Hardcore Mecha wonderfully pays homage to the Super Robot Wars series, and comes with cutscenes of high quality. Stages have been cleverly designed to prevent the game from becoming tedious, and the voluminous scenario and deep gameplay make it easy to get lost in Hardcore Mecha’s anime world. It’s too bad that with the exception of your character’s arch rival, other enemies don’t leave a lasting impression.

Home Sweet Home is an unsettling horror experience that uses East Asian religion as its theme. Being pursued by a grim knife-wielding woman is enough to make this a game that will haunt your dreams, but the overly simplistic gameplay and an unfinished story keep Home Sweet Home from becoming an indie classic.

By combining endless-runner elements to what is at its core a rhythm game, Muse Dash becomes an exhilarating experience. Its pop visuals make it look more appealing to casual gamers, while the included tracks are tuned towards the a more traditional rhythm game audience.

With a much higher visual quality compared to previous entries in the series, Yokai Watch 4 makes you feel like you are walking through a gorgeous anime. While the wide variety does add a somewhat cumbersome feeling to the gameplay, as an overall experience, Yokai Watch 4 is a great new direction for the series.

From stage design to game systems, Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night is a dream package for Castlevania fans, yet at the same time manages to be interesting for newcomers as well. While story-wise things can sometimes get a little bit too familiar, the new protagonist does add a fresh touch to the formula.

With simply the best graphics on the PS VR and realistic gameplay, Everybody's Golf VR makes you feel like a real golfer. It’s a bit too difficult considering the game’s casual appeal, and sadly there is not enough content to keep you swinging your club. The lack of a mode to play against an AI opponent is a critical miss.

When at its best, My Friend Pedro’s smooth and stylish gameplay is a dream come true for any shooting action fan. However, its design forces the player to go through a lot of trial and error, which makes the gameplay feel less catchy, and the often clunky controls don’t help its case.

Crypt of the NecroDancer brings randomly generated dungeons and rhythm-based gameplay to the exploration and adventure of The Legend of Zelda. While it doesn’t feel like total chemistry, Hyrule is faithfully represented, and Zelda fans will be able to enjoy a different type of gameplay. It’s not a masterpiece, but if you can catch the beat, there’s a lot of fun to be had.

Rage 2’s nonsensical story is unbearable, and the unskippable exploration parts are mostly irritating and boring. Luckily, the shooting gameplay is so amazing that it’s easy to forgive these flaws. And while encounters can become repetitive, new weapons and abilities make sure there’s always some fun to be had.

Gato Roboto is a metroidvania with lots of references to the games it was inspired by, but at times it also feels just as unfriendly and inconvenient as some of those classics do today. It’s also much more difficult than you would expect from a game that stars a cute cat in mech armor, but it’s well worth it if you’re up for the challenge.

With an utterly simple control scheme, One Finger Death Punch 2 still manages to create a sense of player improvement. One Death Finger Punch was the king of two-button action games, and the sequel is here to inherit the throne. From better UI to new effects and tuned modes, One Finger Death Punch 2 is made just a little bit better on every single aspect. While it lacks new additions, it more than makes up for this by majorly polishing what was already there.

While it is not bad as an action shooter, lackluster gimmicks and unnecessary characters make both Immortal Legacy’s action and story feel like an unorganized product.

While the Nintendo Switch version of rhythm game Cytus could have had more additional content, it has been cleverly customized for the system. With many tracks from a wide arrange of artists, Cytus a is a game that is definitely worth its budget price.

Yuppie Psycho is an adventure game that depicts an exploitive employer through both comedy and horror. It’s too bad that the actual survival gameplay lacks tension. During the latter part of the game, the concept of the employer loses its importance, and while that might make sense for the story, I found the game’s original concept far more appealing.

Forager is a game that gives you joy from the minute you start playing, and from there just continues delivering. With fun responses for the player’s actions, simple tasks feel a lot more engaging. Improvement in crafting efficiency keeps the gameplay feeling fresh, which prevents Forager from becoming tedious. By depicting the joy and sorrow of finding new material, Forager creates a story around the crafting gameplay itself. Forager can be enjoyed for as long as the player wants to. Finding your own way to solve problems might feel tough at first, but that’s what makes it so addictive in the end.

Team Sonic Racing is not just a kart game with tight mechanics. By introducing teamwork as the core element of its gameplay, it becomes a racing game with its own unique appeal. Its lengthy and diverse adventure mode could teach Mario Kart a few lessons too.

