Dragon Ball: Sparking! Zero revives the old Tenkaichi series and, in addition to a huge character package, offers straightforward brawler fun like in the anime.

While the great cartoon aesthetics are the obvious shining star, Mouse: P.I. For Hire is also a great first person shooter with impeccable level design. While the combat is solid and shows some good ideas, most fights are brought down by poor weapon balancing.

Dungeons of Hinterberg skilfully combines the social aspects of Persona with linear Zelda dungeons, leveraging the strengths of its cultural influences.

Keeper is a unique puzzle adventure that combines atmospheric exploration with clever puzzles and a touching story without the need for words. At its core is the unique journey of two unlikely friends, which warms my heart with its powerful emotions.

Monster Hunter Stories 2: Wings of Ruin offers one of the best turn based combat systems and is only held back by its lackluster storytelling.

The mixture of philosophical science fiction, horror creatures and angelic heroine hits my nerve exactly - and also that of a very specific target group. They will be able to ignore a few criticisms of the pacing and the somewhat restrained storytelling. Furthermore, Eve not only divides monsters, but also the community with her erotic outfits. For me personally, however, the game is still one of the action RPG highlights of the year, and I found myself humming the wonderful soundtrack long after the credits had rolled.

Senua's Saga: Hellblade II tells a story, which is spectacular in its presentation and comes with unbelievably life-like characters and facial animations. On top of that, you get breathtaking scenery and graphical effects. Senua's inner voices and the horrific tricks her mind plays on her, create a harrowing atmosphere and psychological horror. The story is emotional and gripping, and Senua's followers are a great new feature over its predecessor. However, this is not a game for fans of non-stop action. Hellblade II frequently turns into a walking simulator. Combat, while incredibly well-animated, is very shallow. The accessible part of the game world is often very limited, and puzzles are relatively easy. Like its predecessor, Hellblade II is a wonderful game, which was not made to appeal to a broad audience.

Paper Trail is a clever puzzle adventure game that lets you change whole levels while using the art of origami folding to solve puzzles. This is exciting and fun at first, but wears a little thin over time, especially during long sessions.

The Darkest Files is a touching crime adventure with a real historical background and an important take on the Nazi era. Even with some of the conclusions seeming a little far fetched, the mesmerizing feeling of slowly unraveling a real mystery prevails.

Reanimal is a captivating horror adventure with an intense creepy atmosphere and a cinematic look. It provides variety in terms of gameplay, but leaves a lot of narrative potential untapped.

Sonic X Shadow Generations is a neat combination of remaster and brand new game that can get a little frantic at times, but always stays perfectly playable.

Wanderstop questions the classic ingredients of cozy games. To truly heal emotionally, much more is needed than relaxing gardening and tea making.

The fighting game community is currently plagued by a problem: the game mechanics are being softened to appeal to casual players. But neither pros nor casuals want that. The latter would be more than happy with more solo game modes. Fatal Fury: City of the Wolves doesn't offer these in a satisfactory form, but that aside, it feels like an alternative at this point. It is a challenging option that will delight hardcore fans in particular with its high learning curve and in-depth game mechanics. Despite audiovisual restraint and uninspired solo content, the pugilist impresses with great playability and tactical variety. A bold game that deliberately goes against current trends in the genre.

Despite its gacha elements, Infinity Nikki is a delightful open-world adventure with a unique focus on fashion, charming world, and relaxing atmosphere.

Indika is first and foremost an arthouse project and a political statement, rather than a classic game that is purely for entertainment. In terms of visual design, it is often related to Eastern European film classics, such as those by Andrey Tarkovsky or Béla Tarr. Personally, this is worth a lot to me and I look forward to analysing, discussing and interpreting aspects of the game with other players. This makes it easier for me to forgive the stumbling blocks in the gameplay. They make the experience of this remarkable game unnecessarily bumpy. Indika is a diamond in the rough that will sparkle all the brighter if you have a knack for Eastern European art. Everyone else may be left irritated or even bored.)

Granblue Fantasy Relink consists mainly of battles and offers absolute sensory overload. Behind the crazy storm of effects, however, there is a sophisticated combat system that is a lot of fun alone or in online co-op. Despite the very likeable characters, the plot remains rather thin and I would have liked more interesting levels to explore. Nevertheless, I can say that Granblue Fantasy Relink is already one of the best action JRPGs of the year.

Successful, skilful and gripping. These three adjectives summarise Fast Fusion well, the adrenaline rush for the launch of the Switch 2. If you're in the mood for high-speed racing, you can't really get past this game. Despite all its strengths, however, it is not without its weak points: The fluctuating picture quality due to aggressive DLSS upscaling could annoy purists. Particularly in handheld mode, you have to make compromises. However, I can't really be mad at the game for this, precisely because Shin'en offers an otherwise flawless arcade experience despite its small team size, of which there are unfortunately not that many today.

The story of King Arthur in the dark suffers from the poor execution despite its great atmosphere.

Last Epoch convinces despite a weak story with its action-packed time travel and diverse skill system.

If you're looking for a cleverly balanced puzzle platformer with a great atmosphere and memorable characters, Planet of Lana II is the perfect choice. The rather subtle depiction of violence also makes the game interesting for families. However, Planet of Lana II doesn't offer any real challenges for hardcore puzzlers.

Dynasty Warriors: Origins is the reboot the series needed - a successful mix of over-the-top wuxia action, a bit of strategy and really massive armies.

Routine is an acoustic and atmospheric masterpiece that excels in environmental storytelling and psychological horror through liminal spaces. However, its narrow appeal, demanding navigation without maps, and reliance on specific phobias make it a polarizing experience. Essential for horror enthusiasts with patience; potentially frustrating for others seeking traditional gameplay mechanics.

The label ‘okay’ was invented for games like SpongeBob SquarePants: Tides of Giants. It's a solid game for a younger target audience, which represents its brand well and offers some funny ideas. However, there is little that is truly compelling here, especially since many of the mechanics have already been implemented better elsewhere. So, while you'll have a nice time in Bikini Bottom, you won't feel any real excitement.

Dying Light: The Beast is an action-packed open-world game with powerful and brutal combat and a high paced parkour system allowing me to glide elegantly across rooftops. Even though quests and storylines quickly become routine, the smooth gameplay keeps me hooked with constant new challenges and noticeable improvements.

A chaotic yet charming pirate adventure that blends Like A Dragon-style madness with engaging seafaring gameplay. The start of the game however is a bit slow, before the story gets interesting.

Kirby Air Riders suffers from the difficult task of outwardly conveying its true nature. Those hoping for a fun-racer in the vein of Mario Kart World might be quite disappointed. While the comparison is obvious and superficially accurate, Air Riders relies heavily on a unique gameplay experience. It rewards players who overcome the challenging initial hurdle and have the enthusiasm to delve into the mostly simple, yet complex, systems and mechanics. There's no doubt that casual gamers can enjoy the title. However, if you want to take a few relaxed spins, you'd be better off with the plumber's latest racing adventure.

Like its predecessor, Age of Imprisonment serves up highly enjoyable power-fantasy action against a competently translated “Zelda“-backdrop. While the title avoids major innovations (too much so), it tweaks the right elements and improves greatly on the performance and visuals. If you only bring a love for the underlying franchise, the repetitive gameplay might tire you rather quickly. However, for genre enthusiasts, and especially fans of the first game, this title is a no-brainer.

Even if it has great looks: the interior of the latest instalment of the Civilization series is not very inspiring. Some good ideas are counterbalanced by a lot of bad ones. The biggest problem: it no longer feels like a Civilization-Game! Here, the developers have definitely made too many radical changes.