Space Channel 5 VR does a great job of bringing the series to virtual reality, but other than that, it doesn’t do much to set itself apart from its predecessors. The story is concise, and the fun dances within the trial mode are pretty much the saving grace of the title in terms of “content” offered. Still, it’s a damn good time. For the price of the game, you’re paying for the nostalgic nature of it all, and you won’t be disappointed. Those new to the series might not understand anything that’s going on, but here’s to hoping this marks a new future for Ulala because we’d love to spend more time with her.

Bakugan: Champions of Vestroia is a tedious and almost mindless adventure that will leave you staring at the screen, wondering if it will ever get better. Sadly, it doesn’t. However, its systems are easy enough for a younger fan of the series to enjoy and receive a starter course in RPG systems. The biggest compliment I can give the game is that it works, but other than that, this Bakugan Brawl isn’t as epic as it could have been.

Foreclosed excels in world-building and presentation. The graphics and stylistic choices of a comic book frame the narrative and its structure. Though the brightness of the neon lights are strewn throughout the city, this dystopian world is rather dark. It’s a shame the game is only a few hours long, making it more of a cinematic experience. Despite its shortcomings with control and narrative, I still had a lot of fun trying to get Evan’s life back from the authority above.

Bubsy in: The Purrfect Collection is a lovingly curated yet brutally honest preservation of one of gaming’s most chaotic mascots. Packed with extras and accessibility features, it faithfully captures every quirky, frustrating, and occasionally charming moment of Bubsy’s retro reign, frustration and all.

The Revenant Prince has many of the core elements that make a compelling RPG, with an intense battle system and a mysterious story. Still, there’s a noticeable amount of refinement that could have made the experience more approachable and user friendly. Shaping the adventure based on player choice offers a sense of immersion in this dark world, and I was gladly along for the ride.

Fighting Force Collection resurrects two failed 3D experiments that have not aged gracefully, pairing clunky combat and awkward design with a bare minimum remaster effort from Limited Run Games. While the historical curiosity of a lost Streets of Rage 4 prototype may intrigue genre historians, weak emulation, poor presentation, and fundamentally sluggish gameplay make this a tough sell for anyone beyond preservation purists.

Akiba’s Trip: Hellbound & Debriefed needs to played without any distractions from other games because the second you put it down, you may never care to return to it. Its lack of quality-of-life features solidifies it as a relic of the past, but its writing and characters make it out to be something that fits right in with your group of otaku friends. It’s not an easy game to get through, but its charm is enough to want a true sequel.

Silent Hill: The Short Message diverges from traditional Silent Hill experiences, offering a brief, two-hour narrative focused on character Anita's personal struggles and insecurities. Set in the eerie Kettenstadt building, the game attempts to blend psychological depth with the franchise's hallmark uncanny atmosphere. However, it falls short in gameplay depth and environmental interaction, especially when compared to predecessors like PT. The game's simple exploration mechanics, predictable narrative twists, and lack of engaging puzzles lead to a somewhat detached experience. Despite decent graphics and an attempt to tackle complex themes, the game's execution and lack of immersive elements leave it feeling underwhelming. While it represents an experimental approach by the developers and is commendable for its ambition, Silent Hill: The Short Message ultimately fails to deliver the profound impact or memorable gameplay that fans of the series might expect.

Ultimately, Fairy Tail: Beach Volleyball Havoc has an interesting premise, but it struggles to deliver a polished and enjoyable experience. The chaotic, magic-infused volleyball matches have the potential to be fun, but the lack of control and balance holds it back. Fans of Fairy Tail might appreciate the effort to bring something new to the franchise, but as it stands, the game feels more like a missed opportunity than a solid addition to the series.

Balan Wonderworld contains elements of what could have been a stellar platformer with its compelling ideas of advancement notions. However, its ineptitude with several gameplay design decisions makes it a constant struggle of unfun progression, questionable execution, and ultimately a heap of lost potential. Regardless of how much you desire to play it, I highly implore waiting for a sale because it is just not worth the full $60 price tag. Now, all I desire from the remnants of this failed title is a movie with its superb cutscene direction and animation. That is something I could get behind.

A3: Still Alive is quite a blend of innovation, nostalgia, and good game design that resembles classic PC MMORPGs. Even through its basic fantasy setting, the content and solid gameplay offer reasons to stay invested in this world. The plot won’t have you emotionally invested, but there’s so much quality here in terms of solid connection across the multiple modes and systems that I should be present in all games of this genre. Netmarble definitely delivered in giving something to both new and old MMORPG fans.

Neptunia Riders VS Dogoos attempts to deliver a Katamari-like gameplay experience with a comedic premise, starring fan-favorite Uzume Tennouboshi. However, the game falls flat with its rushed narrative, shallow mechanics, and lack of meaningful content, making it feel more like a cash grab than a worthy entry in the Neptunia series.

