Destiny of the Railforged adds a new playable faction to Monster Train 2, along with a new game mode that further extends the game’s lifespan: Monster Train 2 has always been about making your units stronger, and now you can take that to absurd extremes. All in all, we’ve easily spent over a hundred hours exploring new combinations between the factions and the cards. For ten euros—for the expansion; the base game costs around 25 euros—that’s a very nice return on investment.

Admittedly, we were rather skeptical when we started playing the game. We associated publisher Nacon with annual sports games (Tour de France, Pro Cycling Manager, WRC) or gaming-related peripherals, and developer Rogue Factor had only two smaller Warhammer games in its portfolio until now. But with the intriguing ‘Hell is Us’, they have together released one of the most surprising games of the year.

nd yet we were not blown away (pun not intended) while playing Halo Infinite. Everything feels very natural and familiar, but almost seems interchangeable with previous games. The lack of innovation is something that plagues many first person shooters of this generation, yet Halo Infinite is a more than solid game that is worth your precious time and attention.

Is ‘short but sweet’ a euphemism for ‘tastes like more’? In case of Olija, that is a heartfelt ‘yes’. This charming 2D platformer excels thanks to its pixel art, innovative controls, compelling story and fun puzzles.

The so-called fatalities, deadly attacks after you have knocked your opponent half unconscious, are of course also part of the game. Although, unlike before, you don't have to press a difficult and perfectly timed button combination to do so. A few keys can suffice, making it both more accessible, more grotesque and more gory. The threshold to death and destruction is now completely non-existent. The result is an intriguing and smooth-playing fighting game, but one that is definitely not suitable for children.

Star Wars Jedi: Survivor is a textbook example of what a sequel should be. Bigger, better and flashier than its predecessor. The action will titillate any gaming Star Wars-fan and so will the excellent (Star Wars) story. Yet the enthralling Jedi fantasy this game offers is sometimes bogged down by lackluster performance.

It's remarkable how much a game series that largely revolves around creatures evolving has little concern for change. For 25 years, the concept of Pokémon games has been virtually unchanged. But then there's Pokémon Legends: Arceus, which breaks with tradition. Hopefully, in doing so, it lays the foundation for the next generation of Pokémon titles. Because after playing Pokémon Legends: Arceus, we don’t want to go back.

EA Sports FC 26 is a step up from FC 25: everything runs more smoothly, especially dribbling, tackling, and heading. Otherwise, little has changed: Ultimate Team still overwhelms you with challenges and rewards. Career Mode has received a little more attention and is once again worth investing time in. So if you ask us whether FC 26 is different enough from its older siblings to justify spending $70 on it, for the first time in years we say: yes, we think it is.

Don't expect profound dialogues or a layered story. Shinobi: Art of Vengeance relies on its challenging mix of fighting game and platformer. It is a successful homage to the series and to the 80s and 90s, when ninjas, just like today's superheroes, were omnipresent in popular culture.

After a good seven hours, you reach the end. Short for a game that will be on sale at full price, but long enough for an already exhausting VR adventure. At times, Horizon Call of the Mountain feels like a technical demo meant to show what the PS VR2 can do. But as a very first game, the result is promising, and does bode well for what the PS VR2 will bring in the coming months and years.

With Engage, another top title is added to the Fire Emblem series. Unfortunately, the characters are not as noteworthy as the heroes that the game's Emblem rings pull from under the dust. But what Three Houses did for the story, Engage does for the action: raise the bar.

Armored Core VI is a modern classic and quite literally: this is 'just' a rock-solid action game. No open world, no endless stream of side missions or other ballast, and that is very refreshing in 2023. Although there is a steep learning curve.

It looks like a game for kids, but make no mistake: the difficulty level is very tough. There were many moments when we almost threw our controller across the living room, moments when we had to take a break. Especially the levels in which you are in a mine cart are often impossible to complete on the first try, but this difficulty makes the euphoria all the greater when you finally succeed.

