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627 game reviews
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    • 91 Metascore
    • Critic Score
    Microsoft Flight Simulator
    One of the lesser-discussed aspects of the new Microsoft Flight Simulator is that it’s the first game in its franchise to be shipped without a number. (Even the original, 1982 version was billed as Microsoft Flight Simulator 1.0.) On one level, this is perfectly reasonable: Microsoft Flight Simulator is as much a platform as a game, and the inevitable updates to it–bug fixes, performance updates, a “fix” for Buckingham Palace, etc.–are more evolutionary in character than the wholesale upgrade implied by the transition from 1.0 to 2.0 and beyond. But the lack of any numerical identifier might also be read as a statement of ambition, or even permanence: what’s on offer, here, isn’t the final flight simulator so much as it is the forever one. From the Grasberg Mine to Redmond to your computer screen, it’s Microsoft’s world; we’re just playing in it.
    • 91 Metascore
    • Critic Score
    Shadow of the Colossus
    By lovingly recreating that feeling from scratch, this remake is not just a means for Sony to sell you Shadow of the Colossus again—it proves that its appeal is not rooted in mere nostalgia but is a lasting work of quality that transcends its era.
    • 91 Metascore
    • Critic Score
    Resident Evil 4
    When I go back and replay Resident Evil 4 again one day in the not-too-distant future, I think it will be this new version that I’ll return to instead of the original. And I truly can’t think of higher praise to lay upon the remake than that.
    • 91 Metascore
    • Critic Score
    Crusader Kings III
    I would recommend Crusader Kings III to Crusader Kings II fans, obviously. But also to Civilization and Total War fans. To people who play The Sims. Or visual novels. Or Bioware RPGS. That’s testament to how wild and untamed this game’s scope it, but also how successful it is in delivering on the promise of wrapping it all up into a single cohesive offering. Crusader Kings III may begin in what we used to call the Dark Ages, but it’s a Renaissance for strategy gaming in 2020.
    • 91 Metascore
    • Critic Score
    Split Fiction
    The studio was straight up just showing off at this point, and I’m kinda mad I’ll never experience it for the first time again. That’s the kind of feeling you can’t scrap from a creative person’s brain and sell as slop. Split Fiction is a culmination of the design ideas the studio has been working with since A Way Out, and it kinda feels like Hazelight threw everything it had at a wall, and it all stuck. It’s a tribute to several video games and to genre fiction, but also to the creative process itself. Fares may think people and AI should co-exist in creative fields, but when you’re already making games this inventive, do they have to? I don’t think so.
    • 91 Metascore
    • Critic Score
    Disco Elysium
    There’s unexpected joy in the little moments of Disco Elysium.
    • 91 Metascore
    • Critic Score
    Resident Evil 2
    The remake forces a somewhat ill-fitting gameplay frame onto environments and atmosphere that doesn’t accommodate it well. It exhibits some inspiring confidence as it presses forward without fear. But it’s that last part that gives me pause: without fear. It’s a fine game but an inconsistent one. As a remake that stumbles at times, it is neither a reinvention or a completely coherent celebration. It’s something sloppier, if captivating. It is pulse-pounding and a must play for horror fans, sometimes experimental but also superficial and rough.
    • 90 Metascore
    • Critic Score
    Animal Crossing: New Horizons
    Aurora Island started off as an escape, a way for me to run away from the people and things that were weighing me down. It became so much more than that in just a short amount of time. I found community here. Not a community shackled together by economy or industry, but one connected by mutual compassion. That doesn’t mean everyone is blithely ignorant of reality or brainwashed into mind-numbing positivity, but there’s an undercurrent of tenderness for your fellow animal that inspires each and every action we take. I know life is waiting for me back on the mainland. I know this can’t last forever. But in the meantime, I’m going to absorb as much from my time here as possible in the hopes of taking at least a little bit of Aurora back with me.
    • 90 Metascore
    • Critic Score
    Hollow Knight: Silksong
    Silksong still yields so much to see, and there are inarguably more nooks and crannies than ever to explore in Pharloom, but Hallownest’s elegant and understated mystique is absent here, and it is instead replaced by a labyrinthine behemoth–complete with many proverbial Minotaurs–though one that instills in you the pressure of obligatory completionism rather than the liberating sense of adventure.
