South of Midnight features a striking setting with excellent music, and explores a world that is rarely visited. But its dull gameplay, uneven writing and repetitive structure don't exactly create a fairy tale ending.

Koira is another minimalist 2D adventure that has a few charming moments and a warm friendship at its core, but doesn't really offer enough to stand out in the crowded genre.

Another solid entry for the series, Assassin's Creed Shadows offers a wonderfully rendered natural world, though it's not as unique as it once could have been. The typical mix of stealth and action gameplay is still enjoyable and is now split between two protagonists, though switching between them can be cumbersome. Fans of the franchise should be satisfied, if not exactly impressed.

A tycoon game about building a bar for vampires is a great idea - but sadly the execution here leaves a lot to be desired. The management gameplay is a bit too simple for my liking, but it's the constant game-breaking bugs that really suck the fun out of the experience.

Civilization VII brings a lot of changes to the formula, but they don't feel entirely innovative or fully realized. The core of the experience retains its addictive qualities, and yet lacks refinement at launch.

Engaging combat, a beautiful world, and intriguing story moments ensure Avowed is an action-RPG worth exploring, but tiresome encounters, progression quirks, and dull companions keep it from achieving divinity.

The medieval RPG series offers an improved sophomore effort, with another engaging and very immersive open world, interesting quests and better technical performance. Not everyone will find joy in its rigid mechanics and challenging combat, but Deliverance 2 continues to offer a strong foundation of some devoted role-playing.

While the returning sniping and stealth mechanics keep Sniper Elite: Resistance on target across some good open levels, the lack of innovation means it is not a surefire hit for everyone.

As a precision platformer with a focus on speedrunning, Unless works well. Mastering its tiny levels is satisfying, but the very short runtime means that its good ideas never really have time to fully develop.

Tribe Nation has some decent design foundations, and its low asking price should appeal to fans of the roguelike genre looking for a specific type of challenging experience.

Although the abstract portions of Discolored 2 might be too elusive for some, the more direct puzzles fare better across the 4-5 hour journey, along with some active threats that create pressure.

High speed and great movement mechanics makes Echo Point Nova a joy to play as you leap between floating islands and clear battle arenas high in the sky.

The combination of turn-based tactics with a run and gun style works far better than it should, thanks to mechanics that emphasize moving quickly around the battlefield. Repetitive missions and dull enemies drag down the experience slightly, but this is still worth playing for genre fans or Metal Slug veterans.

Fantasian Neo Dimension is a challenging JRPG that should entertain diehard fans of the genre. The plot is nothing to write home about, but the satisfying combat and gorgeous visuals help it stand out.

Indiana Jones makes a triumphant return in the Great Circle thanks to a stellar cast, good puzzles, gameplay variety, attention to detail, and solid technical performance. It is a must play for fans of the whip-cracking hero, and adventure gamers.

Despite the tremendous atmosphere, big open world, and familiar mechanics, S.T.A.L.K.E.R. 2: Heart of Chornobyl is an uneven experience due to AI flaws, combat annoyances, laborious exploration, and technical issues.

Although still impressive and unmatched in its scale, the 2024 sequel to Microsoft Flight Simulator can't be carried by its novelty alone. The added career mode seems competent on paper, and being able to step outside your aircraft adds immersion. But the entire experience is hamstrung by very disappointing visuals and data streaming issues, as well as plentiful bugs and design shortcomings.

Forgive Me Father 2 is a throwback FPS with a stylish Lovecraftian presentation. If you're craving a slick arena shooter to play for a few hours then this is a good option, although the pedestrian level design and short campaign holds it back from competing with the best in the genre.

Mario & Luigi: Brothership is far from the duo's best RPG outing, but that's not to say it is a bad one. The combat is engaging enough to remain entertaining throughout the 40+ hour adventure, even as it crawls along against the tide.

LEGO Horizon Adventures faithfully recreates the world of machines from the PlayStation game series, and has some fun combat. However, it is aimed squarely at younger players, and is rather brief. A fun and accessible introduction for newcomers, but returning fans will find this diversion not as worthwhile.