The first Powerwash Simulator was my guilty pleasure. I spent many hours playing it on the Nintendo Switch. I was so hooked that it almost convinced me that such a job would be something for me in real life. Until I borrowed my in-laws' pressure washer and realized that the simulation is more fun after all. Fortunately, the game now has a formidable successor. The fun of Powerwash Simulator 2 lies in the simplicity of the game. This game is surprisingly satisfying and, above all, a great way to relax. Unfortunately, the sequel is not available on “older consoles” such as the first Nintendo Switch. That's a shame.

Those who get their kicks not from the numbers and tables of a management game, but from phenomenal speeds on the track should choose ‘F1 22’. The annual release of this racing game consistently ranks among the top and has recently received an update that added even more content.

The world’s most famous Italian plumber has a problem. Ever since Super Mario Odyssey the bar has been raised to astronomic heights. Can a rerelease from 2013 tip that bar? Of course not. Can Bowser’s fury raise that bar even further? Not quite yet, but it’s close.

What sets Outriders apart from genre rivals like Borderlands and Destiny are the RPG elements that allow you - just like in a role-playing game - to shape and build your character so that he (or she) is completely customized to your individual play style. The result is an ambitious and highly enjoyable science fiction game that will keep you busy for several hours on your own, in pairs or in threes.

Shin Megami Tensei V is not for the lazy gamer. Although you are bombarded with information and grand ideas at the beginning, the story is slow to get going after that. The game is also extremely difficult. A person would give up for less. But those who persevere will be surprised by one of the most intense experiences the Switch has to offer.

With travel from Europe to Japan still not possible due to corona, there is a great alternative. In "Neo: The World Ends With You" you are teleported to the popular shopping district Shibuya in Tokyo. And it's worth sticking around for, in addition to being a virtual city trip, it's also a great game.

All too often racing games follow the standard formula. Throw some fast cars and a bunch of tracks together, and gamers will probably enjoy themselves in silence. But when developers step off the beaten path, something magical can happen. This is the case with GRID Legends. Despite its shortcomings – the low difficulty, to name just one thing - it is one of the more enjoyable racing games of the moment.

Battlefield 6 means a bit of a return to basics. The code word for its predecessor, Battlefield 2042, was ‘big’, but the latest installment is more intimate—as far as that's possible in a world war. Whereas Battlefield 2042 was solely a multiplayer game with no fewer than 128 players at a time, Battlefield 6 usually has 64 players competing against each other in the many different modes. The campaign also makes a comeback. This high-stakes power struggle plays out like a blockbuster movie, complete with explosions, cliffhangers, and a rousing soundtrack that amplifies the epic battle of your elite unit. We still have to wait a little over a month for the latest Call of Duty, but as far as we're concerned, Battlefield 6 currently has more than a few advantages.

It sounds contradictory, but the new storyline is both the ultimate asset and the great weakness of the game. After all, Endwalker builds on a story that has been going on for eight years. To fully understand and experience everything, you need all that background. Endwalker is the pinnacle for existing players of Final Fantasy XIV, but not so accessible for new players who only now want to catch up. And that gets in the way of an absolute top score.

A shooting game, but kid-friendly and, above all, rock-solid. Those last two adjectives have been Nintendo's USP since the late 1980s, and Splatoon 3 is brimming with that DNA. A breath of fresh air for those tired of the Call of duty's and Overwatches of this world for a while.

Kirby and the forgotten land' is a shot of pure fun. A dose of merriment that can thaw even the most soured heart. It is a moment of carefree enjoyment, perhaps a little too carefree thanks to the low difficulty.

The game is archly difficult and merciless, but heaps of fun. Solving puzzles by building a rhythm and racing through different levels in the flow is incredibly satisfying. The small upgrades in gameplay and additions like a motorcycle to add even more speed make the eight to 10 hours it takes you to reach the end go by in no time. The sublime soundtrack full of synthwave and beats are the icing on the cake. A rather short play time for a full-fledged game, but then again, the game is on sale for a softer price.