    • 90 Metascore
    • Critic Score
    Marvel's Spider-Man 2
    Whatever lack of satisfaction I walked away from Spider-Man 2 with ultimately paled in comparison to the joy of flying over its cityscapes and being able to pretend, however briefly, that I was a member of its bright metropolis where every challenge can eventually be overcome, at least with the help of a suit, super powers, and a perfectly timed *thwip*. The game surrounding it could be much worse and I’d still come running back each time. Fortunately, it is as good as it’s ever been, and in plenty of ways, even better. Being Spider-Man never gets old.
    • 90 Metascore
    • Critic Score
    Hollow Knight
    Hollow Knight is a reminder that things are not always as they first appear, and that great rewards await those unafraid to plunge below the surface. Look deeper, it says. There’s magic beneath the soil, if only you’re willing to dig.
    • Kotaku
      • Posted Jul 5, 2018
    • 90 Metascore
    • Critic Score
    Ori and the Will of the Wisps
    With Will of the Wisps, the Ori series’ focus has widened. While some of the details have blurred in the process, the result is a game that’s much more expansive while even more magical and heart-wrenching than the original. That’s coming from someone who just spent 15 hours with a bug-riddled early review copy. I’m guessing it’s even better fixed.
    • 90 Metascore
    • Critic Score
    The Last of Us Part II Remastered
    The Last of Us Part II Remastered is the best way to play this truly excellent game, with sky-high stakes, stunning visuals, rewarding exploration, and phenomenally varied and thrilling combat. But to get the most out of it, you’ll probably need to have a stronger stomach than I do.
    • 90 Metascore
    • Critic Score
    DAVE THE DIVER
    Dave The Diver very much deserves the enormous success it’s received in its first month, selling over a million copies, and hopefully making developers Mintrocket enormously rich. They’ve created something really special, an RPG-meets-Diner Dash-meets gentle SCUBA sim, that manages to feel utterly crammed to the gills with things to do, yet joyfully relaxing to play.
    • 90 Metascore
    • Critic Score
    Monster Hunter: World
    What once felt like a well-kept secret amongst players with enough time and energy to scale the barriers to entry is now easier for everyone else to enjoy, thanks to a top-to-bottom overhaul that has made Monster Hunter: World the most beautiful and exciting game in the series. The depth remains, but many of the fiddly irritations that have been holding this series back have been swept away. As a long-time Monster Hunter player, it’s a wonderful thing to witness.
    • 90 Metascore
    • Critic Score
    Into the Breach
    Into the Breach is a hard game, and there will be inevitable losses no matter how well you play. My knowledge built on itself, and I slowly got better. Each of my new runs was inspired and informed by failure; each new success stood atop that. It may be a hard game, but the temptation to improve was irresistible. I didn’t want to stop playing.
    • 90 Metascore
    • Critic Score
    Sekiro: Shadows Die Twice
    Sekiro gets a whole lot right. Its themes permeate its feudal Japan in a compelling way, and for the most part, the gameplay is deeply satisfying. There are things it could do better, particularly avoiding repetition, but the notes Sekiro does hit are memorable enough that the slog doesn’t totally ruin the flow of gameplay, and the inertia into the end of the game carries strong. The challenge Sekiro presents is daunting and time-consuming.
    • 89 Metascore
    • Critic Score
    Xenoblade Chronicles: Definitive Edition
    Xenoblade Chronicles: Definitive Edition looks much better than the original game, but that’s not what makes it the “definitive edition.” It’s a combination of the graphical upgrade and countless little quality-of-life improvements that breath new life into this modern classic. [Impressions]
    • 89 Metascore
    • Critic Score
    Monster Hunter: World - Iceborne
    Iceborne is one of the most ambitious expansions I’ve played for any game, and it largely lives up to those ambitions. The snow-swept forests and glacial caves of the Hoarfrost Reach are breathtaking in their beauty, and Iceborne’s extensive catalogue provides plenty of challenge. Old-school fans will find a triumphant return to the difficulty they love while those who started with World will clash with some of the franchise’s best creatures. Iceborne picks up the pace without altering the core spirit of what made the series great. And while its narrative and truisms never reconcile with the core gameplay, the experience is consistently exciting. It can be a grindy slog at times, but that’s Monster Hunter. And more Monster Hunter is always welcome.
    • 89 Metascore
    • Critic Score
    Dead Cells
    I’ve found its punishing, live-die-repeat rhythm plenty engrossing without a narrative wrapper, to the point that more of a story might just be a distraction.
