An approachable 3rd-person space sim with a vast, and often beautiful, universe to explore.

A great place to learn the ways of Magic. The lack of deck customization is appalling, but it nails the card game experience. [Nov 2010, p.82]

With its emphasis on roleplay rather than combat and borrowings from Disco Elysium, Sovereign Syndicate feels like another step forward for the CRPG.

Dragonflight isn't the most thrilling expansion in the MMO's lineage, but it's a fresh start, which is a rare thing for a 20-year-old videogame to get.

An engrossing survival and crafting game with flawed but engaging endgame systems.

Coffee shop philosophy with a side of comedy banter, plated attractively.

A fun throwback to the feel of Dark Souls, but easier than we’d hoped.

Changing weather and festive traditions enrich the four-year-old life sim.

Despite - or maybe because of - its stripped-down gameplay, RC Cars surges ahead as one of hte better recent miniature-car racing games. [Mar 2004, p.80]

So Two Point Campus doesn't really rock the boat, fitting firmly into the mould of its predecessor—but replicating one of the best management games of recent years is a smart strategy. Genuine surprises are few, and I hope the UI flaws are fixed promptly, but this is still a guaranteed good time, bursting with energy, charisma and slapstick shenanigans. You should definitely consider enrolling.

Snapshot is a charming, challenging platformer with innovative puzzles and a generous helping of good ideas. [Holiday 2012, p.72]

The most exciting new feature for many Capitalism II players is its multiplayer game. [Apr 2002, p.80]

This episode suffers a little from puzzle bloat, but they're strong puzzles with only a couple of weak moments, and some great story bits make up for the padding. [Jan 2010, p.79]

The wonderful chaos of the open world and your choice of how to tackle it is occasionally stifled by bad boss fights and worse boss speeches.

Omori's ending is brutal, but its characters and humour put some heart behind the horror.

The Matrix Online has done a rare thing: it's taken a movie license and made me feel like a contributor, not a spectator... Captures the feel of The Matrix and delivers a sharp massively multiplayer game. [June 2005]

Making a major impact to every basic combat operation in Arma 3, Marksmen is a substantial and successful overhaul.

The game's RTS and FPS elements aren't anything exciting on their own, but the combined whole makes Savage a fun, fresh game that will likely get better over time as its technical kinks are worked out, better maps are created, and organized clans begin to pop up. [Dec 2003, p.97]

Hilarious, bursting with charm, and satisfying to play. Untitled Goose Game is a winger.

Planet Coaster 2 may not be the deepest management sim you can buy, but its powerful creation tools and newly added water attractions make a sufficiently satisfying splash.

A very devoted homage that nevertheless brings back a golden era – provided you lived through it the first time.

Engrossing tension between empowerment and disempowerment, greed and fear, across an eminently replayable system.

Watch Dogs Legion's play-as-anyone gamble just about pays off. Most of London's citizens are way too ordinary to be much fun, but the few I grew to care about wound up feeling more important to me than most videogame protagonists ever do. Not bad for a group of randomly generated misfits. And I even wound up loving all those drones.

An excellent horror game burdened with action pretensions – but it still delivers a fraught, polished experience.

A gripping experience, despite an ending that kicks itself up the arse.

Although not as flashy or well-funded as EA's "Need For Speed" series, Flatout 2 blazes a unique trail through the arcade racing world--one collision at a time. [Nov. 2006, p.118]

Beyond Light is a fun campaign on a beautiful and expansive new world, but Destiny 2 is still some way from being the best version of itself.

Modern Warfare evolves the series for the better, but it could be so much more.