Those with somewhat gaming experience will have finished the story in less than ten hours. That's pretty short to shell out close to 60 euros for it. Still, that certainly doesn't mean you can't enjoy it as an adult. If you are looking for a game that does not demand too much energy, then this is game for you. For children, the game is definitely recommended.

19 years. That's how long fans had to wait for a real sequel to the 2D adventures of intergalactic bounty hunter Samus Aran. And as it turns out: it’s worth the wait. Dread is excellent, hardcore and a beautiful love letter to the genre. The terrifying Extraplanetary Multiform Mobile Identifiers (E.M.M.I's) are refreshing and make the title chillingly true. The somewhat retro visual flair pops, but mostly on the new (and more expensive) OLED Switch.

The result is a fun whodunit, but really, the mystery is just a side note. Life is Strange: Reunion is above all a beautiful character study—one that could have easily gone on a bit longer. Our advice: make sure you’ve played the previous games first. Only then will you truly appreciate how beautifully Max and Chloe’s farewell is handled.

Although Shadows gives the Assassin's Creed formula a much-needed update, it continues to falter in some areas. The long cutscenes and dialogues are still present, and you encounter so many enemies that the battles get boring at times. We know that sounds crazy in a game where you play an assassin, but sometimes you just want to achieve your goal instead of killing one guard after another. Those two shortcomings are especially noticeable at the beginning of the game, which is a shame, because it kind of took away our desire to continue playing. Fortunately, we bit through, because the further we progressed, the more Shadows blossomed. There is an enormous amount to experience, and Ubisoft clearly invested where it was needed: in the storyline. It is vastly expanded and rarely bores.

Rest assured: this museum never gets boring or stuffy. Like its predecessors, Two Point Museum does not take itself too seriously, and is full of corky humor and absurd mayhem. After Hospital and Campus, Museum takes the Two Point series to new heights. It is not only original and funny, but at the same time a fine, strategic management game.

You are constantly haunted by dozens of black ghosts. Your only task is to guide lost souls to the afterlife. Sounds like a scary horror game, doesn't it? But 'Kena: Bridge of spirits' is just the opposite: a beautifully cute yet challenging action-adventure game that is definitely worth a spot on your wish list.

GT7 is a stunning racing game that hardly has its match. But what starts as a paean to praise, we want to nuance. Despite the many positive elements, it is far from a perfect game. Perhaps its biggest flaw - and it's very bizarre to have to say this about a racing game - is its lack of pace. Don't get us wrong, the track feel while racing is fantastic. But once off the track, the game does everything it can to slow things down.

Roguebook follows the success formula of other toppers in this crossover of genres such as Slay the spire and Monster train. Don't be fooled by the simple graphics. Under the hood is a layered role-playing game with plenty of room for personalization, allowing you to create your own play style. The game is not revolutionary but it is rock solid, especially for this soft price.

What distinguishes Little hope from horror movies is that you don’t get to be annoyed about clichés or numerous bad decisions by its characters. No it is not a good idea to wander off alone when a killer is on the loose, nor should you explore that creepy basement by yourself. Yet, in this game, only one person is responsible for his bad judgement: you.

The contrast with previous Lego games or with the amusing but hyperkinetic Lego movie could hardly be greater. The neon and candy cane colors, sharp dialogues and flashy action have actually given way to ... serenity. Throughout the game there is no talking, there are no facial expressions and you are not taken by the hand. The soothing soundtrack supports the peaceful nature of the game, and it is wonderful to see how intentions and emotions can be conveyed even without dialogue.

Nothing has been changed about the base of the game. It’s still the same game from 2010, but with a graphical update so that Alan Wake Remastered can compete with contemporary games. At least that was the intention, but the polished visuals cannot hide the fact that they are actually a decade old. So why is it still worth getting the Remaster? The game simply is a masterclass in storytelling and game design.