Stealth fans might find enough entertainment in A Quiet Place: The Road Ahead, thanks to moments of decent immersion and sound manipulation, but inconsistent and shallow mechanics hold it back.

Dragon Age: The Veilguard is a worthwhile return for the RPG franchise. Despite some oversimplification of mechanics and uneven writing, the new combat style and interesting characters and narrative choices make for an engaging fantasy adventure.

With a wonderfully diverse campaign, hyperactive multiplayer, and a super replayable Zombies mode, Call of Duty: Black Ops 6 is a brilliant showcase and the best franchise entry in a while.

Sonic X Shadow Generations is a mishmash of enjoyable 2D platforming and frustrating 3D sequences. Shadow at least manages to somewhat mitigate the clumsy controls thanks to some interesting gameplay wrinkles. The title also looks good, but probably won't bring the pair of hedgehogs back to the forefront of the genre.

The Casting of Frank Stone may not be weighed down by its ties to the Dead by Daylight universe, but it's nonetheless unable to reach the surface from under the waves of a slow story, dull gameplay and a lack of thrills.

Despite excellent facial animations and wonderful music, Double Exposure has pacing issues, unlikable characters, dire gameplay, tonal problems, and is an incomplete imitation of the perfect storm.

Thronefall pares back the usual tower defence formula into something simpler but still quite satisfying. Being forced to work with a predefined layout for your castle is a major limitation, and one that will frustrate some, but the perks and mutations system reintroduces just enough complexity to give Thronefall staying power. It also helps that the game looks great.

Neva is a great looking game that provides a few hours of joy from simply being immersed in its world. The gameplay, story, and pacing are a bit more subdued, however.

Aside from some bland combat and performance concerns, Silent Hill 2 is a good remake that takes the original’s intriguing narrative and crams it with more survival-horror gameplay while upgrading the visuals to do justice to the fascinating setting.

The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom may not star Link, but it is on par with many of those classics. The echoes system is another demonstration of the franchise's ability to craft engaging gimmicks. While it may be underserved by the system’s dated tech, Nintendo has once again delivered a creative entry in one of their flagship series.

NHL 25 makes some minor strides to improve on last year's game, but will mostly appeal to those interested in team management and being a superstar forward. As a franchise, it continues to wait for a top draft pick that can turn things around in a meaningful way.

EA Sports FC 25 delivers on the usual incremental improvement model of this sports franchise. It's a solid football game with plenty of variety that fans won't be too conflicted about getting stuck into.

Much as I like the Age of Empires games, Age of Mythology's god powers and myth units dial up the fun factor significantly. The dramatic graphical update and small but sensible gameplay tweaks in this Retold edition make it easy to recommend for new and returning players alike.

Frostpunk 2 isn't afraid to shake things up and bring a different kind of experience to the franchise, although that new design philosophy leaves a bit more to be desired in mechanics, UI and narrative elements.

Sumerian Six almost perfectly emulates the games from Mimimi, offering a satisfying covert strategy experience that involves weaving through patrols, dissolving bodies, and scaring Nazis to death.

NBA 2K25 is an improvement from last year, but still suffers from most of the same self-inflicted issues. The over-bearing presence of microtransactions does the great on-court gameplay a disservice.

Athena Crisis is squarely aimed at long-time Advance Wars fans, who will likely find much to enjoy in both the official missions and the potentially endless content created by the community. It falls short of the best in the genre, like Wargroove or Into the Breach, but is still worth a look for those who get a kick out of sending pixelated soldiers to their deaths.

Ara: History Untold is a decent foray into the historical 4X, with enough borrowed and slightly tweaked elements to make it worth a look for fans of the genre. Its original ideas become too much of a slog however, along with a scattering of UI issues and performance hiccups that need addressing.

Test Drive Unlimited Solar Crown is unable to recapture the magic or originality of its predecessors, nor keep up with the current leaders of the genre. It's an open world racing game that lacks content and has too many frustrations to qualify for the starting grid.

