Re:Turn: One Way Trip is a standout indie horror adventure that absolutely understands atmosphere and pacing. The narrative gets a bit flimsy in some areas due to a lacking supporting cast, but it ends up nailing important gameplay systems that will make you swear to never ever aboard a ghost train in your life.

Gal Gun: Double Peace is exactly what it looks like, so you’re bound to know if this game will fit your library. Despite the evident dullness emitted by the gameplay loop’s repetition and lack of challenge, the cast is likable with humorous and charming writing. Plus, there is an impressive degree of content here for those who find themselves invested in the experience. This is also a perfect Switch game, making it an ideal title to play on-the-go for strangers to glimpse at and admire.

The intricacy of Trails rivals most gaming series you’ll find out there, and in a personal sense, Azure demonstrates that even if it stumbles with delivery, it still manages to comprise an unforgettable experience.

Process of Elimination is a wild emotional rollercoaster. Despite the story’s initially weak pacing, the narrative manages to deceive you so thoroughly that you’re led into a loop you may not see coming. Similar is the overall gameloop, where the strategy segments don’t improve until you’ve spent a few hours understanding the nuanced systems.

A Fold Apart is creative and bright, but it falls short on the execution of its own mechanics. The narrative is what will capture your attention as you go on a journey with these two love-starved characters. If you’re looking for an artful adventure, then you’ll find one here as assisting these characters to express their love through unconventional means was a great way to spend an evening.

Princess Maker 2: Regeneration is a nostalgic life simulation game where players guide an adopted daughter from ages ten to eighteen, helping her grow through various jobs, classes, and social interactions. Despite its charming visuals and diverse gameplay mechanics, the game suffers from repetitive tasks and occasional translation issues. Players must balance their daughter's health, stress, and interests to ensure a fulfilling life, making it a mix of nostalgia and repetitive challenges.

Star Wars: Republic Commando is a slower-paced, more strategic first-person shooter that is somehow more about unit positioning and character banter than it is about blasting through enemies. There’s still plenty of action to be found, but it’s really the crew who carry this Star Wars adventure to an overall enjoyable experience. I’d say that makes it a story well told packed for a new generation of gamers.

In terms of pure enjoyment, Steel Seed gets the job done with tight stealth design and meaningful upgrades that can utterly alter your approach to enemies, but its lackluster narrative and peculiar action incorporations can make the experience feel dull and unfocused. If you’ve been craving a new stealth adventure, Steel Seed may scratch that itch, though you’ll need to temper expectations before diving in.

When going through the motions of Lila’s Sky Ark, you can find yourself entranced by the world’s vibrancy and the alluring atmosphere. But once you’re done being mesmerized, you start to feel disenchanted by the gameplay. Nothing feels fully immersive or exceptional, but nothing also feels abysmal or detrimental. As Lila, you wade through your journey and come out the other side feeling slightly satisfied. It was an above-average ride that you may not try again, but not one you regret.

All in Abyss: Judge the Fake does a respectable job of tackling this gambling card game trend by combining it with a good old-fashioned death game. The game doesn’t take that lightly either; each scene is well crafted and goes the distance whether you can stomach it or not. The pacing is just right for a story you may not be completely attached to, and there’s enough here to enjoy even after you’ve cleared the game, that is, if you want to play more Texas Hold ‘Em and be the cutest card player in the region. I promise I’m not being cringe, that’s exactly what Asuha’s goal is. Anyway, I had fun, but don’t expect too much depth.

What the Dub is a lot of fun, even with a few hiccups that will hopefully be implemented in future updates or possibly a sequel. It’s charming in presentation, takes the best form of competition, and manages to stand out among them. I eagerly anticipate either a sequel or another party game from this team, as they truly deserve their space at any party.

Brok the Investigator is a charming take on a classic genre, regardless if the systems don’t play nice with each other. The story has a slow start, and the combat is a bit messy, but those who stick around will discover some great moments of investigation gameplay and memorable character interactions. Brok may not always be the best choice for the job, but the heart that is in this title will keep you engaged.

The Sekimeiya: Spun Glass is a mixed bag of a visual novel. The early chapters and a weak cast weigh on the experience, but it builds upon that with a strong narrative direction and presentation. It all comes together to provide a decent mystery that really finds its footing after the opening chapters.

Collar X Malice Unlimited is a fancy and fun expansion of the base story that gives players a chance to spend just a little more time with the cast of characters. The additional scenarios only build on the established relationships as they don’t overshadow the overarching plot. There’s a lack of tension in some areas, but if you’ve played the original this acts as a natural progression of the series and is just as brilliant in its own way.

Dokapon Kingdom: Connect remains a friend-ruining RPG board game experience that mirrors its PS2 counterpart. The unique mini-games and systems return to bring this unconventional party game to modern players. Playing with friends is still fun over a decade later, and the online options make it even more accessible. Still, its nuanced systems and limited new gameplay features may make it more of a novelty than a game with significant staying power.