Character creation could have had a little bit more variety, but the feature does make it easier to empathize with your character, which benefits the more serious tone of the scenario. However, the balance between item prices and the amount of currency you can obtain make it hard for the player to spend money when needed, which makes the game less enjoyable as a whole. There are several other issues such as bullet-sponge enemies, resulting in an experience that can be hard to enjoy.

The Friends of Ringo Ishikawa might look like an old-fashioned belt-scroller, but it is actually an open-world game full of life and… well, philosophy! There’s plenty of dialogue, and the way the story is told through everyday life events at school and in your neighborhood feels like real life. The game’s systems aren’t well explained, which will catch many gamers off-guard at first, but its climax has a lasting impact that is worth experiencing.

Call of Cthulhu’s strange and eerie visuals somewhat succeed in recreating the atmosphere of Cthulhu mythology. However, instead of contributing to the story, stats such as Sanity feel like they deny the player’s trial-and-error. From shooting to stealth segments, the wide array of different systems needed more polish as well.

The Scion of Arland’s story and gameplay feel like a culmination of the series, and a tutorial system makes it a lot easier to jump in for newcomers. The soft-touch visuals match the atmosphere of the series, but the battle system brings in new ideas without much success. While some events could have been better explained for those not familiar with previous iterations, in the end this entry creates some of the most exciting moments in the series.

Moonlighter is a game that has you experience the life of a hero and a shopkeeper at the same time. You fight enemies to obtain items at a dungeon, and go on to sell these at your shop, allowing you to buy better armor. The gorgeous graphics enhance the experience and the gameplay loop is great. The game could have offered more to do and the story is a bit simple, but it’s an enjoyable ride nonetheless.

Katana Zero offers stunning visuals and striking effects, but both its gameplay and story feel incomplete. Including its atmosphere, Katana Zero has a lot to offer, which makes it feel all the more like a wasted opportunity in its current state.

Travelling through underwater relics left by mankind before they left Earth is a compelling experience, thanks to great environmental storytelling enhanced by stunning art direction. However, tedious and repetitive gameplay throughout the 5-hour journey makes this experience feel like a good story poorly written.

With a large and beautiful open world, swollen hordes of infected freakers, and over 30 hours of story, Days Gone is a well-polished game on the surface. However, the game does not offer anything truly remarkable, and maintaining your bike can be annoying. That said, its strengths lie in exploring its open world by bike, and the qualities of its biker protagonist, Deacon.

Dead or Alive 6 looks even better than its already stunning predecessor, and it succeeds in being more accessible for newcomers while keeping the fundamentals that fans have come to love intact. The tutorial and story modes do their job, but an online mode that only has ranked matches ultimately renders it unwelcoming to many players.

A strange world where objects come to life is beautifully depicted with rich animations, making Forgotton Anne feel and look like a full-fledged anime movie. However, while the pacing is good, the puzzles in the latter half of the game lack variation. Some cutscenes could have had better animation, and the Japanese translation has room for improvement. Still, this is a magical adventure that is well worth your time nonetheless.

Anyone can play and look cool with this instant-classic VR rhythm game. The PS4 version is great, but the PSVR exclusive content does not offer that much appeal.

Orthodox yet sophisticated action, a wacky art style, a crazy score and events that make great use of these characteristics make Ape Out a thrilling experience throughout.

Devil Engine throws a lot of bullets at you despite being a side-scroller, and often kills you without any warning. However, once you get used to its trial-and-error gameplay, it’s actually a pretty welcoming game, which is testament to how well made it is. However, its conservative design does little to appeal to players new to shmups, making this a title mostly for die-hard fans of the genre.

Trials Risings’s fail-and-retry gameplay is as fun and addictive as ever. However, the tutorials aren’t as user friendly as they could have been, and the tandem mode and edit mode aren’t that appealing either.

With a minimalistic approach, Tokyo Chronos succeeds in bringing the player into a VR world that feels like a real place. While the shortage of player choices and interaction hold it back a little, Tokyo Chronos shows the potential of a VR adventure game done right.

Although the online functions could have been better, the unique and satisfying combat styles of Nero, Dante and V greatly contribute in evolving Devil May Cry 5 to the next level. While gaining a more photorealistic look thanks to Capcom’s RE engine, the stylish action we have come to love from the series is better than ever.

The unique way in which Left Alive approaches the survival theme is easily its most appealing aspect. However, from graphics to enemy AI, there are just way too many issues. And while it’s high difficulty might make sense from a survival standpoint, the lack of stealth kills and hard to utilize weapons make it so hard that for most players it will be beyond simply “challenging”.

Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice comes with some obvious flaws: Enemy types repeat too often, and we would have liked more variety in the maps. Having to defeat a boss in order to upgrade your character can become a big problem, too. However, as a stealth game, it offers plenty of routes to explore and ways to assassinate your targets. But above all, the sword fighting system comes with genuinely new ideas, including posture gauge and deflecting attacks, making Sekiro’s battles feel like an art in themselves. While the simplified levelling system and increased reliance on exploration make Sekiro feel even more difficult than FromSoftware’s Dark Souls series and Bloodborne, close combat battles have never been this good.

After delivering the cult-hit Detention, Taiwanese developer Red Candle Games presents its next psychological horror adventure, Devotion. While making the jump from 2D to 3D, the superb presentation and storytelling remain intact. A 1980s Taiwanese condo is faithfully recreated in 3D to the extent that you can almost detect the odour. And while bringing together various art styles in one game, Devotion manages to tell a consistent story as well.

While Far Cry New Dawn is visually similar to Far Cry 5, its gameplay has been somewhat boiled down. Nonetheless, its open world is still packed with interesting ideas, resulting in a game that gives you just the right amount of thrill. The story centered around family is not what one might expect from a Far Cry game, and the sarcastic banter of previous entries is not present here. A Far Cry game that supports rather than scolds the player feels new indeed, and its courage to be different should be praised.

Like No More Heroes, Scott Pilgrim and Kick-Ass, YIIK: Postmodern RPG features a nerd as its protagonist – but it’s nice to finally see one who doesn’t eventually become cool. The game is well presented, with eye-catching toon-shaded visuals, a great soundtrack and a deep story. We would have preferred more strategy in battles, while a few bugs sully the experience slightly.

Wargroove might not surprise, but it does a good job in reviving and refreshing a classic genre. If you’re curious about strategy games, this one has all the answers.

Epic Battle Fantasy 5 is an otaku JRPG, made by a JRPG otaku – made for every JRPG otaku. The game is packed with parodies: You will see huge damage points during the epic battles, treasure chests are fun to hunt, and the dialogue keeps the story interesting. All these factors blend together to create a new landmark for a non-Japanese developed JRPG.

Playing Catherine: Full Body reminded me how amazing the original Catherine was. The exciting puzzles and unique adventure gameplay come with a stylish, mature tone and extremely well written dialogue. With a remixed music score and online multiplayer, Catherine: Full Body does somewhat enrich that original experience. However, the addition of a third heroine can easily be seen as a negative feature. Altogether, Catherine: Full Body is a great game because of the timeless classic it is based on, rather than because of the new features.

Jump Force is fine as a sandbox fighting game. However, when you consider that this was released to celebrate 50 years of manga magazine Weekly Shonen Jump, a character roster that only pays homage to a few major franchises feels unfair. Add to that a terrible storyline and clunky UI, and you have a game that’s very difficult to recommend.

Pikuniku is a relaxing action-puzzle game with a good sense of humor. The interesting mixture of cute visuals and a dystopian world is worth a look.

It may be only a remake, but Resident Evil 2 is amazing – a remake that is close to flawless.

A fantastic campaign mode, a VR mode so great that it should go down in history, and so many other aspects make Ace Combat 7: Skies Unknown an incredible package. However, it helps to be familiar with the series in order to savor its greatness.

God Eater 3, the latest entry in the fast-paced hunting action series, offers a fresh location as well as a new set of characters. While introducing new elements, the snappy core gameplay remains intact, and the difficulty is well balanced. However, the story develops in a rather clichéd way, and some characters would have benefited from a little more depth.

Gris is a 2D adventure game that has the player travel through a beautiful world at a relaxing pace. There is an impactful scene waiting for you near the climax, but after that the experience loses its power and delicateness, making the ending feel like a wasted opportunity.

Shenmue I & II is a masterpiece that is not for everyone. That’s a shame, because a more solid port with a few tweaks here and there could have made it a package to recommend to all.

While Steel Rats comes with elements that sound interesting on paper, the developer lacks the ability to combine them into a compelling package. It may be a game about an unconventional biker, but I would at least have wanted the developers to keep their hands on the handlebars to prevent this terrible mess.

A new competitive shmup is a rarity in itself, but Rival Megagun can’t quite compete with similar games that came before it. Its simple and casual game design make it a multiplayer experience that is easy to get into, but it lacks depth.

