfect level of challenge.

The gameplay is still far from perfect, and I’d be interested to see how FIFA develops its machine-learning AI and if that would be accessible for Madden in the future. Hits can be brutally nasty using the Hit Stick and seeing different tackles, catches or sack-evading animations will leave you impressed.

Twelve Minutes features a compelling time loop story with strong performances that will keep players hooked, even when the lack of guidance brings that momentum to a halt. The mysteries of both the plot and gameplay will reward players who are willing to think outside the box, while the intuitive controls ensure that anyone can attempt to help the husband and wife escape their destinies. Fans of adventure games or anyone looking for a memorable story will find plenty to appreciate in the repeating world of Twelve Minutes, and the clock has already begun ticking on the wait for the follow-up to Luis Antonio’s impressive debut title.

Ghost of Tsushima is one of the best samurai games of all time and the Director’s Cut only excels it further. Sucker Punch Productions’ work on reimagining thirteen century Japan is a grand achievement, creating a captivating world filled with an exceeding amount of things to do, while implementing an engaging, memorable combat system.

The Space Invaders Invincible Collection features a lot of fun packed into a single package — albeit with a lot of similarity between them. Thankfully, the inclusion of some non-Space Invaders games helps to mix up the gameplay variety offered up, with things like Space Invaders Extreme making things feel more modern than a lot of current-day arcade-style shooters. There isn’t a bad game in the bunch here and being exposed to games like Lunar Escape in this kind of form can help make new die-hard fans of games that have been forgotten over time. It’s a must-buy for anyone who has wanted to play more of the series or even if you just have a missing entry or two in the series. Space Invaders Invincible Collection plays great, looks fantastic and showcases just how strong the franchise’s sound design has always been.

It might be a stretch to call it a piece of work on par with that of some of the most-acclaimed film directors of the modern age, but Road 96 is an incredible adventure game that succeeds thanks to a strong narrative, a superb cast of characters, one of the year’s best soundtracks and its unique procedurally-generated approach that might see you coming back after the initial eight hours or so, just to see what could possibly be on any other routes. Everyone will walk out of Petria (if lucky) with their own unique stories to tell, and they’re certain to be entertaining ones.

The cyberpunk world of The Ascent seems dazzling on the surface, but much like your standard cyberpunk world, the grime underneath all of the neon and futuristic landscapes ends up revealing a hefty mess once you go exploring it. The top-down shooter gameplay is fun on a basic level, but quickly becomes monotonous as it drags on in order to keep up with the RPG-styled length and ambitions, while the RPG side of things has a good story and some nifty gameplay tweaks, but its desire to keep the gameplay focus on being a top-down shooter means that any potential when it comes to depth and variety is never fully realized. If you’re a die-hard cyberpunk fan, don’t mind a lot of repetition or have friends to join along, there can be fun here as you ascend, but the rest might be better skipping the trip up.

Fire Tonight is short, sweet and unforgettable. Both main characters and their varying gameplay styles enable the player to go on a journey that sticks with you long after the game ends. Blending logic puzzles with a point and click adventure seems odd in theory, but in execution works out well. Each style of gameplay is fun and aside from some technical hiccups that can spring up from time to time, it’s a smooth experience. Its visuals and music work together to form something beautiful and it acts as a nice time capsule for the early ’90s while also highlighting how fortunate we are to have technology we do. Fire Tonight is a fantastic pickup for anyone in the mood for a light, breezy logic puzzle game — but also anyone who just wants to enjoy an uplifting narrative.

Some gameplay elements admittedly don’t fit as well into the mold — the game, like any JRPG, occasionally getting too indulgent in its seemingly-obligatory padding out of time. Likewise, those who may have been quick to pick out the repetitiveness of mission structure prior may be disappointed to learn the sequel does little to shake up that formulaic progression. Even so, minor grievances aside, NEO: The World Ends With You — for all its flash, its flair and many a sing-a-long moment — does a wonderful job at encapsulating the original’s true strengths where and when it matters most.