It’s been a long time since we attended university. When our parents asked what we did when we were supposed to have been studying, we always replied by saying we were making a statistical analysis of To Madeira and Tsigalko. Little did they know they were cult players in the addictive first versions of Football manager.

The extra features make Dragon quest XI S one of the best role playing games in recent history, but also make it a tough job. To explore the entire game world, finish the epic story and unravel all its secrets, you will need more than 100 hours of playtime. However, it also makes it the ideal companion to bring some light to these dark winter days.

Kirby Air Riders is an anomaly. It looks like a racing game, but has the rhythm and elements of a fighting game: its own genre. It is simple, complex, and (too) chaotic at the same time. In terms of visuals and performance, this is one of the most colorful and flashy games the Switch 2 has to offer to date. Highly recommended for those who are tired of Mario Kart.

Hyrule Warriors: Age of Imprisonment is an excellent spinoff and action game. In its niche — that of the musou-games — it's even among the best of all time. But what a total letdown of a story. Seriously, how did they manage to drop the ball on plot and world building?

There is much to appreciate about Sons of Sparta. Given that it now takes six years or more to make a big game like God of War, this interlude is very welcome. What's more, Sony Santa Monica isn't taking the easy route by sending Kratos on an adventure in a genre that's new to him. Kudos for that! But within that genre, our favorite demigod suddenly finds himself in crowded company. The “Metroidvania” genre has been enjoying a revival in recent years thanks to Hollow Knight, Ori and the Will of the Wisps, and Prince of Persia. To compete with them, you have to come up with something special. Sons of Sparta is commendable and certainly has an edge for God of War fans, but it lacks that touch of magic to make it indispensable.

Some minigames are better than others, and if we're being really strict: quite a few are recycled from previous Like a Dragon games. But there are so many of them, and they are so varied, that Pirate Yakuza never has a chance to get boring. With one major exception: the part at sea also belongs in the category of minigames, except that you spend quite a large part of your playing time with it. But those who buy Pirate Yakuza primarily to unleash the Jack Sparrow in themselves will be disappointed. After all, the ship battles are disappointingly simple, and the promised sea would be more like a collection of lakes. Throughout the time we spent with Goro Majima, we laughed hard far more often than we sighed deeply. So we gladly turn a blind eye. Where is our eye patch again?

Those willing to spend two long and frustrating hours sculpting their muscle memory and honing their reflexes will experience a click. Suddenly, you “got" it. Like Neo in the Matrix against Agent Smith or Goku transforming into Super Saiyan for the first time. What follows is a tsunami of serotonin that makes my inner teenager foam at the mouth. In the skin of Goku catapulting vicious Frieza hundreds of feet away after a barrage of attacks. Then to treat him to a kamehameha on his icy face? I dreamed of it as a 14-year-old and this game is my dream in game form. A lot of love for Dragon ball has been put into it. Too bad the barrier to experience it is so high.

The developers postponed the game's release by a month at the last minute, and we can't help feeling that the game would have benefited from a little more delay. Unbeatable is unpolished and unfinished. It's rebellious and punk, sure, but at times it's also frustrating. With the addition of story mode and the integration of numerous mini-games, Unbeatable tries to be too many things at once, and as a result, the game doesn't always hit the right note. But for the modest price of 28 euros, you can't possibly feel cheated.

The little brother from the same developer as the Tour de France 2024 game targets a very small niche: cycling fans who can't get enough of details and numbers. Like Football manager, PCM is a manager/simulation game. You don't take your place on the bike yourself, but you do determine every possible detail: you arrange sponsorship contracts, hire trainers and scouts, develop new equipment, determine training schedules, race selections and race strategy. The wet dream for cycling nerds like us, in other words.

It is a good game, but also a game that occasionally falters and makes it painfully clear that the Switch is now the gaming equivalent of an old-timer car. Nevertheless, the graphical style masterfully disguises the Switch's technical shortcomings. The music is also incredibly good. And this game is everything its predecessor was and better. With Echoes of Wisdom, you get to play a kick-ass sequel to the previous “classic” Zelda game: Link's awakening. But that's what it is: a sequel.