An adventure game that, instead of holding your hand, gives you the freedom to figure things out yourself. Unraveling mysteries through information you’ve gathered by yourself brings a unique type of satisfaction.

This strategy game offers survival and business simulation in one package. With the player learning from trial and error, numerous unpredictable events bring additional challenges to solve, while enriching the story at the same time.

The system of letters changing the outcome of the story is innovative and could have gone into video game history, if only the idea had been fleshed out a bit more.

Fallout 76 feels like a single-player experience that was forced into an online game. Still, if you stick with it, trying to survive in Appalachia indeed delivers a different kind of appeal from previous iterations.

The Quiet Man is one of the worst games I have ever played, but forcing me to play twice to experience the audio left an even worse impression. While withholding all dialogue until the second playthrough is an interesting concept in theory, it added little to The Quiet Man's already terrible story, making the second run even more of a chore than the first.

Tetsuya Mizuguchi's signature synesthesia approach turns Tetris – a game based on pure mathematics – into a moving tale about the Earth. However, the nature of Tetris demands constant focus, which sometimes makes it difficult to enjoy the game's spectacular artistic effects along the way.

Déraciné has a fantastic atmosphere and wonderful storytelling. It utilizes VR and PlayStation Move to create a type of interaction not seen in other games. The innocence characters show to the player add a warm and friendly feeling to what is already a fascinating adventure game.

A unique graphic style, an exotic theme, and a story that is well suited to being told through a unique game system make Return of the Obra Dinn a detective game unlike any other.

Soulcalibur VI is a fun and robust fighting game. More user-friendly tutorials would have made the game even more accessible, but with a wide variety of online modes and a deep character creator, this is already a fighting game anyone can pick up and have a great time with.

Much like The Witcher 3, Thronebreaker: The Witcher Tales is a single-player RPG with a high emphasis on player choice. If the world of The Witcher and its lore have captivated you before, there’s no excuse for skipping on this one. The card battle system might take a while to get used to, but friendly tutorials help smooth the way.

Red Dead Redemption 2 offers epic missions, a large number of sub-missions, and high-quality dialogue that brims with originality and changes depending on how you play. It should be said that the emergent encounters feel contrived rather than truly random. However, a map that skillfully withholds information until the right time, layered status systems and gunfights filled with invention, the fusion of the Wanted system and the story, and the excellent storytelling and how this ties in to the previous game – all these elements are worthy of high praise.

This masterpiece is an indication that eccentric developer Swery still has it. The touching story is so cleverly intertwined with its game design that it will leave you speechless.

At launch, Black Ops 4 is a great package to go and have fun with, but it’s hard to say how it will play out in the long term. It might become a 7 or a 9, or maybe even something higher or lower than that.

Black Bird’s strong visual and sound direction are a callback to developer Onion Games’ previous incarnation as LOVEdeLIC, but the game itself is a hardcore shoot-'em-up. Its great design demands the player learn patterns in order to chase high scores, an approach that is enjoyable for both seasoned players and those new to the genre.

With the addition of the Champions League license, FIFA 19 is able to realistically portray the European soccer experience. Introduction scenes and team anthems will satisfy soccer fans without a doubt. Alex Hunter’s story also gets a conclusion in The Journey’s third season, and while it may be a classic success story, the dilemmas you have to face as Alex allow you to feel like you’re living the life of an actual soccer player.

With anime sequences added to the original game, Steins;Gate Elite combines the best of the game and anime, making this the definitive way to experience a modern classic.

Continually evolving with each new iteration, F1 2018 is still the definitive F1 racing game. Just don’t expect any new game-changing mechanics or additions.

If you look at Mega Man 11 as a standalone experience, it’s a fun game. The Double Gear system indeed feels fresh, but essentially, it’s still that same Mega Man you’ve already experienced in countless other iterations.

Super Mario 64 showed us the possibilities of 3D platform gaming more than 20 years ago. Now, Astro Bot: Rescue Mission is finally here to do the same for VR.

While most of the new features don’t really enhance the experience, the remaster looks stunning, and you will be surprised by how well the gameplay of this classic has aged.

As one of the best 2D action games to date, Dead Cells is a game people will be talking about for a long time. A true masterpiece.

As an official spinoff of bullet-hell shooter series Touhou, Violet Detector. is quite difficult, but both its story and mechanics deserve praise for their design.

Improved lighting makes PES look even more stunning than last year. Dribbling and shooting motions are more varied and feel more authentic, resulting in a more exhilarating soccer match.

This is a casual fighting game where SNK heroines come together, and while it may succeed in serving that purpose, the game’s main modes and graphics are far from ideal.

