The Adventures of Elliot: The Millennium Tales proves that the HD-2D style can work perfectly well outside of turn-based RPGs. With solid exploration, entertaining dungeons, and an engaging time-travel mechanic, Square Enix delivers a highly recommended adventure. Although the story and music don’t quite measure up, the gameplay and visuals more than make up for it.

Unrailed! 2: Back on Track delivers an excellent cooperative experience, blending resource management, construction mechanics, and roguelike progression into a chaotic and highly entertaining package. The constant need for coordination and quick decision-making creates plenty of memorable moments, especially when playing with friends. While the game remains perfectly enjoyable in solo play, its true strengths shine in multiplayer, making it an easy recommendation for anyone looking for a fun and engaging co-op adventure.

Hollowbody is a love letter to PlayStation 2 survival horror games that perfectly captures what made those classics so special. Its oppressive atmosphere, retro visual design, and focus on exploration manage to recreate feelings that few modern games can convey. Although the clunky combat and some overly cryptic puzzles may turn off certain players, those who miss the Silent Hill era will find a remarkably authentic experience here.

Mina the Hollower proves that it’s still possible to take classic ideas and breathe new life into them. Yacht Club Games delivers an immersive, creative adventure brimming with personality that stands out for its excellent design, clever mechanics, and constant sense of discovery. Although its story is less memorable than the game’s other aspects, that doesn’t stop it from establishing itself as one of the best indie games of 2026.

eFootball Kick-Off is a refreshing take on football games for Nintendo Switch 2, prioritizing accessibility, quick matches, and local multiplayer fun over complexity. While its limited licenses and technical shortcomings are hard to ignore, the strong on-field gameplay and affordable price make it one of the most approachable football experiences currently available on the platform.

Final Fantasy VII Rebirth remains an excellent way to experience one of the most ambitious RPGs of recent years on the go. While the Nintendo Switch 2 version successfully brings this massive adventure to a portable format, it requires more compromises than the previous installment's port. The result is still an impressive achievement, but the visual and technical reductions are more noticeable this time around. Even so, Rebirth's outstanding world, characters, and storytelling continue to shine, making it a worthwhile version for players who value portability above all else.

Pictonico! successfully turns your personal photos into a collection of fast-paced and genuinely funny microgames. While the concept is creative and often hilarious, the limited gameplay variety, reliance on touch controls, and lack of WarioWare's signature personality prevent it from reaching its full potential. Still, it's an entertaining experience for fans of quick party-style games looking for a few laughs.

Realm of Ink delivers a stylish roguelite experience with fast-paced combat, strong visual identity and fun build variety through Momo’s transformations. While balance issues and technical problems prevent it from reaching the heights of the genre’s best, there’s still plenty of fun to be found for players looking for a more accessible hack-and-slash roguelite.

Tales of Arise - Beyond the Dawn Edition is a great way to experience one of the strongest entries in the JRPG genre on Nintendo Switch 2. The handheld format feels like a natural fit for the adventure, making its world and story easy to enjoy anywhere. While some performance issues prevent this version from being the definitive way to play, the excellent gameplay, engaging combat, and wealth of content still make it a worthwhile addition to the system's library.

Invincible VS delivers battles that feel worthy of the franchise’s most brutal moments. Its accessible gameplay makes chaotic, blood-soaked fights easy for anyone to jump into, while still capturing the over-the-top violence fans expect. However, it also suffers from one of the genre’s biggest issues: prioritizing multiplayer over solo content. As a result, the story mode barely lasts more than an hour.

With 007 First Light, IO Interactive brings James Bond back to video games with an experience that perfectly captures the fantasy of Agent 007. Its blend of cinematic storytelling, stealth, combat, and driving creates an elegant, explosive, and consistently thrilling adventure. The result is one of the strongest titles of the year, a game that modernizes the classic essence of Bond and positions itself as a serious contender for awards season.

Yoshi and the Mysterious Book is a charming adventure that rewards exploration and creative thinking. Rather than relying on mechanical difficulty, the game challenges players to approach puzzles with imagination and curiosity. Every creature introduces deeper gameplay mechanics than expected, making each discovery consistently satisfying, despite a few minor technical issues with controls and music.

Legacy of the Dark Knight goes beyond LEGO's classic lighthearted tone and nostalgia. It builds a vast Gotham City with meticulous attention to detail, celebrates the legacy of the Dark Knight, and expands on the foundations laid by a legendary video game trilogy. TT Games finally decided to push its formula to the limit, and the result could be the best LEGO Batman game yet—and the closest we’ll get to reliving the golden days of Rocksteady.