'Garden life: a cozy simulator' is - as the name gives away - a cozy game for young and old. You get the freedom to do everything the way you want. You don't need a green thumb or gaming experience. Moreover, the game looks beautiful. The main drawback is that it can quickly feel monotonous.

What initially appear to be subtle nods to previous games quickly descend into unnecessary fan service. It doesn't help that every trick in the book is pulled out, and you can often see the jump scares coming a mile away. The game rarely surprises, except in its shift from camp to deadly seriousness. Resident Evil Requiem is a commendable game, but not as memorable as some other installments in the series. The ambitious game was supposed to be the culmination of thirty years of Resident Evil. But it plays it too safe and, unfortunately, rarely manages to truly surprise.

An emotional but beautiful storyline. Beautiful graphics. 'Tales of Kenzera: ZAU' is a remarkable game for several reasons. Yet, as a player, you are left a little hungry.

Cronos: The New Dawn gets off to a slow start, with ammunition that is (too) scarce and melee attacks that are clunky and difficult to aim. After a few upgrades, you suddenly go from being a weakling to an elite soldier, after which there is little challenge left. Too difficult at the beginning, too easy after playing for a while. The balance is clearly off, and there are no options to adjust the difficulty level. And once you start noticing that they really do pull out all the tricks of the horror genre—a shadow flashing in the corner of your eye, a flashlight that suddenly starts to falter when things get exciting, an enemy that appears out of nowhere after you pick up an object—the fun quickly wears off. Unfortunately, the intriguing premise and atmospheric setting don't make up for these frustrating moments.

A video game where it is more about the appearance of the female protagonist than about the game itself, and that even before its release. No, we are not talking about Lara Croft from Tomb Raider, but about Stellar Blade. And that's a shame, because under that thick layer of controversy lies a fine game.

So yes, FC 25 feels a touch different again, and the immensely popular Ultimate Team is also back, but whether that's worth the full price - target price 65 euros? We doubt it. We feel that EA is on the right track and knows where it wants to go, that's for sure, but FC 25 just doesn't feel "finished" after all these years: the focus is still too much on fast breakaways, defenders still look a bit clumsy and after a while you realize that tactics that work excellently in real life are useless in FC 25. For us, it could be a bit more.

Mindlessly ramming buttons, Dynasty warriors has managed to make it a (semi-)entertaining pastime for years. For the second time, the series is teaming up with Fire emblem. At first glance, a striking choice. The latter series is known for its tactical gameplay. In Fire emblem warriors: three hopes, it comes together in a potpourri of violence and drinking tea.

Jump, swing and solve puzzles. Scarf is a standard puzzle platform game. A fine game, but it doesn't really warm you up. It is a worthy start for a small game studio, but there are still working points.

You are catapulted from the top of the food chain to the bottom, and giant ants and spiders simply look horrifying. Although in "Grounded" it does not result in horror, but in an exciting and smoothly playing adventure game in which, thanks to your ingenuity, you must survive long enough to figure out how to get big again.

Stranger of Paradise: Final Fantasy Origin constantly balances between homage to the series and bombastic kitsch. The new gameplay - it feels more like a soulslike game than your typical action-RPG - is refreshing at times, but not spectacular enough to make the game rise above mediocrity.

Do you know that indefinable feeling that you have to like something? That everyone in the amusement park is having a great time, but your mind is elsewhere? That's what we experienced when we played Horizon: Forbidden West, the long-awaited new hit for Playstation. Yes, it's very well put together. Yes, it looks stunning. And yes, the battles are wildly exciting. Yet we feel something niggling. Is it the magic of that first encounter that has disappeared?

The game offers an immersive crusade experience, but thankfully doesn't take itself too seriously. Despite the many severed limbs, there is plenty of room for a dash of humor. Now if the developer could only do something about the large amount of bugs on PS4, they just might have a cult hit up their sleeve.