Assassins Creed Valhalla: The Siege of Paris is an enjoyable expansion to an already massive game. The story and characters are interesting enough to make the playthrough worthwhile. The Infiltration missions offer the biggest level of variety from the base game and should be pleasing to fans who missed the Black Box missions. But while these new additions offer more variety to the gameplay, The Siege of Paris doesn’t break a whole lot of new ground for Valhalla. As fun as this expansion can be, the new additions don’t do a ton to help prevent the “more of the same” feeling which may not be enough to convince players who have already had their fill to resume Eivor’s saga.

Mayhem Brawler is a top-notch beat-em-up that delivers far more variety and fun than most entries in the genre. Even compared to heavy hitters like Streets of Rage 4, Mayhem delivers faster-paced action alongside a degree of stage variety that’s rarely seen. The diversity in the playable cast’s styles helps them each feel different, while the slick animation and comic-inspired art look sharp in-game and in cutscenes. The soundtrack is rock-heavy and good, but not on-par with the titans of the genre. The sound design, however, is strong and better than most other brawlers. Mayhem Brawler is a must-buy for anyone craving something that combines the look of Streets of Rage 4 with the faster feel of a Final Fight game.

Axiom Verge 2 is exactly what a sequel should be in that it’s more of the same but different. Indra isn’t Trace so her skills and abilities don’t try to mirror his too closely, and the world she’s been dropped into frequently has wide open vistas in its background instead of more types of caverns. The level design is every bit as good if not better, featuring varied biomes that stand on their own but eventually all interconnect as new skills open up more passages. The switch back and forth between Indra and the drone provides a nice change of pace, with each earning different abilities that complement the other. And of course the soundtrack is fantastic, with its non-US-traditional instruments and vocalizing. If you loved the first Axiom Verge then odds are good the second one is everything you hoped for, and if you’ve never played the original then the standalone nature of the sequel means you don’t have to worry about having missed out. Either way, Axiom Verge 2 is an excellent Metroidvania, and a rare perfect example of a series that can balance quality and change to deliver something new.

The depths and caverns of Grime are home to terrible creatures, weird residents, gorgeous scenery and a huge amount of secrets to chase after, and once you get a hang of it, it’s almost impossible to stop until you’ve fought and explored through every inch of its twisted world.

Hades already looked great, but experiencing it in 4k on current-gen consoles is a sight to behold. Hades received numerous accolades and critical acclaim during the previous year, all of which it remains worthy of here. Supergiant has a built a name for themselves with a small but consistent library of games and Hades may be their crowing achievement (so far). The story is relatable and well written, the graphics are gorgeous and the soundtrack is worthy of live performance. While those elements are important, what matters with a game is how fun it is to play, and with the simple-but-addictive gameplay, there’s no excuse not to play Hades now that it’s available on every platform.

That Trigger Witch does nothing new is something that cannot be hidden. It’s a well worn genre piece mixing in elements that have been used over and over for generations, but that doesn’t mean it isn’t fun, which is where Rainbite pulls the rabbit from the hat. Exploring the world is fun, gunning down the enemies is fun, and finding and using new and varied weapons is, well, fun. At a bargain price and clocking in at around eight or so hours, there isn’t much reason to leave Trigger Witch in the holster. It’s not the best game ever, but it accomplishes what it sets out to do. That’s reason enough to turn on a personal playlist and get trigger happy.

While Dodgeball Academia isn’t a perfect RPG, the intense and amazing dodgeball combat combined with a cast of terrific and charming characters and an eye-pleasing blend of visuals to back them up still make for one quick and enjoyable burst of fun in the end. It might end up only getting second place when it comes to this year’s dodgeball games, but it’s a close race, and it still deserves a trophy regardless.

It’s one thing to craft a game with such an entertaining yet punishing series of fights. It’s another to do so with the kind of design philosophy that’s so quick to convince it more than deserves its rightful place. But that’s exactly what Fallen Flag have achieved with seemingly impeccable ease here. Bold, brilliant and consistently surprising throughout, Eldest Souls’ fresh approach to combat marks one of 2021’s real gems.