The Plucky Squire has a nice art style and some clever tricks with shifting between two different perspectives on the world, though ultimately this storybook will appeal to younger players the most.

Despite great visuals and hectic combat, Space Marine 2 stumbles on its repetition and generic missions. While co-op has limited appeal, the single player is boring and the competitive action is mostly an afterthought. And even devout followers may lose faith due to the technical issues.

The criminal undercurrent in Star Wars Outlaws creates an enjoyable and unpredictable story, and the competent stealth, gunplay, and space dogfights ensure that fans of the original trilogy will enjoy the stunning views while earning a reputation.

As an entertaining, accessible, and polished 3D platformer, Astro Bot offers plenty of variety in both visuals and gameplay, delivering a lively space adventure with plenty of PlayStation references.

Phantom Spark pares away everything inessential to provide a blissful time trial racing experience, buttressed by pleasant pastel visuals and a calming soundtrack. There are no extra bells and whistles, but what this indie racer does, it does very well.

Solid deck building fundamentals are let down by a lack of progression and weak not-quite-RPG questing. If you like the idea of a deck builder with a relatively open overworld and a cheery fantasy vibe, you might still enjoy this one, but it's hard to recommend above its more sophisticated indie peers.

The Crush House has its share of solid moments, but it ends up oscillating between creativity and boredom. The day to day filming schedule needed to be spruced up to avoid repetitive dialogue and bland footage.

Dustborn grabs the generic modern day adventure game formula and adds a bunch of cliché and often annoying characters, a subpar story, some low-grade music, along with a heavy-handed dose of politics front and center, resulting in a middling and overlong road trip that's more concerned about its poorly delivered message than anything else.

There is a moderately intriguing narrative in Thalassa: Edge of the Abyss as you solve mysteries within a well-preserved shipwreck, but flimsy clues, tedious wandering, and technical blemishes mean playing it can be like fighting to keep your head above water.

World of Goo 2 picks up right where the original game left off, offering more levels and entertaining conundrums to construct your way out of. It's no longer the unique physics puzzler that it once was, but the mechanics have proven to be timeless.

With appealing pixel graphics and some smart tweaks to the bullet heaven formula, Swarm Grinder is a lot of fun... until it isn't. The lack of variety in playable characters, levels, and weapons drags down the experience, but die hard fans of the genre may still enjoy the grind. Those prone to nightmares involving insectoid aliens who want to suck your face off should probably avoid.

Given its low price, Nobody Wants to Die may be worth checking out for the visual style and unique atmosphere, but the basic gameplay and underwhelming story make for a forgettable adventure.

Featuring enjoyable dungeons and intriguing plot developments, Dungeons of Hinterberg is a fun escape to a magical version of Austria. It doesn't stray far from its comfort zone, but the basics here are solid enough to prop up the highlights of the experience.

Anger Foot’s rapid-fire, door-kicking action will compel some to dance along to its vibrant beat, but repetition and lackluster levels mean not all will be swept off their feet.

More a cyberpunk city creation tool than a game in the traditional sense, Dystopika can offer a brief distraction - or awaken the urban architect within you. Either outcome seems fair for its low asking price.

#BLUD may not bring anything new to the table, but it has a fun personality and unique presentation to make it worth taking a chance on for fans of the genre.

Until Then has an interesting art style and some decent writing, but mundane pacing, limited interactivity and contrived, poorly delivered drama make for a forgettable adventure.

Although not quite the triumphant homecoming fans hoped for, Homeworld 3 is still a sleek and at times spectacular space RTS.

Aided by its magnificent setting, purposeful suspense, and slick pacing, Still Wakes the Deep is a nicely crafted first-person horror game that needed more complexity.

XDefiant is a solid multiplayer shooter that may not surpass the leaders of the genre anytime soon, but it proves to be a notably alluring, free alternative.

