NBA 2K22 offers the best on-court experience in the history of the series. That’s no small thing for a series long known for rock-solid gameplay. The problem is that so much around that experience feels incomplete or messy. NBA 2K22 provides such a wide range of experiences that many players will get what they need from it. The overall package, however, is a lot more uneven.

It's been a long road to release for Dying Light 2, and at times its future seemed uncertain. However, having braved the ruins of Villedor for this review, I'm happy to report that Techland's long-awaited follow-up to their survival horror RPG is a smashing success. With its mix of gripping narrative, hard-hitting combat, and exhilarating exploration, Dying Light 2 is a spectacular sequel that breathes new life into the franchise.

With more than one hundred levels and a gradual increase in complexity, Room to Grow will definitely keep you busy and satisfy that puzzling itch. A hint system of some kind would be a nice touch to help keep those frustrating moments at bay. It’s a minor complaint for this well-designed puzzler, though. Help me feel smart—or at least a little less dumb—about it.

If you’ve got a taste of blood and metal in your mouth and have a fever for retro-futuristic patriotism, look no further. Operation Eagle soars when it comes to getting a shot of pure freedom juice in our favorite full-metal mech warfare. While somewhat short and a bit heavy-handed getting you ready for the fights ahead, it does its best to be a shining example of quality DLC to an already awesome RTS game.

It’s clear The 7th Guest VR is a labor of love made by true fans of the original game. Its puzzles are brilliant, its production values are top-notch, and it perfectly strikes that balance between creepiness and campiness that made the 1993 original such a hit. It’s just a shame that while exploring these familiar locales in VR is a nostalgic treat, the finicky controls and some questionable design choices occasionally rear their heads like fiendish phantoms to hurt the experience. However, if you can overlook these shortcomings or are a die-hard fan of the series, you’ll find The 7th Guest VR to be one hauntingly good time.

More than just a cynical cash-in, RoboCop: Rogue City does an excellent job bucking the trend of mediocre movie tie-ins to give fans something spectacular. It’s a bloody and visceral love letter to 80s action herodom that leans hard into its source material and even builds upon themes only touched upon in the films. Add a satisfying amount of content in the form of a robust skill tree and a wealth of side missions, and you have a game that no RoboCop fan should miss.

While it took its time getting its hooks into me, once TopSpin 2K25 grabbed me, I grew to understand the appeal of this more technical tennis experience. It’s not for every fan of tennis games, but I know there are players who are going to love it, and I eventually had a really good time. That good time was fleeting, though, thanks to its repetition and lack of content. TopSpin 2K25 is only recommended for players who plan to put a lot of hours into competing online.

Bonkies is a solid multiplayer game. It’s goofy, it’s silly, it’s challenging, and most importantly, it’s fun. Really, the only criticism I can come up with for the game is that it’s not very fun single-player, but in fairness, it’s not really meant to be. So if you’re looking for a couch co-op game to casually play with your friends, Bonkies is an excellent choice.

Labyrinth of Zangetsu is a solid, addicting, enjoyable game. Yes, there are some annoying shortcomings, but the story and art style are both intricately connected, with the story being surprisingly engaging for a first-person dungeon crawler, and the art style likewise remarkably deep and beautiful for the genre. Exploration is addicting, and character classes can be changed or upgraded as you progress through the game, giving you access to advanced classes. First-person dungeon crawlers can often be a bit of a slog, but Labyrinth of Zangetsu manages to avoid that particular pitfall by being a reasonable length. While the difficulty can, at times, be quite steep, it’s worth the occasional pain and suffering.

Despite some balance issues and the one aforementioned glitch, overall, I had a blast with Kitsune Tails. Though it purportedly can take anywhere from 15 to 20 hours to beat, I’d say hardcore platformer fans can beat it in half that time. Just don’t expect it to be a simple task because some of the stages required me grinding for coins and buying the right transformations just to have a fighting chance. That said, if you enjoy retro platforming and are looking for a rainbow-colored take on the genre, you can’t go wrong here.

Even though I admire Inti Creates for the risk of trying out a new genre and feel they did a reasonably good job with it, Card-en-Ciel will ultimately be a hard sell to everyone who’s not a patient deckbuilder enthusiast. While the gameplay is nuanced and fun, and though the artwork is generally pretty stunning, the game felt unbalanced on several occasions. When paired with a confusing story and not fully realized characters, we’re left with a unique adventure that will only appeal to fans of the publisher.

Curious Expedition 2 isn’t for those looking to relax at the end of a long day, rather for those looking for an 1800s adventure crazier than their wildest dreams. It’s a punishing experience in the vein of what it must have actually been like back in the day (sans the glowing purple fog and disappearing islands and all that), and one that will absolutely exhaust players as they lose track of time exploring the chain of procedurally generated islands. If you’re very fond of rogue-likes and want to try a unique spin on the genre, Curious Expedition 2 is very likely your cup of Earl Grey; anyone else may want to watch a let’s play or two before spending your hard-plundered riches here.

WarioWare: Get It Together! isn’t the best game in the series, but the latest from Wario’s video game company is still a delight. With tons of variety, this is the sort of game I can see myself popping into for a quick session regularly for years to come. If you have friends to play with, this is an easy recommendation. Even without those, there’s plenty of variety to keep players coming back until Wario’s next creation is ready to go.