Are we that stupid now? Or is this puzzle really very difficult to decipher? To be honest, we thought so several times during ‘We Were Here Forever’. The new puzzle game - which you can only play in pairs - is quite a workout for the brain.

The characters move stiffly, the animations look like they are from a game from two generations ago, and there is little atmosphere or tension. The voice actors are either overacting or unintentionally soulless. And that's a shame for a game that consists mostly of dialogue. The game is clearly suffering from anemia, and we can only hope for a miraculous cure when ‘Bloodlines 2’ hits the market.

35 years after its original release, 'Alex Kidd in Miracle World' is being re-released in a polished version that feels wonderfully nostalgic. Aside from some additional dialogue, levels and modified boss battles, it's still essentially the same game as it was in 1986. While we praise the way the player can now seamlessly switch between the new and original graphics, it feels like a missed opportunity not to change some of the basics. The controls are still as clunky as they were back then, and the unforgiving difficulty level still causes a lot of frustration today. Fortunately, there is the ability to use infinite lives, otherwise many controllers would perish.

Agreed, 'Helldivers 2' is at times a highly entertaining game. But we did not dare to predict that the game would get off to such a strong start. For that it offers too little depth as far as we are concerned.

In Park Beyond you can rely on a pinch of theme park magic to make your constructions truly spectacular. But for that, you'll have to bite the bullet. After all, on console, controller control is so clunky that it regularly becomes frustrating. And the many crashes we encountered during our play sessions almost made those controllers fly across the room. So Park Beyond, in this state, is mostly for those with a strong stomach and a lot of patience. Which comes in handy on a roller coaster.

There is absolutely nothing wrong with the heartbreaking, immersive story. Except the creators have tried to push two games into one, and the action-RPG portion leaves much to be desired. With a little more focus, this game would not have ended up in the mid-range.

Ys IX: Monstrum Nox offers an engaging story, smooth controls and challenging combat. Unfortunately, the game also suffers from dated graphics. It is a shame that it took two years to be released in our country, as this makes it difficult for the game to compete with more recent games that can draw on the graphical computing power of 2021.

Genre remixes often get lost in good intentions, but Disco Elysium pulls it off just fine. The dialogues fit perfectly with the visual style that portrays a world as captivating as it is gloomy. All top notch, but still we'll stick with three stars. Why? Because the console version we tested was plagued by bugs that sometimes even made it impossible to progress further.

A nice offer for fans, whether they are fans from the very beginning or young newcomers who have gotten to know the blue-haired hedgehog through recent Hollywood films. The price tag of around forty euros is hefty, but you get four excellent retro games in return.

What is successful, however, is the way you are forced to go outside the game. Googling answers, looking up articles on news sites, decoding images and audio clips, searching Twitter, delving into source files and deciphering codes. You do it all, although you have to know your way around the Internet and your PC. Acolyte is an intriguing and original detective game, but due to the high technological threshold not for everyone.

Loss, grief and processing. These themes are central to 'Lost words: beyond the page'. Heavy subjects that are beautifully put into words and images, in a way that is also accessible for children. Just don’t expect a great challenge.

In just four hours you're all set, but thanks to the multiplayer mode you can easily add several more hours. For less than 15 euros you can't expect an absolute masterpiece, but you get some carefree entertainment that will catapult you back to the 90s.

After releasing at least one new game almost every year, developer Ubisoft simply fails to surprise with Assassins Creed Mirage. What was supposed to be an homage to the first games feels too much like déjà vu. The same moves, the same controls, the same missions in a similar setting. There is wear and tear on the golden formula of yesteryear.

"A spreadsheet with soccer players," a friend once called Football Manager. He was right, but it is a damned addictive Excel file: in the meantime, we have invested another fifty hours or so in making our local team virtual champions. If you ask us, Football Manager would be better off switching to a subscription formula, but okay: for about fifty euros you get a whole year of spreadsheet fun.