Forza Horizon 6 doesn’t reinvent the franchise, but it refines nearly everything that made the series great. With a massive and varied open world set in Japan, excellent driving mechanics, stunning visuals, and an absurd amount of content, Playground Games once again delivers one of the best arcade racing experiences available today.

Ground Zero doesn’t simply replicate classic survival horror aesthetics—it builds on them, pushing familiar ideas into new territory without losing their essence. While issues with enemy design and controls hold it back at times, its strong visual and audio presentation, along with solid replay value, make it an appealing experience for classic survival horror fans.

The End of the Sun shines most in its narrative, placing Slavic culture and mythology at the center of the experience. Its puzzle-driven gameplay supports a journey that meaningfully explores these themes. The work of such a small team is admirable, but it comes with noticeable technical shortcomings, particularly in performances, performance stability, and overall production design.

The Day I Became a Bird is a short but charming experience. Its story resonates on an emotional level, transporting players to a very specific moment in life. However, its brief length and limited gameplay make it feel more like an artistic piece than a traditional video game. It’s easy to recommend if you’re looking for something light and nostalgic, but don’t expect a deep or highly replayable experience. Viewed as an interactive short story or a playable vignette, it’s far more likely to leave a lasting impression.

MOUSE: P.I. For Hire doesn’t reinvent the boomer shooter formula, but it carves out its own space through a strong visual and audio identity. Its gameplay is solid, accessible, and fun, though it can feel somewhat simple at times. The blend of noir cinema and cartoon aesthetics works better than expected, resulting in a cohesive experience that stands out more for its style and execution than for its ambition.

Kiln presents a concept that feels tailor-made for modern multiplayer, and at its best, it shows exactly why that idea works. Its pottery system is creative, the core premise is refreshing, and matches can be genuinely fun. However, its limited combat depth and a lack of content ultimately hold it back. It’s a game that’s easy to enjoy in short bursts, but unlikely to become a long-term staple in your rotation. With the right support, it could grow into something much bigger. For now, it’s a promising idea that still needs more time in the kiln.

Overall, Saros feels like a natural evolution of what Housemarque achieved with Returnal, but with enough ambition to try to surpass it. The game refines the genre and takes it to interesting and exciting new places through smart design choices that aim to balance challenge and accessibility without compromising its core essence.

Life is Strange: Reunion is, surprisingly enough, the conclusion the series needed. With a return to the classic gameplay of the first title, it also offers fans a reunion they’ll never forget. Although it may seem forced at first, it ultimately proves justified through moving character dynamics and a captivating investigative storyline.

The Posthumous Investigation doesn’t aim to reinvent the genre, but it doesn’t need to. Its strength lies in its narrative, character development, and a creative approach that draws from other art forms to deliver something different. The time loop, investigative structure, and thoughtful art direction come together to create an engaging experience that, while simple in gameplay, remains compelling throughout. It may not appeal to everyone—especially those seeking action or mechanical variety—but for players who value well-crafted storytelling, it’s a safe bet.

Fatal Frame II: Crimson Butterfly Remake proves that not every remake needs to reinvent itself to succeed. By staying true to the original while refining its technical aspects and making subtle gameplay adjustments, it preserves what made it special. Its deep narrative, psychological horror, and haunting atmosphere remain as effective as ever. It may feel a bit rigid for newcomers, but it still stands as an essential experience within the genre.

Tomodachi Life: Living the Dream is a hard game to judge by traditional standards. It doesn’t aim to be deep or complex, but instead thrives on unpredictability and player-driven chaos. While repetition and limited interaction may turn some players away, its unique identity and emergent humor make it a surprisingly engaging experience. Not essential, but undeniably distinctive.

Pragmata stands out through its distinctive combat system and the compelling relationship between its protagonists. Blending third-person shooting with puzzle-solving in a seamless package, the game emphasizes the cooperative dynamic between Diana and Hugh. This synergy not only enriches gameplay but also drives a deeply emotional narrative, centered on themes of parenthood and the lengths one is willing to go to protect their children.

Pokémon Champions delivers a more accessible competitive experience with smart quality-of-life improvements, but it falls short of greatness due to limited content and critical bugs. While the foundation is strong, it currently feels like an unfinished product that needs significant updates to truly shine.

Project: Songbird is a survival horror game that prioritizes introspection over cheap scares. Its narrative, visual style, and atmosphere set it apart, though its controls and puzzles can be frustrating. It doesn’t reinvent the genre, but it does offer a unique, intense, and deeply personal experience within the current horror landscape.

Marathon is a game that, over time, could well become a cult classic. With its intense gameplay, Bungie-quality shooting mechanics, and the risk of losing everything, it creates an addictive gameplay loop. It has a strong chance of building a solid community, though casual players are likely to opt for less demanding options.