This one goes right back to the roots of hardcore action gaming. [Nov 2000, p.118]

The sharpest writing around, wrapped inside a surprising adventure that’s tough but rarely unfair. Failbetter’s finest hour.

If Blizzard can continue to deliver, Legion sets the stage for what could be the best chapter of World of Warcraft yet.

I'll still be playing it in months -- if not years -- from now, that's for sure. [July 2002, p.77]

As of press time, several negative Rise and Fall reviews have cropped up online. Mine is the dissenting opinion; in my mind, this RTS' fun and innovative gameplay far outweighs its minor faults. [Sep 2006, p.57]

Relink offers fluid combat against inventive bosses in gorgeous landscapes—this is an essential ARPG.

<i>Legends</i> boasts plenty of new elements, including a grappling hook fro swinging from lamp posts and cornices, interactive cutscenes that require fast reflexes to spare Lara being squished beneath a rock, and clever physics-based puzzles. [July 2006, p.54]

It's superb. [June 2002, p.90]

Go ahead and buy Doom II - if you think you can take the heat. [Dec 1994, p.134]

Marathon is a brilliant distillation of what makes extraction shooters great, and a glimpse at where they could go next.

With eight new courses and three returning ones (plus the option to import courses from "Tigers 2002-2004"), this is simply a beautiful day at the links. [Dec 2004, p.88]

By some creative miracle, modest difficulty and interaction are outweighed by genuinely great survival storytelling.

One of the best open world games to come along in ages.

Similar and slightly improved mechanics make this a worthy sequel, despite a sadly less-memorable story. [Mar 2010, p.70]

A stealth game that turns you into a predator rather than prey. Mark of the Ninja is an engaging sandbox of stealth.

Monster Hunter: Rise is arguably the greatest entry in Capcom's flagship series, and a game that simply never stops giving.

This sequel to an all-time classic is one of the standout RPGs for the 1990s. [Jan 1998, p.221]

RPG fans have waited for this one for a long time, and they won't be disappointed. [March 1997, p.102]

All multiplayer modes have the spy needing to complete a set of objectives, like swiping top-secret vials, while the mercs try ot keep the spy from succeeding. The resulting match-ups are breathtaking. [June 2004, p.68]

It's the best "grand" strategy game since the 1993 classic "Clash of Steel." [Nov 2002, p.138]

A final word about the dynamic campaign: it's incredible... This mode could keep some people going for years. [June 2005, p.64]

A bigger, prettier, and more addictive game that leaves even the series' most recent efforts in the dust...If you think "Rome: Total War's" battles looked good, especially for the number of units on-screen at once (i.e., thousands), Medieval II will blow you away. [Dec 2006, p.28]

If you can&#146;t find something to love about this game, dump your computer in the garbage right now. Arcanum epitomizes what people like you and me love most about PC gaming.

Deep, classy, and fiercely addictive. [Sept 2002, p.86]

Blowing out Factorio’s scale and reinventing its factory systems multiple times over, Space Age is an immediate contender for the best expansion ever made.

It may be a little short, but it's one wild ride while it lasts. [Aug 1995, p.80]

A crowning achievement for Vlambeer, and one of the finest action-roguelikes ever made.

Microsoft Flight Simulator 2024 fulfills the promise of being the most true-to-life and detailed game of its kind.

Playground's singular series gets a lush new setting, but otherwise remains committed to tuning an already winning formula. But even a marginal improvement on the best racing series around is worth celebrating.

Above all, it’s just a wonderful piece of entertainment. It’s surprising, surreal, packed with jokes, and rarely frustrating. I didn’t get bored once across the 17 hours it took me to finish the story and most of the sidequests, and it kept me laughing consistently until the credits. If that isn’t worth 90%, I don’t know what is.

A single-screen platform brawler that’s about as good as the genre has ever been—in versus or wave-survival mode.

At just over three bucks a throw, it's some of the best money you'll ever spend on PC gaming. [June 2002, p.73]

The pinnacle of classic, point-and-click adventure gaming. [Feb 2001, p.97]

This is quite simply the best World War II flight sim this pilot has experienced in years, and it&#146;s an instant classic for the genre. [Feb 2002, p.66]

Nier Replicant is a fabulous remaster of a lauded but messy cult classic, improving it without giving up on its essential strangeness.

A supremely satisfying turn-based strategy spin-off, and one of Persona's best ever stories.

Maybe Tetris Effect is just Tetris, but it masterfully does what so many other game remakes aim for—an experience suitable for seasoned players as well as beginners, which enhances what’s already good and offers new reasons to love a classic.

A fantastically addictive and realistic management experience. [Feb 2006, p.90]

If you like RPGs, you owe it to yourself to play Esoteric Ebb.

If you're tired of the grind, make your way to Granado Espada, where life is exciting, convenient, and most importantly, fun. [Nov 2007, p.70]

Silent Hill f is an excellent next step for this accomplished horror series. Proving that the horrors of Silent Hill aren't and shouldn't be restricted to the iconic American mountain town.

Nioh 3 is everything I wanted from a sequel to Nioh 2, and yet, somehow so much more. One of the best soulslikes yet.

Even without the focus on Michael Jordan, NBA 2K11 would still be the best PC basketball game ever made. [Jan 2011, p.74]

It's action-packed gameplay; attractive, colorful visuals; and star-studded videos are sure to draw in both hardcore fans of the series and large numbers of new players. [Apr 2007, p.20]

The finest modern-day F1 simulation currently available. [Mar 2001, p.75]

A sleep-destroying puzzle metroidvania of baffling depth, Animal Well may go down in history as one of the genre's best.