All good things come to an end, and so does FIFA. Not that the game itself will cease to exist, but from next year it will simply be called EA Sports FC. In any case, the latest edition in the series could not be more FIFA: the moments on the pitch are great, those off it a little less so. There are times when it seems mostly a commercial for itself. The menus are garish and lead you everywhere but where you want to go. They also make it clear where Electronic Arts wants players to spend the most time: in flagship/milk cow Ultimate Team, where you build the strongest team possible and compete with it online. But once you get busy you notice how Electronic Arts manages to make soccer just that little bit more appealing every year.

He lands in theaters next year, with a movie of his own. But until then, Super Mario continues to reign supreme on the Nintendo. 'Sparks of hope' is yet another game centered around the world's most famous plumber. Just a shame that the piping shows more wear and tear than in the previous game.

If the "Total War" series had been a cow, PETA would have been at the door a long time ago. That's how milked she is. When you're not fighting, you're trying to build your empire. This part of the game combines both the best and worst of Total War: on the one hand, the factions you can play differ substantially and all offer a different experience; on the other, after a strong start, the campaign collapses like a pudding. You focus mainly on one powerful army, so the overall overview disappears somewhat from view. Too bad.

A decent game, but as memorable as its successor - 2017's brilliant NieR: Automata - NieR Replicant is not. The captivating story and the creative use of camera angles that allows different game genres to blend seamlessly show its potential, but the game cannot hide the fact that it is already more than a decade old.

No detailed explanation, no elaborate story. Whoever starts Lumote: the mastermote chronicles is immediately thrown into the game. It is a straightforward puzzle game that looks simple, but has quite a high difficulty level. Unfortunately, the level design remains largely the same throughout the game and although the puzzles thus become more difficult, it all quickly feels repetitive.

Windjammers is a mixture of volleyball, tennis and air field hockey, but with frisbees. All of that poured over in a visual flair that's bulging with neon and other early 90s sauces. Also 90s: the difficulty. Even the easiest opponents are very difficult.

They say that you should never change a winning team, but year after year the same team gets boring. Especially if you bought into the previous iteration of Mario Party for Nintendo Switch, this version offers little new under the sun.

The balance, in particular, isn’t quite right yet. We certainly applaud the fact that the game doesn’t hold your hand, but the contrast is quite stark. In some missions, everything is so broken down and spoon-fed to you that the game guides you through every step like a toddler. And at other times, you have absolutely no idea—and absolutely no explanation—of what you’re supposed to do. The lack of narrative and coherence is clearly a shortcoming. Despite all its flaws, there’s definitely the potential for a fantastic game here. It never becomes as emotionally compelling as Arthur Morgan’s story in Red Dead Redemption 2, and it lacks that childlike wonder of Breath of the Wild, but it all looks great and the massive amount of content makes up for a lot. Crimson Desert is a rough diamond that still needs a good polish. In its current form, it’s an okay game with obvious limitations. With enough post-launch support, it might still achieve what it sets out to do: become one of the better games of the year.

Visually, the series takes big leaps forward, and the winter setting makes this a perfect game for the end-of-year period. It feels like a warm, familiar blanket. But a beautiful setting is nothing without a good story. This time you and Max must solve a murder, and today she has a new superpower: a peek into a universe where that murder never happened. Not a bad find, but it's never deployed as creatively and cleverly as rewinding in the original game. The further you get, the more the plot also seems to lose its pedals. Bummer.

How we like the latest Call of Duty? Well, pretty much like the previous one and all those before it: unpretentious entertainment that slips in as smoothly as a slice of pizza. Not that we mind, because we love pizza.

Aside from its wacky premise, F.I.S.T. is a more than solid game that plays smoothly and looks great - especially thanks to the PC and PS5's graphical processing power. But the difficulty level is quite high - due to the clumsy controls at times even a little too high. So prepare for frustration and disappointment, and very often try again.