Duck Detective: The Secret Salami is a charming adventure, with a good art style and some fun but occasionally wily puzzling. It may be very brief, but it's also quite lowly priced.

Read Only Memories: Neurodiver feels like a step back from its predecessor on just about every level. The plot is lacking in intrigue and severely underbaked, while the simplistic gameplay offers little challenge. While it's nice to get further detail on the universe of the series, this sequel severely disappoints.

Senua's Saga: Hellblade II keeps the basics intact, and while a strong lead character, great animations, and simple but enjoyable combat continue to deliver, the poor pacing and performance issues prevent this sequel from breaking free of its past.

More a brief collectathon than a worthwhile adventure, Little Kitty, Big City is a somewhat charming but ultimately forgettable feline trek to get back to taking a nap.

With neat retro visuals, smart puzzles, and an interesting theme park location, Crow Country is an appealing survival horror game that suffers a little from clumsy action and minimal challenge.

TopSpin 2K25 is a solid return to the court for the veteran franchise. It's a bit lacking in content, from the limited roster to the repetitive modes, but the excellent gameplay mechanics offer a lot of hope for the future.

With dull gameplay, conflicting art styles, stiff dialogue and a weak ending, Indika is a philosophy-infused discussion of religion that's unable to carry its burdens.

Harold Halibut overstays its welcome like a free diver that descends too far. Its painfully boring gameplay consists of walking back and forth as the story unhurriedly transpires. Still, the oddball characters and sublime stop-motion aesthetics may hook a few gamers who are happy to wade in the shallows.

The video game adaptation of Sand Land brings one of Akira Toriyama's lesser-known works into the spotlight. It follows the source material well and cleverly expands on the story, but the gameplay is lacking.

Stellar Blade is a mostly enjoyable action game with solid combat, strong presentation, and good enemy designs. Its scantily clad heroine is not very interesting, and neither is the story, but there is enough here to warrant a peek.

Pepper Grinder is highly enjoyable, but a touch too short. It's a very unique platformer that manages to stand out in a very crowded genre, even if it fumbles during the final levels a little bit.

Although the Australian setting is good, and it occasionally shows potential, Broken Roads is a clumsy party-based RPG with mediocre combat, pacing issues, and bland fetch quests.

Close quarters action games are already stressful enough - but piling on roguelike elements, and having to watch basic AI try to execute on your elaborate plans, makes for a tactical game that's often as frustrating as it is satisfying. There is plenty of content here, but only for a rather specific audience.

Children of the Sun is a dark and engaging puzzle that successfully transports familiar mechanics into a fresh setting at the speed of a flying bullet.

The first mainline game for Princess Peach in nearly two decades is a charming adventure with some solid ideas and excellent boss battles. Princess Peach: Showtime demonstrates that the heroine is worthy of being a leading protagonist on her own merit, despite a few performance issues.

While some walking sims have evolved, Open Roads is stuck in the past. Its two good characters cannot offset the bland interactivity and mystery that is as flat as the game's 2D conversations.

MLB The Show 24 may not offer up many changes when it comes to outfield action, but the modes continue to be improved. I loved seeing Road to the Show finally get some dev time, and Storylines continues to be one of the strongest modes introduced by the series. If you're looking to escape from the potential disappointment of your real-life ball team, you'll find plenty of ways to do so here.

Underneath the spaceship setting in Between Horizons is a grounded detective game that features good logical deductions and math-based solutions. More case depth and presentation tweaks could have taken the mission further, but it is still a fine option for the gumshoes of this generation.

South Park: Snow Day is an authentic adaptation that has a couple of decent ideas, but the drab combat and a short runtime leave it stuck in a snowbank, to be rescued only by the faithful fans of the show.

With movement and combat upgrades, Outcast – A New Beginning eventually comes close to being a decent open-world shooter, but terrible fetch quests, bland activities, tech issues, and narrative gaffes mean that the colorful world of Adelpha does not bear enough fruit.