While the concept of Parry Nightmare is novel and fun when things are going well, it can also be very irritating. Combining the massive challenge with a UI that isn’t cleaner and more precise, it makes this game hard to recommend to everyone. But if you’re willing to take a shot on something unique, you really can’t go wrong, especially at the game’s incredibly low price point.

Like Prodigal and Curse Crackers: For Whom The Belle Toils before it, Veritus is an unapologetically old-school adventure made for a very particular demographic. It has its quirks and can feel a bit unfair at times due to some questionable design decisions. But stick with it for the excellent puzzles, delightful dungeon variety, and irresistible presentation. If you happen to be a retro gamer at heart with a soft spot for the Game Boy Color era, Veritus comes easily recommended.

I was really hoping to enjoy my time more with the game, but ultimately Kotama and Academy Citadel fell prey to unclear mechanics and incredibly challenging progression. While the adventure is quite attractive and novel in many ways, this Metroidvania fan was hoping for something much more streamlined. Here’s hoping the next adventure from Atomstring Games builds upon to good here to deliver a true knockout adventure.

Until Then does a fantastic job of capturing a culture, a place, and the way modern teenagers interact in a way so few games get right. While the personal stories of its characters are perhaps more interesting than the overarching mystery, this is a story that any fan of the genre will want to explore.

Raiden III x MIKADO MANIAX is ultimately a good if unspectacular rerelease of a nearly 20-year-old game, but it’s really only for die-hard fans of the genre. At the end of the day, this was only ever a solid entry in the series, and nothing here has changed that. The new music is nice, but not enough to justify the game’s cost. This is the sort of game that would be best reissued as part of a Raiden collection instead of being released on its own.

Clive & Co’s first adventure into the world of DLC is good, and if you like the game, then you’ll almost definitely enjoy venturing into the Sagespire. There’s absolutely no denying that. But, given that it’s an extension of Final Fantasy XVI, it needs to be great—and I’m not quite sure that it reached that status. While there’s no denying that Echoes of the Fallen features a unique premise and a new stage to explore that’s every bit as challenging as it is breathtaking, you wouldn’t really be missing out on anything if you decided to skip it. Hopefully, the next piece of DLC will bring about a little bit more excitement.

As is, En Garde! doesn’t overstay its welcome, and its strong combat will carry players through its rather short playtime. While the rest of the game isn’t as compelling, and the characters and story, while fine, feel like a missed opportunity, I still enjoyed my time with it. A more fleshed-out sequel, however, could be something truly special.

At its core, PGA Tour 2K23 is the excellent golf game I’ve been missing in recent years. A new three-click swing system opens the game up for players who didn’t care for the analog swinging of old. I’ll be playing way too many hours of this one in the months to come, even if the series could still use some work on its presentation and a bit more variety.

Necrobarista: Final Pour provides a moving story about death, life, and how to move on. The short first-person chunks between chapters could be better, and I wish the Switch version were more stable, but the story is the reason to buy this one, and it’s excellent. With charming characters and a great sense of style, Necrobarista is worth your time whether you’re living or in the process of moving on.

If you can poke past the horribly-paced and presented story, tedious and sometimes painful character dialogue, and bad design ideas for the open-world aspect, I can sincerely say that there is some legitimate Shock-like qualities in the better parts of the gameplay and in the awe-striking art style, to say nothing of the incredible music. If you enjoyed any of Bioshock‘s selections, or Arkane’s 2016 Prey, consider giving this communist dystopia a chance to show how close it got to nailing that Shock-like formula, even if you wind up coming out hating the phrase “Crispy Critters” as much as I did.

The survival genre rarely manages to surprise these days, given how saturated it has become, but Deadcraft manages to do just that. By executing well upon familiar mechanics whilst adding its own meaningful spin on things, Deadcraft manages to overcome its lack of visual identity by providing an extremely satisfying, innovative, and accessible take on the usual survival tropes. Even if you’re someone who shies away from survival games due to their typically unwelcoming nature, Deadcraft’s action RPG first, survival game second mentality has resulted in a product that I think will be capable of enjoyment by anyone, given the chance.

I wasn’t sure what to expect from Read Only Memories: NEURODIVER, but in the end, it exceeded the original adventure in practically every conceivable way. This is a truly fun and well-made sequel, full of beautiful artwork, compelling music, and fantastic voice acting. Amidst all that, there’s also insightful and memorable storytelling that simultaneously makes the reader view many real-world issues and ethical dilemmas through a different lens. Highly recommended, even if you haven’t played the first game.

Atelier Yumia: The Alchemist of Memories & the Envisioned Land is a charming open-world JRPG and a worthy addition to the Atelier series. While it may not break any new ground in terms of narrative or combat innovation, it excels in being a fun game and an excellent entry point for newcomers to the franchise.

Featuring a visually appealing graphical overhaul and the addition of extra modes to enjoy, there’s absolutely no reason why any farmer worth their salt should overlook Rune Factory 3 Special. The latest installment in the Rune Factory franchise may be a re-release of a 13-year-old game, but don’t let that stop you from diving into this cornucopia of fun.

With soothing music, calming visuals, addictive gameplay, and a unique tale that unfolds slowly, The Wild At Heart is incredibly easy to recommend. In fact, the only thing you will need to find real enjoyment with this gem is a controller and a good 20 hours to sink into it. There is so much charm and energy in this little puzzler, and I was so engaged in figuring out the whimsical world of the Deep Woods that I hardly noticed the time just whizzing by.