Even though Jump Force has tried its best to stay in the fight years past its release, it just can’t land a punch. All of its problems far outweigh its positives, leading to an experience that only hardcore Shonen Jump fans can enjoy. If you’ve been waiting for the Switch port of the game to finally jump in, you’re almost certainly better off just waiting for something better.

Those Who Remain leaves much to be desired and never pays off, no matter how many notes you read. Sure, there’s a decent narrative to discover within the game’s dark themes, but that is overshadowed by the sloppy structure and poor control scheme. It’s a shame because I really felt like there would be some kind of pay off at the end of this supernatural mystery, but I was left in the dark.

Yestermorrow feels like it had a lot of potential. There are some decent temples and puzzles to be found, but it can be hard to recognize them with various design choices and performance issues. This also bleeds into the enjoyment and accuracy of precision platforming. While hopefully, there will be various patches to fix its numerous bugs, as it stands, YesterMorrow feels like an adventure that’s not yet finished.

Loop8: Summer of Gods is a gorgeous and ambitious JRPG that introduces unique elements to the genre but doesn’t know how to properly mix them to deliver a cohesive and memorable experience. The narrative gets insanely good, but I wish it didn’t take several loops to figure that out. Sadly, the limited quality-of-life features, strange battle system, and lack of character attachment make the entire experience more effort than it’s worth. However, if you look past that, you may find enjoyment in this one-of-a-kind JRPG that took some commendable chances on the genre.

If I could offer any advice, stay away from SpongeBob: Krusty Cook-Off. Its laughable $30 price tag had me thinking I was hallucinating as it is borderline robbery. These colorful visuals may catch the eyes of series’ fans, but it’s all a facade for a shallow and limited experience that is first and foremost a free-to-play mobile experience brought to Switch for a premium price.

What works about successful walking simulators is the vigor and vitality put into both the narrative and the surrounding world. You want to feel engrossed and experience something unique and attention-grabbing. The Fabled Woods had the environments and graphics on point, but everything else, from plot to dialogue to gameplay mechanics, felt lackluster in comparison.

Anything good about the game is immediately overshadowed with the things that players need to look past, which is terrible because I really enjoyed the dark premise of this game. As unique as Arc of Alchemist tries to be, and as much as it stands out in the lineup of games that Compile Heart has produced, I believe this a huge step back for the developer. Still, if you are just trying to fight monsters and look at cute chibi characters save the world, then this is the game for you.

Danmachi Infinite Combate is sadly not a good experience for fans or newcomers. It fails on both its visual novel and gameplay offerings with strange design choices and uninspired execution. Post-game offerings aren’t enough to warrant getting through this mobile-like game brought to console. Still, that may not stop the most diehard Hestia fans from enjoying some aspects of it.

Waking will have you eager to wake up within the first few hours. Its compelling self-reflective narrative is overshadowed by some of the worse adventure mechanics and systems that I have played in quite some time. Perhaps the game should go through some self-reflecting of its own and figure out exactly what it wants to be because this is a complete mess.

Seeing that Project Eden is designed to be a story-driven game, I could have overlooked these issues and took the game as it was meant to be. Instead, what I feel it was meant to be was a game that could have been more fleshed out with more weapons, abilities, and an extra round polish. Because for such a small team to develop a complete vision of a sci-fi world, it seems that all was needed was some more time.

Maybe if the game had collaboration monsters or some sort of monster leveling system I could care just a little more.

Tokyo Scramble is an ambitious stealth adventure that introduces a handful of clever mechanics but struggles to unify them into a satisfying whole. While its dinosaur-infested setting and gadget-driven stealth show flashes of creativity, those moments are undermined by an incoherent story, repetitive encounters, and rough presentation. The result is a game that feels more exhausting than engaging, one that hints at a stronger experience it never quite becomes.

My experience with Remothered: Broken Porcelain was brought to a halt several times after I had to restart my game and figure out a way to progress without soft locking it. On the surface, this is a beautiful, moody horror game, but once you look deeper, you’ll see that the real horror is the game’s mechanics, pacing, and plot. I had such high hopes for this game, but after a few hours, I was looking to check out of the Ashmann Inn early.

The original Flashback continues to shine as one of the greatest games ever created. Its enduring brilliance serves as a reminder of what a truly exceptional gaming experience can be. As time goes on, we can only hope that Flashback 2 will fade into obscurity, allowing the legacy of its predecessor to remain undiminished.

Something went terribly wrong with the development of Tamarin. Nothing works and everything comes off like it was slapped together causing this entire adventure to feel like a random and confusing mess. Still, if you’re trying to experience one of the most bonkers 3D platformers ever developed, you found it, but I urge you not to put your money into this game.

I spent two hours playing Outbreak: Endless Nightmares, which was more than enough to know it wouldn’t get better. This game fails at being a roguelike and survival horror with its terrible systems, controls, and asset flipped layouts, but that’s only the summarized version of this awful experience. The endless nightmares of Outbreak come from knowing you wasted any amount of time from your life playing it.