Rise of the Ronin is a case where more isn't always better. It's got varied and challenging combat, a wealth of content, and a wide variety of mechanics in a story that spans over a decade. But while most of the individual components work, many feel unrefined, and their sheer volume doesn't elevate the experience.

As buggy as the bayou, Alone in the Dark is a disappointing return for the classic horror franchise. Derceto Manor has corners worth exploring, and the puzzles are smartly designed. However, the clunky combat, lack of scares, unengaging story and drab voice acting sully the overall package.

Like squeezing blood from a stone, The Outlast Trials is a repetitive chore that features monotonous searches and running laps through mazes until there is nothing left but pain and the option to share the misery with others.

Pacific Drive is a fantastic survival game with an addictive gameplay loop that involves forging deep connections to junctions, progressing deeper into an ever-changing Zone, upgrading a quirky vehicle, and navigating through challenges that appear on the road ahead.

Mario vs. Donkey Kong brings the classic GBA title back with new crisp graphics, but there has not been enough changes to the mechanics or controls to make this feel contemporary on the Switch.

Minami Lane is a nice-looking, bite-sized town management game that offers an engaging slice of gameplay for a very low price.

Skull and Bones may have survived the turbulent seas of its long voyage to release, but the end result is a game that's barely kept afloat by its solid sailing mechanics, while the uninspiring content, underwhelming presentation, and poor multiplayer design punch far too many holes in the hull.

There are fascinating and fun elements in Ultros, from the splashy visuals, the alien design, and the unexpectedly enticing gardening mechanic. However, most other facets of the gameplay just aren't up to par for a modern metroidvania.

Ordained by a clear narrative, resolute characters, intriguing hauntings and an eventually favorable combat model, Banishers: Ghosts of New Eden is a morally infused spirit smasher set in a large world that needed a little exorcism.

Helldivers 2 offers some chaotic and entertaining moments in the early stages, as you hop between planets with friends, call in devastating strikes, and spreading democracy. But as the hours begin to accumulate, increasing difficulty levels unravel some of the annoying design decisions, and along with persistent connectivity problems, it seems that the game could have used more prep time.

Like a Dragon: Infinite Wealth encaptures everything great about the franchise, from its political melodrama-esque plot, decent gameplay mechanics and bonkers side missions. This is one of the best Yakuza games yet and one that returning fans should not miss.

Coming off of a remarkably strong year for the genre, Tekken 8 continues the trend of excellent fighters for this console generation. It's a visually dynamic and enjoyable to play title that will be a part of the scene for years to come. I just wish there were more options for single-player modes.

Despite The Cub’s basic platforming, with clunky trial and error, its slightly bizarre world, cool and varied music, and great visual design make it worth playing.

Turnip Boy Robs a Bank continues the criminal adventures of its root vegetable hero, and thanks to improved gameplay, visuals, and continued whacky jokes, the series is starting to create a rather enticing garnish.

The Lost Crown is a good modern template for an old franchise, taking the essence of Prince of Persia into a familiar metroidvania format. With fun combat, good boss battles, and smooth platforming mechanics, only the convoluted levels and overlong platforming keep it from being timeless.

Raccoo Venture is highly inspired by the classic 3D platformers of yesteryear but does not implement enough unique ideas to stand out from the crowd. There are some fantastic environmental puzzles that are thoroughly fun to solve, but they are far too short. The uneven difficulty, annoying secondary character mechanics, and a few bugs ultimately dilute the experience.

Trinity Fusion is enjoyable to play, but the overall package feels lacking in comparison to others in the genre. The lack of character development, and underwhelming visuals are kept afloat by enjoyable core gameplay that should mostly appeal to dedicated fans of the genre.

Ready or Not successfully imports the moment-to-moment gameplay and intensity of the classic SWAT franchise, but without much innovation and a host of major AI issues this tactical shooter was seemingly not quite ready to breach out of Early Access.

The natural world of Pandora is the main star of this latest video game adaptation of the Avatar franchise. It's supported by the competent and familiar mechanics, but let down by the weak story and occasional lack of polish.