    • 89 Metascore
    • Critic Score
    Dark Souls III
    The sense of triumph after defeating a Dark Souls boss is unlike anything else I’ve felt in video games.
    • 89 Metascore
    • Critic Score
    Titanfall 2
    Titanfall 2 is impressive. Its influence will ripple through video games in the same way that titles like Half Life or Halo managed in their time. Beautiful and bold, Titanfall 2 is the pinnacle of first person shooters.
    • 89 Metascore
    • Critic Score
    Super Mario 3D World + Bowser's Fury
    Super Mario 3D World + Bowser’s Fury is essentially the same game on Switch that some of you may have experienced on Wii U. While there’s no denying that the new hardware can’t keep up with the game’s ambitions at times, this bundle is at its core another fantastic Mario experience. Sure, it pales in comparison to the franchise’s best installments, with a limited moveset and janky camera angles often spoiling the imaginative stages and power-ups, but just like pizza, “bad” Mario is still pretty damn good.
    • 89 Metascore
    • Critic Score
    Pokemon Pokopia
    Pokopia does a great job of making even the minor characters in its world stand out by giving them memorable bits of dialogue and interactions for you to stumble upon, and making them involved in the day-to-day town management by helping build structures, break down resources, and just contribute to the city’s development with ideas and gifts.
    • 89 Metascore
    • Critic Score
    Dead Space
    15 years later, we have more compelling protagonists to choose from, and even more interesting space zombies, like those in Dead Space creator Glen Schofield’s The Callisto Protocol, which is also mired by repetitive bosses, but at least looks and sounds incredible. The Dead Space remake accomplishes what it set out to do, it makes an old game compatible for modern consoles. But that’s all it does. 2008’s lightning stays in its bottle.
    • 89 Metascore
    • Critic Score
    Fire Emblem: Three Houses
    It isn’t pretty or easy, and it comes with more than its share of heartbreak. But it is worth it: to fight, to resist, to push for a better world. In Fire Emblem: Three Houses, Dimitri, Edelgard, and Claude all envision a future for Fódlan that’s radically different from the one they live in. By the end of the game, one of their dreams will be realized. It’s nice to spend time in a world where that’s not only certain, but believable.
    • 89 Metascore
    • Critic Score
    Death Stranding 2: On The Beach
    I’m not sure I want to go through another chapter in Death Stranding’s convoluted, messy, and often contradictory universe. Especially if the next game’s ending is as unsatisfying as Death Stranding 2’s finale. Sure, the bizarre moments are amazing to watch on screen. So much money in Death Stranding 2’s development budget was put into some of the silliest and strangest ideas. And that’s all wonderful. I love it. But it doesn’t make up for the fact that so much of the game feels, ironically, disconnected from what you actually do in Death Stranding 2: On The Beach. Or that it all ends so poorly. But I guess I can always build more ziplines and roads and get the satisfaction of a job well done.
    • 89 Metascore
    • Critic Score
    Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth
    Its story will be most rewarding to those who have played previous Yakuza games, but it tells a self-contained narrative that is usually pretty good about getting you up to speed on past events. And even when the story does dip into its own lore and history too much, which will undoubtedly satisfy long-time fans of the series, Infinite Wealth makes for an excellent introduction to these characters and gives you reasons to be invested in them in the here and now, with an entertaining tale that manages to stay fresh over the course of its many hours of gameplay.
    • 89 Metascore
    • Critic Score
    Resident Evil Requiem
    Requiem starts with a lot of promise, seemingly striving to pave the way for the future of the series that it then seems too afraid to follow through on, but the bigger swings it had the chance to take only happen if a game is interested in real introspection about its legacy. Resident Evil is 30 years old now, and we’ve reached a point in this medium’s existence where a lot of franchises are celebrating long lives and considering what the next 30 years looks like. Requiem seems mostly content to think about the past and not give much thought to the future. But hey, the guns shoot good, the scares still hit, and Leon still looks good in a tight shirt. So maybe there’s no real need to make sweeping changes when the formula of multiple eras still goes down real smooth, even if it leaves me feeling a little bit empty.
    • 89 Metascore
    • Critic Score
    Dispatch
    In the end, I had a fine time with Dispatch. I liked it when I was playing it, looked forward to its next episodes when I wasn’t, and most of my biggest complaints with it I express with a shrug. Sometimes your experience with something is not that serious, and it’s nice to be able to leave something behind knowing you’d pick it up again if another pair of episodes dropped next week. And if no future episodes come, that would be okay, too.
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