The Strongest TOFU is a quirky and fast-paced platformer that delivers a surprisingly fun experience. With its simple yet effective mechanics, bite-sized levels, and hilarious tofu-themed presentation, it’s a short but memorable adventure. Add in wacky boss fights, random tofu facts, and even live-action cutscenes, and you have an indie gem that embraces its absurdity while offering solid gameplay.

Amairo Chocolate doesn’t break the mold with daily life romance. It also doesn’t capitalize on its animal girl premise even after setting up a pretty good foundation for why they exist. It’s all just too surface level, and the slow pacing will turn anyone who is not completely in love with these characters. Still, they sure are cute, so that might be enough to ask them out for coffee.

Robotics;Notes DaSH is a game that had such an incredible base, and some terrific story beats set up to resolve but is constantly at odds with its progression system and Daru’s presence within the story. This ultimately runs counter to everything that made its predecessor so fantastic. If you liked the original story, you would get some enjoyment out of the endings, and there are some fun goofy moments to be had with Kaito and the gang. Still, they are severely undercut by a new insufferable lead and the echoes of what could have been something truly great. Maybe we can delude ourselves into making the next one better, yeah?

The Foundation will keep you busy for a few hours, but in the end, the side-quests are the best part about it, which is sad. I didn’t care for the new powers as they just made the glaring copy and paste environments more apparent. However, if you enjoyed the gameplay and battles from the base game, you’ll get that here, with even less direction.

Alone in the Dark is the best thing that has happened to this series in a very long time. It presents this supernatural and strange narrative in a modern light that doesn't overshadow the campy and over-the-top presentation of the original. Still, I feel like the developers are playing it safe here with the gameplay systems, including the underutilized dual protagonist concept. Regardless, the low barrier of entry ensures that anyone playing feels immersed in this world, and a sequel can build on the excellent foundation of this revival.

Moonless Moon is a visual novel that thrives in a melancholy feeling and has an interesting concept. However, it never gets quite as deep in emotional or narrative exploration to become a must-play of its genre. Even so, the moody adolescence experience is likely to resonate with some players.

Disintegration seemed to be in a hurry to introduce itself to the world, and this ended up hurting its campaign. The plot won’t hold your attention, but the unique gameplay mechanics of FPS and RTS systems will surely keep you invested across each map. When it works, Disintegration is a hell of a fun time. Here’s to hoping that the multiplayer mode evolves with the community.

Harvest Moon: The Winds of Anthos seems to be a step in the right direction for Natsume. The open-world approach distinguishes it as a game you can immerse yourself in, provided you can endure the lackluster prologue and the challenging early game. It stands well on its own, though I would caution against playing the Nintendo Switch version due to its poor optimization, which hampers the overall gaming experience.

City Hunter makes a long overdue return with a fully translated re-release of its 1991 PC-Engine adaptation, delivering slick presentation, strong retro atmosphere, and thoughtful bonus content that elevates what is ultimately an average but enjoyable 2D action shooter. While the core gameplay remains simple and repetitive, the enhanced mode, hard mode, art gallery, jukebox, and faithful digital recreation show clear preservation care. For fans of Ryo Saeba and late 80s anime style, this is a stylish nostalgia trip that is easy to recommend on sale.

Sword Art Online: Fractured Daydream is an SAO fan’s dream and an action RPG fan’s nightmare. While the rewards provide a nice dose of dopamine across each match, there’s not enough content here to justify fans of online action games to invest themselves in. The story might hold you for around 10 hours, but after that, you’re looking at hours and hours of grinding across the same handful of maps and missions, completing uncreative daily quests and begging for something new. Still, the action gameplay is incredibly addictive, but the support needs to show up as fans did on day one to witness the cringy emotional drama of SAO, one more time.

Prinny Presents NIS Classics Vol. 2 features two overlooked titles from this developer’s catalog. They are insanely fun games with deep systems, whether you’re in the mood for a tactical RPG or dungeon crawler. However, they lack modern options, limiting the appeal to a new generation of gamers accustomed to a higher level of development put towards these re-releases. For better or worse, these titles are exactly how I remember, but I still had a blast replaying them.

Sonic Superstars is an adequate 2D Sonic adventure boasting great character control and stage theming alongside significantly improved boss battles. However, the peculiar implementation of the Chaos Emeralds and the only decent level design prevent this outing from really establishing itself as a must-play for veterans of the franchise or genre. At the very least, there’s a reasonable offering of supplemental content packed in replays and bonus modes to satisfy the fans awaiting an original 2D Sonic game.

Shin chan: Shiro and the Coal Town brings the mischievous charm of the beloved 5-year-old protagonist to life in a cozy adventure. Faithfully capturing Shin chan's witty personality, the game invites both fans and newcomers to explore a beautifully presented world filled with vibrant cel-shaded graphics and immersive voice acting. While the intriguing storyline and stellar presentation make it feel like stepping into an animated series, the repetitive fetch quests and limited gameplay variety may leave some players wanting more. It's a delightful journey for younger gamers but falls a bit short in delivering the depth expected from the cozy genre.