The best combat helicopter sim on the market, bar none. [Oct 2000, p.128]

A great tactical RTS with all the gorgeous aesthetics and atmosphere of the original series.

Though the main story suffers because of it, Assassin's Creed Odyssey is a remarkably massive RPG held together by a web of satisfying pursuits.

Beautiful, horrifying, and impressively updated through the power of Unreal Engine 5, Layers of Fear is a deft upgrade for two horror gems.

A brilliant final act with the series' most inventive and unusual factions yet.

A better version of everything the MMORPG community has cooked up so far, and more. [Feb 2004, p.60]

Baba is You manages to take the familiar idea of nudging blocks and solving puzzles in a fresh direction. Brilliant.

While single-player practice against AI teams feels drab and slow-paced, a full-blown multiplayer melee with more than 20 people per team is flat-out amazing. [Dec 2003, p.136]

THUG 2's combination of goofball story, challenging skate stunts, and ever-more-ridiculous objectives is so addictive that I'd learn to play with my feet if my hands fell off. [Jan 2005, p.97]

A puzzle adventure of rare ingenuity that thrives on its tactility as much as its design.

A brilliantly energetic and creative platformer that doesn't just do right by its inspiration Wario Land, but actually surpasses it.

Consider my wishes answered: Sam and Max: Abe Lincoln Must Die! is the best installment yet. [May 2007, p.69]

A daring, exciting and bleakly powerful payoff that handsomely rewards your investment in its characters.

Not the dramatic reinvention I expected, but this is tense and refined survival horror with a brilliantly bleak, grimy atmosphere.

The dangers of the abyss are well worth facing for Zubmariner’s bounty of fantastic stories and strange adventures.

Great characters, challenging resource management, and impeccable road trip vibes.

A valuable remake that makes the original Metro feel complete on PC.

Atari's latest open-world racer serves up hotter cars, warmer climates and more torrid racing action than its predecessor. [April 2011, p.70]

A unique and polished adventure game with a strong, sustained historical flavor. [June 1997, p.108]

Three great characters and a beautiful, fluid combat system make this a must-buy for hack-and-slash fans.

Satisfactory is a masterfully made game for crafters, builders, and factory managers of all kinds.

The excellent franchise mode adds loads of depth and decision making, and on-field play is livelier than ever.

Even with its few faults, Star Control 3 is a worthy successor and a blast to play. [Dec 1996, p.260]

You should play this because it's an inventive story with three or four things you've never done in a game before, and because it suggests a future where games don't insult our intelligence with dull plotting, dire exposition, and endless cut-scenes. [Dec 2012, p.75]

Wildly unpredictable but always enjoyable, The Alters is a masterclass in high-tension gaming.

Aquatic Adventure distills the Metroidvania into its most essential parts and says something meaningful with it.

This may well be John Tiller&#8217;s masterpiece. For dynamic, white-knuckled intensity and fine-grained realism, it comes closer than any previous PC game to replicating the spirit of that legendary boardgame classic "Advanced Squad Leader."

Even with its shortcomings, Cossacks II stands out in a cookie-cutter RTS world. [Aug 2005, p.61]

A beautiful and engrossing detective game packed with mysteries, puzzles, and intrigue.

If you like you action games fast and furious, Shogo is your one-way ticket to nirvana. [Dec 1998]

Nightfall is easily the best of three Guild Wars products and has set a very high bar for the next chapter. [Jan. 2007, p.76]

Without Evermore, Ni No Kuni 2 would have been good. Because of it, it's one of the best JRPGs on PC.

But the eye candy is really secondary to its amazing action. [June 2008, p.86]

Evolutionary shooter that creates an involving, sometimes terrifying, tactical battle between two distinct races. Brilliant.

It's hard to find much fault in this fun and well-balanced game. It's set in arguably the best fantasy universe ever and its production values are sky-high. [May 2006, p.68]

Action so intense it'll leave you jittery and hopped-up on adrenaline, and characters to come back for.

For $19.99, this bundle is worth buying just for "Off Road Thunder" alone. [May 2006, p.102]

Vampire Survivors is no longer the king of the genre.

Singularly unforgiving, dizzyingly complex, and like no other FPS out there: the extraction shooter's extraction shooter.

Effortlessly inventive, frequently surprising and consistently hilarious. The Stanley Parable shows how to make a story about game stories.

Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 is a big, bold, unutterably weird thing, and it's a new RPG classic.

Style and intelligently scaled difficulty make Dustforce an instant classic, and a lesson in the rewards of hard work.

A charming and inventive platformer that understands what makes the genre special, and never rests on its laurels.

An impressive accomplishment whose size and depth is a testament to wargaming's ability to bring history to life. [April 2011, p.76]

The Witcher is a fantastic RPG, and an amazing achievement for first-time Polish developer CD Projekt. [Jan 2008, p.82]

Rainbow Six Siege is an accessible and deeply satisfying shooter that rewards planning and teamwork over a quick trigger finger.

It might not have the sheen of Grand Theft Auto, but Saints Row IV is both gloriously stupid and stupidly good.

Proof that the "kill...reward" paradigm still works. [June 2001, p.78]

Given Bug Huge Game's big huge ambition level when crafting <i>Rise of Legends</i>, some dents in the genie lamp are to be expected. But they don't come close to spoiling <i>Legend's</i> fabulous magic carpet ride. [July 2006, p.65]

More focused and polished than the original, it's a game to get for any fan of the FPS genre looking for something a bit different.

Blow does it again. Exquisitely layered puzzles populate a world that will keep you guessing.

One of the best strategy titles of the year&#133;an out-and-out classic. [Feb 2002, p.65]