With Vanguard, Call of Duty returns to the roots of the series: World War II. The solo campaign is entertaining but short, and the multiplayer is exactly as expected: full of action and adrenalin. However, the few novelties are not spectacular enough to lift it above mediocrity.

Up to 128 players, regardless of whether they play on PC, PS5 or Xbox Series, can take on each other online at the same time in epic battles. Getting that done without too much lag and hiccups is a technical feat and works wonderfully. Too bad the amount of bugs in our test version was too high to make the game really excel.

Unfortunately, the quality of the new tracks varies: Toad Circuit feels like a rush job, while Paris Promenade perfectly captures the wonderful chaos of Mario kart. In summary, we're happy for more Mario kart, yet we're a little disappointed that the first part of this expansion doesn't reach the towering level of the original.

Looking for a challenge? Then Submerged: hidden depths is not the right game for you. After all, this game is meant to be a quiet adventure, and it is. Maybe even a little too quiet.

The game occupies a rather strange place on the spectrum. On the one hand, it wants to be a racing game, where you control your own rider and determine how fast he drives, when he sits in time trial position and how he cuts corners. However, a cyclist is not a car, and the controls feel rather clumsy at first. It gets easier as you persevere, but we suspect many players will soon drop out.

Anyone who read the manga in the 2000s must acknowledge: what this game looks like is how the static manga images came to life in your head. It is of the last things Akira Toriyama did before his death: congratulate the developers for bringing his creation to life so beautifully. Rightfully so. So really one for the fans, because the gameplay is okay, but it doesn't break any pots: it's a typical action game in an open world.

Is it due to the fact that the game is released on both the previous and current generation gaming consoles, which limited the developers? The game takes itself very seriously, and we can't imagine that they deliberately left one of the most annoying elements of the previous console generation - the many (hidden) loading screens - in the game unless there was a technical need for it. Add to that the wooden and terribly dated character and facial animations, and the result at least does not live up to what you should expect from a video game anno 2024.

So why only three stars? Basically, this is a remake of a PlayStation 4 game from 2015, which you could have long bought for next to nothing. This new version looks even better and adds some bells and whistles, but too little to justify the $70 price tag. Many other games from that era were upgraded for the PlayStation 5, costing a dozen euros or often even free. To charge full price for this is money-grubbing.

Since 2007, little has changed in the formula of No More Heroes. The third volume is no exception. No More Heroes III is rough, fast, bizarre and brutal. And that makes the game simultaneously great and frustrating.

Lost Judgment is a combination of a thriller movie with a smoothly playing and well-furnished action-adventure game, where you will easily need twenty to forty hours to reach the end. So much for the good news. The game suffers from the same disease as many Japanese genre rivals: it wants to cram too much into one game. A little more focus would do the series good.

King's Bounty II may not be the most original or visually impressive game we've gotten to play lately, but it does manage to translate a typically childlike fantasy to the screen. And childlike fantasy is just the thing everyone can use on occasion.

Grab your spade, your flying pig and your pirate hat: it's treasure hunting time in Dragon Quest Treasures. There is some fine loot to claim, though not all that glitters is gold. Our conclusion: Treasures mainly is a good introduction to the series for somewhat younger or less experienced gamers.

To become a fixture like Fortnite, though, Destruction Allstars needs more content than its current four game modes and handful of courses. In any case, Lucid Games has already announced plans to continually expand and improve the game at least during its first year, so the future looks bright for PS5 owners.

In 'F1 Manager 2022' you manage an existing Formula 1 team and literally decide everything. Which mini-part of the car will be further developed, which departments will be expanded, which sponsors will be brought in and which goals will be set. Even during the grand prix, you determine the race strategy and try to lead your team to victory. Great detail, but therefore rather meant for a certain niche.

Call of the Sea is basically one big escape room, in which you go from location to location while solving varied and mostly interesting puzzles. Sometimes, however, developer Out of the Blue expects a little too much, which can lead to frustrating moments and a wandering player.