With so much to love about BUSTAFELLOWS, it’s an easy recommendation for all otome visual novel fans. It’s not perfect; the inability to save at dialogue choices is annoying for completionists, but that’s a small complaint in the grand scheme of things. Excellent characters, storytelling, localization, voice acting, art and more make this one of the best releases this year. Here’s hoping BUSTAFELLOWS is just the start of PQube’s otome localization career. Give it a look if you want a taste of the criminal underworld alongside delectable romance.

The improved approach to storytelling and world building that gave the world a personality in Final Fantasy II continues with this entry as well. Final Fantasy III is where the series seems to have become established in its identity. One of the most notable recurring observations while playing Final Fantasy III Pixel Remaster is the early signs of what we would see after Final Fantasy transitions to the 16-bit generations, but comparisons to its successors aside, Final Fantasy III exemplifies what a great RPG looked like thirty years ago.

Final Fantasy II Pixel Remaster is a great way to experience one of the less talked about Final Fantasy games, even if it is one of the weaker titles in the franchise. Final Fantasy II seems to suffer from a bit of middle child syndrome. In some ways it does improve on its predecessor, but while it’s clearly the more advanced game, part of the original’s charm was in its simplicity. Final Fantasy II’s advancements seem to hint at how great the series will become instead of simply being great itself. Playing Final Fantasy II Pixel Remaster for the review was a great time and it’s recommended as a must-play for any Final Fantasy fan, but part of that is based on getting a historical perspective on how Final Fantasy has evolved. The innovative approaches to the game mechanics have resulted in a experience that’s oftentimes a tedious grind despite everything else positive that can be said.

The bottom line is Final Fantasy is simply a fun game, and Final Fantasy Pixel Remaster is a remake worthy of the title’s legacy.

Super Sami Roll is a great game that holds itself back by being too beholden on paying homage to other franchises instead of blazing its own trail. As a ball-rolling game, it’s good and as a platformer, it’s pretty good — but not as good as the titans of the industry. It needs fine-tuning to make the platforming side more cohesive, but winds up being greater than the sum of its parts due to how fun everything is. There’s a layer of jankiness to some things — like the tongue-moving mechanic, but it still enables the game to be a lot of fun despite that. It’s a good-looking and better-sounding game, and a solid pickup for anyone who loves ball-rollers and wants something that integrates more platforming into that genre.

Chernobylite offers a deep survival game experience that offers elements of sci-fi, horror and RPG. It’s hard to call this a survival horror title, but all the management aspects and the branching storylines will provide fans of the survival genre plenty to enjoy. There are only a handful of areas to go to and while they’re decent sized, enemies tend to respawn in the same location upon returning to the location. The atmosphere could have gone a different direction, but the visuals and environments are undeniably effective. The visual design in the portals in particular are something to marvel at. With a structured base of a game with varying options to keep players coming back, Chernobylite is worth checking out.

For all its occasional grievances — that don’t add up to too much — it’s the intriguing mystery as much the appeal of its investigative leads across many a conversation where the strengths of The Forgotten City end up standing out most of all.

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.

There are many titles like The Great Ace Attorney Chronicles which never get localized for more fans to enjoy, and although it took six years, it’s safe to say it was worth waiting for. Perhaps the best part is regardless of one’s history with the series, anyone can give this entry a try as it’s a proper prequel that requires no prior knowledge in order to dive into right off the bat.

Last Stop may succeed when it comes to delivering a (mostly) engrossing set of stories, but it suffers from a notable lack of substance when it comes to gameplay, with several moments of interactivity feeling like they were included solely only to draw things out. It can still be a fun ride with a lot of enjoyable twists and turns, and could be recommended for fans of narrative-focused games, but it could have benefited from more depth. Last Stop is a good, straight shot of a subway ride that gets you to your destination, but don’t expect much beyond that.

For those who didn’t enjoy Skyward Sword because of the motion controls, it’s worth picking up to experience the title in a much more enjoyable control scheme. This isn’t even to mention the overall fantastic gameplay, characters and story that make it well worth getting for those reasons along. The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword HD is not only the best way to enjoy this title, but hopefully will be remembered more fondly thanks to welcome adjustments and improvements that make an already wonderful entry in the long-running series even more wonderful.