CrossCode is a stellar game that mimics an MMO, but solves the repetitive nature of that genre by turning it into a single-player action game, utilizing the genre’s lyricism in a magnificent way.

Insomniac Games’ take on Spider-Man is not only packed with fan service and love for this iconic character, it’s also one of the best superhero videogames to date.

The Messenger's game design may originate from NES and SNES classics, but it functions as an ancient scroll that passes pixel-perfect gameplay on to a new generation in the best possible way.

It’s too bad that there’s no challenge mode, but an asymmetric multiplayer game based on a movie is an interesting concept itself.

Bad Japanese localization prevents the player from getting invested in the story, but both in gameplay and story Banner Saga 3 is a worthy conclusion to an epic trilogy.

Working together or trying to hinder each other in Overcooked! 2’s kitchen will bring out the kid in you for sure. Its busy co-op action reminds how fun it can be to fight over a video game.

Octopath Traveler modernizes the golden formula of Square’s RPGs from the SNES era, and by doing so delivers a traditional yet fresh JRPG.

This walking simulator comes with a lot of reading, making it an experience that should be savored as a short novel. That makes it hard to recommend it to any gamer, and for some the game might feel too expensive given the short playtime. However, think of it this way: it’s cheaper than buying a book and a train ticket and going on a trip by yourself. NOSTALGIC TRAIN offers the experience of a summer holiday through a game in a unique way.

Obviously inspired by Vanillaware’s games such as Dragon’s Crown, The Vagrant’s graphics are impressive, and the game comes with a ton of replay value, making it well worth your money. However, while its game mechanics are interesting, The Vagrant struggles in finding its own identity.

Obviously inspired by Vanillaware’s games such as Dragon’s Crown, The Vagrant’s graphics are impressive, and the game comes with a ton of replay value, making it well worth your money. However, while its game mechanics are interesting, The Vagrant struggles in finding its own identity.

This 8-bit spin-off of Koji Igarashi’s Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night is at the same time a nostalgic linear sidescroller and a modern game that manages to be accessible to new players.

Montreal-based animator JonJon and renowned DJ Kid Koala came together to make a rare music game that is casually enjoyable and, at the same time, shows how awesome hip-hop can be.

If you’re looking for an exciting 2D action game, ICEY is not it. However, if disobeying orders sounds fun, ICEY is all about that. In the end, it’s a game that actively wants you to break its rules.

Due to the fact that this is a prequel, the storyline and characters of Life is Strange: Before the Storm feel a bit contrived. Nevertheless, despite these inconsistencies, fans of the original Life is Strange will still be moved by Chloe’s adventure.

This may be an expansion for a game that is essentially a multiplayer experience, but the solo campaign is the real attraction in Octo Expansion. If you couldn’t get into the multiplayer, give this a try.

Quantic Dream successfully depicts a universal SF theme from a fresh angle by using a game system where choices the player makes stand central, and does so with incredibly realistic visuals. If only the story had been constructed a little more cleverly, there would have been no hesitation in calling this a gem.

With its relatively realistic physics, Gravel is a game on the hard side. However, if you are looking for an arcade-like offroad race game, you should be able to appreciate this one.

Dragon Quest XI is almost like a NES game developed with modern technology. Turn-based battles and retro sound effects make clear it is proud of being a classic JRPG. Yet at the same time, monster mounts and real-time escape sequences indicate that Dragon Quest XI is also a forward-thinking game. The overworld is full of joy and wonder, its design integral to telling a compelling story.

Far Cry 5 does not come with any groundbreaking innovations, but solid updates make for a big step forward nonetheless. The game’s story will create hot discussions for sure.

Ni no Kuni II: Revenant Kingdom improves upon its predecessor in almost every regard, yet somehow its magic is lost along the way.

Kirby Star Allies is a culmination of the series' history. It is packed with Kirby love.

Metal Gear Survive's greatest strength is that it offers many ways to play. Its survival gameplay creates a lot of freedom and variety, but sadly the unsteady co-op experience greatly limits the game's appeal. The story is underwhelming, and the game's overall balance has some problems.

Never before has a game felt and played like Dragon Ball to this extent. Both hardcore fighting-game fans and casual players are in for a treat.

In the end, fans of the series will be able to appreciate the game's story. But the game has so many flaws that it's hard to recommend it to anyone else.

For a story-driven game, there are just too many inconsistencies in its story. Yet despite this, Yakuza 6 comes with undeniable charm.